The promise of Spring

Ahh, Spring! Can you feel it coming? Oh the joy and excitement of a warmer clime soon to be…

That is, until we get dressed in the morning & there’s this strange ‘in between seasony’ feeling that throws doubt and confusion into our minds– not wanting to wear our Christmas jumpers but equally not warm enough to haul the summer clothes out the loft just yet. Not wanting to wear wintry black (unless it’s your colour, darling) head to toe but not wanting the new florals yet either, as it really isn’t quite spring  – What to do?

This calls for a 2 step sartorial solution:

1. Plan your wardrobe for  March

2. Inspire yourself for your Spring/Summer wardrobe…

For both, grab some magazines and rip out any images that you are instantly in love with,  inspire you in some way, or just feel plain comfortable. Try and get some autumn/winter magazines for the 1^st solution and some current issues for the second, as they are filled with the  latest spring/summer creations...just wait a month to wear any of it. Elle Collections (£7) is currently in good newsagents and is a bible of the new seasons styles – use for inspiration only, we’re not fashion clones, we just like nice things! Alternively, check out polyvore.com for on line mood boarding like these examples pictured:

Once you have images for the coming month, spend an evening going through your wardrobe and putting things together that could create those looks. If you are lacking anything, throw a clothes swap party and share the love with your friends or head out and invest in a piece that you know you’ll wear for the next 5 years!

From starting your spring summer mood board, you'll  get a sense of your upcoming style preference. Then at your clothes swap (or mine, early March in Uckfield, email me for details) and at the Designer Sales UK Sale at Chelsea town hall (March 2, 3 & 4^th where I'll be guest stylist on Friday) you can easily aquire items that express the qualities you have chosen. Come and pick up a beautiful bargain that will be the height of your spring/summer crush!

Baby it's cold outside! - Winter trends 2011

Nippy, isn't it?

Got a scarf or two and not sure what to do with it? Check out these ideas:

What about the rest of you?  

On trend this winter:

1920s and 1930s – tea dresses, flapper dresses and maxis

Skewed minimalism - simple dresses and coats cleverly tweaked with slashed, asymmetric neck-lines and collars with several layers. Structured, sophisticated, edgy.

Matte black, liquid sheens and subdued metallics - purple, sapphire, claret, maroon, deep golds and rusts, chocolate brown... yum

The waist has returned! Whether on a belted swing coat, a curvy dress or pencil skirt, the emphasis is on the waist. Classy, classic, sexy.

The hat is back! And the Fedora is the biggest trend for this fall/winter.

High-waisted jeans. Straight legs, closer fit. Blame Madonna, apparently.

December Designer Sales UK

If you fancy a treat, visit me at Designer Sales UK at Chelsea Old Town Hall, 2^nd and 3^rd Dec, where I’m guest Personal Stylist!

I’ll be on hand at London’s premier Designer Sample Sale to help you find incredible bargains that will perfectly suit you.

Contemporary, classic and vintage clothes and stacks of accessories to die for. Labels include Marc Jacobs, Viktor & Rolf, Chloe, Versace, Vivienne Westwood, Roberto Cavalli, Valentino, Martin Margiela, … Perfect Christmas presents for friends, family - and you.

“DSUK is the No 1 Designer Sample Sale” Time out magazine

Christmas Offer

*Christmas offer*

This Christmas, for someone special (or for yourself!), purchase a gift of a:

*Colour & Style Analysis & 1 hour Personal Shopping:

£150 (normal price £205)

A home visit where we spend 2 hours discovering your natural colouring characteristics and what complements your proportions & body shape. Followed by a written style guide & an hour’s shop to find the perfect clothes for your style, body shape and colouring.

 Service details

Offer open until December 19^th 2011.

Upon receipt of fee, a gift card will be sent out to you for you to put into your own Christmas card/birthday card.

The receiver of the gift can then call at their convenience and book the appointment within the year.

 All gift cards must be redeemed by Christmas 2012

Contact Alex now to arrange delivery of your gift card:

Smile!

