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Small Things to Make Your Outfit Immediately Classy

Sometimes, you just kinda need to go for a classy outfit. You might be dressing for an interview or an important day at work. Or maybe you gotta pop to a special event, or meet your partner’s parents for the first time, eeek. Whatever the reason you want to dress up, it can be a bit tough getting it just right. You get dressed thinking that you’re going to look sophisticated, but you end up looking too casual or a bit, meh; dull. You’re going for classy and grown-up, not scruffy or uptight, right? When you’re trying to look classy, it’s often all about the small details. These are my best tips to instantly add some class to your outfit.

Add Another Layer – Us independent ladies can wear whatever the heck we want, and should be able to do so without anyone else judging us. Having said that, different outfits have totally different vibes, and there’s no avoiding the fact that if you want to look sophisticated, you’re better off showing less skin. It’s not that you have to be completely modest and cover yourself head to toe, but, if you wanna be a little revealing while still remaining classy, it’s better to choose one thing to show off. Some women might wear strapless dresses to a ball, but they’re probably gonna be floor-length gowns so they don’t have their legs out at the same time. See? Sophisticated and elegant! 

Diamonds and Pearls – Sometimes making your outfit classy is all about the accessorising. The right pair of sunglasses or a leather handbag can totally make all the difference. When it comes to jewellery, diamonds and pearls *subtle tribute to Prince there, see?* are two things that will NEVER EVER fail. Well, that might be a bit of an exaggeration. It is possible to get it a bit wrong, especially with diamonds (or diamond look-a-likes). If you go overboard, you’ll tip past that classy point and fall into tacky territory. Whether you choose pearl drops or diamonds, some small and subtle pieces are all you need. A pair of stud earrings with either diamonds or pearls always looks pretty darn neat.

Replace the Detailing on Your Clothes – Even if your clothes are cheap, you can make them look more sophisticated. Sometimes all it takes is changing the small details. For example, many cheaper items have low-quality buttons that aren’t sewn on very well. If you want to improve them, you should get some new or vintage buttons and use your very best sewing skills. Altering small details like these is easy, and it won’t cost you much.

Invest in the Right Pieces – If you have a limited budget for clothes, knowing how to spend it is essential. It’s important to invest in the pieces that will last so you don’t waste your money. For example, if you’re going to wear a pair of shoes every day, a cheap pair is probably not going to last as long as a more expensive one, but, if you can get something that looks exactly the same as a more expensive version, you’ll look just as classy.

A small change to your outfit can make it immediately more sophisticated. Even if you’re short on cash, you can still look super smart. 

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The Vintage Show at Norwich Fashion Week

This city I live in is pretty neat. It has heaps of home grown talent in the field of fashion, and to totally indulge and celebrate that fact, there is this kinda pretty cool thing; Norwich Fashion Week! A brilliant week of events, parties, exhibitions and, natch, catwalk shows taking place in the city so everyone who enjoys fashion can come together to do some real big SWOONING. Norwich is abundant with skilled fashion designers, makers, tailors, photographers, stylists, retailers and hair and make up artists, so, there’s a huge pool of talent that teams up to create something really damn good. This year I was involved in a few projects; I, of course showcased some ridiculously pretty vintage dresses from my store in The Vintage Show, I presented a video for Wex Photographic, and, in a more personal project, I teamed up with my good friend Karen to curate a cute and quirky exhibition. ‘A Portrait Of Vintage’ is an adorable gallery installation of vintage dresses and accessories, and we’re pretty pleased with how it came out and the reaction it’s received, hurrah! There’s heaps going on for Norwich Fashion Week and this year it is mostly taking place at the superb and very huge venue of Open; a brilliant destination. Sunday was all about The Vintage Show; prep and rehearsal in the day and then a boomingly impressive show in the evening. I think it was way bigger and better than last year; the space, the layout, the stadium-worthy screen with a live feed and, a whopping loud 70’s soundtrack as the models walked. Ace. In the daytime I worked with Wex Photographic to talk about the show in a cute video, but also to chat on camera with Fashion Photographer Paul Bayfield who was there with 6 lucky Wex competition winners who got to hang with him for the day and learn the ropes of catwalk snapping! A whole heap of fun! Here’s my dresses on the catwalk, super cute right? All available in my online store, but obvs, with vintage, you gotta be fast otherwise somebody else might grab the dress you love, waaah!

Superb show, big thumbs up to all involved.

