17. A New Season Reset
Hi and welcome to a little reset.
Autumn is very much creeping in and with it a brand new fashion season!
With Autumn comes the joy of a little more calm. It’s also the most exciting time in the fashion calendar. Styling is at it’s best in the colder months and investing in your wardrobe in Autumn is joy. We are guaranteed the weather and the wear.
So, while it’s definitely time for a style reset, I also wanted to share a little personal reset too :-)
Firstly, I’m excited to build this community. I feel something really good here on Substack. I’ve been here for a few months now and it feels like such a lovely enriching place. Where meaningful and honest things are shared. It’s not about the perfect visual or the algorithm. It’s about the people and creating true value in whatever is your passion and skills are. I’ve been working in personal styling for 15 years and I can honestly say this place fits the best for me outside of being with women in person (which let’s face it, will always win!).
So, yes, excited for what lies ahead! And thank you for being here with me.
In today’s post;
what I am letting go of to be more present here.
introducing my styling boards (with some lovely fashion to show you).
what will I be sharing here.
how often will I post.
how can you join me on your Style Design journey.
the substack app.
coming up over the next few weeks.
A little reset
Substack v Instagram
It’s not a case of one over the other, for me it’s about finding what fits best for what you have to share - what feels most like me? I love a good scroll on insta like the next person but truth be told it’s too hard there now. It’s a fight to get thoughts and ideas seen and it feels like a love bomb from my family most of the time :-) Now, I appreciate my family very much (!) but my newsletter community (you) have always had my back.
Lots of you I have met in person.
In classes in House of Fraser when I used to teach there, or in a hotel or venue somewhere around Ireland as you joined classes, signed up to sessions or maybe just saw me slay (by slay I mean pee my pants) on Dragons Den. I gathered a lot of community here after that happy little incident.
The point is, this community feels much more me. I feel I can be myself more and share in a more honest way that isn’t about algorithms or scary people lurking. I like planning good solid writing and content, new ways to do that with a consistent calendar of what you can expect and enjoy.
I will still be on insta, but all the good stuff, will be here.
My Styling Boards & New Season Editing
September and October are the months for the biggest styling reccy. For me, it’s when I get most excited about the new stock because we get to wear it for 8 months of the year!
Autumn styling is quite simply the bread and butter of our wardrobes.
It is the time most of us like to invest, think more about what to buy and as we begin to look to change how we shop in more general terms, it is a great time delve into the layers of what makes something a worthwhile buy for our wardrobes.
For many years, as Personal Stylist in stores and in training new stylists, this reccy happened on shop floors - seeing new collections, but now with my work shifting to Style Design, it happens now mainly online (though I do venture into the real world with a trip to London to feel and touch too). Instead of running around shop floors, I am sent links to collections, browse websites and log into PR websites where new collections are shared for magazines, stylists and others in the industry to have access to high-resolution images for spreads.
I am simply looking for great pieces for my clients. It’s seeing who is doing what well. Great knitwear. The best boots. Great accessories. Good core wardrobe basics alongside stand-out pieces. And of course being online has opened up a world of brands that no high street can compete with. There are literally hundreds of brands that could be great in your wardrobe but you know nothing about them because it’s easier to do what you’ve always done. I get that. That’s where I come in. It’s my job to delve, dissect, edit, save and share in a curated way for each client.
To set you off on the right track, a new track with brands that feel good to you and Style Design and my Styling Boards is the beginning of that new journey. I want to help you reduce the shopping overwhelm and focus your mind. To build your confidence to identify a great brand for your style when you browse yourself. To help you more easily identify what a good item like for you.
For me, this is the core part of what I do for clients. I bring them on their Style Design journey and at the end I create Styling Boards, which is essentially a collection of looks styled with items from current collections for them to see how their new personal style can and is coming to life.
How a Styling Board Works:
I choose one key item first based on details identified for each client - colour direction, shapes and styles taking in body shape considerations, an aesthetic that we put descriptive words too and a feeling that we want the outfit to give.
For example, using some descriptive words, if your style is minimal, elegant and fun or natural, soft and elevated (we focus on 3 words that have been identified) - I use your words to build looks using a selection of brands that fit with all the parts of your personal Style Design Framework.
To show you, I have picked 3 items this week that have just landed so you can see what I mean.
A denim skirt from Karen Millen (now only online but with lovely pieces).
You can see from the boards how different items take the item in different style directions, giving each look a slightly different look and feeling - some are more creative, some more pared back. Each of these varied looks I would create for different clients depending on what style we are building.
(Click on the look to visit my styling boards where you will find a direct link to each item featured. You will see on the bottom right of the screen when you click through a little ‘pages’ icon, that will bring up all the looks along the bottom on a carousel).
Look 1 & 4 here with the Karen Millen skirt are more edgy and oversized whereas look 2 & 3 are more feminine.
All of the looks below using Everlane’s High-Way Jean feel similar in style direction - mostly warm tones, elevated, soft and a little preppy.
