Rita Black: Sometimes, as we get over a certain age, we women can start to feel invisible. This can then lead not to caring so much about our appearance and maybe dressing just for comfort and not dressing in a way that makes us feel like we are fully representing our best selves to the world. So in this week's Thin Thinking episode, fashion consultant, Ginger Burr and I discussed this and the fact that times are changing and we don't need to trade comfort for style. And we definitely do not need to be invisible, now, do we? Especially to ourselves. So join me for this eye-opening conversation. Grab your clothes hangers and come on in.

Rita Black: Did you know that our struggle with weight doesn't start with the food on your plate or get fixed in the gym? 80% of our weight struggle is mental. That's right. The key to unlocking long-term weight release and management begins in your mind. Hi there, I'm Rita Black. I'm a clinical hypnotherapist weight loss expert, bestselling author, and the creator of the Shift Weight Mastery Process. And not only have I helped thousands of people over the past 20 years achieve long-term weight mastery. I am also a former weight struggler, carb addict and binge eater. And after two decades of failed diets and fad weight loss programs, I lost 40 pounds with the help of hypnosis. Not only did I release all that weight, I have kept it off for 25 years. Enter the Thin Thinking Podcast where you too will learn how to remove the mental roadblocks that keep you struggling. I'll give you the thin thinking tools, skills, and insights to help you develop the mindset you need, not only to achieve your ideal weight, but to stay there long term and live your best life. Sound good? Let's get started.

Rita Black: Hello. Hello. Come on in. I am just back from being away up in the mountains and it was a great break. Lots of nature, lots of family time, and I feel rejuvenated and ready to head into fall. And I think I've mentioned like a hundred times that I'm turning 60 in a few weeks and I couldn't be more excited. But I also have been processing a lot about what it means to age mentally, physically, and spiritually. And it brings up a lot, especially with my kids being out of the house. You know, not outta my pocket books. Mind you. When does that happen?

Rita Black: But also my husband retired a few years back and I am not doing that. I'm planning to keep going with what I do for a long time. So I'm looking at what this chapter of my life is gonna look like. And one thing I know for sure is I would like to look the best that I can while doing it. So that is where the lovely Ms. Ginger Burr comes in. She and I had an amazing conversation about dressing ourselves and feeling good in our clothes as we age. And I cannot wait to share it with you. Creating a wardrobe and personal style you love begins with a longing for ease and beauty, your definition of beauty, every time you get dressed. Ginger Burr founded Total Image Consultants with a heartfelt belief that whether you are 25 or 85, you deserve to feel radiant, pulled together, every time you get dressed. Her work has reached women from all walks of life who long to connect with their inner essence to create a wardrobe they love. She's the author of the book That's So You: Create a Look You Love With Beauty Style and Grace. Ginger has been interviewed by Allure Magazine, Forbes Magazine, Fox News, and Bloomberg Business Week. And let's just welcome the lovely Miss Ginger Burr.

Rita Black: Well, welcome back to Thin Thinking Podcast, Ginger! It's so great to have you back.

Ginger Burr: Oh, thank you, Rita.

Rita Black: I was trying to remember when I had you on before, 'cause we had such a great discussion about dressing for your weight, and so if anybody wants information on that, they can go back and look at that. We'll probably cover a little bit of that here today. But Ginger is an amazing, well, I'm gonna have you tell everybody how you help people. 'cause how you help people is so cool.

Ginger Burr: Thank you. Well, I've been doing this for a really long time as an image consultant. And I just to let everybody know, I became an image consultant because I struggled myself with how to get dressed in a way that made me feel self-confident back in the my teens and my twenties when most people are like, yeah, I can throw anything on and feeling great. That wasn't me. And and then I met someone who was able offering a three-day workshop. And I'm, and she taught me about color and style and makeup and all of that in a way that was so accessible and answered the questions that I had, you know, been dying to have answered. And I realized that it was my calling that I picked it up quickly. I loved it, and I can help other women. I saw it as a form. I felt empowered and I saw it as a form of empowering women to feel really good about themselves and to get some of those questions answered because fashion and style is not as straightforward as everybody wants to believe that it is. And so I dove in. I begged her to train me. She did. And I've, I've never looked back. I've been doing it for a really long time.

Rita Black: That's amazing. And you guys should all know that Ginger came to me through a referral from one of my clients who went through your like create personal style workshop. And she said that it wasn't just about how to dress yourself and feel fabulous, but it really was more of a confidence and just a self-esteem as well. Like, she ended up feeling fantastic after she went through your course about herself. Just in general.

