What to wear on your first day of work

I’m starting a new job on Monday.  I’ll be the new kid on the block, at 42, that’s no mean feat.  I’ll be making friendly chit-chat and skulk out on my own at lunchtime.  I’ll have to ask where the loo is, how to make the coffee, what the kitchen etiquette is and how soon can I bring in my dog.  Yes sisters, you heard it here first, it’s a dog friendly workplace. Winning.

But I know that all of that will be a whisper in the wind by the end of the week, once I’ve worked with these awesome new people for a few days and I get the hang of the place.

What I am becoming super preoccupied with though, is what the hell do I wear?  It’s not a corporate, but I’ll be working with corporate clients, it’s not a big company, but I’ll be working with big companies.  It’s not shorts and jandles and it’s not suit and tie.  It’s the…..dum duh num dum……the inbetween.  Aggggggh (think 1950’s screen siren scream here).

Is anyone else like me and on their first day of school, a new job or a wedding and you absolutely have to purchase a new outfit?  Or is that just me?  Well, it is me, I have to own that.

So, I have a pair of Zara nautical styled (more on that style theme in another blog post soon) trousers I purchased in Sydney recently, that I haven’t worn.  I am having them taken up right now, cause I’d look like Groucho Marx if I didn’t.  But that’s as far as I’ve got.  Bugger.

I don’t want to go full nautical, corporate or too casual.  I am in a quandary.  My old clothes from corporate-ville are maybe a little too tired, but I only need a top,  now I have bottom half sorted.  So it’s a top, oh and some shoes.  I got my nails done last week by Pop Nails and they are fab-u-lous.  So that leaves me needing just a top and shoes, maybe some earrings.  Oh shit. Ok, breathe.

So, work with me sisters,  maybe I suck it up, wear a top I already have and then add some cool shoes.  Wanna know the shoes I’m trying to decide between?  You do? Ok, check these puppies out from Gorman and then these gorgeous ones from Kathryn Wilson.  Swoon much? But I can’t have both.  I have also been coveting these ones from Augustine, but they frustratingly sold out over the weekend.  I need to up my game, as I keep spying things I love and missing out by waiting too long.  Anyhoo, I digress.

What’s really exciting about starting a new job at this particular place and in an advertising and marketing environment means I can wear a T-shirt to work and it not be a major faux pas.  Call me crazy, but that is just beyond amazing.  I’m not talking simple T-Shirt and no bling.  I’m talking blinging that sucker out with a necklace and jacket and some mules and some other stuff and things, but just the mere thought of wearing the T-Shirt, with adornment, has got me all hot under the collar.  It probably means I should make more of an effort to find that elusive perfect white T  that I’ve been hunting for then shouldn’t I.

So wish me luck sisters, the ideas could all change tomorrow, but I reckon I am pretty darn excited for what I have in store for me in this new role.  I can’t wait to learn new stuff, meet new people and get some serious shit done.  I am chomping at the bit.  It’ll make for some exciting satorial adventures again too.

If you want to see the whole look come together, make sure you follow me on instagram @sisterhoodofstylenz and check out my Monday morning post.

And sisters, remember, if you need help styling YOUR first day of work at a new job, contact me today to book a styling session,  I would love to work wtih you.  Email me at emma@sisterhoodofstyle.com today.

Mmmmmwah, love EJ, the mother of the sisterhood of style xo

How to feel like Beyonce, every goddamn day

Hands up who wants to feel like Beyoncé, every goddamn day.  (imagine the hands up emoji here). I know I do.  So I will. I decided I would.  No one else, just me.  She’s fierce, fabulous and rocks her own style like no other.  You see, there’s no better magic than the magic in you sisters ,and I reckon you have it in you to bring it out and hear it roar.

My musings today started off being about accessorising, but when I thought more on this and started writing, I realised I just want you to feel less overwhelmed at the thought of “being stylish”.  I overheard another sister talking to a friend the other day saying that it was easier to wear stretchy pants and a sweatshirt, then it was to put on a great outfit.  I had to hold my tongue at that, but what I should have said is that it’s no harder putting on an outfit with some style involved, for instance, a skirt, a good fitting T-shirt and a necklace or scarf with a pair of white trainers (they don’t have to be high-end) that it is to put on a pair of black stretchy trackies or yoga pants, a top and a zip hoody.  Is it?

Well, if you still think that’s a tough one, here’s  3 easy steps to try and shake you out of your yoga pant groove and into a “Beyoncé state of mind”.  These can all be achieved without spending a single cent.

