A new outfit from Veronica Popoiacu of Bittersweet Colours, whom we introduced to YLF in August 2013.

Veronica is looking cosy and stylish in her bright sweater dress. She’s expecting her second child, and the roomy, knee-length dress is an easy solution to accommodate a growing baby bump. The fiery orange-red makes it a cheerful statement piece, while the chunky knit and oversized cable pattern on the sleeves add plenty of textural interest. Veronica has created structure by pairing the dress with sleek tall brown suede boots that have a tailored fit. Classic sunnies and brown-red lipstick to complement the colour of the dress finish off the look.

I’ve been in the fashion world for more than half of my life. I’ve learned so much and it makes me very happy to share my experience with others when it can help them on their style journey. Here are are my top style tips in no particular order. 

1. Style is beyond size, age and body type. It’s an energy and confidence that is expressed through clothing, footwear and accessories.
2. An authentic style is one that’s manageable and makes you happy. It celebrates that style is PERSONAL, and emanates from the inside out.
3. Be patient and positive with your style. Relax into your style journey. Pat yourself on the back every time you get it right.
4. Dress the body you have right now. Don’t wait for some future version of yourself.
5. Create a column of colour when you’re after a streamlined and slender outfit effect.
6. Be mindful of how you wear black. It can look chic, dressy, slimming, hard-edged, strong and dramatic, but it can also look boring, harsh, flat and predictable.
7. Focus on fit, and not the size written on the clothing label.
8. A glowing smile, great posture, and happy eyes are the best accessories to an outfit.
9. Do not underestimate the importance of fabulous hair, killer eyewear, and excellent underwear. These are the areas of your style to analyze first when you’re in a style rut.
10. Don’t “compare and despair” by focussing on what others have and you don’t. Compete with the best version of your current self, and focus on what you do have.
11. Don’t take the emotion out of your style. Listen to how you FEEL in an outfit. The more you are in tune with your preferences, needs and emotions, the easier it is to sport a style that is easy, authentic and makes you feel fabulous.
12. Celebrate your body because it’s an incredible gift that deserves daily care and praise at any shape and age.
13. The sooner you embrace the next phase of your own beauty, the easier it will be to stop fighting the aging process and start celebrating the miraculous journey that is your life.
14. Appreciate all the different ways we can be beautiful. Life would be awfully dull if we all looked the same.
15. Create brow, lash and lip definition to frame your face.
16. Look after your skin and wear sunscreen daily.
17. Keep your fashion feet moving. Allow your style to evolve.
18. Judge the outfit, and not the person.
19. Never say never in fashion and style because you’ll be surprised at how your feelings about a look, colour or item can change over time.
20. Ask three questions to troubleshoot outfits:
    1. Is it the length of an item that will make the difference?
    2. Is it the contrast between the items and your skin tone?
    3. Do you need to add heels to the outfit?
21. Create outfit proportions that align with YOUR figure flattering priorities.
22. Your favourite colours are always in style.
23. Life is too short to save your clothes for special occasions. Ration the super special stuff and wear the heck out of the rest.
24. Modern Classics can be incorporated into any style.
25. Have fun with fashion at any age. Don’t let anyone make you feel bad about your fashion exploits.

Which of these style tips resonate with you the most? Please post your own favourite style tips in the comments section below.

Over the last 26 years I’ve dressed friends, family members, clients, fit models and ramp models across a wide range of shapes and sizes. One thing I learned from this is that almost everyone experiences fit challenges. Whether it’s the circumference of your head and calves, the shape of your feet, the curvature of your bust, the slope of yours shoulders, the width of your ankles, or the length of your legs and arms — most people have some challenge or another.

Some are definitely more challenging than others. The closer your proportions are to what the retail industry has chosen as their size specifications, the easier it is to create good fit with retail merchandise. The further you stray from those so called “standardized” proportions, the harder it is to find items that fit perfectly off the rack.

I would never have believed that ramp models are hard to fit. But this was my experience when I had to create and fit clothes for them back when I was a designer and retail buyer. Ramp models are tall, narrow-hipped, and broad-shouldered. Regular retail clothing is generally cut too narrow in the shoulder, and too short in the lengths of the waist, height and sleeves. Fashion show clothing is custom-made for ramp models’ bodies in order to create perfect fit. Celebrities often have their clothing custom-made by fashion houses, or at least have items altered to create perfect fit.

I would love things to be different, but the retail industry falls short of delivering perfect fit for every body type. It assumes that people have average proportions and are around average height. And while the availability of a larger assortment of sizes, widths and lengths is better than it used to be — it’s still insufficient.

The good news is that clothing and footwear fits are not uniform across designers and brands. Each chooses a different fit model, so the same numerical size can be a completely different fit from different brands. These days you can also often choose shorter or longer lengths in the same size. You can reduce fit challenges by finding brands that suit your body shape. And you can alter clothing to fit better, or even sew your own clothes from scratch.

The most important thing is to NOT blame your body for fit challenges. Find the brands and items that suit your proportions, both in silhouette and size specification. That’s when a community like YLF is extremely helpful. You’ll find a kinship with those who have similar fit challenges to you on our forum, and suggestions on which brands and styles to target to create good fit.

I’m also available to help out with suggestions on how to tackle fit challenges. I feel honoured to have dressed women from sizes US00 to US34 across all heights and body types. Creating good fit can be hard, but not impossible. Onward to good fit for 2018.

As is the case every first week of January, fashion outlets are publishing posts on what to expect from the world of style in the upcoming year. Let’s have a look:

• PopSugar is rounding up 13 new labels that you might want to consider adding to your wardrobe this year.
• They also believe the “scrunchie bag” is going to be the hot accessory for 2018.
• Berets and embellished shoes are in the top 10 fashion trends for 2018 according to Pinterest.
• Dazed made a list of the 8 fashion moments you won’t want to miss.
• Cowboy boots are back in fashion, reports The Guardian.
• From pastels to plastic, the British newspaper also shares their take on this year’s trends.
• Vogue chimes in with their own predictions, like: “art collaborations are the new music collaborations,” and “jolie-laide sneakers are the new Stan Smiths.”

Fab Links from Our Members

“Why you only need 10 work outfits.” Citygirldc says this is something to think about while she simplifies her wardrobe.

La Pedestrienne really enjoyed listening to this interview with Ann Patchett on taking a year off from shopping.

We’ve been talking about it more on the YLF forum too, and would love to hear what you think.

La Pedestrienne also came across this interesting piece on age and sophistication, and our current pendulum swing towards a cult of youth.

La Belle Demimondaine is intrigued by the info in this article on the secret to looking younger forever.

Fashintern would like to share “Beautiful Tomboys of the 1930s,” which she adds “is as much about society in the 1930s as it is about the style of these androgynous women at that time.”