Truro Trend Fashion Show – Glamour in the City!

Hey Sunshines!

What a fun month October was!  And to top it off, I was absolutely thrilled to be involved again in Truro’s hottest & biggest night of fashion!

The Truro fashion show hosted by Truro Trend was on Wednesday 7th October 2015 and the beautiful historic cathedral took centre stage for the show.

On this night, the nave of the cathedral was transformed into a catwalk and models strutted their stuff for a host of shops wearing the latest trends, and styled gorgeous make up and hair by local hair and beauty artists.

I was lucky enough to be involved again this year and I modelled for Benetton, Jaeger and Plum.  I also helped out for a while on the main door taking the tickets for the show and it was great to see the show from a different perspective, especially to see all the fashionistas arrive!

Preparations started nice and early and I had the pleasure of having my hair glammed up by the very talented Claire who is the Creative Director at No 8 Hairdressing in Truro.  I love getting my hair done and Claire did a fantastic job!  She transformed my locks into a wonderful do’ which was side pincurls, lots of volume and a messy ponytail.  She really nailed the Miu Miu catwalk look that Chris @ Benetton was aiming for.  Claire glammed up my hair within about 1 hour and effortlessly took me from office look to catwalk ready.  I have to say, all the girls at No 8 are so lovely and friendly, it’s a real pleasure to work with them and their creations are fantastic.  They styled my hair last year too (the amazing giant bun –  check my Instagram for pics).

I left the salon feeling fabulous and wandered over to Cafe Nero for dash of caffeine!  I also glamorously used my table as my getting ready station – well I’m sure I’ll have my own dressing room for events soon enough! :-).

Red lips – check, bold black eyeliner – check, caffeine shot – check, I was good to go!  I made my way over to the cathedral around 6pm.  There was a buzz of activity already as the cathedral was being transformed into catwalk heaven.

I have to say, it really is the most special place to have a fashion show and the backdrop to the runway is wonderful.  The architecture of the cathedral really adds something extra special and also creates a little extra drama for the show.   So much effort and preparation (I’ve been told months!) go into it and it really does show, it looks fantastic and there are so many great and well established businesses involved including; Benetton, Bishop Phillpott, Du Barry, East, Jaeger, Little Boutique, Magpie & Fox, Moss, New Look, No 22, Plum, The Vor Store, Hotter Shoes, Hendra Hair & Beauty, Number 8 Hairdressing, Sarah Louise Hair, The Bodyshop and Vanilla Boutique.

This year the shops also had a stall in the cathedral which was a great opportunity to showcase the latest trends and items seen on the catwalk.   It was also fab for the attendees – who doesn’t like an extra opportunity to shop!?

Doors opened at 7pm and it was fantastic to see so many people turn up and support the show. This year several hundred tickets were available and its so amazing to see the community come together for such a big event.

I took tickets on the door for about half an hour from 7pm and each person was treated to a goodie bag which they could fill up with freebies and samples available from the stalls.  It was a great chance for the guests to browse the cathedral and see what was available and equally great for the shops to be able to advertise their products.  And lets face it everyone loves a freebie!

So 7.30pm comes around quicker than lightning and I am called to be changed into my first outfit for Benetton as they are opening the show.  There is such a buzz backstage and everyone is changing, having photos, chatting and getting excited about the show.

The show is split into 2 parts, the first half is smart casual and the second is glam. The Benetton showcase is always so colourful which of course is their trademark and as I mentioned above, this year the hair and make up is inspired by the Miu Miu AW15 show.  It has a 50’s feel with pin curl twists & thick black eyeliner with the trademark ‘flicks’.  My first outfit was a floral shirt, teal tights, purple dress, floral shoes and a beautiful green statement necklace.

I love this look and this is something I would definitely wear for daytime chic.  Its very versatile as you can wear the dress for Summer or Winter and team with or without the tights or shirt.  The bright colours add the the trademark special something and you’ll be guaranteed to get those “where did you get that” compliments.  It perfectly complimented the hair and make up look too.

Before we know it, we hear “5 minutes!” and I can feel my belly flip with excitement.  Its showtime!  Those familiar feelings of last year and the buzz starts to build.  Last minute preparations and styling are taking shape as we take our place in the line backstage ready to go on.   Chris, our style icon and owner of Benetton, Truro, styles us and places our line up together.  The look is fantastic and as Chris puts us together in terms of colours, I find myself at the front – eep!

