Reviews of books, products, services
Dutch fashion designers Viktor Horsting and Rolf Snoreren met as first year fashion students at the Arnhem Academy of Arts and Design in 1988. In 1992 upon graduation they moved to Paris and began their collaboration and became Vicktor and Rolf after winning the Hyeres Prize with an entry that included this outfit. Their…
I was lucky enough to see (and meet) Ari Seth Cohen, author of Advanced Style (blog, movie and books) in action as he politely asked women to pose for him as he took photos. He was in Melbourne promoting his new book Advanced Style – Older and Wiser and I caught him at Readings Bookstore…
I’m really excited to be telling you about my Academy of Professional Image new and updated Certified Personal Stylist and Image Mastery training programs that are now available in the classroom and as a distance learning program so that everyone who can’t come and sit in my classroom can still get really detailed and thorough…
One of the benefits of living in Australia is how close we are to South East Asia, and therefore masses of great Asian restaurants. Next time you’re looking for somewhere to eat, check out one of these great Asian restaurants. Jing Jai Thai – Melbourne Thai food is one of those cuisines I absolutely love…
Bendigo Art Gallery has been making a name for itself these past few years amongst the fashion lovers of Victoria as it puts on fashion exhibitions of the highest calibre. Their current exhibition does not disappoint and is a must-see for anyone who loves fashion as art and theatre or sewing. Recently I went…
Melbourne is a city full of amazing food. Eating out for brunch on the weekend has to be a local past time here. Finding some delicious food in your local area isn’t hard, and some of the best places aren’t always in the busiest places. You can find amazing places to eat on the backstreets…
I have a fairly large library of image, style and colour related titles on my bookshelf and I add to it reasonably frequently (though there is just so much out there that I can’t keep up with it all sadly). Some books I think are worth the read… others less so. So what are some…
Last night I witnessed a stunning performance of the record breaking London Palladium production of the classic musical The Sound of Music which has just opened at the Regent’s Theatre in Melbourne. Opening nights are always magic, with the celebrity spotting red carpet before the show and well dressed theatre patrons in their finery (and…
One of my fondest memories of my late teen years was watching the Saturday afternoon musical movie that would play on the TV. All those fabulous old films from the 1940s with Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers and Gene Kelly. I loved watching the dancing, the gorgeous costumes (those dresses … divine) and it spawned my…
The First Monday in May is a documentary film around the making of The Met Gala ball, but it’s so much more than that. It’s a virtual feast of exquisite fashion curated by the genius of Andrew Bolton of the Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. This film is a…
200 Years of Australian fashion is a celebration of over 90 designers and makers, from early dressmaking establishments, through the mid-century salons of the “Paris End” of Collins Street to contemporary fashion designers of today. The exhibition starts with a series of images projected onto curtains all set on the beach. Paola di Troccio the…
There are a number of wardrobing and outfit planning apps out available so I asked my readers which they used and what they liked. Here are their thoughts and experiences on some of the wardrobe apps currently on the market. ClosetSpace Helen:I use ClosetSpace on my Android phone and occasionally the computer. Its essentially an…
Sponsored by Nuffnang and Cats the Musical The all singing, all dancing Cats the musical is back in Melbourne and I was lucky enough to enjoy the red carpet premiere’s on Sunday evening. Star spotting on arrival is fun, and it was interesting that many celebrities brought their kids to the performance. The biggest name…
I’ve got a confession. I’m a chocoholic. I’ve been a chocoholic since childhood. My brother hates chocolate, and I love it. I always thought that I got the love of chocolate for two since he didn’t like it. He got the love of licorice (I hate that). When I was invited to take a Chocolate…
A friend of mine told me last year that she’d spent some time playing Kate Winslet’s body double in a movie called The Dressmaker (not the naked kind, the clothed kind of body double). From what she told me and watching the movie trailer I knew that I had to see it. As soon as…
Ruth Essex is also an image consultant (in the UK) who has taken part in my 31 day Evolve Your Style challenge has written this review of the program and I asked her if I could share it with you. She kindly said yes. Prologue: This summer I went on a big adventure and together…
I was lucky enough to be invited to the launch of the Miss Fisher Mysteries (ABC TV) costume exhibition just opened at Rippon Lea House, a gorgeous Victorian mansion in Melbourne’s Elsternwick. We were plied with yummy champagne and fed with canapes before we got to hear from the producers of the ABC TV show…
On Saturday I attended the AICI (Association of Image Consultants International) Melbourne Chapter event titled Resilient Women. The women who were featured came mostly from the fashion industry, three of them designers and one a doctor. When asked about resilience, which is such an important attribute for women both in life and in work. Apart…
A year ago, after having been writing this blog for 7 years, I realised that maybe (just maybe) it was time to upgrade my camera so I could take some better photos. I’d previously been using either my iphone camera (which I still do use at times) or a small Sony Bloggie (which worked great…
Saturday 18 April 2015 1-4pm – Upstairs at Honey Bar Clarendon St South Melbourne Are you in Melbourne and interested in learning the secrets of resilience and success from a bunch of amazing women – then this is an event not to be missed and it’s open to everyone, not just AICI members – have…
What’s this book got to do with style you ask? Well nothing really, though I do love the verbal stylings of Ms Amy Poehler which is why I decided to listen to this as an audiobook rather than read it (plus these days I have so little time to read, but can listen to something…