This is an enlightening and thought-provoking read that encourages, and almost forces the reader, in a good way, to take a look at oneself in order to better understand their fashion choices. What we wear is often part of the first impression of ourselves that someone is able to see. In my younger days, I dressed professionally but also in a manner to attempt to downplay certain areas of my body so as not to send the wrong message in a male-dominated arena. Now, I dress for how I feel while still keeping within the boundaries of what I consider to be acceptable. I feel that I have grown in that manner, and this book reenforced that as well as allowing me the opportunity to reflect and continue to grow. Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for the opportunity to review this book.

DRESS YOUR BEST LIFE by Dawnn Karen explores the idea that "fashion is the voice we use to declare ourselves to the world." Karen, a graduate of Columbia University, former model, and now a professor at the Fashion Institute of Technology, offers chapters on topics such as "Fashion Psychology 101" and "Mood Matters." In the introduction, she frankly describes her background, recounts a traumatic event, and explains her on-going interest in exploring the "relationship between attire and attitude" through studying both psychology and fashion. There is a fascinating chapter on color and another on power accessories, plus multiple case studies. Karen builds on wider messages associated with "self-acceptance, body positivity, and inclusivity" and employs quizzes to help the reader define his or her own style. There's an element of sustainability, too: she recommends a list of "woke" brands. I particularly liked the questions she suggests near the end:
Do I love it? (instead of Will they like it?)
Do I need it? (instead of Do I want it?)
This title, which the author hopes encourages readers to "feel more and shop less," seems like a good "fit" for my students who are currently researching the impact of fast fashion and the shift to more casual clothing. DRESS YOUR BEST LIFE received a starred review from Booklist.

I have learned through the years that how you dress really does play a huge and important role in how people see and perceive you along with how you feel on a day to day basis. This book explores that idea and teaches its readers that dressing for your best life can help lead you to actually having that best life. Dressing well helps lift moods and spirits, as well as give you confidence. This book was beneficial to read and a lot of fun; it almost felt like a friend was in my closet helping me out.

Reading a book about clothing while I'm in my sixth week of leggings and T-shirts in quarantine feels a little ironic. This is a great book, though. Therapist and fashion expert Dawnn Karen gets real with readers about what we wear and why. She includes case studies from real clients, women and men, telling their stories and ending with takeaways for the rest of us. Now I am inspired to go through my clothes and get rid of anything that's for an aspirational life (Karen hilariously talks about the theoretical "her" we often buy for, frequently a more fabulous person who goes out a lot and needs fancy clothes), and to wear everything I love instead of saving it for special occasions.

Dawnn provides a unique voice in the styling world. Her inclusion of psychology principles means that the style books help the address the self-esteem aspect of fashion all while helping women find their personal styles. It will be a useful tool for anyone woman graduating university and trying to transition from student wardrobe to professional wardrobe.

I loved this book. It actually made me question not my whole wadrobe but how i dress at home and how i feel about it. Working from home i tend to wear jeans and t-shirts, and they're usually old and not always well fitting- something i never liked but was never really motivated to change. I realized that i never really feel good about how i look at home, and that's coming from a person who takes great pride in her level of fitness. So i dumped all the ill fitting jeans and t-shirts and grabbed all the nice stuff i've had hanging in the closet. Honestly it immediately made me feel a million times better,

This is a very well structured book but I requested it think it would be more like a self help guide when it's really like a textbook complete with case studies and heavily references articles. It's good just not what I was expecting. I feel like some vibrant photography would've also given this the extra edge.

It's almost hard to believe fashion psychology didn't exist or wasn't mainstream until recently. The author explains the nuances of how our emotions affect our look and vice versa. There's a balance between facts & psychology and light-hearted fashion. More than the book, I fell in love with Dawnn and started following her on social media.

I received this book from Net Galley.

This topic is very important to me, and I thought the author had a lot of great things to say. However, I fully expected to be inundated with lots of color photographs to literally illustrate the points and I was sadly disappointed. I think readers will be expecting similar, especially with such a vibrant and compelling cover image.

This was just ok to me. I expected it to be more visual considering the topic. This is an advance copy so maybe there are photos coming in the final version. The material was fine--a lot referencing fashion psychology which is a unique spin on the topic. I did like the fashion cases and how she reviewed their style and made adjustments while still keeping their personality and lifestyle in mind.

i really enjoyed this! the cover caught my eye and i am in a bit of a rut lately where i feel like i have 'nothing to wear' and everything looks awful... i also feel like i've forgotten how to make decisions when it comes to what i wear. i've relied on friend's opinions way too much for simple things i used to not have a problem with.

anyway. i read a non-fiction book right before this one, hoping it would give me lots of good info about its topic in an easy to read format... instead i basically got a textbook and it was so boring with absolutely no new info that i could not have googled myself. experts are supposed to get all the info i can find myself and package it in a nice pretty understandable package for a non-expert like myself. that book failed, this book succeeded... with flying colours.

first off, it was easy to read. i flew through it. loved all the case studies, loved all the facts and references to other things. secondly, it was interesting - it was a perfect mix of non-fiction 'boring stuff' and easy to understand anecdotes/tips. lastly, it actually gave tips and tricks for you to use the information you learned! (maybe i'm just salty that the other non-fiction book i read didn't do this).

i'm in a bit of a rut right now, in life and my closet. my world kind of fell apart this year and i've noticed i have not branched out with my clothes at all. i wear the same things, comfortable things, day in and day out. some of them don't even fit properly anymore because i lost weight when everything happened. but i keep wearing them because i feel comfortable in them, but not in a good way. i don't know how to describe t - like a security blanket, but not an attractive one. i really appreciated the case studies included in this book, especially the ones that were so similar to my own story. the one where her boyfriend picked her clothes - my ex didn't pick my clothes but he did have opinions and i noticed i stopped wearing the things he didn't like (tight things, high heels, colourful things).

i also really appreciated the chapter about shopping. i used to have a shopping addiction that i thought i overcame, but it's reared its ugly head recently because my life feels so out of control, so i buy all the things - for past me, for future me, for a me that doesn't exist. so i end up with not a lot of money in the bank and way too many clothes i don't wear, i don't feel comfortable in.

obviously, i have a lot of other issues i need to work on, but i really appreciated this book and i feel like it gave me the tools to really look at my clothes and what i'm wearing, how i'm feeling - what that means for my outfit and vice versa. we've all heard the 'look good, feel good' and it's very true - if i style my hair instead of throwing it up in a messy (not cute) bun, i feel better. it takes 10 minutes for me to straighten or curl my hair - and sometimes takes even longer to make the bun look appropriate and not like i'm cleaning the house. same goes for clothes. i wear pretty much the same thing to work each day because i am afraid to branch out. but i can take baby steps, and i loved all the ideas in this book.

i really feel like i am ready to take on the world - or, at least my closet. definitely recommend this one if it sounds like something you're interested in!