I don’t know two words that
could ever evoke more stress and anxiety into a woman than ‘Smart - Casual’
(also fondly known as ‘smasual’)
The phrase immediately
causes a stream of questions, “Should I wear a dress?” “Are jeans OK?” “Do I own
anything ‘smart-casual’”, “what does that even mean?!”
After many
events/parties/gatherings with this dreaded phrase on the invitation, I have
come to the conclusion that it is simply better to be over-dressed than
under-dressed. Which is perfect for me as I’m the kind of girl that prefers
buying pretty dresses and sky-scraper heels to everyday trousers and shirts,
even though it isn’t often I have an excuse to ever wear them. And being a
designer/dress-maker myself, I always seem drawn to buying pretty sparkly
fabrics!
However, a smasual opportunity arose on 31st May to finally
wear my finest, with an invitation to the Examiner Community Awards. Thus I
donned my floor length, backless black and silver dress, put on vast amounts of
mascara and tottered out the door on my beautiful stilettos to this wonderful
ceremony to celebrate the amazing and inspiring men, women and children of West
Yorkshire. It was lucky my mascara was waterproof, as more than one of the
stories adjoining the remarkable nominees and winners of the various awards
brought tears to my eyes.
Alongside being
thought-provoking and incredibly humbling, this event was a wonderful example
of the translation of ‘Smart-Casual’. Beautiful cocktail dresses alongside
simple shift dresses, all dressed up with statement accessories and fabulous
shoes.
I was seated on a table with
the beautiful Mandy Barwick. Also a firm believer in dressing up, I made her a
dress to wear to the ceremony in black and silver with touches of her favourite
colour – Hot pink!
Mandy was nominated for the
‘Services to Charity’ award, and was a very worthy winner! Having raised over 3
and a half million pounds for various charities including the West Yorkshire
Forget Me Not Trust.
To anyone going to a
‘Smasual’ event anytime soon, who is in doubt or distress, My advice would be
to pick one part of your outfit to be a statement, be it the shoes, dress, or
jacket, and compliment accordingly! And with so many beautiful colours in the
shops at the moment, don’t be afraid to be bold with colour and print! But if
all else fails- never, ever, underestimate the power of the Little Black Dress!
Please follow me on twitter for more tips and inane chatter;
@joannalomas
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