Ever wonder what it takes to leave a secure job and leap into the vibrant world of fashion styling? Join us as Abby Young, a former eighth-grade English teacher turned celebrated Silicon Valley fashion stylist, shares her exhilarating journey of pursuing her true calling. Abby's candid recount of transitioning careers amidst a global pandemic, coupled with her infectious enthusiasm for empowering others through personal style, makes for an episode brimming with valuable life lessons and style insights.
This week, we're not just talking clothes; we're talking confidence. Abby walks us through the essentials of crafting a look that not only turns heads but also mirrors your inner vitality. Learn how to identify your body shape, pick a color palette that resonates with your spirit, and align your wardrobe with your personal and professional brand. Whether you're an entrepreneur looking to make a visual statement or simply someone aiming to upgrade their Zoom presence, Abby's expert tips are your secret weapon to looking and feeling invincible.
So, slip into your favourite feel-good outfit, and let's celebrate the transformative power of personal style together.
Connect with Abby:
IG: @abbyyoungstyling
www.abbyyoungstyling.com
Thank you for listening to Self(ish) Confidence! If you enjoyed this episode, please share it with a friend or on your social media and tag me @jess.clerke so I can personally thank you for helping spread some confidence + love!
Check out my website at: www.jessclerke.com
If you're on instagram, come say hi!! 👋👋
My Personal Account ---> @jess.clerke
The Podcast Account ---> @selfishconfidence
Ever wonder what it takes to leave a secure job and leap into the vibrant world of fashion styling? Join us as Abby Young, a former eighth-grade English teacher turned celebrated Silicon Valley fashion stylist, shares her exhilarating journey of pursuing her true calling. Abby's candid recount of transitioning careers amidst a global pandemic, coupled with her infectious enthusiasm for empowering others through personal style, makes for an episode brimming with valuable life lessons and style insights.
This week, we're not just talking clothes; we're talking confidence. Abby walks us through the essentials of crafting a look that not only turns heads but also mirrors your inner vitality. Learn how to identify your body shape, pick a color palette that resonates with your spirit, and align your wardrobe with your personal and professional brand. Whether you're an entrepreneur looking to make a visual statement or simply someone aiming to upgrade their Zoom presence, Abby's expert tips are your secret weapon to looking and feeling invincible.
So, slip into your favourite feel-good outfit, and let's celebrate the transformative power of personal style together.
Connect with Abby:
IG: @abbyyoungstyling
www.abbyyoungstyling.com
Thank you for listening to Self(ish) Confidence! If you enjoyed this episode, please share it with a friend or on your social media and tag me @jess.clerke so I can personally thank you for helping spread some confidence + love!
Check out my website at: www.jessclerke.com
If you're on instagram, come say hi!! 👋👋
My Personal Account ---> @jess.clerke
The Podcast Account ---> @selfishconfidence
Welcome to Selfish Confidence, a place where you can connect and be real about how hard it is to be your damn self. My name is Jess and my goal is to help you build confidence and belief in yourself to live any life path you want, even if it's unconventional. It's time to flip off societal pressures and connect with women who've also felt on the outside by their life choices. We're here to encourage you to grab the mic and speak your truth. I know it can be scary, but we're in this together. Let's get started. Hello and welcome to this week's episode of the Selfish Confidence podcast. It's Jess here, and I have a guest that I have been so excited to come on since I met them at an event in California just like a few months ago. So welcome, abby Young. How you doing.
Speaker 2:I'm doing great. Thank you so much. Just feeling refreshed and rejuvenated after the holidays.
Speaker 1:Yes, I know I'm still feeling foggy, but refreshed and a little foggy.
Speaker 2:Yeah yeah, maybe it'll just ease back into things slowly. At least, I don't think it. Nothing feels like super full swing yet. I know a lot of people on vacations, but I think ultimately the goal, at least for me, is to remain more balanced and have more time outside of work. So full swing. I don't even want to use that phrase anymore.
