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Client shopping story: GD, Isle of Wight

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A colourful connection: how our relationship began

Thirteen years ago, I colour-analysed GD on the Isle of Wight. She turned out to be a “Spring” — and recently exclaimed to me that she’d never have bought a bright orange jumper if it hadn’t been for that session! 😆

Staying in touch with your stylist

We’ve kept in touch over the years through my monthly newsletter, and this year caught up over a cuppa ☕️ when I revisited the Island to see clients. It was lovely to reconnect in person again.

A few weeks later, GD emailed to ask if — despite appearing “very busy” — I could help her find two or three dresses for an upcoming cruise. Well, I’m NEVER too busy to help someone shop! 🤭

Although we’d had a long-standing client relationship, we’d never actually shopped together. So I got to work, asking questions by email to understand her brief and budget. I was keen to get started and make sure we had time for success.

Behind the scenes

I offered my most affordable shopping service which I thought would be suitable: I’d send her an email with links to order the dresses herself, and we’d follow up with a Zoom call to review them. She’d then decide what to keep or return.

However, she had imagined we’d shop together in Southampton or Portsmouth — a minor miscommunication – as in-person shopping is a different tier in my pricing and charged hourly. Still, I stuck to the original quote. To be honest, I hadn’t offered the in-person option because I suspected the shops wouldn’t have enough choice within budget. So, when I found some great options online — and spotted a 25% discount if ordered quickly — I volunteered to place the order on her behalf to secure the deal.

Me ordering (and paying) nudged us into my top-tier service: I order the items, bear the upfront cost, and bring them to the client’s home to try on. It’s a stress-free experience — no changing rooms, no parking stress, no dashing between shops wasting time. Afterwards, I handle the returns and unwanted items. It’s a popular choice for clients who are time-poor, dislike shopping, or simply trust me to curate their wardrobe.

What happened next

Once the dresses arrived, GD came to Southampton and we met at a lovely hotel near the ferry port to try them on. Afterwards, we enjoyed a relaxed lunch together.

She was thrilled with the selection and chose two of the six dresses — both excellent value and perfectly aligned with her brief and budget.

Here’s what GD had to say:

“I decided to go for Fiona’s shopping support because my friend — who usually helps me shop — was away, and she’d advised that what I planned to take on this special cruise wasn’t suitable anymore.

I knew Fiona would be impartial and honest, and that she’d be looking for the best options for me. She knows me, which helped enormously — far more than a shop assistant could.

I also learned what to look for in future and where to shop. Fiona gave me the links and list of items she’d researched, so I have that for reference.

She showed me things I wouldn’t have picked myself. She nailed it!”

Final thoughts

This turned out to be a hybrid shopping experience — something I hadn’t done before — but it suited GD perfectly. That’s the point: I tailor my services to fit each client’s needs. Flexibility is key, and my goal is always to deliver the best experience and outcome.

Happy clients = happy me.

Fancy a style adventure?

If you’d like to explore my shopping support — in whatever format suits you best — I’d love to help. As the saying goes, “Nothing ventured, nothing gained.”

Let’s chat!

Fiona
Your Colour & Style Consultant 📞 07469 246722

My thoughts on what’s coming into the shops this Autumn/Winter 2025/6 season

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If you’re looking for something new to wear right now, I’ve viewed Hobbs and Boden websites to see what’s new in to their shops and online. I would say that there is something for everyone, but if you are searching in the next 3 months you will find the colours more suited to “Autumn” and “Winter” palettes (if you’ve been seasonally colour-analysed). That’s just how it goes at this time of year. However, if you’re a “Summer” or “Spring” don’t despair as I always maintain you can find your colours all year round, but you might just have to look that bit harder. Anyway, if you don’t want to do that, I’d love to help, so do contact me and challenge me to find you something fabulous.

Hobbs (hobbs.com)

If you like classic (timeless) styles and quality, they’ve got a houndstooth wool patterned jacket (£219) and houndstooth skirts (Dolly wool skirt £99 and Molly wool kilt pattern £99). Also I noticed the geo midi dress £179 in green and white (great colours for a “Winter”). However, if you’re not a fan of the neat, and you’d like something more frilly, don’t miss out looking at the Babbington blouse (soft pink) £99 in a satin material with lovely sleeve ruffle detail. There are also lovely satin flowy dresses (length is still long) in various colours. If you like something a bit plainer but with sparkle, view the sequin tweed dress £189. This would be good under a jacket taking you from office to evening concert or theatre. Don’t forget to view the Safia tweed slingbacks to go with it (£129).

