A photograph of a woman in a blue jumper - guest Laura Taylor expert on creating a capsule wardrobe
Episode 129 – How to Create a Capsule Wardrobe with guest Laura Taylor

In this episode, Ingrid is talking to Laura Taylor and we will be talking about how to build a perfectly curated capsule wardrobe with the aim to shrink your wardrobe and expand your style!
Laura is an independent Image Consultant running her own business Your Style with Laura. She spends her days empowering women to enhance their natural colouring and shape, without having to be perfect. She focuses equally on how her clients feel as well as how they look. Her goal is for every woman to fall in love with themselves just the way they are NOW.
Episode 361 – Decluttering for yourself – why Swedish death cleaning might not be for you
Episode 360 – Gretchen Rubin – The secret to happiness in a cluttered world
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Transcript of this podcast episode
Intro  0:07  
Welcome to today's episode of The declutter hub podcast, your channel for super easy, no nonsense advice on how to declutter and organise your home. Please welcome your host professional organisers, Ingrid Johnson, and Lesley Spellman.

Ingrid  0:32  
Hello, and welcome listeners to Episode 129 of the declutter hub Podcast. I'm Ingrid. In today's episode, I'm talking to Laura Taylor. And we will be talking about how to build a perfectly curated capsule wardrobe. I'm really tripping over the words, capsule wardrobe, with the aim to shrink your wardrobe and expand your style. Now, Laura is an independent image consultant running her own business, your style with Laura, she spends her days empowering women to enhance their natural colouring and shape without having to be perfect. She focuses equally on how our clients feel, as well as how they look. And her goal is for every woman to fall in love with themselves, just the way they are now. Well, that sounds like an amazing plan. We don't do perfect here in the declutter hub, Laura. So that sounds like a great idea. So welcome to the show.

Laura  1:31  
Thank you for having me. We

Ingrid  1:34  
are delighted that you are a guest. And we know our listeners are interested in this topic. You know, we talk about decluttering wardrobes, we talk about clothes, and then the discussion came up about colour and style. And then I don't know, I think you came up somewhere or somebody tagged you. And we thought, how fabulous is this? We need to get you on the show. And we need to talk about this. So thank you for taking the time out to chat to us.

Laura  2:02  
Absolute pleasure. Thank you for having me. Be good.

Ingrid  2:05  
Welcome. You're welcome. So you are an image consultant, and you help people with a capsule wardrobe. Now, let's start at the beginning. What is a capsule wardrobe? And does that mean? You can have 10 items of clothing?

Laura  2:24  
But it is it's a good question. Because I guess when people hear capsule wardrobe, they can panic and think yeah, what only 10 items of clothing. You know, there's there's some people that are doing that one dress 100 Day Challenge. I mean, that is the extreme capsule wardrobe where you wear one dress for 100 days, and how many different ways can you wear it, which is the kind of extreme end of it. But I mean, the way I look at capsule wardrobes is that then they shouldn't be descriptive and limiting and kind of not inspiring what they should be is a it should be a wardrobe full of carefully selected and curated clothes that make you look good and feel good. So that when you open your wardrobe in the morning to get dressed, you don't go home. You know just oh, what can I see? Right that jumper and the jeans, shut it again and never look at it again. You know, it should serve you the wardrobe should serve its master it should make you feel good. So it should have carefully thought through it takes a bit of time to build that wardrobe. But once you've got it, it's very easy then to kind of combine your outfits together in a whole multitude of kind of different combinations. Okay, that sounds

Ingrid  3:45  
great. So you don't tell your clients you can only have 30 items or 50 items and the number of items is not important. Yeah, you are seeing it's far more a capsule wardrobe is a wardrobe that you want to open and everything in there you can fit it suits you you like it you feel good wearing it. And it doesn't matter if it's 12 items, 50 items or 60 items. But more about everything that's in there I can from where and I feel good in it.

