Some people and their clothes just make you grit your teeth as you sit in the park or walk down the street. "How is it that people do such harm to themselves?" wonders Krystyna Bałakier, a Wroclaw blogger and public image expert. She has been advising the residents of Wroclaw on how to dress, how to look good and how to stay on top of fashion.
"The truth is that we, Polish people, don't know how to dress. We tend to buy clothes that are either too large or too small. We tend to use large clothes to mask our size, and those who buy things that are too small are in turn hoping they will lose weight. These ladies in their overcut dresses and skimpy jumpers later look like mutton dressed as lamb" says Krystyna. "We should buy clothes that suit us and not because there are sales or because our colleague has a similar blouse and we need to put on something as we go to work," she adds.
Experienced advisor
Krystyna Bałakier has always shown interest in fashion. "My mother and grandmother have instilled a sense of taste in me when I was little. It seems I have a knack for it, as I find it easy to dress both myself and others. Good looks are a priority, of course," she adds.
Her friends and relatives would come and ask her for advice even before she started her blog and her company. "They asked me to choose a dress for family celebrations or their first day at work. They were always happy with my advice. Now that I am retired I have decide to set up a company to bring metamorphosis to my clients. I have been running my blog for four years now. And I've been pretty successful at that," she says.
Metamorphosis
She mainly serves women in their fifties and sixties. "This group of ladies find it particularly difficult to choose something suitable. They are gaining in size, which is the law of nature. But some people can't get to grips with this. The mistake they make is that they put on black baggy clothes. We are changing, and so should our wardrobe," she adds.
The metamorphosis begins with a meeting at the client's. "We look through their wardrobe. We take no prisoners. I know which clothes will suit my clients, and if they don't, they will end up in a bin. Then we go shopping together. But we stick to their budget. You can dress well for almost any money," says the blogger.
She admits that she sometimes had to do something revolutionary to convince people to change their style. "I'm lucky because my clients are happy with their new clothes and they feel comfortable. But it takes an effort at times," she admits.
Colours are good for you
Another hurdle she has to take with her clients is that elderly persons are shy with colours. They are afraid they will look funny in their new and vivid outfits. "But this is not true. You just need to know how to do this. How to choose matching colours and combine them effectively," emphasises Krystyna.
The blogger says that it is chain stores who are to blame for the people's habit to buy drab and boring clothes. "This is a vicious circle. These stores offer clothes in every shade of grey because they sell best and we buy them because there is nothing else to buy," she gets visibly nervous.
The meeting at the client's is also the first lesson on how to shop properly. "We shouldn't buy clothes that we couldn’t try on beforehand. We shouldn't buy clothes because they are cheap or because we think they are beautiful. We'll only waste our money if they are not our style. Such clothes will probably end up at the back of our wardrobe," she adds. Krystyna never buys things on the spur of the moment. All her buys are pre-planned, tried on and well-fitting.
Tough cases
Krystyna adds that a growing number of men also ask her for help and advice. Now this is a hard nut to crack. "Shopping with women is pure pleasure. With the right attitude, we can have a lot of fun trying on, browsing and selecting clothes," she says.
"Men are different. They find it arduous to do shopping. And they think it's a waste of time if they have to try on more than one shirt or one pair of trousers. They are set in their ways when it comes to clothes. They like worn-out jeans, big boots and amorphous shirts. They have several such sets in their wardrobes and they just recycle them all the time.”
"I just need to have a little more patience with men. But as they go through the metamorphosis they can finally see what it means to look different," says Krystyna. And they see they change for the better.
Fashion helpline
Krystyna Bałakier's greatest reward is when her customers get their sea legs with fashion. "I offer them a helpline and they can always call me for fashion advice. And when I see they can keep the style I helped them to discover, they can look good and attractive, then I'm safe in the knowledge that my mission has been accomplished," recaps the Wroclaw fashion expert. You can follow Krystyna Bałakier's blog at http://balakier-style.pl/.
Photographs: Luiza Różycka
