1 00:00:02,000 --> 00:00:05,280 Welcome back to Style DNA. We've just wrapped up an 2 00:00:05,280 --> 00:00:09,240 incredible season 8, and before we dive into an exciting new 3 00:00:09,240 --> 00:00:12,080 season, I wanted to take a moment to look back. 4 00:00:12,720 --> 00:00:16,000 This episode is a celebration of the highlights of the season, 5 00:00:16,640 --> 00:00:19,560 reliving the moments that really stood out when my guests shared 6 00:00:19,560 --> 00:00:23,000 insights, transparency and at times, hilarity. 7 00:00:23,800 --> 00:00:26,480 Whether you've been listening since day one or you're just 8 00:00:26,480 --> 00:00:29,960 joining us now, this is the perfect chance to experience the 9 00:00:29,960 --> 00:00:33,920 best of season 8. Style DNA Season 9 will be 10 00:00:33,920 --> 00:00:37,200 launching in mid-september, with a fabulous mix of guests in 11 00:00:37,200 --> 00:00:39,680 store. In the meantime, I hope you 12 00:00:39,680 --> 00:00:43,400 enjoy this episode. Oh, and please do me a favour 13 00:00:43,400 --> 00:00:45,800 and hit the subscribe button if you haven't already. 14 00:00:46,480 --> 00:00:51,880 Thank you. What do you reach for when you 15 00:00:53,000 --> 00:00:56,520 not feeling your shiniest best and you just want to feel 16 00:00:56,520 --> 00:00:58,520 empowered? I think a suit. 17 00:00:58,920 --> 00:01:01,360 I do love a suit. There's something about that 18 00:01:01,360 --> 00:01:05,000 that you, you know, just makes you feel, yeah, I can do this. 19 00:01:05,200 --> 00:01:07,800 You know, get your makeup on, get out, get up. 20 00:01:07,800 --> 00:01:11,200 Because the minute you start sort of, I'm not going to do 21 00:01:11,200 --> 00:01:13,680 that. And not allowing yourself a get 22 00:01:13,680 --> 00:01:16,840 out, you know, there's many days where I think I can't do this. 23 00:01:16,840 --> 00:01:20,080 It's bloody hard. Let's be honest about what a 24 00:01:20,080 --> 00:01:23,000 journey looked like. This looks like it is really 25 00:01:23,000 --> 00:01:25,000 hard. You know, there are times when I 26 00:01:25,000 --> 00:01:29,160 think, can I do this? Oh, stop it. 27 00:01:29,160 --> 00:01:31,360 Well, you there are. And I think, you know, to say 28 00:01:31,360 --> 00:01:33,040 that that isn't true would be a lie. 29 00:01:33,040 --> 00:01:35,440 Would be to say, oh, every day I just think I'm wonderful and 30 00:01:35,440 --> 00:01:38,120 powerful and I can do it is absolutely not the case. 31 00:01:38,120 --> 00:01:40,240 It's. Well, I think that's inspiring 32 00:01:40,240 --> 00:01:43,560 and incredibly honest. It's really hard and really 33 00:01:43,560 --> 00:01:46,040 lonely sometimes. Yeah, it is bloody lonely. 34 00:01:46,040 --> 00:01:48,160 It is. And sometimes you think I am. 35 00:01:48,160 --> 00:01:49,880 You know, I'm exhausted. I can't do it all. 36 00:01:49,880 --> 00:01:53,120 Can I do it? You know, the difference between 37 00:01:53,120 --> 00:01:57,000 somebody that can then go again is being able to reason with 38 00:01:57,000 --> 00:02:00,240 yourself. It's an it's an inner battle, I 39 00:02:00,240 --> 00:02:02,360 think. And you have to be able to dig 40 00:02:02,360 --> 00:02:05,280 deep and say, right, I'm going to deliver this. 41 00:02:06,080 --> 00:02:08,800 I'm going to get it over the line one way or another. 42 00:02:09,160 --> 00:02:10,960 And that's, you know, that's a learning curve. 43 00:02:10,960 --> 00:02:14,480 Where did that grit come from? I guess from my parents, you 44 00:02:14,480 --> 00:02:18,080 know, they, they both, you know, did what they did from scratch. 45 00:02:18,080 --> 00:02:21,760 They both worked really hard. They both became the best in 46 00:02:21,760 --> 00:02:24,400 what they did. And I think I watched them 47 00:02:25,360 --> 00:02:28,680 deliver that in circumstances in some areas that were very 48 00:02:28,680 --> 00:02:33,160 difficult. And I thought, right, you know, 49 00:02:33,200 --> 00:02:35,440 I'm, I, I want to give back to that. 50 00:02:35,440 --> 00:02:38,240 I want to be independent. I don't want to be, you know, 51 00:02:38,240 --> 00:02:40,240 relying on them. I've my turn now. 52 00:02:40,240 --> 00:02:42,560 I've got to take the baton here and I've got to deliver this. 53 00:02:42,960 --> 00:02:47,440 But I do think, again, I've worked with many people, I've 54 00:02:47,440 --> 00:02:49,720 watched many people go on different journeys and I think 55 00:02:50,000 --> 00:02:51,880 you either do have that or you don't. 56 00:02:51,880 --> 00:02:55,120 I think it's very difficult to if you don't have it. 57 00:02:56,600 --> 00:03:00,120 People cap out, they cap out at different stages and they can't 58 00:03:00,120 --> 00:03:03,480 dig as deep. I've, I've learnt that and 59 00:03:03,480 --> 00:03:05,560 realised that now you are, you are different. 60 00:03:05,560 --> 00:03:09,360 You are I, I am different. Otherwise, you, you know you. 61 00:03:09,960 --> 00:03:12,200 There are things you can do that other people can't. 62 00:03:12,240 --> 00:03:15,960 Fluidity in fashion is not just a section in a department store. 63 00:03:16,080 --> 00:03:19,880 Fluidity isn't created by an entrance light flashing unisex 64 00:03:20,040 --> 00:03:24,320 in some ugly bubble font wedged between the hyper stereotypical 65 00:03:24,480 --> 00:03:27,800 men's section and straight leg jeans and flannels and the 66 00:03:27,800 --> 00:03:29,840 women's section with lingerie and skirts. 67 00:03:30,200 --> 00:03:33,480 Fluidity is a way of being, a way of expressing yourself 68 00:03:33,480 --> 00:03:36,440 authentically, and a way of holding yourself in the purest 69 00:03:36,440 --> 00:03:39,720 and highest regard. It's not rooted in gender and 70 00:03:39,720 --> 00:03:42,360 certainly not rooted in unisex clothes. 71 00:03:43,000 --> 00:03:44,880 It's weird to hear someone read it back to you. 72 00:03:45,720 --> 00:03:51,840 In your dreams, what would the retail landscape look like? 73 00:03:51,840 --> 00:03:53,160 We're really. Talking dreams now. 74 00:03:53,200 --> 00:03:56,040 Gender fluid, yeah. Yeah, I mean, I, I think it 75 00:03:56,040 --> 00:03:58,560 would be the fact that it wouldn't be so like segregated 76 00:03:58,560 --> 00:04:02,000 by gender, by category. I think it's hard because I've 77 00:04:02,000 --> 00:04:04,200 had a lot of conversations and I don't wanna like shout outs, 78 00:04:04,200 --> 00:04:07,520 department stores that have explained to me why, you know, 79 00:04:07,520 --> 00:04:09,760 there's a women's floor, why there's a men's floor. 80 00:04:09,760 --> 00:04:12,320 Especially as well with, you know, the different kind of 81 00:04:12,320 --> 00:04:14,280 people that come in during the summer into London that are 82 00:04:14,280 --> 00:04:16,320 maybe from a different, you know, culture or background that 83 00:04:16,320 --> 00:04:18,680 wouldn't feel comfortable shopping alongside someone of 84 00:04:18,680 --> 00:04:21,200 the opposite gender. So I've heard all the kind of 85 00:04:21,200 --> 00:04:23,080 different arguments for why it doesn't exist. 