Laura  4:15  
Yeah, everything in there should have a function. So you know what, what I kind of when I do decluttering wardrobes with my clients, you know we look and check if they've got multiples of certain things. So usually we always rebuy the same things. You know we just do before I decluttered my own wardrobe. I you know when I pulled them out I realised I had like 30 Navy dresses, you don't need 30 Navy dresses. You know it's about having a few of each kind of key item and everything in there has a function. It has a purpose. You know, gone are the days of having a summer wardrobe and a winter wardrobe. It's about and this is all to do with kind of, you know the topics around sustainable fashion and having you know, it's not about fast fashion. Buying something and then getting rid of it at the end of the season. You know, it's about having a workable wardrobe that you can use all year round. Obviously, sick jumpers, you can't wear in summer, there are limitations, but that you have, you know, certainly items that I would recommend my my clients to have, for example, a dress, you know, that suits your shape and your colouring, you know, which we can talk about a bit later. But that you can layer it up. In the winter, you can team it up with a polo neck underneath, you can layer it up with a cardigan, you can even throw a jumper on over the top of the dress, and it becomes a jumper and a skirt. You know, it's how can you combine different elements within your wardrobe. But every item is hard working kind of about quality? Not quantity. So yes, I wouldn't, I wouldn't say to somebody, oh, it doesn't matter how many items you have, you can have 400 items in your wardrobe. Because then it's not a capsule wardrobe. And things aren't getting used enough. But I'm not as prescriptive as saying 20 items, you know that? It depends on your lifestyle and what you need.

Ingrid  6:07  
So does quality over quantity also automatically mean that the clothes have to be expensive? Or can a quality item actually be an item that you can buy in your local clothing shop that is not necessarily expensive? Is the quality more about how much were you get out of it?

Laura  6:27  
So there's a really important thing I talk about with my clients to do with cost per wear. And so yes, sometimes, you know, a lot of the time quality is attributed to cost and that you know, the price of an item. Usually it is more expensive, if it is well made, if it was made from high quality materials that I do find you do get what you pay for quite often. And a lot of women are like, there's no way I would spend 150 pounds on a pair of shoes. But actually, if they if we broke down what they do spend on lower priced less, you know, well made footwear, you know, per wear, they're probably spending more, you know, my my shoes, they're very well thought through what I need based on my body shape and my colouring and my requirements for my kind of my life. And I will spend under 50 pounds on a pair of shoes, but they will last me for about eight to 10 years. And I will wear them all the time. Because I love to wear them. They make me feel good. Yeah, you know, and I know they work for me. And when I put them on, I have a bit more of a spring in my step.

Ingrid  7:32  
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. In college. She was you mean, many, many years ago, I can't even remember how long I bought this pair of boots, these grey boots. And they were I think at the time, I think about 180 euros and around 80 pounds. I thought that was a lot of money. But my calves fit in it I got really big. So I always struggled. So I was like okay, this is good. It's actually a boot I can actually do up until my knees instead of having to kind of struggle to get my bike My my, my calves in them. And they've lasted and lasted I've taken care of them, I've polished them really brought them to the menders. And they're still are in good condition, even though they've been in for a long time. I love wearing them. So yes, I completely understand what you're saying, because I've had them for such a long time. And I've worn them so many times, the cost per wear goes down while other boots that might have been cheaper, and I've worn them five times. And then I thought they're not really great. The heel is too high, the to tighten my toes, I can't get my calf in properly, and then you declutter them, because you're kind of you get fed up if they're not well made, and if they don't fit properly. Yeah,

Laura  8:43  
exactly. And it just means if things. It doesn't mean everything has to cost, you know, hundreds and hundreds. But you know, if you are, you know, investing in an item, you really you really think it through, you know, I say to a cat, I think can you imagine it in your wardrobe? Where does it belong? You know, what, what will you wear it with? How often will you wear this item? Do you already have an item that ticks this box? You know, and if it costs a bit more you do put more thought into, you know, is the classic impulse buy, isn't it? Yeah. Oh, it was only 15 pounds, and then it stays in the wardrobe? Because you're not quite sure if it suits you. And oh, well, you know, yeah, you know, and I don't want women's wardrobe to just be full of impulse buys.

