Got an after work event but no time to change? Accessories are the simplest and fastest way to transform your corporate day-wear to social wear. Whether you are having drinks with clients or going for a networking event, it is to your advantage to project a more relaxed, fun and approachable image amongst clients and colleagues after office hours. Generally, we want to hang out with people we like and those who are fun to be with. So let your hair down a little and allow people to see the “softer” side of you.

Standby a small bag of accessories in your office. This will come in handy when you need to add some element of fun and glam to your office wear for a social event. A pretty colourful pair of dangly earrings will rock any plain outfit in an instant. Gold or silver bangles will create more visual interest. It is also useful to keep an extra pair of funky heels at work for some impromptu after work drinks. Even a belt can make your day outfit look different. For example, the purple blouse in the picture above is tucked into the pants and pulled together by a gold buckle belt – instant oomph! And the black dress’s original pink belt was replaced by a simple black belt for a touch of elegance to the entire outfit. Tights are a must-have this spring season, so you can also set aside a few interesting patterned tights that will easily amp up any plain outfit. Makeup is also a great way to change your look from day to night. Touch up your natural day makeup, if any, with a bright coloured lipstick or thicken the eyeliner and generously apply eye mascara and you are ready to go!

The tea length dress, iconic fashion during the 1950s, is making a comeback on the red carpet and runways. Back in that era, women wore pretty floral print dresses, sleeveless and layers of corn-starched petticoats for the bouffant skirt effect. Kitten heels and boxy handbags complete the look which was very pristine, elegant and groomed, think Grace Kelly.

Miranda Kerr

The modern version of the tea dress today comes in similar silhouette but without the stiffened petticoats, thank goodness! Necklines are more plunging (see Miranda Kerr’s dress) and while black and white remain the favourite colours for evening wear, the modern tea length dress comes in a vibrant and  bold colours like fuschia pink, red and yellow.

I am inspired by a recent client’s motivation towards the androgynous style dressing. So I decided to create a capsule of men-inspired style with a touch of feminine details like the multi-strand pearls, strappy heels, ribbon and polka dots. Afterall, the description “androgynous” is derived from the Greek terms andr meaning man and gynemeaning woman. Having understood the concept, you realise that not just anybody can wear that style and pull it off. You would need to have a boyish figure type (broad square shoulders and narrow hips), lots of attitude and cool factor yet possessing some sensuality.

Katherine Hepburn

Katherine Hepburn, an iconic Hollywood star, was the poster child for the androgynous look in the 1930s. Today, model Agyness Deyn and actress Tilda Swindon are the icons for this powerful and fashion statement. Closer to home, local Mediacorp actress Rui-En has worn this style on a few red carpet occasions with aplomb.

Designers who favour this kind of style are Helmut Lang, Giorgio Armani and Paul Smith.

Model Agyness

Having a casual Friday dress code is great as you get to show the relaxed, approachable and fun side of you. However, you still need to maintain consistency in your professional image i.e. your casual Friday outfits still need to reflect your capabilities, talents, skills and all the positive messages that you want to project at work. A lot of women still don’t get their casual Friday outfits right. Some will still dress a bit formally while others go too casual. Some companies allow jeans and tees on dress down days and some will still require a level of smartness. In my opinion, if you want to look good and confident, it is better to keep to clothings that look smart but it can be more colorful, relaxed in structure and made out of natural fabrics like cotton, linen, wool and silk. Dress down does not mean you can look sloppy in baggy comfortable clothings, faded wear and slippers! Here’s a list of what NOT to wear on casual Fridays:

I truly love and enjoy my work; dressing people up to make them look fabulous and feel confident! I get to meet people from all walks of lives, cultures and values but they all share similar style and shopping woes! So I thought, “Why not pen a book on all the challenges women face in shopping and help make it an easy process for themselves?” This book is about what you should and should not do when it comes to shopping. I have a system for helping you to start on the right track, beginning with how to purge your wardrobe to finding your colour and style. I always say to my client, “Once you know your style recipe, the rest comes easy!” The book serves as a guide to help you make shopping decisions effectively and wisely. When you are able to plan and shop well for your wardrobe needs, you will find that shopping can be fun and fabulous!

To purchase the book, please log on to: http://www.image-harmony.com/shopping-guide.html or click on the image on the right hand column of this page.

