Frock Advisor: our new style column with Sonya Lennon and Brendan Courtney

The ladylike trend of full skirts is good in theory, but I'm terrified by the concept. Will it make my hips look huge ?

At Frockadvisor, we like to contextualise your fashion choices in an embrace of provenance and suitability. In other words, what is it, where did it come from and will it work for you?

Understanding your lifestyle and your body are the keys to avoiding expensive and inexpensive mistakes (it’s only a bargain if you use it, you know). With our help, you can alleviate the sartorial un-dead, tagged and bagged in your wardrobe, unworn, evidence of both delusion and optimism.

To improve the choices we make, take a look to history’s high points, what did they wear that looked great then, and still looks great now?

The big skirts we’re seeing now were born in 1947 with the launch of Christian Dior’s ‘New Look’, a sartorial two-fingers to the austerity of war time. The post-war opulance of volume was as scary then as it is now, and let’s hope just as appropriate. The essence of ‘New Look’ is nipped-in waist and full-volume skirt to the knee or beyond, a silhouette that became synonymous with ladylike elegance, encapsulated by Grace Kelly.

The big statement comes from the sheer amount of fabric used. What you choose to wear on your upper half is a matter of personal taste. Good choices include a snug knit, a shell top, a streamlined shirt or, true to history, an ultra-fitted short jacket.

However, this look is absolutely not about recreating that Dior moment. In fact, you need to work that little bit harder to ensure that you look like a member of contemporary society, rather than an extra from Mad Men.

So, to your question – will my hips be magnified? In a word, no. If you believe your hips, thighs and bum to be your problem area, you probably are, or think you are, a pear shape. This means your upper half is a good size smaller than your bottom half. We know buying dresses is a nightmare and black is a friend for life. So let’s think about what’s happening to the silhouette when wearing a full skirt. The smaller upper half is contoured with exquisite waist definition. The larger lower half can run free and wild, unchained by fabric and protected by the optical illusion that the volume is coming from the skirt itself.

According to a study conducted by Marks & Spencer, in 1920, women’s average vital statistics were 32-22-33.5, they are now 36.5in bust, 30in waist and 39.5in hips, so the majority of us ladies are pears. If, however, you are a straight up and down boyish shape, the full skirt will add volume, creating feminine curves; another box ticked. Frockadvisor would urge caution if your waist is not a strong point, as that is the intrinsic emphasis of this look. Instead, as a classic apple shape, focus on your legs and arms, but that’s a whole other issue to discuss.

I have milked the statement necklace trend, to the horror of my physio. Must I continue wearing them?

Let’s be clear about this, if things always stayed the same, once the needs were met, wants would not exist. Fashion is built around desire, and the gods of fashion knew a year ago that your love affair with the statement necklace was already going off the boil. In fact, they planted the seeds.

As a rule of thumb, once you can replicate the look for under a tenner, or, enter a room as one of five or more sporting the same statement, it’s time to move on. The puritanically-high necklines of the moment often require an accent, a sense of fun, or an injection of colour. So this means there is still, and always will be, a place for dramatic neck adornment. Now, however, the early-adopter’s money is firmly on the lobe.

A great sport is watching the fashion week peacocks competing for glory in print and pixels.Many of these luminaries shape the collections of seasons to follow, and right now their lobes are laden with sparkling trinkets. The oversized earring is often thought of as a child of the 1980s, but it’s been reborn with gusto. A long, chunky earring looks really fresh, and may well pave the way for a more plunging neckline in rebellion against its previous trend. Weight is also a consideration. If you can’t comfortably wear your jewellery, there’s really very little point in having it.

One key tip is that the old fashioned set of matching earrings and necklace are completely out of the question. Make your decision on an outfit-by-outfit basis, but this is strictly one for the other situation.

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