On Personal Style

And how to get there in an era of distraction and consumerism

Apologies for this newsletter being a little late this week, I totally forgot the havoc two kids starting the same school would have on all aspects of my life! But they now have the same drop off in the mornings and I can’t quite believe it, this summer (and since May really, when we decided to save some money by cutting our nursery hours down to 2 days a week) have really been a piecing together of minutes/hours here and there in both work and home life but this new regime will give us all a more structured week. It’s a constant reshuffle, isn’t it?!

With that back to school feeling, it’s inevitable we start talking about the new season. I will be pulling my Autumn/Winter clothes down from the loft this week - and thought it a good time to discuss Peronal Style instead of trends…

I honestly think if we all knew our personal style more, then we’d be in a far better position sustainably. Once you dress for yourself, know what works for you and what you feel good in, you make better decisions about what to buy and when to stand back.

I don’t want to start this by discussing innate style because although some people do tend to be able to throw things together effortlessly, there are a lot of formulas and tricks you could follow to look stylish. But by stylish we really mean ‘on trend’ - all the dressing formulas on TikTok: sandwich dressing, the wrong shoe theory, colour theory - they’re supposed to help us get dressed but I also think it just leaves us a bit more confused. And it’s kind of why there are a lot of people on social media all with a very similar, curated aesthetic.

These icons are not included in that, obviously.

Clockwise from top left: Kurt Cobain (where my love of stripes, Converse and red sunnies comes from), Jane Birkin, Bianca Jagger, Rei Kawakubo

It’s very easy to copy and emulate style but knowing your personal style is different. And it’s not groundbreaking, it’s about picking those outfits that you love wearing and feel good when wearing them. And, of course, it can be different for everyone.

Tracee Ellis Ross’s colourful style: with neutrals and tailoring

Is Personal Style the same as a uniform?

I think it can be, it’s a bit more literal but I am drawn to women who have the confidence to wear the same thing every day. Once you know what works, it can really simplify decisions (and washing!).

While we focus on how it makes us feel, it is also about how others perceive you, too - the impression you give to the outside world, which is why it is even more important you feel like yourself.

Grace Coddington is her signature black, Diane Keaton in wide leg tailoring.

I really admire Sydney Piercey who wears mostly neutral and white clothes - whilst being the mother of 4 young kids (and her gorgeous children have a similar wardrobe!). Sydney is very planet conscious and I think one of the most positive elements to personal style is that you tend to buy less. It makes her purchases (which are few) more intentional. She often gets asked how she does it (as, of course, everyone on Instagram makes a point on how they’d spill ketchup down it if they wore white), or how she cleans it (she swears by Savon de Marseille soap bars!) and here is her response:

“It makes life easier for me for so many reasons! It makes shopping easier because I can filter on sites to a smaller colour palette, or when in shops or at a market I just focus on two or three tones. Packing and/or planning outfits is easier when everything goes together. We throw everything together in the wash, and give the kids autonomy in being able to choose from their entire wardrobe whilst feeling we all look put together! I think it’s been a gamechanger”

I must admit I find holiday packing to a colour palette so liberating, so it makes sense to apply it to ones’ wardrobe.

My pal Charlotte Jacklin also has her personal style nailed (in my opinion). Regardless of trends, she will (mostly) be wearing pastels, long dresses and an interesting (often metallic) shoe. Self proclaimed as constantly overdressed, I am enamoured by how she strategically plans her new season buys with moodboards, planning exactly the pieces she is after that will compliment what she already has.

But wait, does Personal Style mean wearing the same thing?

Not necessarily. Look at Iris Apfel, always wearing something different but there’s a boldness that threads it all together. The layered jewellery, the vibrant colour blocking, the bold glasses.

Or it can be accessories: Tracey Emin’s gold chains or Sade’s hoops.

