Erica Pach, is image consultant, she runs her own business Be-your-best. Shw was born in Hongkong (1951) nowadays she lives in Zaandam (the Netherlands).
Erica: “My career as a secretary and communications advisor stopped a decade ago (necessity). I decided to start with something completely different. I’m interested in beautiful and stylish clothes since I was a child. Therefore I started a training to become an image consultant. Today I give personal clothing and style advice to women and men. Besides that I give training and workshops to groups. As image consultant you talk about a person’s appearance and not just about his clothes. That means you don’t look only to clothes, but also to body language. When I started it was very important to see what fits in one’s figure, now the question is much more what suits a person as a human being.”
How would you describe your style?
“The best description seems ‘classic with a twist’. My clothes are fairly classic and preferably very colorful. As an image consultant, I’ve learned a lot, also about my own style. Since then I dress more extravagant. When I was thirty-something I used to wear hats, but at that time it felt actually a little bit uncomfortable. Maybe I was too shy at that time. Some ten years ago I started again with wearing hats. I wore a hat every day. I suddenly found it funny to do so. When I got glasses it changed again. I could not combine my glasses and hat well. Maybe it is because my other frame, but lately I wear hats more often.”
Accessories
“Generally, accessories are an important part of my wardrobe. In my work, I like to show how to combine things. Especially with colors and accessories, you can do a lot. So hats, stockings, and jewelry are important items in my wardrobe. And of course shoes, especially those of Jan Jansen, my favorite designer. I have a lot of shoes of him in my closet. When I wear jewelry, they should not be too large and not too much. It has to be graceful so it suits my figure. I have great admiration for Iris Apfel, but I would not attempt to use as many ‘schmuck’ as she does. It does not suit me. I don’t use handbags. In one way or another, I can not handle them. What I want to bring it never suits, if so, I would have to carry a backpack. My partner isn’t very happy with it, he tells me every time do something about it.”
In this combination, I feel very good. Once I wore this outfit when I went to a birthday in a village in North Holland. West Frisians are not so used to these clothes, but I did not care. I still got compliments.
Charleston
“For me, the best time in terms of fashion is the time of the Charleston dresses (the 30s) until the beginning of the 60s. The time when people wore real nice dresses and hats. I buy a lot of vintage clothes, from the time I came to live in Amsterdam. In the 70s it was quite common. Now it is harder to find really nice affordable vintage clothes. Outside the Randstad, in little villages or cities, you can still find something beautiful in a vintage shop. And abroad as well: London is fantastic in terms of vintage. In Brussels, I recently bought a red jacket from Alain Manoukian. Because I have a classic style, I keep my clothes and wear them for quite a long time. ”
Tips from an image advisor
This is my chance to get tips from a professional:
-Important is to avoid horizontal lines, especially if you’re not that big. Because it looks like you’re small and stocky. The clothes I’m wearing today is a good example. In this sea green skirt (which was my mother’s) with the purple jacket, I wear aquamarine stockings. If I would wear purple socks my legs look cut off. So I go through in sea green.
– If You have figured out a nice (new) combination, take a picture of it. So you can ‘remember’ it easily.
– When you’ve lost an earring, wear the one that you have left. Whether you combine it with another.
Erica is organizing an autumn color workshop on location: in Marrakech. You can’t imagine a better place to learn a lot about colors! You can still register until the end of August. Be your Best!
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