Ginger Burr: It's about expressing who you are. I mean, really if I went out there and dress every I could, I could dress everybody like me, but that would not feed everyone's soul. You know? And the goal is to feel, when you look in the mirror, to feel like, yes, this is me. Oh, I feel so great. And for me, that's fun. I wanna get in your head, I wanna get a sense of who you are. And then must be a wardrobe around, a wardrobe around that that expresses your essence. So yeah, that's, that's why I'm still passionate about it after all these years.

Rita Black: Yeah. That's so great. Well, I wanted to have Ginger on, 'cause I, I'm, you know, this sort of towards the end of August, as I approached the age of 60, the tender age of 60, I wanted to really explore something that other clients have, have been coming to me about is just like, feeling good in our body, feeling good in ourselves as we age. I think one thing that most women will say is after a certain age, they maybe start to feel a bit invisible. And and which is really sad. And I don't think, I think we should be visible to ourselves especially. And I think what you do really helps you define, you know, what, who you are and so that you are like aligning with yourself at least visibly and putting yourself out in the world in a powerful way. But I'm curious because you work with so many women. What you see in the psyche of women and how they dress themselves. And do you find that as we get older, we tend to align with that invisibility? Like we kind of dress or do you feel, I mean, I would just, I'm not gonna try to put words in your mouth. So what do you see? And you know, because you help women from all ages, right?

Ginger Burr: Oh, all age. The majority of my clients are over 40. Although right now with color analysis being so viral, I had a 19-year-old here the other day. So you never, it's a very heartening to me that, you know, the younger people are seeing the value of, you know, really looking at this in their wardrobe and how they feel and what they're wearing. But as we age, it's I mean, it's a sad commentary on our world out there that as we age, we begin to feel more invisible. And that, I mean, the fashion industry ignores us. They totally ignore us or they give us things that make us feel like we're 110 years old and you just look at those things and go, that's what you want me to wear. Like, no.

Ginger Burr: No. I mean, it's a different world. I remember many years ago how women looked as they got older. It was, it societally it was, it was different. I had an aunt who when she was 50, I mean, she looked 50 when she was 30 by our standards now. But back then that's was that you were very demure. You were very, she looked like Queen Elizabeth.

Rita Black: Blend into the background, right?

Ginger Burr: Absoutely. Absolutely. And these days, you know, we want to be ourselves. We wanna be able to stand out. Most of us, I mean, I'm in my late sixties and if someone asks me, I, I would think, oh yeah, I'm like 37. In my head, that's how I feel. And I don't wanna feel invisible. But I think just to come back to what you were saying about the whole invisibility thing too, is that we start, things change in our lives. Our, you know, our, our, our bodies, you know, better than anybody,. This is what you work with women on. Our bodies change whether we gain weight, lose weight shift, our bodies can just shift. Our weight might not change at all, but our bodies shift. And things aren't as firm as they used to be. We, and so the things that we put on when we were in our twenties or maybe even thirties, just don't seem to feel right anymore. And maybe our lifestyle changes. I mean, so many women I'm working with are either leaving corporate jobs to start their own business or they're retiring, or they, or, or they're traveling a lot. And those things require different needs in their wardrobe. But if they don't feel confident being able to dress the body that they have, I think that then leads to more of that invisibility complex. And, and I, I think that's, I think we need to take back our power, for sure. And that's what I hope to do, and I know you hope to do with women all the time, is empower them.

Rita Black: Yes, absolutely. You know, I went and saw Madonna a couple of months ago, you know, I, I'm in LA and I got friend was like, I've got tickets to Madonna tonight. You wanna go see her? I was like, hell yes. And it's just amazing to watch someone like that who, I think she's 65, I wanna say. But the way she moved on stage, she wore about, I don't know how many, one of them was this skin tight silver sort of like spacesuit, you know, she looked fabulous in it. She, you know, keeps herself in good shape. But yeah, she was not playing damira at all. She was just like, as Madonna as she ever was. She. And yeah. So it was, it was interesting to see how she also, 'cause I always see her as a trailblazer lover or hater. She's a trailblazer and she's not afraid to speak out.

Rita Black: And, and I see, you know, you, we do see now cultural icons who are not, you know, I think back in the day, like in the fifties and sixties, you know, even older actresses, they would kind of fade away, you know, into this and you don't, wouldn't see them around. But now, you know, we have our cultural icons who are as big and bold as they ever are and dressing really well and looking fantastic. I mean, you open US Magazine or People Magazine and they have all these women in their gowns and stuff. And some of them, those women are 60, 70 year olds who look fantastic, you know, but they've got dressers, they've got a stylist who is making them look fantastic. So, but so what do we do? You know, how do we, I guess we have to become, right Ginger? This is what you help us do.

