C is for Confidence

I was really surprised to learn from a Radio Times interview that the wonderful kooky Miranda Hart of the BBC2 series Miranda considers herself unattractive and is low on confidence. (The RT Interview, Victoria Coren , 13-19 Nov 2010) Is there a woman out there that hasn’t had a lapse in confidence or perhaps has less confidence than she would like or worse, no confidence at all? Amongst the terms that the Oxford English Dictionary uses to define confidence I like “feeling certain, fully assured” and “self-reliant, bold; having no fear of failure”. All descriptions I’d like to aspire to, but like Miranda I was a late developer and that included becoming a more confident person, comfortable in my own skin and with how I looked and presented myself to the world. Confidence has to be nurtured and grow from within so that, like the proverbial rose, it can blossom.

On my journey to gaining confidence I discovered that if I was washed, ‘garnished’ and dressed to my best for the day or event, I could act more confidently. So dressing was the root that allowed confidence to grow. I like to aim for casual elegance and nothing could be easier than an Eileen Fisher stretch silk jersey top or silk melange sweater with a statement necklace or beads (whether dressing up or down), a black skirt or trousers plus/minus a jacket. For more info and casual elegance see Eleganza Clothing http://bit.ly/dSXwQM

What The First Lady wears matters

So now President Obama has to manage a changed political situation on Capitol Hill with the USA mid-term elections. Political office must be totally challenging and weigh heavily at times but at least the President is supported by the attractive Mrs O. Michelle Obama has looked stunning during her public appearances over the last couple of years wearing an interesting mix of mid-market fashion from American companies as well as more haute couture items. Apparently her choice of clothes has increased the value of company share prices, an increase of $2.7 billion for the 29 companies involved, according to a Times fashion report (Luke Leitch, The Times 27 October 2010).

Michelle Obama is a sassy lady, a regular person and a real woman that many women can identify with rather than the waifs that lead the catwalk at most fashion events. The clothes Michelle wears are “wearable” - suitable, practical with a touch of glamour that many middle-income American women can identify with and afford. US online blogs such as http://mrs-o.org feature, from press photos, the items that Michelle is wearing each day and from that website you’re just a click away to an online store where you can purchase the same outfit. Could we see this phenomenon happening in the UK, I wonder? Will Samantha Cameron become our style icon when she starts to make public appearances again? The refreshing aspect of Mrs O’s impact is that she is not a celebrity paid to advertise or endorse products, but a busy lady who needs to look appropriately dressed for each occasion.

Anyone affected by the weather?

Are you affected by the weather or is it just me? Today our large ginger cat, Simba and I shivered as the autumn winds and rain set in following a glorious sunny Sunday. The recent sunny day and blue skies seemed more like August weather and yet this year August was almost a washout and more like September! And yes apparently 40 years of research shows that the weather can affect our moods and in some people significantly so (http://tinyurl.com/mrtad5; http://tinyurl.com/299nkkb)

Unpredictable weather calls for preparedness for whatever – hot or cold, rain or shine. And before we get Seasonal Affective Disorder and too SAD (http://tinyurl.com/yeutmfn) about the weather, our online boutique Eleganza (http://tinyurl.com/ygucx68) has just the answer with beautiful warmer jackets and trousers on offer during September at brilliant prices to keep those 'weather blues' at bay.

The Straight Silhouette – what to wear and what to avoid

I wonder if women with a straight silhouette, that is with minimal curves, are in the minority. That’s my shape and I certainly feel as if there aren’t many of us out there – does anybody know?

Meanwhile, we continue Eleganza’s http://www.eleganza-clothing.com/ bodyline series, with Independent Styling Consultant Liz Prest© discussing the sort of clothes that suit a person with a straight bodyline and also what to avoid:

Your best look is to go for styles that have little or no waist shaping. You should look for clothes that have:

• Minimal or no waist-shaping.
• Flat front or pleat front trousers
• Emphasis at lower hip and thigh
• Straight cut or boxy jacket
• Straight line shirts and dresses
• Straight hemlines on jackets and tops

Styles to avoid include:

• Styles with waist-shaping
• Full, flared or A-line skirts
• Shift style dresses with deep waist darts
• Fitted tops that cling to rib cage
• Curved hemlines on jackets and tops
• Tight fitted wide belts

Comment - The straight bodyline has slim hips and thighs, so draw attention away from the straighter ribcage and less curved waistline.

