Tag: styling advice

How to create a stylish mum wardrobe

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Being a mum is hard work and creating a wardrobe that is not only chic, but also practical can seem like a daunting task. But it is possible with a few simple tricks.

The key to nailing that effortless mum style is having key pieces in your wardrobe that work for you and not against you. This means avoiding fabrics that require loads of ironing or dry cleaning. Investing in certain pieces such as outerwear and footwear and keeping things simple. Combine this with a few styling hacks and you have a fail safe formula for simple and chic mum style.

So here are my perfect pieces and styling tricks to help you create you mum wardrobe.

Get yourself a pair of stylish trainers

As a mum one thing is certain, you are going to be on the go all day. This means that you need a pair of comfortable and flat shoes that are easy to throw on but still look good. In my opinion a pair of leather style trainers with a good solid sole are the perfect shoe for busy mums. They are easy to wear, easy to care for and comfortable. I would recommend either going for a white, black or neutral coloured shoe to ensure that they go with everything in your wardrobe. If you can stretch to real leather it is definitely worth its as they will last longer and age better than faux leather shoes.

There are a huge range of trainers available and you can still show off your own style personality with them. If you are more attracted to an edgier style, look for leopard print details, prefer something more classic, keep it simple with a plain lace up style. The key is that they work with everything in your wardrobe. Make sure that your give them the occasional quick wipe over to ensure that they aren’t covered in mud and that’s it. Wear them with skirts, dress, jeans or trousers.

Think about outerwear

Don’t think of outerwear as an after thought. If you have a fab outfit underneath and a shabby coat thrown over the top you are going to ruin your look. However a fab jacket or coat can actually elevate and pull a very basic outfit together.

For Autumn and Spring I love a simple utility jacket in a heavy cotton. You can get so many different cuts to suit so many shapes and they can look edgy, classic and feminine depending on the styling details. Many of them are machine washable too which is an added bonus and you can pick them up everywhere and at every budget. I like to roll the sleeves back a little to elongate my arms and add interest to the outfit.

For Winter, I would advise getting a wool style coat. This can be long or short, but as a busy mum myself I think a short to 3/4 length is most practical. If you can go for a coat with a high wool content, then I always recommend this. You can get good quality coats from places like Zara and Mango and in fact my go to coat is 90% wool, is over 10 years old and only cost me £70 from H&M.

What ever style you choose, make sure that it works for your shape and is practical for you.

Go for a dress

On those morning where you don’t have time to think about what to wear take a shortcut and choose dress. With a dress (or a jumpsuit) you don’t have to worry about what top goes with what bottom. Simply chuck it on, add your go to trainers and your done! There are so many different styles in the shops right now, you are sure too find something that suits your style and shape.

Go hands free

Free up your hands with a cross body or backpack style bag. Not only are these style really on trend right now, but they are practical and stylish. After all what mum doesn’t need an extra pair of hands? I personally love the leather cross body bags with the interchangeable straps, as they add personality and really jazz up a simple outfit, but a back pack can look super cool too.

Stock up on easy to wear basics

As a mum you often have very little time so having good basics that you can throw on is vital. That’s way having a good stock of t-shirts, both long and short sleeve and a few sweaters and a cardigan in a neutral colour is an important part of building the perfect mum wardrobe. Remember though, that just because these are your basics, it doesn’t mean plain. Slogan and graphic tees and sweatshirts are a great way of adding personality to your look. Or try experimenting with ‘neutral’ prints, such as stripes, spots and leopard. I call these prints ‘neutral’ as they can be layered up together and still look fab.

The same applies to basic bottoms. Choose a few different styles that you know are easy to wear, comfortable and can be mix and matched. As a mum I know that I find myself being drawn more to trousers, so my basics bottoms would be a pair of mid blue slim straight jeans, a pair of leather look jeggings, a pair of nice plain leggings and maybe a leopard skirt. All of these work with my t shirts and jumpers, so I don’t have to think too much about how to put an outfit together.

Just a few examples of some good basic tops

Choose hassle free fabrics

Now I love cashmere and silk as much as the next girl, but these are not everyday mum clothes. For a practical mum style you want fabrics that are easy to care for. That means that they need to be non iron, machine washable and can be dried on the line or airer. If the label says ‘hand wash and dry flat’ walk away! It’s just not going to happen, and they will either end up languishing in the laundry basket or end up misshapen or shrunk to baby size because you accidentally throw it in the machine.

Accessorize!

You have your basics, you have your go to trainers and outerwear, and you have you hands free bag. All you need now is few funky accessories to jazz up you look. Simply choose a couple of patterned scarves, a couple of pairs of earrings or a necklace or maybe a belt and make sure that you add just one of these to finish you look. It is amazing how just by adding one accessory you can look and feel more put together.

Need help creating your mum wardrobe? I can help. Samantha Woodbury Styling offers both online and in person styling packages that include advice on creating a capsule wardrobe. All styling services can be booked online or you can book a free styling call to see how I can help.

Make your wardrobe work for you this Autumn/Winter.

