Fashion Inspiration

My Inspiration...  

These women below all inspire or influence my own style and I thought I would share them with you.

The famous Audrey up-do. I love the height!

I love the classic, elegant look and am always aiming for that

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The catlike eyes, the smile. This makeup look is so iconic.

I have always played up my eyes more so than my lips, I have really long eyelashes and expressive eyes so I try to make the most of what my best friend calls 'flirty eyes'. I think it also works with the classic look I aim for when I am going to an event such as a wedding. 

 Elizabeth Taylor.

Bold makeup and I am also inspired by her eyes, even with the red lipstick I am drawn to the way she has made her eyes stand out. She has strong eyebrows too, like Audrey which I think frames the face and makes someone take notice.

Drew Barrymore. This woman is a huge inspiration to me. She is so comfortable in her own skin and firmly stands by who she is. She has said "You are your own person with a right to make decisions that sometimes won't please other people".. I think this confidence comes through in her style. She also has such a great almost effortless girly quality.

She also has an edge which I love as I enjoy breaking out the bandshirt and jeans look

Marilyn Monroe.

She embodied a womanly look, embracing her curves. I read in an article that in today's society she would be 'too big for hollywood'. I think she is amazing. She wrote poems and manuscripts which have since been collected and put into books, what I have read shows how smart and insightful she was.

Blake Lively.
She has so much energy which comes across in all of her photos. 

                                She always manages to look trendy, amazing and confident.

Lauren Conrad.
I enjoy looking at Lauren's style because she also follows a classic look as a basis to forming her outfits. Out of all the episodes on her show she never wore the exact same outfit twice, she styled herself and managed to put a twist on or create new outfits. Looking fabulous every time.

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I think it is important to have people who inspire your own style or fashion choices. It helps to highlight what kind of clothes or looks you like personally and makes it easier to then go and select clothes and accessories which fit that style. I'm off to look through one of my favourite little boutiques, it's my birthday dinner this week- so I want to look and feel amazing.

K, x

Wear How You Feel...

Fashion is absolutley a way to showcase your mood and personality. If you want someone to be able to look at you and get a certain vibe- flirty, girly, approachable, easygoing, risk taking, the important thing to consider is the simplest way to get the message across. You don't want someone to look at you and feel confused.

For me it all depends on what I am doing or where I am going combined with how I feel that day. I always like to put my own spin on things, I am a big follower of using colours to make an impact. I don't like to match my shoes to my outfit, I like to take a chance both in life and with my clothes. A few weekends ago I went to an outdoor rock concert, the weather was hot, I felt good and despite my usual 'uniform' to that type of show e.g. band shirt and pants with closed in shoes, wild hair I took a different turn. I wore mid-thigh denim shorts, black short-sleeved wrap shirt, gladiator sandals, massive sunglasses and straight free hair. I felt fantastic and had such a great time.

There is little worse than putting on an outfit, getting to your destination and realising you are uncomfortable or don't like how you look in what you have on. I find this will ruin my day/night very quickly, I start to feel self conscious, uptight and annoyed.. really not the kind of person anyone wants to spend time with!

Another thing that I think is a big fashion NO is when people- and I mean mainly girls- ask each other what they are wearing. I don't mean in the sense of working out an acceptable dress code (especially if you have never been to the venue before) or if the weather is creating clothing choice chaos, no I mean 'lets ask each other what we are wearing so we can look exactly the same'. It doesn't make sense to me. Why would you want to go out and look the same as everyone else that you are with? Let me tell you it will be confusing for the guy who thinks your cute, can you not dress yourself? Or do you just not have a personality? If you look the same he may also mistake you for your friend. I totally agree with 'ok, what sort of thing like casual top and jean style clothes or dresses/skirts' but then once you have determined that-if you need to- this is your chance to put your own spin on it!! If all the girls wear flats but you want more height (and coming from a vertically challenged person its a big benefit!) WEAR the heels, if you normally wear blacks/greys/blues but your feeling festive break out that hot pink or sunny yellow cocktail dress. Clothes are not meant to be boring, I love it when I wear something and I stand out just that bit that everyone wants to know where I have gotten it from.

High-end, opshop, online retail, chain stores, DIY projects...there is this massive industry that shows trends whilst also supporting individuality and mixing and matching. Get out there. Embrace it, Feel it, Wear it.

K, x.

Tulle?

So I have ordered a tulle tutu skirt from an online shop called Kiss my Button Vintage {http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1427664334#!/kissmybuttonvintage}. It looks lovely.
White. Short. And ballet dancer cum beauty queen. I love it. And I also love that it reminds me alittle of the Carrie Bradshaw skirt in the opening credits of Sex and the City.
I plan on wearing it classic with towering heels and a singlet top but also mixing it up with one of my tour shirts and bangles.
I am so excited! It got sent today, so should get it in a day or two!
It has made me wonder tho, as this is my second tulle purchase in a few months. The dress I am planning on wearing to my 21st has a big tulle skirt with many layers. IS tulle BACK??

I have noticed quite a few people wearing it, talking about it, looking for it. Is the favourite material of fairy princess costumes from years long gone returning? I have always said my favourite age is 4! So maybe I'm subconciously buying items that have that magic feeling those dresses did.

All I know is I plan on wearing it everywhere-shops, dinners, clubs. A girl should find enjoyment from clothes and I plan on loving this item!
X

A little culture goes a long way...

This weekend, on Saturday I went out for a much anticipated breakfast on Darby St with my model friend. It was one of those sunny, really hot days that make you want to lie in the sun all day and listen to music and laugh with friends. A beautiful spring day that makes you even more excited for summer.

