In her new book The Language of Clothes, Dr. Martha Heisenberger suggests that our wardrobe occasions when we have to wear particular clothes (interviews, weddings) but we have plenty of choice. So, a low-cut dress may suggest you are power-hungry, while too much jewellery might mean you are insecure. The jewellery could be an attempt to tell others you are rich, but actually it may mean that you are having financial problems and are trying to hide the truth!
Women who button up their clothes are actually saying ‘femininty means weakness, I want power’; while high heels can make women appear less intelligent, they can also inspire confidence, by making them look taller.
Dr. Heisenbergrger says, ‘Actually, you thoughts and feelings are all there in your clothes; but you have to look for them.’ Heisenberger ,s research suggests we should avoid buying designer labels, and we don’t have to get into a style rut, ‘We should not wear the same clothes all the time; above all, we should not overspend.’
Our behaviour, explains Heisenberger, comes from inside; why should clothes be different? All you need to do is notice the styles in your wardrobe to find out who really are. Dr. Heisenbergrger adds. ‘you have to mix things up, you don’t have to wear the seam stuff all the time; like you could use contrasts, such as a gold belt with an all-black outfit and bright red heels. All ths may show you have high self-esteem and are not afraid to stand out.’
Heisenberger believer people with low self-esteem shouldn’t read fashion magazines with pictures of slim models-these images play a big part in making us worry about our looks. One approach might be to choose a famous role model and notice how they dress, but we mustn’t just copy, ‘you should wear the clothes you feel good in. You needn’t copy anyone: be yourself!’
Why did Heisenberger decide to write this book on the power of clothes? ‘well, actually, one day I was watching an episode of The Simpsons: at school, Bart was wearing a ‘Down with homework’ T-shirt and this provoked a student riot; so everyone had to wear the seam grey uniforms. The grey dress-code made the students calm down and behave well. but when it started to rain and the rain washed their clothing into colour, they behaved badly again. After this hilarious episode, I thought I must write a book about this-the connection between the clothes we wear and the why we behave.’