Rita Black: It's like become our own stylist to be able to look at ourselves. And, and so what do you think, like for somebody who is get, like, like me, I'm turning 60 this year, and you're absolutely right. Things are settling and I like, I've been at my ideal weight now for a very long time, almost 29 years. And, but things have shifted, you know, so I agree with you. I'm, I'm working against it, doing weight training, but you know, like things shift and your body changes. So what would be some first steps, you know, in kind of like owning yourself and kind of starting to think about like, well, if I, I didn't wanna fade into the, you know, my wardrobe and what, what, where would you start with that? Is that too broad of a question?

Ginger Burr: It's broad, but let, we'll unpeel it here. We'll, we'll get through it all. You know, the first thing is that we have to stop comparing ourselves to, first of all, to younger women or our younger self, which is very easy to do. And also to women, you know, kind of like Madonna, whose body still probably looks at least with all the clothes that she had on that were skin tight and all that.. Looks a lot like she did when she was 30. Because if, one of the things I hear with women all the time, and I suspect you do too, is they, everything's settled around the tummy. And when, again, even if weight hasn't changed they're, they tend to be a little thicker and less of a waste. And when that happens, the clothes again that they used to wear don't work. So the first thing you wanna do is, you know, bless your body as well as as and look at, okay. See it as an opportunity to try new things. Because a lot of times what I hear from women is they just sort of, okay, I'm just gonna wear athleisure, or I'm just gonna wear, you know, the, the same t-shirt and jeans that I always wear because it's safe. And I wanna encourage women not to play it so safe. Let's try some new things and see what your body likes and how, because everybody, no matter what's going on with their body can look and feel. It's about feeling look and feel amazing.

Ginger Burr: It's, but it's, you have to explore new possibilities. And that can feel overwhelming. And that's, you know, where I come in, that's where I can say, okay, hey, go try this style or here's why that didn't work as much. If it were two inches longer or three inches shorter, or whatever it might be, it would be perfect. Or, you know, you would feel better in it. So it's, it's exploring those possibilities and not expecting that you just throw something on and it's going to be perfect as is. That doesn't happen for me. And I've been pretty much the same weight for many years, but, and people think I can wear anything. I cannot. And I show people in my six week class, I show them pictures. I put on an outfit that there's a model there wearing the same outfit and I'm wearing it.

Ginger Burr: It's like, see, I would never, ever wear that anywhere. 'cause It's just, it looks terrible. I feel terrible in it. So the number one thing is start exploring new things, but you wanna do it with a plan. Because if you just start throwing new things at yourself, you're gonna be overwhelmed. You're gonna not know why something doesn't work or how you could make it work. So it's really, you know, about trying new things and of course, paying attention to the things that maybe need to be updated a little because fashion and style doesn't hold still forever. And we can talk about that too, if you want.

Rita Black: Yeah, I mean, definitely I was thinking about my daughter, who is now 22, and she's right now as we speak, she's with her grandmother in Florida. And her grandmother took her out and she went shopping. And my daughter is so funny because she, unlike my generation where we all hated ourselves and hated our body, her generation, they really embrace their bodies, their curves and all that stuff, which is super awesome. My daughter wears the shortest dresses ever. And my, my my mother-in-law was like, she made her, she turned her around. I was like, I was never, but my mother-in-law was like, you're not wearing this too. She's British. She's like, you're not wearing that to the theater. She grabbed an outfit out of her closet and gave to my daughter. My daughter actually loves the outfit. She was like, can I have this granny? So anyway, but I was looking at this picture of my short, short daughter and I, and I remember the British term, 'cause I lived in England for a couple of years, mutton dressed as lamb.

Rita Black: And that is, you know, when you're talking about like feeling good and owning your body and everything too, but like also kind of right sizing where you are in your life and not, not, not, not and I don't mean not dressing youthfully, because I think dressing youthfully is absolutely fine, but just like being clear on, on yeah. What, what works for you and what doesn't.

Rita Black: I'm, I'm wondering about color. Like, you know, like you were saying, well, let's go and have a method. Like let's have a game plan. Like, is one of the first things that you look at is like, you mentioned a color chart is like, do you think color is important as we age? Like, and, and, and how would you change colors? Like from a, would you say that it is important to change colors, like from a youthful like palette to a more I don't know. I, I mean I, now that I'm saying it, it sounds silly, but but would, would you change colors? Like would or would, you know, like if I was an autumn, I would always be an autumn, but would I change the autumn tones if, you know, if I was between 30 and 60?

