Must Haves for Spring 2020: Bermuda Shorts

If you’ve been looking around and feeling like shorts are getting shorter all the time, you are correct. In fact, short shorts and hot pants are coming on strong for spring and summer. But, rest assured, if that isn’t your jam, there’s a new alternative that is on trend and crazy comfortable.

As a personal stylist for women, it’s on me to find pieces that are just right for the real world and also make you look and feel your best. I’m also having the time of my life digging into spring fashion trends so expect to see a number of different choices popping up in your inbox over the coming weeks. The last post featured my favorite colored leather and vegan leather for the season. In case you missed it, you can find it here. Next up: Your latest 90’s flashback, Bermuda Shorts.

Spring Must Have: Bermuda Shorts (Especially as Part of a Summer Suit)

Must Haves for Spring 2020: Colorful Leather

Man, if you are stuck in the house working from home on this beautiful spring day, this is just what you need to put yourself in a positive head space. Spring Fashion. Let me say it again, Spring Fashion. As a personal stylist for women, I pay attention to trends, naturally, but my work is really about helping women translate those trends into their everyday looks.

Here are some pieces that are sure to bring you joy.

Spring Trend: Colorful Leather (and Vegan Leather)

Hot Tips From a Client: 3 Ways to Effortlessly Save Money While You Shop Online

You know how much I love talking about the Poplin Community. You, Dear Reader, are a valuable member. Poplin clients are members, too. As a personal stylist for women, I spend my time both sharing with and learning from members of my community. And let me tell you, I learn a lot. So, I’ve decided to start offering up periodic blog posts filled with expertise from my clients that I am confident will be helpful to you. These tips are from one of my new clients in the Bay Area, Daniela. Enjoy!

Daniela’s Words of Wisdom: 3 Ways to Get the Best Deal

When You Shop Online

Buy 2nd Hand Pieces at Nordstrom. That's Right. Nordstrom.

As a personal stylist for women, it’s important that my recommendations align with my client’s values. Whether she is going for affordable options to keep her budget in check or she’s more interested in sustainability or Fair Trade, it’s all about honoring those values as best we can.

Over the past year or so, the requests for second hand pieces have sky rocketed. While we always catered to our the values of each client, now things are more explicit with sustainability modifications on every package. But things just got a whole lot easier.

Seattle Fav Nordstrom Offers Curated Second Hand Pieces

Beyond Seattle: Poplin Goes National

As a personal stylist for women in Seattle, I spend the majority of my time working with individual local women to help her elevate her style. Starting with her personal style, body type, budget and lifestyle, we create a strategy for her to look and feel like her authentic self every day- whether she’s giving a presentation or sitting at home in her pajamas.

From the outside, it may seem like all of this goodness is here in Seattle. But, actually, Poplin’s reach goes beyond the Pacific Northwest and lately, I’ve found that lots of folks have questions about that. So, let’s do some celebrating, shall we?

10 Game Changing Ways that Poplin Style Goes Way Beyond Seattle

Fashion and Function: Over 30 Winter Coats that are Just Right for your Body and your Style

If the snow storm has taught us anything, it’s that it’s vital to have a winter coat that you adore and is also ready for crazy cold weather. As a personal stylist for women, I’m all about making sure that your pieces are functional AND communicate your authentic personal style.

Remember, if you can only afford to upgrade one piece in your wardrobe, it should be your coat. You make the majority of your first impressions wearing your coat. Whether you are walking in the door for a coffee meeting, heading from building to building or ready for a night out, your coat can make or break your look. Here are some favs! Enjoy.

The 30 Best Winter Coats for Your Body Type. Go!

25 Hip Sustainable Brands and Retailers

As a personal stylist for women, I’m focused on ensuring that every woman’s clothing communicates her authentic personal style. That style is also reflective of her values. For some, those values mean supporting local designers. For others, that means putting more towards sending her kids to college and less on clothing. I find that most of my clients fall somewhere in between. They would love to purchase pieces from brands and makers that are paying attention to sustainability and fair wages, but they also need to stay budget conscious. Others are watching large and small retailers go out of business and are really just in search of somewhere new and interesting to find those treasured items. With so many questions on this topic, I decided to put together a blog post filled with new places to explore to find makers and retailers that align with your values. So, start thinking about your own priorities and take a look at the list. As always, please let me know what you think. Happy holidays!

25 Brands and Retailers for Sustainable Shopping

Get Poplin on Your Holiday Wish List

I don’t know about you, but I’m deep in holiday shopping. Whether you are putting together your own holiday wishlist or shopping for others, it’s time to give the gift of style. Here’s what you need to know to set you up!

5 Reasons to Give (or Get) Poplin Style This Holiday Season

The Lazy Person's Way to Save Tons of Cash While Shopping (Use it for Black Friday and Beyond!)

HONEY, IT'S TIME TO SAVE SOME SERIOUS CASH WITHOUT TRYING.