Add an accessory – try adding a colourful scarf, or a chunky necklace.  You could add some colourful earrings or a snazzy belt.  Own that snaz.  This is a quick way to jazz (and snaz) up an outfit with relatively little effort.  Now I challenge you to go into your deepest darkest parts of your drawers and wardrobes and dig out that accessory that you’ve stuck at the bottom of the pile.  Now put it on and own that sucker!

Wear your hair differently – try it and you will notice a difference.  Admittedly, this may be easier for those sisters with long hair, but you can always give it a go, even with a short style.  You could add a temporary colour if you have shorter hair, or try brushing your hair with a different parting, flipping it from the root to the other side, to add volume, like Riawna Capri does.  If you have long hair, try a fringe (I got one last week and it’s a keeper) or for something less permanent, you could a fierce do (Beyoncé styles) or a top-knot.  The trick with the top-knot is to not try too hard, make it effortless by pulling and brushing all your hair up onto the crown of your head, wrap and bend into a band and fasten with bobby pins.  Trying new options for your hair is often the number one way to rock your style, without spending a lot.

Challenge yourself – next time you reach for your stretchy black yoga pants and sweatshirts, take one of them off and add something with a bit more style (and it will look like you made just that little bit of extra effort).  If it’s the pants you take off, add jeans or a skirt, style it for relaxed look with trainers and the sweatshirt, do your hair and add a bit of lip gloss.  Just bring yourself up, one notch on the style ladder and by simply giving yourself the time and owning your own confidence, you will start to feel that little bit “more” for yourself.

Before you go, I wanted to share this.  I  know that you are likely feeling the pressure from society, from social media, friend and family  to “like” certain looks, but don’t forget to listen to your own inner voice telling you, knowing you and trusting you to like what you like. Your style journey is unique to you, whether it be wanting to gain more confidence in style after losing weight/having a baby, losing your boobs to a mastectomy or breastfeeding, or having lost yourself through a huge career or raising young children.  But I know you want to feel confident, so badly. And you want to find your style in order to help yourself shine.  You want to feel fantastic, mysterious, fun, causal at the right time and smoking hot the next. You don’t want to feel confused or embarrassed by your wardrobe.  So sisters, be like Beyoncé, every single day, feel like a a queen. Allow yourself the pleasure of feeling great about yourself everyday. If you need some extra encouragement, repeat after me WWBD?  (What would Beyoncé do?).

Mmmmwah, love EJ, the Queen of the Sisterhood of Style

Come hang out with me on Instagram @sisterhoodofstylenz

xo

 

 

 

What NOT to wear to a beauty pageant.

And the winner is….the crown, it was always about the crown. Ohhh and the sash, the sash was lovely and when I received one on my hen do, it made me feel all tingly inside, even though it said Bride to Be and not WINNER, MISS WORLD.

I always loved watching beauty pageants as a little girl.  And now, well now, I get to attend one, like my seven-year old says “in really true life”, see it live, maybe even trip backstage, and maybe, just maybe, touch that crown (is there a crown?) and covet that sash.  Miss Auckland, here I come.

As a wee girl I LOVED watching Lorraine Downes win Miss Universe back in 1983. She was the golden New Zealand Princess and I wanted to be her. It was one of the most exciting things I had ever seen, aside from when Princess Di married Prince Charles. The dresses, the posing, the outfits, the sparkly things and that farking crown; it was enormous and awesome and I wanted one. From there I watched every Miss Universe and Miss World (to be fair I didn’t know there was a difference at that time) that I could get my hands on and then moved onto the Benson & Hedges (icky cigarette sponsorship aside) Fashion Design Awards in the late 80’s. So you get the picture, I liked pageants  things a lot.  And to be honest, the love has never really died.

Then one of my many step-brothers just goes and gets his own “really true life” beauty queen and kick arse producer of awesome and she is pageant Director of Miss Auckland. The really cool thing about Miss Auckland is that the pageant motto is “beauty with purpose”, gotta love that.

So this weekend, we are going along as a family to hoot, holler and show our support.  I, of course, will be eyes on stalks and trying to get my hands on the crown (just for research purposes of course).

Cut to what to wear. I am in a total quandary as to what to wear. This Queen is confused. I’m not usually confused for sartorial options, but this is hard. There are so many faux pas to potentially make, so many ways I could cock this up. So, instead of compiling a list of what to wear, I’ve compiled a list of what not to wear.

