We all know that the autumn-winter wardrobe can cause some serious style dilemmas. If you’ve somehow managed to miss coverage of London Fashion Week, top stylist, Hannah Sandling will lead us through how to adapt the key catwalk looks into chic high street styles and advise on which must-have fashion items will keep you looking glamorous throughout the dark days ahead and into Spring/Summer 2008.

A few hints for you… shiny metallic shades are set to be very much in vogue this season. Gold, Silver, Pewter and Bronze will be the colours of choice giving you a radiant and elegant look, regardless of how dismal the weather is. Patent leather, pencil skirts and purple will also be making a huge comeback, helping you to create a diverse and original image that screams sophistication.

Bearing in mind the pretty much non-existent summer, we’ve got a feeling some of you may be jetting off for a weekend winter break. If you are, Hannah and BAA’s Head of Fashion, Hazel Curry will also be offering some top tips on how to pick up some of the must-have fashion trends at BAA airports across the country.

For more information visit: http://www.baa.com/shopping

P: Vicky Letch, presenter
H: Hazel Curry, Head of Fashion, BAA
HS: Hannah Sandling, TV presenter

P: Hello and welcome to the Lifestyle Show, I’m Vicky Letch, this is brought to you by BAA. Now we all know that Autumn / Winter wardrobe can bring some real style dilemmas with it. If for some reason you happened to miss coverage of London Fashion Week then stay tuned because this is your chance to find out which designers wowed the crowd and what fashion must-haves are going to keep you looking all glamorous through those winter days all the way through to Spring / Summer 2008. Now I’ve been joined in the studio today by head of fashion at BAA, Hazel Curry, and of course TV presenter and stylist Hannah Sandling, thank you so much to both of you for being here, great to have your company

HS: Thank you for having us

P: You’re welcome! Now a little reminder for all of you at home, we are completely live, so if you have any questions at all pop them in the box on your screen with your name of course, and then click send and then they’ll pop up on my screen and we will endeavour to get them answered for you. Now let’s start off of course first of all with London Fashion Week, I went, just for one day, I forced my way – let me in! And it was absolutely incredible, I’ve got to say that the designs that I saw were just out of this world. But in terms of being practical and how they translate to the high street, how does that work?

HS: Well London Fashion Week always showcases some of the world’s best designers, and yes they create these creations which, you know we couldn’t really wear if we were popping to the shops or even going out to a dinner, but the reason they create these amazing ensembles is purely to get PR, these are totally OTT and then what they do, they create another range that we can wear which we can be seen out and about in. It’s quite exciting when you go, I mean as you I know the atmosphere at London Fashion Week is nuts isn’t it?

P: Just crazy, I have never ever been so excited to be surrounded by half naked women

HS: I know, I know, I know!

P: Which makes me feel a little odd, but there was real buzz there, so it’s more about the trends, the shapes, the textures, the fabrics

HS: Yes

P: That they then use to create clothes that we can wear?

HS: Absolutely and it’s really odd though because if you look in the magazines right now in all the weekly gossips, you see all London Fashion Week and a lot of people think oh maybe that’s what we can buy right now, but actually the London Fashion Week we’re reading now is actually for spring / summer, so you have to kind of think oh actually that’s for next year, so it’s kind of just getting our taste buds going to see what we’re going to see you know?

P: Not that us females often need much encouragement. Talk about getting our taste buds going and shopping and enjoying the experience, Hazel you’re here from BAA, and you’re here to tell us all about how we can shop in the airport?

H: Yes I just want to really talk about how easy it is and what a fantastic experience it can be, and how often when you’ve gone on holiday you’re so frazzled by the time you get to the airport you often haven’t had enough time to do all your shopping, and half the stuff in your suitcase you’re thinking oh my God I’ve bought all the wrong things, I need something else. Well when you get to the airport it’s a perfect opportunity, you’ve got time to spare, you can wander around, it’s all in one place, and buy all those extra little things that you’ve forgotten to put in your suitcase

HS: Now you see I have first hand experience for sure here because I lead such a hectic life and because I spend my life shopping for other people and being a stylist, I get to the airport and it is like going on a holiday there, it’s absolutely amazing, because not only can you get great grub, you can stuff your face with chocolates beautiful fish –

P: I love you Hannah!