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Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

As I write this blog, the rain is lashing down at the window and I am sat in my pjs with a large mug of coffee, trying to avoid the need to get dressed and go and face the outdoor elements head on. On days like this, it can be hard to feel motivated the get dressed, let alone try and come up with an outfit that looks good, but that is exactly the reason why it is so important to have a wardrobe that works for you. Imagine looking in to your closet and instantly seeing an outfit combination that you know works and makes you feel good? As the dark nights draw in and the weather takes a turn for the worse, ‘dressing happy’ is more important than ever, and with a little reorganisation and a small amount of time spent reevaluating what we have hidden in the depths of our drawers, cupboards and closets, we can create wardrobes that inspire and leave us feeling good, rather then overwhelmed and fed up.

With a forecast of wall to wall rain this weekend and through to next week; in the UK, now is a great time to attack that wardrobe and get it set up for the season ahead. So I have put together some tips on where to start, what to look for and how to reorganise.

Step 1- Pull out out all your ‘high summer’ clothes.
The first step in getting your wardrobe ready for the Autumn/Winter season is getting rid of all the items that your aren’t going to wear for the next few months. Some items can be worn transitionally by layering things up, but some items such as shorts, linen trousers, beachwear and sandals and flip flop just aren’t going to be needed for a while.
Where you then put these items is up to your, if you have space, you can store at the furthest end of your wardrobe, however, personally I prefer to pack it away and store it in a vac bag or box to give my current season clothes more room.

Step 2- Pull out all your winter items that you might have tucked away.
If like me you tend to put away all your winter woolies, now’s the time to get it out of storage. Before you put them back in the wardrobe, reevaluate them and firstly make sure that they are clean, check that they are not in need to repair; this includes the need for new buttons etc, and that they fit. Now is the time to start you three piles, a keep pile, a repair pile and a donate pile. If you have a spare rail, I strongly advise that you hang the keep items on this so that you can see what you have.
Don’t forget to do your shoes and accessories at the same time.

Step 3- Reevaluate the clothes still in the wardrobe.
As in step 2, now is the time to review the condition and usefulness of the clothes that you currently have in you wardrobe, go through each item and put them in the either the keep, repair or donate pile. As before if you have a spare rail for the keep clothes, use it so that you can see exactly what you have.

Step 4- Try some outfit building.
If you have time, now is a great opportunity to experiment with creating some new outfits. Play around with the clothes that you have and see how many different looks you can create. To do this, I recommend starting with an item that you love, that you know makes your feel good about yourself and is something that you know that you will wear a lot, then pair it with something that you might not have tried wearing it with before. Remember the rule of three, for example a top, a bottom and a jacket or cardigan, then add at least one accessory. Try creating a casual and smart version of the same outfit.
Once you are happy with a look, take a photo of the outfit on your phone. You can then refer to these photo to remind you later.

Photo by Andrea Piacquadio on Pexels.com

Step 5- Put your clothes back in your wardrobe in a organised way.
Now is the time to put everything back. The first thing that you need to think about how you are going to store your clothes. Do you have hanging storage, or do you need to fold your clothes on shelves or in drawers. If you are lucky enough to have a lot of hanging storage, I recommend hanging as much as you can, as this makes it easier see exactly what you have, with everything on one place. If you have limited space, try and hang the items that crease easily, but try to keep whole clothing types together, ie all dresses together in one place. I strongly advise investing in some of the velvet covered slim hangers, as this will not only save space, but stop clothes slipping off and they make your wardrobe look cleaner and tidier. Here is a link to the ones I recommend.
Once you have considered where you are putting your clothes, its important to this about how you want your wardrobe organised. Do you prefer a separate work wardrobe to casual wardrobe or do you mix and match? Whatever way you chose I recommend organising items by type; for example short sleeve tops, then by colour, and within this light to dark versions of the same colour. This will make it easier to outfit build and locate particular items when in a rush in the morning.
Don’t forget to do the same with your shoes, accessories, jackets and coats. If you can’t store everything together, just make sure that you know where everything is and what you have.
TOP TIP: If you store your shoes/coats or jacket in a separate place to the rest of your clothes, try sticking photographs to the back of your wardrobe door to remind you what you have. Also, ensure that your jewellery is laid out or hung so that you can see what you have. I have little Command mini hooks stuck to the back of my wardrobe door and hang my necklaces on there so I can see everything I have.

Step 6- Reevaluate your donate pile
Before you take everything to the charity shop, look and see if there are any items that you can sell on eBay, Depop or other selling sites. Things that sell well are high end high street brands and or designer labels.

Step 7- Organise getting your clothes repaired.
If you are nifty with a needle, make sure that you make time to mend those clothes in the repair pile. If you aren’t so gifted in the seamstress department, try and find a local repairer. Try searching your local community Facebook page for reccomendations.

And that it! Now you should have a wardrobe that works for you and not against you, leaving you more time to enjoy that extra coffee in the morning.

If you can’t face decluttering your wardrobe alone, don’t forget I offer both a virtual and in personal Wardrobe Makeover service. To find out more or to book a free initial consultation, drop me a message.