Darby St is a collection of little boutiques-designer to vintage and cafes with a few bars and pubs. Think Brunswick St in Melbourne. It is culture central; musos, artists, models, designers eat, play and work here.
It was at this breakfast, on this sunny day where this exhibition of culture was most obvious.

All different styles were on show...eclectic, vintage, on-trend, past seasons, indie and designer brands. No one girl looked the same but they all had something in common-they looked confident, stylish and beautiful. Most of all they had belief in what they were wearing and were comfortable. All of them had different body shapes and were different heights, which affirmed my thinking that no-one should look the same.

When your at school everyone seems to want to fit in, to look the same, talk the same and do the same things. Now I fell into this trap too, until I met a friend who had so much confidence in what she wore and how she wore it that I wanted to be that confident with my clothes as well. From then on, I followed what I liked from new trends and kept my trusty basics. I was in my prime in highschool when I met a group of friends, many musos and artists who had such varied style. It was really inspiring.

Sitting on Darby with my friend-the both of us wearing completley different styles, I was blown away by the culture I was seeing and the mixes of the types of culture. And I remembered the Coco Chanel quote "Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening." {Quote obtained from- http://thinkexist.com/quotations/fashion/}.
I believe this, your culture is something that can provide a definition about you, it is where you are from, who you know, what you do...it is only natural for your culture, your beliefs and your values to influence and infiltrate into your fashion choices.

It's exciting really, to put an indvidual mark on clothing. To twist the way it is meant to be worn and make it your own. Take the runway for example- those bigger than life pieces seem so unrealistic and usually end up different on the hanger. This is because the designer is allowing you to experience the concepts and styles in their rawest and most pure forms. Breathtaking, exciting and edgy.

I love to look at what people are wearing-what accessories or layers they have chosen, does it match, clash or complement. I have often walked up to complete strangers to tell them they look amazing. You deserve to know, I love it when someone does it to me. I believe everyone can look amazing, you have to believe it, choose clothes and accessories which work for you and most of all sell it.

Think of your everyday life as your own personal runway, people are out there noticing what you are wearing and how you are wearing it. Make your mark, make them notice how you are wearing the clothes, the clothes are not wearing you. and remember, just like on Darby St, a little culture goes a long way...

Introduction...

I love clothes, I love shoes, I love accessories and I love makeup.
I am in no way an expert but I love to have fun with fashion and makeup and experiment and my friends often ask for advice. The best advice to start off with is:

1. Flaunt your assests
2. Be confident in what you are wearing
3. Know what works for you (re-those assests)
4. Have fun!

1. Flaunt your assests- most girls, who have not been hidden under a rock or in some imageless galaxy, will have favourite things about their body, or know what often looks best. These are the areas to flaunt. One girl will have an amazing cleavage, another amazing legs, amazing arms, an amazing ass. Whichever it is, the clothes are there to suit. Many trends come and go-but if you keep that basic tip in your head, you can find clothes that will look good, follow the trend (if you are that way inclined) and draw attention away from areas of your body you hate.
For Me: mine are my curves, I have alot fo figurehugging, waist/bust emphasising dresses. i don't like my thighs-so i wear dresses that land either at the knee or mid thigh. Mid thigh dresses create a slimming effect on the thigh.
  * A good idea to get started is to look at your body, decide what you want to emphasis and then look for examples of people with similar body types who look amazing-people you know/celebrities etc, the basics of what they are wearing can be key elements to implement in your wardrobe.

2. Be confident in what you are wearing- Sounds obvious hey, even easy. It isn't always. Some nights it seems like nothing fits, a dress you've had for five years, those new pants you JUST brought. My mum has always said to me, don't fidget with your clothes, at first i used to be so annoyed with her. But then I realised, when you fidget-people watch you and you look uncomfortable and self-conscious. So ladies, a V-neck will show off your cleavage, if that makes you uncomfortable and you keep pulling up the shirt/dress, where a more rounded neck or a strapless dress/shirt. You are pulling it because you think you're showing too much, you most likely aren't, but comfort is key. Don't wear massive heels if you always wear flats. Start from basic kitten heels and increase as you become more confident.
If you feel comfortable you will be more confident, act confident if you have to. Smile, or flick your hair, hold onto that drink tightly, listen to the music. It becomes easier and the more you shop for you and dress in a way that flaunts the things you love about your body, the better off you will be!

For Me: I build confidence as I am getting ready, where possible I take as much time as possible to get ready, blasting my favourite tunes, trying on clothes/makeup/hairstyles. You become more used to what you are wearing, feels natural. and if all else fails, remember what Carrie Bradshaw would say-- "You're Fabulous!"

3.Know what works for you- This can be patterns, shapes, lengths, styles, colours. don't be afraid to mix it up and try out new options. But some things are fail safe. Really curvy girls-beware of patterns, wouldn't say never but try patterns on angles instead of straight lines. Use colours which complement your skin tone. This is really the area where trial and error comes into play. Some have colours which always catch their eye, some recognise the brilliance of a simple dress with attention to detail and may buy multiple colours (recent purchase-a figure hugging dress with frill on the front and the back. Brought one in black and one in white).

4. Have Fun- experiment, have fun!! Its not all about rules, break them. But do so stylishly... The biggest rule I like to break is 'everything must match'. I don't believe so. I like to sometimes wear a basic outfit with a dash of wild colour. Or be wearing red heels with a mint green clutch.
Your accessories can complement but do not have to match. Layers are also fun.
Or mixing types of clothes, such as a tulle tutu skirt combined with a tour shirt, or a summer dress with a leather jacket.

I started this blog, because I often muse about clothes or what I see in a magazine and wanted to put my thoughts out there. i am interested in your thoughts too. Do you agree/disagree? I am not so concerned with criticsim but discussion. Let me know, what you want to read/view, what you think about a topic I have chosen. New post soon!

Xx