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)