Real-life fashion tips from stylists on the new BBC show
THE power of clothes shouldn’t be underestimated: what you wear is a reflection of yourself. It’s an opportunity to show the world what you’re all about, and it has the potential to boost your confidence on a grey and dreary day.
The opposite is also true: if you’re hiding yourself in swathes of black material, you’re unlikely to feel very positive. With the rise of fast fashion and lure of sponsored posts on social media, many of us end up with a closet full of random clothes and no idea what to wear.
The BBC’s newest fashion show, You Are What You Wear — hosted by Rylan Clark-Neal — is tackling this issue. And instead of a dated makeover show, five stylists give regular people advice on how to maximise their wardrobes, and find the looks which make them feel the most confident.
The stylists are a disparate group with varied fashion senses: Darren Kennedy, Joey Bevan, Kat Farmer, Lucie Clifford and Nana Acheampong.
“I don’t think people give clothes enough credit sometimes,” says Nana Acheampong. Far from being superficial and vacuous, Darren Kennedy describes clothes “as the skin we choose — it’s what we present to the world”.
The stylists are full of practical tips — like “never judge an outfit until you have your shoes on”, which comes courtesy of Kennedy—- but are also keen to advise on how we can shop better. If you’re in a fashion rut and have been hiding in black, you could do well to listen to the stylists’ top tips. After all, they are professionals . . .
This might sound surprising, but none of the stylists have time for passing fads.
“We don’t talk about trends on the show — just dress how you want to dress,” explains Joey Bevan. This is a definite reaction to the dizzying and damaging world of fast fashion, with Bevan adding in his signature Essex accent: “You ain’t got to follow trends, you don’t have to buy a whole new wardrobe each month to keep up with fast fashion and the bloggers, because most of these people are getting them for free.
“I think this is what’s important in modern times: to go forward and understand you don’t have to dress for a trend, you can dress for you.” Not only is it better for the environment, but it gives you space to cultivate your own style — rather than just following the crowd.
Lucie Clifford’s speciality is styling curve men and women, and she says: “It’s a real pleasure to see how you can transform a body and really create shape.”
However, Clifford hates it when people cover up their curves.
“So many women and men hide behind really oversized garments that just hang,” she explains.
“You’ve got a beautiful body — let’s shout about it. There are so many tricks and things you can do to really emphasise your best bits: emphasising a waistline, or bringing a hemline slightly further down to elongate and thin the legs.”
Nana Acheampong — the resident colour junkie of the group — agrees with Clifford. Her advice is to “look at what suits you body shape — what are the best bits of your body that you love?” With this in mind, “try and accentuate those — so say you’ve got a waist but you’re hiding it in a baggy jumper, put on a jumpsuit and a belt, and try new things”.
For Acheampong, experimentation is key, because “then you’re going to land on something which really works”, she says.
All of the group advocate buying less clothes. The show itself features vintage garments alongside newer things, and the stylists want to arm people with tips to maximise their wardrobes — rather than just mindlessly buying new stuff.
“We’re not saying ‘go out and buy everything’,” says Clifford. “Shop sensibly, be sustainable and utilise the items that you have, but just in a different way. Make friends with your alterations lady!”
The biggest problem Kat Farmer sees in her work as a stylist is that people simply buy too much, she says. “What they don’t look at is the versatility of what they are buying. I always say, if you buy one thing, you need to be able to think of three different occasions when you can wear that.” Her other top tip is when buying something new, “make sure it goes with three items that you already own in your wardrobe”.
Kennedy recognises “a lot of people don’t necessarily know how to articulate what style they would like. So, a really good place to start is to think about who you look up to. If James Dean is your idol and you always thought he had great style, take a moment a look at why: he always had a crisp white Tshirt, he loved a really nice aviator jacket and a pair of jeans.
“That worked for him — that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s going to translate for you, but it’s a way of getting the conversation going in your own mind.”
Acheampong thinks Instagram is a great starting point for inspiration. However, she does urge people to have a “really positive feed” and follow “people that are inspirational, or are the same body shape as you”, or are shopping in similar places to you.
You Are What You Wear airs on BBC One on Thursdays