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Building A Capsule Wardrobe: The Little Black Dress

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"When a little black dress is right, there is nothing to wear in it's place." -Edith Piaf

During the 1920s Chanel created a little black dress which popularized black dresses for women. After her lover Boy Capel died in 1919, Chanel wore and made black dresses inspired by the women in mourning she had seen in the French villages as a child. In 1929 Vogue printed an image of one of Chanel's black dresses in their article on Parisian Fashion. Implying the popularity and instant long term appeal of the 'LBD', Vogue dubbed the dress 'the Chanel Ford', linking it with the popularity of Henry Ford's Model-T motor cars.

Ford was known to have said "any customer can have a car painted in any colour that he wants so long as it is black".

Practical, flattering and sophisticated, the little black dress could carry women from the afternoon through the popular cocktail hours. Made from crepe de chine, the 'Chanel Ford' dress featured a slashed neckline, a bodice that bloused slightly at the front and sides, a tight bolero at the back and diagonal pin-tucks across the front. It was simple, elegant and very in keeping with the modern way of life. Over time the dress grew to become a staple in the wardrobe, as women heeded Chanel's advice.

"One is never over nor under dressed in a little black dress."

In 1961 the world went a little mad for the wardrobe of Holly Golightly, elegantly portrayed by Audrey Hepburn, dressed in Givenchy for Breakfast At Tiffany's. Personally this one is my favorite. Adopted each generation in a different way, the little black dress is synonymous as the essential item in a women's wardrobe. Today it can take you across any occasion, it can be styled simply or paired with accessories. I love that a black dress offers a reliable outfit in my wardrobe that I can turn to knowing I will have something to wear, no matter the occasion. Somehow, even wearing the same one again and again, (something a little taboo of a printed or coloured dress) is not an issue. Should you choose to wear a little black dress again and again, it is simple attributed that you have 'style', are 'classic' and elegant.

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Cue The LBD. New to Australia, The LBD is a manufacturer and online retail boutique with a unique concept certain to revolutionize how women source and select their perfect LBD. Finding the perfect LBD until now, could prove to be a challenge. Fit, price, availability and seasonal collection changes all conspire together to make it a challenge to find the right one for each woman. Over the past 12 months, the design team at The LBD have been crafting the capsule collection, built around classic, timeless designs to create a versatile foundation wardrobe. Each LBD is available in styles to enhance the individual customer's assets. These days the average Australian adult female is an average size 14, but the LBD designed to suit body shapes rather than label sizes. Adapting necklines, sleeve and skirt styles and hemlines, there is a whole range of silhouettes to choose from, each dress is made of trans seasonal high quality fabric for year round wear. The site also features a unique Dress My Shape Guide complete with a shape guide and calculator. Each dress has been sized against its counterpart, meaning the sizes remain the same no matter which style of dress you choose. I personally find the unstandardized clothing sizing system in Australia to be extremely frustrating. I am a size 8, no a 6, no a 10... or all three, depending on a garment or brand. Not with The LBD! I calculated my size, and it fit perfectly.

I will share my outfit post in the dress I chose in the coming days, (below is one of my styling boards I have made up featuring it) but in the mean time, I thought I would share a link to The LBD so you can check it out. I can not stress enough how useful a little black dress is in building your capsule wardrobe!

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If you have missed any of the 'Building A Capsule Wardrobe' series, check out the previous posts here.

I will be bringing you more of this sort of post in coming weeks, so stay tuned, and please share any comments or ask any questions below.

Happy Capsule creating!

xx Jenelle

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Tuxedo Dress: Try The Trend

The ever-chic tuxedo dress has been a hit on the red carpet, and now you can get this stylish look for yourself. Every girl needs a little black dress, but this fun tuxedo style takes it to the next level! With the menswear trend getting bigger, (and better!), than ever before, a sleek tuxedo dress can be just the right way to make a fashion statement.