HS: Sushi, but also you can put your sunglasses up and I tell you what I could spend four days, wasting four days looking for a bikini and every time I go to the airport I always find my bikini, my sarong, but not only that, I always end up finding the best perfumes, all the best fragrances, because you’ve got thousands there, and let’s say you’re going on a bit of a minxy, you know naughty weekend type thing, you know you can get your underwear there, you know a bit of Agent Provocateur, you know for the old boy there

P: Sexy sexy

HS: And you can get your fragrance, and you know you can get something really sexy and really luxurious and amazing. Or you might be going on a family holiday with all the kids and it’s really summery, it’s going to be really fresh and bright, you know you can get your hat there, your sunglasses, your bikini, but also a lovely fragrance to go with that. So it’s all there. I mean you don’t really need to go on holiday, it’s just you know stay at Heathrow arirport and you’re sorted!

P: A little tent and away you go! Now talking about summery and summer trends, what can we – oh she’s excited! What can we expect to find for spring / summer 2008?

HS: Well I tell you what, designers have been dishing up a whole cocktail of goodies for us girlies out there, I tell you what you better be earning the money because we are going to be thrashing those credit cards. Oh my God where do I start? Right, there’s loads of 80s that we’re going to be seeing for spring / summer –

P: Really?

HS: So loads of glitz, loads of glamour –

P: Ok, tell me now, tell me now so I can prepare.

HS: Sparkle sparkle

P: Are you talking about the puffball again?

HS: Lots and lots of you know really sparkly stuff, and what we’re seeing also is lots of beautiful embellishment, we’re going to see loads of printed chiffons, loads of beautiful linens and cottons

P: Oh fantastic

HS: But stuff that’s been inspired from the Masai tribes and the Sahara desert, so loads of cool kaftans which are perfect for taking on holiday, I’m sure we’re going to see that, you know in the airport aren’t we, loads of kaftans and shoes covered in stones?

H: Yes all that kind of thing is really great for holidays, and all the beautiful fresh colours that we’ve seen in the last week or so are just going to translate really really well into all of those beach clothes that you can pick up in the airport

P: And hopefully of course we’ll have the opportunity to actually don on these spring / summer clothes this summer. I just want to touch on very briefly, was really tricky for me as I’m sure lots of you at home as well. I’d go out feeling all lovely and summery in my flimsy little summer dress and then by 4 o’clock in the afternoon it was teamed up with a lovely cable knit cardigan, I mean what sort of thing can we do to combat those issues, when we are just having a rubbish summer?

HS: Well we are having a rubbish summer you’re absolutely – well it’s gone now hasn’t it, it’s gone, it’s been absolutely dreadful. But actually I must admit I did actually pull out a few chunky knits myself and a few shawls because what can you do, you either freeze to death, you know and you sort of like smuggling peanuts type thing, or you know you actually you know suffering for fashion there, or you actually go out and you do sort of cover up, but you can do it in a glamorous way by getting a lovely shawl or –

P: Yes

HS: Or a gorgeous long fantastic metallic knitted, you know, cardigan type thing and you might have a lovely sash belt that goes around it, so it’s not just a granny cardigan that you’d wear on a Sunday with a hangover, you glam it up or you put two thin layers on together, or you just stay in home, at your house, and you lead a miserable summer!

P: No don’t do that, go out with your cardi! Emma has sent a question, Emma thank you very much, Emma wants to know, ‘ok, I’m going out tomorrow night with the girls, I’m looking for a new outfit, what should I wear that shows I paid attention to London Fashion Week? I’m a size 14, so not sure what’s appropriate for me.’ What do you think

HS: Oh do you know what Angelina Jolie it up ok, when she goes out –

P: Yes

HS: Does she not look better than every other girl that walks into a room yes, so the emphasis and the focus is actually on the waist, so as long as you’ve been doing your sit-ups girls, you know, so waist, so lots of lovely big waist belts, so massive great ones, so if you have got a little bit of a pot belly it doesn’t matter, you get your big, thick waist belt out, or even a corset because that holds it all in, and a pencil skirt looks fabulous, so what you’ve done is created a lovely hour glass figure, you look hot, you look sexy, the boys are going to be drooling and the girls are going to be dead jealous. So yes that’s what I’d say

P: Hazel I must admit, I mean I spotted both of your ladies outfits, I absolutely adore. Unfortunately you’re not going to be able to see the trousers very clearly, I adore your trousers, I love this high waisted look, is this something that you think’s going to stand the test of time?

