Janet Silvera, Senior Gleaner Writer 
Above: 'Stoosh', isn't she? No wonder, Patrice DaCosta is the president of Stoosh Images, New York
WESTERN BUREAU:
One of them is about to hit Jamaica and the Caribbean with a 'storm' called 'Stoosh Images'. The other has her eyes set on reclaiming 'city status' to Montego Bay, with 'Style Me'.
Combined, both will unveil their sense of style, guiding you to a uniquely personal and completely professional appearance, improve your business communications, and appropriate actions, with confidence in any situation.
Jamaicans Patrice DaCosta, president of Stoosh Images, New York, and Odette Dyer of Montego Bay have never met, but both women have one aim in view - to take the term 'image consultant', and become your partner in success.
Stoosh in Jamaican parlance means exactly that 'stoosh' was inspired by the former Westwood High School graduate's cultural heritage, which really means, elegant, sophisticated and nice.
So, are these jewellery appropriate for the occasion or what? If you're not sure, ask the image consultants
Recommendation
Both DaCosta and Dyer recommend that every woman must have a long sleeve buttoned down fitted white shirt, and a black slacks in her wardrobe, and not necessarily the little black dress that was the popular recommendation. "You can dress that up, or down, wear your flip flop on a Saturday and you are gone to the mall, or you put on a pair of pumps and you are gone to work, put on a nice necklace and you are ready for a cocktail reception," they concur.
"Clothing that is box-shaped is not complementary to many of us, A-line shirts should be the guide to buying that shirt," added the Stoosh Images president.
In the case of men, they should have a nice pair of dark denim jeans, ready to be worn with a coloured buttoned down shirt. "The darker the wash the more formal," noted Patrice DaCosta, who said her goal is to help her clients look and feel better about themselves.
In the last two years, she has built up a combination of private and corporate clients who have come to rely on her expertise in colour, wardrobe and style analysis, personal shopping, closet clearing, social etiquette and personal development.
Dyer, a former flight attendant with Air Jamaica, says she is bent on helping those who haven't realised their full style potential. "People who are stuck in the rut, wearing the same fashion and same hairstyle for the past 20 years and are just afraid to step out."
Renowned for her distinctive keen sense of fashion, coupled with an innate gift of style, Dyer said her peers recognised her ability from her early days in first form at St. Catherine High School.
"I did their make-up, shaved their eyebrows in second form and cut my own hair," she boasted to Outlook. Today, one of the most important accessories in her make up kit is a razor blade.
On Sunday, October 7, Odette Dyer's 'Style Me' will open its doors at The Event Place in Montego Bay, and the buzz in the tourism capital is that master choreographer Weston Haughton is the man behind the fashion show that will herald the new and exciting clothing store and image consultancy to the city.
So, are these two women qualified to collect your money and go personal shopping for you?
"You should not see the colour before you see the person, colour should complement you, not overpower you," says Patrice, showing off combinations that will work.
Patrice DaCosta
Trained by Dominique Isbecque, internationally renowned image consultant at the Image Resource Centre in New York, DaCosta has also earned a professional Diploma in Fashion Merchandising from Professional Career Development Institute in Atlanta. A graduate of Barbizon Modelling School, she is a member of the Association of Image Consultants International.
According to the image consultant, the fashion industry is ruled by four seasons - summer, autumn, winter and spring - which are used to determine the colour system. From this comes colour analysis, which is one of the most critical areas of the industry.
"It is critical because there are different shades and different undertones. The mistake many of us make is, we see a yellow top and say that that is a nice top; make the purchase, but it is not necessarily the right shade for your skin.
"You should not see the colour before you see the person, colour should complement you, not overpower you. Many times a person walks through a door and if they are wearing orange, you see the colour before you see their face," she noted.
Her advice to persons with very dark complexion is to stay away from bright oranges and peach, because the contrast is too high. "I am going to see that orange first," she reiterated. In the case of white people, she says they are spring, meaning they are warm, and can get away with bright greens, yellows and peaches, colours that complement them.
DaCosta says when she makes her debut in Jamaica it will be an eye-opener to many people, just knowing that shade makes such a big difference.
For her, the main thing is to have something that enhances and complements, and she believes that colour can make or break you. "You can also make or break accounts by the way you look and how you speak to a customer."
Accordingly, she swears that many of the mistakes made in the private sector won't be made, once they start listening to the experts.
One of the services she offers is personal shopping. "I actually go to the store with you to help you to choose the right thing, we as people go to the store and buy the wrong clothing and sometimes spend hundreds on things that do not suit them."
Stoosh Images was inspired by Patrice's cultural heritage
Grooming
Stoosh Images also specialises in grooming, and the company president warns that wearing too much jewellery, necklaces and earrings to an office environment is really a distraction. The same goes for too much cleavage and skirts that leave nothing to the imagination.
"When coming to work you are to think of elegance and professionalism. If you look into the mirror and you see that something is not gelling you know something is wrong."
As important as dressing up is, if the hair and skin doesn't look right, it is an effort in futility. "What you are is what you eat. There are some hairstyles that are not appropriate for one's face, but because we see a model on the TV we want the same, which can either broaden your face or make it too long."
The drinking of water, water and more water has become a part of her subconscious, and she notes that a number of her friends here have resorted to juices. "Water flushes the system."
Another mistake is not to use sunscreen. This is critical for the face, and combining that with
