Let’s talk Dressing Your Truth — specifically Dressing Your Truth type 1 — this is my 30 day transformation with Carol Tuttle’s Dressing Your Truth.
My Experience with Dressing Your Truth
This post was originally written in 2015 and has been updated a few times since then, fyi. You’ll get a perspective of doing Dressing Your Truth over a few years.
I got dressed to cover my body my entire life. Sure, I found a small amount of joy in the colors and how
they worked together, but I’m not a big fan of fashion and didn’t really think about my personal style. I’m never sure what to pick out when I’m at the store, what kind of styles or what the best colors might be. I think a lot of people might get caught up in the latest styles and not know the different types of clothing that can work for them. My church’s modesty restraints pick a lot of what I wear. I thrifted a lot and most of what I bought was based on what good brands I could find, and I took them in whatever color they appeared. This is a story of my Dressing Your Truth Type 1 transformation. You can YOUR own before and after here.
Did my clothes say:
This is Hilary, she is a bright, organized spot in this world. She will follow through and make it fun. You will like her.
Probably not.
They probably said,
"I picked these clothes out to cover my body, most of them I'm not a huge fan of."
So, if you remember the first time I did this, in my first Dressing Your Truth post I talked a little bit about that.
Last time, I started out as a Type 3℠. And later found out I’m a Type 1. It’s been an up and down path. Here are my 7 favorite things about Dressing Your Truth:
**Note: The Dressing Your Truth Program ins’t available as I did it before, anymore I have been using Stitch Fix and Dia & co to find my fashion**
Also, check out how I am creating a capsule wardrobe by minimizing. It’s my new goal in 2018.
Dressing your Truth Type 1
1. I have realized that my inner core is a little flighty. I think that’s why I do so well with timers, and reminders. It keeps me on task. I really WANT to be responsible (and for the most part, I think I am one of the most reliable people out there — but only because of the reminders I have set up in my life to make me that way). I have learned to adapt to be how I WANT to be (because flakiness drives me absolutely insane) by adjusting how I am.
2. I have realized that most likely 2 of my kids are also a little flighty and are going to have to learn to make their own adjustments. I am reading The Child Whisperer book and it has really made me think about my 3 children in new light. I LOVE that part of The Child Whisperer book.
3. I have realized that my husband is REALLY different that I am. We also have the Men’s Dressing Your Truth course and Drew is a Type 4. He is still and he is an authority. It has been HUGE as he’s trying to figure out his life plan. I’ve been REALLY thankful for it.
4. I feel great. Now, I will say that I don’t know if I feel great because I am putting a little thought into what I wear. BUT, the reality is that I’m not spending any more time to figure out what to wear — I still use my T-shirt filing and throw on whatever is at the front, but that item of clothing supports who I am and I feel like I look great in it. It was easy to find in the store and it supports me. I love that.
5. I have helped some friends. I have a lot of friends who have found this program really interesting and are learning things about themselves that they never knew and I am learning things about them as well. I can support them better by knowing these things. That’s wonderful! The program isn’t just a style guide, learning about body shape, or different kinds of style. It’s the first step in a whole new way of picking new clothes the right way for you.
6. Shopping is WAY easier. I’m much more likely to narrow down what will work and what won’t and grab a few things for the dressing room. Before I had clothes of every color and every style. I naturally want clothes of MANY colors. This way I can, but I know what colors will work (but I can still have a lot of different colors). The reality is that I am not a huge fan of shopping. I like time with friends or perusing, but on a regular basis I have a hard time taking 40 things into the dressing room, it isn’t fun for me.
7. My personality extends to both ends of the spectrum. I am a Type 1 with a STRONG Type 4 secondary. I’m still and bouncy, I’m focused but flighty. I think it’s really easy to feel like those two are fighting inside me a lot of the time, but I am slowly learning to let them support each other, and also give myself time for both of them. And maybe cut myself some slack that I wasn’t actually born superhuman.
Anyway, it’s been a long journey and if you are an instagram follower you’ve seen my photos. Let me share a few here:
This is back when I was thinking I was a Type 3. This shirt was TOTALLY on the card and looked HORRIBLE on me. I mean, seriously. Yuck. It should’ve been a clue that I was thinking I was the wrong type.
