MEAGHAN SMITH PERSONAL STYLIST

image via garance dore

Some people find it an odd concept to wear a blazer any other way than as part of a suit.

They’ve worn them to work for so many years, they can’t fathom the idea of wearing one with a pair of jeans or over a dress.

If you’re one of those people, that’s fine, they’re not for everyone.  The structured, tailored nature of the jacket may feel a little too stuffy and constricted for you, especially if your style is verging on bohemian slash relaxed slash natural.  But if you’re like me and you tend to be a classic dresser, then consider giving the blazer a try.

I like it because I can wear my jeans and yet still feel stylish and sophisticated.  It’s a step up from wearing a cardie.

To make the blazer feel less stuffy and formal and look a bit more interesting, try pushing or rolling up the sleeves.  This is a particularly flattering look because it exposes  your slender wrists, which you can play up with a fabulous watch, a stack of bracelets, bright nail polish, a cocktail ring or an interesting clutch bag.

As mentioned, you can either roll the sleeves back or just push the sleeves up and if you’re lucky they’ll stay put , depending on how silky the lining is.  If you want to guarantee they stay up without you annoyingly having to keep pushing them up, keep them in place with a rubber band.  Just make sure you conceal it among the gathered fabric.   Then all you need to do is decide where you want them to sit – above, on or below the elbow.  (FYI – the elbow can be a bit restrictive, above or below is probably better)

Play around with your clothes and get the most out of them by wearing them in new and different ways.

image via The Sartorialist

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image via Garance Dore

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Details of my personal styling services (Including prices) here

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Sometimes it’s not until we try something different, that we realise the impact clothes can have on how we feel about ourselves.

I have had ladies burst into tears in the changeroom after they’ve seen themselves in a great pair of jeans. They had no idea they could wear that particular style, let alone how they would feel when they saw themselves in them.

Looking your best and feeling stylish can help you be more confident and self assured, while wearing the wrong clothes can have the opposite effect,  so it saddens me when I hear some of the reasons women have for giving up on themselves. These are just some of the excuses I’ve heard…

• “I’m old now. Nothing looks good on me”
• “I’m too fat to look good in clothes”
• “I’ve got no one to dress nicely for”
• “Everything I like is too expensive”
• “Once my kids leave home I’ll have time and money to spend on myself”
• “I’d love you to come and look in my wardrobe and help me clean it out and show me how to wear what I have, but I’m too embarrassed to let you see inside it”
• “I don’t have the time and patience to shop”
• “There’s no point in me trying to look stylish at the moment while I have small kids.  I always end up with food or vomit on my top and I can’t run around after a 3 year old in stilettos”

Are you telling yourself you’re not worth it?  Are you thinking you’re beyond help?  Are you stopping yourself from looking and feeling the best you can?

Of course not all of us have the money to spend on new clothes, (high maintenance) hairstyles and makeup and not all of us have lots of time to go shopping, but there are small things you can do that require little time and little investment that will make a big difference.

It’s upsetting when I talk to someone who thinks that “it’s all too hard” and they have given up on themselves. 

All of us deserve to feel good about ourselves at every stage of our lives.

It might be that you need to stop wearing sloppy unflattering comfy clothes, maybe your  hems needs taking up, (or going down) perhaps you could do with a new bra or lippy, or having your eyebrows shaped.  Maybe all that you need is in your wardrobe, you just can’t find it for the clutter.  I’m here to tell you (& encourage you) that baby steps can make a big difference.

Promise me, you won’t ever give up on yourself and remember that I am here to help if you need some motivation, support and guidance.

READ: “It’s Not Just About The Clothes” here

Details of my personal styling services (Including prices) here

Get to know me and my style on Facebook here

..& Instagram here

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I’ve been going to the races since I was a little girl.  My mum & dad would take me and my two sisters to the Melbourne Cup every year.  It was a big family outing to the city from where we lived in what was then, the country.  As a little girl, holding my mum or dads hand wandering through the crowds, the races were a visual feast for my little eyes.  We’d stand outside the Members Enclosure and peer in at the glamorously dressed ladies, marvel at the big beautiful colored roses and we’d find very entertaining the jokers dressed as superheroes or in cleverly designed outfits made out of beer cans.

It was this introduction by my parents, as a little girl, that fueled my love and fascination for racing and a racing social event, today.  I’m quite the seasoned racegoer now, but as a young woman in my twenties, beyond excited by a day at the races with my friends, I learnt the hard way.  I left home looking lady-like and came home red as a beetroot, shoes in hand, with the early on-set of a monstrous champagne headache.   Not a good look.  So I thought, after years of experience I’d pass on the things that I’ve learnt about surviving the races in style.