Speaker 1:No, no, you're right. No, we're not subscribing to that this year, especially knowing you're a projector too. So we're not going to do that. But I remember meeting you when we were at the Pitch Club weekend event in California in October I think it was, and you were walking around in your beautiful denim skirt and you had your white top on and you're just like looks like magic. And I remember saying to you like I love your outfit. And at that point I didn't know you were a stylist until you got on stage and you spoke and I was like, oh, that makes sense. So can you tell us a little bit about you, abby, and how you got started as a fashion stylist?
Speaker 2:Well, thank you so much. I appreciate that. Yeah, so fashion styling is my second career. Originally I'm from Minnesota, but now I'm living California and from a young age I naturally would style friends and family, helping them figure out what to wear for different events, how to mix and match pieces. And then when I went into college, being from the Midwest, I didn't know exactly how to get into fashion, or even what if that passion could be a career per se. So it wasn't until my junior year of college, when I was going for English teaching, that I watched the Rachel Zoo project and realized what I had been doing all along for my family and friends could actually be a career. So I ended up teaching. I wanted to still teach.
Speaker 2:I remember going into teaching thinking I love this, but I know I don't want to do it forever. The burnout for a teacher is real. I was teaching eighth grade, so it required a lot of patience for those middle schoolers. And when I went into it I remember telling myself I'll give myself six years. And during my sixth year and kind of throughout, my students would make comments like oh, miss Young, it always looks like you're walking down a runway or you never repeat outfits. And so it was those little remarks or catching myself watching fashion shows on my computer during the slow times during conferences. That were little signs and reminders that I needed to pursue styling. And the right time came.
Speaker 2:Covid hit. I finished out my year in California, where I was planning on moving at the end of the year anyways and then I was able to slowly find my footing and slowly start my business. And then I launched my business in NorCal and Silicon Valley, where it's been great. There's a lot of people in tech who are too busy or just don't know style and need help dressing. So I love dressing busy female and male entrepreneurs who need help and want to feel confident in their clothing and just don't know how or don't have the time to do it themselves.
Speaker 1:That is so cool. It's like to go from being a teacher to dressing entrepreneurs is really really cool. So can you tell us too, like how that transition went? Like you say, you just like dammit happened and you started a business. Was it really that simple, or was there more to it than just like opening up your computer and starting a website?
Speaker 2:Exactly so. I knew that for styling it's definitely something innate and something like unknown and natural skill, but I wanted to be able to have some certification behind that. But after four years of undergrad, I have a double major in communications and literature education. I also have my master's in literature. So after six years of schooling not counting all elementary, middle school, high school, all of that like I'm not going to go back for a two year or four year. So I found an amazing certification program that I started the last year of my teaching career and it was about a four year program got certified as a stylist from an online stylist school out of Sacramento and then throughout that, let's see.
Speaker 2:I had the confidence to start the business because of my teaching, which is so interesting because I feel like even I think of myself like teacher to fashion stylist. But I had the planning skills, the leadership skills, the teaching skills to know that I wanted to inspire my clients, just as I had with my students, and I needed to be able to plan out how my business would look and lead a team, like I do now, with two assistants, and so everything that I had practiced as a teacher really made a way for launching this business and so when I moved out to California with my certification, with my planning skills, leadership skills, all of that, I went to work right away, making connections with all of the local stores and managers. It was the perfect time to launch by business. I know it sounds weird because it was the beginning of the pandemic, but all of these stores were hurting. So just finding ways to partner, do events, support each other was perfect, because everyone needed that extra marketing, that extra human connection, relationships during that time.
Speaker 2:And then, once the pandemic slowed and ended, all of the seeds that I had planted during that time started to sprout and from there, I would say I was able to get a lot of clients, like from social media, from client referrals, starting my website. One piece of recommendation I would say is don't feel like you have to have everything perfect when you launch. Like the first eight months of my business, I didn't have a website yet. I started on social media and then I got the website and I knew it wasn't perfect, but it was a great starting point, at least to establish credibility and authority before, you know, revamping the website more recently this past spring.
