Meghan Markle in Karen Gee

It's no secret that in the past SIA has given fails to most of Meghan Markle's outfits. 

It's always the fit that goes wrong - she doesn't seem to have any alterations to her clothes, unlike Kate, Mary or Melania. 

The latest Karen Gee white dress is no exception. 

There are two big picture things wrong with the Karen Gee dress. And I haven't even started on the midi flatters no one. 

1st - a rectangle body shape will never find her best look in a straight up & down sheath. Even if it had a belt, the answer is the same. A rectangle body will look like a rectangle in a straight up & down sheath.

2nd - the fit is very poor.
It is rippling & bubbling all over at the slightest move she makes. That and/or she is wearing bad foundation garments. 

Personally I think that it is too big for her, but that's just a theory. 

In the past when her clothes haven't fitted her well, in a dark colour it's hard to notice. But in light shades like white - everything stands out. 

This is a big fail for SIA. 

It looks marginally better with the trenchcoat because the skinniness is hidden but when you have to cover up the figure, it's not the best pass in the world either. 

The back split

On another note, the dress is $1,800 being made with the Karen Gee Premium fabric. Fair enough. But the back split is edge to edge. These splits are quite easy to split. A better split would be the overlapping one. 

So what could have been better?

A dress that has interest at the top & the bottom, creating a waist. The interest can be with colour, print, a dark contrast, pattern, zips, buttons etc. A boatneck or a fit & flare style could have also detracted from her rectangle style. If she wanted a sheath, then a Roland Mouret style with curves & flounce would have been a big improvement. 

SIA cannot comprehend who dresses this woman. 

It's all about the full length mirror.

If you love the styling tips provided by Style into Action, then you have to read this post. 

Frankly, even I was surprised at how things turned out. 

Firstly, I love linen, men's style shirts and certain shades of blue and green sing on me. 

Enter EXHIBIT A:

Target Collection women's shirt - perfect.

I didnt even try it on - just ensured the measurements havent changed since the last one from there & off I went, shirt in hand. 

As I was perusing the rest of the floor, enter EXHIBIT B:

The almost twin version from the Belle Curve range.

1. Same fabric
2. Same price
3. Same cut except, Belle Curve has 2 small 5 cm slits at the hem on each side seam AND Belle Curve has no flaps on the front pockets.

Frankly I prefer the lack of pocket flaps b/c it's easier to iron & has a cleaner line. But that is such a small difference, I didnt want to use it as sole basis of my decision.  

The ONLY answer was to TRY THEM ON in front of a FULL LENGTH MIRROR. 

Knowing that Belle Curve cuts more generously, I made sure I was comparing shirts with the same measurements rather than the same size on the tag. 

Target Collection was the winner by far.

Why? 

Target Collection's flaps were sitting just above my nipple (with well fitting bra), bringing the eye upwards & widening my upper half. For a pear shape, clothing that does that is gold.

The Belle Curve shirt's pocket started below my nipples, bringing the eye downwards toward my belly. That's the last place a pear wants the eye to go. It visibly made my upper body look smaller & my lower body look bigger. 

I was shocked at what a huge difference these two babies made. All thanks to TRYING ON & A FULL LENGTH MIRROR.

I can't emphasise those two things enough. 

10 Biggest Body Shape Mistakes

Knowledge is power

Not knowing with 100% certainty what their horizontal body shape is.

Different stylists may have different categories and different names for them, but at the core of it, are five, hourglass, pear, apple, rectangle and busty.

The internet is a fabulous tool & you can work this out yourself.

If you pay a professional, they will not just tell you your shape, but how to dress for it and be at your side when you try pieces on, to demonstrate why something works (or doesn’t).

Vertical body shape is important too

Once you have worked out your horizontal body shape, it’s time to work out your vertical shape. Most stylists agree there are three options:

Long in body/short in legs

Short in body/long in legs

Balanced (similar body length to leg length)

The weakest link 

The measurements you use are crucial in working out your shape

You need to make sure you are measuring your bust, waist & hips correctly.

***Every second person I see measures their waist incorrectly.  

***Every fifth person I see is also getting at least one of the other two wrong.

You cannot measure your bust size if you are not wearing a supportive bra which represents what you would normally wear day to day. If you haven’t been fitted for a bra in the last two years, do it now.

Also check your tape measure back to a ruler every year or so.

