Separates tip four: wear fewer accessories

By Sydney's Bargain Queen, Sara. March 31, 2007. Accessories, Clothing, Style

This week, I’m running a series on how to wear separates well. See also: tip one, tip two and tip three.

Tip: To look great in separates, wear fewer accessories than you would with a dress.

An outfit made up of separates already has two, three or even more elements to it, before you’ve added a single accessory. Add a bunch of accessories and it becomes very difficult to coordinate.

Here’s how to get it right (and some pictures of real people who have).
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Separates tip #3: keep colours consistent

By Sydney's Bargain Queen, Sara. March 29, 2007. Clothing, Style

This week, I’m running a series on how to wear separates well. See also: tip one and tip two.

Tip: To look great in separates, pick a colour theme and wear it from head to toe.

Separates can be used to create practically any colour combination that takes your fancy — but not all of them will look good on you.

Want to get it right? Here’s some tips, and some pictures of real people who’ve done it well.
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What do you like in a blog?

By Sydney's Bargain Queen, Sara. March 29, 2007. News

Good news for all readers and writers of fashion blogs - you now have the opportunity to include your ideas and preferences in a forthcoming book about fashion blogging, from the The University of Technology, Sydney (my alma mater).

As co-author of one the book’s chapters, The Bargain Queen has designed a survey which will enable everybody who is interested in fashion blogging to record their preferences, habits and other requirements of what they look for in the perfect fashion blog.

To help make this the world’s best study into fashion blogging, you can simply record your thoughts at our fashion blogging survey. It will only take a few minutes, and your thoughts will help make fashion blogs around the world even better!

Start the survey

PS: Fashion Bloggers — you’re welcome to link to this post as well. If you encourage your readers to have their say, then we’ll all know more about what readers want from their daily dose of fashion blogging!

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Separates tip #2: create a flattering silhouette

By Sydney's Bargain Queen, Sara. March 28, 2007. Clothing, Style, Tops

This week, I’m running a series on how to wear separates well. See tip one as well.

Tip: When you wear separates, make sure you create a flattering overall shape, or silhouette.

Here’s what you need to know to create a super-flattering silhouette whenever you wear separates.
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Tips for smoother shaved legs

By Sydney's Bargain Queen, Sara. March 27, 2007. Advice, Beauty

Christina at eBeautyDaily has some great tips for super-smooth leg shaving:

1. Soak in the tub or stand in the shower for a few minutes to allow your hair to soften. Not too long though, or your skin will swell up and make your shave not as close as you think it is.
2. Exfoliate your legs first with soap or a scrub and using an exfoliating glove (these are the BEST).
3. Use a fresh blade on whatever razor you love (always a good idea for infection prevention anyway).
4. Shave a couple of times, in a couple of directions, using long, smooth strokes.
5. Finally, follow up with a good body cream.

Sounds much better than the pain and expense of waxing to me, even if it doesn’t last quite as long!

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Separates tip #1: make sure they all fit

By Sydney's Bargain Queen, Sara. March 27, 2007. Clothing, Jackets, Style, Tops

This week, I’m running a series on how to wear separates well. Today: tip #1.

Tip: To look great in separates, you need to be aware of how every garment fits your body and how they all fit one another.

Here’s what you need to know about making sure separates fit well, so you always look great in them.

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Look great in separates: a week of tips!

By Sydney's Bargain Queen, Sara. March 26, 2007. Clothing

When I have a few spare minutes, I love to check out people’s outfits — in the street, on street style sites, in the Flickr Wardrobe Remix group, on their blogs…

One thing I’ve noticed is that separates are much harder to wear well than dresses are. They’re versatile and flexible but there’s also a lot that can go wrong in pulling an outfit together from a wardrobe full of parts.

So this week, I’m going to do a series on how to wear separates well.

I won’t name-and-shame anyone who’s got it wrong. I’ve committed an occasional fashion sin too so I’m in no position to point fingers!

I will offer some tips for getting it right, and some pics of women who do separates really well.

Stay tuned for a week of tips and pics!

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Weekend reading: March 24th, 2007

By Sydney's Bargain Queen, Sara. March 24, 2007. Links

Looking for some interesting reading this weekend? These are well worth a look:

The Proper Shirt Sleeve Length
One for the boys — how to pick the perfect length for your shirt sleeves.

Sephora is Having a 75% Off Sale!
Some great makeup bargains available online.

I (hart) eBay
How mis-spellings can save you money on eBay.

Spring Cleansing
A spring-cleaning routine for your skin, using mostly cheap products.

Online outlets
Outlet shopping in the comfort of your own home.

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Idea: silk trim to makeover dull clothes

By Sydney's Bargain Queen, Sara. March 23, 2007. Clothing

Here’s a great idea for making boring clothes look a lot more stylish: give them a makeover by adding silk fabric trims.

Icy from Individual Style says:

Adding an unusual feature to something you already own is a great way of getting something new and original to wear. I had a boring plain black suit that I bought a few years ago. Nothing wrong with it, I just never wear it because it is too plain. I was about to donate it to charity when I was struck by inspiration.

She goes on to describe how she added pretty silk fabric trims to give the suit a makeover — and the result is gorgeous.

For anyone who likes sewing, this looks like a fun DIY project. Otherwise, find a good clothing alterations person in your area and have them do it.

If you have some clothes that you never wear because you find them too boring, maybe some pretty silk trims are just what they need!

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Wipe off the makeup wipe mark-ups

By Sydney's Bargain Queen, Sara. March 23, 2007. Advice, Beauty, Skin Care

If you use makeup wipes to cleanse makeup from your skin each night, here’s something you need to know: baby wipes are basically the same thing, and cost a lot less money.

I started wondering about them when I noticed that the baby wipes my sister-in-law uses on her adorable sons’ bottoms look and feel almost identical to the makeup wipes I use on my face.

Curious, I took a look at the ingredients and there didn’t seem to be many differences. It seemed like the makeup wipes I was paying $10 for 25, were the same as the baby wipes that cost $5 for 80.

I asked the experts at The Beauty Brains, and here’s what they said:

“These products have been developed for the essentially the same purpose — to cleanse and protect sensitive areas of the skin. So it’s little wonder that companies have come up with substantially the same solutions.”

So I decided to test baby wipes and see if they really do work the same as more expensive makeup wipes. It’s now a few weeks later, and my skin looks and feels great. For me, baby wipes work at least as well as makeup wipes do, so I’ve now switched over permanently.

So if you’re spending money on makeup wipes, consider trying baby wipes instead. You’ll probably be pleasantly surprised.

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