Speaker 1:So cool. I was complimenting Abby on our website. You'll have to go check it out, go see it. It's so beautiful. But just to even hear like how it starts with networking in collaboration and I'm a big fan of collaboration for women in business, especially just because I truly don't think we would be able to survive without having that community, without having that extra layer of support, and we need each other. So I love what you're doing and how you're working, especially with women, to build them up, to build confidence and we're all about confidence here, as you know and so a big reason why I wanted to have you come on was really to help give some support to women who are listening, who just don't understand, like, what personal style is and like how to even figure that out. And I'm one of them. I'm like I've kind of changed a little bit, especially since starting this business, but I haven't quite figured out what that is yet. So, like, how does someone build their confidence and figure out what their personal style is?
Speaker 2:Yeah, those are some big questions. So, to break it down in a simple way, a couple of things to remember is style definitely evolves. It's okay to have more than one style. You don't have to pick one and that's it. But I'll say from working with different clients, some people do have one distinct style, some people have many. Personally, I feel like my style can fluctuate between three different. You know sub styles, I would say.
Speaker 2:A great starting point and something that I do with my clients is figuring out what their silhouette and their colors are Like. Figure out what your body shape is, what your face shape is. For women, there's five different silhouettes. So are you our last triangle, inverted triangle, round or rectangle? Is your face angular or round? And then from there, we offer a great guide into what to wear for those specific silhouettes and face shapes.
Speaker 2:Getting your colors tested we do color analysis in person. Some of my colleagues do it online, but finding out what your colors are can be really amazing too. I think colors are intuitive. A lot of us naturally gravitate towards wearing different colors, and wearing colors can make us feel a certain way too, so some of my clients have been stuck in just more of a achromatic range of brown, black, white, gray, and they needed to branch out. So part of finding confidence in your style, I think, is finding out what your colors are and then challenging yourself to wear those colors. So, listeners, right now I'm wearing a velvet, textured yellow and orange kind of like ombre tie dye shirt. So I knew today I wanted to be upbeat and happy and wearing colors you can embody the symbolism the colors hold. So I feel better, even better than I did before getting dressed today because of the colors in the shirt.
Speaker 2:So I think choosing specific colors you can tailor to your mood and to your confidence, and then also for silhouettes, figuring out what works best on your body can help you feel more confident Because then you know like, oh, I'm wearing the right thing for my body shape, you're not second guessing whether it looks good or not. And then you can find your style even more. So if you know like A-line high waist looks good on you, then you can go to the mall. And if you know your colors, then that can help streamline you or help you find your way into your style once you know your silhouette and your colors. So I think those are really great foundational starting points to finding your style and then find the brands that speak to you.
Speaker 2:Find the clothes that speak to you. I feel like when I'm at the mall different clothes and it might just be me in like my natural, like stylish, stylist ways but clothes will just speak to me. Or they might say my client's name's like oh, this is for so-and-so, this is for this person. See, if something speaks to you, and just try it on. Don't feel stuck, and know that your style can change. I hope that helps.
Speaker 1:And when I look at your shirt too, I'm picturing like peach rings, like you know, like the candies.
Speaker 2:Yes.
Speaker 1:It's like the colors of like peach rings. I'm like, oh, that's so good, like it just is. I totally can see that. I have a question, too on like, if we're looking at personal style and it can be ever changing, what about when it comes to branding? And let's say you have a brand color? How does that work, especially in business too? Like, can you shift, like the colors that you're wearing, like all of those pieces that come with, just like personal branding and your style?
