How does Sarah Jessica, Oprah, and Salma do it? They have a bottomless bank account and an army of stylists. We’ve got the dish for achieving star quality without breaking the bank. The key to looking like a million bucks is not found in a bunch of designer labels, but in how we wear an item. Here are three tips that celebrities (or should we say their stylists) use to create their star looks.
Accessories
The key to accessorizing like a star is to go one step further than you would normally go in adding this final element to your wardrobe. For example, if you normally wear one pin/brooch, wear two or three. If you wear only 2 inches heels, one day kick it up in a pair of 3 inchers. Take Sarah Jessica Parker, who can be seen on TV every five minutes in her GAP ad campaign. Instead of pairing the jeans with a standard issue GAP cardigan, the stylists for the GAP shoot added a couple of brooches, a fedora, and some stilettos. Add these accessories Accessories- all of which you can get from Macy'sor Clarie’s for less than $20 bucks- and you will look like you just can from a top stylist.
Mix and Match
Please resist the urge to wear a designer from head to toe. Celebrities mix and match their designers. Haven’t you seen Jessica Simpson in her Wal-Mart-esque sweat suit, holding a fabulous Marc Jacobs Handbagand wearing a great shoes? Be like Jessica and throw on some Old Navy boot cut jeans, with a La Redoute, top, and elegantly strut around in your fancy Manolos. Find your Manolos heavily discounted at eBay. The online “flea market” is great place to score high fashion items below their retail price. However, be careful, eBay is a mecca for knock-offs.
Make it Fit
In this “off-the-rack-on-my-back” shopping culture, the importance of tailored clothing has been thrown away. The reason why stars like Oprah look fabulous in their clothes is because they are tailored. However, you don’t have to be a billionaire in order to have your clothes tailored, just head to your local dry cleaners. Most cleaners have a tailor on staff.
About the Author
Kathryn “The Budget Fashionista” Finney is the founder and Chief Shopping Officer of TheBudgetFashionista.com (http://www.thebudgetfashionista.com), a popular website that provides realistic fashion advice, shopping tips and sale event information to budget conscious consumers. Known as “the stylist to the cheap,” Kathryn has been around the world searching for the perfect bargain on designer goods and is willing to get the bargain by any (legal) means necessary.