Ingrid  9:25  
Yeah, yeah. So let's then go back to the capsule wardrobe. What are the key components? What are do you think the must haves in a capsule wardrobe?

Laura  9:37  
So you need to have what I call layering items. So they are your basic kind of tops that you can use to get the right necklines and sleeve lengths and colours based on your body shape, which is why you know I do that because then you can make the right decisions for you. And then you kind of have to Have you have you get more and more combinations, but around 10 as a kind of, I would say is a good level to have in a few different colours that all complement each other. All of my tops are in blues and pinks and purples, and they all mix and match everything goes. And then I would say to people, it depends on your lifestyle and your work and your requirements. But key things would be a well tailored, fitted coat. And you know, you don't need 5000 coats, you just need a good winter coat, and then a good kind of transitional spring autumn coat, you get it the right colour tailored beautifully to suit you. And that's all you need in terms of a well tailored coat. Also a good pair of jeans, based on again on your shape. A lot of stylists would say having a white shirt, a well fitted, tailored white shirt. Now I don't have one of those because it's not my style personality, it's not my requirement, but you will see that on the list of the must haves for a wardrobe. So I mentioned it because it's one of those things that obviously a lot of people think it's important for them, but it's not something I'm ever going to wear, that's not my style, but for me, I will have layering items, because then you can essentially make your own jumpers, you know, I can take a basic polo neck and then put on top, a V neck t shirt for though normally wear in the summer, and hey presto, I have a jumper. So those are the kinds of things I would say, evaluate what you need in terms of your work life balance. And make sure you have layering items. And a good dress, I would definitely say a dress that is a smart casual dress that you can wear out for an evening with friends or you know, whatever, we can do that again. But you can also wear it in the winter during the day on a dog walk, you know, or out with the kids or whatever it is, or you can dress it up. So it can be really versatile. Okay, so we need

Ingrid  12:08  
and how about maybe like a black pair of trousers and maybe a jacket or something? I mean?

Laura  12:17  
Yeah, so definitely a black or it depends on what your neutral is. So I talked to women about the importance of neutrals in your wardrobe. You know, hands up, if your wardrobe is mostly black, navy, and grey. It's like the woman's wardrobe. That doesn't work for all skin tones, it depends on your colouring of what I would suggest for you. But yes, you want to use your neutrals such as black, if that happens to be your colour. Or maybe it's yeah, it's grey, or it's like a khaki or something like that. And you use that in your investment items such as trousers, coats, bags, shoes, so that the theory is they all then coordinate with everything else you wear. So if you are an autumn, which I think you are you would look you know your wardrobe being fitted with lots of kind of deep browns and OB jeans. And I would say to you to get your investment items, your trousers, your coats your shoes, your belts in these dark neutrals. And then they will go with all of your accent colours and call them which you would use to make up your tops and things like that. And then they will have the same ingredients and then you can mix and match because a lot of women end up with cludes that nothing goes you know you buy a dress and then oh, I've got to buy new shoes to go with that. Then you bag entirely new set and then you never wear them again. One way so the idea is that you buy a dress that's in the same kind of colour scheme that suits you and you've already got a pair of shoes that will work for us see,

Ingrid  13:57  
I see. So you mentioned very briefly kind of in between the black clothes now if I go to the shops here in the UK, there is lots and lots of black and it's actually not something unless maybe when it's a I think you can actually I can actually count the black clothes that I have on one hand. I think a pair of trousers may be a taupe I think I've got one jumper and that's about it. But when I go shopping, I see lots and lots of blank or what's the issue because people think that the black will slim them down or what's what's the what's the idea here I'm always looking for colour that like yellow boring is all black.

