The secret's out ladies! We are so excited to be collaborating with Jenni @stylingcurvy, to produce her 'Lifestyle Basics' Collection. This is our first collaboration ever and we couldn't think of anyone better to work with than this incredible woman! We sat down with Jenni to suss out her love for fashion, her design inspiration and sneak peek details of what you can expect from the 'Lifestyle Basics' Collection.
Let’s start with your background in fashion Jenni. Tell us a bit about why you loved fashion growing up?
As a kid I loved fashion and being a country girl I craved it. I would pour over magazines and spend hours in my room coming up with designs, most of these designs had big shoulder pads and were definitely influenced by the 80s (don't hold that against me). I only ever received clothes for birthdays and Christmas until I started part time work at thirteen, then every cent went to fashion!
A love that runs deep!! What do you love about being in the fashion industry? Is it the pace, the people, the creative culture?
After spending 25 years in fashion retail, visual merchandising and personal styling it's fair to say I have styled a lot of women and been privy to plenty of conversations in change rooms. I love seeing how good styling and fashion can transform a woman and elevate mood, posture and confidence. Expressing who we are through personal style can be creative, fun and even a welcome challenge.
Self expression is what it's all about and feeling confident in your own skin. How do you think the mindset of curvy fashion has changed over the years and what do you think have been the real challenges behind that?
Despite what some might say, curvy fashion has come a long way in the past decade and I think that's partly because of social media. Women are growing in confidence, using their voice and keyboard to express what they need in their wardrobes to feel fabulous in their personal style. Women and businesses like Styling Curvy are sharing images and outfits online, which empowers and educates others. Small businesses like Adrift are the ones who are getting it right, they are truly listening to their community and investing in creating garments that are more about inclusion.
I'm also passionate about brands that do sell curvy fashion needing to use women who truly represent the size range in their imagery and marketing. It's time that brands started thinking more about who they are designing for and less about the perfectly curated Instagram feed. ALL bodies are beautiful and we ALL want to purchase clothing that makes us feel amazing.
You really couldn't have said it better Jen and we're so glad that we can be a part of this journey. As you said it's all about making women feel great no matter their size or shape. I'm sure the ladies are dying to know about the 'Lifestyle Basics' Collection! What does the release of this collection mean for you and your readers?
Firstly how bloody lucky am I to have a label like Adrift collaborate with me on a collection!? The team at Adrift have known of that little burning desire to design something and this collaboration was just the next step in our relationship. Not only do they believe in me but they also believe in my community and have backed this collection all the way.
The team at Adrift really listen to me and also to my community and this shows in their styles and their size range, they really are a brand I'm proud to work with and we have a fun and very organic working relationship, everything just feels easy.
In terms of the design with this collection, where did you look to for inspiration and what are some of the little details that you love about it?
My personal style is what I call 'laid-back', easy wear but not boring. In my experience with styling women the laid back but pulled together look is something lots of ladies struggle with and that's usually because the foundation pieces don't exist in their wardrobe, so I figured let's make it easier and create them.
I didn't want to over complicate this collection, simple, fun and hard working pieces with some curves, a little extra length where it matters, classic and build-able block colours, stripes and a little fun hardware like zips. While not everything made it off the cutting room floor, Rechelle (Designer) took my ideas and finessed them into a little 'lifestyle collection' I am proud to present to the world!
We hope you've enjoyed this sneak peek! Keep an eye out on our socials for more sneaky behind the scenes photos.
Love,
Styling Curvy and Adrift xx
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