Splurge or Squirrel

Hold that hope...spring is nearly upon us and that means sprucing up oneself. The easiest way to inject a bit of what is to come now is with nail varnish.

It seems the colour of the season is upon us and it is a splurge-tastic Chanel number called Fracas.

At £18 it is a total splurge. But if you'd rather save the pennies then coming in at a marvellous £3.50 is M&S's Limited Collection Polish in Carnation. Three coats of this polish will give you the same deep coral pink glow of Fracas at a fraction of the price. Carnation seems only to be in store at the moment and not online and it may well be that the colour is not part of the new season ones so hurry and get it now before it goes.

UPDATE: I made a mistake the Limited Collection Polish colour is PLASTIC PINK 

Girlynomics is Published

At last after a long haul the final version is available to purchase from Amazon. Initially only available on Kindle, a hold in your hand option paperback book will follow.

Girlynomics £1.02 Amazon

New Beginnings

This really is the last year of Make Do Style. Yes after 6 years of blogging on this blog it is time to call it quits very soon. Some of you may have already observed my new twitter handle Twisted Skirt, well that is the new name of my company Twisted Skirt Publishing. A new blog will be up and running soon - don't worry it is me - there will be no fancy pants stuff (yet).

Then there is the book launch on Kindle of Girlynomics taking place this month. 2013 really is the year of new beginnings!

Talking of new beginnings Make Do Style makes a few predictions for the coming year both style related and general ones.

1. This is the year for embracing Sports Luxe. Adidas, metallics, and block colours makes combining tracksuit pants with heels the easy option. Don't say double denim do say Adidas Originals. Dig out your Run DMC.

image: London College of Fashion Framed exhibition

2. Holidaying in Greece. After months of misery in 2012 with epic rainfall, book early to avoid another disappointing summer weather wise. Greece is the place to give you guaranteed sunshine, heat and warm waters. Go to Greece to get lashings of vitamin D and Lays Oregano crisps.

3. Mars probing is the new science hotspot, even India is sending one to Mars this year. Also make the most of  the Hadron Collider at Sern as they collide protons with lead ions in February before closing it down for essential maintenance work in 2013. 

4. Flat and frumpy is the new footwear. See Katie Grand for Hogan and Celine. Don't think Birkenstock do think rubber sole

image:Style.com

5. 'Tis the year to stop being superstitious. It is 2013! Enjoy 

The C Word part deux

These suggested gifts are for the MAGPIE family or friend person. All that glitters is not necessarily gold but they'll love then any way. All items are under £20 which is a good benchmark to have as a cap on anyone you are buying for. Money doesn't grow on trees and depending on the size of your Christmas gift list it is good Girlynomics sense to agree with everyone not to go mad. Quite frankly you;ll need the extra pennies and pounds for your Chrimbo heating bill!

I've selected  a couple of gold related items from different brands which are all quite simple and I'd like to think tasteful for a gift: 

Accessorize

Snake Stretch Bracelet £6.00

Russian Bangles £6.00

Marks & Spencer

Gold metallic lightweight snood scarf £19.50

Limited Collection Peter Pan Collar £15

Stella & Dot

Love Bracelet £15

Swallow Studs £15

Girlynomics

This is the beginning of trumpeting the soon to be launched on Kindle my new book Girlynomics. I started the concept and preliminary writing back in July 2008. It was interrupted by my MA studies and it has taken me a while to polish up what was a untidy mess into a proper read. Initially I was lucky and Curtis Brown were my agents for the book but with the first crash it was hard to sell in books by unknowns and my agents real interest lay in Asian literature. Not to put a too fine a point on it I was dumped.

After my previous experience and the subsequent changes due to Kindle and iPad I finally felt motivated and inspired to pick up the Girlynomics mantel again. I've been researching and writing for over a year now and my deadline is looming - fast!

So watch this space, be prepared and the next post will be to say Girlynomics is published.

Girlynomics™ the hard times edition

Girlynomics™ has been a long project of Mrs MDS. Why over two years ago the Girlynomics book had an agent. Then the crash happened, the agent got very interested in Asian literature and Girlynomics languished at Curtis Brown with not a sausage. Anyway times have changed and after a couple of years things have got worse. I would happily admit to be not very focused on Girlynomics or actually being as make do as I used to be but change is a foot. The fact of the matter is that hard times are upon Mrs MDS and now is the time for action. I have a couple of people nagging me to rewrite and complete Girlynomics - which I will do but first I need to get back on the wagon of making do - BIG STYLE.