Ginger Burr: So your colors, I am a big proponent of color wearing colors that look great on you. And I always have been, and, and I was trained originally in color analysis with the seasons. I now do something that's more personalized and customized. But I think color is the basis of, of one's of building one's foundation wardrobe foundation. And it's not so much that the colors change as you get older because of your age. This is gonna, well, it is and it isn't. It's not because, oh, yes, anybody who is 60 should wear these colors. It's more that your coloring changes. Like today, I had a woman here, we were doing color analysis and she as so many women during the pandemic did, she let her hair go natural, gorgeous, silvery white, oh my gosh. Stunning hair, beautiful hairstyle. And and she realized that the color she was wearing before just they weren't working anymore.

Ginger Burr: They were overpowering her because now her coloring is softer and cooler. As we get older, if we let our hair go natural into grays, whites, whatever might be happening with your hair, it cools everything. So if you, if if you were in autumn before you, you may, you'll still have some autumn tones in there because most likely your skin is very warm. But the thing that you'll also get some cooler tones in there as well. And they might get brighter. They might get this woman though, you know, you, lots of people think, oh, as I get older, I should either get brighter or I should get lighter pastel. And not necessarily, you put pastels on some women who have, you know, gray or white hair and they'll just disappear completely. I mean, I'm not a huge fan of a lot of pastels anyway. So it's really that our own coloring dictates what colors work for us. And yes, if your hair, if you had your hair, your color's done 30 years ago, you need to have them done again because you're really, chances are now, every once in a while there's someone whose co hair just never turns gray. But either your hair has turned gray or you're coloring it. And either one of those things is going to change your palette a little bit.

Rita Black: Right. Because you're probably coloring your hair lighter to more -

Ginger Burr: Well, never. Yeah. You can't get, usually you cannot get exactly your, particularly if your hair was brown, you cannot get your natural color and you may not want it. Because sometimes we were, for some women, they were very dark brown. And you put that on, you know, your skin as it starts to age, it's gonna feel harsh. So usually the colors get a little warmer. And a tiny, at least a tiny bit lighter. Not, not always, but a lot of times. So you have to adjust your colors for that.

Rita Black: Yeah. Interesting. Okay. Cool. What about accessories? Like what, or, well, maybe before accessories, like what about lines? Like do you, do you see women, you know, because we have more stuff going around our neck area, , the neck seems to be an area where we're all like either trying to hide or make it look longer or, you know, like and arms, you know, because I, my my grandmother had a, you know, I used to play with the flab on her arms, and now I'm, I'm getting that same like.

Ginger Burr: It doesn't matter how much you exercise, that is just the elasticity that it used to. So yeah!

Rita Black: I know. So, so yeah, like, like those, those parts of our body that, you know, I look, we, I can, I embrace my arm, my arm wings, but what, but maybe there are things that I can do that will I'm not hide them, but just like accentuate what's working well for me. And accentuate the things that are, you know, making the change.

Ginger Burr: Yeah. Okay. A lot to unpack there. So, it sounds -

Rita Black: Sorry, ginger. I know you thought you were just coming on for a simple interview.

Ginger Burr: Oh no! This is fun. This is all, this is all fun. What happens a lot of times is when women don't know what to do with their bodies, they just throw fabric at their bodies. And black! They throw fabric and they throw black 'cause blacks. Right? Well, not always. And it's not the only option. But so they end up with too much fabric on or things that are just too long. And pull the eye down and feel heavy. And black can be, you'll never see me wearing black on top ever, ever. I occasionally wear it on the bottom 'cause it was so hard to find brown for a long time. But, so those are two things. And my thinking always is let's look at your body and let's readjust some of those styles. Let's do things that kind of skim the body. Let's look at where things should end on your body to balance your body vertically. Which is why I do something called the Fashion Fit formula, which people can go to my website and check that out if they want. But it is such a valuable tool. And the other thing, it drives me crazy. In fact, on my, if you go to my social media or my YouTube, you'll find a video that I did there about when growing up, my friends and I used to call this underarm dingle dangle.

Ginger Burr: Just no matter what you end up with underarm, dingle dangle unless you have a liposuction. And it, you know, so what happens is women put on, you know, either like some kind of sleeve, even a cap sleeve and cap sleeves balance. Nobody body's body, but that's what they wanna give us out there. The stupid cap sleeves, or what women do is they put on, they'll put on this really pretty sleeveless dress and then they wreck it by putting something over it. Like, don't put something over that. Wear it sleeveless, embrace your arms. Trust me, you look way better with a sleeveless top than you do with something thats frumpy and just on you to cover your arms. If that's, wear a dress with sleeves so that you know, you're not hiding the beauty of the dress by something that doesn't even go with what you've got, that you've thrown, that you've got on to, to go over your dress. So the whole arm thing drives me crazy because we really, it, it's a form of part of our body. We can just embrace it. No one is looking at your arms except you. So, you know, just go with it.

