Menlo Park mom finds out 'What Not to Wear' Menlo Park mom finds out 'What Not to Wear' (May 12, 2004)

By Andrea Gemmet
Almanac Staff Writer

Anyone who has watched The Learning Channel in the past two weeks has probably seen Menlo Park resident Belinda Hill hunched in a hairdresser's chair looking nervous. Belinda, who has the dubious honor of having been selected to participate in the popular makeover show "What Not to Wear," says she doesn't think she can stand to see the promo for her episode again. The episode, which debuted Friday, repeats Wednesday, May 12, at 8 p.m.

With the motto -- "You, only better" -- "What Not to Wear" is a gentler experience than the current extreme makeover shows on network TV -- participants don't go under the knife and emerge as unrecognizable beauty pageant contestants.

They do, however, have to stand in front of a 360-degree mirror as their fashion faux pas are revealed in excruciating detail, and then watch their wardrobes being winnowed, as Stacy London and Clinton Kelly, the show's hosts, hurl objectionable items into a big garbage can.

On the bright side, participants spend a week in New York City getting specific advice on flattering clothing choices, using $5,000 to shop for a new wardrobe, and have a session with an expert makeup artist and hairstylist. The transformations are revealed first to Stacy and Clinton, then to family and friends back home

"It's kind of like having a loose tooth -- it hurts a little, but it's exciting," says Belinda of her "What Not to Wear" experience.

Belinda's crime against fashion? Wearing jeans and a Menlo-Atherton Bears sweatshirt so often it was almost a uniform, and having gone 30 years without getting her hair cut. Belinda's daughter Julia, 15, says when she found out her mother had been a fashion trendsetter in high school, she decided to nominate her.

"Mom always does so many things for us, she's always on the go. It's nice for her to get pampered," says Julia, a sophomore at M-A.

Belinda, who has three daughters and works as a nurse at the Atherton Plastic Surgery Center, says her looks just weren't a priority.

"I never wanted to take anything away from my kids," she says. "I wear comfortable clothes. I figure I'm here to provide a service until they're 18, and then I can get back to myself."

Although she'd only seen the show a few times, she remembers telling her daughters not to sign her up for "anything like that."

Julia says she wasn't worried mother would be angry. The hardest part was keeping it a secret from her mom, especially during the two weeks the family had to help gather secret video footage of Belinda and her wardrobe.

Belinda says she knew something was up, and she wasn't the only one getting suspicious. A member of her church is a police officer, and when he spotted a man filming her from his car, he tracked the guy down and demanded to know what was going on, she says.

Once she got over the shock of finding cameras, the show's hosts, and a passel of family and friends in her living room telling her she needed a fashion intervention, Belinda says she was happily surprised.

"It was kind of a turning point my life," she says philosophically. "Someone allowed me the time and space to shed a lot of old things and go through a process of renewing myself."

Unlike some participants, who try to wrestle beloved old clothes out of the garbage can, Belinda says she would've tossed a match into her pile of discards if they would have let her. But, she says, she's going to keep wearing her old M-A Bears sweatshirt until the show airs.

Other than that, she says it hasn't been too hard keeping up her new look.

"I love my hair cut, and I love having an idea what I can wear, and where to get it," Belinda says.

Julia says she knew her mom would be happy by the end of the experience.

"Sometimes I'd borrow her flip-flops, but I never used to borrow her clothes -- I'm 5 foot 9 and she's 5 foot 1 -- but I want to now," Julia says. "They're really fashionable, they look great on her. Now I wish I was 5 foot 1."

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