Technical flattery isnt everything

Body shape analysis is about figuring out your shape & then dressing to flatter it. Typically, this involves balancing out your body. So if you are a pear, you try to use accessories, colours, trims & shapes to enhance your upper body & minimise your lower body. If you are a rectangle you emphasise upper & lower & minimise your waist area. I call this technical flattery.

A few hundred years ago, we would probably be trying to pad ourselves out. 

You need to decide how much you want to conform to technical flattery & how much you don't. Irrespective of the journey you decide to take, you have to know your starting point. That's called your body shape.   

It’s not a set & forget.

Horizontal body shapes vary over time.

Eg: Life changes like having a baby, surgery, changes in medication, weight loss will all cause those measurements to move around and your shape to change.

There is no best body shape

I see women skewing their measurements so they can be an hourglass.

I see women get depressed because they turn out not to be an hourglass.

I see young women wanting to be skinny rectangles.  

This is not a judgement process.

In fact, the hourglass shape is the easiest to get wrong because it is the easiest to unbalance, just by adding Balmain shoulder pads or palazzo pants. 

Trust me when I say that most people don’t care about your shape – they are too busy obsessing about their own.

And I certainly dont care whether you are an apple, a pear or a cream puff donut. In fact, I prefer donuts! 

It’s better to know your shape & dress it flatteringly than dress yourself like a shape which isnt yours. 

Look forward, not backward

I don’t care what your body shape was nor that you were an hourglass prom queen in your hey day. Assess who you are today and dress for it today. Forward counts, backwards confuses both you & me.

Size isn’t relevant

I don’t want nor need to know your size to dress you so you look amazing.

The only things I need to know are your colouring, your height, whether you are plus size and your body shape. Your actual size is irrelevant, but the ratio of your bust, waist & hips is vital.  Don’t waste time on what’s irrelevant.

The link between shape & size is that FIRST you identify shape, then you eliminate the styles that don’t suit that shape. THEN when you decide to pick some of what remains, you need to flip through each garment in that style to find your size.

Each body shape category is a range of numbers

Each body shape category is a range of numbers. Sometimes you will be close to the border of two categories.  

Firstly, no one will be right on the border because this is subjective & that fence line can never be precisely drawn, let alone identified. 

Secondly, I promise you that no one will be able to dress using the principles of both those categories AND look equally flattered. You will look better on one side of the fence than the other. Spend the time or the money to understand which one as this will make or break your look.

One tool in the toolkit

Style is about much more than understanding & dressing for your body shape. However if you get this wrong consistently, it’s unlikely that you will have personal style.  Body shape is one tool. 

You know the other tools - individuality, grooming, etiquette, hair, make up, skincare, accessories (these tend to work in with body shape), health, emotional, spiritual & mental well being etc. 

Go to it.

Georgie Gardner - flattering a rectangle body shape

Please note that this post is not about the presenter Georgie nor about the brands of the clothes she wears.

It's about how to flatter (or not flatter) a particular body shape with the lines and details of your clothes. 

Georgie is the model, not the object of the post.  

Georgie's body shape

Georgie Gardner has a rectangular body shape. Some may argue she is an hourglass & certainly that would be my second choice - but I believe she has too thick a torso compared to the rest of her body to be a true hourglass. 

I also have a feeling she has a broad upper body which adds to a chunky upper half. 

She also has a large head compared to her body & that makes the body stand out as a stick like shape. Think more rectangle. 

This picture #1 is a good one to start off with. Notice how the ruching/draping, the print & the necklace virtually disappear into the background. 

Add to it that it's a soft fabric and all you see is the column shape of the body because there is nothing in the dress that can alter that shape to anything else. She may as well be in a shift dress.  

#1

Next, take a dress with visible diagonal lines and an open neckline, #2. Both these aspects break the rectangle pattern & cause the eye to move side to side. 

Can you see the difference in how this flatters her better than the first photo?

#2

There is no photo #3.

The next two photos #4 & #5, are standard for Georgie. Soft blouses tucked into a dark bottom. 

In this case the soft blouses have a cape like horizontal ruffle which breaks some of the rectangle shape. However it creates almost a top heavy look, without necessarily having big boobs. 

Her upper body walks into the room before she does. The lower body looks boring. It may look nice to alot of people but it's no where near as nice as it could be. The eye doesnt travel upward to her face until late in the piece. The eye travels everywhere else first. That's not a good look. Can you see that? 