1. SWIMSUIT This was easy, I mean, no, just no.

2. SEQUINS In my head, even if they don’t wear them, I imagine the night to be awash in sequins.  Do I dare try and compete?  I have a cool paid of Sass and Bide sequinned trousers, but I suspect I should be leaving them well alone.

3. ALL BLACK This look is probably best left for fashion week, rather than Miss Auckland

4. TWIN SET AND PEARLS I’m not a Dance Mom, so let’s not go there, even though I’m probably old enough to be one of the finalists big sisters; well alright, young aunt.  No?  OK, stop, (whisper) mother. So the Twin Set and pearls can shove it.

5. ACTIVE WEAR that would just be silly or psychotic.

6. A CROWN I so want to, but no, no, no.

So what will I wear to the ball?  Well I will either spend the next 24 hours obsessing over this or, choose in haste after a day in the garden with my boys, run inside, put my hair in a do and pull it together.  I suspect leopard print and a kaftan will be involved.  Watch this space sisters.

So in the meantime, I’ll leave you with this to ponder; the question asked of Gloria Diaz of Philippines in 1969 Miss Universe “in the next day or so, a man will land on the moon.  If a man from the moon landed in your hometown, what would you do to entertain him?”

See you later you gorgeous beautiful queens.

mmmmmwah, love  EJ, the mother of the sisterhood. xxxx

Welcome back, I’ve been expecting you

Hi there harem pants, cork wedges, gypsy-boho chic, off the shoulder, tied at the waist, embellished jackets, shoulder pads, how the hell are you? So you decided to visit us again, did you miss us, or did twenty years go by and you thought to give us another whirl?  Try another generation on for size.

I get that, it landed well last time, but you suspect this generation may just be the one to “get you” and you wanna go steady.  That’s cool, you’re just displaying the repetition theory in fashion.

So I guess nothing is new and new is old and old is recycled and everything has been seen before.  But now, right now, as you wear the off the shoulder top and the cork wedge, it’s new for you and it resonates in this moment in time and you love what you have on.  But then, so may have your mum back in the 60’s, 70’s, 80’s and 90’s.

The theory goes and to be honest, isn’t rocket science,  that there is a recycling theory in fashion every 20 years or so and styles “re-emerge”, reimagined.  If you look at what’s hot for spring / summer 2016 – off the shoulder (hot in the 80’s), the ruffles (Victorian era anyone?), the gorgeous suede skirts (hey Hippie 70’s) and the flat mule (hello 1990’s), they all tip their hats to another era, in some way.  I love that some of the 80’s synching in at the waist (suits me hiding my mum-tum) and the glitz and gold of that era is filtering into some of the styling I love in 2016.

This Spring/Summer, keep a look out for paper-bag waists (it looks like a paper bag, at your waist, just before you blow into it cause you’re hyperventilating), netting, wearing gauzy lingere over your clothes (I am chuffed to say I did this in the 90’s on my OE and my dad though I was wearing a nightie – result!)

And remember, if the style you loved in the 90’s is making a comeback and you loved it then, then try it again, it can’t hurt you. No one said it better than the glorious Iris Apfel “if you make a mistake in what you put together, the fashion police are not going to haul you into jail”

What style do you love that’s been here before?

Mmmmmwah,

EJ, the mother of the Sisterhood of Style x

White T-Shirt Tales.

Despite knowing better sisters, I have a deep love of white T-Shirts.  In my head, I look like a movie star, all oiled on the decollatage, perfect pointy breasts sitting nicely but not obviously in my tee, as I drape languidly in a chair sipping a wine on a balcony looking over Capri.  My long tousled hair gently falling over my shoulders and softly landing at the middle of my back.  We are eating a beautiful red tomato based meal as I  wear this white T-shirt and none of it slips, trips or falls onto it.  There are no stains or dirty hands, snot or otherwise near this beautiful crisp white tee.  None whatsoever.

Cut to reality.

White T’s and me have a love-hate relationship.  I love them, they hate me.  Well that’s not entirely true, but they don’t freaking love me all out like a teenage love, they just somewhat tolerate me and my boobs and hips and mummy-tummy, my kids snot, underarm “persperation”, makeup and pasta meals.

So why do I love them so much?  They are so simple to style well.  Dress them up with a blazer and necklace with jeans and call yourself done.  You can tie it at the waist, pop on a maxi skirt and look freaking gypsy chic sorted.  Wearing it with shorts, jeans, skirts, trousers, jackets, denim is all possible and I could go on, but I won’t ’cause white T-Shirts work with everything. End of story.