H: Certainly for a while, I mean the low waist hipsters were around for ages and ages, it felt like they were never going to go away, and then the waistline started to creep up and up, and they’re brilliant because it does literally suck it all in and you don’t have to worry about any unsightly muffin top overhang type thing, it’s all in there, so yes I mean they’re great for every day for work and stuff, you can put them on and you know that you’re looking alright.

P: And they’re amazing actually, they’re very easy sort of to dress up and down, I mean you’ve gone for obviously a lovely sophisticated look today, but you can really funk them up as well these high waisted trousers can’t you?

H: Yes exactly and there’s loads of denim jeans with high waists as well which are great for weekend and more casual look, so I think they’ll be around for a while, but you know nothing in fashion stays forever does it?

HS: No but it does always full circle come back around. But if you are wearing the high waisted trousers, I saw a great picture of Sienna Miller this week wearing like a tuxedo look, and I think Keira Knightly even had one on, a white shirt with a little dicky bow tie type thing, and it can look really gorgeous, or you can just wear a beautiful shirt that has just been literally adorned in frills and ruffles and things like that. It’s really sexy, it’s really elegant. The only thing with wearing high-waisted trousers is if your bum is sort of a bit gravity-defying, it’s sort of going in the opposite direction, it’s going south ok

P: It happens

HS: And you’ve got to be careful because, you know high-waisted trousers, it kind of does make your bum look twice as big and twice and long, so if you’re really not wanting to go for that look, then I’d say steer clear of that look almost

P: Ok. We have another question, this one’s from Sara, Sara thank you. Sara wants to know ‘any bold and warm colours coming in this autumn / winter?’

HS: Well I’ll tell you what colour is big news right now, because you know colours should be worn from head to toe, now theoretically I should be wearing my purple tights and my purple shoes

P: Yes

HS: And I know it sounds a bit – oh God, that sounds a bit gross, but lots of purples, all those lovely, rich, I mean look at us two

P: I know

H: Too purple today

P: Sisters

HS: I know. So lots of beautiful purples, all those regal, luxurious colours and look we’ve got chiffons here, we’ve got beautiful velvets, so these colours, these strong colours and lots of rococo reds are really really popular, and even like the neon brights and loads of bright greens, Victoria Beckham, she was seen out wearing loads of green last week and all these colours are really, really big in, but if you really want to look like you are on it with your fashion trends, then do wear head to toe, so that means your tights, your shoes, your dress, your handbag – that is really up-to-date fashion

P: Really?

HS: Yes

P: All the same colour?

HS: All at once, I know it sounds a bit whacky, but it is really big right now, head to toe

P: This is hot off the press, are you getting this? Hazel, we’ve had another question here, Sara Miller wants to know ‘hi there. Purple’s not a colour that usually suits me. I’ve got red hair, more auburn than ginger. Any recommendations on what shade would suit me best?’

H: I think purple’s not a bad colour for an auburn hair person –

P: I don’t think – yes

H: I mean you could do, so long as you kept it not too strong I would guess so it didn’t overpower you, I would think you could get quite a nice pre-raphaelite look going

HS: Yes, exactly I think, I think a kind of velvet looks really quite lovely with it, so I think a velvet sort of -

P: I think so

HS: With – this kind of colour actually would look rather good, I think it will compliment it and make it look very luxurious. I love red hair, I think –

P: I do

HS: Women who’ve been – who have got this sort of – a lot of women think oh no, I’ve got red hair and it’s really bad, I think you are so lucky, it has so much colour, you can wear beautiful greens and purples I think – it’s a great colour hair to have, and purples, a colour like this would be absolutely amazing

P: I agree, I think it’s beautiful. Now let’s talk accessories, because you’ve brought me lots of treats, I assume I am keeping these? Oh no

HS: We’re going to fight it out because I’ve got my eyes on those shoes

P: You can have those, but I want those, those and that.

