Life Lessons from Ascot 
(from an article in the Telegraph)

Ascot dressing is eternally tricky, chiefly because it bears no resemblance to the kind of dressing we engage in the rest of the time (same applies to going on cruises).  Paradoxically, that's why it's such an intense course in style lessons for life.  


Royal Ascot is not the time for false modesty.  It is, and always has been, about being photographed by random strangers.  It's hat-to-toe dressing, with nowhere to hide.

Resist the temptation to blow your annual budget on one outfit you may never wear again - but don't go to the other extreme, then spending the day feeling awkward.  Read the instructions. For the record, dress code doesn't necessarily mean dress.

Here are some other lessons to ensure that whatever the big occasion, your clothes look the part, and enhance the experience.


1   Don't try too hard. blame it on Cecil Beaton, but many Royal Ascot outfits stray far into My Fair Lady territory.  Whether you're dressing for the Royal enclosure, your best friend's wedding or your first-born's bar mitzvah (or your cruise) aim  for quietly stunning - or at least an upgraded version of what you most like wearing, rather than David Walliams in drag.

2   'The biggest mistake women tend to make at major events,' says designer Suzannah Crabb (who dresses many clients for Ascot), 'is that they come with a preconceived idea of how to make an impact.  They want fuchsia and feathers, but in real life that an look garish.' Crabb suggests flattering simple, architectural silhouettes in soft colours - pinks, corals, blues - that stand the test of time and encourage clients to satisfy their colour craving with bright pops.


3   A coat and dress are more flattering than a jacket, unless it is part of a matching suit.  Not any old random coat - spring or summer weight and in a complementary or toning shade and silhouette.  Length: probably no more than an inch shorter than your dress.

4   Don't confuse Royal Ascot with cocktail dressing. Sequins and high shine next to reen turf are liable to induce a premature hangover.

5   Navy is perennially chic and demure, or tune it up with metallics, neon, coral or white (increasingly popular) accessories.  Stop press: pink, especially the more bubblegum versions, has edged out boring beige shoes.


6   Open-toed sandals don't look right.  Opt for a closed toe.  It's more comfortable.  Patent is good, and rainproof.  Suede is obviously not.

7   Tempting as it is to keep calm and carry on in halterneck and sandals in the face of biblical torrents, that way hypothermia lies.  So pack a pretty umbrella, some flats, a warm cover-up.  Pashminas look dated.  Opt for a white or cream boxy tweed jacket or blazer, or a pastel trench coat.


8   Many an outfit is wrecked by a battered work bag.  Yours needn't cost a fortune.  Keep it small, elegant and fun.

9   Hats: biggest pit of all.  'Smaller' women should avoid huge brims,' counsels Crabb. Bright hats look fabulous with a neutral or pale outfit, but grey or natural straw are more versatile.  You can always add your own good quality flowers and feathers. Cheap flowers and ribbons will take you straight to am-dram My Fair Lady territory.

10   Go easy on the make-up.  Panstick might work for photos but looks terrifying in natural light.  Sometimes you have to forget Instagram and enjoy the moment in real time.

Also see:
https://www.ascot.co.uk/dress-code

Dress and Girl ...

'Dress a Girl Around the World'

I recently read about this project and thought that firstly it's so worthwhile and secondly that it's so straightforward - and fun!  I've now just sent off my first three dresses - two pink with blue trimmings and one blue with pink trimmings.  So now will be on the lookout for more pillowcases to transform, with a little binding and ribbon, into more 'works of art' (ha ha)!

To quote from the site: 'At the beginning of 2011 an article in a sewing magazine about a charity in the US called 'Dress a Girl Around the World' caught my eye. People who could sew were asked to make simple pillowcase dresses which were then delivered to girls living in poverty in the developing world.  Girls in countries like Uganda, Rwanda, Haiti and India.  The charity felt that every girls should own at least one pretty dress.

'As the mother of a little girl with a wardrobe full of pretty dresses, this struck a chord with me and it didn't seem too much to ask to make a dress as I could sew and had lots of fabric lying around.  I made a few dresses and roped in some of my blogging friends to make dresses too, thinking that would be it.  

Little did I know that six months later I would be the UK international Partner for the charity, having collected over 5,000 dresses from lovely people all over the UK and Ireland - Louise Horler (Check out her blog: http://sewscrumptious.blogspot.co.uk/)

And also https://www.facebook.com/DressagirlaroundtheWorldUK
and: http://www.dressagirlaroundtheworld.com/

And now they're started making shorts for the boys - using t shirt material.









Here is an article from a the girls given of one of the dresses:

'My name is Flo and I live in Uganda.  I've been a recipient of a Dress a Girl Around the World, and it has changed my life.  I'd love to lead you through what it's like to receive a special dress and what I believe girls around the world really need. 
We want dignity and to know that God loves us! We want to know that we are worthy of love.  Many of us are overlooked and often abused with no-one to protect.
If you give God's best when you give us dresses, know that for many of us it will be the only dress we ever own.  Please make your very best and use quality fabric and ties as they need to last us a very long time.
And PLEASE when you give your dress make sure that it is not so thin that it looks as though we are wearing a nightgown.  Our bodies need to be covered and often our skin shows through a thin dress and it is very revealing.
Please help protect us from predators by allowing us to wear a good quality dress with the Dress Girl label on the outside.  This indicates that an organisation is looking after us and just maybe a predator will pass us over!  Isn't it worth the extra time and effort?  Even if it just saves one of us?



The word is getting out there now .... 'We've had some amazing celebrity support on Twitter. RT's from Graham Norton, Claudia Winkleman, Ruth Langsford, Lauren Laverne, Emma Freud and  Emma Forbes have been amazing at getting the word out there and encouraging new people to get involved and is much appreciated. I'm still working on Kirsty Allsop!'


Update January 2015:
To save you all searching though here, my email is Jacqui-dressagirl@outlook.com
And my address for posting parcels is 30 Bourne End Road, Northwood Middlesex HA6 3BS 
Thank you again for all the messages of support and ideas and contacts for distribution of the dresses and shorts. 
Jacqui