Laura  14:41  
It is it is a lot of black and navy neat. The British woman's obsession with Navy knows no bounds. It's an interesting statistic. 70% of all clothing sold to women in the UK is black. And a big part of this is because we don't know what suits us. So they, you know, the retailer's, the designers, they sell you black because they're like, you don't know what you want. So we'll just do black. And yes, Black has this kind of timeless appeal to it. So you kind of go back, you know, the little black dress, you know, Coco Chanel, you know, kind of, that's where it came from. And it's had this sort of stature ever since. And it is classic, and it is timeless. But the thing with black is, unless you're a winter, it can actually aid you. In terms of colouring, it can overpower you, or it can kind of wash you out a little bit. And women wear black because yes, it's slimming. And you're not drawing attention to yourself, because everyone else is in black. That actually, there are different blacks if you want to call it dark neutrals as I refer to them. So it could be instead of the little black dress, it could be the little forest green dress. And it will do the same job. dark colours, the eye doesn't know what to do with them. So it can't quite so you can hide into them hide the lumps and bumps and things like that. So that's why women love black. And it goes with everything because everything in their wardrobe is black.

Ingrid  16:09  
I must admit, I already told you before we started recording, I love navy blue. It's one of my favourite colours. So maybe maybe my black is navy.

Laura  16:18  
Correct? Is the same with me. My black when I did my water was like, Goodness me. Because I prided myself, I don't have any black. But oh, I had maybe that's my black. And it's the same thing. You know it, it's in highs, everything. It's classic, it's timeless. But what I try and have my women do is inject a bit of colour into that palette, essentially. But yeah, that is why there is black everywhere it is it is slimming. It is timeless, it is classic, and particularly in the UK, women are kind of brought up to, to see if we take pride in our parents when we look in the mirror or you know, it's vanity, you know, and it's not. But there's still that kind of negativity around that. So women, you know, most of my clients, they don't look at themselves in the mirror, you know, and they just kind of throw on black and they don't really think about it. And what I really want to do is empower women to Yeah, to know what suits them so that they can step away from Black.

Ingrid  17:19  
Yeah. Okay. Interesting. Then I wanted to call back a little bit, because you said kind of in between everything. Oh, by the way, you were in Alton, how are we working here with seasons? How this this whole colour thing work? For winter? You mentioned autumn? So can I make the conclusion and I'm sure you're going to tell me more about this, that every person has a season that they kind of fit in?

Laura  17:45  
Most do not everybody, about 20% of the population have what we call a neutral skin tone, and then they don't fit in a seasonal box. So yes, you're right. You may you depends on where image consultants train, they will use different language, but it all kinds of is around about the same idea. But yes, in theory, you belong to a season. So I'm a summer, some of the seasons do actually correlate with the colours you imagined. So an autumn you know, when you imagine autumnal colours, that does actually translate with what colours in the autumnal palette, they match. But yeah, it's to do with skin tone. So you have a warm skin tone, or a cool skin tone. And it's also to do with the colour of your hair, and your eyes. And it's not about your eye colour you can have so I have blue eyes. And I could be any of the four seasons and have blue eyes. It's to do with the patterns in the eye. It's very bizarre. But it's all to do with that, you know, that can tell me a lot about your season. And the idea with colour analysis is that you want to mirror your complexion. It's not about opposites attract. So if you have a warm skin tone, you will look better in the yellow based colours. So obviously yellows, oranges and greens and this is like very generally speaking, you know, whereas I have a cool skin tone, and I look better in blue based colours, which are cooler, and then how many colours you combine and that's all kind of the nuances of each season and your unique colouring. But some people don't fit in the season. And they're analysed in a slightly different way, which I could go on about all day. But you know, I'm aware I probably send everyone to sleep.

Ingrid  19:27  
So you as an image consultant do you then is one of your main tasks to first figure out what kind of season the person fits in with the colours and then you start to look at sleeve length and neckline and is it more is the underlying tone of the eyes in the face and the skin? Is that leading in the clothes?

