Ladies it is okay to wear red hair, wet lips, heavy make-up and Chanel No. 5 to work if you are in the beauty industry, for any other businesses place it is just not appropriate, never has been and never will be, according to fashion consultant Richard Young.

Richard Young

Though he is of the opinion that mood determines style, Young said, there is a line that some women cross when they step out to work looking like they are going to a party.

He said there are just some looks that scream too many things, adding that style can be misinterpreted and send the wrong signals.
Young, a Trinidadian who has over 25 years of experience in fashion consultancy, conducted a personal development workshop on Monday at the Carifesta’s fashion village, Sophia exhibition site and drew a small group of mostly women from across the region.

What is style? Young said it is a combination of various things including a healthy diet, hair maintenance, skin care and creative wardrobe planning.
“We love the fashion magazines and read them to get a sense of style but the people in those pages are not us which is why we should not go out and try to get the same outfit believing that it will look the same”, Young said.

Young believes in the theory of keeping it simple for the office. He said that before you get dressed to go anywhere it is important to consider where you are going, who you are meeting and what the occasion is. If you fail to consider any of them you are not ready to leave home.
How does a working woman transition from the office to a cocktail? Young said it is easy if she wears a sleeveless dress and jacket with a nice pair of shoes. The jacket is work appropriate and suits the office dress code while the sleeveless dress works for the evening reception. Young pointed out that a quick make-up change adds to a fresh new look for the night.

Everywhere has a look once you are in the employment bracket Young opined. If you work at the bank or in the financial and corporate sector then your look is neat, toned down, suave and simple. Young said red hair, long nails, loud make-up and a distracting fragrance is just too much for those jobs.
If you have a job in the healthcare sector and you attend to people then your look is simple and neat. Other jobs that allows for casual wear also carries a simple look since according to him, less is more.

Young said fashion shows are exaggerated fashion statements so the models are paraded around with a lot of ‘loud’ accessories and make-up.
He said no woman should turn up for work looking like she is on a runway because in reality the look just does not work for the office.

Make-up is generally neutral, he said, adding that skin care is everybody’s business. He said more men need to start taking better care of their skin as do women and disclosed that he never hits the pillow at night without applying a moisturiser to his face, a formula that has knocked around ten years off his age.

In terms of fabrics, Young said, linen is best suited for the climate in the Caribbean but added that some women prefer smoother fabrics. He said it is important to maintain a distinct Caribbean style noting that many of the designers in the region have come up to scratch and are styling women like the international names.