Whether you want to go short and hip-hugging, or take a low plunge neckline, the tuxedo style blends the best of both worlds by giving the right masculine touch to the forever feminine little black dress.

This dress is so versatile and can be worn alone, or you can add a pop of colour with a fun jacket. Keep it classic during the cooler months with a pair of patterned tights and black heels or mix things up with a pair of metallic pumps.

Shop these looks below:

Tuxedo Dress by missrich1 featuring a collar dress

PALLAS tuxedo dress
24 260 ZAR - net-a-porter.com

Diesel Black Gold slimming dress
3 570 ZAR - veryexclusive.co.uk

Tobi blazer dress
840 ZAR - tobi.com

Love collar dress
825 ZAR - topshop.com

Miss Selfridge romper
1 030 ZAR - houseoffraser.co.uk

Street style

Still not sure how to wear this style, see below for street style inspiration to get you feeling confident in wearing this trend.

tuxedo dress Found on nastygal.com

tuxedo dress Found on us.asos.com

Michaela Kocianova Poses for Branislav Simoncik in Top Fashion Magazine

what do you think of this style? will you be buying into this trend? how would you wear this style? tell us by leaving a comment below.

How to dress like Olivia Palermo:

Olive and Black

A very common color combination that Olivia relies on is olive green and black together. Olive green is a subtle incorporation of the recent military trend and acts as a hue that compliments black but still adds depth. Where as black and red or black and blue are common color combinations, olive and black is a more understated trend. Olivia uses these colors to create a neutral yet polished look. To dress like Olivia, finding a good pair of olive green skinnies or a top to wear with the black pieces you already own would be a great start.

Vests with the Fur

I am not one to promote the abuse of animals, but fur seems to be a large component of Olivia's style. She has an assortment of fur vests that she throws on to elevate her outfit and add an element of luxury to her look. The fur also gives her looks texture and draw in visual interest. The vest becomes the focal point so she keeps the rest of the outfit simple. Finding a vintage fur vest would be a perfect step in Olivia's style direction. And there are plenty of faux fur alternatives to achieve the same level of chic without harming animals.

Katherine Hepburn

In a world dominated by in-your-face sexuality, its a breath of fresh air to see well covered, yet still chic looks like these. Olivia opts for the subtle sensuality of Katherine Hepburn's menswear inspired style. Like the fashion icon herself, Olivia wears wide legged trousers and loose blousy tops with understated polished ease. Its all about oversized pieces that are tailored to hang perfectly. To try this look for yourself, I would recommend finding a quality vintage woman's suit and getting it taken in to fit your body perfectly.

Little Black Dress

This classic standby cannot be ignored. Olivia knows the power of a versatile piece like the LBD. She knows she can rely on a simple black frock with a few special accessories to look ready for any occasion. Olivia tends to opt for black dresses with short hemlines to show off her thin legs and long sleeves to balance out and cover up on top. She also seeks out LBDs with a little something different such as a leather texture or sequin panels. To take a cue from Olivia find that black dress you've always relied on and think of a few new different ways you can style it.

Black Tie Event

When men dress up for a special occasion they can always rely on a classic black tuxedo to look sharp and pulled together. Olivia often takes a cue from them and dresses up in tux inspired outfits that look chic and timeless. She takes a feminine twist on the classic suit by wearing black leather skinnies, a girly lace or sequined top underneath, and throwing in some quirky accessories such as a leopard print clutch or heeled duck boots. If you want to immolate this look, be sure to get well tailored pieces that show off your feminine shape and don't overwhelm your frame. Also look for menswear inspired pieces with girly details such as a satin trimmed lapel or dainty buttons.

Not-Quite-Neutral

Olivia also has a thing about wearing uncommon colors such as mustard yellow, musky beige, or tangerine orange. She wears these shades as if they are neutrals even though they create a unexpected pop of color. Colors such as these seem unappealing or aged when on the hanger, but Olivia wears them in a way that is youthful and fresh. Olivia makes sure to wear these colors in sleek cuts and modern silhouettes. Picking up a frock in a quirky color like these would be a great way to incorporate a little of Olivia's style into your look.