Laura  19:55  
Yeah, so to be able to declutter your wardrobe Whether that's, you know, somebody professional would do it, or they do it, you need to know you need to have a direction. Yes. So knowing what colours suit you, I would do their analysis on colouring and we would draw out what colours are best. And then I do body shape analysis as well. So we look at what neckline is everything literally from top to toe, what combinations of outfits you know, work best for their shape. And then we go to the wardrobe. And you want everything in there that enhances your your figure, basically. But a really important thing is what you physically see might not be what you're drawn to. And that happens very often. And it's a really important thing, I'm not just dressing you know, a piece of meat, and I'm dealing with a person. And a lot of the time these two things don't marry up. So my job is to make sure that I work with what they are drawn to as well. So say they love black, and that's all they own. I'm not gonna say Bennett all practical, and it's not very empowering for them, I will show them how to wear black well, for their colouring, how they can work or rescue a colour. And we work with what they have. So it's not about then binning everything and starting again, it's obviously removing the excess. The stuff that doesn't fit. I mean, don't get me started about the thin and the fat wardrobe. You know, get rid of that stuff. And then we can work with what they've got there. That's kind of at the heart of it.

Ingrid  21:28  
Okay, so. Oh, so I'm like, oh, I need to ask you so many questions. Let's rewind a little bit. Let's I want to talk more about decluttering. Definitely, and organising. And yes, fat and thin clothes. I want to come back to that. But can I go back to? What are the benefits of knowing your colours?

Laura  21:52  
The benefits, so it empowers you. It gives you the knowledge to know you know what works for you. We are bombarded with options and choice now. We mentioned lots of black, but also lots of black indifferent silhouettes. Oh, yeah, lots of Navy, but also, it seasonal trends. You know, and the leopard print, I'm guilty, I'm wearing it right now, you know, but the different trends that are going. And what it enables you to do is to define your style, which is different to fashion. Fashion is it changes, you know, style endures. I think Coco Chanel said that I might be stealing it from, you know, style endures. And it's, it's finding what suits you within just the noise, you know, of whether you shop online, and particularly now with shopping online, you can't even try anything on. So it takes the guesswork out, you know, I essentially have an ingredients list of what works for me. and I were very select in terms of what I look at, you know, you can instantly just filter out everything, that's the wrong colours. And I look for the right silhouettes. And I also know what gaps I have in my wardrobe, what I'm looking for. So it just makes you, it empowers you. And if you look good, you will feel good. And my clients genuinely they just lift their head a bit higher. You know, and they say that a lot of them haven't really spent any time thinking about themselves or, you know, talking just about them and doing something just for them. And so it's a really kind of therapeutic experience. And it's something I think every woman should do at some point.

Ingrid  23:33  
Do you feel that people will have their colours done? spent less money on shopping because they make less mistakes?

Laura  23:43  
Yeah, definitely. Yeah. I could drag that answer out. Yes. Initially, they might go a bit bananas and go out and buy stuff because they're really excited. And I try and you know, calm down. But yeah, they become far more savvy shoppers. Okay.

Ingrid  24:01  
Interesting. Interesting. So, you said that part of the capsule wardrobe is being able to layer items up. And yes, that you kind of want to get away from this is what I wear in the summer. And this is what I wear in the winter. And less than I had been talking about that in the declutter hub as well. And I Oh, I kind of call it the the year round wardrobe. Yeah, because people asked me ask us this question all the time. So where are your winter clothes, wear your summer clothes and I'm like, I don't have a massive wardrobe. So I do need to rotate some of my clothes so my long sleeve tops go in my spare bedroom in the summer and my short summer tops will be moved in in the spring into my main wardrobe. But the bulk of my wardrobe stays the same because these are items that you can wear year round either with a thicker jumper or women's short sleeve T shirt or whether half sleeve t shirt or something like that, or top. So it's interesting that you mentioned that because I've been saying that for a very long time.

Laura  25:10  
Yeah, and you are way ahead of the time and good. You were there. It's, it is and it's all about that now, it's kind of the official term is modern layering. So you've been, you know, you've been on this for a while you're there. And it is it's, you can now legitimately wear socks and sandals. Now, you know, because we, it's kind of the extreme end and giving an extreme example, you know, but why should sandals just be for the summer? Yeah. And people are finding creative ways of wearing their wardrobe all year round, making it work for them. Because you think about all these lovely, you know, I always come back to dresses, but you know, some addresses that you have you you only wear them on holiday, or for special occasions, or I don't know, they can then be worn all year round. Yeah, you can just layer them.

