Party and Special Occasion Season doesn't have to cost a bomb!!

Isn't it always the way that party season seems to happen all in one swoop. We have school formals that seem to culminate in the second half of the year, that many a parent can go broke over, Melbourne Cup and race season and Christmas Parties to top it all off. After that comes New Year's Eve and before you know it, not only are our wallets detoxing, so is the body.

Most of us can face this time of year and really start to dread it. What's suitable for raceday isn't usually right for a Christmas Party. What is gorgeous and special on Christmas Day, you'd probably never wear if you're a mother of the bride. As a Stylist I find with so many different body shapes and styles out there, it's special occasion dressing that seems to be the biggest nightmare and create the wallet dent that takes a while to patch up. They're often from boutiques that are hard to find and when you do find the perfect garment, it's the wrong size, it needs adjusting and if you've just about given up, it's when a dressmaker is searched out and then it's never quite the same when completed.

Why is it that typical mother of the bride or special occasion wear is made from shiny fabrics or heavy structured fabric that makes us look bigger, needs dry cleaning only and then sits in the wardrobe for another year without ever being pulled out again.

I spoke to a bride and her mum only a couple of weeks ago. On the hanger the mums dress looked gorgeous but when it went on the body, the seams were wrong, the fit was wrong and she didn't feel as fabulous and glamorous as she wanted to. But of course, it was her daughter's day so she kept quiet about it. A bridesmaid admitted later that her dress went to lifeline straight after the occasion as she felt it was simply unwearable.


I've even dreaded when a client comes to me saying 'I need a special occasion dress' when I know most boutiques can help us with business and every day, but when you want to look special and spectacular, they're few and far between.


Not any more. My favourite designer of special occasion wear now has her outlet at Burleigh Heads. There's hundreds and hundreds of dresses all under one roof and I'll be running an educational style, colour and fit class there. You'll get to try on the dresses, actually see what works and what doesn't, plus you'll shop at exclusive designer outlet prices. Up to 70% and more off the usual retail price. We'll do it over gorgeous morning tea, at your leisure and you'll get to see what suits other body types and colouring, so you'll have a far better idea.


Who's the Designer?: Diane Freis

She's been around for ages and perfected her style year after year. Her spring summer 2010 collection is just exquisite.

Where: The Diane Freis Outlet, 15/4 Leda Drve, Burleigh Heads

When: Saturday October 30th, 10am til about 1pm

Cost: $25 to cover morning tea and individual styling

Call and prebook: Anne on annen@tpg.com.au


I'll give you eft details when I speak to you. and email me for the full pdf flyer if it doesn't look clear enough here.

Fashion & Style Masterclasses for the curvy figure

Do you feel totally confident in your own personal style when you go shopping? Or do you simply pick up what's on sale and hope for the best.


Do you try the gear on or trust that it will fit because it's loose and you don't want get undressed in the changeroom for fear of that drop in self esteem?

Do you find that shopping is tedious for your fuller figure because, let's face it, the shops for the larger bodies aren't usually loaded with great stuff!

I've been there. For a long time I found shopping for fashion no fun and far from a confidence boost.

We've all lived with the eager shop assistant who tells us we look great in anything - and we know we don't. I remember the stress of needing that perfect outfit for the event coming up on the weekend and no matter how many shops you scour and how sore your feet are or how cranky you're becoming, you just don't find it.

There were many times I wished I had someone who could simply take a look at me and really see ME!! Someone who could understand my body shape, my colouring and help me put it all together would have been so appreciated way back then, but Personal Stylists used to be like Personal Trainers. Only the rarified few celebrities ever had them.

How many times have we admired someone else's style but didn't quite manage to pull it off for ourselves? I remember when the 'layered look' first came in. The girls in the mags looked so well put together albeit a little chaotic and messy in their look - I just managed the messy.

I got so tired of never feeling as stylish as I would have liked, so I went out there and got skilled up because I know how amazing I felt and how others reactions changed when I did get it right. I wanted to get it right more often!! Over the years I observed why women weren't as noticed as they deserved to be, why many of us were overlooked across the crowded dancefloor or for the company promotion and thought 'damn it, I've got to do something about this and help women who are ALL naturally gorgeous find out how to put it together on the outside.'

No matter what size you are you can wow any audience and my upcoming Fashion and Style Masterclass will help you to find your WOW!! But there's a catch......... You MUST be a curvy size 12 PLUS!!! This class is for the fuller figures only.

Style is learned. We're not blessed with it, no matter how great someone else looks.

Ever wished you had your own stylist right there in the boutique with you? Why not come to our Fashion & Style Masterclass on Saturday afternoon, the 24th July!!

Where?                Ferrari Woman Boutique
Where's that?       Shop 2/267, Given Tce, Paddington in Brisbane
How much?         $25 will cover a champagne (or two) and nibbles plus your styling lesson
What time?          2pm till about 4 or 5pm   depending on how much fun you're having
RSVP?                 email me back on annen@tpg.com.au that you're coming

This first class (look out for details for MORE) will be for the curvy figure from size 12 to 24 who wants to look flattered and stylish. How do you know how great you can feel until you try being professionally styled?

Future classes and shopping tours will be held at various boutiques around Brisbane for all shapes, sizes and ages. Keep an eye on this blogpage for all the details of what's happening.