I assessed my finances (not good), my earning potential (not good) the chances of addressing either (not good). I weighed this against my creative freedom (very good), the well being of the petit garcon (excellent) and the potential of writing (very good). All in all my income is pretty rubbish but I have a marvellous opportunity to finish my writing projects. Focus is in hand and to be continued.

Anyway I realised the enormity of my responsibility to deliver lots against zero! I am truly going to have to make do. Of course the moment reality hit the old brain cells kicked in. Well in fairness they kicked in at Sainsburys on Saturday when Mr MDS called me with a request for some cheap gym socks. I actually ventured into the world of Tu. I got the socks and I spied some wedge sandals for me. Now what enabled me to make the purchase was points. Points make prizes. In the world of Girlynomics there can be no compromise one has to buy things practically for free or go without.

I have never bought anything from a supermarket before except useful clothes for the petit garcon. I confess I have been a bit of a snob until now, about supermarket clothes. But needs must and I needed some shoes for my lovely palazzo pants. My nectar points which I normally save until Christmas were spent but I have some very useful wedges for the summer and I will be making do with everything else in my wardrobe.

Just to show that the palzzo pants are to the ground and cover the shoe!

Getting a Grip...

...and rolling ones sleeves up. These were the very words uttered by the new Chancellor - predicted here first. Also he actually said 'tightening our belts'. Now none of this is music to my ears in fact my first thoughts were inspired by a recent post by Queen Marie of Kingdom Of Style. Come on where is the fun when the ruddy Chancellor of the Exchequer is talking make do style!

However, it does appear that the UK is going to be beset with austerity fever in the name of reducing the national debt - as Faux Fuchsia would say people of China, India and the USA look away - 'tis only us Europeans and Blighty in particular who are involved in this sleeve rolling episode.

Working your wardrobe harder becomes more important and I will continue with Project 100 soon unless the Chancellor gets his hands on it first and makes it Project 33.5 based on a projected cut back of 20 items in year one and 46.5 items in year two if the budget deficit is to be turned around.

A graduation and two weddings

Such occasions require a suitable number don't you think? Anyway I decided to peruse the Outnet for a dress and settled on this Moschino one. Should be perfect for all three and of course the unit cost per wear is £88!

Discounted Moschino Satin Cocktail dress £264

Making awards more relevant

It was lovely to receive a beautiful blogger award from Siljes Fashion as in bloggy years I feel I've known her forever. Always the Norwegian beauty Siljes has a very enviable style which she achieves with ease.
Now the point is to reveal 7 things about myself ...now before you yawn, I'm changing it to share 7 no fritter/make do/girlynomics tips.

1. Set yourself an annual clothing, shoe and accessory budget, then divided by 52, this is the amount you have each week to spend. Stick to it. You don't have to spend it every week but it enables you to spend if you want/need to/the fashion universe speaks to you. And you can of course save it up and spend 5 weeks worth in one go.

2. Have a little black book of your fashion purchases in your bag. Have all you clothes itemised and categorised. You should do this two ways - make one list of items as garments i.e. skirts, dresses etc. And then as colour categories i.e white, 3 x shirts, 1 x dress etc. This should stop you buying yet another white t-shirt, pair of black trousers - whatever your pattern is/are.

3. Only shop by yourself. You have to be objective so no being swayed by a friend. Learn to trust yourself even if this means making mistakes. Selecting clothes and developing your own style is like learning to drive a car. You'll pass your test in your own time. If in doubt about an item walk away.

4. Ignore shop assistants. I think I'm the only shop assistant who ever told customers when something didn't work. These days targets means extra money so they are motivated by this. Don't judge them it is the system. Use your eye be you own critic - see above.

5. No shopping on an empty stomach, bad hair days or when you are feeling fat. Don't do it. Learn to recognise the signs, the bit where you are mean about yourself in the mirror. Some days we are just not meant to try on clothes, you are just going to hate yourself in them. It is being hormonal, it strikes everyone even men!

6. When you need a new pair of jeans or dress or shoes, just shop for that one item. Research before you go to the shops. Try as many on as you can in differing places and then buy the item you love the most.

7. Hindsight is a wonderful thing but take it from me, save before you spend. Stay in/on budget. don't buy on credit and you'll be glad of it in the long run even if it means you have to go without!
Then you'll be a beautiful blogger too .....

Please add any of your top tips!

Make Do Motivation

I figured you needed sums to motivate you to not fritter for a few months.

