{"id":2334,"date":"2011-03-20T06:00:46","date_gmt":"2011-03-20T10:00:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/?p=2334"},"modified":"2011-03-20T08:59:49","modified_gmt":"2011-03-20T12:59:49","slug":"how-to-save-the-unfashionable-friend","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/?p=2334","title":{"rendered":"How to Save the Unfashionable Friend"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Kelly Hockenberry<\/strong>, Columnist, UnionvilleTimes.com<\/em><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>We all have one\u2026.the girlfriend who you are dying to make-over!\u00a0 Bring her to the light, so to speak. But, HOW? How do you do that without hurting her feelings? If you are fortunate enough to know me personally (ha!), you know that I have very little problem expressing myself. And, I have been known, on occasion, to be somewhat obnoxious about it. Gasp!<\/p>\n

However, this is my attempt at being NICE, being helpful but somewhat sneaky and underhanded at the same time.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s set the scene, shall we?<\/p>\n

Girlfriend #1 is \u201cMolly Martyr\u201d. You know her, the one who proclaims to \u201cnot have enough time to worry about her appearance.\u201d Hence, the two inch roots, jeans from 1987, her husband\u2019s sweatshirt and the dreaded white sneaker.\u00a0 How can you help?\u00a0 I find that with women like this, you need to approach them like you would a small, timid animal. You don\u2019t want to scare them with couture or bombard them with too trendy items.<\/p>\n

I suggest a \u201cMom\u2019s Day Out\u201d where you, just perhaps, make a pit stop for some shopping on your way to lunch and a movie.\u00a0 While you are IN the store, casually offer to pick out an outfit that she should try on \u201cjust to see how it looks.\u201d When she comes out of the dressing room looking like the MILLION dollar version of herself, go CRAZY with the compliments!<\/p>\n

Be careful to use your \u201cindoor voice\u201d though\u2026.that\u2019s what she is used to. Remember, this particular girlfriend will struggle with actually spending her money on something that doesn\u2019t directly involve her children. Assure her that her daughter will be able to borrow her fabulous jeans in six to ten years when she\u2019s old enough.<\/p>\n

Girlfriend #2 we\u2019ll call \u201cFranny Floozy.\u201d She has enough cleavage to make Dolly Parton jealous and doesn\u2019t mind showing it to the world. And may I add that, I am in NO way bitter about this. My Hillary Duff Collection Bras are available at WalMart and come in a variety of colors! But, I digress. Franny\u2019s skirts are too short, her pants too tight. She actually buys clothing to reveal the large butterfly tattoo stamped on her lower back. She has a tendency to over-accessorize: a ring on every finger (including the thumb which is a Kelly Hockenberry proclaimed NO NO), dangerously spiked heels and the dreaded ankle bracelet. Her make-up is harsh, her eyebrows penciled in an angry line and her hair is probably a shade not found in nature.<\/p>\n

How to help? Hmmmm, this one is tough because chances are she can kick your butt. Tread softly. But, she\u2019s different from Molly Martyr. She WANTS people to look at her! I suggest a JCrew gift card for her birthday (which you will have to forcibly ensure is used) or maybe a subscription to Vogue or Lucky magazine. Take the time to earmark outfits that you think she should try.<\/p>\n

Suggest going to the make-up counter at the mall and ask for a mini make-over. Request that the two of you get a \u201cnatural daytime look.\u201d Then, just like with Molly, kill her with kindness! Everybody loves feeling pretty!<\/p>\n

Girlfriend #3 is \u201cCathy Crunchie\u201d. She is usually serenely decked out in her broomstick skirt, a mismatched t-shirt (sans undergarments) and a pair of Birkenstocks or Crocs (which are equally as hideous). She may still be wearing the earring in her nose or eyebrow that she got in college. Ouch.<\/p>\n

Cathy\u2019s hair is washed a few times a week and is reminiscent of Crystal Gail.<\/p>\n

How to help?\u00a0 I think that this may call for some \u201ctough love\u201d.\u00a0 Take her to Starbucks, get her a grande chai latte and tell her that her days of following the Grateful Dead have been over for YEARS. Tell her that you\u2019ve booked a hair appointment and accidentally (on purpose) spill the remainder of your coffee on her multi-colored hemp woven cross-body satchel.<\/p>\n

Remind her that even Drew Barrymore gets it right every once in a while. You can be left of center and still look cute. There are many organic based clothing lines and vegan shoes to satisfy her need to be \u201calternative\u201d and \u201ceco-friendly\u201d without appearing homeless or like an extra from The Partridge Family.<\/p>\n

Have I helped? I don\u2019t know. The unfashionable friend is a tricky one. But, fellow fashionistas, it is our DUTY to beautify our surroundings.\u00a0 Until next week\u2026.<\/p>\n

DISCLAIMER: The names of my \u201cgirlfriends\u201d have been changed to protect the innocent. You know who you are.<\/p>\n

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By Kelly Hockenberry, Columnist, UnionvilleTimes.com We all have one\u2026.the girlfriend who you are dying to make-over!\u00a0 Bring her to the light, so to speak. But, HOW? How do you do that without hurting her feelings? If you are fortunate enough to know me personally (ha!), you know that I have very little problem expressing myself. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2335,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[245,7],"tags":[261,255,24],"class_list":["post-2334","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lifestyle","category-featured","tag-column","tag-fashion","tag-unionville"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2334","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2334"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2334\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2335"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2334"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2334"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2334"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}