Missi Pyle from "The Artist"

Elle Fanning in aqua-blue Marc Jacobs

Seafoam colours are washing up onto the runway and red carpet this Spring. This pastel aqua-tinged green evokes a tranquil, calm, soothing as well as icy image. It can be a tricky hue to pull off, not wearing it right may make you look pale and fragile. To start off, you may want to try a shirt or top in aqua or a floaty  dress for weekends. Seafoam works beautifully with other oceanic colours like sand, gray, white, blue, mint etc…think of all the colours in the ocean. If that is too much green for you, try pairing it with pink, coral, gold and orange for more oomph! Keep your hair natural, sleek or tied up for an easy, breezy look! Makeup should be minimal and you can go for coral or pink-based colours.

Nicole Richie

Should you dress your age when it comes to fashion? Absolutely YES! While it is great to be fashion forward and look up-to-date, you should also be dressing age-appropriate. But it seems be a trend these days for young celebrities dressing 30, 40, 50…years older! It is natural for teen girls wanting to look more adult so that they would be treated like one, hopefully. But if it means looking frumpy, dowdy, old…then it can’t be a good thing! Recently on the red carpet, these young starlets had all the opportunities to dress their best but ended up looking frumpy. Fire their stylists!

Shailene Woodley, 20, and Amara Miller, 12, were both dressed by Valentino for the Oscar night. Long sleeves are in fashion now and perhaps for most parents, it is a relief to see their young daughters covering up. But Shailene looked 10 years older in the gown; the high neckline, long sleeve and hem just made her look OLD! If she let her hair down and the dress was knee length or shorter, it would have been fashion forward yet maintaining her youthful looks. As for Amara, my gosh, she is only 12! The long sleeves and heavily beaded gown were just not age-appropriate! Put Helen Mirren’s head over Amara’s and you will see what I mean!

Amara - 12 looking 40!

One celebrity whose style I admire and whom I feel does it right when wearing long sleeved maxis is Nicole Richie (picture above). In a recent magazine cover shoot, she wore a bright pink long sleeved dress which instantly screams young, modern and vibrant. Her chunky accessories and bangs made the whole look sophisticated and funky. This is how young people should style themselves if they want to follow the trend of wearing long sleeved dresses.

Amara's dress is more suitable for 65 yr old Helen

In my opinion, these are some of the celebrities who did not score in the stylistic department on Oscar night and the reasons:

1) Sandra Bullock in Marchesa

The black and white gown with a low back and detailing below the waistline seemed to cut her body into half, making her look stumpy. The top half of the gown looked like it had too much fabric on her, thus creating a sloppy image. Her pulled back ponytail hairstyle (which is very “In” now) was too severe for  her face. Sandra is more suited to feminine and natural kind of styles. It would have been better if her hair was let down.

2) Jessica Chastain in Alexander McQueen

It is not easy to pull off a McQueen gown. Especially when it’s dramatic black and gold-embroidered. The gown overwhelmed Jessica’s soft and gentle facial features. Her natural looking hairstyle and soft makeup did not match the gown’s regal style. She looked washed out in the black and gold number. In the photo, she looked like she was just out of the shower and trying on the gown in her suite! Penelope Cruz would have looked amazing in it.

3) Octavia Spencer in Tadashi Shoji

Although the silhouette and colour brought out her curves in all the right places, I found the short sleeves unflattering and frumpy looking. Perhaps if the sleeve was elbow length and the neckline, a V-shaped one, Octavia would look slimmer and more chic.

4) Meryl Streep in Lanvin

Oh dear…now people will say gold is old:-( So many mistakes with this Lanvin number. Firstly, the colour fabric and draping added bulk to her naturally big frame. Secondly, the gold colour was too bright for her soft porcelain skin, making her look pale and tired. Her makeup was too light. Lastly, from her earrings to her clutch to her shoes, everything was in gold; too matchy-matchy.

5) Melissa McCarthy in Marina Rinaldi

The powder pink looked fabulous on her skin but unfortunately, the fabric and heavy beading on the neckline and waistline were too fussy looking. When you are a plus size, best to keep away from soft floaty fabrics. The heavily beaded neckline made her neck look shorter and chunkier. On top of that, wearing long earrings took some more inches off her neck length.

Share with us your take on the Oscar fashion!