I shared this Google Chrome Extension for the first time back in the spring of 2016. Yesterday, I did some early Black Friday shopping and saved crazy extra cash without even trying. My J.Crew order was $60 less after using Honey!

This Google extension is so extraordinary that I considered writing an entire blog post about it. As it turns out, Buzzfeed already did. And who can write things as succinctly as Buzzfeed? You must read this article entitled, "this lazy online shopping trick actually saves you a ton of money." For real.

Celebrity Stylists Just Launched a Line of All the Undergarments You'll Ever Need

As a personal stylist based in the Seattle area, I tend to have pretty intimate conversations with women. These conversations are often about style. For instance, I can’t actually pull off a jumpsuit, can I? Oh yes, you can. Or, how exactly do I stay warm in ankle length pants? Or how do I style ankle boots? Sometimes, folks can feel uncomfortable asking those questions.

Once we’ve connected, the questions get a little deeper. My feet smell after I wear shoes. What can I do about that? Are there any products to help when my thighs rub together? And so on.

One of the things that is truly most perplexing to my client base, is tackling next level style problems. I love that dress, but do you wear a bra? Or, how does J Lo look like that in that dress? Isn’t she worried that it’s all going to come out at some point? The answer is, “no” she doesn’t need to worry. She’s got the right team and the right products. And now, everyone else has access to those resources, too. Enter The Kit.

Two celebrity stylists paired up to answer all those tricky questions to prevent wardrobe malfunctions. The site’s tips and tricks will give you a quick education. My favorite part of the website is the glossary. Once you’ve brushed up on your style speak, get ready to shop. After visiting this site, you’ll be dying to try a new silhouette for the holidays. Here are a few of my favs. Have fun and let me know how it goes!

A Few of My Favorite Pieces from The Kit

Must Know Now: How to Stay Warm When You Are Wearing Ankle Length Pants

As a personal stylist for women, I’m getting questions about cropped pants all the time. Yes! You can actually wear ankle length pants all year and be comfortable. Believe it. Here’s how.

How to Stay Warm While Wearing Cropped Pants

Sustainability: How to Care for Your Jeans

As a personal stylist for women, I’m all about respecting each client’s values and helping her communicate those through her clothing. I got so deep into this values discussion that I did a workshop at Amazon last year to help employees learn to live their values when it comes to clothing. As it turns out, it’s not as difficult as it sounds. And, like everything, it doesn’t need to be perfect. Really, who needs more things to feel guilty about? No one, that’s who.

So, I’m kicking off a new series of posts on Sustainability. This will also be woven more intentionally into posts in the future. This does not mean that I’ll only focus on pieces that are made from sustainable fabrics or recycled water bottles, etc. Although, I’ll certainly share those with you, too! What is means is that it’s important to be of service to the Poplin community where YOU are. So, if you’d like to pre-cycle (buy less, buy previously worn pieces or maximize what you have), recycle (find new homes for your unwanted pieces in a way that makes the world a better place, or at least doesn’t make it worse) or make intentional purchases (fabric choice, makers, number of pieces, and so on), this series is for you.

We’re going to kick things off with some essential info for just about everyone: How to care for your jeans. Off we go!

How to Care for Your Jeans

Extending the life of your jeans saves you money and heartache.

One FREE Hour of Styling + All Your Questions Answered about Money + Style (in person!)

As a personal stylist for women, I spend a great deal of time discussing budgets with my clients. We talk about when to invest, when to cut back, when to buy new and when/if to buy used. A lot goes into balancing your money and your style.

What’s more fun than getting a crash course about how to elevate your style while respecting your financial goals? How about an entire evening filled with engaging, fascinating and friendly women who are there to learn the same thing? Register now for an evening of Money + Style with Poplin Style Direction hosted by the Koa Club. Here’s what you need to know.

Money + Style

Poplin Discount Code Alert: Salty and Sweet Design

As a personal stylist for women, I can’t tell you how many people I have introduced to Portland’s own, Salty and Sweet Design. I ADORE this maker. The jewelry is lightweight, laser cut to perfection and crazy cool. Plus, it’s affordable. (You can also shop hanging mobiles, knives and more on the site.)

After all these years, it seems only right that we start offering a discount to Poplin clients. So, here you go!

Sustainability: Get Ready to Fall in Love With Renting Instead of Buying Your Clothes

When I was in high school, I lived for vintage shopping. My favorite place was Wasteland (either in Berkeley or San Francisco depending on the day). I took great pride in wearing things that no one else was wearing and wearing them in a way that was distinctly my own. As I got older, and made more money, I moved further and further from second hand shopping. Until one day, I didn’t do it at all.