86 00:04:23,080 --> 00:04:28,480 I think for me it, it just, I, I can't fully understand even 87 00:04:28,480 --> 00:04:30,440 hearing all this kind of feedback, why it doesn't? 88 00:04:30,440 --> 00:04:33,320 Because when I look at the people that I dress, I look at 89 00:04:33,320 --> 00:04:35,040 my friends, I look at my partner's friends, like 90 00:04:35,360 --> 00:04:37,480 everyone's grabbing a blazer from someone's wardrobe, A 91 00:04:37,480 --> 00:04:39,240 blouse, you know, maybe your husband's going to grab that 92 00:04:39,240 --> 00:04:41,160 blouse off you. Like it's, it's such a more 93 00:04:41,160 --> 00:04:43,240 fluid way that the customers actually shopping. 94 00:04:43,360 --> 00:04:45,600 So I don't understand why we haven't been able to kind of be 95 00:04:45,600 --> 00:04:48,200 like, OK, fine, we can respect obviously cultural backgrounds. 96 00:04:48,200 --> 00:04:50,720 We can respect people, you know, maybe wanting to have their own 97 00:04:50,720 --> 00:04:53,400 spaces so they don't have to be alongside a gender if it dis 98 00:04:53,400 --> 00:04:57,600 aligns with them culturally. But I just think like it's 2025, 99 00:04:57,600 --> 00:04:59,720 we need to kind of move on to the space where we are all 100 00:04:59,720 --> 00:05:02,080 shopping much more fluidly. I think when I talk to a lot of 101 00:05:02,080 --> 00:05:04,240 people on like all night platforms, they say that they 102 00:05:04,240 --> 00:05:06,800 have like their men's clients, you know, sometimes even 60% 103 00:05:06,800 --> 00:05:09,640 since seasons buying other pieces that are in the women's 104 00:05:09,720 --> 00:05:13,280 women's category. So I think, you know, people are 105 00:05:13,280 --> 00:05:15,720 just scared of change. And I also know that the behind 106 00:05:15,720 --> 00:05:18,600 the scenes actually cost quite a bit of money to change the kind 107 00:05:18,600 --> 00:05:20,760 of storefronts and the different. 108 00:05:20,920 --> 00:05:23,040 I'm not a web guy, so I'm going to sound like I don't know what 109 00:05:23,040 --> 00:05:25,200 I'm talking about here, but all these kind of backup house 110 00:05:25,200 --> 00:05:27,120 details that they're like, yeah, well, it cost 100K. 111 00:05:27,120 --> 00:05:28,520 We don't really want to do that right now. 112 00:05:28,520 --> 00:05:30,560 Fashion's in a tight spot. Like so many people know right 113 00:05:30,560 --> 00:05:32,400 now, we don't want to put the investment there. 114 00:05:32,640 --> 00:05:34,960 Let's just put a blanket term on a campaign where a guy and a 115 00:05:34,960 --> 00:05:37,400 girl are wearing the same thing. So I think there's a lot of kind 116 00:05:37,400 --> 00:05:41,880 of blanketing over this idea of fluidity where actually like not 117 00:05:41,880 --> 00:05:44,320 a lot of people are doing the kind of like legwork to really 118 00:05:44,320 --> 00:05:45,640 go for. And trust me, also, like even 119 00:05:45,640 --> 00:05:48,280 now working at a French fashion house, like it's, it's 120 00:05:48,280 --> 00:05:50,760 complicated because it is, you know, a major financial 121 00:05:50,760 --> 00:05:52,680 investment. And also it's a risk at a time 122 00:05:52,680 --> 00:05:54,880 where right now people are trying to, you know, look at how 123 00:05:54,880 --> 00:05:58,520 many movies are coming out that are the same thing 4567, you 124 00:05:58,520 --> 00:06:01,440 know, everyone's trying to take the more safe route. 125 00:06:01,440 --> 00:06:04,440 And I get that, but people just don't want to take chance. 126 00:06:04,720 --> 00:06:08,440 Would you say that your styles changed through the decades? 127 00:06:08,640 --> 00:06:10,320 I. I so you're only 33. 128 00:06:10,320 --> 00:06:14,240 So yes, over the past three decades, yes, over the past, I 129 00:06:14,240 --> 00:06:18,760 think I've become more confident in dressing like me as opposed 130 00:06:18,760 --> 00:06:20,560 to dressing like I'm supposed to dress. 131 00:06:20,720 --> 00:06:22,880 Has that been quite freeing? Oh, yes. 132 00:06:23,120 --> 00:06:26,800 And also, as I'm so pleased you said earlier, anybody saying 133 00:06:26,800 --> 00:06:29,520 that you can't do that or you can't do this because of your 134 00:06:29,520 --> 00:06:32,720 age, Shut up. Oh, wear what do you want? 135 00:06:32,720 --> 00:06:37,520 Somebody the other day spoke to me about somebody that is in the 136 00:06:37,520 --> 00:06:40,880 public eye who was photographed wearing a very short skirt. 137 00:06:41,240 --> 00:06:43,840 And they said, oh, do you think that she'd learn? 138 00:06:44,120 --> 00:06:47,320 And I said, learn what? And they got such a shock that 139 00:06:47,320 --> 00:06:52,520 my and they said, well, come on, she's in those that age. 140 00:06:52,600 --> 00:06:56,080 I said I think she looks absolutely wonderful and I 141 00:06:56,080 --> 00:06:57,800 applaud her for wearing what she wants. 142 00:06:58,120 --> 00:07:01,040 And, and actually this happened years ago. 143 00:07:01,040 --> 00:07:05,000 So when I first met my husband, we've been together 20 years and 144 00:07:05,080 --> 00:07:08,880 we were on holiday in Italy and there was a woman walking 145 00:07:08,880 --> 00:07:14,960 through the street who had on a bra top and a a sort of Saronghy 146 00:07:14,960 --> 00:07:17,160 skirt. But it had Belle, you know, when 147 00:07:17,160 --> 00:07:19,000 you the the bell belts, you know what I mean? 148 00:07:19,000 --> 00:07:20,280 They were sort of jingling. Yeah. 149 00:07:20,560 --> 00:07:23,240 And she had flip flops on that were jingling. 150 00:07:23,440 --> 00:07:26,560 And I was looking at her. My husband said, why are you 151 00:07:26,560 --> 00:07:28,560 staring? And I said, she looks fantastic. 152 00:07:28,560 --> 00:07:32,760 And then I heard my say myself say isn't it great that she 153 00:07:32,760 --> 00:07:35,000 dresses like that for her at her age? 154 00:07:35,360 --> 00:07:37,400 And then I stopped myself and I said, I'm never saying that 155 00:07:37,400 --> 00:07:38,120 again. Yeah. 156 00:07:38,120 --> 00:07:41,120 And she was, she was probably, I would say she was probably in 157 00:07:41,120 --> 00:07:44,480 her late 70s, eighties. Oh, wow. 158 00:07:44,680 --> 00:07:48,320 She was amazing and she looked incredible. 159 00:07:48,560 --> 00:07:50,120 So that was there. I stopped. 160 00:07:50,120 --> 00:07:51,880 I, I actually meant it as a compliment. 161 00:07:51,880 --> 00:07:55,840 I didn't mean it in a cruel way. And and he said why? 162 00:07:55,880 --> 00:07:56,920 Why you? What's the matter? 163 00:07:56,920 --> 00:07:58,640 I said I must never say that again. 164 00:07:58,640 --> 00:08:00,480 Yeah. Because she just looked great. 165 00:08:00,520 --> 00:08:01,800 Looked fabulous. Yeah. 166 00:08:01,880 --> 00:08:04,800 You said you were married in the late 70s. 167 00:08:04,800 --> 00:08:06,680 Yes. Describe your wedding dress to 168 00:08:06,680 --> 00:08:08,000 me. Oh, my gosh. 169 00:08:08,000 --> 00:08:09,680 Thank you. And I don't think I've ever 170 00:08:09,680 --> 00:08:11,760 talked about this. My wedding dress was from 171 00:08:11,760 --> 00:08:13,560 Kensington Market. Find any pictures? 172 00:08:13,560 --> 00:08:16,520 Oh, no, there are. No, because there was no social 173 00:08:16,520 --> 00:08:18,960 media. Also, he was on stage in a show 174 00:08:18,960 --> 00:08:22,280 called Elvis at the time. I was on stage in the West End 175 00:08:22,680 --> 00:08:24,480 in a play called Once a Catholic. 