And so combine this with my being a mercurial
Gemini, and you have a glimpse of my signature
style – dramatic (love black and white); Innovative
– those special pieces put together in creative
ways, and a relaxed less structured style to allow
me ease of movement. I like the unexpected bit
of waggishness when it comes to dressing - it’s
got to be fun.
So, what about you? How would you tell your
story through the clothes you choose to wear?
What have been the influences in your life that
has shaped it the way it is?
When you know who you are and what you want,
and dress like you mean it, people notice. You
get treated with respect, people defer to you,
because evidently, you know something they
don’t. You know that scene in the ‘Pretty Woman’
movie? That scenario is not far from the truth.
So how do you develop your own signature style?
Firstly, you need to focus on YOU – and not be
distracted by what you think others expect you
to wear or by wearing something you liked on
someone else and expect it to work for you. It
might work – but then it might not. Your style
must reflect the true YOU, your uniqueness, your
style preferences, your STORY!
So what is your story? What has shaped you to
be the person you are today?
I am Evelyn Lundstrom, and have grown up
in a household of girls. My mother was very
stylish and owned a fashion store in Devonport
Tasmania. She made regular trips to Sydney
and Melbourne to buy stock and it was always
different to anything else around in our small
town.
I developed an eye for quality at an early age,
and would buy Butterick and McCalls Sewing
patterns and the best fabrics I could find - all
in my early teens because I wanted to create
something different for myself. I changed the
patterns, often using the ‘top’ of one and the
‘bottom’ of another – just for fun.
My aunts and grandmother often sought my
approval on something before they purchased a
frock or that ‘once-every-six-year’ coat.
There are steps to starting to develop your
signature style and they are:
1
Check out what you already have and
assess whether they work for your lifestyle,
your personality, your body dynamics and
best features, and quirky style preferences.
2
Decide on the elements that will make
up YOUR style signature including the
type of accessories you love, your level of
grooming, how much of fashion you like to
play with.
3
Raise your SQ (Style Quotient) by
blending all of the above to create
a ‘style-synesthesia’ – which is your
unique style signature. You will dress for
every occasion, infusing your ‘style’ into
everything you wear and carry.
At last, you start to dress in a way that is
congruent with the person you are now. It’s
authentic and you will know it. You will trust
yourself to break out of ‘sameness’. You won’t
worry about what the latest fashion is, what the
‘must buy colour of the season’ is – you will dress
and know that you stand out for all the right
reasons, having much more fun being YOU.