I’m absolutely loving the purple peony blouse (£89) also in pale blue. And there’s a Peony dress if you’d like more of a shirt-dress ensemble. Also loving the purple wide leg (still “in”) Sami trousers £110 – very flattering for most legs.

And, if you want a gorgeous winter coat, and you’re a “Deep Summer” or “Winter”, take a look at the Cavendish Wool Coat £329 (also in black). If you’re an “Autumn”, there’s the Livia wool coat £379 which looks very stylish in three colours – I’ll take the brown (Vicuna) please as the other two colours look “Winter” ones to me. (If Hobbs see this, please don’t send me one as I have plenty of coats in reality. Just sayin’ – it looks fabulous quality.)

And, if you like your animal print, there’s a shorter coat (faux fur of course) in leopard print for £219. I’d say great for an “Autumn”.

Of course most of the colours would suit an “Autumn” or “Winter” palette, but if you’re a “Spring” there’s a gorgeous Aimee printed V neck ¾ sleeve top for £45.

Stripes are still in as a pattern choice, so if you like them, and they work for you – take a peek.

Stylish bags and belts in lovely colours that match their new season’s colours, as you’d expect from this brand.

Boden (Boden.com)

If you like polka dots, don’t miss viewing Boden’s new range. There’s 20% off new in at the moment, so the Cotton midi dress Christabel is £103.20 instead of £129.00 (see the website boden.com for the discount code) and the lace collar blouse £55.20 instead of £69 – in 3 colours – is selling like hot cakes! If you like less frill, but still want the polka dots, there’s the Pip Zip-up Ponte Midi Dress £111.20 instead of £139.00 (3 colours). Also from Boden you’d expect styles or patterns that aren’t your usual yet still work for a large proportion of the population. What I mean is something like the Chevron Stitch Midi Dress, £127.20 instead of £159. It’s striking but not too outlandish. Plainer stripes – no problem. View the Marcia Jersey Shirt Dress £95.20 instead of £119.00 in 6 colours. Or, how about Gingham pattern (also spotted in Hobbs). Knightsbridge Gingham Jacket and 7/8 trousers makes for an eyecatching suit, although maybe not for everyone!

If you like the check theme, they have a lovely, colourful belted mac: Lancaster £271.20 instead of £339.00 or the Cheltenham Trench Coat £287.20 instead of £359.00 in two colours.

Of course I know not everyone wants to buy new these days, thinking about the planet’s resources, so do check out Vinted.co.uk. Although the items may not be displayed quite as nicely as on the big brand websites, with a good launder they can come up to your requirements if they don’t appear to be already. Oh, and on the subject of Vinted, I’m giving a 30 minute run-through of how to buy and sell on there if you’re new to it. Do contact me for details if that’s something that would interest you.

SUMMARY

This 2025/6 season’s prints, materials and styles in a nutshell are:

PRINTS: Stripes, Checks, Gingham, Houndstooth, Animal print, Florals, Dots and Abstracts.
MATERIALS: Wool, silk, satin, jersey and cord.
LENGTHS of dresses: Midi or short.
TROUSERS: full length or 7/8ths and WIDE LEG is still in, as is slim fit too.

If you’re needing something for an upcoming event or party, please don’t struggle. I talk to so many women who say to me (after the event) I wish I’d known about you sooner!! [I could have saved them a lot of bother.] That’s what I love to do, so please do get in touch and you can “Dress Without Stress” with my help. If you’re wondering, I don’t just look at Hobbs and Boden – I view a range of brands, probably in excess of 30 and one of the spin-offs of working with me is that I will introduce you to some new brands for you I’m sure.

Fiona Mobbs
Your Colour & Style Consultant
07469 246722

Smart Shopping at Kettlewell Colours in Somerset

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Finding Kettlewell Colours

I’ve known Kettlewell Colours since around the time Melissa created the company, and I’ve seen it grow from strength to strength. The fabulous thing about Kettlewell Colours is that it plugged a gap for ladies who knew what shades of their colours to buy but couldn’t find them! Her approach makes shopping easy (you can shop by season or by colour) from the website. I can only speak for being a UK customer (they sell around the world), but from my perspective orders arrive quickly and are beautifully packaged. Kettlewell Colours has a fair returns policy too. Nowadays, there are items for men as well, and there are accessories in addition to colourful clothes.