176 00:08:24,480 --> 00:08:27,280 We only had the day off. We had our reception at the 177 00:08:27,280 --> 00:08:29,840 Astoria in the West End, which is now being pulled down. 178 00:08:29,880 --> 00:08:33,039 My wedding dress was from a. Do you remember the label 179 00:08:33,039 --> 00:08:35,600 Forbidden fruit? I think you're too young, damn 180 00:08:35,600 --> 00:08:38,280 it. Those who are in my age group 181 00:08:38,640 --> 00:08:40,919 will remember forbidden fruit again. 182 00:08:40,919 --> 00:08:44,720 They came in from India. They were big, heavy velvet 183 00:08:45,120 --> 00:08:49,120 dresses with a sort of Amanda, you'd know how to describe this. 184 00:08:49,480 --> 00:08:52,880 It was like a a plate that had embroidery on and from the 185 00:08:52,880 --> 00:08:57,400 embroidery fell these folds. So velvet smoked like it was 186 00:08:57,400 --> 00:09:00,080 smoked around this template basically. 187 00:09:00,160 --> 00:09:04,520 And the back was all heavily bleated velvet with bell 188 00:09:04,520 --> 00:09:06,760 sleeves. Must have weighed a ton. 189 00:09:06,800 --> 00:09:10,680 It would snap hangers, those sheet plastic hangers, but you 190 00:09:10,680 --> 00:09:13,160 never needed to hang it because there was no way it would come. 191 00:09:13,880 --> 00:09:18,000 A deep red, really deep red. Oh, I need a picture of God. 192 00:09:18,000 --> 00:09:19,360 I'm going to try and find you one. 193 00:09:19,680 --> 00:09:24,160 And then a skull cap, A beaded skull cap because I had very 194 00:09:24,160 --> 00:09:26,680 long hair. Also from Kensington. 195 00:09:26,680 --> 00:09:28,760 Oh no, it might have been from Antiquarius. 196 00:09:29,120 --> 00:09:31,080 Oh, I think the skull cap was from Antiquarius. 197 00:09:31,560 --> 00:09:34,120 And then Chelsea girl kitten heeled boots. 198 00:09:34,200 --> 00:09:38,720 What a mishmash of style, truly. I thought I looked wonderful. 199 00:09:38,720 --> 00:09:40,840 Fashion has always been a sort of like mask. 200 00:09:40,960 --> 00:09:44,040 I think, especially growing up, it's very much, it can be a bit 201 00:09:44,040 --> 00:09:46,360 of a status thing. You want to feel cool, you know, 202 00:09:46,360 --> 00:09:49,160 whether when I was 12 and I wanted to buy skater jeans from 203 00:09:49,160 --> 00:09:53,600 roads, do you know what I mean? Or Vans, you know, I think there 204 00:09:53,600 --> 00:09:55,160 was that. And so I was probably liked 205 00:09:55,160 --> 00:09:58,120 fashion for the wrong reasons for a lot for a long time. 206 00:09:58,480 --> 00:10:02,680 But it's probably only again in the last year or two that I've 207 00:10:02,680 --> 00:10:06,920 found what suits me and felt started to actually take more 208 00:10:06,920 --> 00:10:09,240 care in my wardrobes and my outfit. 209 00:10:09,240 --> 00:10:13,520 So a big part I think of like, let's say, manifesting your 210 00:10:13,520 --> 00:10:16,240 higher self or stepping into your most empowered self. 211 00:10:16,240 --> 00:10:19,040 I think such a big part of this is about the way that you dress. 212 00:10:19,040 --> 00:10:22,640 And again, so I keep referring to the book, but in step AI talk 213 00:10:22,640 --> 00:10:25,680 about dressing the part as part of this way that you can show up 214 00:10:25,680 --> 00:10:29,200 as your future self. And alongside that big part of 215 00:10:29,200 --> 00:10:32,200 the manifestation journey is letting go. 216 00:10:32,200 --> 00:10:34,360 So it's letting go of all things that don't serve you. 217 00:10:34,640 --> 00:10:39,240 So whether it's bad habits, behaviours, people, but I think 218 00:10:39,240 --> 00:10:41,920 also the kind of clothes that don't represent who you are 219 00:10:41,920 --> 00:10:43,680 anymore or who you want to become. 220 00:10:44,280 --> 00:10:48,240 So big thing that I did like a year and a half ago, but now I 221 00:10:48,240 --> 00:10:53,200 do it all the time, is I would do mass wardrobe clear outs with 222 00:10:53,200 --> 00:10:55,160 each piece. I would ask myself, would my 223 00:10:55,160 --> 00:10:58,000 future self really wear this? Like think about the person I 224 00:10:58,000 --> 00:10:59,920 want to become. Are they stepping out the house 225 00:10:59,920 --> 00:11:03,000 wearing this? And so that was really big for 226 00:11:03,000 --> 00:11:04,960 me. So I started doing that, but I'm 227 00:11:04,960 --> 00:11:08,120 still evolving and still pushing myself further and further 228 00:11:08,120 --> 00:11:10,520 because I've had a habit recently of wearing my Ugg 229 00:11:10,520 --> 00:11:14,240 slippers every day. And I've got to stop. 230 00:11:14,240 --> 00:11:19,000 Because you've now gone on to create Rosie's Midlife 231 00:11:19,000 --> 00:11:22,000 Reinvention Retreats. Yeah, Yeah. 232 00:11:22,000 --> 00:11:26,120 And that that came about from having the courage to share my 233 00:11:26,160 --> 00:11:31,720 own story because I felt that I needed to be honest about what I 234 00:11:31,720 --> 00:11:33,240 had gone through. Hello. 235 00:11:33,240 --> 00:11:35,160 And the reason why I was leaving. 236 00:11:35,240 --> 00:11:39,160 And I think that's a very powerful, well story. 237 00:11:39,160 --> 00:11:41,800 I wasn't doing a service to other women. 238 00:11:41,800 --> 00:11:46,200 If I am just contributing to this narrative that I'm nailing 239 00:11:46,200 --> 00:11:49,720 life at all stages and now I've decided to be a coach and that's 240 00:11:49,720 --> 00:11:52,480 going to go brilliantly because it really wasn't that 241 00:11:52,480 --> 00:11:55,760 straightforward. It was a complete storm at times 242 00:11:57,160 --> 00:12:00,400 to get through. And I, I felt like as soon as I 243 00:12:00,400 --> 00:12:04,200 was able to just be honest about that, the response that I got 244 00:12:04,200 --> 00:12:06,960 was huge. So many women writing to me. 245 00:12:06,960 --> 00:12:11,240 I did a piece in the Telegraph all about it and I wasn't ready 246 00:12:11,240 --> 00:12:13,840 to do it for quite a while after it happened. 247 00:12:14,360 --> 00:12:17,760 And when I did do it, I mean, the first time I wrote the piece 248 00:12:17,760 --> 00:12:21,440 myself and I just absolutely lost it in tears the first time 249 00:12:21,440 --> 00:12:23,880 that I wrote it because it was all still there. 250 00:12:24,440 --> 00:12:27,680 But then I wrote that piece 4 times through and that was like 251 00:12:27,720 --> 00:12:28,680 therapy. Yeah. 252 00:12:28,800 --> 00:12:32,680 Because by the time I then sent it off, I was like, I'm fine 253 00:12:32,680 --> 00:12:35,640 with this Now I understand it. I was interesting. 254 00:12:35,640 --> 00:12:38,840 That was sort of part of your, probably part of your grieving 255 00:12:38,840 --> 00:12:42,600 process for the, the Rosie I had been. 256 00:12:42,600 --> 00:12:43,360 Yeah. Yeah. 257 00:12:43,360 --> 00:12:45,720 And that's OK. You know, to feel like that 258 00:12:45,960 --> 00:12:51,680 loot, I think it's phenomenally breathing and probably lighting 259 00:12:51,680 --> 00:12:56,320 and your toes are held so to the fire and it's frightening at 260 00:12:56,360 --> 00:13:02,960 times and yeah, you feel like a complete novice, but what a 261 00:13:02,960 --> 00:13:04,240 privilege. Yes. 262 00:13:04,280 --> 00:13:07,720 And And always, as we touched upon earlier when we were 263 00:13:07,720 --> 00:13:10,240 chatting, it leads to a period of growth. 