Monocle: Summer White
by Cynthia Brown on June 10, 2013

The new Monocle theme is Summer White. Full credit goes to the GCOGH members who made some awesome suggestions in this thread. There are already 500+ featured images and we'll be adding more every week. 

Happy Monday!

 

How to Wear Colored Blazers
by Cynthia Brown on June 1, 2013

A fun blazer can open up a world of remixing possibilities. Even better, if you're in a rush just throw a red jacket over jeans + a white top and suddenly it looks like you've made an effort. All of that being said, while putting this post together it occured to me that I own exactly one blazer ... and it's black. Per usual I missed the fashion memo, though I've heard that riding behind the curve is where the cool kids are at these days.

Featuring photos from Maria, Lisa, Emerald, Kendi, Maritsa, Blair, Alexandra, Megan, Ester, Audrey, Saumya, Marie-Eve, Lilly, Tanesha, Anna, Bree, Christine, Jentine, Pretty Affairs, Sasha, Psyche, and Amy. (Names link to blogs/profiles and images link to respective GCOGH photos/boards.)

 

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

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Ways to Wear Black and White Blazers
by Cynthia Brown on May 6, 2013

There are over 1000 images in the current Monocle theme so I decided to break down the recap posts into color groups. The next entries will have brights, patterns, and some more neutrals. Organizing fashion photos is a hard job but somebody has to do it.

Featuring photos from Amy, Shani, Caroline, Skylette, Samantha, Emily, Audrey, Aimee, Cover Up Chic, Emerald, Elena, Paloma, Megan, Merrick, Kasia, Nikki, Maddy, and Kayley. (Names link to blogs/profiles and images link to respective GCOGH photos/boards.)

 

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

How to Get and Share Advice on GCOGH
by Cynthia Brown on April 17, 2013

Quite a few members have reached out with questions like:

  • How do I start a discussion?
  • Who sees my comments?
  • How can I get advice from other members on what to wear?

Humor me while I give the long explanation. Also, look at Dionne's Polaroid camera! Clueless forever.

 

 

When Rob and I started Go Chic or Go Home, the idea was to create a community that maintained a sense of intimacy while also allowing members to meet and mingle. It's a tricky balance. Our goal with GCOGH was to take the everyday process of getting dressed and make it virtual. With that in mind, the best "real life" fashion advice generally comes from those who are familiar with your style, your wardrobe, etc. Personally I would rather get input from a handful of  people who know what works for me than 100 who don't.

This is where the virtual closets, boards, and "following" come in. GCOGH is the equivalent of standing in your physical closet with a bunch of friends discussing outfit options and inspiration ... while the wizard behind the hangers hands you sale coupons. Seems normal enough. Or as Danielle put it, "It's like Pinterest married Cher's closet from Clueless!" Now wouldn't that make pretty babies.

Which brings me around to how you can make the most of the community.

Find Fashion Friends!

There are a number of ways to find and follow members who have style similar to yours. 

  • Check out some of the profiles on the Featured Members page and browse through their respective inspiration photos, outfits, and ensembles. If you like what you see follow the member and most importantly leave a few helpful comments. Conversation is the best way to build relationships on GCOGH. Not everyone will follow you back, but if you see that the member is pretty active there's a good chance they will.​​
  • Invite your friends to the community via the Invite feature on the left!
  • Visit the Explore tab and browse through the Outfits and Ensembles pages. This is a great way to get a feel for a member's personal style and what inspires them, and that will help you decide if it's someone you'd like to follow.​
  • Uploading your own outfit and inspiration photos will attract members with a similar fashion sense to your profile. This is an excellent way to contribute to the GCOGH community and gain followers. 
  • Make sure your "Style" preferences are selected in your profile so other members know what you like.

Who will see your comments and discussion threads? 

  • If you comment on a photo, thread, or ensemble the original poster will receive a notification and any members who follow you will see the comment on their Home wall. This is similar to how Facebook and Twitter work. 
  • Members who follow you will see your discussion threads on their Home wall. If a member comments on your thread then their followers will also see it. Again, think Facebook and Twitter. 

The community is growing like crazy so there are tons of opportunities to meet new people and expand your fashion horizons. Like Ren and Stimpy, making the most of what you have is way existential.

