Goodwill Fashion Expert—Bjorn Nasett

Oh, how we all love winter in the Midwest! Snow showers, cold weather, and bundling up are the norm for us this time of year. While we love our layering and cozy sweaters a lot, now is when we start to think of the nicer weather to come; and with it the new fashion ideas for spring. While not all the ideas presented at Mercedes Benz Fashion Week are necessarily new, they are an accumulation of food for fashion thought nonetheless. I have chosen a few photographs that I took during the runway shows that illustrate some of the looks that we could all love for spring and summer in 2014.

When January rolls around every year, the end of year lists come out. Lists like, best and worst, top trends, and all those lists that tell you how to motivate yourself to be a new person in the year ahead. Those are all fun to read and every now and then you can actually glean some tidbits of information that are useful to you personally. Putting those nuggets of wisdom into practice however is another thing entirely. Let’s face it, to quote American businessman Peter Drucker, “The best way to predict the future is to create it.” When it comes to fashion advice to help you navigate your potential style makeover, I like to stick to practical ideas that work for anyone. There is something about this time of the winter, when we’re feeling housebound, that seems like a great time to play my “Ditch or Switch” game. This is a simple game that can be played alone, with a good friend, or someone whose advice you take seriously. It starts by creating a “ditch” box or bag that you’ll take with you into your closet, bedroom, or wherever you store your clothing. Next you’ll take a notepad and write, “switch” at the top of the page.This is where you or a friend takes notes. Let’s play!

First, go through every drawer and closet really quickly and make fast decisions on what you can purge without question.  It is best to do this as fast as you can and not really think about it. Go with your gut instinct. Remove said items to the “ditch” pile.  Remember these are items that are easy to let go, such as items that don’t fit, things you don’t wear, and things that you just don’t like anymore.  It should be simple and fast, no hesitation.

Lynn Highum is by her own admission a regular, once-a-week Goodwill shopper. Her employer, Premier Body & Paint in Waukesha, is also a supporter of the yearly Goodwill Retro Rendezvous fundraiser held in Milwaukee. As office manager for the company, Lynn says, “the days fly by because there is always something to do!” While attending the Retro Rendezvous event in October with her spouse and other folks from her workplace, Lynn noticed that yours truly was offering a personal shopping experience as well as a $100 Goodwill gift card as one of the silent auction prizes. She immediately informed her husband that it was just what she needed. With her position in the busy company Lynn needs to look professional, yet not too corporate and buttoned down. Since she’s always stated that she has struggles with her lack of fashion sense, her spouse agreed and urged her to place a bid. Later on in the evening, she found out she had won!  Lynn got in contact with me via email and expressed her excitement for the opportunity to get some new ideas on personal style out of the experience. She was hopeful that I could provide some insight that could guide her when it comes to making smart fashion choices while shopping at Goodwill. Below, she shares some of what she took away from our time together in her own words. Knowledge is fashion power, and we ALL have it in us to learn a few new tricks!