264 00:13:10,760 --> 00:13:14,520 And actually the most challenging, hardest moments are 265 00:13:14,560 --> 00:13:16,680 really the ones that are going to make us. 266 00:13:17,040 --> 00:13:19,920 And it's so worth remembering that if you are going through 267 00:13:19,920 --> 00:13:24,600 something that when you're that down, the only way is up and you 268 00:13:24,600 --> 00:13:27,000 were going to rise again like a phoenix and it's going to be 269 00:13:27,000 --> 00:13:30,200 even better than it was. Is that one particular person 270 00:13:30,200 --> 00:13:34,560 woman that you look at and you think, God, I love her style. 271 00:13:34,640 --> 00:13:40,200 Every single look she wears is just perfect. 272 00:13:40,200 --> 00:13:45,200 I think I take a lot of inspiration in the clean, the 273 00:13:45,200 --> 00:13:49,080 cleanliness and the clean lines of her style and the the classic 274 00:13:49,360 --> 00:13:53,640 nature of how she dresses from the Princess of Wales. 275 00:13:53,640 --> 00:13:57,800 I think that she just epitomises timeless elegance. 276 00:13:57,920 --> 00:14:01,280 It's so I really want to say that it's it's safe because she 277 00:14:01,280 --> 00:14:03,600 wears such bold colours sometimes as well. 278 00:14:03,600 --> 00:14:06,640 But I think she provides a lot of inspiration that can be taken 279 00:14:06,640 --> 00:14:10,560 away and replicated on many different budgets. 280 00:14:10,840 --> 00:14:14,600 And I think that that's a really unique way to have personal 281 00:14:14,600 --> 00:14:18,360 style where you can take that and a simple black coat that she 282 00:14:18,360 --> 00:14:21,280 could wear can be replicated in so many different budgets. 283 00:14:21,280 --> 00:14:23,800 And I really like that. I mean, how do you feel about 284 00:14:23,800 --> 00:14:28,720 the recent announcement of her Kensington Palace saying that 285 00:14:29,120 --> 00:14:33,840 they're not going to release the brands that she's wearing? 286 00:14:34,040 --> 00:14:36,600 I think that information will come out easily anyway. 287 00:14:36,600 --> 00:14:42,440 There are so many pages dedicated to finding her style 288 00:14:42,600 --> 00:14:46,120 that I often find out from those kinds of pages before it's even 289 00:14:46,120 --> 00:14:49,200 released. I think what they're potentially 290 00:14:49,200 --> 00:14:51,280 trying to do is to just keep that focus. 291 00:14:51,960 --> 00:14:54,720 But again, I don't think any of these things are set in stone 292 00:14:54,720 --> 00:14:58,720 and they may change their mind, but there we'll still find out. 293 00:14:58,720 --> 00:15:02,280 We'll still know. The fact of the matter is A, 294 00:15:02,560 --> 00:15:07,360 Editors know exactly what she's wearing because their eye is in 295 00:15:07,360 --> 00:15:12,240 and and B, if they don't, AI will soon be telling them. 296 00:15:13,120 --> 00:15:15,200 Would you say you've had a worst fashion moment? 297 00:15:16,120 --> 00:15:19,320 I'm sure there's been heaps, but one that was particularly 298 00:15:19,320 --> 00:15:22,520 embarrassing. I this was a long time ago. 299 00:15:22,520 --> 00:15:24,720 I must have been a junior editor or something like that. 300 00:15:24,720 --> 00:15:28,760 And I can remember buying this quite conceptual Acne Studios 301 00:15:28,800 --> 00:15:32,760 dress on sale. I always used to hop into, I 302 00:15:32,760 --> 00:15:35,040 don't know if you remember start boutique that was in East 303 00:15:35,040 --> 00:15:37,160 London. Yes, it was such a little hot 304 00:15:37,160 --> 00:15:40,640 spot and, and I can remember, yeah, it was very cool. 305 00:15:40,800 --> 00:15:43,560 But it was kind of very delicate, intricately sewn 306 00:15:43,560 --> 00:15:46,600 together pieces of chiffon. And I wore it into work one day. 307 00:15:46,600 --> 00:15:48,720 I was on the tube, hopped off at Tottenham Court Road. 308 00:15:48,720 --> 00:15:51,040 This lovely girl came up to me, tapped me on the shoulder and 309 00:15:51,040 --> 00:15:53,120 she said I think there's something wrong with your dress. 310 00:15:53,680 --> 00:15:56,760 And I think I I was a bit kind of eye rolly and like she just 311 00:15:56,760 --> 00:15:58,840 doesn't understand Zachary's studious. 312 00:16:00,360 --> 00:16:03,280 It's a real idiot. And then she was like, no, 313 00:16:03,280 --> 00:16:05,640 seriously, that. And I kind of looked behind me 314 00:16:05,640 --> 00:16:09,000 and one of the chiffon panels had completely come undone. 315 00:16:09,000 --> 00:16:14,120 And so my bum and my knickers grayed out on the tube platform. 316 00:16:15,160 --> 00:16:18,240 So that was definitely a rescue mission that needed to happen. 317 00:16:19,160 --> 00:16:21,960 So that was probably one of my most embarrassing. 318 00:16:21,960 --> 00:16:23,520 But good girl. I know. 319 00:16:23,600 --> 00:16:25,640 How lovely. How lovely. 320 00:16:26,560 --> 00:16:31,360 We first met at a party that I hosted in my May 1st order. 321 00:16:31,360 --> 00:16:33,480 I was wearing a leather dress. Yeah. 322 00:16:33,760 --> 00:16:37,040 And it was one of my favorite, favorite outfits. 323 00:16:37,040 --> 00:16:39,320 And I remember feeling so chic in it. 324 00:16:39,760 --> 00:16:42,200 And I was so honoured that you dressed me. 325 00:16:42,200 --> 00:16:45,520 Oh, and I, I lived for that outfit. 326 00:16:45,520 --> 00:16:49,680 Oh, gorgeous. You've talked quite openly about 327 00:16:49,680 --> 00:16:53,120 being a bit lost before or you discovered manifesting. 328 00:16:53,160 --> 00:16:58,040 So let's talk about how your style has evolved during your 329 00:16:58,040 --> 00:17:02,280 manifesting journey. Honestly, I am mortified by 99% 330 00:17:02,280 --> 00:17:05,160 of the outfits that I have worn in the fast honest. 331 00:17:05,200 --> 00:17:08,119 Oh my God, no, honestly, they were awful. 332 00:17:08,119 --> 00:17:10,000 And I don't, I think I don't feel sad about it. 333 00:17:10,000 --> 00:17:14,240 It's like I laugh at it, but I really didn't know how to dress 334 00:17:14,280 --> 00:17:17,040 for myself. And I think that I think because 335 00:17:17,040 --> 00:17:22,680 my priority was male attention, because I felt I had no self 336 00:17:22,680 --> 00:17:26,400 worth, I didn't think that I would ever be successful in my 337 00:17:26,400 --> 00:17:28,359 own right. I didn't think I would be good 338 00:17:28,359 --> 00:17:30,240 enough to have a like good career. 339 00:17:30,240 --> 00:17:32,760 I didn't feel I just didn't feel good enough full stop. 340 00:17:32,760 --> 00:17:37,040 So I felt as I was only as worthy as the man I was with. 341 00:17:37,480 --> 00:17:40,440 And so for me, attracting men was a real priority. 