The Styling Session That Altered My Brain Chemistry
...maybe less really IS more?
January is SHOP YOUR WARDROBE month over on ‘The Wardrobe Edit’, a four-week-long content calendar that perfectly aligns with a January ‘no-buy’ or if you want to take a moment to press pause, reconnect with your wardrobe and fall back in love with what you already have. To gain full access to all the posts, you can upgrade to a paid subscription (THANK YOU!) with a limited-time 25% off! Along with all the content I post this month, you’ll unlock over 350+ posts, stacked with styling ideas, tips and formulas…
In true January style, I’m writing this post with a feverish four-year-old cuddled up next to me who is teasing me with a heavy breathing pattern, but keeps interrupting it with such thoughts as ‘What is a Liberian?’ I’m hoping the click-clacking sound of my keyboard lulls him to sleep. But alas, the video is edited, the photos are shot, and I’ve been desperate to write this post since my styling session with Reva last week. I think it fundamentally changed my brain chemistry on how I think about outfits on a daily basis.
So, a bit of backstory here. I’m a big Reva Luft-fangirl. She’s a Toronto-based Stylist who writes Troupe here on Substack, is well worth following on Instagram and offers an array of virtual styling services (I booked the Styling Session, $300 for 1 hour). She’s your favourite Substack writer’s favourite Substack writer. When I was lining up styling appointments for the month (there are four more to come!), each person I booked brought something different to the table. Whereas I wanted to pick Anna’s brain on colour play and how to tackle tricky pieces in my wardrobe that I hadn’t quite got to grips with (you can read the full debrief of that session here). I knew with Reva, I wanted to see how she would play in my wardrobe. She’s a Mum of three and has a knack for balancing an outfit that’s chic and polished, whilst still being hardy and practical enough to drop your kids off in a downpour. She, too, works from home, so once I’d given her the need-to-knows about how my weeks usually play out, she just got it. Polished but truly practical was the aim of the game here.
In my mind, the format for writing these post-styling session reports would be similar. A rundown of the looks we created, the whys behind each one and then a section at the end with my top takeaways, but here’s the thing. Not every single session is the same. In fact, the main lessons I learnt from my hour with Reva were less about the outfits we created and more about the styling knowledge she shared and how I could apply it to my wardrobe going forward. Sage style advice is her speciality.
It’s worth noting a few things before we get into it. Reva’s sessions, like most, work best when there’s some preparation involved. She asks for six reference photos to give her a sense of your style and what you’re drawn to. It’s also helpful to pull out some pieces from each of these categories:
Your Regulars - your go-to pieces. The pieces you love, wear often, and feel most like yourself in, to help Reva understand your personal style and what makes you feel confident.
Your ‘How’ Pieces - items you like and want to wear more, but aren’t quite sure how to style. The aim is to identify fresh ways to incorporate them into your wardrobe.
Your Never-Wears - the pieces that just sit in your closet. Reva can help you decide whether you want to breathe new life into them or if it’s time to let them go.
I’ll admit that I skipped over a few parts of the homework here because I knew the main conundrum I wanted to get Reva’s take on - How do I dress for a life that’s 90% casual, when I still want to feel put-together? She also likes to call via FaceTime on your phone so she can get up close and personal in your wardrobe, takes screenshots on her end for you as you go, so you don’t need to worry about snapping pics and then delivers them to you afterwards via a shared album, along with a summary of takeaways and styling notes you discussed.
I know Substack isn’t really for video, but the most efficient way to describe the outcome of our session is with a 17-minute video (LOL!). But really! This one is worth the watch, promise. Grab a coffee/a snack/your whole darn dinner if you fancy and have a watch of this…
MAKE THREE OUTFITS WITH NEW ITEMS. The biggest takeaway for me was this. Reva asked ‘When you buy something new, do you test whether you can create three outfits with it?’ (she did a great demo here). I managed to squeak out a rather embarrassed, ‘In my head?!?’. Such a simple presmise but one that could save me from ending up with lots of those hard-to-work-with pieces that don’t seem to blend effortlessly into your wardrobe like you thought they would. I am 100% doing this for every single new-in item going forward. TATTOO IT ON ME!!
