INSTAGRAM STYLE MORE THAN JUST SELFIES
You would be forgiven for thinking Instagram was a place that only existed for show-offs. But some stylish women are finding alternative uses for the social medium platform and dedicating daily screen time to dispensing honest advice to their audiences. These notable experts worth following on Instagram are determined to show us all how to save time and money when it comes to getting dressed, Caroline Leaper writes.
@CONVERTEDCLOSET Follow for: tips on how to rework your old clothes
Kate McGuire, a former headhunter, decided a year-and-a-half ago that she would start showing people how to upcycle what already exists in their wardrobes. “I’ve been converting my own clothes since I was a child, so it felt natural to document how I do it,” she explains of why she launched her page, Converted Closet. “I did some research and found that people wear only 20 per cent of their clothes, so 80 per cent of the average wardrobe just sits there. Instead of going to (the store) for your next fix, why not have a look at what you already own and see if there is something clever you can do? You get a new, unique piece, it’s eco-friendly, and way cheaper.”
McGuire’s point of difference is the quality of the clothes she reconfigures. Following her meticulously described “conversions,” a fan will end up with a made-to-order outfit, rather than a mishmash of fabrics that look like they’ve been rescued from a recycling bin. “There are a lot of YouTube videos of people in bedrooms showing you how to patchwork jeans, but there wasn’t anything glossy, to teach you how to make your own high-end pieces.”
From taking the sleeves off a blouse to chopping winter coats into spring jackets, nothing, McGuire says, is unsalvageable. “Even gaining or losing weight doesn’t have to mean the end of the road for an old favourite,” she says. “I’ve made trousers two sizes bigger, and a lot cooler, by putting stripes of a contrasting fabric down the sides. If a shirt doesn’t fit anymore, take off the collar and add a band at the back.”
McGuire doesn’t claim to be a master pattern cutter; she says all you need for the process is a good eye. “You don’t actually have to do the sewing yourself, you can take it to your local dry cleaners,” she says. “It’s really fun to think; I still love that collar but I now hate those sleeves. I’m just going to change it up and make this more me.”
@WHITEDOSSIER Follow for: demystified wedding fashion
When Gabrielle Taylor was getting married four years ago, she found that the bridal fashion industry, frustratingly, was full of smoke and mirrors. “I was searching on Instagram and I would find gorgeous imagery of dresses, but no practical information to say who the designer was, the price, or if it’s even available,” the former Topshop designer explains. “There was this gap between inspiration and information, so I started White Dossier as an Instagram account in September, and now it has developed into a bridal concierge service, with a website which launched in February.”
Taylor found that both brides and key guests (mothers and bridesmaids) were getting in touch with her to ask for fashion tips, and realized that there could be enough demand for her to launch a personalized fashion sourcing service. By highlighting lesserknown designers, she’s becoming an authority on what’s new in what is an otherwise tradition-steeped industry.
“I want people to get ideas from the feed about new brands they may not have heard of, as well as see great accessories that will last beyond the wedding day,” she says.
“The wedding industry is massive and it’s changing; brides might have destination weddings where they need four outfits, or a lot are messaging me about party dresses now, as it’s popular for the bride to change into sequins at midnight.” Through Instagram, Taylor has networked with bridal designers from around the world, and hosted her first event, a trunk show, at London’s Wedding Gallery with New York-based designer Danielle Frankel last month.
“It’s really a case of doing the research for people so that they don’t have to,” Taylor says. “I found (Danielle) through Instagram as well, so nothing I’ve done has been through pre-established contacts, just social media.”
@CATWALKSCHOOLGATES Follow for: impartial styling advice on a budget
Sick of seeing bloggers and influencers flaunting their freebies online, Anne Marie Gee set up her antidote account, Catwalk School Gates, last year. “I had my kids late and I found myself in my 40s, at home with young children, looking at people on Instagram who were giving really unhelpful fashion messages,” Gee says of what inspired her to start posting on the social media site.
“I was previously a finance director and now I couldn’t justify spending money on new clothes. Something clicked and I started selling the pieces in my wardrobe that no longer suited my lifestyle, reinvesting the money, and using Instagram to show other women that it is possible to shop well on a budget.”
Gee trawls mass-market retail and vintage clothing shops, giving a running commentary of tips on how to find pieces with longevity. If she’s done with something, she sells it in her corresponding e-shop, in doing so teaching followers how to build a financially effective, rotating wardrobe.
“I want to show what you can get for your money if you go vintage, as well as which pieces (in highend retailers) are actually worth it and will hold some value when you come to resell them,” she says.
Gee will tell her followers where she bought items, what time is best to visit the store, as well as reviewing the quality, fabric content and sizing. “That is what people need to know,” she says. “It’s no use for someone like me to look at a 19-year-old influencer wearing things they’ve been sent for free by one brand.”