342 00:17:40,440 --> 00:17:43,600 And it's couldn't be further from the truth now, but it was 343 00:17:43,600 --> 00:17:45,480 then. And so I think in that really 344 00:17:45,480 --> 00:17:48,600 impacted my dressing and that I probably dressed, I just think I 345 00:17:48,840 --> 00:17:52,520 dress in a way that was not chic. 346 00:17:52,520 --> 00:17:56,880 It wasn't demure, it wasn't it wasn't cool. 347 00:17:57,000 --> 00:17:59,600 I think it was a bit tacky, but I think that was so reflective 348 00:17:59,600 --> 00:18:04,920 of where I was in my life. And so I think that my style 349 00:18:04,920 --> 00:18:08,760 growth has been really about aligning myself with who I am 350 00:18:08,760 --> 00:18:11,160 now and representing me in a different way. 351 00:18:11,160 --> 00:18:14,880 Was I still like to dress feminine and you know, because 352 00:18:15,120 --> 00:18:19,160 because I work a lot, I don't get many opportunities to feel 353 00:18:19,160 --> 00:18:23,160 like sexy or feminine or do you know? 354 00:18:23,160 --> 00:18:26,360 So actually when I have an opportunity to, I love it 355 00:18:26,360 --> 00:18:28,840 because actually it's only through wearing like a really 356 00:18:28,840 --> 00:18:32,400 amazing dress or outfit, I can express that side of myself. 357 00:18:32,400 --> 00:18:35,840 Boyfriends or wide legs? Stop. 358 00:18:38,920 --> 00:18:42,200 Oh my goodness. I'm going to have to say 359 00:18:42,200 --> 00:18:44,440 boyfriends, aren't I? Because I'm engaged. 360 00:18:44,440 --> 00:18:46,880 No, boyfriends are wide leg jeans. 361 00:18:47,080 --> 00:18:51,760 Oh my God, stop it. No, I'm so embarrassed. 362 00:18:52,440 --> 00:18:55,480 You want me now? I'm going to go over. 363 00:18:55,480 --> 00:18:58,520 You must have thought. Why is she laughing so hard? 364 00:18:58,720 --> 00:19:01,800 I thought you meant being in a relationship or like like wide 365 00:19:01,800 --> 00:19:04,840 legs having open, like having sex all the time. 366 00:19:05,360 --> 00:19:09,920 I can't, no, I'm really hard. I'm going to take the blazer off 367 00:19:11,640 --> 00:19:13,840 boyfriend or what? I can't. 368 00:19:14,600 --> 00:19:17,800 I love that. That's why I was like, I can't 369 00:19:17,800 --> 00:19:20,160 believe you. You just asked that question, 370 00:19:20,160 --> 00:19:22,520 asked you if you want your legs open and do you know why? 371 00:19:22,520 --> 00:19:24,720 I pause. I was like, have you asked every 372 00:19:24,720 --> 00:19:26,880 single guest that and what have they? 373 00:19:28,000 --> 00:19:35,560 Yes, jeans, I can't denim, denim boyfriend I will stick with 374 00:19:35,560 --> 00:19:37,800 boyfriend. Oh, kind of heart. 375 00:19:38,920 --> 00:19:44,680 Boyfriend, boyfriend, fiance denim and in friend jeans. 376 00:19:45,280 --> 00:19:51,680 Yeah, but on that note of rings and and gemstones, do you think 377 00:19:51,680 --> 00:19:53,720 they hold energy? Do you know the funny? 378 00:19:53,720 --> 00:19:56,320 Thing is an emerald. Yeah, I think Emerald is always 379 00:19:56,320 --> 00:19:58,840 thought to be unlucky. I love them, I know. 380 00:19:58,840 --> 00:20:00,680 People love them. They're very strange sayings, 381 00:20:00,680 --> 00:20:03,520 emeralds because they, they, they, they can be much played 382 00:20:03,520 --> 00:20:05,720 around with, you know, and what you get is not. 383 00:20:07,000 --> 00:20:10,760 What you'll, what you bought quite often and they're very, 384 00:20:11,280 --> 00:20:13,240 they're very brittle. So they break very easily. 385 00:20:13,240 --> 00:20:15,480 And I think the reason I thought I was unlucky really is because 386 00:20:15,480 --> 00:20:18,400 they break so much and can break so much. 387 00:20:18,680 --> 00:20:21,360 And also because they can be, you know, they can be oiled, 388 00:20:21,360 --> 00:20:23,760 they can be, you know, filled. They can be all sorts of things. 389 00:20:24,080 --> 00:20:28,320 And I, I think they're such a sort of subtle thing that unlike 390 00:20:28,320 --> 00:20:31,240 dams, which are really fairly sort of standard in that you can 391 00:20:31,240 --> 00:20:34,440 say certain colours, certain weights, certain clarity and all 392 00:20:34,440 --> 00:20:36,600 that sort of stuff with emeralds, that they're 393 00:20:36,600 --> 00:20:38,960 incredibly subjective. You know, it's down to the 394 00:20:38,960 --> 00:20:41,680 person. And the difference between quite 395 00:20:41,680 --> 00:20:45,520 a good emerald and a good emerald and a good emerald and a 396 00:20:45,520 --> 00:20:47,920 great emerald is so vast in price. 397 00:20:47,920 --> 00:20:50,760 Yeah, that I always think, you know, I say well away from them 398 00:20:50,760 --> 00:20:53,000 because I don't really, I mean, I, if somebody wants to get an 399 00:20:53,000 --> 00:20:55,720 emerald, get one. But it's always my subjective 400 00:20:56,440 --> 00:21:00,040 decision on what I think I like is not normally about price, but 401 00:21:00,040 --> 00:21:03,440 I do that with diamonds as well. I mean, I like, you know, I like 402 00:21:03,440 --> 00:21:05,800 stones that that and it sounds weird. 403 00:21:05,800 --> 00:21:06,960 You were saying do they have any energy? 404 00:21:06,960 --> 00:21:09,920 But do they have I I think they have this sort of, they 405 00:21:10,240 --> 00:21:14,000 certainly have a character and you can find a really beautiful 406 00:21:14,000 --> 00:21:19,560 stone even amongst quite sort of, you know, non expensive 407 00:21:19,560 --> 00:21:23,080 stones, you can find these extraordinary sort of beautiful 408 00:21:23,080 --> 00:21:25,920 things. And that that's really my what I 409 00:21:25,920 --> 00:21:28,480 like to. Do you have been on the most 410 00:21:28,480 --> 00:21:33,520 unbelievable trajectory since you launched your brand in 2008? 411 00:21:34,280 --> 00:21:38,240 And I just would love to go back to pre 2008. 412 00:21:38,240 --> 00:21:40,640 What was the inspiration? You know, I had a varied 413 00:21:40,840 --> 00:21:45,080 upbringing where I I sort of lived on a farm, but my mother 414 00:21:45,080 --> 00:21:48,600 was a fashion designer. So so I grew up with a very sort 415 00:21:48,600 --> 00:21:51,760 of rural upbringing but but with the fashion as well. 416 00:21:51,760 --> 00:21:56,080 And I think that sort of moulded who I was. 417 00:21:56,080 --> 00:21:58,720 I ended up going to the agricultural college instead of 418 00:21:58,720 --> 00:22:01,320 fashion college, which is a story we might talk about later. 419 00:22:01,320 --> 00:22:07,560 But when I was there, I was going to events where we were 420 00:22:07,560 --> 00:22:11,600 all standing in the same outfit, which I thought was really odd 421 00:22:11,720 --> 00:22:14,560 because in no other point in your life would you sort of go 422 00:22:14,560 --> 00:22:17,200 to a, a dinner party or somebody's house, think we're 423 00:22:17,200 --> 00:22:20,760 all wearing the same jacket. So I was looking, I was looking 424 00:22:20,760 --> 00:22:24,720 at, you know, groups of people, large groups of people and 425 00:22:24,720 --> 00:22:26,960 thinking, gosh, there must be, there must be a market for 426 00:22:26,960 --> 00:22:29,920 creating something here that that people can feel good in 427 00:22:29,960 --> 00:22:32,080 applicable and, and have something different to wear. 428 00:22:32,080 --> 00:22:35,600 So really that's what gave me the inspiration to think I'm 429 00:22:35,600 --> 00:22:37,640 going to create product initially, which was for those 430 00:22:37,640 --> 00:22:40,040 country events, you know, even things like going to the West 431 00:22:40,040 --> 00:22:42,720 London shooting school. I would see people pulling up in 432 00:22:42,720 --> 00:22:45,400 their Bentleys in a Chanel jacket and then putting on 433 00:22:45,400 --> 00:22:48,080 something that was really I could, I could see that they 434 00:22:48,080 --> 00:22:51,120 felt like it was a downgrade. It was, it was like, oh, I've 435 00:22:51,320 --> 00:22:53,680 got to put this on. And I thought, wow, there must 436 00:22:53,680 --> 00:22:56,760 be, we must be able to cater for these people and for myself, 437 00:22:56,760 --> 00:22:59,320 because I thought, I want to, what do I want to wear? 438 00:22:59,400 --> 00:23:04,880 My law teacher at the time said to me, I should probably leave. 