Here are a few more fab Summer finds, all tried and tested by my clients. Make sure you browse through all the size and colour options. 

1. Zara Jacquard Blazer: The cut is tailored and loose at the same time. Genius. Love the shorter hemline at the back. It’s a little more orange than red in real life. Runs small. 
2. Bellefleur Polka Dot Voile Shirt: Breezy, cool and covered. It’s soft, 100% cotton and looks fab knotted at the waist. Runs large so you might need to size down. 
3. Vince Camuto Midi Tube Skirt: Comfortable, forgiving and has length. Great with a boxy untucked blouse for a de-bombshelled effect. 
4. Vince Camuto Minter Sandal: Edgy yet pretty, and with a manageable heel height. Quite comfortable. The off-white gets my top vote.
5. Vince Camuto Lilliana3 Slipper Flats: I tried on countless slipper flats across all price points this season. I finally settled on these because they are super comfy and the most fun style choice. Sparkly, patterned feet makes me smile. 
6. Suzi Chin for Maggy Boutique Front Knot Jersey Dress: This dress is surprisingly flattering in regular and plus sizes, although it had little hanger appeal. Fab with a dainty flat sandal. 
7. Vince Camuto Blouson Jersey Dress: Grecian, gorgeous, flirty and fab for a hot day. No plunging necklines or overly bare arms. Dress it up or down. Add a belt, denim jacket and sandals and you are good to go. 

When I read over this list it struck me that I had included so many Vince Camuto items. They had winners this season. 

I have prominent laughter lines around my mouth and under my cheeks. They are visible when my face is without expression. And when I laugh, my facial creases are on steroids. These lines are a natural sign of aging — I turn 42 in a few weeks. 

I started developing my laughter lines many years ago. I guess that’s because, thankfully, there is no shortage of laughter in my life. Yet as the lines became more noticeable over time, they made me feel less than fab. And as recently as three years ago at age 39, I definitely would have preferred NOT to have them. I couldn’t cover them up and they were only going to get more pronounced as I grew older.  

I asked hubby Greg what he thought of my laughter lines just before I turned 40, and what he said was instrumental to me changing the way I thought about them. He said that facial lines are inevitable and we should expect to get them as we grow older. But that they are natural and they add character to our faces.

From that moment onwards I felt very differently about my laughter lines. I thought more about their origin and what it means to have them.

Lines that are created through the habitual facial expressions of smiling and laughing can’t be bad. On the contrary, their cause cuts to the very core of daily happiness. We all love to laugh. Laughter creates a state of well being that can’t be beat. It is the shortest distance between two people. And a day without laughter is a sad one. 

I’m attracted to people who smile and laugh a lot. I can be completely captivated by a person’s smile, and find the joyful bellow of deep laughter energizing and therapeutic. If laughing causes wrinkles on our faces then so be it. Bring on the laughter and embrace the lines. Love them for being proof that you laughed throughout your life. And I’ll love you even more because of your laughter lines. 

The attractive coffee table book Audrey 100, by Ellen Fontana, features one hundred full page photos of unforgettable movie star and style icon extraordinaire Audrey Hepburn. All pictures were carefully selected by her partner and two sons to convey Audrey’s personal story and the qualities she stood for throughout her life and career. We follow the well-known actress, humanitarian and mother over a time span of forty years, and through these “100 emotions, 100 feelings, 100 little pieces of time, slowly a new image begins to emerge: a work of art dedicated to her life, her joys, her sorrows, her mischievousness, her laughter”. 

For as long as I can remember I’ve been a huge fan of Audrey, the style icon and actress (and Angie is too — her Pinterest board is a real treat). There is just no one like her. She is simple elegance personified. Her natural grace, gamine style, pixie cut, black cigarette pants, flat footwear and high necklines are all iconic, “so Audrey”, as we often exclaim. But it wasn’t until 1989, when Miss Hepburn appeared in the opening show for the first Flemish commercial television station, that I fell in love with Audrey, the person. She was there to talk about her work as a UNICEF International Goodwill Ambassador, and it immediately struck me how she radiated quiet determination and compassion. She devoted the last five years of her life to helping impoverished children in war and disease stricken countries, witnessed unspeakable suffering, yet remained optimistic and hopeful. For the life of me I can’t remember what she was wearing that night – I expect it was a stunning gown – but I’ll never forget the smile in her voice while talking about these children, or the kindness with which she treated everyone she met. Since then she’s become my example of inner beauty always shining through, regardless of outward appearances. And each time Angie mentions how a smile from the heart increases your style quotient, I go “That’s so Audrey!”. 

Do you have a style icon that you admire for more than her or his fabulous fashion sense? And at the opposite end of the spectrum: do you think it’s possible to love someone’s style without liking the person behind the clothes?

Reminder: The Handmaid’s Tale for June 29

Friday 29 June is kick-off day for our next Book Club title. We’ll be chatting about Margaret Atwood’s dystopian novel The Handmaid’s Tale.

The Summer retail season is almost at an end and it won’t be long before the first Fall collections hit stores. I’d like to hear your thoughts on what was fab, and not so fab for Spring and Summer 2012. 

Based on the shopping expeditions with my clients and shopping for my own wardrobe, these are my perceptions. 

Raves

• It’s been an outstanding season of colour and pattern in ALL wardrobe items. The best variety and interpretation I’ve seen in years. And if you prefer neutrals and solids, there were plenty of those around too. 
• The variety of denim product has been stellar for several seasons, and this year is no exception. 
• No ruffle overload. 
• No empire cut overload. 
• Great assortment of Summer knitwear.
• Great assortment of flat footwear. 
• This has been the season for the breezy blouse and top! Gorgeous options. 
• Woven tops are as widely available as knitted tops. 
• Although there are still too many sleeveless and capped sleeved items in stores, sleeved tops are far less scarce. 
• Summer jackets and blazers are plentiful as cardigans take a back seat. A nice change after the cardigan overload. 
• The assortment of sandals has been superb, especially if you can wear high heels. 
• The availability of fabulous low heeled footwear is improving. 
• It’s been a brilliant trouser and shorts season. Variety galore.  

Rants

• Unless you like maxi dresses, it’s been a dismal dress season. It’s been hard to find a flattering dress that’s not too short, too flimsy, too body conscious, too synthetic, too naked, too expensive or just too oddly proportioned. 
• It’s also been a pretty dismal skirt season unless pencil skirts and minis were your thing. No skirt variety at all. It’s been a trouser season all the way. 
• Tops have been more covered than in previous seasons, but many were awfully sheer. Camisoles are great, but we also have the right to NOT wear a camisole and still feel covered. 
• Cropped pants overload. 
• Coloured jeans overload.
• Although I love the voluminous blouse trend, there was a shortage of structured sleeved tops for those who prefer to wear their items more tailored. There were plenty of stunning button down shirts, but they aren’t everyone’s cup of tea. We needed more variety in tailored top silhouettes. 
• And here’s my largest rant: Warm weather can mean vacation and casual days by the beach and pool. But many of us actually need Summer clothes that we can wear to work. Stores are completely overloaded with beachwear. 

Over to you.