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's great. I do a lot of styling for branding shoots and working with people who, yeah, want to dress a certain way. You know, if you're an entrepreneur, you're the front and center of your business, so I think it's important to dress in a way that connects and reflects what your business is and who you are, matching your fashion personality to your brand. As far as a branding shoot or being on social media, I think it is important to wear your branding colors, or at least you don't have. You know, if your branding colors are pink and purple, you don't have to wear solid pink and purple tops and dresses, but bringing an accent or, for instance, I love the picture behind you right now on your wall. Maybe it's an accent behind your desk. So, if you're doing a lot of podcasts or doing social media filming, have your branding colors incorporated into the video somehow, even if you're not wearing them. If you leave the house, maybe your branding color is a pink purse or pink earrings or a cool headband. So, if use accessories as your branding colors too and that's one other thing that I want to say really helps with confidence too.
Speaker 2:I think accessorizing today I had my two gold hoops in that I usually wear every day and don't take out. But then I was like you know what I need like a little more, a little more than just this cool yellow and orange shirt that I'm wearing, and so I added some fun earrings. So I think wearing like a fun earring close to your face I think it draws attention to your face, like it makes you look good. It makes other people like feel you know, attracted to you when they're looking at you. So I think accessories are really important too, especially on Zoom. It's a great way to just make sure the attention always stays at your face.
Speaker 1:Okay, okay, I can work with that. That's pretty simple. I have my big headphones on right now, but like I feel like that one's a simple one, I could get some fun earrings.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Is there any other like simple confidence boosting tips that it comes like when it comes to women's style? That could be like really, really simple that right now someone could go change to just feel a little bit better today.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, I would say easiest, most simple thing that I'm gonna share here is make sure your clothes are steamed or ironed. Don't wear wrinkly stuff, like I think if you wear wrinkles, you're not gonna feel put together and you didn't clearly like you didn't invest the time into the clothes, and so I think that ends up being a reflection on how you feel. So if you have something that needs to be steamed or ironed, do it, because it's gonna make you feel a lot better, like you put in the effort to do that, so you'd feel better. I think it's. It's a part of self care, like you're caring for yourself in that way.
Speaker 2:Another small tip is get your stuff tailored. A lot of my clients are like yes, I have a lot of stuff that should be tailored, but I just haven't. And that's okay sometimes. But if you want to feel confident and powered, more polished, put together, and appear that way when you feel that you're radiating that energy and people are gonna perceive that from you, so I would say, go to the tailor. Get the sleeves on your blouse or blazer tailored so they fit you in the right spot to your wrist. Get the arms taken in. Get the back taken in. That can be a very simple tip to feel more confident to and it seems weird, but it really really helps.
Speaker 1:It doesn't seem weird, especially coming from you. I'm like that makes sense.
Speaker 2:Thank you, thank you.
Speaker 1:I love that. Okay, that's pretty simple. We can handle that right. Everybody listening is like okay, there's something that I have in my closet that I know is a little too big for me, or I know it could be changed. It's simple, you can go get it tailored. Abby says go do it, you should run, run and get to do it.
Speaker 2:Tailor your clothes, steam them, iron them. Yeah, put on a bright color, put on a color that you typically wouldn't wear. Test it out, see how you feel.
Speaker 1:Okay, I can handle that. Yes, what would you say to the woman who's listening right now, who's really struggling in the clothes that they're wearing, or the clothes they currently have in their closet, maybe both on their body or just like it's there and they're like I'm never going to fit in those pants again, like what would you say to that woman who's just really struggling physically and mentally with their clothes?
Speaker 2:Yeah, I would say remember, and maybe, as listeners, you don't know this and maybe you do, but clothes hold a lot of meaning. Clothes hold a lot of memories. Oh, I would say, more often than not, the majority of my clients have a hard time parting with their clothes during closet edits because I don't know the psychology behind it. But clothes Memories end up getting attached to your clothing. You know whether it was maybe your first kiss and like what you were, or when you were at like your most confident in your body, you had this, these clothes, and now you, just you, don't feel the same way. So Definitely, give, show yourself some grace. And what I like to do and this is part of the Marie Kondo method is think the item for its service. Know it's going to a good home and it might be time to part ways with that. If it's been in your closet for more than a year and the and you haven't worn it, ask yourself why. You know, is it because of a memory that's tied to it? Are you trying to get back to a certain weight that you were in? I mean, show yourself grace. Know that bodies change as you get older. It's okay. It doesn't reflect who you are mentally, people are going to be attracted to you because of the confidence that you have.
