First of all, what is signature style?

Carrie Bradshaw’s signature silk flower broach.  Lauren Hutton confidently owning her perfectly imperfect smile. Cindy Crawford’s unmistakable beauty mark. Julia Roberts’ infectious laugh. Anna Wintour’s inconspicuous bob. Audrey Hepburn.

There are seemingly endless lists of women and men that come to mind when the term “signature style” buoys up from the conversation. An idea, a look, an attitude, an approach to life that is undeniable relatable to a particular person without question.

You most likely know a few people in your own life who have their own unique, consciously chosen signature style that they confidently express to the world without saying a word about it, unless complimented. After reading Rebecca Moses’s gorgeously illustrated and eloquently written book A Life Of Style which shares the variety of ways style can be cultivated and shared, I began to ponder even more how this idea of possessing a “signature style” ties in to living a simply luxurious life.

I immediately came to the conclusion that creating a signature style, which can be done and expressed in a plethora of ways, is a mandatory ingredient in order to create the life you desire to live.  After all, a signature style requires you to know who you are so that you not only can you express yourself honestly, but you can create the life that will set most comfortably with your soul.

Consequently, I’ve decided to begin 2011 with a three part Why Not . . .? series that helps each one of us create our very own signature style. Today I’d like to focus on the areas in our lives in which a signature style is expressed and revealed to the world around us.

How You Live Your Life

With every decision we make, every path in life we decide to travel, we are revealing our style, our preferences, our priorities, and the way which we feel we can live our best life. As always, actions speak louder than words and that is most certainly something to think about when trying to cultivate a signature style that feels genuine to who we are. By choosing to take care of our health, walk every day, befriend our neighbors and foster a home of nurture and education for our children we immediately say to the world what matters to us. Who we choose to surround ourselves with and how we speak is very telling of what we value and our inner strength and discipline.

What You Wear

Style is quite different from fashion. As Coco Chanel so effortlessly reminds us, “Fashion fades. Only style remains.” Knowing what clothes flatter our individual bodies best, which colors complement our skin tone and which cuts will never look stunning on us, we cultivate a style that is uniquely our own.  The peace of mind is knowing that whatever walks down the runway each season, the knowledge of which skirts to gravitate towards and which dresses to stay away from becomes innate, but it will take time (some more than others) to grasp this knowledge, which, for better or worse, is unique to each and every one of us.

With all of that said, what you choose to wear on a daily basis, out to dinner, to parent/teacher conferences, on a first interview reveals to onlookers how you feel about yourself and whether or not you really know who you are and what strengths you possess. Without uttering one word, you can have an entire conversation with someone for better or for worse.

How You Live In Your Home

Whether you reside in a grand four story townhouse in Manhattan or a humble studio apartment, how you choose to live, and thereby decorate, your abode communicates a persuasive message to your guests. Between the colors you choose, the fabrics you enjoy and the care you take to spruce up and bring nature in (whether it be by way of plants, animals or simply natural light), you can quickly express a signature style that is all your own.

How You Treat Others

Similar to how you choose to go about living your life, how you choose to treat others on a daily basis when there is no tangible motive for following the golden rule expresses a great deal about your character. Do you truly listen? Do you look others in the eye? Do you arrive on time? When the truth may be something they don’t want to hear, what do you do? How you approach these and other situations as you navigate in our social world conveys your true character.

Keeping these four major areas of our lives in mind as we begin this three part series of Creating Our Own Signature Style. Click here to read part two in this series where you’ll find ways to help you decide how and where to reveal your signature style, and more importantly – part three – what your signature style should be (click here to skip to part three).   Have a wonderful rest of your week and thank you for dropping by.