What to wear to a work conference ~ and still look great!

I recently received an email from Jodie who is attending a work conference in Melbourne in May and asked me to write a post giving her some style advice on what to wear.

I attend a number of conferences during the year and go through this process myself, so I feel like I'm fairly well placed to help out with this one! So Jodie I hope this helps :)

Outfit Selection

I think that at any one time, most of us have a few favorite in our wardrobe.  This may be based on how we're feeling at the time, what the weather is like and what our personal style is.  

I'm going to be completely honest here as well.  Depending on the conference you are going to, who will be there and what type of impression you want to make and image you want to project will determine what you wear as well.  If the only reason you're going is just to learn then you may be less fussed than if you're going to network and business develop.

The other thing that I think about is doing more with less.  That means that I'll look at how I can wear things twice without it looking that way.  This obviously reduces packing!

As the conference that Jodie is attending is going to be in Melbourne in May, these outfits are going to be on the warmer side.  Saying that, as I sit here writing this in May it's 25 degrees.. so layering may be better!

Here are some outfit ideas that work for my style and may give you some inspiration.

Day 1 - If you're going to wear an item of clothing twice over the three days then split it up by wearing it on day one and then on day three...people have short memories!

I just bought this jacket from Sussans, it's currently a further 50% off till Sunday 12th May so it's now $60 down from the origin $170. I thought that the shape would be unflattering but it's really lovely on, not too thick and the colour is amazing.

1) Sussans Coat another 50% off till Sunday $60 2) Country Road Ponte t-shirt $69 3) Nine west Amerillo pumps $139
4) Witchery Neoprene skirt $99

Day 2 - have a break from items you'll wear again on day 3! 

1)  ASOS   2) ASOS jacket with frill sleeve $47 3) Nine west Amerillo pumps $139
4) Witchery Neoprene skirt $99

Day 3 - it's always good to go for something easy like a dress

I've tried on a similar dress to this one and the material is stretchy, thicker, comfortable and the pattern and shape is very flattering.  Country Road have a number of great, easy option dresses at the moment in store.

1) Country Road dress $69 2) Sussans Coat $60 till Sunday 12th May 3) Nine West shoes $139

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You'll be wearing the skirt, coat, shoes and t-shirt on day one if you're flying up in the morning. So if you were to go with something along the lines of the outfits above, your bag would contain:

• 1 Dress
• 1 Shirt 
• 1 Jacket
• accessories, underwear and toiletries

If you're flying the day before then just pack the t-shirt, skirt & shoes and wear the coat to decrease the bulk.  All in all it's still fairly light travelling.

If you want to dress it down a little more then go for pants and ballet flats.

If you have any fashion and style questions, then feel free to drop me and email, I'm always happy to help!

Guess Who got Featured as Ms May?? Me silly!!! :)

This is the fab newsletter that whatshouldIwear.com send out to all their gorgeous subscribers, so head over and sign up to get great fashion features, blogs, tips and stories to your inbox!   I was very flattered to be featured as Ms May in the What Should I Wear newsletter!  Thanks Delia xx

Thank-you for being an important part of  ‘What Should I Wear?’, giving and getting great style advice!   During the week we've had lots of questions around first date outfits, leather jackets, printed skirts and shopping! This week I am delighted to introduce the gorgeous Suzanne Chadwick, blogger of Stylise, as our Ms May!  When you meet Suzanne in person you are struck by her style, her genuine warmth and bubbly personality. Suzanne juggles her career, her young family and life with great optimism and ambition. When they say surround yourself with positive people – they are talking about Suzanne!   We hope our Q&A can share some ‘Suzie energy’ with you! Over to Suzanne: A little about me…  I  grew up in Melbourne and lived and worked in London for all of my 20's. By day I am the Global Digital & Sourcing Innovation Manager for a corporate organisation which I absolutely love and by night ...(when I get the chance)  I am a fashion and lifestyle blogger for Stylise. I am the mum of two little ones (1 & 2 year old) and wife to a gorgeous Welshman.  I live dangerously close to Chadstone Shopping Centre where I retreat to recharge my batteries and indulge in all things fashion.   I also don't mind a little mani and pedi on the side with a skinny latte to boot!  I have just started Crossfit to try and get fit, healthy and toned....so we'll see how that goes! A well-dressed woman... always has the perfect 'go to' outfit for an interview, date or black tie event. A man should always... make you laugh....and have a great pair of dressy shoes with a gorgeous tailored cocktail shirt. My style is inspired by... I adore Miroslava Duma for her super eclectic, bright colours and great statement necklaces, Nicole Richie for her boho glamour chic and Olivia Palmero for her mix and match of casual and high-end brands. My favourite items in my wardrobe at the moment... A casual peplum top from French Connection that I recently bought on sale and getting back into my oversize knits now that weather is a little colder. Favourite shops... who can go past ASOS and Country Road? If I weren't doing what I'm doing today... I would travelling the world as a fashion buyer {I can but dream!} My guilty pleasure is... Any cupcake factory cupcake with a fab Melbourne coffee..... soooo good! If I had a magic wand I would...have access to my pick of designer wardrobes whenever I needed a new outfit....free of charge of course! I am happiest when...I'm laying on a Thailand beach in the sun with a mango margarita in my hand and all the people I love around me! My favourite style tip...dress jeans and a t-shirt up with a great blazer and statement necklace.         Thanks Suzanne!  May your future be filled with many a mango margarita! :) As winter approaches have you got questions about what to wear?  Or where to find it?  Ask at 'What Should I Wear?' for ideas and inspiration!  Or share your latest shopping spree with us - we love to admire others' fabulous finds! See you soon – xxDelia