Speaker 2:So if the clothes in your closet aren't making you happy anymore, than it might be time to Get rid of them. Get new clothes. Perhaps you're on a budget. Maybe go vintage shopping. Try to reinvent the pieces that you have. Maybe you have a maxi dress. You could try cutting it. Know that there are people out there and anyone who needs a recommendation. You can DM me at Abby I'm styling. At my handle on Instagram, I'm happy to share the name of my tailor or my jeweler who have reinvented pieces for you. So if you want to be more sustainable or again you're on a budget, try reinventing the clothes you already have. Otherwise, let go of what's no longer serving you and find new pieces that are going to make you happy.
Speaker 2:And I actually did my own. I try to do a closet edit, maybe once a year, but within the last four years of my business, I'd say like five days ago was the biggest closet edit I've personally done on myself, for myself, and it was. It was amazing just letting go, and a lot of the pieces they did have memories. It was hard to get rid of them. But just know you, your clothes don't define you. You are the person you you are even without your clothes, but it you know. Wearing clothes it's a good way to express who you are, but it doesn't define who you are.
Speaker 1:Yes, I love that and I did the same thing over the holidays. My husband came home. He's like, are you keeping any of your clothes? And I was like A couple a couple, but it's time to get, because I feel the same way to like close hold energy, and there's just some things that I don't want to keep anymore. And especially I don't want to keep the clothes that are sitting there that I'm like those don't even fit. Like why are they even there? Because one I don't have any desire to like fit into them if they're not going to fit.
Speaker 1:So, like I just got rid of it all and my husband was like, okay, gonna have to go shopping. I was like I know, that's not a bad thing, right? So I have a question to for the younger version of Abby Abby when she started her business, or Abby a five years ago like what would you tell her right now if she were sitting looking at you? She's like outside the window looking and she's like whoa girl? Like what would you tell her right now? Oh, wow, wow. That's a great question.
Speaker 2:And I want to add something to the previous question before I forget to remember that clothing holds a lot of space. So if you get rid of it in your closet, that's more mental space for you to. So that's a good number. Yeah, speaking to my younger self, I would probably just tell her you can do it, like you can do it, even though your skills are more creative and you're scared of the business aspect. There will be people that you meet along the way that are going to help you. Everything will work out. It's not the end of the world. Problems will arise, like as a business owner. There will always be new issues and difficulties, but you'll, if you're on the right path, if you're aligned. You know, if you're on the right path, if you're aligned, you'll find your way. And I think that's the most important thing, and for me, it's my faith in spirituality, just trusting that everything will be as it should.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, which is sometimes hard to do as an entrepreneur to but. I love that. That's because, like okay, like yeah, it's all going to work out how it's supposed to. We all got this.
Speaker 2:Yep, yep, yeah, the leap. Exactly I, and there is definitely time to like push and drive, and I think, as a entrepreneur starting out, or even as like a startup company, like you, have to grind, like there is a season for that. And I think, just listening to you know yourself, and spiritually, like whatever the season is, like being in tune with that, like right now I feel like I've done the grind the past three years. I have a lot of systems in place. Now's my time to slow down a bit, slow down a bit. So no, there's a season for all of that and you don't have to continuously keep grinding, because there's definitely a fear when you start out, start your business like, oh my gosh, like it's all on me. I need to, you know, provide for myself I don't have that regular paycheck coming in every two weeks or now that I have assistance, oh my gosh, I have to think about myself and my assistance. But just take a deep breath and, for me, just know that everything will be as it should, and also like it's okay for your business to change.