HS: That’s greedy, you can’t have that, that – I’m having that.

P: So let’s talk accessories, now we know that purple’s going to be big Autumn / Winter – how about this oversized accessory look, is this still going to be something that we’re going to see on the high street?

H: Yes

P: Big bags?

H: Yes we’re still seeing it a lot, I mean that’s quite a small bag actually compared to the size of some of them on the high street which are great because you can get all your stuff in it, drag all your clutter around with you, fantastic

P: I love –

HS: I usually have to go around with a granny bag these days I have so much clutter. But patent accessories are going to be really, really big news, and actually you’re not going to be making a bad investment, they look really good on you – ha –

P: Thank you

HS: Tom Cruise – you know fighter pilot chick –

P: Give me a call I’ll fly with you. I love them

HS: Yes, patent’s going to be really big, big news now, and also for Spring / Summer 2008, although the colours are a bit more sherbety and spring time, but patent really glams up a look, I absolutely love it, so we’re looking at handbags, we’re looking at shoes, but also studded shoes and studded clutch bags are really really hot as well, so it’s kind of got that biker-esk chick vibe going on

P: Ok

HS: So that’s what we’re kind of looking at. And as you can see we’ve got a safari print shoe here

P: Fabulous

HS: Which are really big

P: Fabulous

HS: But safari’s huge for 2008 as well so travelling has never been so stylish and so luxurious, I mean if you’re going to go travelling you may as well look like that when you go on the airplane

P: Absolutely. I see myself with an oversized hat, you know

HS: Can I just say, this is what airports is all about these days. Once upon a time it was like put your easy slouchy trainers and your grungy old you know trainers on, airports are about easy luxury now, you rock up, you can go without a suitcase, just your passport, you fill it – buy a suitcase there – you fill it up with all your goodies, you’re shovelling in your smoked salmon

H: Yes

HS: You’re shovelling in, you know whatever else goes in, but it’s – shopping’s obviously a little bit cheaper there too but you get it all done there, so it’s so stress free. And why not start the holiday off right there at the airport, feeling glamorous, feeling amazing, treating yourself to a new little pair of shoes, bikini, and a fabulous handbag, is that not the best way, and the champagne don’t forget, is that not the best way to start your holiday?

P: I am so going on holiday with you, at some point. You really sound like my type of gal. And now animal prints in particular are really really lasting – they just keep coming back and back and back. Why do you think that is?

HS: I don’t know I think that’s really sexy isn’t it?

H: Hot. It’s a look that people really really love to wear it makes you feel really feminine and gorgeous

P: Yes. You kind of think of Naomi Campbell don’t you, I always do?

HS: You do, dazzling, all that and you know it’s just got this really amazing travelling vibe about it and it’s so luxurious but we’re actually seeing it not just on shoes but on chiffons and stuff like that and all this various materials, which is really lovely so it kind of gives it that exciting sort of feeling, so if you’re not feeling that daring you could almost wear like an all-black outfit, and then have a beautiful, like you know leopard or catskin scarf on which has that kind of 80s vibe-type thing going or if you want to keep the whole 80s vibe thing going, you’re really into this whole stonewashed denim which I’m not particularly into but the catwalks were dancing with stonewashed denim. Then to wear that kind of snakeprint or python print, actually looks really quite good, it’s got that kind of rolling stone rock and roll image hasn’t it?

P: Yes definitely. All you need to do is chuck the TV out the window, you know, out the hotel window and you are rocking! Don’t actually do that, it’s not a good idea. We’ve got another question that’s come in – oh they want to stay anonymous – this is ‘I hate wearing high heels but my boss seems to think that flats are not smart enough – any tips?’ I thought that was going somewhere else, lucky it didn’t – what do you think?