439 00:23:05,240 --> 00:23:07,600 You were just clearly more interested, I think. 440 00:23:07,600 --> 00:23:09,000 Yeah. And I kept saying, oh, you know, 441 00:23:09,000 --> 00:23:10,200 I've got this idea. I've got this idea. 442 00:23:10,200 --> 00:23:13,840 Anyway, you know, I wrote a business plan and I, and I 443 00:23:13,840 --> 00:23:15,080 pitched it to my parents as well. 444 00:23:15,080 --> 00:23:16,920 I said, look, I think I'll, you know, I want to leave. 445 00:23:16,920 --> 00:23:20,280 And what does that look like? And where they said, well, it 446 00:23:20,280 --> 00:23:22,840 looks like a lot of hard work very quickly. 447 00:23:22,840 --> 00:23:26,320 They both run their own businesses and, but, but said, 448 00:23:26,320 --> 00:23:29,320 you know, if you want to do it, then that's your, your choice. 449 00:23:29,320 --> 00:23:32,000 So started in a very small way, tiny. 450 00:23:32,000 --> 00:23:34,400 I had a 2m stand at Badminton Horse Trials. 451 00:23:34,680 --> 00:23:37,760 You know, it was smaller than this table really to get a 452 00:23:37,760 --> 00:23:39,760 customer in, we had to go out of the stand. 453 00:23:39,760 --> 00:23:44,840 It was that small and I had 25 mini skirts and that was it 454 00:23:44,840 --> 00:23:46,920 really. And your vision was always 455 00:23:46,920 --> 00:23:49,120 country clothing? Initially, Yes. 456 00:23:49,120 --> 00:23:52,640 So initially it was that market that that inspired me to do what 457 00:23:52,640 --> 00:23:54,240 I do. And actually I'm in a way I'm 458 00:23:54,240 --> 00:23:56,760 really grateful I did go down that route because I would never 459 00:23:56,760 --> 00:24:01,320 have seen that white space and that I suppose that gap in the 460 00:24:01,320 --> 00:24:04,520 market at that time. One of your most iconic styles 461 00:24:04,520 --> 00:24:09,600 is your gorgeous long tassel boot, particularly loved and 462 00:24:09,600 --> 00:24:13,320 worn for many years by our beautiful Princess of Wales. 463 00:24:14,440 --> 00:24:20,160 Do you know how she came to own a pair of your boots in the 1st 464 00:24:20,160 --> 00:24:22,040 place? Were you aware that she did or 465 00:24:22,040 --> 00:24:25,400 was the first you saw when you saw a fabulous picture of her 466 00:24:25,680 --> 00:24:27,800 looking great in country clothing? 467 00:24:28,800 --> 00:24:33,600 I think that the first time I met Kate and her mother was at 468 00:24:33,600 --> 00:24:36,760 Spirit of Christmas where she bought a pair of boots. 469 00:24:37,280 --> 00:24:40,880 She obviously liked them a lot and wore them again and again. 470 00:24:41,160 --> 00:24:44,960 But it was that moment when there was an image that went 471 00:24:44,960 --> 00:24:50,760 viral of her wearing the boots the day that they got engaged. 472 00:24:50,800 --> 00:24:53,440 Gorgeous. And that went viral all over the 473 00:24:53,440 --> 00:24:56,040 world. And she'd had the boots for 474 00:24:56,040 --> 00:24:59,280 quite a long time by then. And did your website crash? 475 00:24:59,280 --> 00:25:02,280 Did you sell hundreds of pairs overnight? 476 00:25:02,280 --> 00:25:04,400 I'm not sure if I even had a website then. 477 00:25:05,080 --> 00:25:06,960 I didn't have a shopping website. 478 00:25:07,560 --> 00:25:11,120 It was very early on, but I had a wholesale website. 479 00:25:11,120 --> 00:25:13,480 And did the phones ring off the hook? 480 00:25:13,480 --> 00:25:16,560 Yes, they did. And she continues to wear them 481 00:25:16,560 --> 00:25:19,600 to this day. Yeah, and I have to say, I have 482 00:25:19,600 --> 00:25:22,480 a pair. They are fancy forever. 483 00:25:22,480 --> 00:25:24,560 They last forever. They look great. 484 00:25:24,560 --> 00:25:26,760 There's something, I mean, I love a good pair of wellies, but 485 00:25:26,760 --> 00:25:31,320 there's something about that long tassel boot that just looks 486 00:25:31,320 --> 00:25:35,040 a bit chic or a bit more feminine than than a good old 487 00:25:35,040 --> 00:25:37,840 pair of wellies. Now, not many designers can 488 00:25:37,840 --> 00:25:41,360 claim that their first client was someone as globally famous 489 00:25:41,360 --> 00:25:42,720 as Harry Styles. A. 490 00:25:42,800 --> 00:25:44,760 How did that connection come about? 491 00:25:44,760 --> 00:25:47,360 B. More importantly, what did you 492 00:25:47,360 --> 00:25:50,080 wear for that first meeting? Oh my God, it was such a fun 493 00:25:50,080 --> 00:25:52,120 outfit. I was at Center Saint Martins in 494 00:25:52,120 --> 00:25:54,960 my bachelor's degree. I was doing fashions design and 495 00:25:54,960 --> 00:25:57,800 marketing as the course and the tutor who no longer works there 496 00:25:57,920 --> 00:26:01,160 would always be like, this is costume like, what is this like? 497 00:26:01,160 --> 00:26:03,800 I don't get it. And I remember the day I had my 498 00:26:03,800 --> 00:26:08,560 meeting with Harry Styles was my was a crit and this teacher was 499 00:26:08,560 --> 00:26:11,800 like, like the most you're ever going to be in your career as 500 00:26:11,800 --> 00:26:14,120 someone's assistant. And that's all you should hope 501 00:26:14,120 --> 00:26:16,520 for because this is costume. I don't get it. 502 00:26:16,520 --> 00:26:18,600 Like, and I remember kind of laughing. 503 00:26:18,600 --> 00:26:19,760 It's just like, why are you laughing? 504 00:26:19,760 --> 00:26:22,280 And it's like, well, I have a meeting with a really important 505 00:26:22,280 --> 00:26:23,520 person and I'm running quite late. 506 00:26:23,520 --> 00:26:25,680 I need to go. And contacts of that meeting was 507 00:26:25,680 --> 00:26:28,320 Harry Lambert, the extraordinary stylist kind of was the first 508 00:26:28,320 --> 00:26:29,920 real person to support me on Instagram. 509 00:26:29,920 --> 00:26:32,560 He started pulling my work when it was literally me glue gunning 510 00:26:32,560 --> 00:26:34,640 hats together. He saw this thing from the white 511 00:26:34,640 --> 00:26:36,200 show, which was, I think it happens in the center Saint 512 00:26:36,200 --> 00:26:38,640 Martin's where I think everyone gets a couple meters of white. 513 00:26:38,640 --> 00:26:41,360 It's like fleece. It's really cheap fabric. 514 00:26:41,360 --> 00:26:44,200 And the whole point is to kind of push the limits of what you 515 00:26:44,200 --> 00:26:46,800 can do with all the same meters of fabric and this kind of white 516 00:26:46,800 --> 00:26:48,440 color. And we did the show, He saw the 517 00:26:48,440 --> 00:26:50,160 piece, he pulled it, and it kind of started this beautiful 518 00:26:50,160 --> 00:26:52,280 relationship. So he kind of over those kind of 519 00:26:52,280 --> 00:26:54,280 couple months kind of was like, oh, I'm working with this new 520 00:26:54,280 --> 00:26:55,560 client. I think he'd be great. 