BALANCEDBODY&MIND How Northeast Ohioans (attempt to) do it all
Spotlight on …
Hallie Abrams, founder of The Wardrobe Consultant
H
allie Abrams helps her clients define and refine their personal style by mining their closets and then shopping with and for them, leaving a photo album of ensembles for work, play and nights on the town. The concept for her 15-year-old business, The Wardrobe Consultant, came after Abrams, now 49, helped her husband’s sister determine her personal style as she was heading back to the workplace after a hiatus to raise children. Since then, Abram’s own children have grown into teenagers and she’s become the founder and lead stylist of the company. She spoke with Balanced Family about her life at work and at home in Orange. What’s the most important thing you do in the morning to start your day? The most important thing to do in the morning is to have coffee. I cannot live without it, literally. And my husband knows, and that is part of our love language. He gets it ready every night and it’s ready in the morning when I wake up. I am so appreciative. What is your biggest productivity hack? Honestly, it’s pictures on my phone, actually taking pictures on my phone. So if there’s something that I want to buy, but I don’t want to buy it now, I’ll take a picture of the price tag. If there’s an outfit that I wore and I like, I’ll take a selfie so I have it in an album. Even with things like, my son was just sending me accepted student visit dates for colleges, I took a picture of it. So now I have a gazillion pictures on my phone. And that’s not great, but it helps me remember a lot of things that my brain would not remember otherwise. What is your philosophy of social media? It actually is a total double-edged sword, especially having teenagers. My kids have grown up on the cusp of all these social media advances. So I barely got to catch up with it until they already had it mastered. So I think they and we both feel that it is addictive and something that needs to be used mindfully, similar to alcohol. It’s also part of my business. Being part of it helps me understand where my kids are coming from. Do you exercise? How do you manage stress? I do try to exercise three mornings a week. My husband and I try to practice yoga together. He’s a big yogi. So that is something, actually as a family, we do. I have a bad back so I have a standing appointment with a chiropractor once a week. It aligns me physically and mentally. I have girl time. I’ve been playing mahjong with the same group of women for probably over 10 years, since our little ones were born. That is my body and soul rejuvenation.
20 | BALANCEDFAMILY | SPRING 2020
The Abrams family includes Joey, 18, Maggie, 16, Greg, Hallie and Reed, 20. | Submitted photo
Do you cook? What kind of family meals are mainstays? I do cook. The Crock-Pot is one of my best friends ever because I can set it to go. I just got an Instant Pot and I’m actually calling on my Instagram audience to help me and share good recipes because it scares me a little bit. How do you define your personal style? I think my personal style is classic, but with a little bit of edge. And I actually always like clients to come up with a personal style statement. I think it helps people when they’re getting dressed, almost like an organization having a mission statement. How do you handle creative mental blocks? I tend to go to New York for creative inspiration because I find that people watching, for me, is one of the best things. Just literally being like, ‘Oh, look at how they put that together.’ ‘Why does that totally work on her?’ People that I don’t know – on the subway, in a cafe. Being in a New York or an LA or Chicago or a Miami – always a little bigger city – sometimes helps a little. I can do it in Cleveland too, but it’s not quite the same. What’s your nighttime routine? Actually at night, I have a show I watch with each of my kids, and we don’t binge watch it. My son and I will watch “All American” together. And my daughter and I are watching “The Handmaid’s Tale.” And then at night, I like to read before bed on a Kindle. This interview has been edited for brevity.
balancedmag.com