Liz offers a range of personal consultations in South West England & South Wales on body shape & sizing, colour, styling advice and wardrobe management. If you would like more information or to book a session contact info@eleganza-clothing.com or telephone 0845 833 0423 (BT local rate).

Semi-straight silhouette - what to wear and what to avoid!

Continuing the bodyline series, I’m intrigued to find that I’ve been referring to the “in-betweenies” as semi-shaped when in fact the Independent Styling Consultant Liz Prest © discusses the sort of clothes that suit a semi-straight bodyline and also what to avoid:
“If your silhouette is a semi-straight, or the other way round a semi-shaped, bodyline then your most flattering styles have slight waist emphasis neither very fitted or too loose and straight. You should look for:

• Semi-shaped jackets and dresses
• Straight A-line or bias cut skirts
• Flat front, tapered leg trousers
• Self belts or belts in toning shades, best narrow
• Tops and shirts tucked in then often bloused out to balance hip line
• The straighter the hemline the softer the fabric and the more curved the hemline the firmer the weave of fabric.
• Straight coats or dresses can be belted

Styles to avoid include:
• Long boxy jackets
• Full or gathered skirts
• Very fitted dresses*
• Pleated skirts
• Full straight trousers
• Extreme styles, let your personality decide

Comment - The semi-straight bodyline has a softer silhouette with curved waist and hips so care is needed to maintain these contours, as any weight gain tends to be on the stomach and hips.

Liz offers a range of personal consultations in S West England & S Wales on body shape & sizing, colour, styling advice and wardrobe management. If you would like more information or to book a session contact info@eleganza-clothing.com or telephone 0845 833 0423.

* In Eleganza’s Summer Sale there’s a Sahara dress (http://tinyurl.com/358yqbc) and jacket (http://tinyurl.com/32fnarz) which is ideal for a semi-straight body shape

Clothes for the Shaped Silhouette

Independent Styling Consultant Liz Prest© discusses the sort of clothes that suit a shaped bodyline and what to avoid:

“If you’re lucky to have a shaped bodyline then your best look is go for styles that emphasize the waist and follow your natural contour, such as:
• Clothes that shape into the waist
• Belted styles that define the waist
• Trousers that have darts
• Fitted or tucked in tops and skirts, such as Eleganza’s stretch lace tops from Sahara http://tinyurl.com/2wumsdl
• Dresses belted into waist or fitted and flared
• Shaped jackets with curved hemlines

Styles to avoid include:
• Boxy styles or no waist-shaping
• Thigh length jackets and tops
• Slim cut trousers tapered at the ankle*
• No waistband styles
• Short, boxy or cropped tops

The shaped bodyline has midriff and waist definition so draw attention away from the lower hipline and thigh area.
*Fortunately Eleganza, http://tinyurl.com/yhx3mug has a good range of summer trousers in linen and other lovely fabrics that flow and don’t taper to the ankle.”

Liz offers a range of personal consultations in S West England & S Wales on body shape & sizing, colour, styling advice and wardrobe management. If you would like more information or to book a session contact info@eleganza-clothing.com or telephone 0845 833 0423.

Body shapes

One’s body shape takes on more significance in the summer when we wear lighter clothes and venture into holiday and swim wear. A woman’s shape and silhouette is rarely perfect – we all have our good points and less good points and the trick is to know your shape and choose clothes to complement. In A Guide to Elegance (21 April 2010) Madame Dariaux considers that the female figure can be reduced to a simple I or O shape or intermediate stages between these two letter forms. Another classification of the female shape draws parallels with fruit - apples or pears and yet another refers to geometric symbols such as the Triangle ▲for shapely hips, thighs and rounded bottom, the Rectangle █ representing the straight figure, the Circle ● for a rounded look (First Impressions http://tinyurl.com/3zsq6x).