In terms of Personal Style, I would say I veer towards the erratic end of the scale. I know my favourite outfits but I do still get swayed by trends. If I were to retrace my ultimate style DNA to a point in time, it would be when I worked at Red magazine around 2010/2012 and first started wearing blazers and jeans/tailored trousers. It was an easy answer to getting dressed and feeling chic yet relaxed at work (I also had a subscription to French Vogue at the time - no I don’t read or speak French, I just looked at photographs - and had a super style crush on Emanuelle Alt).

As part of the fashion team, it was a requirement to do London Fashion Week (and really do London Fashion Week: every show, on and off schedule and pop into every party we had an invite to - it was all about ‘showing up’ and being seen on behalf of the magazine). It was long days on our feet including weekends and you were expected to look chic, it was Fashion Week after all (and to make matters worse there were Streetstyle photographers everywhere, whom we’d pretend we didn’t care about but and it was always excruciatingly embarrassing when they would frantically click away on their cameras and pause as you walked past). Editors would borrow clothes from the Fashion cupboards, call upon designer Press Offices to wear the ‘It’ bag of the season and wear heels all day as they would have a driver or grab taxis. The Fashion Assistants were on foot, running from show to show with a few buses in between. The first few seasons I’d really try and wear my most ‘Fashion’ outfit but I soon learnt that flats were necessary and the first year I wore flat sandals (Balenciaga sale ones - which I still wear!), jeans and a blazer - I was photographed! Of course it’s not the be all and end to be noticed BUT it did give me validation that I didn’t need to dress like someone else to look and feel good.

It’s also pretty timeless, I don’t feel that these pictures (taken around 10 years ago - hence the quality of the right pic!) can be pinpointed specifically to an era.

And then I started to introduce red and leopard into my wardrobe, I’ve always loved leopard print and agree wholeheartedly that it goes with everything in a J Crew eclectic way. I remember the exact moment - I was filming for a jewellery brand and I paired a red jumper with jeans and leopard shoes and it just worked. I rarely wore red at the time but it has been a staple in my wardrobe ever since, whether it’s a red lip or a flat shoe.

This has recently extended to brights with neutrals (which I am really feeling). The beauty of exploring your style is that once you have the basics, you can always introduce other items into your remit.

Love wearing a basic crew-neck and trousers? Try adding a vintage scarf for that extra element to keep it fresh for another season. Or a pair of different sunglasses to break it up.

Some thoughts to figuring out your personal style:

What do you love wearing?

What do you feel good wearing?

What items in your wardrobe have been worn the most/lasted the longest?

Think about your 3 words

I think this is a good exercise to do at some point, I’d say mine are: Relaxed, tailored, tomboy (for want of a better word). But I will admit I am a completely different person on holiday…!

Or perhaps I should ask others what they consider my 3 words to be (might be more useful!). Actually, I would really love to know your thoughts!

I asked ChatGPT based on a picture of my latest Instagram posts and the answer was:

Chic, Playfulness, Timeless

“Your style showcases a blend of classic and fun elements with a modern touch, balancing vibrant colours and patterns with elegant simplicity”

Pretty generic (I often think that Chat GPT is a bit like horoscopes, it can be applied to most people/things) but I see what it’s getting at!

On repeat buys…

I personally don’t think there’s anything wrong with being a repeat buyer, I think it’s often a sign that you know your style and as long as the items get worn and stay in your wardrobe it can be a good thing. Now I know what my repeat buys are, I have been looking for them secondhand (I have found a few Cos and Arket stripe tops this way), so they add a hint of newness to my wardrobe without the need for new.

I know not everyone has a plethora of images of themselves to draw from as I do(!) but it might be a really useful excercise to favourite some photos of outfits you felt great in or just look through your wardrobe, pull out your most worn and loved items and think about what made them work and why you felt great.

Sometimes style isn’t about the jaunty way you tie your silk scarf (I find some of these ‘either you have it or you don’t’ style conversations very alienating), it’s about knowing what you love (which isn’t always the same as what suits you!) and having the confidence to show up in a way that reflects you.

Sade’s hoops and knitwear. Sublime.

Any clearer? If so, thank you for reading my non committal ‘wear what you love’ essay! And please don’t let anyone tell you style is something you’re born with - it’s simply telling a story…