And that’s how it has been for the last several years. Where once I would have loved to hit a thrift store, now I have a similar experience with new clothes at the Rack. But Gen Z is reminding us all of the impact our consumption has on the planet. That means that thrifting has become cool. But you may or may not be up for that. I rediscovered the gems you can find while thrifting earlier this summer at Buffalo Exchange in Ballard. In fact, 60-70% of the dresses and jumpsuits I wore on my travels all summer were from that excursion. And, they were free. After all, I could sell pieces and have some credit to work with.

One challenge with thrift shopping is the need to dig through the racks. If you aren’t someone who enjoys the hunt, this is a major time suck with very little reward. Often, there’s the struggle to find the proper size or a current piece. For most of my clients, the idea of having a few hours to kill while perusing a thrift store just seems insane.

Enter the rental market.

Before we begin, let me clarify. Rental subscription services give you the freedom to curate your own collection and pay a regular monthly fee to do so. I see these as very different from Stitch Fix and Trunk Club. Those are subscription services that have employees selecting pieces for you based on a quick survey to identify your style archetype.

Back to clothing rental.

The Best Ways to Rent Clothing and Rock Your Authentic Personal Style

The VERY Best Shoes from the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale

As a personal stylist, I know how much my clients adore the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale. Our hometown store holds a special place in the hearts of many and of course, we all simply refer to it as, “Anniversary,” well aware that THIS is the time to pick up all your favorites for fall. I know. It’s weird, shopping for fall in early stages of summer. But Anniversary allows you to pay the sale price on fall pieces and watch the price rise when the sale is over. Items go FAST and right now we are enjoying Early Access. If you have a Nordstrom card, you can shop now, too.

Whether or not we’ve got time scheduled together shouldn’t prevent you from seeing some of my favorite deals. Here’s an assortment of the women’s shoes I’m swooning over. Enjoy!

Before we begin, please remember that Poplin is an affiliate so when you are ready to purchase, click through from the images on this post. if you do, Poplin may receive a commission at no additional cost to you. These commissions are small but mighty. Let me assure you, they add up and help keep the lights on. Or more accurately, they help make it possible to spend time writing blog posts that are 100% my views without tinkering or influence from anyone else. Thanks for being here. Enjoy!

The Best Women’s Shoes at the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale

Get Ready to Lose Some of Your Favorites at Northgate Mall, But Not All of Them

As a personal stylist, Northgate Mall is just one of the places I consider my stomping ground. The mall opened in 1950 as the first suburban shopping mall in the country. You know it well. That’s mostly because you can drive, park for free and shop efficiently. That’s also why the chain stores at that location get a whole lot of returns. It’s true, things are changing at Northgate. And they are changing fast. Here’s what you need to know. (Wondering what’s going on? This Seattle Times article gives you the details. )

Your Favorites are Closing at Northgate Mall

By Popular Demand: Two New Poplin Style Packages

As a personal stylist, I get to do a whole lot of listening. I learn so much from my clients. From their favorite brands to new apps and even summer camps for the kids. I’ve been listening for six years now and I’ve had a few requests repeatedly over time. Lately, they’ve been coming up regularly, so we’re adding two new packages to meet the unique needs of Poplin clients. We’re very excited to kick these off. Remember that Poplin services are the same price per hour regardless of service. So, if you decide to mix things up halfway through, that’s just fine. It’s all about what makes your life easier and helps you look and feel your best. Enjoy!

Introducing Two New Style Packages

Give the Gift of CHUNKS

As a personal stylist for women, one of the great joys of my job is the supply of stellar tips I get from my clients and readers. Sometimes, I’ll get a text about a new store or a great sale or a favorite on Instagram. Other times it a message with photos of her wearing something I recommended. Whatever it is, it reminds me that we are all part of the Poplin community. Thanks for being here.

One recent Instagram message was an introduction to CHUNKS jewelry and accessories. I already followed the founder, Tiffany Ju, as she is also the genius behind BZR tights, of which I am a long time fan and supporter. Tiffany is a Parsons graduate, a mom, an entrepreneur and one delightful human being. Her creations have gained press from BUST Magazine, Refinery29, Design Sponge, Glamour Magazine, Anthology Magazine, The Martha Stewart Show, Brit + Co and many others.

Anyway, CHUNKS, I was not surprised to learn, are often carried in museum stores. They are playful, joyful and practical. What more could you need? I spent a recent morning modeling some glorious CHUNKS pieces and walked away with a stash of awesomeness that I couldn’t leave behind. Here are a few of my favs!

CHUNKS for your hair and eyes.

The perfect gift for you or someone you adore.

Over 25 Super Memorial Day Weekends Sales

Nothing says holiday weekend like a great sale. And this weekend is full of them. Below is a list of some of my favs. Remember to click through the links when you are ready to shop as Poplin is an affiliate. That means that Poplin may receive a commission on your purchase at no additional cost to you. Thanks very much! Enjoy yourself and hey, have a great weekend, will you?

My Favorite Memorial Day Sales