WORDS: Fiona Morrison
With the Christmas party season well and truly upon us, stylist Natasha Musson has helped women in their 30s, 40s and 50s pick out the perfect party outfit.
Meet the ladies
50s: Frances de Bosdari, owner of Ashridge Nurseries. Event: Christmas party drinks for Cancer charity Be Charmed for Good.
40s: Bini Ludlow, owner of Sweet Cumin Cookery School. Event: Food awards ceremony.
30s: Sally Manning, lawyer at Battens Solicitors Ltd. Event: company Christmas drinks.
Frances de Bosdari
Christmas is Frances’ busiest time of year. She has to wear very practical clothes to work, her jeans and boots perhaps, but at night she has some glamorous events to attend, including the cocktail party for Be Charmed for Good.
So, Natasha dresses Frances in a pair of very modern electric blue Joseph trousers. “They are made of crepe and so are very languid and loose and the edgy leather ankle cuff gives a modern twist to a classic cut. I’ve put them with a cream vest and a silk pyjama-style jacket in a cravat print. This single breasted but loose jacket tailors the outfit perfectly. Not everyone will be able to work these trousers. The pleat and fold at the front gives volume, so if they’re not for you, go for a classic cut like the red Joseph trousers I’m wearing. They will look equally good with the jacket. ”
Natasha adds traditional accessories: a gold sparkle bag and gold shoes to give the outfit a festive shimmer.
Outfit
New Shanghai trousers from Joseph in azure blue.
Blue jacket with cravat print from Joseph.
Cream silk vest from Joseph.
Gold sledge shoes - L K Bennett.
Gold sparkle handbag - LK Bennett.
Earrings – Stella & Dot.
Necklace & Bracelet – becharmed.com
Bini Ludlow
Chef and owner of the Sweet Cumin Cookery School, Bini juggles running Indian cookery courses, giving live demonstrations and generally cooking up a storm. She explains to Natasha that she will be attending an awards ceremony and that, fingers crossed, after mingling with guests, she will hopefully be on stage accepting an award. Natasha chooses a 1950s inspired outfit for Bini: “Bini has such a bubbly personality, so I just had to put her in something fun and stylish to reflect this. Bini has a petite, curvy figure, so separates look great on her. Again, I’ve gone for a strong colour, this time with a lovely cerise pink blouse paired with a short, very full skirt from Orla Kiely. It’s stylish with a glamorous thread of sparkle running through it. The pockets are great! Pockets make women feel very comfortable and are perfect at such a large scale event such as this where Bini will be very much the centre of attention. The wonderful quirky and colourful Chanii B shoes in black and raspberry are a perfect match and look great with the spotty tights.”
OuTfit
Sparkle ottoman skirt in black by Orla Kiely.
Cerise silk pink blouse – Boden.
Tresor shoes in black and raspberry – Chanii B.
Glitter belt, spotty tights, brooch and earrings – stylist’s own.
Sally Manning is a lawyer at Batten’s Solicitors. She wears smart clothes for work and is looking for an outfit that will take her straight from the office to a company Christmas drinks party. Natasha has picked out a beautiful satin grey embellished dress, a perfect work-to-party dress. The lovely slate grey is a good colour for the office and really flatters Sally’s skin tone. The longer length of this skater dress means that it’s appropriate in a corporate environment and the beautiful embellishment around the sleeves and the neckline can be covered with a cardigan during the day. The mixture of diamante and stud detail means there’s no need for a necklace and accessories can be kept to minimum with diamond earrings and bag.
“I’ve put Sally in one of this season’s biggest key trends: knee length boots. They dress the look down for daytime wear but the lovely suede material, the pointed toe and the ribbon stripe detail on the side of the boot make them glamorous enough for night time. For the evening drinks I’ve teamed the dress with a silver sparkly cardigan but in the office Sally could wear a plain black cardigan.”
Outfit
Grey diamante embellished dress – L K Bennett
Knee length suede boots in black – LK Bennett
Silver sparkle cardigan – LK Bennett
Earrings, bracelet & bag - model’s own
With three very happy ladies all set for their Christmas parties, Natasha’s final words are a reminder to have fun: “Never think you have to conform to age-group stereotypes. Mix things up. Be daring and use strong colour and enjoy wearing your outfit. Happy Christmas!”
Photography: photographybystefanie.co.uk
Hair: Amanda at Karen Christensen karenchristensen.co.uk Makeup: katievarney.co.uk
Nails: Hannah White, 07966 166573
