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Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will be in my city, Norfolk, Virginia today, and it's so exciting! She'll be speaking to the World Affairs Council, of which I was a member for many years.

This is one of my favorite photos of Mrs. Clinton. She looks dynamic and powerful in red - and also attractive. Love her hair this length, and I wish she would keep it this way.

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Those blue ties simply don't make a statement - except to say "I don't want to rock the boat."  Those pastel shades of blue are meant to pacify and calm. Furthermore, wearing a blue tie with a blue suit is simply unimaginative. Think about a yellow tie, any color in the red family so your tie pops rather than blending. Or maybe you both want to blend.

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Where's Your Tie?

Like love and marriage, a white dress shirt and a tie go together like a horse and carriage. And you shouldn't have one without the other. Unless you're Tom Ford in a sexy ad.
My advice, Mr. Romney:  plan ahead. If you're at a place where you know you'll get down & dirty and ditch your tie, wear a French blue shirt, a blue and white striped shirt, or a blue and white windowpane plaid shirt. Especially if you want to look cool and friendly. And they will all look classy.

It just doesn't look right to see a formal white shirt without a tie. Remove your tie and suddenly something looks out of sync. Not so with less formal shirts.

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It may seem unfair when the press takes hundreds of words to talk about Secretary Clinton's hair. When it comes to image, the devil is in the details. You get one thing wrong and that's all they notice. That having been said, the sum total is greater than all its parts. And that sum total is the YOU that is projected to the world at a glance. When you get all those little details right, all they notice is you and how wonderful you look. They don't notice your hair unless it just doesn't seem right. They don't notice your suits unless they could be a little more flattering.  It's not fair, but that's the way humans are. It goes back to our DNA from caveman days. Whenever things are out of sync or just not like they usually are, we're on high alert.

So what's a woman to do? My advice is to get a perfectly-cut, understated hairdo that complements the shape of the face. My favorite style for Mrs. Clinton was the modified bob that was curled under slightly. It frames the face in a gentle "C" curve, so the face looks oval.

The problem with a flip is that it always makes the face look fuller. That's because of the round line formed by the flip. When it comes to long hair, age doesn't matter. However, the flip always looks a little cutesie to me. Mrs. Clinton has lovely hair and it should be shown off. Long hair is fine, except in a flip. I think she's better in medium-length hair because it suits her face shape better.

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Pardon the pun, but Ron Paul and Newt Gingrich were tied for first place in the tie department at the latest Republican primary debates. Both Santorum and Romney wore the ubiquitous baby blue tie that should be banned from existence because it is so insipid - so they came in last.

Gingrich's purple tie gets high points, because it is a regal, elegant and very high-status color. However, wearing suit, shirt and tie in solid colors is a real No-No in terms of gentlemen's attire. At least one of these three items should have a pattern so it doesn't look monotonous.

Ron Paul gets high points for his red power tie, and I like the polka dots. Purple is regal and red is powerful, so both candidates chose ties that made powerful statements - unlike the other two candidates.

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Rick Santorum and Mitt Romney are tied for LAST when it comes to ties. A serious political candidates needs a serious tie to make a powerful statement. Pastels are powerless, pale, passive, and pathetic. High-stakes contenders in the political or business arena need to work with an image consultant so their words are congruous with their "message without words" - their image.

Most men favor blue, and they tell me it is their favorite color 99% of the time. However, dark blue conveys power, while pastel versions of this color put you to sleep. Save these ties for the country club, gentlemen.

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Candidate Rick Santorum's Grandpa Sweater

Rick Santorum needs an image consultant. No matter where you live, no matter how cold it is, you don't want to wear an "old fuddy duddy" granddpa garment like the one above if you want to be taken seriously.  Not only is the sweater wimpy, the color is also.

While this style still lingers on in parts of Europe, it simply isn't a look men should emulate. Any serious political candidate needs to look presidential, and this is the polar opposite of a presidential look.

Continue reading »]]> Today I received one telephone call and one email about wearing a suit in hot weather. Both women live in very hot climates and don't want to wear a suit jacket in the summer.  Here's my advice to them. If you work in a very competitive field, like financial services, you still need to wear a jacket, but choose one in lightweight cotton, perhaps with short sleeves, and a collarless neckline.  Collars are the hottest part of a suit in my opinion. In reality, if you wear a very plain cotton shell under your suit jacket, you can remove your jacket as you drive or take public transportation to work.

Here's my suggestion for those of you in less competitive fields. Wear lightweight scoop-neck shells in power colors like ruby red, deep royal blue, navy blue, red, black, fuchsia and magenta. Power up your shell with chunky hoop earrings and other accessories - including leather belt, a brooch or dynamic necklace.Wear your shell with lightweight slacks (so you can definitely skip hose) and nice shoes. Jogging shoes may be comfy but they will make you look klutzy when you wear them with work clothes.

Whatever you do, resist wearing a sporty-looking top such as a polo shirt. You're either dressed for business or for sports, and you owe it to yourself to protect your brand.

Continue reading »]]> It seems that most designers are pushing the Maxi skirt. It didn't look good the last time around in the Seventies, and it won't look good now. First of all, if you're trying to wear it as a business suit, it will create a long straight line - and straight lines are forbidding and masculine. Women look better in lines that are more in keeping with their hourglass figures. Knee-length skirts look the most pleasant and attractive.

Most importantly, it is acknowledged that skirt lengths reflect the state of the economy. We don't want our skirts going down at this time, do we!! It's our patriotic duty to ban the maxi! Join me.

Continue reading »]]> Having been an image consultant for 30 years, here's what I've observed:

The way you look and dress announces the outcome other people can expect from you. We DO judge a book by its cover.

The way you look and dress announces how you feel about yourself, and you’ll be treated accordingly. When you change the way you look, people treat you differently, and then you change on the inside!

The way you dress announces how you feel about others. When you dress for your own comfort, your prospective client or employer gets it, and it is like hurling an insult at them. When you dress to impress, they get that also, and they warm up to you. We like people who like us.

The way you dress defines who you are not only to others, but to the person in the mirror when you leave the house each morning. YOU determine the outcome of your day. If you feel good about who you are and what you do, you will want to shout it to the world – and to yourself - by dressing to impress.