BEING a fashion stylist is a fun, glamorous and creative profession. One where no two days are the same and not only do you get to meet new people all the time – most of whom are eccentric, fun-loving, neurotic and fabulous – but you get to travel and go to parties, presentations and fashion shows (just this morning, for example, I attended Temperley’s catwalk presentation which was held at the Sheraton Hotel in Park Lane: what a collection! and what a stylish location! and the organic cocktails were also fab – drink your heart out!).
There is, however, a side of the job which involves a lot of running around – not easy in your heels – carrying lots of heavy bags, cross-checking endless lists of clothes and ensuring they are all in pristine condition, and dealing directly with couriers, whose job it is to deliver the goods back to their rightful owner – a surprisingly stressful part of the job, as I often find myself wondering how they can so often get it wrong, so late or so damaged (do they play football using my Gucci bags?!).
Why am I telling all this? Well, the reason is because I have just taken on a brand new assistant, Miss Vanilla! We had our first informal interview at my local coffee hound yesterday. I arrived at Starbucks and Miss Vanilla was already there, sipping a latte and reading a copy of Glamour magazine… I like her already, I thought to myself. She seemed to be a fabulously bright girl, who not only loved clothes and could walk in heels, but appeared to have the determination and organising skills required for the job.
So, after telling her a little bit about myself and about what her duties as fashion assistant will be, we shook hands on it and started preparing for this week’s Ice Magazine fashion shoot. This month we are working on men’s zip-up tops, flat caps (they are all the rage at the moment. I noticed this morning all the staff at the Arkadius fashion show – which was called ‘Le freak c’est chic’ – were wearing a red one (with the Arkadius logo embroidered onto it!) and T-shirts.
The next morning at 9.30am we arrive at Exposure, the PR company who looks after Levis and Quicksilver, to select from their latest collections; 10am we are off to CK Jeans, Gas and Rockport. By 11 o’clock our sugar levels are dropping fast, so we grab some muffins and a couple of lattes to go. And, last but not least, at noon, we raid the Top Man Press Office, where we pick up caps, belts and chains which will be just the ticket for our accessories page.
Loaded down with fab pieces, we make our way to the studio in Fulham where we begin to set up for the shoot. All in place for the big day. We say our goodbyes and I head back to the office where I research some information on the latest men’s shower gels. All this talk of bubbles has enticed me to get in to a hot steamy bath, so I indulge in my latest treat (Crabtree and Evelyn’s Hydrating Aloe Vera body wash) and a brand new book I picked up on the way home. It’s a novel called The Devil wears Prada, by Lauren Weisenberg: a story about High Fashion, Low Cunning, and the boss from hell. A boss who makes Cruella de Vill look like a fluffy bunny… she must never be left unattended and letting her coffee get cold is a sackable offence. I smile and read on looking forward to tomorrow’s shoot, and think to myself that – the truth be known – I quite like my coffee cold…
Crabtree and Evelyn 020 7631 0499. Shower gel priced at £10.50