This was also a Type 3 outfit, but it may remain in the repertoire. It is still in my color palatte, although I am not sure about the animal print (although all types can wear animal prints true to their style, and this would still fit into Type1). This is my first animal print EVER. I dunno, what do you think {I welcome full critiques of my outfit on any of my social media platforms, it doesn’t hurt my feelings at all as I am certainly NOT a fashion diva, I’m just trying to make some outfits}.
These shoes went with that animal print top. They still work and I love them. Carol mentioned that much of what I had bought when I thought I was a Type 3 was actually Type 1 (or could be both, is that possible?).
Yup, Type 1. I can’t stand these selfies. Super self conscious about them.
I love this shirt. This is still when I thought I was Type 3, but it transitioned nicely. Not sure the pants are Type 1…. but I still wear them because they’re light and comfortable (as is the shirt).
This is the shirt I wore when I was talking to Carol Tuttle. She said it was more Type 1 — I have no idea what type it is. Verdict is still out. What do you think?
This shirt, again, was bought when I thought I was Type 3 but I love it as my Type 1 self. Those are all hearts, in case you can’t tell. Big fan.
This is an outfit I had before I DYT’d. It was a favorite and when I thought I was Type 3 I was really sad that it wouldn’t be in my repertoire. If you have numerous outifts that you think you can’t wear in your new type I think I’d watch facial profiling to see if that is REALLY your type. Carol said that is what solidified it for me.
This is another outfit I really liked prior to typing myself, total Type 1. Go me!
The view from up top of this Type 1. Yellow pants, for real. They are becoming favorites.
These are some clothes I bought from their store (back when they had a store). I mostly wanted to get an idea of what coloring they recommended, especially for white. I also had ZERO yellow shirts, and I wanted to see what color yellow they recommend (apparently it was a Type 1 signature color). I am slowly coming around to it, although I don’t totally embrace it yet after the 30 days. I love the T-shirts, although I think I bought a little big.
I bought some drugstore colors to support my Type 1 makeup. That’s Hard Candy pots and Wet and Wild eyeshadow. Purple NYC eyeliner.
Seriously, all the selfies were grating on me. 🙂
Here’s one with the selfie stick. I feel like a crayon box. That is the yellow shirt I bought from their store. I think it’s fun with the green underneath.
This was a Sunday outfit. At the time I wasn’t sure that was a Type 1 skirt, but I can’t figure out what type it would be if it wasn’t me, so I went with it.
Here is my first thrifting attempt as a Type 1. I bought a scarf and it turns out I hate scarfs. Who knew? Not me…
Here’s a shirt from that shopping trip. Huge fan of it. I think it’s fun!
Lime green. A personal first, but I think it looks good!
Princess P, my little girl, made me buy this bow sweater. I’m not sure how I feel about it. I’d like to try it with a white shirt and see if it grows on me more like that. What do you think? It can be buttoned, but it looks like I’m super fat in this photo…
I ended-up Goodwilling this shirt right after I bought it. It was just too short and if there is one thing I’ve learned in this program is that life is too short to wear clothes that don’t make you feel good.
This shirt has horizontal strips and is paired with a circle necklace. One of the BIGGEST changes, for me, is accessorizing. You’ll notice I have a necklace on EACH and every day. Will I continue to wear a necklace if I’m not really going anywhere? I don’t know, sometimes they bug me. But, I do think if I’m leaving the house besides a quick grocery run I will continue to wear them.
I would also recommend using thrift stores at the beginning. You’re going to try a lot of new types of clothes that you would’t have been used to. You’ll feel more willing to try new things if you’re only spending a few dollars rather than 20-50. You can read my whole thrifting post here.
Don’t forget you can get your very own free before & after — and if you want to learn more about your type you can do so here.
Carol Tuttle Dressing Your Truth
Dressing Your Truth is part of Carol Tuttle’s offerings. She is the guru behind the course and you can learn a lot about yourself from the course and her.
