To have and to hold. The best in bridal bags

For the first post of my new ‘Bridal Styling Sunday’ blogging, I thought I would ease us into things by kicking off with a post on bridal accessories, or more specifically, bridal bags.  (Yes, I am aware that today is Monday, but let’s pretend it’s not).

A bridal bag is usually the last thing a bride considers when it comes to her wedding outfit.  In fairness, not every bride will need a bag for their wedding day, but of course a stylish bride will have the complete outfit; the exquisite dress, divine shoes and a perfectly matching bag to hold her lipstick, powder, maybe her something old or borrowed and other necessities.

Now ladies, your average satin, drawstring pouch simply won’t cut it in the stylish bride stakes these days. Your bag must be a staple piece in itself yet, it must tie in effortlessly with your gown and the overall theme of the day. To give you a helping hand, I’ve researched some of the best pieces out there to suit your personal bridal style and also ideas on how your bridesmaids could match.

For the Modern Bride

My modern day brides are dressed in clean-cut, minimalistic gowns and their wedding theme always has a touch of evening glamour. This stunning clutch from Coast will be the perfect accessory for a Grecian style, column gown and have your bridesmaids compliment you with this pleated metallic number.

For the Romantic Bride

A romantic bride will be searching for their fairy tale dress and what better way to accessorise than with this dreamy feather clutch. Your bridesmaids can stay romantic too with this sophisticated embellished clutch in silky satin.

For the Destination Bride

Travelling abroad for your big day? Then you’ll want to add a touch of jet-setting cool to your outfit. This River Island clutch with delicate cut-out detail will be ideal for beach brides. A neutral coloured accessory for your bridesmaids will help show off their tan and will compliment most colour schemes.

For the Vintage Bride

You don’t get more vintage than bows and flowers and these two pieces will be ideal for vintage-inspired weddings. A more refined style of vintage bridal, the two pieces complement each other perfectly and you’ll also find these soft hues will be very flattering for ivory-white gowns.

If you're interested in finding out more about my bridal styling service you can view the details on my website http://www.noreen-elizabeth-styling.com/ or come back next Sunday to view more of my top bridal styling tips!


Noreen xx

Bridal Styling Sunday

From now on I’ll be dedicating my Sundays to Brides!

I’ll be bringing you exclusive blog posts filled with expert tips on all aspects of your wedding outfit. Every week you’ll discover styling essentials from; how to choose the right dress and the best accessories, to ideas for styling your entire bridal party, including the mother of the bride.

Catch up on all the latest and best styling tips every week for free!

Be the first to find out about what's happening in the world of Noreen Elizabeth Styling and join my Facebook page or follow me on Twitter @NE_Styling!

Noreen xx

Topshop's 'secret store'

While searching for a new outfit for the bank holiday weekend ahead I stumbled across Topshop’s new online ‘secret store’.  The secret ‘Wild at heart’ store features new collaborations with super trendy designers Meadham Kirchhoff, Tom Scott, Nazir Mazhar and many more. 

Offering a limited number of hand-crafted, one-off pieces the store truly hosts a “trove of treasures” for fashion-lovers alike.  From jewellery and accessories to vintage inspired frocks, there’s an air of festival about each piece, which makes them a must-buy for this time of year.  I’ve selected a few of my favourite pieces and added them below, but I’d urge you to have a sneak peek online for yourself as there’s also a chance to win a £500 flower-inspired Topshop spree.  How very generous?

http://www.topshop.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/TopCategoriesDisplay?storeId=12556&catalogId=33057

I love the colours and the instructions to wear them all at once!

Is this or is this not an essential jewellery piece for the festival season?....It is!

I adore the Aztec inspired design, perfect with a simple tee and a pair of your favourite jeans.

 Fancy creating your own tee?

 This bangle is a perfect match for a ring I bought from a vintage store back home in Ireland. I will definitely be investing in this piece.

 A perfect piece for evening glamour

 

This is a Glastonbury frock if ever I saw one

 

The eastern influence in this piece is bang on trend for this season and the colours are stunning.

 

I like to think of this as a wearable piece of art too…

Final pictures from our shoot with Ellie

These are the final pictures I've been sent by the photographer Anna Vasylonok from our shoot with Ellie.
Feel free to leave your comments and thoughts!

Thought I'd take this opportunity to also welcome all of the new readers from Malaysia and Russia! Hope you guys are enjoying reading the blog!