HS: I think the boss is obviously a man and he wants high-heeled babylish long legs around their thing – no actually I think that’s absolute rubbish because look at our – we’ve got flat shoes – you’ve got –

H: Tiny heel

HS: Mine are flat shoes, I mean look, you have to excuse I’ve got inner soles in there, but look, they’re flat, yes, with a tiny little bit of a heel and they’re glamorous aren’t they?

P: Absolutely

HS: They’re shiny, they’re elegant, they do the job well

P: Yes

HS: So I think as long as you’ve got a lovely texture and a lovely bit of colour going on, whether it’s metallicky or it’s sparkly, or you know it looks gorgeous – pointed at the front

P: A point does help

HS: Exactly, so I think the boss needs to you know take my advice and it’s absolutely fine, and also it saves our girly knees

P: I think he should spend a day in a pair of high heels –

HS: Exactly

P: And then see what he’s got to say. Alright, you can tell your boss that from me. Now this is a question that I want to ask very quickly, because I’ve got another question that’s just come in – skinny jeans – my thighs meet at the top, not a good look – are we going to see these keep creeping up?

HS: Yes. They’re big for this season yet again

P: Ok

HS: Thanks to Kate Moss and Sienna Miller

P: Yes

HS: The way to get over that is, because actually I’ve got quite skinny muscles down here, and they’re slightly bigger up here. The way to get over that is to wear boots, over the knees boots

P: Yes

HS: Or just under the knee boots, because what you’re theoretically doing is you are balancing out the look

P: Yes

HS: So actually you suddenly look all sort of one width if you know what I mean, all the way down. If you’re going to wear the ankle boots which are very big for autumn / winter you’re going to look like a little chicken drumstick legs

P: Yes

HS: Which I do, do you know what I look like a chicken drumstick legs, it does not suit me, so I’ve got these lovely over-the-knee boots and they go perfectly you know so – you see so many girls wearing these skinny jeans and they so obviously haven’t looked in the mirror and they look really like big-bummed and tiny ankles like that. So, the boots.

P: Well good, then I will do that, I’ll take your advice. Ok, Hazel, this is for you, Rachel wants to know, ‘I love the metallic shades but don’t think they flatter me very much. Are there any accessories I can go for so I don’t overkill the outfit?’

H: Oh there’s all sorts of things, so she doesn’t like metallic, she wants to know –

P: She doesn’t like metallic

H: Instead. Well I would have said that some of the great patent stuff that’s around would be fantastic instead because it’s lovely and glossy and beautiful colours and stuff

P: Yes

H: But it’s not too over-the-top, as long as you keep it small

P: Yes

H: You don’t want to go too much, you don’t want to be wearing every single patent accessory –

HS: Absolutely

H: You can think of, but I think that would be a good way to go

HS: But if you are wanting to have a little dip into the old metallics and you don’t want to be doing it head-to-toe so you’re looking cheap and nasty lurexy, whatever, then I think you know, a bit of shimmer in your eye make-up is really lovely, and actually even if you go to the airport they’ve got it all there so you can pick it up job lot – I’m not joking – it’s great, you’ve got two hours to waste there so you may as well go and have a little makeover, but eye make-up is great, like just a bit of shimmer, bit of gold – you’re not talking about full on, in your face – like this gold, I mean you’d look like Pat Butcher wouldn’t you? But I’m talking about tarnished and really luxurious that makes eyes just bling out. And also you may – a little bangle, you know, a little part of a handbag, you know it might be even patent leather with a bit of metallic, you know buckle or something, so you can just pick up little teeny weeny bits so it looks like you’re still, you know ahead of fashion, you’re with it, it doesn’t look too full on if you know what I mean?

P: Yes, I know what you mean Pat! Lucy Davis wants to know ‘can normal people really get away with patent leather?’ I think so. ‘I always think it looks a bit too glitzy and would feel a bit showy if I wore it myself.’

HS: Look, right, let me just put this shoe on right, I don’t know whether you can see my tootsies there right –

P: Are you a normal person though?