I think the reality is that this course doesn’t say “wear this, not that” — there is still a lot of choices to be made and still time for me to find me in it. I think I’m slowly finding that. And I really like it.
Dressing Your Truth Review
Written in 2019: I think that I drank the Koolaid pretty hard at one point. I was in a rough patch in my life and this filled a need.
However, I really limited myself to that card, or what was in the store. I spent so much time looking for things that exactly matched that, I almost put myself into a corner that was making it REALLY hard to shop.
Now that I use Dia & Co to do much of my wardrobe, I have found that I can still wear bright colors,that don’t exactly match her card and still feel great in them.
More guidelines, than hard and fast rules. Could just be me, but it’s been a healthy shift for me.
Dressing your truth does not work?
I was 100% lost in fashion before this course. I wasn’t sure what I wanted and my style choices were easily swayed by the person I shopped with. That didn’t really help with finding things that worked for my body type, my personality traits, and didn’t feel like a natural expression of who I was.
After taking it, I have realized that it taught me a lot about what looks good on me (and frankly on others) but you don’t have to follow the system to a T. I’m a rule follower, so that was a disservice.
If you’re just looking to learn more about what looks good on you and perhaps shop a bit easier, I think it could be great for you. Try their before & after.
FAQ’s about Dressing Your Truth Type One
Honestly, Carol told me after I published an article that said I was a type 3. And honestly, I’d have just stayed with that unless she hadn’t contacted me.
Which, makes me wonder how many people out there mis-type themselves?
A strong one with a strong four secondary can look like a three. After doing it for a while that makes sense, but at the time… I just thought I was dumb.
These did help, but honestly — just to give you an idea. I was obsessed wtih taking them out at stores to make sure the colors matched right.
In retrospect, that seems a bit obsessive.
For me, it’s my constant need to be happy and have fun. That really is where my best moments occur. I woud say most people say I am super fun to be around and we all have a good time.
But I also an EXTREMELY organized and that brings me a lot of joy as well.
At some points, I felt like she was telling me to let that part go, but it’s all part of me. So I’ve just learned to let them work together. I think everyone has to work that battle on their own.
If you read my other posts you can tell that I did a makeover with them. In the end I felt like a Type 1 Carol Tuttle. My hair was huge and the makeup was insane. Although, it’s for video — so I guess that needs to be a bit more “larger than life.”
Carol really does want to help others, but has an odd way of going about it. She has certainly said things that have hurt my feelings a few times, but I think that’s just her.
Sarah says
I think you look super cute! What a gift for your family too, to see their mom living her Truth! ☺
Hilary says
Awh, thanks Sarah!
Cheridal Nicholson says
You are really a genuine person with a great personality! You wondered about a couple of your purchases at the thrift shop and I like most of them on you, except that short blue sweater thing and for some reason, the one just after it does nothing at all for you! I have the same problem with yellow as you although I am usually so tan and SHOULD, in theory, be able to wear it, but I have bright turquoise eyes and it just washes them out! I finally found a deep rich yellow that I can wear but only when I’m feeling very confident and don’t mind having washed out eyes! Also, I can’t wear any jewelry unless it’s 14k or above (unless I want to itch to death!) so I have to rely on just a few items that have no metal in them. Keep up dressing your truth as it seems to be working for you and BTW, Love your selfies!!!
Hilary says
Yeah, I had a lot of friends LOVE the blue sweater. I do’n tknow if it will see the light of day again. 🙂 Yellow is slowly growing on me. 🙂 Like fungus. 🙂
Lisa says
I want to give you an idea but do not want your feelings to be hurt. Think of it as what your best friend would tell you. Brows can make or break your face. I would recommend going to your local Ulta or other cosmetics counter and getting a quick tutorial on shaping and filling in your brows. I think you could do an entire blog post about it and I think you would be amazed and shocked by the difference. As we age our brows get thinner and lighter. Filling them in, even a little, will take years off. Love the clothes and congrats on your new found fashion success!