12 weeks of Grazia = £23.40
Daily cappuccino over twelve weeks = £117
No weekly little clothes or other purchases at say £20 a week = £240

A no spend on these items would give you £380.40 to buy one quality item with.... food for thought.
What would you spend £380.40 on?


UPDATE - the example of cost saving measures above are just that, examples. The No Fritter Challenge is simply as thus: all you have to do is not buy a single item of clothing from now until March 31st. Save what you might have spent or were tempted to spend and then go an buy yourself something truly fabulous.

Girlynomics in the bag

Liberty London Girl raised a very good point in the comment box regarding my high street pick of the week last Saturday, "M&S are very good at giving great quality at a low price point, but my eco head makes me think that it's maybe better to save up for a piece that will last both fashion & quality wise for a few years".

This brings me back to one of my favourite subjects, that of saving up for a splendid item that you covert and really desire rather than lots and lots of items. I suppose it is quality over quantity. And one person's quality choice will be different to another's.

Take, as an example, my dream to have a Chanel 2.55 - this has been for so long now its silly and next year I will begin to address this (once I've paid my career development loan back). If I was to allocate myself a £100 monthly clothes budget then in 12 months, if I hadn't spent a penny, I'd have enough for a 2.55.

By buying lots of little items you deny yourself the opportunity to buy something you really want. Alternatively you could set up a handbag fund by saving £25 per month and take four years to buy the bag.

Whatever you desire then surely it must be worth waiting for - that's the slow fashion bit. If something is worth waiting for then abandon the immediacy of trends and this moments look for something more lasting...

Selfridges starts sale scurry!

Shoe prices have been slashed at Selfridges. I was only there as one of my lovely clients needed to get some clothes and so discovered there was a mix of normal stock and prices in some concessions and extreme slashing in others.

We got a lovely Paul Smith black dress down from £270 to £135 and she tried on a fabulous Thakoon number down from £980 to £440 but the Paul Smith suited her better. There were glorious Matthew Williamson dresses also reduced by 50%. Lots of concessions are still at full price but Toast has already gone sale mad on the 3rd floor and the online sale doesn't start for a week. The shoe department is a complete frenzy, Prada was cordoned off with only so many allowed in at one time - bonkers. Particularly as Christian Louboutin's were sat alongside Lanvin, Alaia Azzedine to name a few without a cordoning off in sight.

If you fancy climbing up on the shoe ladder then now is the time to snag some bargains. Moi - well I'm on a budget (zero) and attempting to sort through the mess on a styling session is pointless unless it was specifically a sale one. We hot footed it to Russell & Bromley for some gorgeous gladiators and a pair of tributes to 'Tributes'.

Now my client also gave me the best story of the day in the world of bad publicity. Now this is not the Hogggate that poor Susie Bubble had the misfortune to suffer, but how to make your husband think your stylist is a nightmare. True, I mentioned to said client that it would be better to have more wardrobe space so she could hang all her clothes together but I didn't expect this to result in a house MOVE! Can you imagine the curses muttered by the husband about the 'bl**dy stylist' - hey I'm innocent in this.

Seriously, their house is being viewed tomorrow morning and they are viewing another one with an intent to buy too. See I told you girlynomics would save the world (even though this is extreme girlynomics!). When the housing market gets going again you'll know who helped it along....

Girlynomics Part deux

images from the wonderful Delicious Industries

Continued....

In fact girlynomics is guilt free as long as you are in credit. Credit, therein lies the but. When there is a shift in income and expenditure your buying power is reduced. If your mortgage or rent is increased, if food costs more and petrol prices remain high; you need to make some changes or revisions. Something has to give. This calls for harnessing the power of girlynomics with a dash of good old fashioned make do and mend. Make do and mend is another ingredient in the girlynomics monetary bible. It gives you an opportunity to make savings to gain treats. The difference between girlynomics make do and mend and frugulism is, although you might have to be creative and you might have to make an effort with your money; you don’t have to deny yourself.

Take a small example, a £7.99 pair of faux leopard peep toe flats in H&M. You want these, well revise your lunchtime budget or coffee habit and you free up the money to buy the flats. Alternatively you can walk away and still save the money to add to your pot towards a bigger slice of fashion fun!

Three times this week I've tried something on and got the fab feeling but have stepped away every time as I'm saving my money for the Autumn. You can look at the blogosphere to get inspiration and try out a similar look with your own items. Being creative saves pennies(cents) which creates pounds(dollars).

Come on add your tips to encourage a girlynomics mindset.