Brilliant images by kind permission of Paul Bayfield.

 

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Vogue 100: A Century of Style

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This Monday I personally got my peepers on the Vogue 100: A Century of Style exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery, goodness, so much beauty for my eyes to behold. Celebrating the 100th birthday of British Vogue, this is somewhat of an epic exhibition, I mean, maaan, where do you start when trying to curate an exhibition showing the highlights of 100 years worth of fashion and photography from the worlds most prestigious fashion bible? A magazine which has launched and defined the careers of so many models, designers and photographers. A hard task, the selection and editing must have been pretty intense. But this, is a stunning exhibition. Beautifully, simply and elegantly executed, with no gimmicks and no unnecessary pomp. It’s a big exhibition, I mean, it kinda had to be to do justice to the subject, but it doesn’t drag and it’s spaced to perfection so you can take in each image on it’s own whilst also enjoying the continuity and splendor of the exhibition as a whole; perfection. It gets busy and if it had been any busier we would have felt cramped but, it had a lovely atmosphere, all ages sharing the space together for an hour or two to soak up some mesmerizing talent and beauty. It is a little pricey, it costs £19 for a regular ticket which is definitely a little more than most exhibitions in the city, but is it worth it? Yes, I’d say it is, but only just. A few pounds cheaper would seem a better price. Shown in a reverse chronological order, we see the best images from the magazine now, and go all the way back, through the decade dedicated rooms, to it’s launch in 1916. My favourite section? It has to be the 1990’s room where we saw the start of Kate Moss’s career, the photography of Corinne Day and the familiar faces of Princess Diana and Posh and Becks in their heyday. My era. Loved it. Get yourself there before it ends on 22nd May and let me know your favourite era of this massive magazine.

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Four Ways To Make Your Wedding Day Personal And Unique

It’s just been leap year proposal day and, I have a friend who is planning a super-dooper wedding so, with that in mind, we are ALL about wedding ideas right now, and it got me thinking… To create a wedding day that is reeeeeally remembered for years to come, you need to put your own mark on it, make it like no other. Some of the more memorable weddings have aspects that are truly unique and have you talking about them for evermore! From bespoke menus to personalized wedding toppers there are so many ways YOU can make YOUR wedding more unique. If you’re stuck for ideas and in need of some inspiration, here’s some suggestions you could potentially use….

Make your own invitations – Nothing is more personal than something you make yourself. Create fun, personalised wedding invites to send to your friends and family; they will totally LOVE them! Consider the kind of look and feel you want to create for your wedding and experiment with invitation designs. Try different shapes, sizes and colours to really make your invitations amazing. You might want to include a drawing or photograph of you both for more personality, ones from when you were kids are always ace. You could even try an alternative kind of invite such as vinyl record or memory stick which you can record a video or message onto, that’s a very cool move. This will add a unique quality to your invites and your guests will want to keep them forever and ever!

Create a hashtag – Social media is a perfect way of documenting your wedding with pictures and updates. It’s so easy to create your own wedding hashtag that you and your guests can use both during and before your big day on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook! This will give your wedding a modern edge and encourage your guests to share their pictures. Think of a hashtag that is relevant, easy to spell and cannot be confused with something else, and obvs, make sure your guests are aware of it by adding it onto their invitations and having it displayed on a blackboard or sign as they enter your wedding venue! So much fun! 

Find an alternative to confetti – While there is nothing wrong with confetti, it’s a little predictable. So again, think about your theme and consider an alternative to traditional confetti. You could have your guests blow bubbles, release balloons or wave colourful flags for instance. Add your name, a photograph or the date of your wedding to these items for an even more personal touch. Make sure that all of your guests have a balloon or flag as you leave your venue and encourage them to keep them as a memento. 

Get creative with your table numbers – Making your table numbers more personal to you and your partner will let everyone know a little bit more about you. For instance you can have a table that is called March 4th, which could be the date you first met. Or you could have a table called 643 which could symbolise how many days you’ve known each other. Alternatively you could use characters from books and TV shows you both enjoy instead of numbers, or road names from the area you live!

These are just a few examples of ways you can make your wedding day more unique and personal. Remember this is your wedding day and everything about it should reflect you both as a couple. So regardless of whether you want a minimalist or vintage themed wedding, make sure your uniqueness is apparent in every aspect of your big day, and then, ta-da, you’ll have the best wedding ever! 

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