Member spotlight - Nichola
“Before Joyfully Dressed I was lost in the same outfits... put together haphazardly.””
Nichola joined Joyfully Dressed in April last year. She is a 43 year old teacher, with two kids and she lives in Gibraltar (lucky thing!)
When she signed up to my membership she said “I find myself totally lost. I adore colour and pattern but just tend to throw it all on and hope for the best! I’m a primary school teacher so hair is often scraped back (nits) and face make up bare. Mornings are not my friend, and I find that I’m the last one to sort myself. I’m hoping to find what works for my shape and spend a bit more time on me! Before Joyfully Dressed I was lost in a pattern of the same outfits-tending to always stick to the same few outfits. I’ve always loved colour, but tended to put it all together haphazardly. I had lost some weight and just felt totally lost. I tended to buy what was in fashion, rather than If it suited me or I needed it to fill a styling gap.”
Nicholas first photo in the group a 'typical' outfit.
When you sign up to my membership you are enrolled into my ‘Bare Essentials’ course, where we spend time identifying your body shape, colour season, sorting out your wardrobe (and quite a lot more.) We spend time working out the things that make you different from everyone else before we start to learn the more generic style rules and how to apply them.
During the first few weeks in the membership, Nichola identified that she was an Autumn Triangle.
Body Shape: "Triangle" body shape, where hips are wider than shoulders.
Colour Palette: "Autumn" colour season, featuring warm, muted, and deep colours like earthy browns, olive greens, and rich oranges.
Styling Focus: Emphasize the upper body to balance proportions, using appropriate clothing styles and colors.
Key Goal: Create visual harmony by softening the lower body and drawing attention to the upper body.
Initially, she was shocked by the discovery, saying, “I thought I was an hourglass, but it seems I’m more of a triangle…” This is quite common, as people often don’t know their exact body shape and can be surprised when they discover that their body shape has changed or is different from what they expected. She also noted after playing around with different outfits that work for a triangle body shape, “I have realised that I look better in things that actually highlight my shape, rather than trying to hide it as I’ve been doing for so long.”
Initially, she was VERY on the fence about being an Autumn and spent time working through the module in the second week, where we explored our colours. She tried on the warmer colours from the Autumn palette versus the cooler, brighter colours of Winter. I remember in the first week, she said, “I’m hovering between Autumn and Winter, so I spent the week in Autumn shades. I found this really hard. If I’m honest, I felt sad every morning because this palette just wasn’t me.
Nichola wasn’t sure about the colours in the Autumn palette, as these weren’t colours she would normally gravitate towards, and she wasn’t sure how excited the palette made her. This can be a common feeling when people first discover their colour palette, especially if it isn’t what they were expecting.
She worked through the rest of "The Bare Essentials" course, sorting out her wardrobe, ensuring the clothes suited her current lifestyle, and making sure all the clothes in her wardrobe fit her, were in good condition, and were items she loved.
After a bit of a wobble about the Autumn colours it soon became clear how good she felt when she was wearing them.
By the end of the course, Nichola’s transformation was obvious. In every photo she shared, you could just tell how great she felt.
She had fully embraced the Autumn palette and was finding creative ways to wear the colors that made her feel amazing.
When Nichola sent me her before-and-after pictures, she said, “Looking back, I’m like, what was I doing..???!! Stripes were my go-to, and that scarf I used to hide behind…” I’m sure many of us can relate to that feeling of hiding behind our clothes.
Over the past year, with weekly challenges, styling tips, and growing confidence from the community, Nichola has started sharing the most gorgeous, colourful outfits. It’s like her outfits are now as bright and vibrant as she is.
Her worries about a 'dull' autumn palette have completely disappeared—there’s nothing boring about these outfits!
“I’m proud of the fact I don’t just buy things for the sake of buying them anymore. I tend to think more about what I need to plug the gaps. I feel much more stylish and put together and definitely enjoy the compliments! I would recommend Joyfully Dressed to anyone that wants to feel good about themselves. In this busy life it’s nice to have fun-enjoy spending some time on you and take a moment to stop and look at yourself everyday and think “wow I look nice”.
My experience has been rewarding and inspiring and I have really enjoyed the process.”
For those of you who aren’t UK based, Nichola is also based in the Gibraltar and has found no issue with being part of the membership based in another part of the world (though we are all very jealous of all the sunshine she seems to get!)
Do you want to experience a confidence boosting transformation like Nichola?
My Joyfully Dressed membership opens up at certain times of the year.
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