Hilary says
Lisa, you know — I’ve been thinking of getting a light brow kit. My eyebrows are super blonde so I always feel weird with most eyebrow pencils out there, but I do know there’s some very light ones. Thanks for the nudge. 🙂 {and seriously, not hurting my feelings at ALL — you should SEE some of the comments I get on this blog}. I LOVE input like this!
Terri says
My thought is this, look back at your photos, your best truth, and asset in dressing is evident to me, your smile. In the photos were a true smile is there you beam, I am sure your husband agrees that this is your best accessory, I do not disagree with dressing your truth, but without a God loving smile, that reflects in your eyes, the photos would be flat, as would the outfits. Great job and I love animal print on you, be bold and wear it with a smile.
Hilary says
Awh, that is really sweet of you to say. THANK YOU!!!! 🙂
Anne says
Wow, Really interesting photo examples of how different a person can look in different clothes.
It’s striking how much more flattering clear (not grayed down), cool, jeweltone colors are with your coloring. (The purple, cool reds, and the color of the bow sweater.) The purer tones look way better also (primary and secondary colors as opposed to blends like yellow/green. Not crazy about the yellow at all to be honest.
Emerald green and navy would probably look amazing, if you like those colors.
Anne says
I also wanted to add, the animal print looks good. I think the way you have it with a cardigan or jacket looks better than without.
And, you have gorgeous FEET! The shoes are really really flattering.
Cool how you keep within your modesty value but still show some personality. Your personality is a gift, so I think this is a way to bring it into the world and make what you have to offer more accessible. (by subtle changes that make it more apparent what you are about.
I hope it brings you good things and leads to more expression of your gifts in other ways.
Sherry Guevremont says
I’ve been watching all the Carol Tuttle videos on youtube and I am trying to determine my type. I keep bouncing around. First, I was a 2 then a 4 and now I think I may be a Type 1 with 4 as secondary or maybe the other way. A 4 with 1 as secondary. I am enjoying it! I did want to comment on the cute blue sweater. It stops right at most women’s widest spot and our eyes go there.. With it buttoned, you’ve created an inverted V and so your eyes follow the lines and when they end at your hips, boom! You should look for sweaters a little bit longer so they don’t create a line at your widest spot. It’s fun to find out what works best for our personalities and the way we live our lives. Thanks for the inspiration to pursue this some more. Great job with the other choices. Such fun colours!
Hilary says
Yeah, I think the blue sweater is a loser…. it’s still in my closet, but I doubt it will last much longer. 🙂
Sarah says
To me, you definitely look the best in the diagonally striped purple blouse. You look like you are happy and enjoying being in it. The necklace is good too!
Hilary says
Thank you!
Fran says
The problem is I cannot try this as I cannot hear what is being said (I am nearly deaf)
So if there is no translitteration of this, I am out and must rely on my frenchness to hope I’m wearing what I should
And I will !
LOve to evryone of you
Hilary says
Awh, I am so sorry…. I did talk to them about closed captioning…. I hope they do it at some point. 🙂
Sarah Ellen says
I’ve been mulling over DYT to right at one year now. It took me months to finally accept that I am a 1/4, like you! I also first thought I was a three. My facial features are definite 1, but I feel like my type 4 is way over-developed. I know that type 1’s like to please people, and I think I grew up taking this to the extreme. I am always trying to make myself schedules and lists to get on top of things, but then I just can’t keep up with them. This happens with house cleaning, exercise programs, diets, scheduling my daily time….etc. This thing inside me (type 4) gets mad that I don’t have a perfect system and don’t have my house and life all “together”, but then my type 1 self just says “this is all too much for me!” and gives up. I can totally understand what you said in one post about feeling at odds with yourself. As far as clothes, I do like light and airy clothes, but also sort of edgy and trendy. I feel silly in too many colorful pieces or too much jewelry. I’m working on finding a balance. I sort of want to take the 30 day challenge, but I’m nervous. A lot of my favorite clothes that I feel “fashionable” or “cool” in are not type 1. Although I realized almost all of my shoes are type 1!! Purple converse, red Tom’s, gold flats, green sandals, bright blue and green athletic shoes, lol . I wish I didn’t make this so hard! Ugh!