For those who have never heard of Clinton, he was a
co-host with Stacy London on TLC’s “What Not To Wear” (WNTW) for 10 years and
is currently on “The Chew.” On WNTW they
“ambushed” women who dressed badly and basically “threw out” their clothes, but
then gave them $5,000 to go on a shopping spree in New York. The women also got a new haircut and makeup. I watched faithfully for all 10 years and
learned a lot. (I basically did the
opposite of what they told the shorter women.
Let’s see, that elongates the leg?
I will not do that. J)
Clinton was in town to host a fashion show at Macy’s
and also to promote his new book, “Freakin’ Fabulous on a Budget.” (Yes, I stole his descriptor. Just this once. Ok, maybe I will keep using it, but will
always credit him.)
We took our seats near the front left of the stage
and enjoyed music (a bit loud), fruity drinks and some yummy hors d‘oeuvres. Clinton was a tad bit late; when he finally
came out he explained that on his way to the airport in New York he got stuck
in traffic behind a garbage truck that had caught fire on the highway. He missed his first flight and thankfully was
able to catch another.
The fashion show was a preview of some spring/summer
trends – moto jackets, lace, color-blocking, mixing patterns and dresses. Each trend was represented by three types of
models – the millennial, the curvy woman and the mature woman. Is it bad that I really liked the millennial
outfits? Even though the skirts were
waaay to short for me, I loved
them!
After the show, Clinton did some Q&A. I wracked my brain to come up with a good
question. I thought of a few but
promptly “threw them out” of my head.
Finally I came up with one. I
kept raising my hand.
So he was finally coming toward me and I stood up to
ask my question. I knew I had to wear
some kind of heel to the show and that he would love it. I wore my camel-colored wedge suede booties
(2” heel) with skinny jeans, a beige top that was lower in the back, and a
statement necklace that was one necklace but had several chains. Kind of like Mr. T.
When I stood up his eyes got big and said, ‘Wow!”
and he asked how tall I was. I told him
and added, “But I’m wearing heels.” To
which he said, “I love a tall woman in heels!”
Let me also mention that Clinton is very animated and high-energy. My question was about jackets and that I
can’t wear them because my arms are too long.
I noticed that a couple of the models wore jackets and pushed up the
sleeves. I asked if it would look ok if
I did that, or if I would look like I grew out of my jacket. He told me to be careful to balance out the
rest of the outfit. So no cropped pant
with a shorter-sleeved jacket. I then
kind-of kept talking to him from my seat and asked if he knew of any place that
sold jackets with really long sleeves. He didn’t.
Oh well. I’m glad I got my
question in! Afterward I thought of
other, funnier questions like, “Tell us how you really feel about leggings.”
On the show he always said, “Leggings are not pants.” I also could have asked him about wearing
skinny jeans – does it look ok for a thin (I don’t like using the word skinny
to describe me or any other woman) women to wear them?
After the Q&A he wrapped things up and hung
around to sign copies of his book, but you had to make a $100 purchase to get a
“free” book and have him sign it. That
was the only way you could meet him. What’s
a girl to do? I bought a Ralph Lauren
dress, got my book and got in line. The
things I do…
Julie stayed in line with me so she could take a
picture of Clinton and me together.
Initially we were told no photos were allowed, but then we saw him
taking photos with everyone. It was
finally my turn and I asked if I could have a picture of us together standing
up. One to add to the Feeling Normal
scrapbook! It happened so fast but we
talked a bit more about fashion/style and he asked where I got my jeans. (Old Navy extra long Diva). He said that fitting tall women was very
difficult but I told him it wasn’t really that hard. Maybe we should go on tour together!? I could help him give other tall women
tips! He did say my outfit was very
sleek. Ooooh, I like that! Sleek!
Meow!
He seems really nice and is really funny. And adorable.
So usually the tall, attractive men I meet are married. He’s married AND gay. Double whammy!
When he first came out and chatted before the
fashion show he said he wanted to make one thing clear – he doesn’t care what
we wear. He is not here to judge anyone. I’m sure he said that since on WNTW they did
somewhat judge people and threw out their old, unfashionable clothes. But in real life, he just wants to help women
look their best if they want his help.
Nicely said.
During the Q&A a woman asked him which
celebrities he looked up to style-wise.
He said he didn’t really look up to any celebrities, then went on to say
they have their own trainers, stylists, cooks, etc. That it’s not that hard for them to look good
when they have all that help. Some of them
do have good taste (he mentioned Gwyneth Paltrow and Nicole Kidman always look
good), but that money and celebrity don’t always translate to good taste. Amen!
After the evening I must admit I was a bit jazzed
up. I felt like Clinton’s energy had transferred
to me and I wanted to tell everyone about my experience. After I got home I finally read what he wrote
in my book. “Linda, Stay tall and
fabulous! XO Clinton”
I LOVE it! Tall and
fabulous! My new descriptor!
Do you ever have thoughts about how you are wasting
your time (watching too much TV, etc.) and not making time to do the things you
really want to do? Like write that book,
take on that project, be more productive?
I have been telling myself that for months. Then I sleep in on Saturdays until 9 a.m. and
waste and hour here and there. The
Saturday after my freakin’ fabulous Friday I woke up at 8:15 a.m. (no
alarm). I got up, took a shower and
cleaned the house. I then drove to my
brother’s house by a little after 10 a.m. and finished my taxes. Back home to eat lunch before Julie came over
around 2 p.m. and we then planned a future trip to Italy. I felt great about what I had accomplished! My reward?
Chilling out and watching some hoops that evening.
I usually feel pretty energetic, but I do feel as if
I have a renewed energy about me. I am
newly motivated to start some projects I’ve been procrastinating about. I am also renewing my attitude about being
tall. I’ve always enjoyed it overall but
admit that sometimes I dwell on the negative aspects of it (see my previous
post). I am hereby “tall and fabulous” and
that is where I will live from now on.
Thank you freakin’ fabulous (and tall) Clinton for sharing your talent, ideas,
humor and positive energy with us!
If you want to learn more about Clinton, check out
his website. You will freakin' love it!
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