So proud of Ryan! He was the star of a wonderful night!

Last night The Style Duo had an amazing night celebrating with Paula’s son (Mindy’s nephew), Ryan at his Bar Mitzvah! It was a night filled with joy, laughter and most of all pride! And in this week’s blog we wanted to share some party tips with all of you. We are NOT party planners but we have a passion for glamorous events. Whether you are going to a Bar Mitzvah, wedding, birthday party or red carpet event it is so important to feel confident and party ready. Boy, girl, woman or man….we ALL want to shine. And no one shone more last night than Ryan, the Bar Mitzvah boy. He wore his hair his way. Long and cool. During the party he played Metallica on his guitar and wore a rock t-shirt instead of his suit jacket. He rocked HIS own handsome style and he was the star!!

Top 5 Tips to be Fabulous at Parties

1. Buy your dress or outfit weeks (sometimes months) in advance. We are BIG believers of alterations. Almost every garment looks better when tailored to fit your own body. This means leaving time for alterations. Sometimes one, two or even three fittings just to make it look perfect.

2. Heels! We are big “heel girls”. We are not sure if it is because we are short and married to tall husbands or just love the way it makes us feel special. It is as if we are still playing dressup in our Mom’s closet. But test out the shoes a few nights before the party. Walk around the house with them for at least an hour and make sure they are comfortable and dance floor friendly!

3. Extensions: We love our hair extensions and take the good with the bad. They make our super fine hair look so much thicker but extensions are costly, and can damage your real hair if not treated with great care. We especially love them for parties and special occasions because you can curl them and really get the red carpet look. But if you are not ready to invest in the semi-permanent ones, try the clip on extensions. They still give a glamorous hair-style for the night but the price is more affordable and you can take them right out after your event.

4. Party Emergency Kit: Always bring a little bag of tricks to special events. This means, pins, double sided tape, bra-pads, and our favorite emergency tool: baby-wipes! If you are the host you can leave your kit in a party suite or if you are a guest leave it in the car for any fashion emergency that might arise!

5. A go with the flow attitude: Sometimes you can prep as much as you want but on the big day things can still go a little awry. For example Paula bought her beautiful lavender Roberto Cavalli dress a year before the Bar Mitzvah. She had numerous alterations and was ready to go. Minutes before the party when she put on her lovely gown, she realized the zipper got stuck half-way up and would not budge. Instead of panicking we chuckled at the hilarity of it all and called a local seamstress who rushed to the venue and stitched her in with only seconds to spare. As we always say at The Style Duo, the best style is confidence and a smile!!

Never let them see you sweat! Check out Paula's fashion zipper emergency on her left side. Thanks to her wonderful seamstress for saving the day 5 minutes later. Keep on smiling!