Eye-4-Style

Having grown up in the suburbs (The North Shore) of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, I’m a Midwest girl who enjoys living on Lake Michigan with the big city of Chicago only 90 miles away. This is the best of both worlds; a great mid-size city with the BIG city only a short train ride away. I grew up in a family business where we sold paper converting machinery to 39 countries. Our export division sold and shipped paper cup and  plate machinery; we also designed and manufactured file folder machines and Egg Carton Printing machines for shipment to US and worldwide end-users. The ECP was particularly special to me as my father held the patents !

Winters became  long and I ventured out to Los Angeles for a few years to work in the advertising specialty business. I enjoyed LA but moved to Washington, D.C. for a change in scenery and worked for Public Broadcasting Service.  My father sent out an SOS and I returned to Milwaukee, continuing to work for the family business. We moved the business to Clearwater, FL, and I remained there for a few years  until marriage took me back to Washington, D.C.  Two children and some years later, we returned to Milwaukee to have another child and raise a family. With my husband and myself coming from family businesses, the entrepreneurial spirit grabbed hold and we bought a company with 8 employees, selling it 19 years later with 625 employees and being the second largest company of our kind in SE Wisconsin.  Our hard work and dedication, along with little sleep for 20 years, gave us memorable experiences of growing a business and raising a family. It was probably one of the hardest and busiest times in our lives but the most satisfying to date.

Children are grown and I’m on my own, traveling between Milwaukee and Florida.  While numbers and business have been my forte, my passion for fashion and decorating is a force I’ve addressed throughout my life, but didn’t have much time to explore.  My attention to detail and understanding of feng shui are talents I apply to business, fashion, decorating and life experience. I call myself an Image Consultant, whether it be personal or for business.

I feel blessed to be a “magnet” for people. When out and about, people come up to me and start conversation, even approaching me about my opinions when shopping. They value my assessment, honesty and positive energy. That’s when I started the Blog, as people were genuinely interested in what I like and recommended for them. When “personal shopping,” I challenge my buyers to step out of their comfort zones to try something new and different for themselves. This makes it easier for those who have been buying the same styles for years and want to “step it up.”

Since I shop at ALL stores, from Target to Bergdorf to Macy’s to Saks, I hope you like the Blog and you find something that interests you at all levels.  Enjoy and have fun!  And please, if you like it, tell your friends!

Eye-4-Style.com is written by Lisa Rae Martin.