Putting fun back into Personal Styling and Shopping!

What better way to shop is there, than with a bunch of friends over champagne and pizza?
That's what we did last Saturday at Bobby Brown's Boutique at New Farm.   A few favourite clients and personal friends bought their friends and got outfitted.

We started out with a short understanding of colour, body shape and style and the photos will speak for themselves.    As you'll see by the wide smiles and laughter, we had a ball and literally had to get tossed out at closing time!    This is the way to shop!

We sometimes can get a little confused over our unique body shape and personal colouring.   But once we have it right we can look dynamic.   Here, Wendy tried on a gorgeous silver trenchcoat.  What better accessories than an Italian red leather belt and matching boots.

Wait till you see a few more coats by David Pond on some of the girls - just gorgeous.    Keep scrolling!

Wendy and Linda both have a gorgeous look.
Wendy's a soft light winter with beautiful silver grey hair and Linda has a deeper winter look.

There was so much to try on.   At Bobby Brown's in New Farm, you'll see an eclectic range and by the shots as you scroll through you'll see it suits ages from mid 20's right through to elegant 60's!!

Another gorgeous winter.   Women love a garment that can be mixed and matched, rolled up for travelling and if it's a plain black, then we need some gorgeous accessories or a fabulous lipstick to set it off.

This range of knitwear is phenomenal.   It's a great price, great style, makes just about any body shape look fantastic and comes in colours that can make any business woman happy.
Here's Zoe in a dress and wrap coat, worn with boots or with gladiator sandals, it's going to look beautiful.

As the afternoon wore on, we didn't take ourselves too seriously.   We had a ball, Suzy entertained everyone but some serious fashion knowledge and styling was achieved.
There were over 10 women there and every single one felt they got a great sense of what works for them, went away with some wonderful purchases and managed to see what suited others and we helped each other.
When one came out in something that just wasn't quite right, we were all honest, sent her back to try on something else, and out she came in something better.

The girls found a look that really worked.   Coats were being swapped, necklaces were being thrown over different necks and jackets were hilariously being fought over.
Some comfort zones were stretched, but all in all, Wendy, Julie and Mel found a look they loved.   Maybe a bit of tweaking here and a size change there, but they walked away with giant smiles and a sense of 'fashion satisfaction'.

This was one popular coat!   Lucky there were two - here they are shown two different ways.   This David Pond soft knit in the deepest purple looked great on our lovely summer and winter models!

I think just about everyone in the store tried these coats on and looked fantastic in them.

We learned that we all have a unique body shape and we don't all fit into categories.  Every woman has a goddess within and my mission is to help her come out.

Private shopping and Personal Styling can be so much fun.   It doesn't have to be a nightmare or frustrating or a chore.    I'll show you how to work with your body shape and colouring and how to find your style.  

Make sure you contact me for more info on my private shopping excursions where you get to see what works for you, you don't get talked into buying what you hate, and you walk away knowing so much more about your signature style.

12 Week Journey to Total Transformation

"A woman's relationship with her body is the most important relationship she'll ever have. More important than husband, lover, children, friends or colleagues. This isn't selfishness - it's just fact," says health and fitness expert Diana K Roesch. "The body is, quite literally, our vehicle for being, for giving, for loving, for moving, for feeling - and if it doesn't work - it's fairly certain that nothing else in our lives will work either.!"


When I heard that quoted by Diana I knew it resonated big time with me and many women around me. If we don't keep ourselves fit, strong, healthy and keep up a good strong healthy dose of self esteem then we're of no use to anyone, particularly ourselves.

From one end we're bombarded with unreal magazine images that are impossible to attain and from the other we're misled into all sorts of food and nutrition myths that lead us even further down a path of misinformation, poor health and eventually disease. A 40+ friend of mine said to me over the weekend 'I can't understand why I've put this weight on. I was a perfect size 8/10 years ago and now look! I've not changed any habits. Why can't I drop this weight.' Then another who has breast cancer said 'I've been doing everything right, I eat low fat everything, plenty of fruit and still this has happened.'

We need to take responsibility to do our own research and find what resonates with us and makes us feel good about ourselves and what path we've chosen to follow. And the most important is to never have a closed mind. Science is proving all the time that new discoveries with food, health and disease are being uncovered daily.

Here's just a few points that I've learned the hard way that I can tell you have saved my life and my sanity:

* good quality fat will not make you fat

* sugar is a slow quiet and deadly killer

* doing strength work will not make you muscly but will keep you lean

* meditate and destress

* turn the destructive internal chatter around to positive self talk

* make your peace with those who matter

* the body was designed to move, so walk and exercise daily

* have a facial or massage at least monthly

* your skin is the barometer for everything going on inside you, feed it from the inside

* the more fat you carry the hungrier for junk you will be

* the leaner you become the less you will crave sugary foods

* be open to the right nutritional supplements, they're crucial to good health

* if you're over 40 and can't shake the middle weight, have a hormone test and make sure you're not producing too much cortisol

Today, instead of hating your body, make peace with it. Choose to conciously love and honour the sacred garment Spirit provided for this lifetime's journey. This means to feed it well and cherish the outside of it as much as the inside.

To know more about how we're teaching women to do exactly this ask me about our 12 week Total Transformation Program

www.ResetReshapeRestyle.com/events.html