The easiest classification that I’ve come across is based on the assessment of your silhouette as one of three body shapes - shaped, semi-shaped or straight (Liz Prest© Independent Styling Consultant) where the shaped bodyline has a defined waist and midriff, the semi-shaped has a softer shape with a curved waist and hips (weight gain tends to be on the stomach and hips) whereas the straight bodyline has slim hips and thighs. Of course you can be in between any of these classifications, but at a styling workshop, my non-scientific observation was that most of the women there were semi-shaped. In the next few blogs Liz will look at what style of clothes to look for to suit one of these three body shapes.

Dressing up and down!

I’ve been reflecting on the way British women dress on a day-to-day basis, mindful of Joan Collins’ stinging rebuke last autumn that we have let ourselves go and that we dress badly, preferring to live in unattractive stay-at-home clothes (Lucy Cavendish, Have we lost the art of dressing up? Daily Telegraph http://tinyurl.com/3ynunp7). Joan considers that the rot set in during the Nineties when the grungy look rather than glamorous became fashionable and leisure wear dominated high-street wear, courtesy of celebrities such as Madonna spotted wearing tracksuits and hoodies out and about. A decade on and shopping in your pyjamas seems to be gaining ground, but perhaps this makes a welcome relief to the past few years of ugly displays of flesh afforded with low-slung jeans and muffin tops.

Many women don’t need wardrobes full of cocktail dresses and party wear so prevalent in our shops, but they do need smart casual designs in good fabrics which can take you through the day and into the evening without the need for complicated changes. Eileen Fisher, an American designer who has recognised this need, produces women’s clothes in simple shapes and designs that are durable, comfortable to wear, yet classy and suit women of all ages. (http://tinyurl.com/38u4eqr)

An oasis of style and serenity

Amongst General Election fever and politicians' gaffes, oases of serenity and style can still be found. One such oasis I suggest is the V&A exhibition Grace Kelly: Style icon which opened last week and runs until 26 September http://www.vam.ac.uk/exhibitions/index.html. Before she married Prince Rainier of Monaco in 1956 Grace Kelly was a Hollywood actress, a beautiful ice-cool leading lady starring in Hitchcock films such as Dial M for Murder, Rear Window and MGM's High Society, her final film.

The exhibition displays Grace Kelly's wardrobe - over 50 outfits together with hats, jewellery and the original Hermès Kelly bag. You can follow the evolution of her style from actress to princess in the dresses designed for her film roles, including the gown she wore to accept her Oscar for High Society in 1955, to her wedding lace ensemble a year later. Thirty five haute couture gowns from the 1960s and 70s by her favourite couturiers Dior, Balenciaga, Givenchy, and Yves St Laurent are on display. The exhibition also includes film clips and posters, photographs and Grace Kelly's Oscar statuette. A style fest!

What is Elegance?

One of the reference books I keep in my pile of bedtime reading is A Guide to Elegance by French style guru Madame Genevieve Antoine Dariaux. Originally published in the 1960s this book is an absolute classic on style, what to wear – and not to wear! It richly deserves Harper Collins’ re-publication in the 21 century (http://tinyurl.com/y2ur2yx). Madame Dariaux sets out her bon mots, practical ideas from Accessories to Zippers in succinct style: colour combinations, the female figure, sex and personality. In the Foreword she poses the question ‘What is Elegance?’ in relation to personal adornment and fashion. The word elegance comes from the Latin eligere which means to select. Mme Dariaux suggests that elegance is a sort of harmony resembling beauty, the difference being that beauty is a gift of nature whilst elegance is the result of art.” So Madame Dariaux’ mission in life – and Eleganza’s – is to aid women in the art of being well-dressed and elegant.