GLOSS Issue 19 DEC 2014-JAN 2015 | Page 61

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.