Rita Black: Exactly. Yeah. I love that. I love that. I've, I've often wondered about that and I've been guilty of covering up my arms sometimes, so I'm glad I can just be bold. You, ginger gave me permission. I'm let my dingle dangle dingle.

Ginger Burr: That's right. That's right.

Rita Black: So what about like but things too tight too like, so you say skimm the body, 'cause often, like you said, were like swimming and fabric versus like, but also probably not too tight either.

Ginger Burr: Well, yeah, most of us don't want, first of all, anything too tight is not that comfortable. And I'll tell you right now, particularly as we get older, we want comfort We want, and actually the younger generation is also, you know, they're screaming for comfort as well. But we wanna be comfortable. So, you know, anything tight doesn't feel comfortable. Now, the one thing I will encourage people to do right now is to consider, because it's so in style, and it tends to have a more current look, is to think about tucking that nasty word that tummies. We don't wanna think about tucking. And, you know, there are so many different ways to tuck. Now you can tuck and blouse out, you can just front tuck. I like to tuck and then put a jacket over it. So that I, you know, I don't even have to think about what's going on, you know, around the tummy area, but it elongates the leg line and it feels very current for what's going on there. It goes really well with the wider legged pants, which are very in style. And so another way to try something new and you know, but in, in terms of things that are just glued to your body. Some people like that. And if you do, then have fun with it. But mostly I find when we just sort of skim the body, it's, it feels comfortable and it looks really pretty.

Rita Black: Yeah. Very good advice. So and, and then accessories. Do you find accessories change as we get older? Or like, what would be your advice? Like you know, big poop earrings that you know, you might have worn when you were 25 or 30 or 40, you know, when you're 60, you know, is that going to, well first of all, your ear lobes are gonna go down to your shoulders, but, you know like your jewelry belts, scarves, things like that. What are your thoughts on those things?

Ginger Burr: I love accessories. And accessories are a way to add visual interest to your outfit. They're a way to express, I call it your inner beauty. That part of you, that is your essence. It's a, it's another way to be able to do that. It's less about what is right for a particular age. There is no right for a particular age when it comes to accessories. It's more about what's current. And then within what's current, what feels like you. So I tend to be, these are actually very little for me. I like big earrings, but I wanted to wear this necklace. So I put, and I like I'm wearing.

Rita Black: You look very put together.

Ginger Burr: Thank you. Thank you. But so big hoops, if that is part of your essence and who you are, and it makes you feel amazing to wear them, you can get some that are super light so they won't pull your ear lobes.

Rita Black: Right.

Ginger Burr: Go with the giant hoops if they make you happy. What's not in right now are really giant chunky necklaces. Unless you're like iris out fill in which case, you know, you're just like over the top with everything. And that's part of your personality and it's part of how the rest of your outfits look, outfit looks. But you don't want to just put on a very classic look and then put a giant necklace with it. Right now, particularly giant crystals and things those were in a number of years ago, they're not in right now. And, and be careful about really matchy matchy. Like I do own earrings that are the same as this necklace. I won't wear them with the necklace because I always something that just sort of is, you know, related, but to the outfit. But not exactly like the necklace. That's a little bit of a dated look. Scarves are always, even though they may not be, you know, super trendy, scarves are always in and you know, then it's a matter of knowing how to tie them, which is a whole other story. But yeah, I think accessories are fabulous. Fabulous. And, and a great way to have fun and add some interest your outfit.

Rita Black: Hmm. Love it. So now I know shoes are also considered an accessory, but what would you, what do you think about shoes as you age? Because again, obviously our feet want to feel good. And I, I have a lot of friends who, you know, used to wear two inch heels, three inch heels, and now we're all wearing tennis shoes.

Ginger Burr: Yeah, I know. Exactly. Exactly. Hey, I still wear three inch heels, but you know, they're for you. But, well, I like them and I'm comfortable in them. I don't do spiky, you know, stiletto type things. Those are not really in, except maybe if you're going out to something really dressy and you wanna wear really spiky heels. But yeah. Shoes. Oh my gosh. Well first of all, let me just back up for one second. 'cause There's one accessory I just wanna mention for a minute. And that's eyeglasses. I have new eyeglasses.

