Choose a hat to suit your face shape

Hats are dead accessory items for some as the act of choosing a hat to suit your face shape can be too difficult.

For me, I love hats and I always find myself looking at them thinking "Why can't there be more reasons to wear hats?" I'm not sure if anyone else feels the same way, but with the occasional hat lover who comes my way I'd like to think I am not alone.

Hats are a traditional fashion form that seem to have been forgotten in modern silhouettes and styles. It is a shame really that such a fashion statement; a true expression of art, personality and craftsmanship is reserved for either the race carnival season or a high-brow wedding.

Hats have become much more about sun protection than style. We choose large-brimmed raffia numbers in favour of pill-boxes or cloches. Traditional hat styles don’t offer much of a barrier to the harsh sunlight, so I can appreciate the choice is almost taken out of our hands. But, what about special occasions: dinners, birthdays, parties and cocktail hour?

I guess the biggest issue is how do you wear them? It’s not as though you can add a turban to a jeans and tee look and pull it off without some serious turned heads and starring. You really need to build a look around a chosen hat. The trick is not to let the hat wear you, but that it is a natural extension of your outfit and your personality. I think the goal with hats is to be amusing.

Long Face

Hat Style: Medium crowns, medium-to-wide brims. Crisp, clean lines worn straight forward.

Hair: Full, wide looks teased or soft.

Icon e.g: Sigrid Thornton, Julia Roberts, Marg Downey, Rowena Wallace. 

Oval Face

Hat Style: Low insert crowns with medium sharp line brims, either with turned-up backs or swept-up side or sides.

Hair: Swept-back style such as the French roll.

Icon e.g: Princess Caroline, Jeanne Little, Jane Turner, Rebecca Gibney and Madonna.

Square Face 

Hat Style: Large line brim framing the hair and face, worn on an angle or straight forward.

Hair: Full and soft, pulled around to the cheeks.

Icon: Bette Midler, Kate Fitzpatrick, Gina Riley, Michelle Pfeiffer, Noni Hazelhurst.

Wide Face

Hat Style: Only off-the-face styles, worn towards the back: for example, Bretons, sombreros and pillboxes.

Hair: Fringes with sculptured hair to middle of neck.

Icon e.g: Kate Cebrano, Barbara Streisand, Louise Anton.

Round Face 

Hat Style: Medium to small crowns and brims won stylishly forward or slanted.

Hair: Straight, sharp lines cut to cheek level. If longer, worn in front of ears.

Icon e.g: Jenny Kee, Alyssa-Jane Cook, Magda Szubanski, Joan Sydney.

Heart Face

Hat Style: Small brims, low crowns, one-sided hat or decor hair combs.

Hair: One side straight, swept to full other side.

Icon e.g: Marcia Hines, Annie Jones, Elizabeth Taylor.

Enjoy the fun!

Love La Rubia

www.garbedge.com.au 

It's all relative in terms of silhouettes

I can admit, even if no-one else wants to join me, that things have changed. Change, like a lot of things, is inevitable. It is not always for the better and sometimes the advantages are debatable.

Fashion is one thing that has witnessed constant change. Whether it was fabric inventions, modes of garment production or pop culture influence it was reflected in the garb and silhouettes of the time.

Earlier decades saw women reaching for drop waists, sleeveless cocktail gowns before switching to shin-length, full-flared prom dresses. Women's silhouettes were celebrated in fitted capri pants, pencil skirts and waisted maxi dresses.

As the decades moved on and changed, so did the silhouettes. In and out, up and down the shapes and styles of women's clothing represented movements in female strength, solidarity and individualism.

Certainly some decades represent femininity better than others and particular eras portray that eternal style amidst the fading fast fashions of modern times.

The most interesting thing, I think, will be how they will change in the future.


Love La Rubia
www.garbedge.com.au

Redesign your vintage

Vintage clothing continues to be a fashion favourite amongst many. I can forgive people for thinking of costumey 50’s cocktail dresses worn with barrel curls and pinnies when someone mentions dressing in vintage. However, the real appeal of vintage fashion comes from the ability to modernise the quality designs and silhouettes. But that may be easier said than done – what about the ideas?

Here are some ways you can transform vintage fashion into more modern items. Think denim hot pants, pussy bow blouses, denim vests, cotton shirt dresses and jersey maxes dresses. They are all great styles that can be worn by many body shapes and ages.

1.Bling

There are many uber cool designs from the 70s and 80s that could be brought to 21^st century with a little sparkle.

Get yourself a glue gun, some rhinestones, diamantes or anything with sparkle. Mix it up with some colour as well as white. The best way to get them attached is to hot glue on the garment first and then attach the sparkle with a tooth pick or cotton tip to avoid getting glue everywhere. Bling is the aim but try to aim for the garment instead of the table, floor or your fav t-shirt.

Try not to get carried away with the bling as it’s about adding to and not going crazy with...

2.Tie-dye

Inject some seasonal colour into the vintage piece you found at a local op-shop, in your mum’s closet or at the markets.

For spring and summer the colour palettes du jour are favouring pastels over primary and neon over neutrals. Places like spotlight and lincraft have super products to get those colours running. Grab yourself a bucket, newspaper and gloves. Be careful here as just like the sparkles the aim is to get the colour onto the garment rather than onto your carpet, walls or your dog.

The more the merrier here with the colour. Be sure to keep it in the same hue as much as possible to avoid looking like a bowl of skittles. But hey if you like colour then get to it. 

Overall the more creative you can be with your ideas the better result you will get. Fashion is there to have fun with and just because you are seeking out fashion from decades ago does not mean you can’t create stylish, modern and in-season looks with it.

Love La Rubia

www.garbedge.com.au