HS: Look, I don’t know whether you can see – can you see my shoe now? Yes? I don’t look like I’m glitzy, I think I look like I’m quite smart, do you know what I mean? I mean it’s how you wear it. Ok, down there, sorry – you probably got a view of my pants then, sorry. Anyway, but I don’t look too glitzy, I don’t look too showy, it just adds a bit of glitz and glam and those are peep toe which are also very big if you want to stay in fashion as well. But I think as long as you’re not wearing head to toe and looking like some you know sort of one of those disgusting leather sofas you know, I think a little bit actually looks really quite fabulous. Look me holding the handbag, do I – I don’t look like too glitzy or OTT I look stylish, I look like I’ve just come straight off the set of Sex and the City, you know – ooh, my shoe’s taken away

P: And now she’s tripping. My goodness me. Right – let’s see. Oh no, we’ve had that one. We’ve had that one from Lindsey, yes we’ve done the patent leather. So it’s just about actually pushing yourself and trying something different as well Lindsey as well, I will say because as soon as you think – for example, me with the skinny jeans, I know once I wear them and I do it with the boots I’ll probably end up loving it, it’s just experimenting a little bit.

HS: It’s surreptitious tricks, that’s what I always say. Or I mean you know yo uoculd be size 20 and you can actually wear the right clothes and suddenly look size 14-16, it’s just knowing the tricks, knowing what to do and how to cover up, it’s all camouflaging at the end of the day isn’t it?

P: Absolutely

HS: So yes the boots idea is great and it’s just knowing where to direct the attention, that’s one great tip, if you’ve, if you’re, if you love one part of your body then always try and aim the focus to be there, I mean you’ve got great boobs so you know –

P: Trinny and Susannah – like your touch.

HS: So you know aim the attention there, you know and you might be somebody whose not so happy with your bum, well don’t put the colour there you know, and you see so many people on holiday wearing all these bright big – they think oh we’re going on holiday let’s put the florals on

P: Yes

HS: And they wear these big bright and white florals and they look twice as big. You know I always say the smaller the pattern, the darker the colour the smaller you’re going to look. If you want to look titchy witchy on the beach, go for a dark coloured sarong that’s got dark, coloured flowers in it, so for this Autumn / Winter you know go and get you know some blacks with lovely little red things on. You might even have a white sarong that’s got black flowers on it, quite monochrome looking, very Spring / Summer 2008 you know but as long as you’ve kept the print small and the colour dark, you know you can actually make yourself look a lot thinner you know?

H: Yes. And I have to say we have fantastic range of all those sorts of things at the airport so you don’t have to think about it before you go on holiday, you can leave it all to the last minute and when you get there you can go into – Accessorize is fantastic for their bikinis and sarongs

HS: To die for

H: Brilliant brilliant range at all our airports, so it’s a good place to –

P: Talking about your range, we are running out of time, we’re just in the final throws. My eyes keep darting to that handbag, I love that handbag, where can I get that from?

H: This one’s from LK Bennett which you’ll find in Terminal 1, and of course if you buy at the airport you get it at the airport price which is about 50% cheaper than the high street, so it’s a really, really good idea to buy when you get to the airport. And if you want to splash a bit more cash and go to one of the designer stores then you’re going to make an even bigger saving because we have stores that go right from Chanel right through to the high street as well, so it’s the whole thing there

P: It’s like Harvey Nichols, Harrods, Selfridges, Top Shop all under one roof. That’s kind of the feeling you know what it’s like us girls when we go shopping we get that buzz, we get that excitement, it’s amazing, you just kind of want everything. Well the airports these days are just like delicatessens. You go in, you feel greedy, you want everything, and because you get it cheaper why not? It’s your holiday, go treat yourself for goodness sake! Absolutely, and fantastic of course that you don’t have to take it on holiday with you, you can send it on

H: No, no you can – if you’re flying within Europe that is, you can buy a huge coat, you can buy 20 things, you leave it behind and you can collect on the way back. Brilliant service

P: Great. Thank you so, so much. Like last time when I met you I’m now going to go shopping I think for my winter wardrobe. Thanks so much ladies, very informative

H: Thank you

P: And thank you for joining us at home. If you want to find out more about your shopping experience at the airport, do pop onto the website, it is baa.com/shopping and you can have a look, have a little browse prior to your holidays. I’ll see you next time, bye bye

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