• You don’t need to dress traditionally.  You don’t need to wear a hat.  You should, however, try and dress so that you feel comfortable, chic and stylish – not exposing too much flesh and not like you’re going clubbing or the beach.  Remember it’s an event held during the day, so the dress is day wear, not evening wear.

• Don’t carry an enormous handbag.  Carry a small clutch or wear a small shoulder bag.   It’s more elegant than lugging around your big every day, carry all sack.

• Don’t overdo the fake tan. Remember the aim is for you to look naturally tanned, not resembling a mandarin.

• Carry lipstick, band-aids, painkillers and a couple of safety pins….just in case.

• Don’t wear shoes that haven’t been worn in – even if it’s just around the house while you do the housework.

• Don’t wear brand new, never worn shoes.  You’ll last an hour and you’ll want to go home.  If you don’t love or are inexperienced in wearing high heels, opt for a wedge – particularly if it’s raining.  The heel won’t sink into the grass and they’re much more comfortable than a stiletto if you’re on your feet all day.  Consider wearing gel cushions in your shoes and maybe even carrying a little pair of fold up ballet slippers  in your bag for the trip home.  DO NOT LEAVE THE RACECOURSE CARRYING YOUR SHOES AND WEARING NOTHING ON YOUR FEET.

• Wear shapewear so you don’t need to suck in your tummy all day.

• Slather on the sunscreen.  You don’t want to have to back up on Oaks Day, after Cup Day, with a sunglasses mark on your face.

• Take something to throw over your shoulders (a trench, pashmina or Nana’s fur cape)…..just in case it gets cool…..& put them in the cloak room.  Don’t forget to collect them at the end of the day.

• Have a very big breakfast and then don’t forget to eat during the day.

• Don’t have your first glass of bubbles til at least midday and alternate each glass with a glass of water.   It might seem like a great idea at the time to make the most of the free flowing drinks, but nobody wants to open the Herald Sun the next day and see a photo of themselves looking like this…..

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Get to know me and my style on Facebook here

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My strongest and fondest memories of my Nana Smith, my Dad’s mum, are her beautiful garden where she’d take us exploring to pick flowers, her lovely thick wavy hair and her big brown eyes, how she played cricket with us in her backyard – with a homemade cricket bat, the way she boiled water for our baths, given that her and Pop didn’t have hot water in their home, how she chatted to her daily visiting magpie, who wandered in her always open back door, the Nestle Coffee & Milk she would make us for breakfast, along with toast cooked against the open fire, after a sleep over, her made with love knitted cardigans and jumpers and her love for the Geelong Football Club.

It was my Nan, after growing up in Winchelsea near Geelong and supporting The Cats herself as a young girl, who passed on and instilled in us a love of football and of her beloved team.  Even before I was born she’d knitted me a navy blue and white striped football jumper.

Each Saturday she would listen on her little transistor, until the game got close and she would turn it off and go out for a walk around the backyard.  Her nerves would get the better of her.  And after the games, Nan would cut snippets and posters out of her local paper about the players and their performance and send them to my sisters and I to read and stick on our bedroom walls.

When new people come into my life, it often takes them a little while to understand my fascination with football.  Why is such a girly girl, obsessed with all things fashion and beauty, so passionate about a football team? You see for me, it’s so much more than the actual game of football.  It’s about the connection I have to my family.  A special bond I’ll always have with my Nan, my Dad, my sisters and my nieces.  I savour the precious moments and the memories we now have together, of our time spent at the football.  Last Saturday we all met at Southgate for breakfast, after which we caught a water taxi down the Yarra River to the MCG.  We cheered together, we sang the song together and afterwards we celebrated together.   It was the perfect day.

My advice is that if you can find something that connects you with your family, whether it is a love of camping, sport or food, you’ll be very fortunate indeed. You’ll have something that will bind you together forever.

When my Nan passed away, at her funeral we put a Cats scarf on her coffin and played the Geelong theme song as she was carried out of her little church in Trentham.  The Cats meant the world to her.  I still think of my Nan when the Cats win today. The saddest thing about Geelong winning the recent premierships is that our Nan isn’t here to experience it with us.   She would have been so proud.  She would have cut out the posters and stories about the players and sent them to us in the mail like she did when we were little girls.

**NB: Take lots of photos of your loved ones.  When I went looking for a photo of my Nan this was all I could find.  At least I know it was taken on probably one of the happiest days of her life – her only child, her son’s wedding day.

Details of my personal styling services (Including prices) here

Get to know more about me and my style on Facebook here

..& Instagram here