Ok let’s get something off our chests – We’ve all had days where we feel messy and unkempt inside and out. Those days when your life resembles a hot mess juggled together by bubble gum and good intentions. Yeah, those days.
The ones where you wake up late after hitting snooze three times, realise you haven’t showered and accidentally get coffee on your top half before even leaving the house. The days when your hair resembles a wild animal and your calendar implodes. I’ve had plenty of these days.
Days where I spent half an hour picking bits of grass out of my top after dropping my dress on the way out, only to arrive at work covered in cherry cough sweets thanks to small children. Last month I missed my train to an important client meeting and sped up the motorway sobbing into my phone whilst my mascara ran down my face.
Today I spilt a hot chocolate down my laptop.
The day I drove to my client meeting late with no make-up on, hair in a bun and jumper covered in cat hair is one of those days I won’t forget any time soon. When I finally arrived in a hastily parked car on the wrong side of London I looked in the mirror expecting to see a hot mess. Instead, the client remarked that I looked “so put together!” Cue eyeroll because I’ve heard this many times before when feeling like chaos incarnate.
You see I am what you might call an expert in “fake it til you make it” dressing. I’m always late, always dressed-downer than I should be and always discovering weird stains on my clothes that weren’t there when I put them on. Because of this, I’ve had years to master looking polished when you feel like hot garbage.
SO let’s talk about those days. They happen to the best of us. You overslept, overspent the night before or were woken up by your pet hurling up their breakfast (HALLO MOTHA ****ING NIECE!) but whatever happened, you need to pull yourself together FAST.
Grab your coffee and a notepad and lets plot our way out of hotmess-town, shall we? Emergency style Kit- Let’s start with the simple stuff. When life gives you lemons you make lemonade.
When life kicks you in the shins and sends you into work covered in bird poo you need: A go-to style kit! Mine is literally a zip-up pouch full of life saving products which hangs permanently in my car and has a mini-duplicate saved under my desk at work. It includes; A black pashmina, safety pins, nude lipstick, wet wipes, travel hairbrush and clear nail varnish.
The blanket/zoom-necklace/hair-tie hybrid wipes away coffee stains and doubles up as a scarf or emergency belt if your jeans break (true story). Safety pins are ESSENTIAL because who knows when your dress will decide to rip? Nude lipstick makes you look like you “tried”.
Wet wipes are practical and weedorable. Nail varnish stops your tights from laddering… AND can be used to fix practically anything in an emergency. Legend. @kat_brasher donned her Emergency Kit in style at my cousin’s wedding last year after the zip on her dress sadly parted ways with each other mid-service.
I almost cried writing her a thank-you card. Quick Change Face- On those days where time is NOT on your side, concentrate on three things; Hair. Face.
Overall silhouette. Hair- Bun time! aka my salvation. There is a low bun for every bad hair day and the messier your hair is, the tighter you should roll it.
Add a little water and some hair gel and you’re halfway there. Rolling into a meeting with my future employers last year I went from awful bed-head to low bun chic in under two minutes flat. Face- Grab your concealer and swipe underneath your eyes.
Cream blush on cheeks (applies easier than powder when rushed) mascara and tinted lip balm. Boom. Done.
If you’re REALLY short on time, opt for blush and lip balm only. Adding colour to your face is the quickest way to look like you made an effort, even when you didn’t. Pulled together Silhouette- This is KEY.
When you’re short on time it’s important to know what outfits you can trust to look good on you with minimal effort. When in doubt, I throw on a dress and some form of tailored jacket/blazer/coat. The dress is ONE item so no faffing around matching things.
Pair with a smart blazer or jacket to create a chic outline and everyone will think you look amazing. Even if you’re a sweaty mess on the inside. My work friend Emma calls these her “adult uniform”, basically the outfits she knows will make her look pulled together regardless of circumstance.
Hers involves wide leg trousers and a tucked in blouse. My brother calls his DT (damn tidy) outfit black jeans and a button up shirt with the sleeves rolled up. Find what works for YOU.