Rita Black: You Look very cute. I wish I, I, I wish you guys could all see gingers. You look really cute. Well, if you're watching this on social media, you are. But anyway.

Ginger Burr: Well, these are falling apart. So I have new ones on order. They just aren't here yet. They're very cool. I can't wait to get them. But you want to make sure your eyeglasses are current. One of the things that will make you feel older and and age you is out of style. Glasses frames. So make sure that your glasses are in style, but make sure they fit you properly. I see so many people who have eyeglasses on that. They don't fit them properly. But anyway, that's a whole other story. So shoes, when I created the, the class create your personal style in six weeks, I looked at the areas where women struggle a lot. And shoes was huge. It's class number four in that, because there are so many different pant la lengths, widths styles, shapes that, what the heck do you do for shoes?

Ginger Burr: And as you mentioned, as we get older, we're, you know, our feet are one of the places where we're like, I'm not putting up with foot pain. You know, particularly if you did it when you are like in your thirties or like or now you have bunions or something going exactly shoes in your feet. That, that just makes them painful. You want something comfortable. And so bless us with these wonderful sneakers trainers, whatever you wanna call them. Just make sure they're, they're, they're in style, that they're fashionable. You don't want the big clunky, you know, running workout and you don't want the little ones that have like no shape. I won't mention the name, but you want, you know, they're everywhere. The other ones, and they will go with almost, you can wear it with dresses these days if you want.

Ginger Burr: And the tricky thing then is like, what socks do you wear? That's a whole trend, believe it or not, that you probably wanna pay attention to. But yes, sneakers will go everywhere. But the thing I see with women in shoes is that when they have some pain in their feet, they'll say, I can only wear this. Now 99% of the time, that is not true. What has happened is they haven't explored all the possibilities out there. And one of the things I do in my six week class is I encourage women to send me their favorite resources. I have this long list of shoe brands so that women can go and go, oh, I've never tried that one. Oh, I've never tried that one. I've never tried that one. And most of the time they can find another brand and style that will meet the needs of their feet, but they haven't known about it before. Right.

Rita Black: So you're, you're talking about like a more comfortable or a brand that isn't, you know, that well, that's more suitable. It's a more comfort style brand, but that is fashionable. Looks good.

Ginger Burr: Yeah. I mean, a lot of times they're like, I can only wear these clunky sneakers. It's like, you know, there are for other options out there. I really, I have one client who has the worst feet issues I've ever seen. And we start like two years in advance when shoes start to wear out, to start to find new ones. 'cause It's so hard for her feet. But most people can find other options. They just don't know what those other options or brands are out there or they've given up. But they're always new things coming out. And so if you want comfort and style, you can find it. it's gonna take some legwork on your part. You are gonna have to explore either in the store or buy in return as needed. But my feeling is don't give up because shoes, to me, shoes can make or break an outfit. And that a women text to me all the time, like, it looked great till I put on those shoes. So keep exploring, don't give up on the shoe thing and don't just settle for one style of shoe because most of the time you have other options.

Rita Black: Very good to know. Would any of this advice change? You know, if we were going to be dressing someone who was plus size, so somebody like it, it doesn't sound like that would change very much.

Ginger Burr: It doesn't change at all. The thing that I hear from women who are unhappy with their body, which usually in this case equates to weight, is that, oh, I'm not buying anything new until I lose weight. And I please don't do that. You know, I have dressed women of every size imaginable and everyone can look and feel great. And then if you wanna lose weight or you do lose weight or whatever it is that you wanna do with your weight, great. Then you can work on that. But in the meantime, as you're going through, as you know, I mean, if you're losing weight, it's not an overnight thing. So in the meantime, while you're working towards that with Rita, you know, you want to be sure that you feel good and what you're wearing and don't, you don't have to buy a million things. Just buy a few outfits that you can that will get you through what you, you know, the time span that you need. And a lot of times those things as your way to shifting, they can be altered at least one size down. Yeah. So that it's not like you have to go out and buy everything new one month later. No.

Rita Black: No. Yeah. Yeah. I'm a big believer too is as you're releasing weight to go and buy clothes and not have those clothes hang off you. And it's a recipe for disaster. Yeah.

Ginger Burr: And it doesn't make you feel good about yourself ever. Your clothes are, are hanging on you or if they're too tight or if they're not fitting you properly in whichever way, you don't feel good.

Rita Black: Yeah. We give away a lot of clothes with the shift.

Ginger Burr: Yeah. That's awesome.