Twenty five years ago, things were very different in terms of finding the range of colours in the shops. Melissa built a company and brand that shares her love of colour and how it makes us feel knowing we look our best. When you are newly “diagnosed” by an image consultant it is easy to add staples to your wardrobe that will serve you for many years. They will transition you quickly to your colourway and likely get you compliments immediately – confirming the analysis. And, nowadays with sustainability in mind, there are active buy, sell and swap opportunities to keep these pieces in circulation if you want to change up your wardrobe.

The future vision

In the last couple of years Melissa has realised another of her visions: to create a “shop” where you can try before you buy (instead of just being able to purchase online), and there is a studio in Cricket St Thomas you can visit, where you can also have your colour and style analysis. It’s a lovely space, and full of colour of course, which “fills you with joy as soon as you step inside” (said another of my clients who visited with me last year).

Try before you buy

Having experienced their shopping experience myself last year at the Colour Studio, I wanted to share that with my clients. So, I asked, and two of my lovely clients responded. We booked quite ahead, and finally the day came. They drove to me and we set off in one car. It’s about two hours door to door, and we were blessed with a sunny day. We took a slightly more scenic route as the day was about rest and relaxation as well as fun.

Fiona's two happy clients trying things in the Kettlewell Colours Studio, July 2025

Oh, we had fun!

Since I love helping my clients try new things and discover even more fabulous looks, although I was working it felt like fun for me too!

Both clients said they had a wonderful time and were surprised at how the time went, how many things they could try, and learned about the different materials, necklines, and combinations of colours that worked for them. One was a Spring, and the other a Summer, so their colours were very different.

We learned how the shades of colours sometimes appeared differently in different materials. Amazing. And, how useful that we could try so many clothes to discover that.

Overall learning to improve my offering

On the way home I quizzed the clients about their experience and what I could do to improve it, for the future, since I want to take more clients there to experience such easy and fun shopping. I learned that I can help my clients a bit more, as the amount of Kettlewell items brought to try can be overwhelming and we did overstay our appointment time slightly – although Kettlewell didn’t make us feel that. Thank you!

My clients both said they appreciated having me there, as well as the Kettlewell staff who are mostly trained stylists, since I know my client a bit more, but Kettlewell know their stock and materials more than me. It’s a collaboration to give the client the very best experience. I have to say I like the fact that Kettlewell are not in the slightest bit pushy for sales. (To be honest, the clothes sell themselves anyway.) And, it’s amazing how quickly the time passes, even if you think you may not find much, or be able to try much. You will!

What about you?

So, if you want to have a lovely day out, with focussed and fun shopping, please get in touch with me if you would like my help as well as Kettlewell's. One thing my clients say about my shopping support is that they often never knew how much they could enjoy it. I'll help narrow down the best finds for you so you are confident to dress your best and get compliments, win the pitch, secure that promotion, or rock those special occasion photos.

Savvy, fun shopping starts now if you click here
Learn Fiona's secrets to work through in your own time

Avoid the pitfalls of holiday shopping

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Opportunity

When you have a change of scene like a holiday, it can be a brilliant way to add to your wardrobe. You may have more time to browse, and these things you encounter may not normally be available to you. They can also be a reminder of a lovely holiday, or time with friends and family.

Downsides

However, the drawbacks are many:

  1. Shop opening and closing times and time zone differences.
  2. Language.
  3. You may not be able to visit the shop again, depending on your holiday plans and their opening times. Therefore, you may have to make a decision to buy or leave. Either way could be a regret!
  4. Sizing.
  5. Exchange rates and taxes – have you got a currency converter, or a budget in mind?
  6. What guarantees are there about the quality of the garment, ethical production or genuineness of any claims (like the material)?
  7. Are you persuaded by someone you are with, or the convincing shop assistant, to make a buying decision?

If you have never thought of these aspects before, let’s examine how you can reduce the pitfalls, and therefore the regret factor.

Research and planning

It is possible to research before you go on holiday, what times the shops may be open, where they will be, and if there are any purchase taxes or customs duty to pay on the goods you buy on returning home.

