EPISODE 35: BUILDING YOUR FOUNDATIONAL WARDROBE AND HOLIDAY FASHION TIPS WITH ELIZABETH ALLEN
Live Date: November 30, 2020
Show Description: Heather is joined today by dear friend and premiere boutique owner Elizabeth Allen. With a successful retail business of more than 12 years and 3 locations, Elizabeth walks us through her story of how she built e. Allen to where it is today, and guides you on how to build your foundational wardrobe. As the holiday season looks different this year, Elizabeth also provides insight on all the latest trends and tips to feel and look your best, regardless of the occasion and dress.
Biggest Takeaways:
Elizabeth talks about how she’s able to balance it all between being a mom, running a business during a pandemic, building relationships with girlfriends, and making time for her husband and family:
Recognizing that life is all about embracing the seasons and learning to be intentional about being invested in the particular place you’re in, whether that’s home or work. Also, creating boundaries is vital to maintain this.
Elizabeth shares that as she evolved over the years, so did e. Allen. What once began as simply wanting to help women build a foundational wardrobe shifted to focusing on the entire customer experience, building a strong and experienced team, and helping women who truly don’t enjoy shopping to look and feel their best.
Elizabeth believes that there is definitely a right and wrong way to dress your body and it’s all about being educated on your body type. She explains that if you have an hourglass figure, it’s best to highlight prominent areas like your waist. Whereas if you have a petite figure, you want to create a length to your body, which pieces like cropped denim is good for.
Typically the holiday season is filled with lots of parties, events, and time spent with family and friends. Unfortunately, this season may look a lot different. Elizabeth shares insight on some go-to outfits for the different holiday activities this season:
Wrap Dresses
Festive Blazers (sequin or metallic) with a little black dress
Leather pants with graphic tee and sneakers
Pleated leather skirt with a cute clutch
Lounge sets are also huge this season
Spring and Fall often take the lead with fashion trends. But Elizabeth also wanted to share some top trends and pieces we must have in our closets for the Winter:
Sleeve details on shirts, blouses, sweaters. Everything from puffs, pearls, or leather sleeves
Heavier leather pieces
Boots – Combat, Snow Boots, Chelsea Boots
Coats – More tailored longer coats
Accessories – Berets, beanies, scarves, hats, and embellished gloves
Learning the difference between investment pieces and trendy items can be difficult. But Elizabeth reminds us how essential it is to maintain a minimalist wardrobe and focus on durable pieces. Neutral colors such as black, white, taupe, and grey are key in Elizabeth’s closet. It should always be more about quality over quantity. Good denim and basics such as crew necks and v-necks are also a must-haves.
It is also important to know what and when to purge your closet. Elizabeth advises us to do away with those crazy oversized pieces, sweaters that are pulled up, low-rise denim, unflattering and ill-fitting pieces, and worn heels.
Quotables:
“I found with having children, I just lost a part of me and I know that can sound so vain. But I really noticed when I woke up and got ready and fixed my hair and threw my clothes on, that made me feel good. You’re just very effortless. I felt better. My day went better. I held my head high or I felt like I could really conquer things at a greater scale. So that was really the evolution of the e.Allen.” Elizabeth Allen – 6:30
“Fashion is really psychological actually. Even just seeing how somebody dresses, it’s very interesting. It’s figuring out how to curate a closet with a good foundation” Elizabeth Allen – 30:16
“Fashion is offered to us four times a year through designers, but it’s really what we choose to wear and do. And so you have to have those fun elements within your wardrobe.” Elizabeth Allen – 50:16
“I encourage people that when you change seasons in your closet, go ahead and get rid of it before you store it. So a lot of us flip our closets. So if it’s something you didn’t wear that whole summer or that whole spring, go ahead and just get rid of it. Cause you’re not going to wear it next summer either, and you’re going to want new and you’re going to want something better.” Elizabeth Allen – 53:21
“The key focus is on pieces that will last long, that are versatile enough for mixing and matching with most of your wardrobe.” Elizabeth Allen – 45:59
One thing, too, I think is really helpful is once you figure out what you look best in is knowing what you feel confident in. When I feel confident, like for example, I feel confident when I have on heels and when I have on red lipstick. I feel like the best version of myself. Well that makes me exude confidence in a meeting or in a setting with a client, on a date with Matt. So I think figuring that out about your body– there’s benefits down the road.” Heather Adams – 27:56
Curated Looks & Top Picks from Elizabeth:
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