Dressing in comfortable clothes but still looking stylish is what Sarah McGrew aims for.
Athens Uncorked, 14 Station St., is hosting “Comfy Not Frumpy” where McGrew will give advice on how to feel comfortable in stylish clothes Wednesday at 5:30 p.m.
McGrew is a style consultant and owns Get Real Image, which she started in 2015 after retiring from nursing.
“I’ve always been interested in fashion, even as a child,” McGrew said. “I dressed up all of the neighborhood children and all of the pets.”
McGrew took classes in 2004 about image consulting because of her interest in fashion. After retiring, she decided she was too young to not work at all. It only took her three days to decide she was going to start her business.
What people wear is very important to how others perceive them as a person, McGrew said. Clothes, hair and makeup are all factors McGrew works with to improve personal image.
“People make quick decisions about others based on what they see,” McGrew said. “It’s an evolutionary thing.”
As human beings, McGrew believes people judge based on what others look like.
“We are visual creatures, whether you want to admit it or not. We all are making decisions about other people based on what we see,” McGrew said. “People need to decide for themselves what impression they want to make.”
To be as stylish as possible while still remaining comfortable, McGrew suggests people primarily search for clothes that fit well.
“You might be comfortable physically but not mentally, and you end up looking older than you really are,” McGrew said. “There are certain things you can’t change but what you wear you can control.”
Bayley Collins, a freshman studying graphic design, dresses comfortable for class.
“If I have a class before noon, I’m going to dress comfy,” Collins said.
Collins looks for soft clothes and clothes that don’t have a lot of patterns so she doesn’t have to worry about clashing.
Sarah Dennis, a senior studying economics, splits her time equally between looking comfortable and dressing up. Her outfits depend on what she has going on any given day.
“I feel like if I want to be comfy, I just don’t think about it,” Dennis said. “If I want to look cute, I’m going to try.”
Dennis searches for clothes with have pockets as well as solid colors instead of patterns.
“You can’t mix patterns,” Dennis said. “I try to wear solid colored pants and patterned shirts.”
To find personal style, McGrew suggests people look around their home for the things they love to look at. Even furniture can give a sense of what kind of style someone has, McGrew said.
“I want people to come away with a good sense of what they can do to feel comfortable physically and feel fabulous mentally and feel empowered with how they look,” McGrew said.