I recently went on holiday and fully expected to find my perfume at Heathrow airport. Imagine my disappointment when told that they weren’t stocking it any more (at the airport). If I had done some simple research, I may have decided to buy my top up before the holiday.

Similarly, I happen to have a favourite store in my destination country (which I don’t get to see much these days) and could have researched where the nearest stores were to my destinations, what clothes they are likely to have in store, or I could have requested in advance that they ensure my size was available to try. If I left it to chance I might have been disappointed.

Shopping list

You could draw up a shopping list of “needs” if you were to spot them, rather than not have any list. This is always a good idea when you go food shopping, or you end up forgetting something important for the recipe. It can help you to have a wardrobe review before you go, so that if you were to want a belt for example and were faced with lots of choice, you might have an idea of your priority colour.

Budget and safety of handling money

If you can get carried away, perhaps it might be better to have a budget in mind, and to work out what that is in the currency you will be using. Would it be beneficial to pay with cash, or a credit card? Credit cards can give extra protections, but also could be cloned. Perhaps it’s better to take that chance, than carry around amounts of cash, and be seen to use it?

Baggage

It is lovely to get a store bag with your new goodies in, but these days we are used to using our own. Maybe you don’t want to advertise that you bought a Gucci watch, or an Apple iPad when wandering round a place where you may not be familiar.

Then, you may be restricted about the amount of luggage you can take home, or that you might need to pay duty on. I have been shopping in New York and had to buy an extra case to bring my goodies home! That incurred extra cost at the airport (apart from buying the suitcase) to put the extra case on the plane. It was worth it though 🤣🛍

Finally

I hope you love and use your purchases, get compliments and can smile to say: I got this in x (and it will remind you of a great holiday).

If you want any personal shopping support, please get in touch.

Your Colour & Style Consultant, Fiona

Tel: Fiona on 07469 246722

Brand Collaborations in the fashion industry

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M&S Chief Executive, Stuart Machin, recently announced on social media that M&S were now including Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger as guest brands, taking their total to over 100 brands on their platform, and with “many more” in the pipeline.

That got me thinking…

Firstly, I was shocked M&S had totted up so many collaborative brands, mainly since 2020, like Seasalt Cornwall, Joules, White Stuff, Hobbs, Nobody’s Child, Whistles, and Jaeger to name a few. In fact, M&S seems to have replaced Debenhams on the High Street! But, it’s a formula that is obviously working. So, what’s the plan? EVERYTHING in with M&S? Retail domination? Maybe a good idea!

How do collaborations work?

Secondly, it’s interesting that there are so many brands that CAN partner with M&S, given that collaborations need to align values or each could water down the brand of the other. We know M&S for “affordable luxury”. A collaboration brings together fans of each brand to expand their reach. Sometimes the brand isn’t another clothing producer too, like when Adidas partnered with Beyoncé in 2019 to co-create a new signature footwear and clothing range (which lasted until 2023). In these days of social influencers, M&S cannot afford to ignore those either. But as we saw in March with Ms Sam Jones in Australia, influencers can quickly fall out of favour and damage your brand if you’re connected with one “wrong post”!

Not just clothes

Actually, when I think about it, M&S (food) have partnered with Ocado to enable M&S to enter the home delivery market more quickly and that seems to have been successful too. I for one was sceptical how M&S could replace Waitrose, but have to say I’ve really enjoyed the change (sorry Waitrose!).

And, then there’s the big beauty brands too. And home and furniture, M&S Bank and Opticians …

Ethical values like sustainability and supporting charity

M&S are also pioneers in sustainability, and were one of the first among major high street retailers to launch “Shwopping” in conjunction with Oxfam, to promote instore clothing recycling in 2008. Customers were encouraged to bring in their pre-loved clothing, which could then be resold, reused or recycled. This initiative aimed to reduce textile waste and support charitable causes too. Win-win.

In-store Personal Styling

Interestingly, they tried in-store personal styling in 2015, but that didn’t last long before they decided to pivot to offering more digital styling advice, which is where most of it seems to be going (except John Lewis, who are still making a success of it, and me of course!).

Brand image

As a consumer of M&S clothes myself over many years, I have seen the clothing appeal to “a certain age” to now being much more appealing across the broad age range. Yet, they have kept the same principles of affordability with quality. It is a store for the mass market, so why wouldn’t they appeal to a broader market by expanding their range without commissioning it all themselves. Well done M&S I say. We certainly need to keep a presence on the high street allowing customers to try before they buy.

