How to be chic blog

Being chic and classy gives you a definate advantage in life. No wonder thousands of women around the world want to know how to be chic. Some women have "it", but how can you achieve it for yourself? Being Chic is more than dressing in a stylish way, it is a way of being and thinking that encompasses all aspects of your life and is a lifelong journey.

In this "How to be chic blog", I have written about topics such as chic clothing, hairstyles, grooming and make-up, but I have also written about other areas of a chic life such as personal development, the importance of cultivating a chic attitude and manners, chic relationships, money and finance, chic homes and being organised.

For a definition of chic, read Chic defined. Wanting to be chic is a worthwhile goal, it involves developing yourself towards becoming your best self.

Deciding to become chic is a lifetime commitment that involves making the chicest choice every time. Commit to being Chic and Making Chic choices

Being chic offers you many advantages and opens more doors for you. To find out what they are and why, click here.

The advantages of being chic

Chic and Minimalist Wardrobe Blog This blog is aimed at women who wish to live a simpler, more minimalist lifestyle and are reducing the amount of clothing they own, with the aim of creating a small and stylish wardrobe that perfectly meets their needs.

How to be Chic Blog This blog is aimed at women of all ages who wish to become more chic, classy and stylish. As well as clothes, it includes other elements of being chic and living a chic life.

A chic woman values herself and looks after her health.

For example she eats healthily and takes regular exercise.

As a result, she is usually slim, and enjoys excellent health. Here are some easy ways to achieve Chic Health.

As well as good health, having good posture plays an important part in being and looking chic.

Most chic women have good posture.

Here are some easy ways to achieve Chic Posture

French women, in particular Parisians, have a reputation for being chic. Their wardrobes are often very small, focusing on quality rather than quantity.

I recently went to Paris and discovered the Secrets of Chic French Parisian Women.

They often use a method called The French 5 piece wardrobe where, at the start of each season, Spring/Summer or Autumn/Winter, they pick 5 key pieces from their wardrobe and add a handful of new items to expand and update it.

French Model Ines de la Fressange recently published a book "Parisian Chic: A Style Guide" which shows you how to Create a chic and minimalist wardrobe the Parisian way

Breakfast at Tiffany's is probably the ultimate chic inspiring film. It propelled Audrey Heburn to stardom and established her as a chic icon.

I recently went to see the film A week with Marilyn which was a suprising source of inspiration for a small but chic wardrobe. The above link contains a link to the trailer for the film which shows many of Marilyn's chic outfits.

Chic women pay attention to their hairstyle, make-up and grooming.

Chic Hairstyles - A chic woman often wears her hair in a chic style and makes sure it is looked after.

A natural, no-make-up look is very chic and you may like to copy chic French women who often like to wear a vibrant red lipstick.

Grooming is important to looking chic, so pay attention to your nails and eyebrows, and look after your skin with a good moisturising cream that contains sun screen.

Chic women know that an essential part of being happy and successful in their lives is being in control of their attitude. They try to maintain a kind, positive and helpful attitude to others whenever possible. However, they are no push-over and know how to Say "No" gracefully

They try to make the best of life and enjoy it, and be happy. They live in the present moment, take pleasure in the simple things in life and practise the art of Being Grateful

They realise that they alone are responsible for creating their own lives and their own happiness.

A chic woman abides by the Golden Rule, "Treat others how you would wish to be treated", and as a result treats others with kindness.

She tries to see the best in others and is supportive in her relationships, building others up rather than pulling them down. She surrounds herself with positive and supportive people and avoids getting involved in gossip.

A Chic woman has learned how to be assertive in her relationships and is skilled in the art of being able to gracefully say "No".

She avoids abusive relationships, as she knows how damaging and unhealthy they can be.

As well as looking after and nourishing her body, a chic woman also feeds her mind, thereby increasing her intelligence.

She takes an interest in current affairs, regularly reads a quality newspaper and cultivates a cultured mind by reading interesting books or visiting a museum, art gallery, concert or theatre.

A Chic woman also believes in the importance of self/personal development and will either attend courses or read books on personal development topics such as developing leadership skills, assertiveness, public speaking, emotional intelligence, time management etc.

If you want to be chic and stylish, it is important to build a small wardrobe of stylish clothes that perfectly meet your needs. The best way to achieve this is by Building a wardrobe around your activities

For more ideas on how to create a small but stylish wardrobe, you may like to read Minimalist wardrobe essentials

As well as creating and maintaining a small wardrobe of stylish clothes, each season you will need to update it to keep if looking fresh and contemporary.

If you are updating your Spring / Summer Wardrobe you may find How to update your wardrobe for Spring / Summer useful.

