My Dear Old Friend Black

My Dear Old Friend Black

People ask me how I got started in this personal styling business, and there are several answers. For years, I've done it for friends. I'm a big fan of the show What Not to Wear. I needed to feel more creative than my day job was allowing for. And...I needed to stop wearing so much black. That's right, folks, I needed to be my own personal stylist. Because my default outfit is the one you see below: all black.

Pants The Gap/Shirt H&M/Sweater TJMaxx/Necklace Lou Lou Boutiques/Shoes JCP

If I haven't picked out my outfits and hung them up before the week begins, chances are you'll see me in all black the next morning-and maybe even the day after that. It's been a huge help to me to inspire myself to get out of my comfort zone and wear some color! And pattern! Well, at least sometimes. Let's not get too crazy here. But now and then, I like to lay back, relax, and wear all black.

If you hardly ever wear all black, it can be a fun change to do it every once in awhile. It would be like me wearing, for example, pastel pink! Eeek! Can you imagine?

And no, Lou Lou isn't a sponsor. They lent me some jewelry for our holiday photo shoot, and I couldn't resist testing some out with my own clothes, too! Especially since lately, in my stylist capacity, I am relying on my dear old friend black to help me blend into the background. Because it's not about me-it's about you! And you can wear pattern, oh yes, you can.

Oh-and thanks for the sweet notes about my mantle! I felt comfortable painting it because it's not part of the original wood in our late 1800s home (the marble isn't, either). I mixed up my own chalk paint using Martha Stewart's tutorial and some paint from Home Depot. Then I distressed it. I didn't wax it because I wasn't sure how flammable that would be, and it didn't seem to need it. That's it!