Should We Be A Slave To Fashion?

It was extremely sad news to hear of the death of Alexander (Lee) McQueen last week. 40 years old and in his prime. Much has been written about his work - his was a huge talent and yes, we all know he was the bad boy of British fashion. But the reality is that he knew how to dress for women's shapes, cut fabric exquisitely and experiemented with pattern, texture and detail to wonderful effect.

The question I'm often asked by my clients when it comes to designers 'though is: 'but what about the outfits which appeared on the catwalk?' You can't wear that!! It's true of course - but catwalks are a theatre of expression - a place to be creative, frivolous, expressive, joyous, mischievous and sometime shocking with a 'look'. The themes, trends and ideas are interpreted in cuts, shapes, details for clothes which subsequently do appeal and can sell by the bucket load.

So what about the fashion shows and seasonal trends when it comes to the 'Stylish Woman'? Should we all rush out and buy 'luxe sportswear' for Spring/Summer 2010 for example? Hmmm. The reality of most women's lives (and wardrobes) is that they do not have the money, time or energy to continually change their closets to suit the 'trend'. And the good news is that you don't have to.

As the fabulous Coco Chanel said: 'Fashion comes and goes; style is forever'. Have 'fashion items' in your wardrobes by all means - experiment with pieces that are 'on trend'. You may find they become old friends; but you may also find that they do their duty and then need to be retired at the end of the season. So - don't feel obliged to spend vast sums of money on very fashionable pieces, and know that the good news is you don't have to - there are plenty of high quality fashion pieces in shopping malls the world over. Having between 10-15% of your wardrobe for high fashion is plenty, plenty, plenty.

Enjoy and experiment with fashion; have fun with it; see how it can transform an outfit. But don't be a slave to fashion - remember that not all trends will suit you anyway (no matter how hard you try). Finding your style - loving and living that through your clothes is always the best way to go.

Can Women Wear Black?

What is it with all this talk of wearing black? Spring is supposed to be around the corner and we should all be reaching for that jaunty nautical sailor look soon (er - not actually). Maybe it's because the catwalk shows are upon us again....who knows.......but real life women don't tend to respond well to being repeatedly told what they 'can't' do. I keep opening the paper to articles screaming 'Don't wear black past the age of 40!' For goodness sake. What nonsense.

When it comes to colour; we can have emotional as well as physcial reactions to it and one of the most common questions I'm asked by my clients is: can I wear black?

Given that I work with women of all ages; leading busy, challenging lives let me offer the short answer: 'YES'.

• Any woman can wear black on the lower half of her body - skirts, trousers, shoes, boots, hosiery, knits. Knock yourself out and have fun with it.
• Black is a 'receding' colour. This means it appears 'further away' when we look at it and it's why we reach for black when we're having an 'I feel fat' day. We feel slimmer and we look slimmer. Fact.

But here's the slightly longer answer to the question 'can I wear black?'. 'YES - WITH SOME CONSIDERATION'. Read on if you want to know how to wear black (and ESPECIALLY if you thought that you couldn't).

• Go see a professional who has been trained in colour analysis and get your colours analysed. It will give you lots of ideas for hair, glasses, make-up and clothing colours. (Oh come on - of course I'll recommend that). Your colouring changes as you get older. Get over it. When you can see that wearing colours that compliment your natural colouring make you look younger, more refreshed, less haggard and with a more defined jawline - with not a hint of Botox or surgery in sight - you'll think, "what's not to love about that?"
• Back to black again - it all depends on if you want to wear black near your face (in jewellery; hair colour; glasses; tops; knits; shirts; jackets; dresses; coats etc.) Because if you do - your skin/hair and eye colour are important.
• If you have high contrast colour between your hair and skin (e.g. dark hair; pale skin) - you can wear black with gusto. You can also wear black if you have very bright colouring or as a woman of colour - black will look gorgeous on you.
• But what about red heads? Grey hair? Blondes? If you know you don't look your perky best wearing black usually - then the chances are you need to 'lift' the impact of wearing black. What do I mean? You need to offset the downside of the black. You can do that by:
• Well applied make-up with colours that suit you
• Wearing the collar of a shirt of blouse outside of a black jacket or coat
• Wearing a scarf which matches your eye colour
• Gorgeous jewellery (necklaces, ear-rings) which matches your eye or hair colour (or one of the other colours which a fabulous colour consultant will advise you to wear as a 'basic'.
• Breaking up the black by having it in a pattern - with a colour that works for you. It's less overwhelming that way

Let's go back to black. Wear it when you want; with pride and with a twist if you know you need to 'lift' it.

Black is back. Enjoy it.