Speaker 2:I think a lot of people want to know exactly what it should be in the beginning and for me personally, I loved. I love personal styling and I also love commercial and editorial styling, so I like to do a little bit of both and I just kind of have Let the universe guide me and to see where, where I'll you know where I'll end up and where my focus is. And right now it's More so personal styling, and that's okay. I love that. So know that your business might I've been flowing to different sub areas or it might be a huge pivot, but just trust that that's okay.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yes, I love that. Oh, abby, like, thank you so much for sharing your truth with us and really just guiding us in a way to feel really good as we walk into 2024. We walk into our personal styles and just start to feel really good. Can you tell our listeners where they can connect with you online?
Speaker 2:Yes, thank you so much. Yeah, please connect with me on Instagram. My handle is at abbeyoungstyling. You can find my website at abbeyoungstylingcom. Feel free to shoot me a DM on Instagram. Reach out to me on my website if you have questions or want to work together, and I have a free style guide that you can download once you go to my website as well. That will give you Fun recommendations on what to wear for date night, interview, etc.
Speaker 1:Amazing and do you work with women like digitally or because some of our listeners will be all over?
Speaker 2:Yes, I work with people in person and virtually, yes, so please reach out.
Speaker 1:Yeah, amazing. Thank you so much. I have a couple questions. I ask every guest that comes on the podcast. Yeah you ready.
Speaker 2:Let's do it.
Speaker 1:Okay, what's your favorite compliment to receive?
Speaker 2:Oh my gosh Compliment. Okay, I'm just going to go with the gut. My gut feeling I'll pop into my head. First was I love your hair.
Speaker 1:You do have beautiful hair, thank you.
Speaker 2:I was.
Speaker 1:I was admiring it, I was like whoa. Thank you.
Speaker 2:I've worked very hard on growing my hair out and ever since like eighth grade, I wanted my hair to be really long. And then I remember getting highlights and it would like stunt the growth, and so in college and like I'm just going to go natural, no more highlights, and it finally grew to its length. It is now, and I love it In a way, it's kind of like my confidence, like my little shield and it makes me feel comfortable, a little like blanket.
Speaker 1:And you have like that blonde California, like glow, because you get sunshine all the time, so like it's really nice yeah thank you. What's your favorite thing to boost your mood when you're feeling grumpy?
Speaker 2:Oh, boost my mood. Okay, First thing that popped in was play with my dog. I love that. I love my dog, Hobo. He is so cute. That definitely helps. Or another trick like I said, if I know I have to be on that day, put on an outfit that you know you feel confident in. So that's what I try to do.
Speaker 1:Okay, and do you have a song or quote that boost your confidence?
Speaker 2:Oh, that's a tricky one. There's a lot of songs that do boost my confidence, unfortunately, like I love music but I never know, like, who the artist is or what the same is.
Speaker 1:So I'm one of those people in. Do you want to sing it for us instead? That's okay. Oh my God. I was like oh shit, there's probably like four or five.
Speaker 2:And then quote. Honestly, I think I have different mantras that just come into my mind. I think every day that maybe it's probably intentional, like something that I should focus on. So I think I just focus on like whatever I feel, like God or the universe is telling me each day, whether it be like slow down, be present. Lately I'm just reminding myself like you are beautiful, and so I think those, those mantras, those daily mantras, really have a positive effect on my confidence and boosting my mood. I love that.
Speaker 1:And that's so simple, too right. It's just like knowing intuitively what's in there and following that, I'm the same as you. I don't always have that one in my pocket that I can pull out, so I love it. Thank you so much, abby, for being here and for sharing your light and your truth with us. Such a magical episode, thank you.
Speaker 2:This has been a pleasure. Thank you so much, Jess. What's?
Speaker 1:up, sis, I am so glad we could hang out today. If you love this episode, send it to a friend or share it on your social media and tag me so I can personally thank you for helping me sprinkle some confidence in the world. And don't forget you are magic. Let's show the world your shine.