IT’S just like gym routines and dull-as-dishwater diets, it’s easy to get stuck in a rut when it comes to fashion. But you can escape your clothing comfort zones and breathe new life into your wardrobe with simple styling tweaks – no sale splurging required.
RECYCLE YOUR CLOTHES
If you wear a lot of dark clothing a bright coat or mac will give any outfit new zest.
Layering also adds another stylish dimension to individual pieces. Start wearing spring/summer season tops and dresses pared down with longsleeve roll-neck tops or pile on the winter accessories such as hats, scarves and elbow-length gloves.
Try Dorothy Perkins ochre tiered coat, £35.
BE MORE FEMININE
The upcoming spring season is all about ultra-feminine styles with draping, ruffles and sheer fabrics so start wearing them now layered with chunky knits. Try: Marks & Spencer floral dress, £45; or Matalan Et Vous peacock dress, £25.
WEAR HEELS MORE OFTEN
A heel can do wonders for slimlining your body and making your legs look longer and there are comfier options out there for selfconfessed stiletto-phobics.
Try a chunky platform or “coneshaped”
heel for size, or work a not-so-towering wedge. Choose your “halfway heel” wisely and you’ll still be able to sprint for the bus! Try: Next blue wrap suede mid-heels, £55; or Office Bend and Stretch black wedges, £70.
WEAR MORE ACCESSORIES
One high-octane accessory can give you – and your entire outfit – a new year lift.
This season, a must-have statement necklace will give you more eye-catching superpowers than having George Clooney on your arm (almost). If you flaunt your arms a lot, accentuate them with a dazzling wrist cuff or layer up bangles. Try: Accessorize Fable multi-strand necklace, £20; or Wallis filigree and coloured stone bracelet, £18.
Get advice from a personal trainer
THERE is no better way to kick off the new year than to get fit and healthy.
But it can be daunting when you don’t quite know how to start or what the best exercise should be for you – or even the right equipment you need for it.
At Worcester’s TK Maxx next Wednesday there will be a chance for shoppers to get their own personal trainer to help you feel and look great. Personal trainers will talk you through your lifestyle and diet, then help you discover the perfect way to get into shape. You will have a full personal fitness consultation and be given advice on the best exercise regimes for you.
Once you’ve worked out your fitness plan they will then help you choose the right clothing that will have you looking the part and boost your confidence when working out.
Sue Thomas, a personal trainer based in Worcester, will be in the store on the day, and said the service will be fun, discreet and hopefully very useful to a lot of the shoppers. “I will go up to people who are in the sports part of the shop and ask if they want an assessment. Sometimes people really want to get started and get fit but just don’t know where to start, so hopefully I can help them,” she said. However, she said it was important to have the right gear.
Mrs Thomas will be in TK Maxx, High Street, on Wednesday, January 20, between noon and 2.30pm.
For details, visit start2exercise.com
What we’re lovin’
1. Getting fit
2. Free health tests
3. Snow
4. The new year
5. Celebrity Big Brother
What we’re hating
1. Getting fat
2. Realising the post-festive bloat
3. Snow
4. Broken resolutions
5. Last in the series