#4

#5

The next photo #6 is much better. 

Notice how the top/skirt are the same as before (different colour) but the necklace on the decolletage brings the eye upward immediately? That's what SIA calls good dressing. 

The boring bottom half isnt the focus, nor is her rectangle shape. I repeat, this is good dressing.  

#6

The next photo, #7, is similar to #6 but instead of a blouse, she is wearing a knit tee top & the necklace (or bring detail) sits much higher on the neckline. 

While the colour of #7 is better for her, the grabbiness of #7 shows up her rectangle shape and the breadth of the bling highlights her large head. 

#7

This next photo, #8 is the one which prompted SIA to write this blog. Normally diagonal draping like that is supposed to take the emphasis away from up & down bodies. But this one may be too big (?) and it looks like a sack of potatoes. 

It also looks too heavy in the hemline (it drags the eye down) - let's take it up say 1-2 cm. But the other tragic part is the covered upper body - there is no definition of any curves; its just a straight up & down sack. 

The lesson here is that basic knits really just follow the body at best. Unless they are cut well, if you dont have a waist, a knit will expose that because it doesnt have the body to create a waist for you. In this case, the cut isnt good enough to create a waist for Georgie (& the size may be wrong too). 

#8

Perhaps a solution is to take a woven dress which has its own shape? Witness #9. The break in the colour blue/black brings the eye upward, the indent at the waist gives her an hourglass.

The only crime here is the length. If you take that up by 5 cm, it will be gold. As it is, that large expanse of black swamps her bottom half.  

#9 

Have a look at #10. 
It's woven and has body - it retains its shape. But the black sections give her curves - a waist & hips and the white sections reduce the look of her broad upper body. 

In fact the upper body is broken up beautifully by this dress & the eye travels up to her face. This is what SIA calls good dressing. 

The only issue with this dress is the gold colour - it's not right for her but she is tanned (make up) & gorgeous, so it works. However in a better colour, it would work fantastically.  

#10

The next two photos, #11 & #12, show Georgie with a broken up decolletage. it's a much better look for her rectangle shape than when she wears a high plain neckline. 

#11

#12

Finally, look at some photos where she ditches the high neck line & exposes decolletage. Can you see how that work better to create more harmony with her look? 

#13

The next photo, #14 not only exposes decolletage but also exposes cleavage. SIA is not a fan of cleavage for her day job. 

#14

The next photo #15 looks like the same brand as #14 and is a disaster. Not only is it showing cleavage it looks too small and it makes her torso look like a tree trunk. She almost looks like a lolita. 

Missoni 4 Oz Target - Top 10, Bottom 10 & everything in between

Target Penrith, a premium store.
That's code for they had all the loot. 

Pretty bags, huh?
Oops, that's at the end of the day.

THE TOP TEN

1. THE BEST ENTRY LEVEL

Because you have to have a good entry level item to make the dream attainable.

a) Technically,

Leather, rose gold hardware, with leather strippy thing.
Boxed.
Such a cute boxed item.
$10
If you're wondering, the leather pencil case is underneath.

b) Actually, 

The coasters (south east)
Round box, 4 heavy porcelain babies with cork base.
4 different prints.
Totally cleanable.
$15
The other pieces are porcelain plates. 

2. THE BEST REALEST MISSONI INTERPRETATION

Yes, realest is a word.

Girls twin set.
The colours, the texture, the weave.
Realest for sure. 

Same with the pink baby piece &
the apricot/orangey baby pieces. 

Same with one pale pink tank (see above photo).

Same with one black tank (at left below).

3. FIDO LOVES MISSONI FOR TARGET

The stripes on Fido's bowl scream Sonia Rykiel.
Anything channeling two mega design houses can't be bad. 

Oh yeah bowls for Fluffy too. 

Leashes for Fido & Fluffy too. 

4. A GIRL'S RIGHT TO SHOES

The espadrille was a hit. Both at Parra and Penrith. 

But don't be too fussy about the details. 

They are not fabric, some sort of synthetic, but
don't forget to protect your babies. 

Now for the non top 10 shoes....

Leather upper & lining

Leather footbed; a bit stiff

Leather footbed; a bit stiff 

Girls, all synthetic

All the grown up flip flops were $20

Nice neon straps

5. THE CUTEST PIECE BY FAR

While it looks awful on the web site (something about being shown with long legs),
this was adorable. Silk blend.
Only for reasonably good figures though. 