Ingrid  25:59  
Yeah. So let's then move on to decluttering. Because of course, that's what we love in the declutter hub is in decluttering. Now, are there any do's and don'ts when you are Declutter? Well, we're going to talk about organising in a minute, but I first want to talk about decluttering. So what are the do's and don'ts when you are helping a client declutter their wardrobe,

Laura  26:23  
I'd say don't make any rash decisions. Obviously, know what your shape and colour is first, so you know what you're removing. And then I sort of say to them, do go through and remove anything that doesn't fit is the first thing. There's no point having the wardrobe that one day, I might fit back into it, because every time you open your wardrobe, and look at that items gonna make you feel horrible, because you're like, Oh, I'm just too big, they won't fit, it makes you feel miserable. So remove the items that don't empower you that don't make you feel great, that don't fit that are, you know, they're very worn, anything that's past its time, remove those things, because you can't see the wood for the trees. Otherwise, you've just got too much going on. So definitely remove those items, before you kind of go any further. And then I say, get everything out all at once. And you might disagree with me. But I it's very, it's quite a wake up call when my client gets everything out, they own into one space, and you realise what you've duplicated, and you have lots of, and it can be I did it. And it was just it's almost I was quite appalled. I was like God had this much stuff. Like I don't know what one person does not need this much. So yes, get it all out at once, because then you have to put it back. So you need to give yourself nearly a you know nearly a day to do it properly. And you do it. If you have do it. You won't finish it, I think to get the full impact and the full benefit. You have to get everything out. And then yeah, put things back when you know they have a have a space. So that's definitely a do. And don't make any kind of impulsively do it straightaway. Take your time with it. Block out a time to do it. I would say

Ingrid  28:19  
Yeah, well, I fully agree with you to get everything out of the wardrobe. I mean, if you're doing your wardrobe, you might not also want to pull out your knickers and your socks and your pyjamas and your swimwear. But if we're talking about a wardrobe, and we're talking about clothes that are on a hanger, basically, yes, I think it's very important to pull everything out and to start shorting it into categories and kind of go wow, how many have I got of everything? And what I do a lot as well with my clients is to say, show me the favourites? So instead of starting with what can you declutter, I'm like, tell me first what the items are that you wear all the time and you feel good in. Because those are the items that normally are end up being on a chair somewhere on the floor somewhere that are in the wash, and they can't return to the wardrobe because the wardrobe itself is bursting at the seams with me I can't put anything else in and then they go but I can't fit in that and I can't wear that and that is very old and that I actually don't like that was a mistake and and then you have to kind of start making those tough decisions really, isn't it?

Laura  29:27  
It's very emotional. And obviously, people have a memory associated with lots of these items. And they might be a good memory they might not be but you know, there's this sentimental value attached to these items. And, you know, I kind of someone says, Well, this was gifted to me, you know, I'm like, okay, but it's yours now. It was gifted to you so it is yours and you. You don't owe this person anything to keep holding on to it if it's not helping you. You know that person would be upset if they knew that you were only holding on to it because it was a gift You know, pass it on and let somebody else have joy from wearing this.

Ingrid  30:04  
You can see, Laura, you're you're on board with the declutter hub philosophy. This is what we say all the time. So we very much aligned like that. Okay, so let's talk a little bit about organising them. So you are going to put stuff back in a wardrobe, how do you organise it?

