UK-based Debs Stubbington (33) is a Theatre Stage Manager who shares her personal style and fashion finds over at Bang on Style. Debs’ style is casual, on trend, and girly with the occasional grungy twist. She is Queen Floral, adores colour, and loves to experiment with different shades of lipstick. Debs is also into nail art, which adds a playful element to everything she wears. Her colourful nails, together with her body art and fondness of jewellery automatically make her outfits more maximal. It’s become her signature look. Debs doesn’t wear jeans all that often because she’s more of a trousers and skirt gal. Her love for florals is unique, and makes us smile, so we decided to make her feature into one big celebration of all things floral.

“My style has evolved so much over the last few years. I used to dress quite casual and simple really with a very boyish edge. These days I would say my style is still quite simple and casual but much more feminine and very eclectic. I love so many trends especially prints and bright colour and I’m a sucker for affordable fashion including great shops like New Look and Primark, plus I love a vintage find too.”

If you’re a novice pattern mixer, then a shirt like Debs’ lime floral print one with contrast pink check collar and cuffs might be just the ticket because it comes with built-in pattern mixing. The large roses and butterflies could be straight out of a classic painting. I find the combination with the crisp, modern check eye-catching and unusual. Debs buttoned her shirt all the way up for a strict touch that juxtaposes nicely with the grunge-y effect of wearing it untucked over ripped light wash denim. Slim ankle straps peek out from under the rolled straight leg jeans. The black and white flats also add a crisp touch, and echo the colours in the floral print. A light grey bag, multiple rings and nail art — a black and white aztec print — finish off the look

Now this is a two-piece dress with pizzazz. Our blogger has paired a printed floral cropped top in a vibrant cobalt blue with a matching midi pencil skirt. Opting for a high-waisted skirt allows you to only show a sliver of midriff. Debs is wearing the ensemble with a fluid fit long sleeveless blazer. The mid-thigh length and wearing it open creates a column of colour that is elongating and elegant. An on trend, high-contrast look that is perfect for Summer days when you want to add some extra polish. Keeping the footwear and accessories white lets the bold florals do the talking. Chunky peep-toe booties with cleated soles ground the look. The large clutch with clean lines, light blue nail polish and simple silver cuff complement the outfit beautifully.

This is the more casual rendition of Angie’s Sleeveless Top with Vest Ensemble. Debs is wearing her signature look (floral print bottoms) with a tunic-length, drapey linen top that covers the top part of the leggings for extra coverage. The sleeveless blazer hits our blogger at the hip, and adds nonchalant polish. It subtly nips in at the waist to create structure up top. The lilac colour of the top is repeated in the leggings, which creates visual coherence. The black ankle strap of the sandals is low contrast against the hem of the leggings, which elongates the leg line. The open, low-heeled sandals also showcase some of Debs’ fun body art. The gold hardware on the footwear and small bag ties in with her gold jewellery. Pretty pink lips amp up the girly factor.

I asked Queen Floral where her love for floral patterns comes from, and if she had any tips for those of us who are “pattern beginners” who would like to incorporate more florals into their wardrobes:

“I love wearing florals as it’s a print that works whatever the season I think. I wear bright and vibrant florals in the Spring and Summer and rich, darker florals for Autumn / Winter. I own a lot of floral pieces including dresses, shirts and tops but I really like floral trousers too for a real statement. For anyone who’s a pattern beginner I’d say try incorporating a floral scarf or even a floral pair of pumps into a plain outfit for a simple start to wearing print.”

I’m calling this ladylike figure skate punk. Debs built this look around a classic pencil skirt with an antique-esque black and white floral print. Then she threw in a touch of retro with the mock turtleneck crepe dip hem top. The shorter length in front elongates the leg line, and the round hem creates softness in this high-contrast look. The white chunky lace-up booties remind me a little of Dr. Martens boots. They add a playful punk toughness and figure skating vibe at the same time. So fun! Debs’ updo emphasizes the figure skater integrity of the outfit. Bare legs and arms provide structure. The gold chain bracelet with white leather detailing works well with our blogger’s simple white clutch and light blue nail polish.

Debs loves colour, and likes to wear more than one bright colour in the same outfit. It makes me smile. Here she’s paired a neon yellow boxy top with fluid fit tapered trousers. The shorter top length emphasizes the soft drape of the trousers, and elongates the leg line. The pants are slightly cropped, but the thin ankle strap on Debs’ two-toned flats comes up high enough to avoid cutting horizontal lines. A black leather moto jacket adds hard edge that is toned down by the pretty colours, footwear and scalloped edge detail on the tote. The Summer meadow floral print trousers, scalloped and perforated bag, arm candy party and necklaces, multi-coloured nail art, and our blogger’s body art make for a maximal look that is not overwhelming. Definitely Debs’ trademark.

I am completely smitten with this matchy-matchy shorts and vest ensemble. Debs found the set in a vintage store, and transformed it into an utterly modern and fashion forward look. She’s layered the silky, lightweight vest over a short-sleeved button-down with lace effect for some subtle and very pretty pattern mixing. The hem of the shirt peeking out from under the vest breaks up the large head-to-toe floral print. Rose gold metallic cage sandals add soft edge, and elongate the leg line because they match our blogger’s skin tone. The colour also works beautifully with the pinks in the floral print. Running with the same theme, Debs kept all the jewellery rose gold. The stiff leather on the small barrel bag is a nice contrast against the soft vibe of the look. And the pink colour matches our blogger’s pink lippie and nails.

