Brave fashion choices
We love to live in a fashion comfort zone but it pays to be daring, says Anna Murphy
What is style confidence? Only you have the answer. Only you know the right way to dress your best. Except you may feel you don’t. We are so bombarded with trends these days that it can be easy to lose a sense of who you are, and how to express your inner fabulousness through clothes.
Yet there is an upside to the endlessly oncoming trends, which is that pretty much every option is available at any time. As you read this I will be just about to head off for another month of fashion shows. I know that when I get back people will want to know, say, what colour is in, or what skirt length. To which, I also know, the answer will be, a) pretty much everywhere over the rainbow, and b) whatever skirt length you like best.
The trick is to get to know what suits your body, and – at least as importantly – your mind, then you can navigate the trends storm with ease. When it comes to the first, you need to buy a full-length mirror. When it comes to the latter, imagine yourself walking into a room of strangers. What one word would you want your clothes to communicate to them? Dress accordingly. Because you do want your clothes to say something about you. You do want to be noticed. Which means looking for pieces that are just that little bit special or different. Which means being a tad braver than you might have been in the past.
I was talking recently to Holly Willoughby’s stylist, a high-street soothsayer by the name of Angie Smith. “When I am dressing someone I don’t really think about trends,” she told me. “I think more about what shapes are going to look great on a person, what colours, about how she wants to feel in her clothes.”
Dressing to feel right. I can’t think of a better approach to your wardrobe.