“Who cares what you’re wearing, on Main Street or Saville Row,

It’s what you wear from ear to ear,

And not from head to toe

That matters…”

Ah the truth of the matter as sung by the orphans in the musical Annie …

Come on let’s face it, there’s no point looking a million dollars if you are a sourpuss inside - the best dressers are the ones with the best attitude – posture power rules ok! The secret is to love yourself and your fellow human beings such that you are wearing an inner glow, and were not talking ready brek. We’re talking doing whatever it takes to relate to yourself positively with love and good humour. Check out modern day positivity princess Gala Darling for inspiration:

http://galadarling.com/article/100-ways-you-can-start-loving-yourself-right-now

Practically speaking, in the morning when you choose what to wear, have your outfit make you smile – if it doesn’t then there’s some work to do - just not in the morning. You need to put some time in to working with the wardrobe you have (a good 2/3 hours) to create some outfits that will do the trick such that you have them on tap. Happiness is then a bi-product of getting dressed in the morning, and will set you up as good as a full English. In a wardrobe weeding session, a Style Consultant can extract the best your wardrobe has to offer and mix with items you haven’t put together before…a whole new wardrobe emerges & a whole new you to smile at!

www.alexmoorestyle.co.uk

To tie or not to tie?

Having bemoaned at a recent dinner party modern etiquette when meeting someone for the first time – does one shake hands, kiss, and if so how many times or does one simply grin and keep hands off?  We were left still none the wiser. I feel it follows a trend for a general relaxing of the status quo – dress down Fridays an example, which is seeping into the working week, with one’s glasses making more of an impression than one’s tie and rejecting the latter for a more entrepreneurial look.

But what does one do if one is having an interview – one wants to show that you can tow the line (aka wear a tie) at the same time you want to show you are original, untapped raw genius ready to bring a dynamic new edge to a company - so either no tie or a fancy John Snow-esque bright number. So much can be said for a tie – it says who you are and frames you and what you are saying in a moment, so make sure you love it and it says what you want to say – but no monkey motifs please! 

Alternately, I favour a strong pair of glasses, perhaps with an interesting colour on the undersidet that reflects gravitas, creativity and authority all at the same time. What more do you want? That coupled with a decent pen (modern day sword) and briefcase (shield) and suit (amour) and you are a knight for the noughties. Your glasses (viser) are a function and a flourish at the same time leaving you well guarded yet dandy.

www.alexmoorestyle.co.uk

Wedding dress fever

“Every wedding (dress) is a royal wedding (dress) – we are all kings & queens of Creation”

From the Bishop of London’s sermon at the Marriage of Prince William to Catherine Middleton, April 29^th 2011 (with blogger’s bracketed additions!)

And what a creation it was, That Dress, from the house of McQueen, no less. Sarah Burton’s beautiful masterpiece of ivory & white satin gazar with 9 ft train emulating an opening flower & laced bodice impressed all and left us sartorially sated.

But having watched the Royal Wedding on TV & listened to the commentary of the reporters, it strikes me that THE most important aspect of the whole day was, IS in fact, The Dress. But why is this so? Surely the wedding vows – the promises that the couple make to each other are of most import? Well clearly not.

But perhaps there is good reason for this. The promises are spoken word, but the presentation of oneself is word in action: the physical embodiment of one’s promises. You are what you wear – your attire speaks volumes. A woman’s wedding dress is like a modern day dowry displaying wealth (hence often voluminous skirts) and a symbol of fecundity: a physical promise of childbearing to continue the line of the Groom. But a Royal wedding dress gives weight to the promise of the nation to the world.

What then was Kate’s wedding dress as a statement? A promise of a marriage between tradition & modernity, sex appeal & reverence, and careful deployment of resources (as, by contrast, Diana’s train was 25 ft). 

Yes clothing is the ultimate promise, and it is why people make up their minds about you in the first 10 seconds of your meeting. So what statement then are you making to the world about yourself? Spend some time in front of the mirror to honestly assess yourself, & get some honest opinion from trusted friends and ask what they see your image as. An image consultant can also unbiased opinion, and aid you in creating the image you would like to convey, underpinned by analysis of your colouring and body shape. We all have an image – is yours serving you and the people around you the best? If not then it’s time to refresh.

www.alexmoorestyle.co.uk