Finally, I love and have used the ‘Carly’ cropped denim from Hush (Hush is great for Autumn) to create a mix of looks. Look 1 is cosy, every day and still elegant. Look 2 is creative and interesting and Look 3 is more classic but a little edgy with the cool black tones.
I will be using my Styling Boards as a way to share lots of ideas and to have lots of styling discussions over the coming months. Today, I just wanted to give you a little new season intro to what they are, how they work (and how my brain works in putting a look together) in order to create looks from items so that they will feel really good to you individually.
What I will Share Here
My goal here is to share content that helps you to consider there is a different way to break down your style, how you shop, how you look at clothes and brands and how you see yourself at the centre of what you buy.
For me, our style is the sum of all the parts of who we are (inside and out) put together into a look, a feeling, an approach that will help you to see yourself through fresh eyes.
I want to share:
Styling Boards with beautiful clothes I find and love.
How I approach building a look with a client in mind.
How all outfits start with one great piece.
Videos to help you navigate shopping online.
Inspiration to style your outfits in a fun, fresh way.
More on Style Design, the process, the outcomes, what it will change for you.
The 5 elements I use that allows me to go deeper into your personality truths that form part of your style.
…and lots more.
How Often Will I Post
I have been posting here each Sunday for the last few months and I like that pattern. However, I like to feel fluid with it! Sometimes, I will have nothing to share or perhaps will have a busy week and won’t post and some weeks I like to share more than one post.
I like being fluid with it. I don’t work well under pressure (lol). I like to take my time, think, create, write, rewrite. However, even if you don’t see or hear from me, I will always be here. You can comment under any post, which is where I will hang out to answer questions and chat and you can always email me with anything at all - hi@juliecobbe.ie
Style Design Offerings I Am Working On
To date, I have been working with clients on a longer-term Style Design coaching programme. As I get more into Style Design and create the journey points in detail I am changing this up, now that I have gained enough experience to shorten the process and therefore make it more affordable for more women.
I am working on two new shorter offerings.
One, which I am calling right now ‘Style Design Mini’ (around €1400) and the Other will be a ‘Wardrobe Hour’ (around £140). The Style Design Mini will be around 4 sessions, plus Styling Boards. The Wardrobe Hour will be a way to access initial advice, have your style questions answered while learning more about the Style Design process. You can use this session at your wardrobe doors to ask about individual items also. It’s your time.
I hope to have them together in the next few weeks so will share more soon but wanted to let you know I am working on both and am excited to welcome you guys in.
In relation to my Styling Boards that you have seen here.
I offer Styling Boards in 2 ways to clients. Firstly, they form part of the Style Design journey as above. At the end of the Style Design process my clients receive 35+ looks to shop from, be guided by and that become the starter brands for your style direction.
Secondly, (and I am now offering this for anyone who has been to classes with me over the years), I can create boards for you for Spring/ Summer or now Autumn/ Winter wardrobe to your specific requirements. The cost is €495 for one off boards.
Reach out with any questions at anytime - hi@juliecobbe.ie
Subscriptions
Right now, this space and community is free. However, that is the great thing about Substack. It does allow people who share their passions and knowledge to make a living and to recognise the value in what we share. It has amazed and delighted me that without asking some of you guys have clicked to pay a subscription and for that, I am really really grateful.
As part of my offerings, If you become a founding member here on Substack you will get a free Wardrobe Hour as part of that, which will be a little cheaper than booking it separately. You can do so here and we can book a session at a time that suits you.
But for now, you do not have to pay. That may change down the road but for now, thank you for helping me to build this lovely community of women who want a style and wardrobe they understand, love and enjoy.
The Substack App
Once you are subscribed to my page, you will receive all of my writing directly to your email. That’s another huge plus - no scrolling to see what’s been posted.
But you can also download the Substack app. It means you can read your favourite writers directly on your phone too (for me personally, it’s helped me stay off insta a bit more) and just feels a bit more enriching.
Coming Up In The Next Few Weeks….
Lots of Styling Boards
As I am in the middle now of creating Styling Boards for clients plus starting work with new clients, I will be sharing lots of boards over the next few weeks. I will explain the look, the specifics of who it works for and why and you will of course be able to click to each item featured. This will really give you a sense of how building an outfit with your Style Design in mind is so powerful to cut out of the fashion noise and tune into what will work for you.
Styling Around One Key Item - my white Agolde Jeans
Secondly, you might remember a pair of white Agolde Jeans I bought during the summer that featured in a couple of posts. From seeing how my brain works in choosing one key item to build your look around, I had taken piccys of looks I created over the last few months with my denims (albeit they are quite summery outfits!) but I think worth sharing for the thought process and ideas.
Will be popping these up soon, hopefully for Sunday.
Please do pop questions, ideas, thoughts or anything else below and thank you so much for being here with me. If you know of anyone who might enjoy Notes on Styling, please do share this post.
Thank you for resetting with me!
Julie x