RI Beauty Expert: What Makes Rhode Island a Great Fashion Place

RI Beauty Expert: What Makes Rhode Island a Great Fashion Place

New Years is a great time to take stock and count your blessings and among them should be Rhode Island's abundance of fashion resources. We may appear to be provincial to some uber­urban types, but we have plenty to offer the most passionate of Rhode Island fashionistas.

On Every Corner

You can't turn around in this state without bumping into a spa, hair, or nail salon. We are home base to several exclusive hairdressing academies and beauty schools. Fortunately, graduates often open up their own shops on home turf, making it easy for us mortals to benefit from great hair cuts, skin and nail care and cutting­edge techniques. Ditto for other beauty care such as waxing, threading, etc. No driving 40 miles to Mabel's Cut and Curl for us.

GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLAST

Best in Show

One of the nation's best design schools calls Providence home and cranks out lots of innovative clothing designers right into our misty ocean fog. Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) inspires us each spring with their avant­garde and entertaining runway show when Apparel Design majors showcase their one­of­a­kind creations. We get to see the latest innovations from future style trendsetters, right in the comfort of our hood.

Big Box Heaven

There is no shortage of large department stores in the Ocean State. It's hard to pull together a chic wedding guest outfit without a trip to the mall. We have lots of choices and as one who once lived off the beaten path, we are so lucky.

Commanding Style Weeks

Rhode Island hosts two major Style Weeks each year which not only supports budding designers but also local businesses. Having such professional leading events galvanizes every corner of Rhode Island's fashion industry and inspires us all.

Boutique Heaven

From East Bay to West Bay, Rhode Island is dotted with hundreds of independent and unique local boutiques. You will never find a better state for charting a path of charming little shops that offer everything from boho chic to nautical style and everything in between. We have uncommonly lovely lingerie shops, shoe emporiums, and accessory boutiques. Every village, every hamlet.

Museums and Culture

Fashion history and lore has always been a highlighted area of expertise with our museums and universities. Special exhibits and permanent collections feature many costumes and decorative arts from Rhode Island history and are a continual source of revelations and curiosity. Fashion lectures occur regularly via the Newport Preservation Society and often feature tastemakers from the global fashion world.

Fascinating People Parade

Rhode Island women have never shied away from fashion. We are the former capital of big hair and shoulder pads and today you only need to park yourself publically for a little while to witness every kind of style imaginable inside a minute or two. Rhode Islanders refreshingly take chances, innovate, and use their personal cultural heritages to work it. I never tire of the Rhode Island style maven. We are truly blessed here.

Donna Macdonald is a freelance writer who enjoys covering topics of interest to women, especially fragrance, style, beauty. She has also written marketing material for a women's book that hit the New York Times Bestseller list and netted her an up close and personal discussion on the Oprah Winfrey Show. Donna currently writes her own personal blog, alovelyinconsequence.blogspot.com, where she also writes about issues close to a woman's heart. Donna believes that when a woman finds beauty in the world, she will find beauty in herself.