521 00:26:55,760 --> 00:26:58,320 I kind of knew it was Harry Styles, didn't really kind of 522 00:26:58,320 --> 00:27:01,640 fully know, but he kind of was like just work on some ideas, 523 00:27:01,640 --> 00:27:03,240 references. I was looking at Jimi Hendrix, I 524 00:27:03,240 --> 00:27:05,720 was looking at David Bowie's, looking at my Jagger, just 525 00:27:05,720 --> 00:27:08,200 again, the people that I was obsessed with at that time 526 00:27:08,200 --> 00:27:10,320 myself, I was wearing gold leather flares, pussy bow 527 00:27:10,320 --> 00:27:13,400 blouses that kind of became a uniform a year later from that 528 00:27:13,400 --> 00:27:16,320 pink picture in the bathroom that kind of set up what I was. 529 00:27:16,320 --> 00:27:18,480 I remember I went from that critique where I was told I'll 530 00:27:18,480 --> 00:27:21,400 never be more than assistant went to the Apollo and 531 00:27:21,400 --> 00:27:23,160 Hammersmith. I was wearing silver leather 532 00:27:23,160 --> 00:27:25,920 flares with white silk pouring out the bottom kind of on the 533 00:27:25,920 --> 00:27:29,000 side seams. I was wearing like a Dior. 534 00:27:29,040 --> 00:27:31,240 No, sorry, it wasn't Dior. It was a Gucci blouse that I 535 00:27:31,240 --> 00:27:33,880 bought from Oxfam, but it was the one that employees wear. 536 00:27:33,880 --> 00:27:36,520 So on the label was Gucci. It says employee in bigger 537 00:27:36,520 --> 00:27:39,520 letters. And then this fox for red floor 538 00:27:39,520 --> 00:27:43,880 length for fox isn't fake like like foe not fox foe for red 539 00:27:43,880 --> 00:27:46,680 coat that was floor length. And I remember just wearing that 540 00:27:46,680 --> 00:27:48,640 with a lot of eyeliner on. And I had like kind of my 541 00:27:48,840 --> 00:27:52,400 shortish long messy blonde Bobby kind of hairstyle. 542 00:27:52,400 --> 00:27:55,720 And I remember getting to like the Apollo and I was like, Oh my 543 00:27:55,720 --> 00:27:58,520 God, wait, how do where do I go? And I remember just walking up 544 00:27:58,520 --> 00:28:01,240 to this woman and I was like, I'm here to see Harry Styles. 545 00:28:01,280 --> 00:28:03,040 And she was like, yeah, so is everyone else. 546 00:28:03,040 --> 00:28:05,640 I was like, I'm his designer. And I remember she kind of 547 00:28:05,640 --> 00:28:07,080 looked me up and down. I was like, OK. 548 00:28:07,080 --> 00:28:09,160 And then like led me back. And everyone was like, who is 549 00:28:09,160 --> 00:28:10,040 that? Who is she? 550 00:28:10,120 --> 00:28:11,400 Who are they? Where are they going? 551 00:28:11,400 --> 00:28:13,400 And kind of going back. And I remember I was kind of 552 00:28:13,400 --> 00:28:15,760 greeted by the team, had my first meeting with Harry and 553 00:28:15,760 --> 00:28:18,520 Harry. And it just went really 554 00:28:18,520 --> 00:28:20,160 amazingly. I have like a crayon in my bag. 555 00:28:20,160 --> 00:28:23,040 And I was literally drawing on my little sketch paper and it 556 00:28:23,040 --> 00:28:25,840 was just really wonderful. And I think I'd really hold that 557 00:28:25,840 --> 00:28:27,800 whole experience really dear to my heart because I think if I 558 00:28:27,800 --> 00:28:31,920 didn't have that moment with him, God knows where my brand 559 00:28:31,920 --> 00:28:34,000 would be now. I think I would have hopefully, 560 00:28:34,080 --> 00:28:35,680 you know, worked with other people, but. 561 00:28:35,880 --> 00:28:41,440 But do you remember that first moment that you put something on 562 00:28:41,440 --> 00:28:45,040 and it felt really good and it changed how you felt about 563 00:28:45,040 --> 00:28:48,080 yourself? I don't actually think I fully 564 00:28:48,080 --> 00:28:53,360 understood the impact of a good outfit, no matter what that is, 565 00:28:53,360 --> 00:28:57,200 whether that's a comfy pair of pyjamas or whether that's an 566 00:28:57,200 --> 00:29:00,120 outfit like I'm wearing today. I don't think I understood the 567 00:29:00,160 --> 00:29:06,040 actual impact on my well-being until COVID. 568 00:29:06,720 --> 00:29:11,320 And when there was no reason to go anywhere and we were all sort 569 00:29:11,320 --> 00:29:14,200 of faced with that opportunity to just stay in our pyjamas all 570 00:29:14,200 --> 00:29:17,960 day and getting up and not getting dressed. 571 00:29:18,400 --> 00:29:22,800 I quickly realized how much of an impact that had on my 572 00:29:22,800 --> 00:29:24,360 well-being. And now this is something in a 573 00:29:24,360 --> 00:29:27,360 lesson that I again talk about in my book, Evergreen, but also 574 00:29:27,680 --> 00:29:33,000 practice daily is this element of taking real care in what I'm 575 00:29:33,000 --> 00:29:38,440 wearing on a day-to-day basis, whether that is my pyjamas or my 576 00:29:38,440 --> 00:29:41,640 outfit for the day. And it shows a level of 577 00:29:41,640 --> 00:29:44,720 investment in myself. It's less about other people and 578 00:29:44,720 --> 00:29:49,640 what they think about my outfit. It's more about the investment 579 00:29:49,640 --> 00:29:53,960 in myself that I'm making in what I'm wearing. 580 00:29:53,960 --> 00:29:56,080 And it shows. It's almost telling myself that 581 00:29:56,080 --> 00:29:59,200 I'm worth dressing up for, if that makes sense. 582 00:29:59,200 --> 00:30:02,600 I I, I love that you grew up in Essex. 583 00:30:02,600 --> 00:30:06,240 You live in Essex and there are some fairly pejorative 584 00:30:06,240 --> 00:30:09,480 stereotypes attached to the term Essex girls. 585 00:30:09,480 --> 00:30:12,840 Yeah. Would you say any of those apply 586 00:30:12,840 --> 00:30:16,200 to you? So yes, a fake tan and a lash. 587 00:30:16,200 --> 00:30:19,880 I like a a subtle lash. Is it like short dresses, mini 588 00:30:19,880 --> 00:30:23,000 dresses? I mean, the body con dress is 589 00:30:23,720 --> 00:30:26,120 whatever you want it to be, really. 590 00:30:26,120 --> 00:30:29,200 I wouldn't say that you are typically, no. 591 00:30:29,760 --> 00:30:35,280 I think joining a show like The Only Way is Essex, I knew that I 592 00:30:35,280 --> 00:30:43,360 wasn't all boobs and tight dresses and I knew that I had a 593 00:30:43,360 --> 00:30:46,760 slightly different style and I really honed in on that. 594 00:30:46,760 --> 00:30:50,960 I mean, talking of that, how, how did you cope with the 595 00:30:50,960 --> 00:30:54,440 wardrobe needs for that? Do they, does the show help you? 596 00:30:54,440 --> 00:30:58,960 Do you do it totally yourself? Do they give you some assistance 597 00:30:58,960 --> 00:31:01,080 and budget. And how does it work? 598 00:31:01,080 --> 00:31:04,160 No budget. It's all completely done 599 00:31:04,200 --> 00:31:07,600 yourself. And because it's a reality show 600 00:31:07,600 --> 00:31:09,600 and they want to film you. Yeah. 601 00:31:09,600 --> 00:31:12,800 I was told once to glam up. Yeah. 602 00:31:12,960 --> 00:31:14,800 What? Too many white tanks and jeans. 