But there’s a hidden dark secret – finding  the right one can be hard.  Just like that elusive pair of great fitting jeans, white T-shirts can sometimes be an epic fail.  Especially if you have boobs, hips and a bit of under bra back bulge that white tee can be a little bit unforgiving.

So I’m on a mission my sisters, to find a great white T-shirt that can marry my boobs, my hips and my mummy tummy and tolerate my kids hands, snot and my deep love of pesto pasta.  I’m going to track it down before summer hits and I will let you in on the find.

In the meantime, here’s some that you could try for yourselves, because I absolutely believe a white T-Shirt should be in your wardrobe, ready at a moments notice to make you look effortlessly styled.

Kowtow clothing  recommended to me by an ace style maven,this tee has length in the arms, which I like – a lot. It’s choppy at $89 but could be a solid find.

ASColour is a favourite of mine, cause you can dress the whole family in T-shirts and sweartshirts with their special of 5 garments for $110.  Their fit is probably the most forgiving and I have high hopes of finding my summer tee here.  My only gripe is that the lower cut versions can be a bit gappy on the boob, but great fitting everywhere else.

Bassike I don’t own one, but I might, because I have heard on good authority they keep their shape and their cotton is durable and soft.

Then there are these options I recently found at  Decjuba .  I tried on all of their White tee offerings and it was an experience of great highs (I loved the look of all of them) and a brief low when I realised my assets got in the way.  🙂

So sisters, I haven’t found her yet, but I will persevere.  I will leave no white T-shirt unfolded.  I will prevail.

I’m a woman on a mission.  If you have found the perfect white tee, share it with the group.

Mmmmwah, love, the mother of the sisterhood of style.

EJ x

 

The Bomber bummer: my appointment with disappointment.

The trials and tribulations of denying yourself the jacket you most want. Why? Because I was I was starting to resemble a potato in a really great jacket…for the full story, read on.

One of these things isn’t like the other…

I am a huge fan of ankle-boots.   A few years ago, not so much.  Well, a few more than a few years ago to be exact.  Pre-motherhood I was all about the knee high boot (cause damn girl, you look hot in knee highs right?) but that was about it.  Ankle boots didn’t come into my line of sight.  I thought they were a bit old fashioned, and truth be told they probably were a decade ago.

But once motherhood hit and my sky high heels didn’t really cut the mustard at my mothers coffee group, I had a change of heart.

There were nerves – “what about the cankles?” I screamed inwardly, “what about my thick calves?” I sighed. But that was the BS talking.  Cankles and calves be damned, I wanted to look stylish, walk around easily, not poke my toddler in the eye with a stiletto and actually feel fashion fit.

So I branched out, it was fun and it was fabulous.  Suddenly the cankles I thought I had were hidden (they aren’t really there) by a gorgeous little boot.  The other great thing about ankle boots is that they are summer and winter ready.  They look amazing with shorts, skirts and dresses in summer and then double up with tights in the winters and hey presto, a new key look.

 And then I became enraptured with the Chloe Susannah Boot but at a cool $1800+ (NZ )it wasn’t high on priorities.  Well it was, but you know, common sense prevailed before I hit “buy now”.

But it got me thinking about trends and not always wanting to pay the heavy price of designer ones.  I love a bit of both, high end fashion statement options and a few bits and pieces from the high street that support that high end look.

So I hunted out some look-a-likes.  Ones that I knew would satisfy my lust for this particular look, but fully aware that I wasn’t likely to keep them in my wardrobe for years.  I was delighted to find quite a few options out there, but finally settled on these Rubi Boots.

I feel chuffed to find a pair of boots that I really like, are comfortable, make me feel rockabilly chic and a little bit country.  I like that I did my homework, tried on several options, settled on the one that looked most like my original hearts desire and boom!  I got the boots.  Happy girl.

So now my wardrobe has a few pairs of ankle boots, including my buckled, bedazzled splendid soles – helping me to walk confidently in any occasion.  My hubby is even talking about buying me a pair of high-top sneakers this year (I will report back if this happens).  If you see him, tell I am keen on the REEBOK high top, just like the ones my mum rocked back in the 80’s.  😉

Get yourselves suited and booted my sisters.

mmmmwaaaaah  EJ x

From the featured image – clockwise from top left:

Chloe Susannah Boot approx. $1800NZ – check out Polyvore for more styles.

Wittner Jerome Boot $249 AU

Rubi Lloyd Boot $69.95 NZ

ASOS Arrive Boot $84 NZ