Shopping!! With other people's money!! It's why everyone becomes a personal stylist right? (Kidding - I work with ALL my clients to figure out what their budget is and we always come in at or UNDER budgets, because, money, it's real and we wanna save it). Shopping and always looking at clothes is a constant in a stylist's job, it becomes second nature. So when a client turns to you to do the job for them, you pretty much have it down. But shopping for a client is different than shopping for yourself. You have to really KNOW the client - what they like (do they love showing their shoulders and arms like AnnMarie?) and what they hate (hi-lo pieces, wool) in order to find pieces that will go beyond looking good - they need to also flatter the client, make them feeling amazing, and work with their lifestyle and budget. It's a tall order!

I followed my own shopping plan and mood board to a T. Finding items for AnnMarie was really fun - I focused on tons of cobalt blue items, black, soft greys, pieces that were silky or had unique textures, and a good variety of beautiful dresses. I made stops at Marshall's, TJMaxx, H&M, Dillard's, Macy's, Anthropology and online retailers ASOS, The Outnet and Zara. Once all the pieces were in, I listed them in my spreadsheet, steamed away, and prepped the rack for her fitting.

Client fittings are the bomb because you literally don't do anything except wait for your stylist to come over with wine and a crap ton of clothes picked just for you. For two hours, AnnMarie tried on all the great stuff I had found (luxe sweatshirts, fitted dresses, pants, button downs, blazers, fancy t-shirts, heels) and we made room for the YESs, the MAYBEs, and the NOs. There were definitetly some immediate nos, the kind of pieces that once you try it on, it just looses all its appeal. But there were a TON Of YESs, nearly everything I found had the potential to be a yes. Once the fitting was done, we worked our way back through the yes pile, picking the pieces that truly added something to AnnMarie's wardrobe and fit into her clothing budget. In the end, she left with a huge range of options that she not only loved, but she knew worked across all areas of her life. That is a successful shopping trip.

Want to catch up on AnnMarie's style story? Check out Part 1 and Part 2 and stay tuned for Part 4.

Shopping + Fitting | AnnMarie Part 3