Style Doesn't Come In A Box

A good friend of K. Renee, Chris, has been wardrobing with us for at least twenty years.   

^{Chris (on the left) back for the Iowa State Fair!}

She has moved around a bit in the last several years, and we have also had the pleasure of helping her create dream homes in several different locations.   Her career has taken her from Minneapolis...to San Antonio...to Kansas City...and now, Phoenix.   

Each of her homes has been a little different but equally beautiful.    And her latest is certainly one of my favorites!    

Chris is a native Iowan who has lived in many large metropolitan areas.  But do you know what she knows?   That the best place for her to pull together an inspiring wardrobe is right here at K. Renee.  

She looks so fabulous that her friends in Phoenix frequently ask 'Just where do you shop?  You always look great.'

You would think that in a city the size of Phoenix there would be no shortage of great fashion.   And while that is probably true, there are very few places in the country, who work individually with a client as well as curate the best that fashion has to offer.      Literally, there is no place like home (K. Renee in West Des Moines, Iowa.)  

^{Julie J is on the far left, with Chris on the far right.} 

One friend, in particular, Julie J, expressed an interest in having K. Renee help her with her own wardrobe. Love that!  We decided that perhaps the best way to start our working relationship was to talk a bit over the phone about her desires and goals and then plan a quick jaunt to Phoenix with some fabulous options.

Why do it this way when shipping a box might be easier?  Because we wouldn’t have a chance to really get to know her and find out what makes her look and feel good.    When you are looking for style guidance, no matter how hard you want it to, it doesn't come in a box.   

On Friday afternoon, I pulled together several amazing looks that fit her criteria.   

Business casual, dresses, and some great ideas to reboot her personal style   We knew the sizes she was currently wearing along with her height and body type...and we knew she loved Chris's style.

The only question that I had was whether or not all the clothes that I pulled for her would fit into one suitcase!   Low and behold it did, and off I went for a 24-hour style whirlwind.  

Phoenix is so easy to get to!    A direct flight leaving at 7:55 am got me there with my suitcase in hand by 9:15 in the morning.   (P.S. Phoenix isn't the only location I will travel.)

 And guess what?    My bag only weighed 44 pounds!   Now that was surprising.

I got the pleasure of staying with our good friend Chris in her gorgeous space that K. Renee completed about a year and a half ago.   

I immediately got to work, organizing all the outfits and different ways to wear each.   It was important to me that Julie had complete outfits to try on and that I could show her how to wear each item with other things.  I wanted her to have the same experience that she would receive if she was in our boutique.

By noon on Saturday our styling appointment commenced.        After spending a little time together and sharing a glass of wine, I sent Julie into the spare bedroom full of looks that I thought would make her shine.    Chris, Tucker, and Brinkly got comfortable as Julie began trying on all of her different looks! 

Each time Julie came out in an outfit, I could tell right away if she was confident and felt like a million bucks. The olive pinstripe pant and the style-for-miles blouse was an absolute winner and the very first outfit she tried on.   Boom. 

As we moved through the outfits, they all fit her beautifully but it was easy to sort through what she would wear confidently.   Julie felt best when she wore a tailored and fitted look.    The options that I brought that were a little bit oversized and relaxed just didn't make her shine the way these did...

The one outfit that we all loved was an L'agence pair of metallic snake jeans layered with a cream top, blush sweater, and a three quarter sleeve leather jacket that felt like butter.     Julie loved it too but was just getting used to standing out from the crowd in the best of ways.

This outfit had some attitude. The kind of outfit that says, 'Hey, here I am, and I am ready to have a great time.'     She admitted that she has been more comfortable blending in rather than standing out. Julie brought us in (K. Renee) to help her shift her paradigm and push her style in a new direction. Perhaps this one pushed her too far.   But that is a-okay, we had lots of other great options.  

The next time we meet it will be here back in West Des Moines as we have just begun the process of renewing and refreshing her style.     And that is a beautiful thing.  All of us need to push ourselves to keep current and increase our style mojo. I am honored to have been a part of helping Julie feel great about some new things in her closet and how to wear them.

We wrapped up our style session about 4 pm and the rest of the day was left to watching the world's longest Iowa versus Iowa State game!   Right?   

On Sunday, Chris and I played in her closet and found some new combinations with items in her closet and talked about some needs she has to extend her wardrobe even further.     

Building a wardrobe is more than buying a new item here and there.  Chris pulled out many items in her closet that she loved and challenged me to find another inspiring way to wear it.   We all need to have people we trust to help us see things in a new and fresh way.

I can hands-down tell you that there are very few women's boutiques in the country who have such a well-curated collection of women's clothing in all price ranges.     Why is that?    Because no one works harder than our CVO (Cheif Vision Officer) and Buyer (Kelli), making sure that the clothing we carry is worthy of your time and hard-earned dollars.   And the rest of our stylists (including me) work just as hard partnering with each of you to help you look and feel your best.

Hey, Des Moines, we got it going on!   But we already know that, don't we?