Laura  30:23  
So there's different schools of thought on it, there really is. And I usually hand over to the decluttering experts. At this point, I thought I was gonna do this, but because they're better, but you can put things in categories, you know, which I find is most helpful. That's how I do it. Some people do it by colour, but all my things have the same colours in them. So that would not work for me. So I do mine by category, by type. So I know where I'm going. Some people will put things in advance for that week, they will plan what they're going to wear, it takes the stress out. So they will line that section up in their wardrobe, and have those outfits there. So they can see how they combine and work. So they have like a working section of a wardrobe. But that's how I do it. I try and hang as many things as I can, or you know, things that I fold, I make sure I can see everything because if you can't see it, you won't wear it. It has to work for you. So I try and hang as many things as possible. And when I've got items that my my clients really don't want to let go off, yet, I get them to turn the hanger around. Okay, you know, and then if they haven't wanted in a year, it's gone. But yeah, I would categorise by colour, because the idea is that everything will have the same ingredients in it, as I call it through there already categorise everything goes. So I would do it by type of garment. And make sure everything is visible, because he will not wear it. Yeah.

Ingrid  31:52  
All our listeners who are thinking, Oh, no, I need to I don't know my colours, I'm gonna I'm in all sorts of black, I'm gonna have to bend my whole wardrobe. We can now just calm everybody. We don't have to been your whole entire wardrobe. No, but you need to work. Look, find out what your season is, what your colours are, what your shape is. And based on that, kind of figure out what fits you well. And slowly but surely over time build to that wardrobe, isn't it?

Laura  32:23  
Yeah, exactly. It's a slow process. And, you know, one of the things that women always say to me is, I will get it done. But I'm gonna wait to like lost a stone, you know, I'm gonna lose this, and then I'm gonna do it. You know, and it kind of makes me sad, because women are sort of saying they're not worth it now. But their body, you know, they're kind of waiting to treat themselves in the future as it were. And actually, knowing how to dress your body when you don't feel as body confident is more important than if when ever you do achieve this ideal weight, you know. So you're, I always say to my clients, your bones don't get fat is about your skeletal structure, essentially, that really defines what shape you are. So yeah, it Knowledge is power. And it can be very empowering to know actually, and what I helped my women then do is focus on all the great things about them about their colouring about their shape. And then they get excited to enhance those amazing elements. And then they don't focus on the bits they don't like so much. Yeah, yeah. It's kind of just slightly shifting the focus of attention.

Ingrid  33:29  
Yeah. I think also shifting mindset as well, isn't it? Because I think a lot of us shop because when we're feeling a little bit miserable, and it's, it's retail therapy, and then we kind of think, Oh, we can have we want to have that fix of buying something so we can have something that we later think what was I thinking? That look

Laura  33:48  
different on the hanger? Yeah, and then it's designed to that section of the wardrobe, the impulse buys that you kind of either want to wear it, but you're a bit worried that people are gonna laugh at you, or it doesn't suit you. So you don't wear it. Or you were like, no, what was I thinking? That was a terrible idea, you know, and so it will remove those kind of impulse buys. But also, it will also give a lot of women kind of confirmation of Yeah, I knew I was right. I'm just gonna do it kind of gives them like licence to just dial it up and do it all the time.

Ingrid  34:23  
Yeah, it's so interesting. It reminds me of when I had a like I was telling you before the show that I had my colours done many many, many years ago. We're talking and 90s hair people and when I do this, how old I am. So I actually have already said to Laura, I'm going to do a colour consult with you because I want to double check if I'm still on the right track, or I've been actually buying the wrong colours for like the last two decades. So that is on the list of things to do. But what I did do a couple of years ago is at I went to a large department store here in London, and they have a personal shopping person that you Can book. And it was absolutely amazing. I was completely and then I did it twice. The first one was absolutely but the second one was good as well wasn't that wasn't lazy the first time I did my present job was with a with a gentleman. And he was incredible. And he came up with his bright yellow talk, and I looked at him going, you are serious. And he's like, trust me, he said, You like your navy, put the yellow tarp on with this necklace and put the Navy colour jacket that you really liked that you told me you really like and put it off each other. And I just went, wow. And then he said, Look, I've got exact same one in a bronze colour. And you're going to look amazing, too. And every time I wear that outfit, people say to me, that looks nice on you. So he really broadened my horizons in what I didn't think I would ever wear. And the funny thing is, I have never bought a jumpsuit, he actually got me a jumpsuit and I put it on and I don't think that's me. And until this day, I still regret it because I think I should have bought it.