It’s brilliant and something I never thought I would have the opportunity to do, so I am embracing it!   The music starts and we hear the show being introduced, before we know it, we are off!

At the start of the catwalk, I see the crowds and the cathedral is packed!  As we make our way along to the top, there is a brilliant vibe and I am concentrating on my steps!  Hand on hips, head up and serious face on (though not too serious!)  I think the photos come out really well if there are some serious shots and some playful ones too, plus the playful ones get the crowd going!  I make my way back up to the start along with my lady in pink beside me, one more turn and we are done.

My next outfit is for a gorgeous shop called Plum and because the turn around is so quick, the ladies are waiting for me for a quick change!  They did a brilliant job, very well engineered to get me from one outfit to another.  It’s so exciting and I love the thrill of getting into the next outfit and getting back onto the catwalk.

My outfit for Plum is a super sophisticated black leather skirt and white shirt.  I adore this look and I would wear this for a smart office look or drinks out with friends.  It’s teamed with a long necklace and the beauty of this outfit is that it would appeal to any shape, age or style because you can mix up the styling of it.

 Plum

Teamed with bold red lips and bold eye make up gives it that edgy look or teamed with a cashmere cardi & soft make up would suit the mature lady – though there are no rules so say this can’t be reversed!  Thats the beauty of fashion,  your style is yours!  And there are no rules for that!

 

Next,  I’m on for Jaeger and this time we have a little longer to get ready.  The show is quicker this year to give a sharper turnaround time for the viewers.  My first outfit is a super soft and beautiful baby pink roll neck jumper, black trousers, a gorgeous (very me) tan coloured cape and matching hat.  This look is incredibly stylish and the cape is very on trend.

It could also be teamed with smart jeans and would be perfect for meeting the girls for lunch.  I felt very chic wearing this outfit and again it would suit all and accessories could be added to make it wearable for both daytime and evening.

Before we know it, its the end of the first half!  The time goes go incredibly quickly and we take the opportunity to get some photos.  I get changed back into my first outfit for Benetton and we head to a beautiful part of the cathedral for some group  shots.  All of the girls are so lovely and look amazing!

Photoshoot done, its time to get changed into our outfits for the second half of the show.  Part 2 is scheduled in the same way as part 1 and Benetton is first up!  For my 2nd outfit I wear a gorgeous chequered black and white shift dress, coral cardigan, black tights and pearls.

This is a fabulous outfit and again is versatile for any season.  I felt very smart & sophisticated in this dress & cardigan as the colours are so bold, it makes any day feel glamorous!  Thats what I love about Benetton, always fabulous!

During this catwalk run, we each took our turn on the runway and came back to the start and we line up in our stylish outfits whilst the others took their turn.   This was brilliant as it gave the audience a chance to see the outfits for longer and to showcase the whole look together.  The colours look amazing as one piece together.

Outfit number 2 for Plum was a gorgeous black leather dress and high heels.  Unfortunately due to timings I didn’t get a chance to strut my stuff in this dress, however it was modelled beautifully at the end of the show.

My final outfit for the show was for Jaeger and it was a beautiful lace midi length dress in burgundy.  Perfect for the upcoming Christmas party season!  So elegant, perfect length and the colour would suit anyone.  I particularly liked the lace sleeves as it added an elegant and sensual edge to the dress.  If you purchase this dress,  you’ll be guaranteed to love it for many seasons to come, a classic.  You can also add some statement jewellery for some extra dazzle.

 JaegerJaeger 

So to the finale of this fantastic show!  I get to keep on this beautiful dress and we all do one last walk along the catwalk.  The audience have been fantastic and the night has been such a success.  I give the crowd a big clap as we doing our final lap.

I feel very proud to be part of the team and equally proud to be part of such a big community event and it’s fantastic to think that everyone comes together in the name of fashion to support our local city.

A massive thank you to everyone from me, from the event organisers at Truro Trend to the shop owners thank you for letting me be apart of your fantastic show,  I can’t wait for next year, the show keeps getting better and better!

Debs XoXo

mywardrobeutopia

P.s keep scrolling for more pics!  Catwalk pics are courtesy of my personal photographer aka Mr C, go follow him on Instagram; mario_surf.cornwalluk