All that glitters... All that glitters isn't gold... in fact with sequins, the colour may be golden but they're basically plastic. Small discs of PET or PVC, they are far removed from their high-status, luxury origins. The word sequin itself came from the Arabic word sikka meaning coin and there are also links to the Venetian  zecchino.  In both cases, these were precious coins sewn into fabric. Stocking fillers to landfillers Bearing in mind that sequins these days are petr

No-Sweat Solutions: Your Christmas Sweater FAQ Answered! Q When can I wear a Christmas jumper? A Like putting up the Christmas tree, when is early too early? It would be a waste of a garment if we only ever wore them on Christmas Jumper Day, so any time from 1st December or even Advent Sunday seems legitimate to me. If you're taking part in an event (perhaps a Christmas fair) before December it could easily be deemed seasonal (and draughty-church-hall-appropriate!). And if yo

An interview for Transgender Awareness Week 2025 I recently had the pleasure of interviewing fashion designer Jen Hartmann. Here, Jen talks about his fashion label, Baal, his quirky upcycling designs and his long-term project to create clothing sizes with transgender women in mind.  Tell us a little about yourself, Jen, and about what you're working on at the moment My name's Jennifer Hartmann. I'm from Germany, but haven't lived in Germany in almost 10 years now. I lived in

The Fashion Industry and the Purple Pound Today is Purple Tuesday which is recognised globally as an opportunity to raise awareness about the customer experience for people with disabilities. Celebrated annually on the first Tuesday of November, Purple Tuesday highlights the need for greater inclusion and accessibility. In Hull where I live, the Minster and other buildings will have been illuminated in purple from around 4 pm. Below, I take a look at the fashion industry thro

Does my tum look big in this?! All change Many things can change our body shape such as puberty, pregnancy, childbirth, illness and medication, and of course the change: menopause. Perimenopause and menopause can affect our body shape leading to us carrying more bulk around our midsection. This in turn can mean styles we felt confident in previously don't seem to work for us. You 're a natural  As women, our natural shape typically is to have some curve in our abdomen (think

In 2017, Vogue UK appointed its first Black editor-in-chief, Ghanaian-born Edward Ennifulm, responsible for modernising and bringing greater diversity to the publication. Under his leadership, Vogue portrayed a transgender woman on its cover for the first time and has featured disabled models. Enniful's replacement, Chioma Nnadi, was born in London to a Swiss-German mother and Nigerian father and uses the title Head of Editorial Content for her role leading Vogue UK. I've pic

October is ADHD Awareness Month. A study last year in The Independent found that as many as 2 million people in the UK alone could have undiagnosed ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder), with the study suggesting that 80% of those with ADHD are undiagnosed.  Do you ever find buying clothes or choosing daily outfits a chore? It's ADHD Awareness Month but you don't have to be an ADHDer to take something from this blog post on 'de-stress' dressing. Impulsivity   For th

Breast Cancer Awareness Month I’ve been moved by the women who shared their breast cancer stories for this article. I’m no expert, have no lived experience of breast cancer, so this is a tribute to those women and all the others who are going through treatment, have survived or lost their lives to breast cancer. Breast cancer bulldozes its way through someone’s body and can consequently batter their sense of identity, blow apart their perceptions of body image and destroy the

An interview with Kerry Harrison It's 1st September and the beginning of Oxfam's annual Second-Hand September campaign. To celebrate and...

What is Plastic-Free July? Plastic Free July started in 2011 in Australia and has become an annual movement to discourage the use of...

Wardrobe woes or wardrobe wows? Spring, with its links to the age-old concept of the 'Spring Clean' is a great time to review your...

Although finding a personal style that reflects us authentically can be transformational for anyone, when I founded transformEd styling...

Is red the colour of love?   Visit any retailer or online advertising space this week and you’re likely to see red. Is this a useful...

In the Navy: Banish your Blue Monday Style Blues   O ut of the blue  in the early hours of Monday 20th January, I had the idea to write...

Festive Fashion Fun For some of us, the ‘Season of Goodwill’ is a welcome chance to have fun with fashion. For others, choosing an outfit...

I was recently asked by a former colleague what my dream job would be. Thinking that the joy I feel in my new and current role should be...

Oasis and the 90s fashion trend   When I was invited last month to be interviewed for the radio about the resurgence of 90s fashion in...

What is a Clothes Swap?   A clothes swap put quite simply is any event where clothes are swapped. Although these events run in a variety...

Back to school doesn’t have to mean back to the shops   The impact of fast fashion Wearing my brother’s hand-me-down trousers in the...

Struggling to find ethical undies? That’s pants! You may be one of an increasing number of consumers concerned about the impact of...