Laura  36:09  
Nothing holds you more like the things you don't buy.

Ingrid  36:15  
Wow. Oh my goodness listeners a tie this up. I told me. But it's just been so amazing, Laura, because you have a fantastic offer for our listeners, don't you? So listen up everyone, because Laura's got a lovely little offensive because she wants to help you find out what your best. Neutral is, too. Right. So what do people need to do?

Laura  36:38  
What did he do? Yeah, so I'm essentially offering people if they'd like to find out for free, what your best dark neutral is, that would essentially be the basis for your capsule wardrobe. And all you have to do is take a selfie. It's that simple. It needs to be well lit. So stare out of the window like a crazy person. Because the lighting is nice and even. And it's a neutral kind of white light, which is what I need. And then yeah, send it over to me. So I think you're going to include contact details and stuff. Yeah, and then just a ping it over to me. Let me know that you heard this through the podcast, so I know where you've come from. And yeah, I will let you know.

Ingrid  37:26  
So you need to so if our listeners want to find out what their dark neutral is their best dark neutral. You need to stand next to Windows, you get natural light. Do you need to wear makeup or no makeup at all? What's best son,

Laura  37:39  
you can wear some makeup? I'm not I'm not mean? What would be good is to not have like lipstick, eyeshadow blush or bronzer on. So not like the colour elements of makeup. So you can have like human foundation and things.

Ingrid  37:51  
Yeah. And do you also need to have a photo of the eye? Is that correct?

Laura  37:55  
Yes, actually, that would be helpful. It's a bit of a bizarre request. But yes. If you can live with anybody else, if you can get them to take it for you, because I find the selfie camera can be a bit blurred, because I need to see your iris where and it needs to be in focus.

Ingrid  38:11  
Okay, so listeners, what a fantastic thing. So if you want to find out what your best duck noodle is, send low Laura, a selfie of your face, a closer picture of your eye. And I will include all the details in the show notes. probably easiest to use her Facebook message. But she's also I've got a website, I've got an Instagram page, I've got an email. So I'll put all those details in the show notes. So you can send your images to Laura, she can help you figure this out, too. Thank you, Laura for offering that to our listeners.

Laura  38:47  
Absolute pleasure.

Ingrid  38:48  
So and maybe this podcast has inspired you to think you know what I need to figure this out, I feel I'm always wearing the wrong thing. I feel like I'm wearing the wrong colours. I'm dressing for a summer, but I think I might be in autumn or whatever. Maybe you want to reach out to Laura and she can help you with your colours and sorted out with you. So I think all the details will be on our website, how you need to do that and how much it costs, etc. Because she can do everything online. So it doesn't matter if you're not to the UK with the time difference. I'm sure it will work out at some point that even if you're an American, exactly. So clients all over the world get in touch with her to do this consultation. Thank you, Laura, for all your advice and your lovely information for our listeners. Yeah, no, thank

Laura  39:34  
you for having me. It was lovely to chat with you.

Ingrid  39:37  
Well, listeners, are you intrigued? And do you want to find out more reach out to Laura and we hope that this podcast was helpful for you and that you are going to take action? Because that's what we are all about here in the declutter hub. And you know this and we tell you this every week take action, and we just appreciate you being here. And listen Think to us. So if you've enjoyed this podcast and you think wow my friend, so and so would love to know about this colour, image and styling, etc. I want to force her to show go to the declutter hub.com website, you'll find the show there in the show notes, all the details, and maybe they want to listen to if you want to have more handy tips and advice about decluttering and organising from less DNI, please go to the declutter hub community on Facebook, because we've had an amazing group with amazing members and we'd love you for you to join us too. If you don't want to miss the next weekly episode, please subscribe to the declutter hub podcast, and it will pop into your notifications each Friday. So thanks so much for listening, and we'll see you next time.

Outro  40:51  
Thanks for listening to this week's episode of the V clutter hub podcast. Check out declutter hub.com For more inspiration, don't forget to tune in next week.
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