How to Wear Colour NEW!
Effortless and Practical Style NEW!
Do I Need Training to become a Personal Stylist and Shopper? NEW!
Learn to Love Your Body in 2010
Look Hot When it's Cold!
Career as an Image Consultant
Plus Size Style
Dressing for Petite Style
What to Wear for Tall Women
Autumn Winter '09 Style Guide
The Impact of Colour on Image
Fashion and your Health NEW!
How to Dress a Pear Shape Figure
How to Dress Apple Shape Figures
Commandments of Style
Personal Branding
Advice for Shopping on a Budget
Beach Style & Body Shape
Choosing Bridesmaids Dresses
Dress for Confidence
EcoFashion | Green is the New Black
Guide to Trying on Bras
Maternity Style
Mother of the Bride Outfits
Packing Advice for Summer Hols
Spring Summer 09 Style Guide
Star Quality Image
Staying Stylish on a Budget
Get Your Perfect Figure
The Wardrobe Detox
Top Style Tips for First Dates
Top Underwear Brands
Underwear Figure Fixers
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How to Achieve Practical Style
Recently I am seeing a major trend with my clients who all want to achieve the same thing. Effortless and chic style that is practical for the endless list of tasks they have on their ‘to do’ lists every day. Clients tell me they would love to strut about all day in high heels, but in reality they end up hobbling. Women say “I’d love to wear skirts more, but I just seem to end up in jeans...again.” Busy professionals want to look modern, but struggle with styles, fabrics and colours that may be unsuitable for the office. So how do you do practical style in s/s10?
Well luckily practicality and comfort is a built-in element of the spring /summer collections of 2010 so designers have done the hard work you. Here are some of this season’s hottest trends that also translate in to the busy modern woman’s wardrobe who wants to look chic and together but feel relaxed and confident.
Modern Draping
Comfortable modern draping is easy to wear and adds a modern edge to skinny jeans or leggings. This trend can be flattering on the figure too as gathering on the bust can add volume to smaller chests where as draped skirts are perfect for disguising wider hips and tummies, so consider clever strategic pleats and architectural draping whilst looking for key pieces to update your wardrobe this season. A key piece this season is the perfect do it all dress in a jersey fabric with lots of stretch and bounce, as it hides a multitude of sins, feels comfortable yet feminine, doesn't crease and can be dressed up or down with accessories to achieve different looks from am to pm, at work or off duty.
The Welcome Return of the Mid Heel!
Welcome back mid heel! We are so pleased to see you again. For someone who spends the majority of her day on her feet, I am personally so pleased to see the mid heel return to the catwalks. A mid heel gives just enough height to lengthen the legs (a welcome boost for me at 5’3”) and provide a sexier stride without the added blisters, foot burn and ‘ball ache’ we all know so well.
Deconstructed Tailoring
For professionals who want to look smart but have to endure the clamminess of non air conditioned stuffy offices, summer suits are the way to go. High waisted front pleat loose tailored trousers with a cuff at the ankle look chic with a crisp white sleeveless shirt or silk blouse tucked in, giving the appearance of longer legs and nailing one of the hottest trouser styles for 2010, whilst keeping you cool.
For off duty style, boyfriend style blazers in jersey fabrics effortlessly dress up your favourite pair of skinny jeans and little tees so you can drop the kids off for school in style with minimal effort in the morning.
Utility
Utility is an easy way to look on trend and is this year’s definition of effortless style. Choose options such as the utility dress; light hooded cagoules and macs and of course, the utility bag in canvas fabric practically armed with zips, pockets and drawstrings. Look out for rucksack and duffle styles which will fit all of your make up; keys, phone, kids snacks etc whilst still enabling you to keep your hands free for lattes whilst on the go! Avoid looking frumpy or slightly ‘train spotter’ by teaming your cagoule with skinny jeans to give it a modern edge.
Sports Luxe
I have to be careful here as I do not want to endorse wearing your ‘trackie’ as suitable daywear unless you are hitting the gym, however girls you hear me correctly when I say track pants are the new go anywhere uniform for fashionistas. Alexander Wang describes it as “classic American sportswear with an edge” where off duty style is making a serious impact on the catwalks and is a world away from Juicy tracksuits and Uggs.
There is a big HOWEVER here though! Track suit trouser styles must taper at the ankle with a cuff and must be worn with heel so if you want to try this look, don’t just drag out your old pair of grey Adidas and add heels! Investing in the new shape is a must here. Alternatively look for sports inspired fabrics such as mesh, jersey or perforated fabrics and dress up with more tailored pieces.
Clashing Prints
On the s/s10 catwalks we saw lots of clashing prints and patterns however this does not make it ok to get dressed in the dark and leave without looking in the mirror! However it does make life a hell of a lot easier and getting dressed quicker when mixing and matching your wardrobe every morning as it allows for far more lenience and price per wear as things don’t have to ‘match’ they just have to work! Look to combine patterns with similar colours if you want to clash your prints so that the outfit doesn’t look like no thought has gone in to it.
Working with lots of women throws up the same questions and challenges regularly so I thought it would be useful to share some things I have learned about practical style. It’s evident when it’s written in black and white, but from experience I know that women often value these obvious but none the less, useful points.
When Shopping for s/s 10 updates...
If you’re more of a practical princess then look at your labels before buying new clothes! Be realistic. If you are anything like most of the women I know, you don’t have too much time (or enthusiasm) when it comes to hand-washing so think carefully before spending a lot on silk tees and dry clean only jackets. You may find that they end up sitting in the bottom of you laundry basket for days...dare I say weeks! Eek!
Flat shoes have the all clear
Funnily enough in a lot of women’s wardrobes I notice that the majority of shoes are high heels and wow factor shoes which look in immaculate condition, and a couple of pairs of flats that are looking like they are about to go on strike. This tells me that these women are spending the majority of their time in flats, yet spend all their hard earned money on heels. So I recommend that top of their shopping wish-list is a trendy pair of flats that they can wear every day but look as chic as heels, so that they can start feeling more ‘together’ day to day, rather than just wearing nice shoes for ‘best’. This gets easier as the weather warms up as there are more options in the shops and you won’t have to worry about ‘tights or no tights’ dilemma.
I am frequently asked by petite women “Can I wear flats?” so thought it was worth a mention. We all know heels make our legs look longer, but we are also painfully aware that they hurt! So in short, (no pun intended) petite women can wear flats. In fact very often loafers, ballet pumps and flat boots look fantastic on petite women, however only wear them with a slim fitting jean, trouser, leggings or tights if you aren’t exactly on the tall side. When shorter women try to get away with flats and bootlegs or wide fitting trousers, they can tend to look swamped and even shorter.
Make Life Easy for Yourself
I see a lot of women’s wardrobes and these women are highly efficient and successful in multi-tasking their homes, relationships and careers but some of them have the same thing in common – clutter and disorganisation in the wardrobe. It’s easy for women to let their wardrobes get in to a bit of a state as they have a lot going on each day where other people (kids, partners, employees, colleagues, friends) tend to come first. Women can be really bad at putting themselves first and this can leave them in a bit of a fluster. So my advice is always to get organised first to make life as easy as possible. Detangle all your necklaces and hang them on hooks, clear out clothes you can’t wear because they don’t fit you so your left with a wardrobe where you can clearly see what you have to work with, everything fits and accessories are all accessible instead of clumped in a tangled mess. It’s worth giving yourself half a day to get organised which could then go on to save you valuable time every morning moving forward.
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