Girlynomics Part un

Why Girlynomics? What is Girlynomics?

Girlynomics is a mindset. It is a mindset that determines spending patterns and it belongs almost exclusively to women. It is how women justify their spending.

In simple terms this translates to by foregoing on a few items to get one biggie. It is the redistribution of personal income and the formula is simply expressed as 3x =y.
Where x = 3 bottles of pinot grigio and y = a chilled bottle of champagne.
(Cava doesn’t count). The formula is metaphysical, the thought process mentally calculates what could have been bought, what wasn’t and what can be bought instead. The values are approximates and not fixed, this dispenses with any requirement for a calculator enabling abstract ‘rounding up’.

It is the women who goes to the library and saves £13.98 on buying two books for her holiday. Feeling smug having managed to snag two holiday books for free she falls into a girlynomics trap. What is a girlynomics trap - well it's that rationale that defies the considered economic minds such as John Maynard Keynes and Milton Friedman.
It's the place in your mind that considers the wonderful savings made and instead of a good old pat on the back, a light comes on that gives you permission to spend said savings.

The mind freed of the cost of paying for two books happens to pop into TK Maxx and just happens to perchance upon a Vera Wang navy blue dress and just happens to purchase said item for £16.99.

Given the said person in question also walked to the library saving a further £2.20 in bus tickets, in girlynomics world the dress actually cost 81p - bargain!
Girlynomics is about redistributing personal wealth. It also factors in unit cost per wear. Unit cost per wear is a useful element of girlynomics when you need to make a serious purchase. Taking the price of the item and dividing it by the number of days you will use it gives you the daily cost per wear amount. A £575.00 handbag used for 5 days a week over twelve months actually cost £2.21 per day. (575 divided by 52 (£11.05) then divided by 5 =£2.21)

Even though the economy is experiencing a shift and potentially a downturn, the sale of handbags is up. Truly, girl power will save us all. If the girls keep buying, people will still be in work in the UK and across the globe. Whilst the men folk deal with having less of a disposable income by cutting back on spending – how many Xboxes do you need? The women folk will, on the whole, cut back a bit but not stop. After all there is no answer to how many shoes does a woman need. Girlynomics is a good system to attribute income and expenditure in a different way. In marketing terms, early adopters or hunters are the target group for many a campaign. Typically men are identified as early adopters of technology and new products. Every campaign will try to sang this group to make them spend. Think new tvs, mobile phones, Play Station, Xbox and iPod. Yet quietly with no fuss and stealth, women are consistently early adopters. We are the hunters of the world of new clothes, food, diets; exercise and beauty products. It is no surprise that the success of Wii is due to taping into this economic world of purchasing. MBTs and Fit Flops are great examples of get the product right and women are the perfect model of early adopters. TBC...

Old habits die hard

One thing I've noticed when I go and do a wardrobe workout/detox/sort out for a client is how there is always a repeat pattern. By this I mean one item that gets repeated several times. Whether it be many black trousers, white shirts or little black dresses or in my case umpteen stripy t-shirts, repeat buys are a major problem.

The other issue is too much stuff. I think most people have managed to work out that they wear a small proportion of their wardrobe all of the time. This only happens if you have too much. Now I used to be a major hoarded of my clothes and have heaps of them but lots of moves (including a stint in Greece) and a boyfriend who cut my clothes up and put the rest out for the bin men (yeah I know the worst thing is my mum knew before me as I was oblivious to the whole event as was hung over with my girlfriends in Aberystwyth, mile away from my cosmopolitan city flat.) put an end to it all.

True, I do miss some of my items and wish I could reclaim them but on the whole I just make do as much as possible and that means using my clothes as much as possible. I prefer to give them a good free range life as opposed to a battery hen existence in drawers and wardrobes. I have one drawer, admittedly with too many stripy tees, and one wardrobe with all my clothes in. I no longer put things away for summer or winter as so many items trapeze the seasons.

I'm also looking forward to having a fellow stylist come round and check my wardrobe out, I like to think I'll be cool with this! I do feel I need another perspective as it can inject fresh opportunities for ones own style.

Last year I started a writing a book that attracted an agent and since ...well who knows it could be sat in the agent's bin or at the bottom of the pile at a publishing house but hey these things happen ...so over the next few weeks I'm going to give you some highlights of Girlynomics © - it is copyrighted!

However, tomorrow we'll start with an interview with a fellow blogger on a very topical item! 'Fraid I don't have a trailer to run...