MEAGHAN SMITH PERSONAL STYLIST

When you work for and by yourself there’s no one to praise you when you experience success and say well done.  When I worked in the dealing room at the bank, if someone completed a significant transaction, there were shouts of  “Well done” all around, phone calls from the head honchos, celebration lunches, pay rises & bonus’s. When you work with just you, the reward and acknowledgement of achievement and success, must come from you.

So because I was quite chuffed with myself for working hard and finally launching my blog, I gave myself a little pat on the back and took myself off to the Country Road sale to see if I could find a bargain and shout myself a little “congratulations” treat.

If you like Country Road’s clothes, but you’re not a cardholder – you need to get to one of their stores ASAP and sign up.  Of course, it’s not all about clothes, they have bags and shoes and home wares too.  Today if you’re a cardholder there’s an extra 25% off items that are already on sale for up to 50%.

This is what I purchased.  A grey long sleeve slouchy tee.  Just a little something to mark the occassion.

If you forgot about the sale you can shop online til 9pm tonight.

I think now I’ll go and pour myself a cheeky chardy…..cheers..

image via here

For years Oprah made some questionable fashion choices. Apart from her outrageous hairstyles, there were a lot of outfits that made her look older and bigger than she really was. Because of her low body image and because she didn’t understand her style and what flattered her shape, she wore clothes that were often ill-fitting, big and baggy. She wore this kind of clothing to try and disguise her weight, when in fact, they were making her appear shapeless and larger than she really was which in turn would have made her feel less than confident.

After working with great stylists and learning to understand and accept who she is and how she looks, she has discovered her best style and worked out how to flatter and accentuate her figure and how to hide the areas she likes the least.

On Oprah’s final show she wore a L’Wren Scott (Mick Jagger’s main squeeze) couture dress.  L’Wren’s clothes are known for accentuating the figure and being sexy and feminine. Bravo to Oprah for choosing a designer that likes to spectacularly showcase the female form.  For more pictures of the dress and to see how it works beautifully to accentuate Oprah’s figure and disguise any areas she might like to hide click here.

Here’s why it works

• The color compliments her skin beautifully
• The length of the dress is perfect for Oprah because it covers her knees and shows off her slender ankles.
• The neckline and the earrings work together.  The large sparkling earrings and the open neckline are drawing the eye to her face. By doing so your eyes are diverted away from any areas Oprah may like to be disguising.
• The sleeves are a great length.  They cover the tops of her arms, which most of us over forty tend to like to cover, but she is exposing her wrists which are very fine. The skin of her wrists and her large bracelet is making the eye look at that area, rather than the tops of her arms
• The band around her middle is both accentuating her small waist and lifting her bust….or her “girls” as she refers to them.
• The nude shoe is blending in beautifully with her skin to elongate her legs and not take the attention away from her dress.
• I’ve heard Oprah say she’s a huge fan of Spanx, so I am guessing she has some serious smoothing shapewear underneath which is doing a marvellous job of ensuring there are no lumps and bumps given the dress is so figure hugging.

 via zimbio.com

Ines de la Fressange is the epitome of Parisian Chic. Model, author, businesswoman and once the muse of Karl Lagerfeld, last year she walked the catwalks at the Paris Spring Fashion Shows for Chanel, is currently the brand ambassador (where she was approached and invited to revive the brand) of the French footwear label, Roger Vivier and has just partnered with L’Oreal Paris to be their new global spokesperson. It’s fair to say she knows a thing or two about style.

via afemmeduncertainage.blogspot.com

As part of her role as re-inventor at Roger Vivier, Ines lets the cameras follow her around her favourite Paris neighbourhoods, to share with the reader, her favourite haunts. She recommends where you should shop for lingerie, shows you her favourite place to buy flowers and takes you shopping through the flea markets. The Ines Diaries are cute and quirky.

via alifestyle.blogspot.com

For those of us who have experienced the beauty and allure of Paris, you will remember and reminisce, and for those who haven’t you will be inspired to start saving your pennies.

 via harpersbazaar.com

I love Ines’ style because it’s casual, yet sophisticated, elegant, subtle, timeless, effortless & understated.  Although she might just be wearing a white t-shirt and jeans she still looks incredibly chic.  It’s in the way she stands, the way her hair is always “done” yet, at the same time a little “un-done”.

via lilylemontree.blogspot.com

Its in the way she holds her handbag and the way she looks straight down the camera lense, smiles confidently and doesn’t try to hide her wrinkles.  It’s the way each outfit, though simple, is accessorised beautifully – a great shoe, with a vintage belt,  a man’s watch, a fabulous bracelet, and a hat or leather gloves.  It’s in the small detail.

 via chocolatecookiesandcandies.com

via the-d-planet.blogspot.com

Buy Parisian Chic : A Style Guide by Ines de la Fressange here

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You can see more of the photos here