Weekly Newsletter #7: Stay in Your (Style) Lane (Web)

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Author

Kerryn Rutherford
December 01, 2023

Personal Stylist sitting on an arm chairr

LAST WEEK

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Hello Stylish Ones!

This week my wise and stylish friend, Soph, reminded me that “the quickest path to success is to stay in your lane”.

This is one of my favourite philosophies and, serendipitously, tied in with the style principle I wanted to share in our 7th newsletter.

I truly felt the power of this philosophy this week.

I received my first negative comment on one of our posts. My immediate reaction was embarrassment. I felt my cheeks grow red and my stomach tighten.

I took a breath, rewatched the video and thought, “I love this outfit. My style isn’t for everyone. Some people will love it, some won’t. That’s none of my business.” Then I switched off my phone and went to bed.

Rewind to a year ago and this would have completely knocked my style confidence. I was able to shake it off because I am crystal clear on what my personal style is and I feel confident and joyful in the outfits I put together. That’s what matters.

This only cemented my belief in the power of personal style and desire to share this knowledge with you, and the clients I work with, so that you can get dressed with ease and confidence everyday.

Style Principle #7: Stay in Your (Style) Lane

Staying in your (style) lane speaks to comparison.

When you compare yourself to others, you lose sight of what is true to you and discredit the value of your self-knowledge.

As we know, “comparison is the thief of joy”. Thank you, Theodore Roosevelt, for those very wise words.

In the context of personal style, the result is that you end up with a cupboard full of clothes that you hardly wear or which don’t allow you to dress the way you want to feel.

There is nothing worse than feeling like your clothes don’t reflect your true self or you can’t keep up with trends and thus aren’t stylish.

Trends and style aren’t like gin and tonic or Richards and Jagger. That is to say, their existence is not dependent on each other. You can be trendy without being stylish and stylish without being trendy.

If you really think about it, the times you feel most flustered, when you are putting an outfit together, are when you are trying to dress like someone else or in a manner that doesn’t reflect who you are (dress up parties aside).

Style is personal - what does it mean to you?

Remind yourself of this definition the next time you find yourself comparing your style to others’ or are rushing to buy an item because it’s everywhere. Ask yourself whether that item would work to highlight the areas of your body you want to celebrate or whether you can style it 5 ways with other pieces you own.

By staying in your style lane, you curate a wardrobe that sparks joy and feels like you. Most importantly, you will be forever stylish.

If you need help determining your personal style reach out! We’d love to help.

IN THE KNOW

CONTENT WE’RE LOVING THIS WEEK

#1 WE’RE READING - Raven Smith’s Trivial Pursuits

A memoir (of sorts), Trivial Pursuits by Raven Smith is a collection of hilarious and unbelievably smart essays that reflect on “the minutiae of everyday modern life and culture”. Smith has a way with words unlike any other writer we have read. His idiosyncratic similes and metaphors wink at (or, perhaps, passionately embrace) popular culture and current affairs. The book is a reflection on life and how we live it. With Smith’s penchant for witty banter, it’s hard not to giggle through this book in one sitting. Smith is a Vogue columnist and an incredibly stylish man, which means that even if this novel isn’t about fashion per se it’s on brand by association.

#1 WE’RE LISTENING TO - Love Stories by Dolly Alderton

Love Stories is a podcast series that was released in support of the paperback issue of Dolly Alderton’s (now best selling) memoir, Everything I Know About Love.

In each episode, Alderton interviews a guest about their most defining relationships. What each guest shares is heartwarmingly surprising and each conversation is as lovely and interesting as the last.

Let us know if you give it a listen!

#3 WE’RE WATCHING - Younger on Stan

Another oldie, but a goodie, which means you can binge watch all 7 seasons of this more-ish show.

Younger follows Liza Miller (Sutton Fraser), a 40 year old, recently divorced, book lover, who needs to support herself and her daughter after her ex-husband gambled away all their money. Lisa lies about her age to get a job in publishing as an assistant to Diana Trout (Miriam Shor) a big wig at Empirical Press.

Coming from the creator of Sex and the City (Darren Star), it is no surprise that the fashion is fabulous.

Younger navigates themes of female friendship, modern sex and agism. Whilst we could debate its plot flaws, suspend your disbelief for 30 minutes (give or take) and enjoy this frivolously, delightful show.

Mel has a great eye for clothes and a good idea of what her style is. Her challenge came when she went shopping as she felt she always ended up buying more of the same.

With an event coming up, Mel’s husband gifted her a personal shopping session. We tailored our Occassion Styling service to suit Mel’s needs, which was to shop for items that needed replacing and find her an outfit for her birthday bash.

After our personal shopping session, we integrated her new pieces with items in her current wardrobe to make sure she could style her pieces with ease and confidence.

All our packages can be tweaked and tailored to suit your style needs because we appreciate that, just like style is personal, so are your style needs.

Henne is a minimalist, Australian fashion brand “creating wardrobe essentials with effortless appeal“.

Sisters, Nadia, Michelle and Laura, founded the brand in 2019 releasing limited drops in classic styles to avoid waste through excess stock.

Henne’s clothing is designed and created for longevity because “clothing should be treated as a long-term investment.” We couldn’t agree more!

The quality of the pieces we own from the brand is impeccable and you will often see Henne pieces included in our styling posts as a result. The brand does need to work on their size inclusivity (their current size range is from size 4 - 16). Hopefully that is something in their growth plans.

We love Henne’s form fitting basics (perfect for layering), super soft knits and trousers, which are cut in universally flattering designs.

WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU 

Hit reply and let us know your thoughts on this week's newsletter. Send through any style questions and we'll include them in our next newsletter (anonymously of course!).