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Example A: Running late to a presentation after spending the night looking after my sick niece who shall remain nameless **cough*Evie*cough*. I managed to spill food all over my only clean blouse BEFORE leaving the house so had to scrap it. Instead I threw on a black dress and grabbed a blazer and loafers instead of heels (couldn’t be bothered with heels = VERY unbalanced walk home).
Several people commented on how “elegant” I looked all day. Suffice to say I was wearing two different socks and coloured in the stomach stain on my dress with a Sharpie. Statement Accessories- Statement necklaces are my thing.
Throw on some oversized hoops or a chunky necklace to add instant focus to your face. In time pressured situations I reach for my big gold hoops; they sit neatly around my face and make me feel more “put together”. Even if I’m wearing a plain white t-shirt and jeans.
My friend Sarah keeps a pair of pearl studs in her car at all times for “emergencies”. How we view other people is pretty weird when you think about it. Our brains notice one distinct detail and then make up the rest.
Statement earrings or necklace automatically give people something to “plug into”, filling in the blanks with neatly dressed earrings. Same goes for colour. Wear one colour head-to-toe and people will think you put thought into it.
Even if you grabbed the top and trousers without looking in a rush. I usually stick to monochrome as it’s fool proof (literally black leggings, top and blazer when I snapped this photo obvs) but jewel tones, camel, white work too. Example B: When I overslept and had about 7 minutes to throw something together before speeding to meet a client.
Cue all black leggings, jumper, blazer and loafers. Paired with a red lip for extra WOW factor. Client later told me she loved my “minimalist aesthetic”.
Fun fact; It took me all of 2.5 minutes to throw this together because Johnny was nipping out to catch the train. Capsule Emergency Wardrobe- On days where even getting dressed feels like a monumental task, you need a failsafe wardrobe. Enter the capsule wardrobe; a small collection of clothes that match each other and can be worn in multiple occasions/weather/situations.
Pretty much all of my wardrobe matches, which means I can throw on anything and know it’ll work. But these are my staples; – Black Trousers- Jeans that fit you like leggings; they’re your BFF. – White Button Up Shirt- THIS ONE. Essential for work and play. – black dress- Throw it over your fav pair of jeans for a chill vibe or dress it up with tights and heels.
SWOON. – Dark Jeans- These are smarter than your average pair of jeans and can pass for “jeans+blazer casual” in a pinch. – Neutral Blazer- THIS ONE. Team Ninja have you covered. With these five pieces you too can create an ample capsule wardrobe that will pull you through work deadlines, brunch with the girls and that dinner date you suddenly realised was semi-sandwiched* somewhere in between.
Fit and Finish- Believe it or not, fixing the small things can make your outfit look 10x better. Tucking in your shirt neatly, rolling both your sleeves up to EXACTLY the same spot and making sure your clothes aren’t too crumpled can go a long way. If I’m extra short on time I use these tricks to salvage an outfit before changing entirely.
Same goes for how you stand. Pull your shoulders back, hold your head high and maintain good eye contact. Practicing ‘power posing’ for a few minutes before a meeting can also help you exude confidence (even if you don’t feel it).
Breathing exercises work wonders too. Take a few minutes before you leave the house to stand up straight, take a few deep breaths and relax your shoulders. You’ll feel more “put together” before you’ve even left the house.
Emergency Backup Clothes- Oh and one last tip; ALWAYS have a back-up outfit. Whether that’s in your office drawer at work; your cars boot; or even held secretly behind the washing machine at home.
Mine are; Spare pair of tights, white t-shirt and black flats.
Knowing they’re there is half the battle. We have one in the office who keeps an entire outfit spare “just in case.” He doesn’t suffer from disasters often but knowing it’s there means he never has to. Ok folks, I hope you got as much out of this as I did writing it.
Heck, I even made a CHECKLIST because I’m Let me know down below what your top tips are for those hot mess days. Any emergency styling hacks? Freaky outfit fails?
Leave me a comment! *I stole that from Alexa Chung. Best. Girl.
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