holiday dressing Archives

October 2026 – Building a Wardrobe Starting With Common Shelduck by Dennis A. Jones

October 12, 2026

She's a statistics expert, and she works with BIRD data - what a great combination of technology and nature! Her inspiration for her personal style is this dapper creature:

Going into full-tilt autumn, our heroine felt that she was relatively well prepared for most of what life had to offer:

I have to share this with you: in the year of my birth, 1960, the average woman's wardrobe (in the US) was 42 garments. That would be the wardrobe above plus two.

And when I really try to remember what I wore through high school and college (when I was not interested in clothes much at all!), I may have had this many pieces. But I don't think so...

Now, the average wardrobe is OVER 150 things. What has changed so ... View the Post

Weekly Timeless Wardrobe #37: A Skirt

November 29, 2021

Ah, skirts... Some of us love them, many of us don't. But this time of year, one well-chosen skirt can get you through lots of dressy occasions, without a massive investment in multiple outfits. Pick a color or fabric that you deeply love, and that looks good with the neutrals in your existing wardrobe, and build around that!

Imagine that you bought this skirt, and each winter holiday season after that, you treat yourself to a piece of pink tourmaline jewelry, or a stunning evening bag, or just a couple of gold "things" to brighten up your winter wardrobe:

the sequined top comes in black, grey and pink, too...

If you love earth tones, this next skirt might be a good one to consider; if the slit is ... View the Post

Dressing for the Winter Holidays – Festive but not Foolish

November 15, 2019

It's an indelible memory: a corporate holiday party, back in the 80's. Most of the women were wearing those silk jacquard dresses that were so easy to find back then. (mine was red, with a dropped waist, and a big bow on my left hip, at the dropped waist; the skirt was a bit flared below the dropped waist, so that it moved when I danced. And THE SHOULDER PADS were a thing of wonder...)

One women showed up in strapless sequins. Oh my. I felt bad for her...

Since then, dressing for holiday events has been stressful for me; I've always been frightened that I would make that kind of "career limiting move," or otherwise just not fit in.

So let's be sensible, and intelligent in this planning, eh? Since many ... View the Post