Here is the monochrome playsuit, again, silk blend but it
doesn't look as fabulous as the coloured one.

6. UP TO EUROPEAN MEN STANDARDS

The white men's shirt is outstanding.
In 100% cotton, in a beautiful weave.
You will need ironing skills, but no pain, no gain. 

7. CLASSY SCARVES - The woven ones

These were all linen/silk mixes & looked very Missoni worthy.

This one would have gone home with SIA apart from the fact that the
white was actually quite muddy/off white. It's an elegant print in a lovely fabric. 

Another silk/cotton. 

This one is so versatile with all the colours, but again,
it has warm undertones, even with the off white. 

Here she is again. 

A close up also showing the rose gold metal logo plate and the texture. 

Now for the baby wraps...in cotton muslin.

Frankly I'd use these as a scarf. 

Lovely quality but an open weave, so could be delicate. 

The scarves which didnt make the top 10. 

These are all the knit (stretch) scarves. 

Loved the fact that the backs were a different print.

Didn't love that these are going to pull if you breathe on them. Far less durable than real deal Missoni, but then far more affordable. 

8. PAMPER ME

Nothing said more luxe to SIA than the silk/cotton sleepwear, esp the PJs and the strappy nightie.

 9. CURVY GIRLS ROCK MISSONI

As long as you're wearing the mock wrap full skirted dresses. 

Target is calling them "fit & flare" which is really wrong as they have a waist seam & a gathered skirt. 

If you have boobs, waist & hips, at any size, well up to s18, grab either of these. They are 10% silk. 

The ones which didnt make top 10:

The following knits are susceptible to pulls.
They are also not super forgiving. 

Please only wear this if you have a good figure. 

This one was pull city - every one of them which saw.  
Apart from the pulls, it looked amazing. 
Something about the soft salmon colour. 

This dress was a weightier knit with a separate slip. Weightier is gooder.

This is a viscose stretch dress. No slip. Nice style. 

The next few photos are of the same dress as immediately above, but in the green wave version.

Notice the dodgy sewing? Shoes up more with bright colours than with black. But you knew that. 

10. All the kid's wear. And the baby wear. 

The whole lot. 

Great fabrics, natural fibres, Cute designs. Great prices. 

Girl's playsuit in viscose. 

Surprised they kept the baby bag all black.

Love the coloured facings on the boys white shirt.

THE BOTTOM TEN

1. Knits

The knits - dresses, scarves, tops, "overcoats" etc.  
Massive pulling potential. 
Very sad given the printed ones are Missoni trademark prints. Lots of photos above.

Here are some more photo. 

The pencil skirt wasn't too bad in terms of pulling as it was a tight knit. 

A bit of an A line happening here in a rib knit.
This is probably not as sucseptible to pulls as the flat knits, but still risky. 

The green version of this top, aka, this top, looked the best.
The red & the black were a bit predictable. 

This looked lovely & would work with a back or navy wardrobe.
It had nylon in the knit, making it less likely to pull than its pure viscose sisters. 

This was LOVELY actually. Billed as a crop top with elbow length sleeves.
Loved it. But very warm in its colour. 

The top (also in red/white and green/white) looked
amazing with its matching "overcoat".
The other colours didnt have matching "overcoats". 

The pointelle cardis and tanks were alos lovely to look at, but so wide knitted & sheer. Hard to maintain. 
2. The swimwear was made of a flimsy fabric. 

Sorry, no photos...refer web. 

It was lined, but the outer fabric was very thin. 

Oh & the kaftans are lyocell. Which is code for viscose. 
Take care when laundering them. 

3. Knickers

The knickers were a very flimsy fabric and the elastic will disintegrate faster than you can say what happened to my underwear.

4. Indoor towels

The indoor towels in the black & white looked very rough. What I mean by that is that the edges of the colours going from black to white just looked fuzzy.

In contrast, the towels in the coloured wave looked much crisper in their colours.

No SIA comment on the velour beach towels. 
She couldnt be bothered undoing them. 

5. The two upright totes 

Looked a bit cheap.

The fabric was a heavy canvas, but SIA wasnt happy with it.

The handles were leather but also looked cheap & droopy in the way they were attached.

6. The silk blend pieces looked like viscose.

Let me get this clear.
Alot of the pieces were a silk/linen blend & it was slubbed & looked washed/sueded.
It looked like it was a viscose close cousin.

