Over the years, I've developed a reputation as a Style Therapist

I worked in the fashion industry for more than 30 years. As a personal stylist often when women would come to shop with me, I understood that they were looking not only for a new outfit, but often what they really wanted was a self-image makeover on those days when they were feeling down about themselves and needed a boost. While styling women I realized the same thing kept coming up over and over again for all of us: self-doubt, body image issues, fears, anxieties, not-enoughness, imposter syndrome and wanting to live a life that feels good and is meaningful.

As we chatted about what to wear we came to understand we all have similar slice-of-life experiences. We discovered our stories are the fabric of our life. Some days we wear silk, some days we wear burlap. I encouraged women to make their dreams real and understand that their beauty comes from being strong, stylish and confident.

I was dubbed a Style Therapist by my clients, because you can't really separate look from life. I've seen first-hand the healing power of clothes-body-life-confidence and how it can help a woman say hello to the world with a little more mojo each day.

I realized I had to take the fashion formula I'd perfected with my clients and turn it into a virtual styling experience that includes personal support from me

Just like me, most women have no aspiration to be a fashion icon. They want to get it right in the morning and get on with their day. A styling session with me commanded a big price tag and clients from across the country came for the affirming experience of working with me in person. Now you can work with me in a direct and personal way in a format that's relevant for today (at a fraction of the cost).

I'm able to do this for you because I teach what I know

I've had a lot of clothes encounters of the closet kind, providing runway to reality advice for women of all ages, shapes and sizes.

For  many years I wrote weekly Fashion 911 Q&A columns for newspapers across the country, and did weekly Fashion 911 television segments. I authored my first book Fashion 911: Your Runway to Reality and was regularly quoted in newspapers and magazines. My most recent book Wear Your Life Well: Lessons on the Journey to your Truest Self  is an international bestseller.

Women's Television Network Bella Style produced and aired a 30-minute feature about me on national television. I developed a methodology and curriculum and taught a Retail Fashion Consulting Certificate Program at the college level. I also trained personal shoppers for major department stores.

Global Television/YWCA honored me with the Woman of Vision Award for my contribution to the fashion and style industry. Recipients of this prestigious accolade are women who have  implemented their passion and their personal dedication and actions inspire others to new levels of success. 

One day I woke up and couldn't believe this was my life. Not an older version of my younger self, but a different woman

The shift into midlife was anything but high powered. Let's just say I realized that I'd celebrated more birthdays than I have ahead of me. I was going through a *bit* of a midlife crisis.

My life had changed. I felt discombobulated. Was I depressed? I'd been through a lot of *chic* and some slice-of-life-stuff shook my confidence. I know what it's like to feel insecure. I was suddenly assessing everything in my life, my fashion style, my hairstyle and my lifestyle.

Even though I built a successful career as a style expert I no longer felt relevant in a youth and beauty obsessed culture. Life happened (again). I transitioned into a new career. 

Over the next few years fashion started to become my enemy. My body started to betray me. Not only was my middle thicker, I had wrinkles, saggy skin and *gasp* gray hair.

Nothing seemed to look right, let alone fit the way it used to. I found myself uncharacteristically stumped about what to wear for the rest of my life. I'd look in the mirror and wonder who that woman was. Is that really what I look like?

I worried I was becoming invisible and overlooked.

Now what?

My what turned out to be more than okay. 

Why?

I decided to take myself off the discount rack. 

I discovered that I didn't need to improve myself, I needed to empower myself.

That they were in fact two sides of the same coin. As I was writing my memoir Wear Your Life Well: Lessons on the Journey to Your Truest Self and weaving my stories together, I recognized a pattern emerge. For the first time I realized I was far too hard on myself. I thought I wasn't pretty enough, young enough and *enough* enough to deserve my dreams.

When I stopped beating myself up for not looking like a teenage runway model and claimed my personal power, I opened myself up to a new way of living that helped me make my life more awesome, interesting and fun. (I even like the color of my hair.)

NI'm just hitting my prime and I'm far from done yet. I'm still young enough to enjoy fashion, old enough to have seen the trends before and friendly enough to keep it fun. And to be clear, I don't have all the answers, nor do I have it all together. (Who does, really?) I'm a woman dealing with all the same stuff you are. The only difference is that I'm trained to help and more practiced in figuring it out.

Are you ready to give yourself permission to embrace the new older and feel confident and happy in your own skin?

My life, just like yours is a work in progress. I'm getting over getting older. I'm perfectly imperfect (or is it imperfectly perfect) and absolutely enough. I feel good in the clothes I wear and I've given myself permission to be who I am - a woman absolutely in charge of where I put my energy and how I show up.

I've never been happier.

I want you to be happy. To be what you want. To be all of you. Remember there will always be someone who can't see your beauty and your worth.

Don't let it be you.