What do you think of Debs happy florals and soft-edged casual style? Let us know in the comments, and then hop on over to Bang on Style to check out the rest of our blogger’s outfit archives. Or have a look at her Pinterest boards for more browsing fun.

Matching the colour of your belt and your footwear was the stylish way to go until about a decade ago. Fashion loosened up and mismatching became the trendy thing to do. These days, both options are current and stylish. I went through a stage where I preferred the mismatch, but over the last three years my preference has returned to matching my belt and footwear. It creates instant outfit cohesion and makes me feel more pulled together. 

Here are two examples where the belt and footwear are closely matched. The one on the left matches a burgundy belt with booties. The outfit on the right matches a tan belt with sandals. The colours of the leather are exactly the same, and the repetition makes a strong visual statement.

The belt and shoes do not need to be an exact match. The effect can be subtle, like the outfits below, and still be an effective way to pull the outfit together. The first example pairs a silver belt with white and light grey snakeskin shoes instead of silver shoes. The second pairs a grey and black patterned belt with black shoes instead of a black belt. The third pairs a black and red piped belt with black moto booties. And the fourth pairs a cognac belt with two-toned, cognac booties.

The more subtle pairings can be more visually interesting. They also make less of a visual statement, which is a useful styling strategy when you want another part of the outfit to take centre stage.

I like to wear patterned belts, and pick up one of the colours of the pattern in the colour of my footwear. I will also match the metal of my belt buckle with the same shade of metallic footwear. Today I paired a silver buckled white perforated belt with mirrored silver flat oxfords. 

Over to you. Do you like to match your belt and footwear? If so, do you prefer to wear a matching statement, or go the more subtle route? Or do you prefer to mismatch your belts and footwear?

Vera Wang launches an activewear line, Harrods plans to open its own Salon de Parfums, Canada gets its first Nordstrom store and other style news from the fashion trenches this week.

• Karl Lagerfeld is publishing his own satirical broadsheet newspaper later this month: “The Karl Daily”.
• Canadian Nordstrom fans can now get their shop on at Nordstrom’s first Canadian store at Calgary’s Chinook Centre. 
• Lena Dunham is producing a documentary for HBO about Bindle & Keep, a bespoke tailoring company in Brooklyn.
• On September 30, Harrods will open its Salon de Parfums, a 5,090 square feet beauty hall entirely dedicated to “fine fragrances”.
• There’s a new activewear player in town: Vera Wang’s “Simply Breathe” collection for Kohl’s.
• Uniqlo has released the full lookbook for the Best of +J Collection, and it is looking very stylish.

Fun Fashion Fact

Did you know that Italian-born French fashion designer Pierre Cardin, known for his avant-garde style and Space Age designs, developed his own fabric. Cardine, named after the designer, was a bonded fibre that could “rigidly hold its geometric shapes”.

This ensemble was inspired by an outfit that I recently saw in a J.Crew window. It combined white with tomato red, toffee and burgundy. It looked extra fresh for Autumn and Winter so I was excited to share it with you. Any shade of white counts, so think optical white, off-white, bone, cream, or a light stone. Animal print can be used as the toffee component of the outfit. 

There are many ways to combine the four colours. I’m getting started with three renditions that range from casual to business casual.

White Jeans, Tomato Top, Toffee Topper and Burgundy Bag

This combination is close to the one I saw at J.Crew. They also layered a white and burgundy striped button-down shirt under the tomato red pullover which looked amazing. I left off that layer here to create a more comfortable, simpler version. Match a bright red top with white jeans, and top off with a toffee blazer or cognac leather jacket. Finish off the look with cognac booties and a burgundy bag. 

If tomato red is not your colour, wear a burgundy top and leave it at that. Or wear a burgundy top and tomato red bag. Feel free to substitute the warm shade of toffee with a shade of cool taupe if that’s more suited to your complexion. 

White Sweater, Toffee Bottoms and Burgundy Shoes 

I simplified this rendition by leaving out the tomato red. Combine a pair of toffee or camel bottoms with a piece of white knitwear. I chose a trendy oversized cardigan, but any style that tickles your fancy is fab. Or choose a white tee, shirt, knitted top or blouse. Finish off with burgundy footwear and a toffee bag.  

Tomato Skirt, Burgundy Blouse and Leopard Footwear

This one is for Team Skirt. Combine a tomato red skirt with a burgundy blouse and finish off the outfit with leopard pumps or booties, and a white bag. A toffee blazer, moto or trench coat is fab as an extra insulating layer. Or turn the colours upside down and wear burgundy bottoms with a tomato top. Add jewellery, eyewear, and watch as desired. 

I just bought a raglan sleeve toffee turtleneck in a fluid fit from the Gap, which I plan to pair with white jeans, cognac booties, cognac belt, and my tomato red coat. I don’t have a burgundy bag, so for the moment I’ll leave out that component and wear a white satchel instead. Here’s that collection, where I substituted a J.Crew coat from their current range because my one is no longer available.