Back in March, I helped my good friend Laura with her closet. Laura is literally the sweetest person I know - caring, considerate, and thoughtful. She projects an aura of calm that I aspire to, which is even more amazing when you know that she is the mom of two adorable boys under the age of 3. Sometimes as I'm rushing around in my usual state of frantic activity, I try to channel her. Unfortunately, I wasn't as thorough about documenting the process as I was with Dana, but luckily Laura wrote a lovely description of our day together.

"I have known Dacy for several years now and have always admired her style. It is uniquely her own - effortless yet chic, not trendy, but polished and put together. I have been trying to emulate some of her looks for some time so when she offered to help me clean out my closet and refine my style I was ecstatic! I was also nervous, I am not a size 2 (or even a size 6) so I was doubtful that her suggestions would work or be flattering for me. However, Dacy came over and immediately put me at ease. We started by determining my style and decided that I am a mix of Classic and Gamine. Then she methodically went through my closet and without judgement or criticism helped me dig through over 15 years of stuff! It always baffles me that I have a huge closet full of clothes yet nothing to wear. Dacy pointed out that if I hadn't been able to make it work up until now, why hold onto it? She was amazed at the amount of cardigans I had (probably 15-20), but never wore. Dacy pointed out that many of my clothes needed a tank top under and a cardigan over, making them hot, bulky, and uncomfortable. She also pointed out that I had lots of vibrant color in my closet which did not coincide with any of the styles I liked in our original consultation. It was actually fun and when it was all over I had 4 large trash bags of clothes to donate. I needed someone to give me permission to get rid of all that stuff. I am frugal and hate to waste money so it was hard for me to give away items that still had tags on them or had never been worn."

"After the massive closet clean out, we began to put together some outfits. Dacy brought over a couple of pairs of skinny jeans for me to try (which I swore I would never wear). I was amazed to find that I actually liked them. They balanced out the chunky sweaters and flowy tops that I like and were much more flattering than the baggy boot cut jeans I typically wear. She also helped me pick out accessories like scarves and jewelry to add the pops of color and interest that I had previously been trying to accomplish with colorful shirts and bottoms. She then helped me put together some casual, easy looks that I could wear to the park or to drop off my son at preschool. I used to just throw on ratty sweatshirts and jeans to do these things but would then feel mortified if I ran into someone I knew. Now I can still feel comfortable yet look put together."

"At the end of the day Dacy gave me some rules for shopping. She suggested that I stick to neutrals and look for things that can be worn independently with no layering. She warned me to stay away from anything that I thought I could maybe make work and to only buy things I loved. She forbid me to buy any more cardigans and suggested I look for maxidresses, slim pants, ballet flats, fitted jackets, and timeless pieces instead. I have been following "the rules" for the last month or so and getting dressed is so much easier. With two small children I never have more than 30 minutes to get ready in the morning and now it's a breeze. Most things in my closet will work with a variety of pants or skirts so I have lots of options. I'm also more comfortable since I don't have to wear 3-4 layers at a time. My "look" is still a work in progress, but I am so grateful to Dacy for her help! I'm actually excited to get dressed for the day now. As a busy mom my life is often messy and chaotic but now I've learned that I can still deal with the chaos while looking and feeling better about myself."

closet case study: laura