If you are updating your Winter wardrobe, there are lots of ideas in the following articles:

A basic winter wardrobe and How to be Chic in Winter and How to update your wardrobe for Autumn / Winter

In order to look chic and stylish, it is important to wear colours that suit you and styles that flatter your body shape.

If you have ever wanted to know which colours would suit you best you may be interested in reading this article. Discover the colours that suit you

The article also contains books on Colour Analysis which are on sale with Amazon.com. The books contain a questionnaire to help you detemine your best colours and include colour charts for each colour type. They provide a cheaper alternative to going to an Image/Colour consultant.

If you want to be chic, you need to invest in a small wardrobe of good quality footwear that fits your lifestyle.

I have an article on creating a chic and minimalist shoe wardrobe which you may find useful.

Over the years I have learned what type of shoes I need to invest in and where not to waste my money.

As a result I have a developed a small shoe wardrobe, consisting of only 12 pairs of stylish shoes, that perfectly meet my needs.

I have something to wear at home, at work, for exercising, walking and hiking, for holidays, for hot summers and cold winters, for parties, weddings, funerals and job interviews.

Most women enjoy going to parties, but often despairat havingnothing to wear. Every women needs at least one chic party dress in her wardrobe and in this article, I show you

How to dress for parties and how to build a party capsule wardrobe

Accessories are an easy and inexpensive way to jazz up an outfit and achieve a chic look.

A scarf can instantly make you look chic and there are dozens of ways to tie and wear scarves. Here are some ideas on how to tie and wear different shaped scarves - a long oblong scarf or a square silk scarf or a Pashmina.

Try to gradually build up a small collection of chic accessories that are versatile and can be worn with different outfits. Other types of chic accessories include a good quality everyday watch, with a leather or metal strap, small discreet stud earrings, a good quality handbag made of leather or natural fabrics in a simple style and plain colour, preferably a neutral such as black or brown, chic necklaces such as pearls or chains.

When going on holiday, we all need to travel lightly.

It is possible to take a small selection of clothes on holiday and in the following article I will show you how:

Chic and Minimalist Beach Holiday wardrobe

If you would like to know how to be chic, I am sure that you would also like to live in a chic home too. A chic home isn't necessarily an expensive one, but reflects your chic choices and lifestyle. For inspiration, you may enjoy reading my article on Chic Homes.

Have you ever noticed that a chic woman is usually organised and rarely in a rush to get to an appointment? She rarely forgets a birthday or double books herself. Her handbag is organised and tidy. How does she achieve this and what can we learn from her in order to become more organised and manage our time better?

A chic woman has:

• A watch - so she always knows the time and doesn't have to ask others.
• A regularly updated Diary and prioritised To Do List
• A regularly updated Address Book and Birthday Book
• A Chic Notebook and Pen- into which she may attach receipts and makes notes
• A small Stapler - to attach receipts and other bits of paper to her note book.
• A few postage stamps and blank greeting cards or notelets

Planning ahead and Organising your time

Like many people you probably have a To Do List and probably agree with me that you never get to the end of the To Do List or rarely do anything you want to do.

To solve this problem, and make the To Do List less daunting, I plan the month ahead and for each day schedule in at least one item from my To Do List together with something I would like to do.

By the end of the month I should have completed at least 30 tasks from my To Do List, and enjoyed doing things I would like to do.

Chic women try to manage their money well and Financial Independence is their ultimate financial goal. Whilst I am not a Financial Advisor, there are certain common sense money rules and principles that we are all familiar with that I am sure many Chic women follow too:

• Pays herself first - Each month, takes out 10% of her salary and puts it into a savings account. Lets it build up into a small emergency fund and enough money to cover 3-6 months living expenses. Then, invests all future 10% savings to achieve the goal of financial independence - when the monthly income from investments covers monthly expenses.
• Lives on the remaining 90%
• Looks for ways to increase her income - this may include setting up a small business at home which she operates in her spare time.
• Rents or buys a modest home - avoiding the burden of a too large mortgage.
• Avoids Consumer Debt and "Neither a borrower or lender be" - avoids lending to friends and family as she knows it complicates relationships although she will offer suggestions on other ways to raise the money they need.
• Educates herself on money and investing and learns about Passive Income. Passive Income is not money that you earn from a job, but is your money working hard for you to create a regular income. To learn about different types of Passive Income, click here - Passive Income
• Regularly donates upto 10% of her income to charity each month.
• Has a chic purse - which contains a small amount of cash for times when cash is needed.

I hope you have enjoyed reading "How to be Chic Blog" and found it useful.