Every wardrobe consultant has a gory story from the front lines of fashion. The fund manager who showed up at a charity event in a fabulous dress and dirty fingernails. The lawyer who received a compliment on a suit in 1984 and still wears it today.
Then there was the doctor whose entire wardrobe was one big mistake - "a $100,000 mistake," said Elena Castaneda, a consultant based in New York.
"But it's Brioni," the client protested when Castaneda explained that the suit had to go.
"It's pleated," she retorted and, dispelling a common myth, explained, "He thinks he's well dressed because it's a designer name, but he's not."
How someone could misspend six figures on quality clothing might seem baffling. Stick to good fabrics, good labels and update with the seasons, right? Not exactly, experts say. More important than following formulas is dressing for your body type and environment, and focusing on where you want to end up, not just where you are.
And so, with gentle nudging and blunt admonitions, wardrobe consultants offer what friends, family, glossy magazine spreads and even ample disposable income cannot: brutal honesty.
"Maybe you have a short neck," Castaneda said. "A sales person is certainly not going to point that out to you. They're there to make commission."
For those who need help, a slightly bruised ego - and fees from a few hundred dollars an hour to $3,000 a day - may feel like a small price to pay in exchange for professional and personal growth. The financial upside is that a few hours of advice can result in much smarter purchases in the future. Consultants also maintain that an updated look can lead to career advancement and increased earnings, whether it's because of the impression created through smarter clothes or the added confidence.
Starting with questionnaires, interviews or a color and style consultation, services can include closet inspections and triage, shopping trips with built-in lessons, and the creation of a "look book" with photographs of outfits to make things easier during the morning rush.
A few years ago such services catered to the very wealthy or very clueless, but today those who feel time-strapped, stuck in a rut or simply shopping-averse are seeking the advice of stylists.
"Often people are so busy that among their priorities, clothing is very low on the list," said Francesca Gentille, a wardrobe consultant who operates her business out of San Francisco and Reno, Nevada.
Castaneda, who charges $1,800 a day, estimates that demand has surged in the past three years, in part because of the popularity of reality TV shows like "Project Runway," in which amateur designers compete to create the best clothes, and "What Not to Wear," where people sacrifice their wardrobes for fashion tutoring and a $5,000 shopping spree. Over all, such shows have raised consciousness about what works and what doesn't.
Like other personal coaches, consultants often surface at transition points: when people are looking for or landing from a promotion, re-entering the work force or the dating market, or dealing with a new figure.
John Mariotti hired Gentille three years ago during a career change. He went from stockbroker to martial arts instructor and downshifted his look accordingly. There were some sticking points, though.
"There were some jeans that I particularly liked," Mariotti said. "Brand new. I really didn't want to release them."
But after some hedging, he realized that the Wranglers were no longer him.
"What I found was that my closet did not reflect who I really was," Mariotti said. "Now I know that what I wear looks good, that in the environments that I'm in, it feels like it works better."
Some of the most important changes are subtle. Nicoletta Adda, who works in London and takes clients to Milan for shopping trips, says the devil is in the details, like personal grooming.
"They buy themselves beautiful clothes" which end up compromised by "loose buttons, undone hems, badly scuffed shoes. No beautiful suit looks good on an ungroomed person," she said.
In-depth fashion consultation is not for everybody. Opening up to an outsider about such private matters can be nerve-wracking, and sometimes a single session is enough to re-evaluate. Mariotti offered strategies:
First, check references and personality: Will the consultant push for total sartorial overhaul or settle for fine tuning?
Set a shopping budget early on.
Know yourself: reflect on lifestyle, professional goals and any recent life changes.
Finally, decide where you'll draw the line.
"It wasn't like we went through the closet and threw everything away," Mariotti said of working with Gentille. Her approach was nuanced rather than black and white: "This works, this doesn't. It's an educational process. And it's still ongoing."