If you want to add your own stylish pics you can do so on my Facebook page, just search for Noreen Elizabeth Styling. You can now also follow me on Twitter @NE_Styling.

xx

What it's like to be styled by Noreen Elizabeth

One of the first clients I ever worked with was a lady called Kelly who was introduced to me by a mutual friend. She was looking for a ‘dress to impress’ for a Christmas party and wanted a little advice and help from someone who knew about dressing to flatter body shapes, was up-to-date with the latest trends and knew the best stores to go to.

After two years since we first met we still keep in touch and I recently asked her to write a few words about our first styling session for my website and she has very kindly sent me such an overwhelming testimonial that I thought I’d share with you her views and likes of the Noreen Elizabeth Styling service.

I had an upcoming Christmas party that I wanted to make a true statement at but I was increasingly getting frustrated by trying on new trends that did not suit me and reverting back to the good old  boring ‘little black dress’ that I had so many of. I had been recommended Noreen Elizabeth from a friend who suggested that I have a consultation with her to see if she could help. At this point I had nothing to lose so I agreed.

I must say that from the first meeting I could tell that Noreen had spent a great deal of time gathering information on current trends and what was out there in the marketplace before we had the consultation.

At the consultation Noreen asked insightful questions to understand the venue I was attending, where my confidence levels were with my figure/style etc. and what I normally buy and feel comfortable in. This was followed by a colour and body shape dressing session in which I was provided with recommended styles/colours that would work with my body type, hair and skin tones. To my surprise strong  colours were key for me so I decided to keep this in my mind when going shopping with Noreen and to be open to trying new things.

Noreen was extremely friendly, patient and it felt like going shopping with an old friend (but a friend that really knew what they were talking about). It did not take long to find the perfect dress for the occasion and what was invaluable for me was the learning’s that I gained throughout the shopping session. By trying on different outfits and styles, I was advised what parts worked and what didn’t and why. This knowledge I am still using today and helps me out every time I struggle to find that perfect outfit.

The outcome was I purchased an electric blue dress, with a shocking pink handbag and jewellery to match that looked amazing together and fit me perfectly and to this day without using Noreen Elizabeth Styling I would never have put this outfit together or even tried on the dress at all. I would recommend anybody to use Noreen be that for a special occasion or just purely because you are stuck in a fashion/trend rut.

Kelly, County Durham.

Kate's dress

If you’ve had a look at my website, you will have seen that I also work as a bridal stylist, styling brides and their bridal party for their big day.  When I first meet with my bridal clients, I instantly have a vision in my head of the perfect dress and style for them, so when Kate and William announced their engagement I had an instant flash of the gown, the shoes, etc.

Styling brides for their wedding day isn’t as simple as that of course.  Before I get to work creating the outfit for them, I always meet with the bride to consult on her ideas and expectations, the wedding date, the venue, the ceremony type, etc.  With Ms Middleton, this would have been quite the consultation;

So, tell me about the groom? ….The Prince of England? Good choice!

What about the ceremony, where’s that going to be?.... Westminister Abbey? Fab!

And the venue, was it where you always imagined it would be?..... Buckingham Palace? That would be my choice too.

This wedding is a pretty big deal, whether you’re interested in it or not, after all, this is the future King and Queen of England.  But if I’m truly honest about it, and I guess this may not come as a surprise, I’m most excited about seeing ‘the dress’! 

This dress is going to be the most talked about wedding dress of the decade, it’s going to set future bridal fashion trends around the world and most importantly it’s going to give us the biggest insight into Kate’s personal style.  A woman’s wedding dress is the one dress she will pour their heart and soul into shopping for, designing, buying, etc, so this will be the best representation of her style that we have seen to date.

So how would it have looked if I’d been asked to style Kate?

I would have chosen a dress fit for a princess and this Angel Rivera would have been my first choice.  Kate usually goes for a slim fit in her dresses which is perfect for her lean silhouette, however, I would have chosen something grand and out of the ordinary for this occasion.  She’s getting married in Westminister Abbey, and you want the dress to make an impact in such a huge venue.

The sweetheart neckline, perhaps this one is a little too low for the occasion, is perfect for Kate’s décolletage and will show off her fantastic bone structure. 

The twist on the neckline brings a modern element to the dress too, which I think would be a must for Kate and the fitted bodice is still going to show off Kate’s slim figure.