603 00:31:14,800 --> 00:31:21,200 I was wearing just like an LBD. And the exec was like, I thought 604 00:31:21,200 --> 00:31:23,440 you was going to bring more, more glam. 605 00:31:24,280 --> 00:31:26,840 And I kind of understand. I understood what he meant 606 00:31:26,840 --> 00:31:30,400 because he was like, we're only filming this, you're cropped, 607 00:31:30,880 --> 00:31:34,360 we're not seeing anything. So I definitely felt the 608 00:31:34,360 --> 00:31:37,080 pressure to do more on shoot days and things like that. 609 00:31:37,080 --> 00:31:38,520 They obviously provide the clothes. 610 00:31:38,520 --> 00:31:42,200 But yeah, now I actually love to glam up, but it's a different 611 00:31:42,200 --> 00:31:45,840 kind of glam to what was seen as glam on TOWIE. 612 00:31:45,840 --> 00:31:50,280 Like I love doing a red carpet. This is a conversation that I, I 613 00:31:50,360 --> 00:31:56,800 sort of keep having at the moment is my generation just 614 00:31:56,800 --> 00:32:01,080 don't wanna look like our grannies and don't and and feel 615 00:32:01,080 --> 00:32:05,840 slightly insulted that we're not actually being marketed to you 616 00:32:06,320 --> 00:32:08,840 as much as we could be. Honestly, I think this is the 617 00:32:08,840 --> 00:32:11,520 wonderful thing about who what wears that within any of our 618 00:32:11,520 --> 00:32:14,120 features. You might see someone in a trend 619 00:32:14,120 --> 00:32:15,800 piece, for example, we might have a Gen. 620 00:32:15,800 --> 00:32:19,040 Z girl in there who's into St. wear, but then you could also 621 00:32:19,040 --> 00:32:23,160 have someone fabulous who's 60 plus and loves tailoring. 622 00:32:23,480 --> 00:32:26,520 And I think we try with all of our content to not consider that 623 00:32:26,520 --> 00:32:28,680 it's an age that we're targeting. 624 00:32:28,680 --> 00:32:32,160 It's a type of person. It's someone who's interested in 625 00:32:32,160 --> 00:32:35,040 fashion or beauty and it kind of doesn't matter. 626 00:32:35,200 --> 00:32:38,880 You know, I think the idea of how to wear such and such when 627 00:32:38,880 --> 00:32:43,600 you're 50, it's quite offensive. It's and it's dated And I I just 628 00:32:43,600 --> 00:32:48,320 think that that message of it's not about your age, it's about 629 00:32:48,320 --> 00:32:54,720 your approach is is so important to be hammering home to my age 630 00:32:54,720 --> 00:33:00,360 group because that's inspiring. Yeah rather than to stop. 631 00:33:00,360 --> 00:33:04,320 Yeah yes, exactly. On that note, what does the 632 00:33:04,320 --> 00:33:09,200 craziest Commission that you were ever commissioned to 633 00:33:09,200 --> 00:33:11,720 create? I'm not asking who it was. 634 00:33:12,040 --> 00:33:14,640 If, as a Julie, you're somewhere between a sort of gynecologist 635 00:33:14,640 --> 00:33:16,200 and a banker. And a hairdresser. 636 00:33:16,200 --> 00:33:17,360 And a. Hairdresser, you know, you share 637 00:33:17,360 --> 00:33:20,160 all the secrets, you know, and you somebody's seen walking out 638 00:33:20,160 --> 00:33:22,800 of your shop, You know, if you're a gynecologist, people 639 00:33:22,800 --> 00:33:24,000 are saying you're right for it. Yeah. 640 00:33:24,560 --> 00:33:26,680 You must have a lot of those secrets. 641 00:33:26,960 --> 00:33:29,760 So it's. But you know, some have been, 642 00:33:30,280 --> 00:33:34,760 you know, would be almost too, too, too unusual to describe, 643 00:33:34,760 --> 00:33:37,040 should we say. I want too intimate to. 644 00:33:37,040 --> 00:33:41,480 Try try me a. Lot of below the waist jewelry 645 00:33:41,920 --> 00:33:46,120 one way or the other and and items that might be used below 646 00:33:46,120 --> 00:33:48,080 the waist size. You didn't have to fit them. 647 00:33:48,160 --> 00:33:50,920 I didn't have to fit them. No, no, no. one-size-fits-all. 648 00:33:50,920 --> 00:33:53,200 I think it makes these these cases. 649 00:33:54,080 --> 00:33:55,640 But we've made some extraordinary things. 650 00:33:55,640 --> 00:33:58,640 I mean, I had this this text amount when I was over in Texas 651 00:33:58,720 --> 00:34:02,400 and yet another appallingly inept trip. 652 00:34:03,400 --> 00:34:05,880 This man came up to me and sort of slapped me on the back in a 653 00:34:05,880 --> 00:34:07,720 way which I sort of recovered about a week later. 654 00:34:07,720 --> 00:34:14,199 You know, he wanted a yellow rose for his his girlfriend and 655 00:34:14,199 --> 00:34:18,639 he had a wife very angry and, and he pointed her out. 656 00:34:19,159 --> 00:34:21,800 He didn't actually introduce me to her, but pointed right And 657 00:34:21,800 --> 00:34:24,239 she looked fearsome. I realised that this needed to 658 00:34:24,239 --> 00:34:26,920 be done very discreetly, otherwise he was going to die 659 00:34:26,920 --> 00:34:30,639 terrible death. But he called his his new 660 00:34:30,639 --> 00:34:34,920 sweetheart, the Yellow Rose of Texas, and I said, yes, there's 661 00:34:34,920 --> 00:34:36,600 a song there. Somebody went, yeah, yeah, there 662 00:34:36,600 --> 00:34:39,639 is a song already. And I went really well anyway, 663 00:34:39,800 --> 00:34:43,239 which of course was forgetting in some parts of the world, you 664 00:34:43,239 --> 00:34:47,000 really can't, yeah, you can't use RNA of any sort anyway. 665 00:34:47,080 --> 00:34:48,360 So. So I had to make this yellow 666 00:34:48,360 --> 00:34:54,080 rose brooch, yellow diamond, but it had to have a a box that 667 00:34:54,080 --> 00:34:57,800 opened up those is, you know, things like this is way before 668 00:34:58,320 --> 00:35:02,560 any kind of any kind of even CDs and things. 669 00:35:02,560 --> 00:35:04,840 So there was no kind of, you know, electric device you could 670 00:35:04,840 --> 00:35:05,760 do. So we had to have this thing 671 00:35:05,760 --> 00:35:10,040 made that played the yellow rose of Texas when you opened it and 672 00:35:10,040 --> 00:35:12,920 had a secret compartment that open slid open, had a picture of 673 00:35:12,920 --> 00:35:17,600 her in, in her natural state, as it were, but a rather sort of 674 00:35:17,600 --> 00:35:19,920 exotic natural state in those days. 675 00:35:19,920 --> 00:35:22,200 Of course, you didn't come on on that mercifully didn't come on a 676 00:35:22,200 --> 00:35:24,520 telephone came in this sort of bright envelope. 677 00:35:24,520 --> 00:35:29,040 And he sort of shuffled over my way and I went, oh God, which I 678 00:35:29,040 --> 00:35:30,680 had to travel back to. I thought, I know I'm going to 679 00:35:30,680 --> 00:35:33,120 get stopped. This is where I get stopped and 680 00:35:33,120 --> 00:35:35,280 I have to say yellow rays of Texas and it's going to sound 681 00:35:35,280 --> 00:35:40,840 like some terrible euphemism for some awful kind of deviant 682 00:35:40,840 --> 00:35:43,000 behaviour. Anyway, I had to put this 683 00:35:43,000 --> 00:35:47,440 together for him and but it involved really for the first 684 00:35:47,440 --> 00:35:53,360 time for me a dozen different Craftsman who were not hard and 685 00:35:53,360 --> 00:35:57,000 fast jewellery Craftsman said. I mean, they said the man that 686 00:35:57,000 --> 00:36:01,360 made The Who made the music box was literally a Swiss guy that 687 00:36:01,360 --> 00:36:02,280 made those little things.