In my survey last December of over 100 professional women, 23% reported preferring to try something on before purchasing, and the majority 68%, mixed both options, so I’m happy M&S seems to have the formula right for today’s savvy shoppers.

 

Pie chart showing 23% like to visit a shop before buying, 68% do a mixture of online and store shopping and less than 10% shop online only.

So, if you need any impartial help shopping (whether online or in store), I’m your girl!

Fiona
Your Colour & Style Consultant
07469 246722

 

How is Paris Fashion Week (3rd to 11 March) shaping what we wear this Spring/Summer season, 2025?

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To answer this question: how is Paris Fashion Week (3rd to 11 March) shaping what we wear this Spring/Summer season in 2025, I outline the features to note.

Most of us can’t afford (and probably wouldn’t want to wear) some of the high-end fashion pieces showcased on the Paris Fashion Week catwalk. But we do like to see the general trends that filter into what most of us buy from the High Street retailers. So, what can we expect from this most recent Paris Fashion Week to see in the shops this Spring/Summer?

1.  Sustainability

I expect sustainability to be advancing as a theme in fashion, given our focus on saving the planet. Since the first Climate Change Conference in 1995 it is generally accepted that action to be more sustainable is an urgent priority for many sectors, and the fashion industry should be no different.

Away from the catwalks, most of us are now plugged into using Vinted or other pre-loved recycling outlets, dress agencies, charity shops, swaps or swishes, and upcycling either our own pieces or those we may find from recycled sources, to make them fit, suit and be unique. Not only does this make resource-sense, it also is usually more economic for our budgets too. And, we’re all feeling the effects of inflation and higher bills in some form or another, so if we want to have something new to us, this makes absolute sense.

But, if we want to buy brand new, how are our retailers acting towards sustainability?

  • Materials are chosen to be more eco-friendly. For example, organic cotton, recycled polyester and innovative materials – perhaps using AI to create and digitally print. That’s exciting!
  • Recycling old garments into new ones. We are encouraged to drop our unwanted items with a store for points or a reduction on new purchases. Also, I see Debenhams.com is now running a pre-loved section.
  • Designing clothes with the whole lifecycle in mind. Did you see Dragon’s Den last Thursday (it was a rerun of Series 20, Episode 7) where Cally, creator of This Is Unfolded had quite a pasting with his sustainable idea. Anyway, suffice to say he’s still growing his business and is determined to change the basics of the fashion industry for the better. Read their story here. This episode is available for another 25 days, so watch it now before it disappears if you’re interested (Cally was the last in the Den if you haven’t got time to see the whole episode).
  • Reducing the carbon footprint, eg lowering emissions during the production process, eg for the energy-intensive processes like fabric dyeing. Also, they are investing in renewable energy in factories.
  • Water reduction. It is known that water consumption in the clothes-making traditional process is enormous, so some brands are investing in water-saving technologies and practices to address this.
  • Renting clothes. See Baukjen.com. I think this is in its infancy and will be a growing market, once it catches on. Remember how visiting a charity shop 10-15 years ago wasn’t something we would necessarily be transparent about!

This is all well and good, but what else are we going to see in terms of the actual fashion features?

2.  Sporty Chic

Materials and styles continue to include sports-type fabrics for comfort, but with elegant twists to enable wearing them in a work setting as well as play. How about this Gia Geo Print Jersey dress from Joe Browns at £49?

3.  Pink

In terms of colour, pink seems to be it! The softness of this colour will show feminity. But if you prefer a stronger pink, colour-blocking is still in vogue.

These wide-leg elasticated waist trousers not only come in pink, but also black, ivory and dark navy from Marks & Spencer, £29.50.

4) Fringing

This look can create sexiness in the movement of the garment. See it in tops, dresses and jackets. This Sosandar dress is £119.00.

5) Bubble hems

From mini to maxi, they’re around. See this mini Leopard print one from Next £30 (it comes in other colours) or this maxi one from Next £38 (black or white).

If you want some personal advice on what suits you, do get in touch as I’d love to help. I can help around the globe through Zoom: we don’t have to be in person together, although I do that too.

If you’ve acquired something new for you, please show us here, and tell us why you love it!

Fiona

Your Colour & Style Consultant

07469 246722