Rita Black: Which is good. There's a lot of full thrift stores in America and Canada all over. So what are your, I mean, I'm curious because again, ginger, you and I both work with a lot of women with in a lot of different age ranges. What are the biggest fears that you see with women as they age, you know, in, in this area of fashion and style?

Ginger Burr: Well part of it is things that we've mentioned. Like they worry about showing, having parts of their bodies. They don't love being obvious. Tummies, arms, whatever it might be. They worry about feeling frumpy. They worry about not no longer knowing how to put an outfit together, particularly if maybe they're, they've lost some height, and it changes how tops in particular fit them and where waistlines fall and all of that. They don't know what to do with that. So they're like, nothing fits me anymore and I don't know what to get. And I don't know how to put those outfits together. They worry about, you know, looking inappropriate, either trying to be too young or like they're dressing too old, but they don't, sometimes it's hard to figure out like what's in the middle. And they also, you know, where so many stores have disappeared during the pandemic, where to shop. Where to shop. And so they're, you know, they, I can't tell you how many times women will say to me, can you tell me where to go to find things that suit my style? Like, no. I mean, I can where I can get everything. That's mostly what they want. Where I can go school in and shop and buy everything. Like no wait. I use, I used to be able to take clients to Lould and Taylor and in maybe three hours we'd have everything they needed for the season.

Rita Black: Wow.

Ginger Burr: That doesn't happen anymore. It doesn't happen anymore. So you have to be willing to try different places. But it's, it's all about, it's, it's mostly worry about their bodies and, you know, exposing something that will I'm this is not the word I would use, but I've heard my clients use is that would offend others to see it. And that breaks my heart. Yeah. That they would think that some something that they're wearing and that they're exposing will, you know, cause other people, and I, I do blame part of, part of that about society and the media and all of that. Making women feel badly about their bodies as they age and glorifying, keeping your body looking like it's 20. And I, I think that's sad. That's sad.

Rita Black: Yeah. It is. It is sad. And hopefully our, our generation is helping things change, you know, by embracing aging. Well, seriously, I think our, our generation is embracing it more. And, and I don't think people are, you know shying away as much as they did in our, like my mother's generation for sure. What do you think are the biggest gifts you see of aging for women in the world of fashion and, you know, just in general, like, you know, what, what do you see women embracing and feeling good about?

Ginger Burr: I see them embracing that they don't care. So, well, I mean, this isn't true for everybody, but you know, as they begin to feel more comfortable with themselves as they age, they don't care what other people think. Like, I'm gonna wear what I wanna wear. You know, and that's, once they can identify what it is that they want to wear, I don't care what other people think about me. So they're less likely to be taken in by someone who's being me mean-spirited or, you know, any of that. They're like, this is me. But it, it takes sometimes takes a while. I'm in awe of the people who are just naturally like that. But, you know, for the rest of us, once we find a way to present ourselves that feels like us, we don't care so much what other people think.

Rita Black: Yes. I definitely think that's true. Very good. So I have this question somebody wrote to me, and this is something that hits home with a lot of people in my community, which is when we were younger and we were struggling with weight, we didn't wear clothes that were like maybe really fashionable or, you know, 'cause we were hiding in the black. Ironically, I am wearing a black shirt today, with a, with a nice scarf over it. But I was like, oh, Ginger is gonna be so mad at me for wearing black.

Rita Black: But now that they're older they're really upset with themselves. Like, why didn't I, because now I can't wear those things and or shouldn't wear those things. And then, oh man, you know, they're just like beating themselves up and so much regret about like, missed opportunities. And it's, and that is something that's, you know, sad. And what would you say to somebody like that? Like, you know, how could they turn that around for themselves so that they could feel, you know, like to let the past go and, you know, but bring it into the future.

Ginger Burr: Yeah. And that's the key is to bring that mindset into the future. Because we can, you know, let's say you're 50 and you're looking back, gosh, why didn't I just embrace, you know, the firmness of my body or what whatever the, your weight was or whatever at the time. And and now, you know, things are like this and I can't wear what I could, you know, wished I'd been able to, I wished I had worn back then, but so now you're, that you're aware of that don't let another 10 years or 20 years go by. Ugh, when I was 50, why did I, you know, really appreciate my body and, and dress in a way that really felt, why was I still hiding it? And you know, that that's, and and it could be for different reasons if maybe your weight has changed, but now your body's getting older and things aren't as firm as they used to be. And now you're trying to hide things for a different reason. Whatever it might be. Embrace where you are now and I promise everyone can look amazing. And it has nothing to do with, you know it's all in your mind. It's all in your mind. And, and that's easier. I know that's easier said than done, but we have to appreciate where we are now. And I think that that then allows us to move forward and not have those regrets you were mentioning. So five years, 10 years, 20 years from now, we can look back and go, yeah, hey, I was rocking it when I was 50 or 60 or 40. Yeah. So, you know, it's, it, it is easy to look back. I mean, I look back when I was 20 and I didn't, I was very thin, but I didn't feel good in what I was wearing. 'cause It didn't express who I was.. And, and I think, oh, if only I had known. And I'm like, but you know, now, you know now.