The pics here are from outfits that I put together the day after our session, whilst Reva’s tips were still fresh in my mind. The stuff we created together was far more seasonally appropriate. She insists on function!! For all these outfits, I’d throw on a wool coat and a pair of sheer socks (at least) to make them work for Jan-March (/she thinks I need some more winter-appropriate shoes and she’s right!!!)
THINK MORE ABOUT THE BASE OUTFIT. Reva’s focus is always on the base outfit - the meat and veg, if you will. The top, trousers, coat and shoes. Whenever we got that on, my first question was always, ‘What about earrings? A bag? Her answer, ‘If the base works well, then you’re good’. Like, maybe that’s the outfit? A focus on the lines, shapes and proportions of what you’re actually wearing is more important than the extra seasoning, and I think I’d lost sight of that.
LEOPARD PRINT CAN BE YOUR ACCESSORY. Reva treats animal print in an outfit as an accessory. Whether it’s a shoe, a coat, or a jacket - that’s the tweak in your outfit. It keeps things simple - again, the goal is not to overcomplicate and create some ease - and I found I felt far less ‘busy’ in the styles she created for me. Like this one above?! I’m 10/10 wearing this on the next non-rainy day in the U.K (which currently feels like 1879 lightyears away).
A TOTE GOES WITH EVERYTHING. Reva’s got three little ones. She understands that on weekends, there’s a high chance you’re just piling water bottles, snacks, and the eight toys, two teddies, and emotional support peach your kid insists you bring, into a tote bag. Our Trader Joe’s Tote Bags are BEAT at this point. So instead of styling outfits with a little leather number that wouldn’t be practical, with basically every look we made, she suggested I throw on a tote bag. FUNCTION > FASHION.
A GREY JUMPER CAN UNLOCK MANY COMBINATIONS. It wasn’t exactly what Reva was suggesting (she’s a big fan of a marled grey jersey cotton sweatshirt, like this*), but I remembered I had this Le Bon Shop Naturelle Tee in a washed navy/grey, so I played around with it after our session and found that like Reva suggesed, it’s a good pairing to tone down the formal-feel of a black trouser. She recommended a grey jumper, black loose trousers, trainers or ballet pumps, and a tote as a good everyday, WFH, drop-off-friendly weekday uniform for me to break out of the jeans-and-knit-jumper rut I’m currently in.
If there are three key things I took away from our session, it’s that less is more, every outfit needs to be functional, and instead of focusing on accessories, I need to bring that energy to my base outfit and start building outfits around my coat and shoes, especially in the winter months. Reva essentially distilled this down in her notes, which she shared after our session…
If you can’t already tell, I left this session feeling v.inspired. It’s barely been a week since we met, but every outfit I’ve worn since then has been created with Reva’s voice in my head. LESS IS MORE!? And it’s been easier to get dressed. And I guess isn’t that the whole point!? Her strength is in refining that elevated yet functional aspect of your wardrobe, which is exactly what I was looking for. She’s also very good at spotting gaps. And I know it’s SHOP YOUR WARDROBE month and all, but I also know that you’ll be intrigued to see what she suggested. So this was the list she sent me after:
A substantial leather loafer, something I could wear with a sock. She suggested these from The Row*, but they are pretty out of my price bracket, so maybe something like these* or these*.
A black cardigan* to help me create seamless bases for wearing with a great coat and shoes.
A great cotton sweatshirt - perhaps from The Great* or Still Here*.
A simple leather flat - something like the Aeyde Kristen Flats* or The Row Stella*.
A minimal sneaker (not a Converse), Dries* or Nike Cortez* in black and white, or the Salomons* for something chunkier.
Some black trousers I could wear every day, like the DONNI Crepe Simple Pants* or LESET Ari Crepe Pants*; to style like how we did with my black linen pair. She noted they’d be great with cardigans worn as tops, with loafers or ballet flats, and any coat over the top.
…and guys. HE SLEPT!!!!
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Anna you need to do more videos you’re so good at it!!!! It was so fun for me to watch and see how you truly understood what I was saying to you in our session and watch YOU coming up with the outfits yourself. Felt like a proud mom ❤️
I love this!! I would be curious to hear from either you Anna or Reva about putting together a great base outfit without thinking of the coat. In winter I often find that with the coat, my outfits feel great and put together but without the coat, it ends up being just a jeans and jumper situation.