By Coral Turner, Couture Designer
You may not consider yourself to be a fashionista, but you don’t have to be one to stand out and make a fashion statement. As a couture designer, I want to provide you with a few suggestions that can be incorporated into any wardrobe.
A ring and a necklace dress up any outfit but make sure these two pieces of jewelry complement each other. Every woman should have several rings and necklaces as accessories as well as earrings.
Let’s use an example of a jeans outfit. The blouse could be solid colour, like orange. Next consider your biggest piece of jewelry – the necklace. With jeans, a sporty-type of necklace made of shells or beads over the solid colour blouse will look striking. It’s nice to incorporate the colour of the blouse into the necklace although solid white will do just as well. A sporty ring will be a nice accent if you can follow through with the colors in the necklace and try not to mix gold and silver. For sporty outfits, leave the diamond dinner ring in the jewelry box. The same thing with any noisy jewelry. For cooler nights, you can replace that necklace with a scarf. Long scarfs are very popular now. If wearing a scarf, tie a chic knot.
Handmade silk scarves from India
For more formal affairs, a hat adds a flair of glamour. If your hair is long, take the curl out and wear it straight down or pin it up in a bun or French twist. You want the hat to stand out;. the hat should match a colour in your outfit. A black and white outfit and a black hat are bound to turn a few heads. A hat with chiffon, a feather, or piece of jewelry adds excitement. You can always add your own pin to that hat too; so go ahead and raid your mother’s vintage pins.
A jersey top with flounced sleeve detailing aptly named ‘Romance’
A print blouse with a solid coloured sweater always looks attractive. Next time you wear that long sleeve sweater, consider folding the cuffs back to expose the cuffs of the blouse.
If you still have a long ankle-length skirt hanging in your closet, before you put it to rest, perhaps you should consider giving it a second life. Cut off twelve inches and hem it. Voila! A new item for your wardrobe. Pair it with a crisp white collar shirt and black and silver studded belt and you are good for the office and drinks after a hard days work.
No fashion blog would be complete without the mention of shoes. In general, have your shoes match your clothing if you are conservative in your taste. However, if you are daring, go ahead and use them as an accessory to the outfit. I love animal patterned shoes of late, they add fun to any outfit as well as they are sexy and daring and there is nothing wrong with being a little sexy and daring. Kitten heels are equally chic.
If unsure about accessories, less is more. If you use too many accessories, nothing will stand out to make a statement, so keep it simple. Also, it is okay to buy those fashion magazines where they have the models stylized to get ideas. I also love a website called Stylish Eve at www.stylisheve.com. They search the globe and put together outfits for day or night, formal and casual. I’m not sure why they haven’t picked up my couture fashions yet??? However, I cannot help but love the outfits they stylize.
By following the suggestions above, you’ll begin to impart your own style and people will notice, and don’t forget the perfume.
One last note, I am available to help you create and design your own look. I make one of a kind, never to be repeated couture designs for the modern woman, the fashionista in you!