Welcome to the Mignonnette Tea Talks, where we speak to wonderful women who inspire us and explore what it means to be a modern day enchantress.
Today's guest is the wondrous Patsy Dhir of Style Fix – Personal and Fashion Stylist, TV presenter, Key Note Speaker, Lecturer, Mentor at the London College of Style and Ambassador for Smartworks.
Patsy believes in unlocking the key to your true identity, giving you the confidence to be the best version of you. With so many similarities to our own purpose in this world, we knew she was a perfect ally to consult with on how to enchant the world around us through the power of our wardrobes.
Patsy, how did you get started in styling?
It all started about 17 years ago after leaving corporate life. After giving birth to my first child, it was my epiphany moment really, realising I wanted to pursue my creative side. I have always been interested in fashion and design from a young age, designing my own clothes and devouring copies of Vogue magazine. I wish I had kept those copies - they would be worth a fortune now!
Alongside your personal clients, you’ve also worked with some incredible brands and celebrities – can you tell us about some of your favourites?
I have worked as a Lead Stylist for many designers including Julien Macdonald, Paul Costelloe, Huishan Zhang and Sharon Wauchob. I love the backstage buzz but I've also been fortunate to attend London Fashion Week and watch the live shows front row, Frow as we say in the trade! I also regularly work with smaller UK sustainable brands which I love to be a cheerleader for, such as Ridley London, Sophia Alexia and Aspiga London, to mention a few. And I love styling branding shoots, working alongside photographers and curating my own catwalk shows - whether on a small or larger scale.
You have a background in a very different corporate world – can you tell us how that career informed your perspective on styling?
In my corporate career, I was a Financial Accountant and worked as a Senior Executive in a well-known blue chip company for many years.
I didn’t realise at the time that presenting in front of the board of Directors has given me the confidence to do what I do now as a profession and run my own business, it’s strange how our lives sometimes go full circle.
What are the most common challenges or queries your clients come to you with – whether they’re from a corporate world or more creative?
The most common challenges basically are all around self-confidence, this can happen at any age for many difference reasons, from college leavers to new mums, after a life changing event or going through the menopause when most woman see changes to their body shape. This doesn't relate to only women, the effects of confidence issues happen to male clients too. My job is to give expert advice and guidance on how to be the best version of you.
With Mignonnette London, deeply embedded in the core of our brand, is that when you put our clothes on, they bring our your inner enchantress, you transform into that best version of yourself - or the part of yourself that you want to show in that moment.
There are clear parallels with how you describe working with your clients and “unlocking the key to their true identity”. How do you help women do that? What is the process?
For me, it’s all about getting to know my client and what they want to achieve, we talk about the end goal based on lifestyle and budget.
I normally start with a colour discovery session which can be a real wake up moment. It could be the first time that my client has been introduced to a rainbow of colours that are perfect for their skin tone - it can be a real game changing experience making the skin look more luminous and can take years off you physically.
The next stage is a wardrobe detox. This gives me a clearer picture of what my client has in her/his wardrobe that we can use as a base to curate a perfect capsule wardrobe, other key pieces can be augmented to make different and exciting new looks. At this stage I can ascertain missing items that make up a cohesive capsule wardrobe. We also arrange the clothes into sections: what to keep and what gets re-sold through preloved sites or sent to charity.
The next stage is a curated personal shopping trip where I pre-select perfect items to complete the capsule wardrobe according to my client's style, personality, skin tone and body shape that would be ready and waiting at a pre-arranged time and location, making it an enjoyable and stress free experience.
If someone feels lost with their true style identity, what advice would you give them?
To consider investing in a Personal Stylist. It really can make such a difference to your self-confidence and saves you so much time and money long term.
Do you feel someone transforming their style can affect other areas of their life too?
Absolutely! Not only in their personal lives but also from a business perspective too, dressing well can be the difference between getting that dream job or not. When you are wearing the right garment it makes you walk taller, your shoulders go back and you exude confidence.
Do you think through styling other people, your own core style or identity has transformed over the years?
I believe that my style has definitely changed and evolved over the years. I used to be more of a classic dresser, which I still love but I think as I’ve got older I have become more adventurous, embracing colour into my wardrobe, which makes me happy.
Naturally you have impeccable style, do you have any hard and fast rules for styling?
I think anything goes as long as you can own your space. Look at style icon Iris Apfel - a classic example of wearing an eclectic mix of clothes and owning it. Not everyone could pull this off for sure!
What do you love to wear when dressing up and also just relaxing?
Dressing up I like to go glam and elegant, and again it depends on my mood what outfit I choose to wear and this can change at the last minute, so I always have more than one option. Relaxing could be anything from soft floaty kimonos to yoga wear.
What does style mean to you?
Personal style is different for everyone, that is what makes us all beautifully unique - it’s a way of expressing yourself through clothes and accessories.
Who are some of your personal style icons?
It has to be Coco Chanel and Audrey Hepburn for that true, understated chic.
What’s your favourite Mignonnette dress?
I recently wore the Charlotte Sometimes High Wrap dress in Burgundy cotton lawn. The softest of cotton fabric felt smooth against my skin, it’s elegant with a an edgy high neckline. I felt confident wearing it, ready for business!
Patsy is wearing the Charlotte Sometimes High Collar Wrap Dress in Burgundy Cotton Lawn
You can discover more about Patsy and her work at:
@patsys_style_fix / stylefixuk.com
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