How to Pack with GCOGH
by Cynthia Brown on April 9, 2013

A few weeks ago member Crystal asked if there was a way to add ensembles to boards so that she could make a packing list. Right now GCOGH lets members organize ensembles with Notes and Tags, but adding ensembles to boards is a great idea so I went ahead and included it in our feature queue. Give us feedback and we'll listen!

Crystal's suggestion got me thinking about packing tools, and at the time I happened to be getting ready for a trip to Texas. While playing with the site I realized that there actually is a way to group travel outfits virtually on GCOGH and it's defintiely helpful.

 

 

Back in the days of yore (circa early 2012) packing involved laying out clothes on the bed, and then pairing pieces up to try and figure out what could be reused, combined, etc. This is a hard way to visualize outfits. I've already created hundreds of ensembles with everything in my closet so it makes far more sense to skip the mess and pick my travel outfits on GCOGH. 

Here's the method to my madness.

  • Step 1: In this post I discussed the genius ways that members use GCOGH to pack. In a nutshell, use the Create tab to make one large ensemble with all of the clothes that might work - it's like a virtual suitcase. Then start clicking on the individual pieces to see what ensembles have been made with each item. 
  • Step 2: This is my new trick. As I find ensembles that seem right for my trip I simply "Edit" them and add the "Packing" tag. Now all I have to do it go to My Ensembles and filter by "Packing". Every outfit I plan to wear is neatly laid out right there on the screen.

I usually end up swapping pieces out and editing my original "large ensemble" until I'm happy with all of the outfit options. I don't know about the rest of the world, but "options" have always been my overpacking downfall. That being said, I wore every pair of shoes and all but one top on our Texas trip. It's the little victories.

Stole this image idea from Kendi. No shame.

2 Comments
How to Wear Scarves
by Cynthia Brown on March 26, 2013

For the most part I wear scarves year-round, but there are certain states in the U.S. where that kind of sartorial behavior is plain crazy (looking at you Texas, New York ... the rest of the country). Scientifically speaking, your neck is a pulse point so it's probably not advisable to wear a scarf when the temperatures are high. Instead might I suggest an ice pack, or perhaps a bag of frozen peas (emerald is in after all).

The current Monocle theme is scarves so I pulled together some warmish weather inspiration to get us rolling into spring. Featuring photos from Wendy, Kendi, Kayley, Gracey, Shannon, Nicole, Jules, Jessie, Christine, Audrey, Lilly, Veronica, Ariana, Cori, Jenna, Bree, Emerson Fry, and Tam. (Names link to blogs/profiles and images link to respective GCOGH photos/boards.)
 
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

How to Incorporate Closet Orphans
by Cynthia Brown on February 21, 2013

Last Saturday night involved pizza, playing around with Google Analytics, and reading about ostrich feet. If you are looking for a nerd party you've come to the right place. 

 

 

Google Analytics is fun (fun?) because it shows me what search terms people are using to find GCOGH. It turns out that one of the top terms is "how do I incorporate closet orphans" as well as "clueless closet for computer". Since the whole point of Go Chic or Go Home is to help members make the most of what they have this little gem made my weekend (that and the ostrich feet).

I've discussed wardrobe maximization here, and the other week I shared how member Karina is using her inspiration boards to create capsule wardrobes. Here are a few more ways to make the most of what you have thanks to members Dawn, Laura, and Audrey.

Wear Your Closet

Dawn started a project and inspiration board called "Wear My Closet". She explains: 

"In the spirit of making sure I wear everything I own, I've decided to set myself a challenge--every day (M-F at least) I must wear a different piece of clothing from my closet until I've gone through my entire wardrobe. I'm allowed to repeat garments (like the same pants with different tops, etc), but each day I have to wear something "new". Let's see if I can actually pull this off."

Dawn is doing an awesome job of keeping up with her challenge and you can see all of the outfits she has worn here.

Seasonal Transitions

While exchanging e-mails with member Laura she mentioned an inspiration board she had created called "Wear Before Spring". She explained that the goal is to remove every piece from the board as she wears them this month. Such a fantastic idea for making the most of seasonal clothing!

GCOGH 101

Last but certainly not least, check out Audrey's awesome post about using GCOGH to make the most of lonely closet pieces. She is definitely a pro when it comes to the community. 

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