Nina Proudman..the reunion shirt

Yes, you saw the previous Offspring episode and you want the reunion (white silk) shirt. 

You desperately want it. 

You never thought that you needed a flowy tuxedo shirt previously. It was never on your list of things you needed to plug the holes in your wardrobe. 

You may rarely wear flowy. You may even rarely wear such sheer pieces. Or that clean lined look. After all, if your wardrobe resembles the rest of Nina's clothes, this is definitely a different & unexpected style for you. 

If Nina typical style is pretty/boho/country, then the reunion shirt is relaxed/elegant/modern. Very different styles, yes? 

But you are convinced you want it. So you are desperately looking for it. You must have it.   

Turns out it's sass & bide from Resort 2014. 

Now this shirt is around $300 & not available any more. 

So this season's version is oh, also $300, oh actually $270 and its available. The good news is was $380. Oh goody. By buying it, you're saving money. 

It's called the See the World shirt. 

Here is a blogger wearing it, sexy style...

I really need her tips on how she gets those turned up sleeves to stay turned up. Every time I try that, my sleeves end up in my soup. Buy maybe that's just me! 

A few things to note:

Height

If you are petite (say 5f5 or smaller), a shirt that comes down to your crotch, with that style of collar, will make you look like you are literally wearing grandpa's nightshirt. 

Lumps & bumps

The thin flowy silk reveals every lump & bump. If you wear a cami underneath make sure it covers the muffin when you bend over or lift your arms. A body suit (as close to your skin tone as possible) will be better. 

Offspring - literally

Thin flowy styles in pale silks don't go well with children. Don't get me wrong, your kids may love it, but you aint gonna love what they do with it. 

Not all whites are created equal

Silkworms never spin white-white. If you are a snow white complexion or dark skin (cool undertones) with dark hair, chances are this silk will never love your complexion as much as you love it. 

If you are a freckled redhead, it is likely to be too pale. Peaches & cream? It may be perfect. So how many of us are peaches & cream? 10% maybe? 

Plus, if you saw the Witchery OCRF white (silk) shirts this year (as an example), you'll see than white silk comes in all sorts of shades from pearl to ivory to cream to off white. You have to trust me when I say that only one of these shades will be optimal on any one person. Why not take the time to find out which one & only buy silk shirts in that shade of white? If you want to look your best, this is the way to do it. 

Today I strolled through a local mall. A reasonably big mall with all the high street chains. I wasnt even thinking about Nina's style. 

But, interestingly, all these Nina inspired pieces jumped out....

First at Sussan...a viscose crepe shirt with upper lace detail.

Granted viscose is my least fave fabric in the world (except for acrylic) - reasons are it launders badly, often shrinks, fluffs up fast & looks shoddy after a few washes (it is very weak when wet). 

But for the price, the top is OK & it has that whole flowy evening thing going.

The open neckline sans collar is great for big & small boobs. 

Add a circle pendant and you're close to Nina style. 

Nina wears circle pendants all the time. Guess what? They are everywhere on the high street. So why on earth you need Nina's identical circle pendant is beyond me. 

Nina tends to wear gold. But if you suit silver, I would prefer you chased down a silver one. Because gold won't flatter you as well as silver does.


Here is the same shirt in a cheapie Sussan double circle pendant in gold tones. Looks nice, though. 

It's sold well - they have now released a threesome version...., again affordable & in gold tones. 

Then I walked past Sportsgirl. I never go in there. Too young & skimpy. But what did I spy just behind the window? A Nina lace trimmed kimono top. This one's in pale pink. Yes, I know Nina normally wears white. 

But wouldnt it be interesting if you werent a carbon copy of a fictional character? Interesting thought. 

This is a size 8. Petites, stay away. 

Sussan also had this more fitted tee with lace decolletage. 
Again, this can also project the same look, but something that doesnt look like a tent is 100 x better for a petite shape.
Busty girls, stay away.  

Here is a crisp cotton - better of you have lumps & bumps as it skims over them & doesnt cling.  100% tuxedo smart. It's from Country Road. Probably not 100% big bust friendly due to the concentration of detail up top.

Next I walk past Laura Ashley & I can see tuxedo styles from the window. Here is a white soft fabric, grandpa collar number in a tiny spot jacquard. A classic men's fabric. Great for a large or small bust. Don't even try to tell me this can't replicate the Nina look.

Laura Ashley also has these (quite lovely, better than the photo) Chinese style broderie numbers in white & in black. 
The open collars will work for a larger bust.

This next one, again Laura Ashley in a find poly microfibre - that peasant style mini lace up is tuxedo cross boho. It will work for larger busts. Nina would approve. The lace on the sleeves is a bonus. This looked totally gorgeous in real life. 

If offwhite/cream, kills your complexion, the black binding on this next Laura Ashley may be perfect. 

This next one was in the window, only in black.  It is more a blouse than a shirt, but it was very pretty & can definitely do the job for Nina's reunion.

I always stop at Target...I have photographed this one previously. It's a Limited Editions & the lace is boho/country. 
Small boobs only please.

and this one, again, target Limited Editions. The open neckline will accommodate a larger bust. 

  

So what's my point folks?

Nina's blouse (& the similar current season s&b version) will only flatter a small portion of you. That's assuming you want to pay that much.

I found all these Nina substitutes without even trying. They were just there waiting to be found in any high street mall.

These varying substitutes will cater for different sizes, shapes, colourings as well as our varying style preferences. After all, none of us have Nina's identical style and most of us certainly dont have her hourglass figure and tall physique.  

If you train your eye to see the differences between what suits Nina & what suits you, I promise, crss my heart, hope to die that you will pull together a wardrobe that makes you smile when you open the closet door in the morning. 

Plus, don't forget that the show is filmed at least a year prior to screening. The clothes are sourced in the 6 months prior to that. It's not that easy finding these pieces 18 months down the track. 

But my real bugbear is if this item wasn't on your lust list to start with, do you really think it's something you're going to want to wear beyond a few weeks? Really? Sure? Absolutely sure?