Bold and Lavish Jewelry

Olivia tends to wear striking, luxurious jewelry. Her fingers always have huge gold rings in elaborate shapes and intricate textures. She frequently has a several detailed gold bangles on her wrists and sometimes wears a gilded gold watch that has a gold face in it. She never wears necklaces unless it is a large statement piece. To start a jewelry collection like Olivia's scour flea markets for quality one of a kind antique rings and bracelets. Invest in a gold watch that will bring an element of style to an everyday look. Skip the dainty chain and pendant necklaces and grab a few bold giant pieces from Forever 21.

Timeless Bags With a Twist

The fashion world can be very focused on status bags and Olivia knows this. She chooses to avoid the obvious trendy labels and instead leans towards classic shapes. The bags she carries always have a lot of structure. She tends to avoid large slouchy types. Because the shape of her bags are so simple, she adds in a little flair by carrying versions in interesting textures. To start dressing like Olivia, grab a simple bag or clutch in a leopard print or croc texture.

Natural Make-up and Healthy Hair

Because Olivia is a fashion risk taker, she keeps her make up as simple and understated. To keep her make up as neutral as possible, she sticks to thin sheer foundation, matte eyeshadows in browns and beiges, coral blush, and creamy natural pink lipstick. To imitate Olivia's look I would advise avoiding cakey concealers or foundations, colored metallic eyeshadows, and any lipstick more than 2 shades deeper than your natural lip color. When applying eye make up, use pencil eye liner to trace the top lash line only, be sure to curl your eyelashes with an eyelash curler and apply the best thickening volume mascara you can find.

As for Olivia's hair, she's moved past her long blonde typical california girl highlights and now works a much more mature and chic middle-parted brunette just-below-the-shoulder length cut. Her hair has a very multidimensional shade to it and lots of glossy shine. To get hair like her's keep your hair routine light on the products and less on the hot tools. Always rinse your hair with cold water at every wash to seal the strands and use a leave in hair gloss treatment every few weeks. This will help keep your hair's natural shine.

Break All the Rules

I know that this is rather contradictory to have a final rule like this, but fashion is all about pushing the limits. Olivia is always on the cutting edge of fashion and is fearless in the face of daring styles. Be a trend setter, not a trend follower. Most people would think that a purple leopard print dress with a large brown leopard print belt would look like a ridiculous leopard print over-kill. But Olivia makes it work by keeping the accessories simple, the cut of the dress minimal, and wearing it with full confidence. I know my style guides are all about imitating a specific fashionista's look, but to really take after Olivia, you have to branch out and wear whatever the hell you feel like wearing. Be fearless!

To help illustrate a few ways to put together an outfit inspired by Olivia Palermo, I've created a few looks here using the tips that I have mentioned.

VIA :Visual Basic

Six Shows, 6 Artists - LOTS of Winter Street Fashion - Sydney Style.

Has it been cold in Sydney? Hell yeah! Of course depending on your exact GPS location and perhaps depending on your Inner Warmth.. you may or may-not be feeling the cold. Of course in Sydney, a closed door to your storefront even on the coldest day is tantamount to confessing you are not there/closed, have gone outofbusiness.. so its all about an open door policy; so rug up or be one of those people who can wear sandals in all weather conditions (examples (plural) below). All these shows are on NOW but if you want to catch Julie Williams at Barometer gallery you need to go this Sunday as its part of the Art Here quick turnaround 7 shows 7 weeks thingamejig. So here's to staying warm in shops and galleries with open Winter doors, and here's your/my weeks art round-up along with the fashion too! There's 30 pictures, and although it's been suggested I make the whole picture thing look too easy and should show less.. practice helps - ink and paper!!! So Gutenberg - whatever - so here they are, I hope you enjoy and do check out the shows! Mouse over pictures for details, links below.