Looking Good Seminar by Nancy Nix-Rice

[DeniseM]

Over a weekend in mid-September my local ASG chapter organized a day-long seminar with Nancy Nix-Rice, author of the Palmer/Pletsch book "Looking Good." Nancy is a fashion consultant with a pretty impressive resume and she is also a sewist who has owned and managed fabric stores. So she was especially welcome as a speaker to those of us who either make, or want to make, most of our clothes. She not only has a great eye for color, but talked a lot about the types of patterns to look for for different body types.

As a speaker, Nancy is awesome. She's warm, funny and engaging and it was one of the few presentations I've been to that held my interest for the entire time. She lliterally had us in stitches with some of her anecdotes. She was incredibly patient answering questions and helping each of us pick out our best colors and identify our figure types. She encouraged us not to become fashion victims by falling into the typical trap of "must haves" the industry seems to promote each season. She talked extensively about wardrobe building strategies and how our hair, eye and skin tones determine our "color contrast" and how selecting neclklines and jewelry based on our facial shape can really make a difference to one's overall appearance. She used us as models and examples of what just a bit of tweaking to a garment shape or color can do to improve the fit and look.

Nancy had her book, a workbook, jewelry and scarves galore for sale. I bought some beautiful scarves and her books, plus a gorgeous necklace and matching earrings. I'm one of those people who feels naked without a scarf or perfume so this was a happy day for me. I would hiighly recommend her book and if you can get Nancy to come to your ASG or sewing group to do a seminar it's well worth it because you'll have a marvelous time.


Here is a link to her website: http://www.nancynixrice.com/First%20Impressions.html

[Lisa Laree]

Sounds like that was fun and informative!   

[Doris W. in TN]

I stumbled upon her booth when the ASG conference was in Nashville two years ago.   I purchased some scarves she chose for me --- ones I never would have picked out --- and I continue to get rave compliments when I wear them.   I need her as my personal shopper. 

[Liana]

This sounds like such a fun seminar!  I enjoyed reading all the info on her website as well. 

How many people were at the seminar you attended? 

[duffma]

There were 80 people at the seminar.
mary ann

[Liana]

There were 80 people at the seminar.
mary ann

Hi Mary Ann!  Wow, that's a lot of people for what sounds like a lot of individual attention.  Were you satisfied with it?  She must be a real whiz at sizing people up and knowing what would look best on them without taking much time.  I think it sounds like it would be great fun! 

Also, I want to welcome you to Stitcher's Guild!   I hope you'll post whenever you feel like it, and join in the fun.  This board has lots of neat features that you may want to try.  If you have any questions or need help with anything, just ask the Administrators or Moderators.  There are a couple of threads that may be of interest to you as you look around the site.  The "Are You New, Please Read This Thread First" is a good place to start, as is  Forum Decorum & FAQ and of course there's the ever-popular Sandbox where you can try out all the features, and which is a very easy place to get help or have questions answered.

Again, Welcome! 

[Geranium]

Our sewing guild brought her in for a day-long seminar in 2005. She was excellent! About 30 attended and it was still small enough where everyone got individual attention. She had a slew of topics to cover, such as body shapes (which guides clothing styles), face shapes (which guides hairstyle and necklines), hair/eye color (to chose clothing colors), and more. For each section, she would pull up someone from the audience and make an example out of them. At one point she got the whole group in a semi-circle, with the light hair/light complexion folks on one end and the skin/hair color getting progressively darker until the darkest person was on the other end. Through these activities, you learned from other people's coloring (i.e., you do the opposite of what someone with opposite coloring is instructed to do) and had a chance to get custom advice when you were in the front of the group. Also, during breaks, you could ask questions or get her advice in selecting scarves.

I learned so much. For example, she said that not many people look great in black and white, except for people with black hair and fairer skin (or something to that effect). Yet everyone is told to buy a white shirt and black suit to look professional and crisp. It makes many people look tired and older. So, she said that if you have to wear this ensemble or you feel comfortable in it, wear a soft color scarf that goes with your hair and skin tone. She also said that your face and body shape help determine what shape of clothes look good on you. For example, if you have an angular face (high cheek bones and/or square jaw), you look best in hairstyles that are a little more angular (i.e., not soft and curly). Think of Maria Shriver. She has an angular straight hairstyle and she would look subtly strange with soft, bouncy curls. The same is true for clothing. She would not look her best in ruffle-y dresses and really soft, feminine flowy fabrics.

Anyway, if you have a chance to check her out, either for an hour seminar or a daylong event, do it! The funny thing is, I was doing many, but not all, of the things she recommended. I think people naturally gravitate toward what looks good on them. Now I finally know why I look good in certain colors. But the tips I learned were worth the price of admission. She also offers a color session where she does your colors in about 15 minutes and then later sends you a keychain with many swatches of the exact colors that look good on you. You can take that swatch set shopping with you and shopping is a breeze. And to think I didn't really want to go to this event. I only did it to support my guild. But I learned more than I ever thought I would.