Sunday Breakfast recipe a must try!! ~ Spanish baked eggs

A couple of weekends ago on a staycation weekend in Melbourne I had Huevos, which are Spanish style baked eggs with chorizo and tomato at a cafe... which were amazing!   So since then I've been waiting to make them at home and this morning was that morning!

I looked up a large number of online recipes and found the one that I thought would be the closest to what I had, which was from the Women's Weekly and I wasn't disappointed 

I made a few changes which I have in brackets below.

Even though the egg looks fully cooked, it was all gooey underneath which was exactly what I was after.  

Serving size: Serves 4
Cuisine type: Spanish
Cooking time: Less than 60 minutes
Course: Breakfast

INGREDIENTS

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 (400g) potatoes, peeled and cut into small cubes
1 chorizo sausage, scored and sliced
1 Spanish onion, chopped (I only had a brown onion which worked just as well)
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 long red chilli, chopped (I used dried chilli flakes but just 1/2 teaspoon and this was still very spicy)
2 x 425g tins crushed tomatoes 
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
2 teaspoons chopped oregano
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
4 eggs
crusty bread, to serve

(I added 1 teaspoon of sugar to balance out the heat)

METHOD

Preheat oven to 180°C.

Heat the oil in a large oven-proof frying pan. Add potatoes and cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes or until cooked and golden. Remove.

Add chorizo and onion and cook until chorizo is golden. Add garlic and chilli and cook for 30 seconds. Return the potatoes to the pan.

Add tomatoes and simmer for 5 minutes. Stir though parsley and oregano and season well. Make 4 indentations in the mixture and crack an egg in each. Cover with foil and bake for 10 minutes. 

(if you cover with foil, then add baking paper between the egg and the foil as one of my eggs stuck to the foil, mine also took about 15 minutes and then I had to put it under the grill as the eggs weren't cooking quick enough for some reason.  Your oven may be different so just keep checking them)

Serve with crusty bread.

You can fine the online recipe here

Leather Autumn Colour Inspiration

So I'm loving all things colour and leather at the moment and thought I would share a bit of leather colour inspiration on this gorgeous Autumn morning!  Have a wonderful weekend lovelies!

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Where to find you're new leather love look....

Gary Bigeni Panelled Leather/Silk Flair Skirt - $239

Staple the label leather biker vest - $299

Witchery Leather - both $599

2013’s key trends and how to work them with your wardrobe

Thanks to our guest contributor Olivia Golding for today's post! check out her full bio at the end of this fab post!  Thanks Olivia!

If you’re anything like me, you’ll get into a bit of a style rut during the summer months and spend your time constantly walking around in denim shorts, slouchy vests and maxi dresses. When autumn arrives I never know what to wear and I often feel like nothing in my wardrobe really suits me anymore.

Well, never fear, because I’ve picked out some of the top trends for the coming seasons and come up with a few outfit ideas so you can easily work them into your existing wardrobe without spending a fortune on new gear.

Autumn – Checks

Without a doubt one of the top trends for the current season is checks, no thanks to Mr Marc Jacobs and his daring spring/summer 13 collection for Louis Vuitton. This is definitely a 60s-inspired look and lots of the catwalk outfits included simple mini dresses and dramatic colour combinations of white, black and fluorescent yellow.

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I think the easiest way to work this into your wardrobe is to go for a statement checked dress. You can then wear this with a cardigan, black tights and heels for work, or even patent black brogues if you want to add a quirky edge. A mac would go really well with this look for the office.

Winter – Metallic materials

I don’t know about you, but when winter arrives I always find myself wearing dark, neutral colours – and LOADS of black. This year I want to get out of this habit and one of the trends I think will help me do this metallic materials in beautiful jewel tones. Think about a box of Quality Street sweets and you’ll get the colours I mean!