Rita Black: Yo do. Absolutely. Well, this has been great, Ginger. So I want I'm sure there are a lot of people in my audience who now wanna hear a little bit about this. Every September 25th coming up you have a new course starting Create Your Personal Style. It's a six week course. Tell us a little bit about your course.

Ginger Burr: So as I mentioned, when the pandemic hit, I had always wanted to create a class where I was online, where I was there teaching it live because style is, is very personal and questions come up. And so just to say, here, watch these classes and go, you know, with such a broad topic, it, it, it just doesn't work. So because, you know, I couldn't see anybody at the time. I had time to create this class and I looked at where were women struggling. And so I created a class around each one of these topics, who are you and how do you express who you are? How do, first of all, how do you determine who you are at your essence? Nothing to do with your fashion, with your wardrobe, but who are you? And then how do you express that in your clothing? How do you create a good foundation in your wardrobe?

Ginger Burr: Particularly if what you want is a a a capsule wardrobe or a you you're thinking more minimally, which a lot of people are right now. How do you create a good foundation to build on that so that you can easily get dressed and mix and match? How do you create, how do you choose prints and, and ex and bring in visual interest into your outfit? Because neutrals by themselves can get super boring. How do you choose, we talked about class number four shoes. Class number five is jewelry. How do you accessorize in jewelry in a way that you know is who you are and adds some beauty to your outfit? And then class number six is sort of pulling it all together. And, and I am there, I encourage women in the class to ask questions. You know, all through every class, just usually it means sending a picture.

Ginger Burr: 'Cause If somebody says to me, oh, do I look good in a v-neck? I'm like, I don't know what kind of v-neck? Is it I just, a v-neck? Do I look good in this color? I don't know. I need to see it on you. You know, those kinds of things. But only the people in the class see any of those photos anyway. But, you know, I am there and I can answer all of your questions fully so that you can feel more confident moving forward. And it's, it's a lot of fun. We have a lot, and even if you can't make the classes live, you get the recording the next day so you can watch 'em and send questions for the next class. So it's, it's really a blast. We have a good time.

Rita Black: It sounds like an amazing class. And like I said, I, ginger was a referral from somebody who took this class. So it's, it seems like an amazing class. Well, the, the link is in the show notes everybody. And so please go check it out and we'll put your website there too, ginger, if you wanted. You said there was another what's the word asset, like something that they could look at to, or said go check it out on my website earlier.

Ginger Burr: Oh, fashion, You're talking about the fashion fit formula?

Rita Black: Yes. Thank you. Yeah

Ginger Burr: You can check that out there. And I talk about that in class number two. 'cause It's part of create, it can be part of creating a foundation, but yeah, people can check that out on my website.

Rita Black: I love that. Okay, well thank you for all your wisdom and knowledge. This is really great. I'm looking forward to 60 now that I have your sage advice.

Ginger Burr: You'll be a fabulous 60 Rita.

Rita Black: Bring in 60 back. I keep saying that. Okay. well thank you Ginger, and this has been amazing and we will look forward to having you back on The Thin Thinking Podcast for more knowledge soon. Thank you so much, ginger. I always love it when we have you on and I always feel ready and inspired to go fresh in my wardrobe up. And especially now that I'm turning 60, I think I deserve to go get a few new pieces and accessories too. So make sure that you visit the show notes where we have a link to Ginger's upcoming course and also a link to her website. And make sure you subscribe to the Thin Thinking Podcast, where you can get your weekly weight mastery mindset fix. Have a great week and remember that the key and probably the only key to unlocking the door of the weight struggle is inside you. So keep listening and find it. I will see you here next week.

Rita Black: Thanks for listening to The Thin Thinking Podcast. Did that episode go by way too fast for you? If so, and do you wanna dive deeper into the mindset of long-term weight release? Head on over to www.shiftweightmastery.com. That's www.shiftweightmastery.com, where you'll find numerous tools and resources to help you unlock your mind for permanent weight release tips, strategies, and more. And be sure to check the show notes to learn more about my book from Fat to Thin Thinking, Unlock Your Mind for Permanent Weight Loss and to learn how to Subscribe to the podcast so that you never miss an episode.