In the Dressing Room with Brenda: A Fun and Practical Guide to Buying Smart and Looking Great

by Brenda Kinsel and Jenny M. Phillips

Book Overview

Image consultant Brenda Kinsel tackles underwear, the booty, and the nightmare of shopping with kids--all while helping women make sense out of the vast imponderable that is the world of fashion. With gentle understanding, she helps every woman develop a healthier relationship with herself by taking a lighter look at hang-ups, and a deeper look at the fashion traps that are out there ready to grab the unsuspecting consumer.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 188517151X
• ISBN13: 9781885171511
• Release Date: April 2001
• Publisher: Council Oak Books
• Length: 224 Pages
• Weight: 1.30 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 6.0" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

One of my favorite tools!

I pour over this book and another Brenda Kinsale title, "40 Over 40", twice a year at seasonal wardrobe evaluation time. Her advice is so solid, and her tone so supportive. My look has imporved greatly since I started studying her advice. My favorite is "Don't save anything for "best". There is no "best". Now I go a head and wear my nice clothes any old time and feel much better for it.

Where's your sense of adventure?

Women looking for "straightforward" advice will be disappointed. If you can approach this book with an open mind, you'll have a lot of fun. I really like the illustrations here and there, and especially the font Brenda used. It's easy on the eyes. As far as the content, I'm fond of the "Fashion Calendar for Smarties" - a month by month look at what to expect in the stores each month. This is INDISPENSABLE. I also love the "Fashion Feng Shui". I haven't finished reading this book yet, but it's already given me a different approach to shopping for my wardrobe. It's about loving myself, not punishing myself with dreary clothes, or camouflaging myself! It's about a sense of adventure, and creativity. Most of all, I adore her writing style. It's extremely upbeat and energetic, and very warm. There was no picture of Brenda Kinsel anywhere in the book, so I searched under her name in Yahoo pictures. I pictured her as a happy, smiling, uplifting woman. I found only one picture of her, but she was exactly as I had imagined her! Anyway - Would I recommend this book? As I said above, if you can open your mind, YES! IF you want to look at the world with new eyes - YES. If you're tired of "practical", cold, uninspirational books about fashion that make you even more afraid of shopping, get this book. ...And please don't skip the introduction!

Bren's rules rule!

After I had open-heart surgery which put a 12 inch scar down the middle of my chest, my wardrobe needed a serious going over.This book was a terrific help.If you are looking for pictures of stuff to wear, go elsewhere, you won't find them here. If you are looking for substantial fashion advice for any age or era, check out this book.I rearranged my closet according to Bren's very simple system, and it was a revelation.Now, the author probably spends waaaa...yyy more on clothes than I ever would, but I am a 43 year-old housewife/artist/army wife and she is an image consultant.But her advice is geared towards real-life. (What other fashionista out there recognizes that a woman may have specific underwear for "that time of the month", or one may need to dress for a specific climate or lifestyle?)This is practical advice, and her writing style is light and fun.Thanks, Bren!

Practical Basic Advice

The authors give out basic information about taking care of, building, and maintaining a wardrobe. Cost factors to consider, quality clothing cues, building a wardrobe, basic yes, yeses, and no, nos.I looked up where they are located and plan on using their professional services as well.