Obviously metallic materials work best for a night out, but I think you can also wear them during the day as well. Try a metallic mini skirt or city shorts with black tights, ankle boots and fine black knitted sweater for a super-cool winter look. Or, hunt down a metallic blouse and wear it with your favourite skinny jeans. Bling it up even more with a statement jewelled necklace for cocktails in the evening.

Country Road - $79.95

 

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Spring – Short suits

Spring is probably my favorite time of year because it’s starting to get warmer, but it’s still cool enough to experiment with layering and different looks. This spring, short suits are set to be a big trend and they’re easier to wear than you think – most of the outfit is done for you!

Make sure you choose easy to wear, tailored city shorts rather than anything too tight that’ll make the look seem a bit trashy. Obviously a plain top is the easiest thing to wear with your short suit, but a crisp white shirt will work well too. You could even wear a casual slogan T-shirt to give your outfit an awesome super-cool twist.

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Summer – Stripes

You might think stripes are an all-year wardrobe staple, and you’d be right. But this year designers have given them a makeover and created some really preppy, nautical looks. Instead of your usual black and white stripes, introduce primary colours of red, blue and yellow, or go for chevron stripes instead of horizontal lines.

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How do you make stripes funky for summer? Well my top tip is to go for a vertical-striped maxi dress teamed with loads of studded gold bangles and clashing patent heels. Or, how about some striped trousers worn with simple ballet flats and a plain T-shirt? 

What are your top statement for the coming year?

Author bio

This post was contributed by Olivia Golding (hello!). I’m an aspiring writer with a keen interest in all things fashion. I love to connect with bloggers to see how they’re dealing with the current trends, and hopefully for style inspiration too. I believe that we should all have our own unique style, though I've found that this style is often spurred on by being open-minded with other fashion-oriented people. I like to go second hand a lot because it means what I’m buying is distinctive, but clothing like Missguided dresses also don’t go amiss!  I can almost guarantee you’ll find something you’ll want to buy on there! Anyway, enough babbling from me. I hope you've enjoyed my post! 

You are more beautiful than you think......

Morning!! Happy Wednesday.

It's been awhile since I've blogged and I could tell you it's because I've been super busy with work, which is true, or juggling family which is also true, but if I'm honest I feel like I've lost a bit of my style mojo.

It happens...

Maybe it's the change of weather, but you know when everything in your wardrobe looks terrible on (or so you think), or all of a sudden you hate everything about your hair?

I've been pretty harsh on myself recently, which happens when life feels a bit heavy...and then I saw this video below.

It's by Dove and part of their real beauty campaign and I just loved it so much I had to share with you.  Watch the whole thing if you can because I think it really sends a message about the fact that you are always more beautiful than you think you are, even when life feels a little tired.

So on this cold Wednesday, I hope this reminds you that through other people's eyes you will always be gorgeous!

happy hump day lovelies! xxxxx

The Autumn Boot edit ~ Everything you need!

This one is for Ani on Twitter who requested an Autumn Boot shopping edit.

There are so many boots when we start to get into the Autumn & Winter season, that it's hard to know which ones to buy, so here are a few trends and classics! I've gone and done the leg work for you to find the pick of the bunch!

Think comfort, style, all day wearability and great prices!  Always remember that boots are a staple when it comes to the colder seasons, so invest in leather - always leather!!

Ankle heeled boots ~ for a heeled boot I've gone for extra padding under the ball of the foot for longer wear and more comfort

Brendan black leather - hidden platform heel!

Wittner Bracken tan leather boot

Wittner Action leather boots

Knee high boots ~ these are gorgeous soft leather with elastic panels for ladies with larger calves like me! a little stretch goes a long way for comfort and that perfect fit

Jo Mercer Atticus knee high boot

Supernova Tan knee high boot

Diana Ferrari Hanae black by Supersoft

Wittner Luxurious - super sexy with a little bit of calf stretch

Ankle flats ~ I've gone for a couple of different looks.  The patent toe is a little bit mod and very cool, the bronzed boot would be great with any jeans or think black tights with a cool dress or skirt. 

Wittner Jaha patent leather toe boots

Wittner Barka Bronzed boots

Wittner Horizon boots

The studded boot ~ you don't need a reason, get with the studs, they rock!

Wittner Army suede leather Cupcake boot

Wittner Ralph black suede leather

Fraanki Black biker studded boot

The leather lazer cut ~ I'm loving the detail of these boots.  They will definitely be a stand out with any layered outfit and can be easily dressed up for special occasions.

Voss Taupe laser cut boot

ART Centre Red boot

Wittner Coofs floral leather

If you have any requests then feel free to leave a comment or you can find me on Facebook or Twitter!