Time to level up by Jeanette Young

Lockdown is slowly being lifted – an experience we will never ever forget! The pandemic caused the world to come to a standstill; everything totally slowed down, and we had to learn to adjust to our ‘new’ normal. 

Jeanette Young London womenswear online boutique came to a halt, as my service is made to order, and all my UK manufacturers came to a close due to the lockdown. The same happened for many other fashion retailers and businesses. However, all was not at a lost, because although my online boutique came to a halt, my styling services and YouTube channel enjoyed a growth spurt.

Though very scary and sad, in terms of the number of lives and family loved ones lost due to COVID-19, lockdown has also had a positive effect on humanity, because it allowed us to slow down.

Now that term, ‘slow-down’, has become a buzzword in the fashion industry in recent months….

What has this meant for my clients?

Lockdown has caused many people to slow down, reflect and think about their dreams, business ventures, goals, health, wellbeing, next move or level. 

For some, the next level has meant revamping their style or image to ensure that they now reflect 1) who they are, and 2) their brand.  And some just wanted to revamp their image for personal reasons – “Just to feel and look good.” That’s OK, too! 

What has stood out for many people is the effect staying at home for the past four months has had on them: not having to get dressed; wearing pyjamas or house clothes all day, and feeling demotivated.

One of the reasons why we may feel demotivated when wearing our pyjamas or house clothes is because our clothes have an impact on the way we feel. If we want to have a proactive day and be motivated, we should wear clothes that tell our brain that it’s time to work, not time to relax!

My clients would contact me, stating that they felt demotivated, depressed and sluggish. After talking for a while, we soon found the root cause! One of the reasons why they felt this way was because they did not make an effort to ‘get dressed’, which had an impact on the way they felt. 

• Not getting dressed (in everyday clothes)
• Not doing your hair
• Not wearing make-up or looking after your skin
• Not exercising
• Not eating healthily 

All have an impact on the way we feel.

Come on, ladies and gentlemen! You know how we feel when we know we are looking all cute. 

This realisation really had a positive impact on my clients, because they had lived the experience and realised that clothes, style and image actually do make a difference.

What we wear has an impact on the way we feel and think.

Lee Chambers, an environmental psychologist and well-being consultant, states: “What we wear affects our behaviour, our attitude and our personality. It’s known as ‘enclothed cognition’.” 

Enclothed cognition is a term coined by Hajo Adam and Adam D. Galinsky in their experiment from 2012. It relates to the effect which clothing has upon a person’s mental process and the way they think, feel and function. The clothes we wear affect our behaviour, attitudes, personality, mood, confidence, and even the way we interact with others.

I was inundated with virtual styling bookings, as women began to see the importance of style and image. My clients wanted to boost their confidence and “look and feel good”. 

When we ‘feel good’, we release a hormone called dopamine, which makes us feel good, happy and energised. 

I always say everything in life has meaning! God makes no mistakes. Fashion, styling and image have meaning too, but sometimes we might not realise it.

Ephesians 2:10 states: ‘For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.’

The word ‘image’ means ‘a representation of the external form of a person or thing in art’. Your image is the external expression of your inner self.

Questions:

What does your image say about you?
Does your image reflect who you are and your brand?
For more info on defining your style, please watch my Youtube video entitled ‘How to create a 50-piece capsule wardrobe’ 

For further info on styling and image, please email info@jeanette-Young.com or follow me on social media:
Instagram: @jeanetteyounglondon @jeanetteyoungstylist       
Facebook: @jeanetteyoung.consultancy

I hope you enjoyed my fashion feature! x