A longer train is another must, again you want to make an impact, although I’ve read she’s going to have to do a little bit of walking during the ceremony, so I wouldn’t recommend a Diana style train.

I imagine she’ll have to cover her arms and shoulders, so I’d recommend organza sleeves to compliment the fabric choice seen here, the sheer organza sleeves would reveal Kate’s toned and slender arms.  I think lace is too old for Kate, but I have a feeling she will go for a Grace Kelly style gown. 

                                               

I’d also have a look for a modern day glass slipper and choose something similar to these custom and handmade shoes by Emmy Shoes.  Aren’t they amazing?  Instead of a pink highlight and gold embellishments, Kate’s colouring would demand silver, perhaps blue highlights if she was feeling bold.

The excitement has taken over, I’m off to stick myself infront of Sky News and wait for the big moment when Kate arrives in her dress.  To keep up with my thoughts on her dress, you can read my tweets @NE_Styling.

If you’re watching the wedding today or simply enjoying a day off, have a good one!

Noreen xx

The fine line

So here we are with another big trend for SS ’11…..Stripes!  And I thought I’d share with you a few of my top styling tips for wearing them.

If used correctly, stripes can create miracles for any body shape.  As a stylist, I often use stripes for my clients as part of what I like to call ‘Illusion Dressing’.  It’s a way of dressing to enhance your best bits, whilst distracting from those less favourable areas. 

The secret behind wearing stripes effectively is understanding what it is stripes are doing when you wear them.  Once you understand this, you’ll be able to use stripes in your outfits to create any illusion you want.  Whether you want to disguise a fuller bust, create the illusion of curves or distract attention from broader hips, stripes are the perfect styling tool!

What do you need to know about stripes? Well, it's very simple...

·     Horizontal stripes draw the eye across your body from left to right; this adds width to your figure.  This may not be ideal for all, but if you have a boyish frame and want to create the illusion of curves, horizontal stripes are the perfect styling tool for you!

·    Vertical stripes draw the eye up and down your body creating the illusion of height; this also has a slimming effect.  So if your body shape is top heavy, wearing horizontal stripes on top will make your torso seem longer and slimmer and will help to balance your broader torso with your slimmer lower half.

Images courtesy of ASOS.com




Designers and the high street have been focusing on bigger, bolder and wild-coloured stripes for this trend, but before you invest in any new stripes for your wardrobe, think about what you want stripes to do for your body shape, follow my tips and you’re guaranteed to avoid any unnecessary and unflattering outfit mishaps.

To give you a head start, and encourage you to make the most of the glorious weather, I’ve found the best striped dresses that are available in the shops now and matched them according to each of the different body shapes.  There’s no better way to be on-trend this spring than saying goodbye to predictable florals and hello to bold and beautiful stripes!

Alice Dress, Hobbs at John Lewis £229.00
This dress is perfect for top heavy ladies.  The vertical lines on top will slim down your fuller bust and the horizontal lines on the bottom will add width to your noarrow hips, helping to balance your frame.  Wearing two different stripes together is also bang on trend for SS ’11.

Prom Dress, Oasis at ASOS.com, £65.00

Ideal for pear shapes.  The darker area of horizontal lines on the neckline will draw the eye up to your petite upper body, the thick waistband will emphasise your tiny waist and the darker area on the hem of the skirt will draw the eye to your well defined calves.  Your broad hips will go completely unnoticed.

Vila at ASOS.com, £22.00

Ideal for apple shapes. The vertical lines will add height and create a slimming illusion for you on top.  The shorter length means you’ll get to show off you’re slim legs and the tie at the waist will create the illusion of a defined waist.

Boutique by Jaeger at ASOS.com, £180.00

A perfect little number for straight up and down or boyish frames.  The broad, horizontal stripes will create the illusion of hourglass curves, while the sleeveless design lets you show off your well-toned arms.

Dorothy Perkins, £52.00

Hourglass ladies will get to show off their perfect figure with this LRD.  The evenly spaced stripes throughout the dress will emphasise your well-balanced frame and the pleats at the waistband will add definition to your petite waist.






If you're curious to find out more about my styling tips, would like to read about a certain styling topic or have a styling question you're itching to ask, please feel free to leave your comments, suggestions or questions below.


Next Blog post.....How I would have styled Kate for the big day!




Noreen x