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ASK THE EXPERTS<br />
HOT TOPIC<br />
Designer Tabitha Webb and blogger Emily Johnston, fashion-loving friends who don’t always see eye to eye,<br />
say the royal wedding could give some hints for the ideal style if you’re on a wedding guest list this summer<br />
US-born, London-based blogger Emily Johnston<br />
has her wedding-guest look down to a fine art –<br />
and it’s all about the accessories<br />
British designer Tabitha Webb, who counts the<br />
Duchess of Cambridge as a client, says no to suits<br />
and yes to floaty florals and kitten heels<br />
I was asked to style a guest for the royal<br />
wedding in 2011. We called in a few pieces,<br />
decided on a few different choices and were<br />
all okay with the agreed ensembles. Then, at<br />
the last minute, the client saw an outfit in a<br />
store window, bought it and completely<br />
ignored her exclusively styled outfits.<br />
On the morning of the wedding, she<br />
arrived at the church and was wearing the<br />
same exact outfit as three other women…<br />
Let’s be honest, the majority of us aren’t<br />
dealing with royal wedding “what to<br />
wear” dilemmas. However, there is a<br />
lesson here and one I took to heart when<br />
dressing for weddings myself: don’t buy<br />
from current collections (unless a<br />
designer friend donates a dress).<br />
Now I either pull something from days<br />
of old from my closet or I buy vintage so<br />
there isn’t a chance that I’ll have the<br />
same dress as another guest. Invest your<br />
money instead in fun accessories, from<br />
fantastic earrings to cute clutches.<br />
My policy on what to wear has one rule<br />
only: you can never be too dressed up. I’m<br />
not talking sequins – leave those at home<br />
unless the wedding is themed – but you<br />
should embrace florals, bright colours and<br />
beautiful ornate prints. Forget black and<br />
white (unless it’s a black tie wedding and it’s<br />
a pretty special dress); summer weddings are<br />
made for colour. Make that church<br />
look like it’s been hit by a rainbow.<br />
And please, oh please, mind<br />
the Spanx. The horror stories<br />
I can tell you about women<br />
showing up at weddings barely<br />
able to breathe, let alone enjoy<br />
the event.<br />
Be stylish, but stay comfortable.<br />
After all, eyes are on the bride – you’re<br />
secondary in this equation.<br />
Emily v Tabitha<br />
Kate<br />
Hudson’s<br />
Roberto C v l<br />
gown is Emily’s<br />
choice for the<br />
perfect dress<br />
Wedding season has kicked off in<br />
style, with Prince Harry and Meghan’s<br />
guests giving us a Pinterest board of dreams<br />
of what to wear to a friend’s nuptials.<br />
Despite that, finding an outfit is always<br />
a stressful mission. It seems like only<br />
yesterday that Pippa Middleton married and,<br />
as a guest at that wedding, I looked high and<br />
low for the perfect outfit. In the end, I had to<br />
admit defeat and design my own – which to be<br />
honest, given my profession, I probably<br />
should have done in the first place.<br />
My first piece of advice is to stay away<br />
Giam<br />
from suits – that is, a jacket and skirt in<br />
any combination. They are boring and<br />
old-fashioned and I’d like to ban them.<br />
So where does that leave us? Well, it<br />
means we need to find the perfect dress.<br />
And then, of course, shoes that are high<br />
enough to make us look elegant but not<br />
so high our feet are crippled with agony<br />
after an hour. As for a hat? This is probably<br />
the trickiest bit – controversially, I actually<br />
like a beautiful flower in the hair.<br />
But the ideal dress is simple, really.<br />
It needs to be knee-length and below,<br />
cover the shoulders and arms and<br />
make people wonder how you<br />
Alexandra<br />
look so effortlessly chic.<br />
Daddario’s<br />
So I think the first stop<br />
mbattista Valli should be my lovely friends<br />
dress gets at Beulah London. I love<br />
bitha’s vote their new collection and<br />
the Maya shirt dress is<br />
perfect for a spring wedding.<br />
If you fancied something more<br />
high street, you can’t go wrong with<br />
Ba&sh, who have it nailed this season.<br />
Pair with Prada’s new-season slingback<br />
kitten heels in silver (which will be a great<br />
investment anyway), and slip a brightly<br />
coloured peony into your hair. Perfection.<br />
136<br />
Emily’s<br />
Must Have<br />
Pearl detail metallic<br />
earrings, £15.99,<br />
Mango; visit shop.<br />
mango.com<br />
“These earrings will<br />
instantly update<br />
any ensemble”<br />
“Let the accessories<br />
do all the work for<br />
your wedding<br />
ensemble”<br />
“Reminiscing about<br />
when Dannii Minogue<br />
and I spent our days<br />
designing dresses and<br />
giggling a lot”<br />
Tabitha’s<br />
Must Have<br />
Nandita Sabitri floral<br />
chiffon dress, £495,<br />
Beulah London; visit<br />
beulahlondon.com<br />
“This would also<br />
be utterly perfect for<br />
a spring wedding.<br />
Job done”<br />
PHOTOS: BACKGRID. ELISABETH HOFF. LMK MEDIA
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