No dress rehearsal.

Ready for some rebellious ideas?

My weekly newsletter burns down the lies you have been force-fed about your body, your clothes and the way you look.

I help you understand why you wear what you wear, so you can stop dressing for approval and start dressing from your own authority.

Let's break some rules.

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Can your menobelly break a 100-year-old beauty standard? Oct 27, 2026

One of the things I hear most from women who have hit perimenopause is ‘I don’t know how to dress my menobelly’.

While our hormones are busy throwing a party we’re not invited to, a shift in body composition occurs. Completely out of nowhere.

Our weight gets redistributed to our midsection. It’s l...

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The truth puffy dresses and barrel-leg pants expose. Oct 21, 2026

A couple of years ago, a beautifully dressed woman came into the store where I was working. It was clear from the way she put her outfit together that she loved clothes.

As she was browsing the racks, she picked up a dress and started to look at it. 'Isn't it gorgeous?' I proclaimed enthusiasticall...

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My wardrobe told me something I didn't want to hear. Oct 02, 2026

I'm thinking about letting go of my cream silk shirts. I have, what I call, a healthy collection. They have been a style staple for me for well over 10 years. I wore my favourite one so much it started to disintegrate.

Now I see them differently. I see them holding me back. 

For years a cream silk...

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Spring cleaning your wardrobe can make you feel sad. Here's why. Oct 01, 2026

Spring appears to have officially arrived here, bringing with it blue skies, sweet wafts of jasmine, and glorious bursts of sunshine that feel as good in your soul as they do on your skin.

The weather where I live has been magical.

The desire to pack away the winter woolies and commence the annual...

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Can a pair of boots change the way you see yourself? Sep 22, 2026

Last Friday I caught up with a friend for coffee at her place. While we were chatting, she excitedly told me about a pair of boots a friend had given her. ‘They’re amazing, but I’m not sure if they’re me’, she said. I love nothing more than a wardrobe show and tell so I asked her to go and get them....

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Are you aging right? Sep 08, 2026

I have loved seeing the proliferation of midlife women in fashion imagery and runways over the past couple of years.

While major luxury brands like Celine, Dolce and Gabbana and Saint Laurent made massive waves in 2015 by casting iconic older women in their 70s and 80s like Joan Didion, Joni Mitche...

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The brand that couldn't handle the truth. Aug 27, 2026

Last weekend I spent the day with a friend of mine. We don’t get a chance to catch up very often so when we do, we TALK. During the course of the conversation we were reflecting on how much anxiety, shame and embarrassment we felt managing our periods when we were teenagers. Me in the early 90’s, he...

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Is beauty a cult? Aug 20, 2026

Jane Campion’s film ‘Holy Smoke’ starring Kate Winslet and Harvey Keitel was released in 1999. The film depicts an American exit counsellor (Keitel) who attempts to deprogram a young Australian woman (Winslet) who has been indoctrinated into a new age cult in India.  

When I saw the film, as a stro...

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Is midlife where the wild roses grow? Aug 07, 2026

Kylie Minogue recently joined Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds on stage in England, performing their 1995 hit duet ‘Where the wild roses grow’. The following day, Minogue joined Madonna onstage in Amsterdam for an energetic WorldPride performance.

Having grown up with all three of these performers, seei...

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It's not your body, it's this. Aug 03, 2026

British Prime Minister Andy Burnham and his wife Marie-France Van Heel were photographed on the steps outside 10 Downing Street last week as he entered office.

Social media was ablaze with commentary about Van Heel’s dress and her body. Comments were dissecting her shape and size, pointing out the ...

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The joy and horror of the elastic waistband. Jul 24, 2026

I am having a serious love affair with elastic waistbands. If it doesn’t have elastic in some part of the waistband, I’m sorry but I’m not interested. In addition to that, I don’t want the elastic to actually engage. I just want it to sit there gently and only stretch if absolutely necessary. 

The ...

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Should you be wearing a uniform? Jul 16, 2026

The word uniform conjures up images of school assemblies and military dress codes. Literally meaning one form, a uniform is a prescribed set of clothing worn by a group of people to signal their identity.

Standardised and regulated.

When we think of personal style, a uniform is the last thing we t...

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