Now, some of the pieces in this fabric were HOT (like the playsuit and the "fit & flare" dresses). But their fabric was not a happy SIA fabric.

L to R: Pointelle cami, palazzo pant, cropped cigarette pant, playsuit

Adorable playsuit

Adorable playsuit but didnt look as good in black as it
did in the colours. 

Nice tailored short in the silk/linen blend

Like the playsuit, the web site shoes the tailored short
with longer legs than the in store version.
The in store version is also quite orangey red rather than pinky red.

On line tailored short photo. 

7. The pure silks 

The pure silks were tissue silks. That means very thin & flimsy.

Unless you iron it/steam it well after a wash. it's going to look well, alot less than smart. None of the these pieces were lined. 

I did like how the contrast was attached to the body of this loose top,
both in this one and the B&W one.
It was with stitching called fagotting - like an embroidery.

8. Acrylic madness

The throws were 100% acrylic. They looked acrylic. 
Nuff said.

9. Soft furnishings 

a) The cushions which were printed were nice. 
The ones with embroidery will pull quite easily. 
Plus you could see the ends of the threads which often were not tucked into the wrong side. Not impressed.

Most of the rectangular cushions had embroidery.
The ones with the terracotta back were harder to come by.

Loved how there was a bold & a softer version of these.
Both has waves on one side & stripes on the other. 
It would be lovely to mix bold & soft on the same couch. 
100% printed. 

b) The quilt covers & the pillowcases were a sateen finish, but lacked substance. They just looked blah. Blah is not good. 

The threadcount was stated as 300, but they just didnt feel lovely. 

Sad. 

10. Aussie men: Where style goes to die

a) Board shorts - Target calls them "volley shorts". 

Make it stop. This was Parramatta's display -
functional rather than in stories. 

SIA proposes that it's 1,000 times smarter to wear a tailored walk short. 
Those lovely Italians made those, but you probably didnt notice them amongst all the board/volley shorts. 

So much nicer than board shorts. In cotton. 

b) Thongs

And then they pollute women's minds, causing them to buy women's thongs.
You'd never see this in Europe. 
And maybe not in Melbourne. 

Shoot me. Now. 

OTHER RANDOM PHOTOS

Nice vases & frames

SIA loves stationery, but most of this had a PU cover & looked a bit tacky.

Loved the boxed notebook set.
Rounded corners too and a hard cover case.

Tea towels & melamine

Cute trays

Another cute tray

These were adorable.

Towels

Liked the cosmetic cases and that they had a plastic outer for easy wash down.
The bangles were nice as 
were the clear pouch gift sets (all also available in B&W)

Cotton tees for men

100% cotton jacket. Soooo much nicer than a hoodie.

The crop cigarette pant for ladies. 

The black crop cigarette pant. 

100% cotton. So Italian. Males, please buy. 

100% cotton 

100% cotton

This was the Bondi store in the afternoon from reader Belinda. 
Penrith was nothing like this. 

Reader Brooke's loot

Reader Caroline's loot + espadrilles to come

Reader Michelle's loot.

A word about where it's all made

Most of the loot was made in China. The towels were made in Bangladesh & I have a feeling so too was the bed linen (TBC).

What did SIA buy?

1. The espadrille (one of my fave pieces)
2. Two sets of coasters (love them & their presentation)
3. The wave pastel bra (feels super comfy)
4. The moulded cup bra (had the wide lace band)
5. The B&W ballet flat (because my Cavalli Target ballet flat has lived a long happy life)
6. A coloured wave teatowel (just because).

Would have loved the green ballet flat, but found that one foot which has a bunion looked very wonky against a strong pattern runs at 90 degrees to the length of the foot. 

Would have loved the B&W floral silk/cotton woven scarf, but the white was very off white.

The only thing i may go back & look at is the men's knit jacket. Because I love navy & I love textured knit jackets.

I wore the espadrille today - with white (Target) boyfriend jeans and an oversize Witchery white men's style shirt (same style as the two tone chambray shirt). Very happy with my look and the espadrilles got more than their fair share of attention. Even before I would put them in peoples' faces & say "Look, Missoni for target".

SIA would have killed to be a little girl & be able to wear the vibrant coloured twinset trimmed in B&W. 

Overall: 10/10 for Aussie Target despite the web site shenanigans. 

Most happy. Most exhausted. Shopping is such hard work.