Find out what Duchess Kate has been dressing her baby bump in, who has declared the fascinator dead, and get Gwyneth Paltrow’s style.
She’s finally showing – and Duchess Kate finally racked up some major fashion points during her pregnancy.
She appeared at a school in a disadvantaged part of London wearing an Erdem dress that retails for $AU1600.
It was on-trend (florals are massive for spring in the Northern hemisphere), simple and fitted to a T – and showed us all how to do maternity style properly.
The Duchess has loved Erdem even since before she fell pregnant, wearing some on her tours of Canada and Singapore – and starting up a major trend for elbow-length, modest sleeves on evening-wear in the process.
And you know she paid for them herself: she’s revealed that she returns all clothes offered for free, and only buys at full price.
Want to get Kate’s bump-skimming, navy floral look? We’ve found the closest ones in town – Zimmerman’s Rising Floral navy-and-red dress at Shopbop, $310.00, and Sportscraft’s Gracie floral shift, $139.00.
Now just find yourself some schoolchildren and a royal-looking husband, and you can pretend you’re Duchess for a day…
Image: Kate in Erdem, with the Zimmerman Rising Floral dress.
He designed some of the most famous headgear of the past decades – including Princess Beatrice’s fantastic infinity loop for the wedding of Kate and Wills – but Phillip Treacy is now anti-fascinator.
“The fascinator is dead,” he told a British fashion magazine, “and I’m delighted.”
The problem? They’ve lost their fashion edge – they’re far too easy to make or design on your own, and milliners face stiff competition from Etsy makers armed with hot glue guns, cheap headbands and plastic feathers.
Treacy hates fascinators because they “sound like a dodgy sex toy,” and insists there’s “nothing fascinating about them”.
The new trend? Proper hats – pillbox, beret, sculpted, you name it. The day of the frivolous headgear that can barely stay on your hair is over – and many department stores have reported that it’s being reflected in sales figures.
Hats are a wiser bet for formal affairs in Australia because of sun concerns – the wide-brimmed hat is a stalwart at our big racing days and high-end weddings, even when other countries are flirting with strange trends.
And the big status item for the winter? A wide-brimmed floppy hat in suede, velvet or felt. It’s Florence & The Machine’s 1970s influence, and we’re loving it.
Will you be putting your fascinators aside when Spring Racing comes around?
Image: Treacy’s hats.
She’s been turning heads for over 20 years, and now Gwyneth Paltrow’s attained the ultimate Hollywood accolade – the Most Beautiful People top spot.
And it might be just because she’s promoting Iron Man 3 – but we’ve always liked her style.
So Rescu. have put together a go-to guide for getting the Paltrow look – weird restrictive diet and four hours of exercise unnecessary.
Gwyneth does classic WASP chic with a hint of fun and cool: classic shapes in fun prints or bright colours.
She’s a massive fan of Breton tops – we love the hip slouchy version from cult label Twenty Seven Names – and pairs them with brilliantly cut trousers or jeans. The orange Citizens Of Humanity ones, or Acne‘s dark skinnies, are total Gwyneth-esque staples. And no rips or tears – it’s all impeccable, all the time.
A great white T-shirt paired with a high-waisted short is also a good Gwyneth look – worn with very minimal accessories, of course. She likes her basic black and whites, but mixes it up with textures, so Theory‘s leather shorts or Band Of Outsider‘s satin twill numbers fit the bill perfectly.
She also loves sporty stylings in sleek shapes. A sweater-type top, like Clu‘s cotton and cashmere sweater, paired with leggings has that just-back-from-yoga look.
Gwyneth’s colouring – pale yellow hair, blue eyes, light tan – is great for nude tones, so getting her look means embracing soft neutrals in an intriguing way. A divine neutral Burberry trench is a good start, but classic simple dresses like Jil Sander‘s white leather shift are easy for two-kids-and-the-husband meals in.
For evening? It’s all extremes – either a complete menswear makeover, with capes, tuxedo tops and impeccably fitted masculine trousers, or miniskirts up to there. A Paltrow tuxedo is classic, classic, classic – she might play with colours a little, like with Diane von Furstenberg‘s cream and white jacket, but she’s sticking to the old-style fit.
If you’d like to go with her feminine look, be prepared for legs – lots of them. She wore a Victoria Beckham bright neon orange mini without it wearing her – strong colours and strong shapes are the key, but no over-the-top details.
Get yourself a J.Crew white lace shift or a Herve Leger applique bandage dress to get into the mood. And for footwear? She loves her high-heeled booties for evening- slip into some Gucci platform evening boots and you’ll have the Paltrow look made.
Will you be trying the GOOP style this season?
Image: Gwyneth Paltrow’s Most Beautiful cover.
