Throughout our long, cold winter, our short, cold spring, and our rainy, cold introduction to summer, it’s all too easy to reach for the same old sloppy sweatshirt and leggings or jeans.

That’s the pattern 31-year-old Angela Wheaton had gotten herself into. Recently, a new mom of a two-and-a-half-month-old girl, she felt she was starting to lose her identity and her propensity to throw on the same old wardrobe didn’t help.

“I’m a simple dresser, polo shirts, T-shirts, jeans, sneakers,” she said. “No bright colors or patterns.”

She hired Rockland style advisor James Barger, whose business is called CHANGE, isn’t it time? 

Barger, who moved to Maine from Boston in 2013, decided he needed to leave the desk job and go back to what always used to make him happy as a teenager — working in retail and helping people find their “shine.”

With an associate’s degree in business management, he began to think about how his talents and skills could mesh. After working with friends to help them find their best color and style, he started his business six months ago.  Wheaton became his first client.

 “I don’t have huge self-confidence when it comes to what I’m wearing,” she said. Working multiple part-time jobs, she also had trouble finding a look that could go from work casual to everyday living without having to change multiple times in a day. “I just need someone to show me what looks good so I can feel good,” she added.

With every start of a new season, change is always on people’s minds, but when it comes to color and clothing, particularly in Maine, people can be victims of their own comfort zone choices. The problem, according to Barger, is that the wrong color and style can skew your self-image. It actually distorts the lens in which others view your appearance. What you might think is a good color on you could be adding years to your face, accentuating prominent lines and wrinkles, leeching out your natural inner glow and clashing with your hairstyle and color.

Case in point: As Barger worked with Wheaton, he held multiple color boards under her chin while she viewed herself in the mirror. Almost imperceptibly, her face changed entirely with each color board. For example, golds and yellows brought a natural glow and youthfulness to her face, whereas silver and purple seemed to drain her face of color, hollow her eyes and make her look tired.

He goes through a certain “color elimination” process to pinpoint what will work best with Wheaton, a petite, brown-eyed blonde. Starting with a one-on-one consultation, detailed questionnaire and her measurements, then moving on to color boards and color fans (similar to a Pantone paint fans), he determines that her natural coloring works best with a spring palette. In styling, we all fall into one of four color seasons: spring, summer, fall and winter.

With a spring palette, Wheaton had to trust that he’d nudge her out of her comfort zone without blasting her into a style realm that didn’t feel anything like her. For the purposes of this article, Barger did a pre-shopping trip for Wheaton at T.J. Maxx and by the time she arrived, had chosen about 15 blouses and tops for her to choose from, along with several pairs of pants.

Barger had about a 90 percent success rate in his clothing choices and Wheaton tried on almost everything. She was surprised to find that most of the various colors and patterns he picked worked for her and how well they fit.

Part of Barger’s job is to determine what works best with each body shape, minimizing his client’s shortcomings and highlighting his or her best features.

“It’s my duty to be up front and honest about what works and what doesn’t,” said Barger. “I always preface our initial meeting by asking ‘do you really want me to help you look good or do you just want to be flattered?’ ”

After their consultation, Wheaton, discovered she has an inverted triangle body shape, with broad shoulders, a long torso and short legs.

“The thing is, I already know what I like and don’t like about my own body,” said Wheaton. “And I was a little nervous to have someone echo that back to me, but James was really good at making me feel at ease. Take this yellow striped top with gold zippers,” she said, holding it up. “I’ve never gravitated to gold or yellow before.”

When she put it on, the ruched sides of the top fit her like a glove, aligning her entire body in proportion.

When someone is wearing the right color and cut for their face and body type, Barger says, the attention is drawn immediately to one’s face—as it should be.

“If someone is noticing your outfit first, before their eyes drift up to meet your eyes, your clothing choices are actually detracting from your best look,” he said.

In Midcoast Maine, clothing choices for all sizes and ages of women can be limited; for men even more so.

“Living up here, it’s all about layering,” he said. “One minute it’s freezing cold; the next, it’s blazing hot. But, it still can be fashionable and functional.”

Barger tries to shop locally when possible, but also utilizes a host of online stores to work with each client and contracts out what he calls his “glam squad” of hairstylists and makeup artists to complete each client’s look, if requested.

“After the first time I wore something James picked out for me, I went home to my husband, who, doesn’t usually say much about my appearance,” Wheaton said. “But, I could see his face light right up.”

“Watching her blossom and come into who she is, that’s what makes me the most happy,” said Barger.

Kay Stephens can be reached at news@penbaypilot.com