Stylist Live

One of the A-list events in the calendar for me now is Stylist Live. It is an annual three day event that brings to life everything sassy, affluent female commuters, in London and other major UK cities love about the free, weekly magazine – Stylist.

Stylist being distributed at Southwark tube station

On my way to Olympia for the event in November, I was admiring a ladies skirt on the tube and then realised I might look a bit odd starring at her so struck up a conversation. Turns out she was off to Stylist Live too and the fabulous skirt she was wearing had been designed and made by her. Check out more of her great designs by following her on Instagram @luxefromclare

I always like to make an effort for these sort of events to at least try and look like a stylish, sophisticated woman so I wore black leggings from Oasis with a Kookai blouse and New Look biker jacket, paired with my suede stilettos with tassels on from New Look and Oasis cross-body bag.

This year my best fashionista friend and I opted for the VIP tickets and I am so glad we did. While last year was good, this year was on another level.

On arrival we were filtered into a special queue and within the VIP lounge, there was plenty of space to relax and a separate cloakroom from the other ticket holders which saved the long queue at the end of the day. Your ticket included a free go on the vending machine of dreams which despatched a pack of Candy Kittens gourmet sweets and if you were lucky some great prizes ranging from Warehouse vouchers to a holiday.

Included in the VIP ticket are unlimited snacks, lunch and soft drinks. We had the macaroni cheese which was to die for and a Bol salad so we felt a bit more healthy! A glass of prosecco and a gin are extra freebies alongside the complimentary Gordons premium pink gin all ticket holders receive, and most importantly a we received a goody bag worth £150.

The goody bag more than paid for the VIP entrance cost and included some full size products as well as a number of sample sizes. My favourites include a travel tangle Teezer, NARS lipstick, Jack Wills socks and some clear telephone cord hairbands.

goody bag

As if all of this wasn’t enough, a treatment in the beauty rooms was also included with our ticket. There was a choice with a choice of either Shiseido, bareMinerals, NARS, Laura Mercier or Buxom. My friend chose the Shiseido which was a cleanse and moisturise session that she enjoyed and I treated myself to a NARS Fashion Week Supermodel Eye. I have to say, it was quite a transformation but despite them writing down all the products they used and where to put them, I doubt I would be able to flawlessly recreate it. Afterwards you had access to a dressing up box and a short catwalk so they could create a GIF and email it to you.

More than 250 boutique pop-ups were at the event, providing a range of free beauty treatments, hair styling and shopping opportunities. I was a little disappointed at the length of the queues for some of the hair styling but the range goods for sale was fantastic, encompassing well known brands such as Spectrum, BaByliss, Fresh and Pixi with emerging newer brands such as Yull shoes and Mean Mail. My favourite pop-up was Kikki K, the Swedish design stationery brand which a friend at work got me into a few years back. Its founder, Kristina Karlsson was at Stylist, signing copies of her new book, ‘Your Dream Life Starts Here’. I was star struck getting to meet her and I hope by reading her book, I am inspired to get on the road to living my dream life.

Talking of inspiration, there were plenty of inspirational talks throughout the weekend and one I found particularly useful was from the Physiologist DR Nerina Ramlakhan who gave practical advice on how we can all get a better nights sleep.

The catwalk show is always one of the best parts of the day for me and being VIPs, we got reserved front row seating to watch the best of the autumn/winter 2018 trends. Leopard print has made a big come back along with trends of bold, earth tones and cowgirl. I particularly like the fact that all the clothes are high street and you are given a sheet detailing each look, so it is easier to go and shop for the looks you like the best.

By the end of the day, my friend and I were both shattered but it had been such an enjoyable day. We will definitely be returning next year and I urge all you fashionistas to read Stylist magazine and look out for tickets going on sale for 2019 Stylist Live event. To watch a short highlights video of this year’s event (very excited as it’s the first video I have made and edited) check out my Instagram @blahnikgirl

As a London commuter, every morning I leave the station to be greeted by a barrage of people handing out leaflets, magazines, newspapers and free samples as well as the odd one collecting for charity, Sometimes it is an impossible task to walk at any pace due to this, lost tourists and people who cannot be parted for a second from their phone screens and thus get slower and slower.

Having said all this, by chance a few years back I did pick up the weekly free copy of Stylist magazine and was instantly hooked. I now actively look out for it each Wednesday and feel rather cheated if I miss out on it.

The magazine launched in October 2009 and is now the leading UK weekly fashion and lifestyle magazine. It’s target audience is women aged 20-40, who commute, and it is distributed in major UK cities as well as some major French cities (since April 2013).

In November, a friend and I attended the Stylist Live event which was held at Olympia London for the first time. This was the third of these festivals but the first in a new location and the first one I had ever been to.

For the day I wore a floral dress from Topshop with a pink shearling jacket from Zara, boots from Miss Selfridge and a tan bag from Accessorise. Now black tights wouldn’t have worked so I searched high and low to find some adult cream tights and finally managed to track some down. Unfortunately they were huge and I ended up looking much like Nora Batty for most of the day! Since, my friend has advised me to buy M&S age 13-14 ones and they are much better – great life hack Nina!

I wasn’t quite sure what to expect from the day, but I certainly wasn’t disappointed. There were all manner of stalls to indulge the shopaholic in you. Among these were my favourite Swedish fashion brand – Kikki K, Lucy Love This, the Benefit Brow bar, Solely Original and Stella&Dot.

Lucy Loves this makes lovely prints based around different areas in London and I purchased my Mum the Putney one.

Solely Original allows you not only to design your own shoes online, but also ensure they are a bespoke size to fit your foot and they are a fraction of the price you might expect for something that is so customised. I had my foot measured so it can be kept on file for future indulgence!

A walk around the stalls called for some light refreshment. Now this was my only slight disappointment of the day, in that the only alcohol on offer was gin which I am not a big fan of. I did give the fruity, pink special a try as it was included in the price of the ticket and whilst I wasn’t a great lover, it was surprisingly refreshing and the bar and stand were fab.

Also included in the cost of the ticket was a manicure at the perfect 10 nail bar. I felt suitably pampered and chose a natural pinky Essie shade so as to not highlight the shortness of my nails.

It was then time for a bite to eat and I tried The Cheese Wheel, which is freshly rolled pasta, dunked into a wheel of cheese. This first came to the UK in March this year at Kerb in Camden Market and has really taken off. It was delicious and very filling.

The highlight of the day has to have been the fashion show. It was unfortunate that we were quite near the back but what I loved about it was it was all available on the high street and you were given a sheet, telling you where each item on each look was from. Shearling jackets featured quite heavily as did sparkle and stars.

More than just a day of leisure, my friend made the first step to a new career and signed up as a Stella & Dot rep. Launched to empower women to be their own boss, the reps sell accessories online and face to face at parties. The key is the flexibility which the company offers. I couldn’t resist this gorgeous clutch with the mantra every woman should aspire to, ‘I am strong’ printed inside.

Finally, we had the opportunity to mock up a cover of Stylist, featuring our good selves.

It was a fantastic day and I would highly recommend it to any fashion lover. 2018’s dates are yet to be confirmed, but it is looking likely to be 9-11 November at Olympia. Book early to avoid disappointment! I fancy a VIP ticket next year which includes a lounge, a bar and access to certain exclusive talks. See you there!

blahnikgirl

Tag Archive | Stylist Live

VIP for the day