Answer Angel: Conflicting advice

Ellen Warren, Tribune News Service on Jan 13, 2026

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Dear Answer Angel Ellen: My fashion feed is filled with contradictory messages on women’s fashion and beauty trends for 2026.

I’m confused and need some common sense guidance. Can you help?

--Lillian K.

Dear Lillian: Anything goes. That’s the bottom line for the “in” styles in the new year.

Bold color. Neutrals. Structured suiting. Volume and big shoulders. Classics. Maximalist. Tassels and fringe. Minimalist everything. Lace. Pattern mixing. Long talon-like fingernails in bright colors. Neatly trimmed nails in neutral, natural shades. Bushy eyebrows. No eyebrows. Big watches. Tiny timepieces. The “experts” on fashion and beauty trends are all over the place.

The only consensus seems to be that extreme, long, super-full false eyelashes seem to be fading in popularity with lashes trending toward a more realistic profile. With all this contradictory advice out there, the message boils down to: Do your own thing.

Dear Answer Angel Ellen: As a man who, I think, has fashion sense I have an unusual question. I remember when it was trendy for a man to wear a patterned "overshirt" with a solid tee underneath. Admittedly, I now have a “slight” belly and with my waist size going up and down, some of my nice patterned shirts look terrible when buttoned. As I am no longer lean, is this "overshirt" look still OK or is it horribly passé?

--No Name Please

Dear No Name: The vast majority of men carry their extra weight in their belly and many confront the can’t-button-my-shirt issue. Patterned button shirts — striped, plaid, Hawaiian-style — can stylishly be worn unbuttoned over a T-shirt unless the shirt is so tight that it is ill-fitting in the back, underarms and/or sleeves. In those cases it calls attention to your weight gain -- which is not what you’re going for.

Dear Answer Angel Ellen: I have curly hair that is out of control. One day the curls are “perfect” and I get compliments. The next it is just a frizzy mess. People tell me “you’re so lucky to have natural curls” and are jealous, thinking that I just can get out of bed, fluff my hair and be on my way. The opposite is true. Have you found reliable tools for us curly girls that can make a difference?

--Emma R.

Dear Emma: I’ve been curly all my life and I can guarantee you that there is no single miracle tool or product to solve our hair problems. I’ve tried anything you can imagine and all with limited, often unpredictable, success.

My latest hair gizmo came in a suggestion from a saleswoman at the car dealership where I was looking at used autos to replace my 2002 that finally died. She told me my hair was just like her daughter’s and showed me a photo of a young woman with gorgeous natural curls. She said the secret was a Bounce Curl brand “volume edgelift” hair brush, a pricey $29.99 on amazon.com.

After watching many how-to videos, I took a risk and ordered one and have been testing it on my shoulder length wet hair. After some impatience and trial and error, it worked surprisingly well. Not perfect but good enough. I have fewer bad hair days than before. For me, that’s about as good as it gets.

Let’s hear from curly readers who have had success with other products.

Reader Rant

Marcie L. writes: “Regarding Judy O.’s comments about those of us with wet armpits from perspiring: Evidently it hasn’t occurred to her that some of us are allergic to antiperspirants! I spent years trying different brands, all with the same result: red and itchy armpits. Would she rather see those of us with such afflictions scratch ourselves like lower primates? I use an effective Dove deodorant and yes, I have rings of sweat sometimes, but at least I don’t smell bad!”

Mary B. on not wearing a belt with pants that have belt loops: “I cringe every time I see people wearing trench coats with the belt creased and knotted instead of buckled! I think it looks simply untidy. The same goes for trousers or skirts with empty belt loops. Don't get me started on untied shoelaces, either. All of these are fashion don’ts and say, ‘I don't have the time (or the manual dexterity) to finish getting dressed!’”