Disco Inferno

FLUTTER Jumpsuit

So, about a month ago I undertook my first official styling project for a 'disco' themed editorial collaboration with photographer, Matt Leach 

Model // Anna Charlotte Irving and MUA // Louise Burke.

 I wouldn't class myself, officially as a stylist-  well, sometimes, when I'm feeling confident in my styling ability, its a titkle I play around with loosely.. 

Yes, I do style all the look book shoots for all the collections from my line Dancing Dolls UK and long before I actually began designing and creating  clothes; it was giving style and make up tips to my peers, that partly got me into considering the fashion route. At the time, I didn't even know: styling was actually a job!

Now, I do. I do, also know, how hard and intense it is to be a stylist and to make as full time profession. Hence, why I don't really claim the title so lightly.

I curated the looks for the disco themed shoot, using pieces from the DDUK range- obvs- including:

• FLUTTER jumpsuit,
• GLITTERATI sequin cowl back gown,
• SPARKLE playsuit, 
• GLIMMER mini dress  
• GLOW cowl neck mini dress. 

Well, why would I look anywhere else; when I had all the pieces, I needed at DDUK HQ?! ;-)

I teamed it with lots of oversized jewellry, coupled with Anna's ma-soohive red afro and a Disco inferno was created.

 Below are my favourite edits from the collaboration. 

Thank you Matt Leach for the opportunity.

 Pieces used in this collaboration are available at www.dancingdollsuk.com. or contact us here to enquire about ordering any of the pieces, no longer available via the DDUK website.

Till the next time xo

GLITTERATI gown

SPARKLE playsuit

GLIMMER mini dress 

Now you see me

Remember, Rihanna in that Adam Selman dress at last years CFDA awards?
What dress, I hear you cry... and not because you don't remember it. But more, because, no one was allowed to forget it or the lack of it. She sent the media and Internet a blaze, when she settled for wearing that infamous, entirely sheer full length gown; to attend the CFDA awards, where she was awarded fashion icon of the year.
Whether you loathed it or loved it- it seemed everybody had an opinion on it.

Rihanna in 'that' naked dress at the CFDA awards 2014

Whilst the sheer trend has, every so often over the years has made an appearance by some desperate for attention celebrity or  supposedly epitome of cool fashion model. One could argue,  that now the need in today's society to share, pretty much everything and anything across some social media platform is what has resulted to this mass frenzy of acceptance of  publicly showing whats underneath your clothing.
Lets face it, the barely there and flashing your underwear trend was there long before Rihanna decided to add her own installment.
I mean, who can forget that moment, when Rose McGowan let it all hang out in her 1998 VMAs dress- if you could call it that. (yes- the sweet face actress best known for her character, in supernatural drama 'Charmed'). Or Singer Melody Thornton (former 'Pussycat Doll) in her version of the Emperors new clothes.

Melody Thornton, Rosie McGowan, Amber Rose in their version of the 'Emperors new clothes' over the years.

Some of us may have been championing this trend; spear heading even more opportunities to feed the insatiable desire to share everything with everyone; undergarments included, Others of us are definitely completing over it.
Even, we were slightly over the sheer amount (pun intended) of  celebutons, who opted for this trend during this years award season...and couldn't quite understand the mass appeal and attention, that Beyonce received, in particular for her Givenchy MET Gala ensemble. Then, we took a closer look- I mean the detailing on the dress though! Bow down- yessir!!

A close look on the intricate detailing on the Givenchy gown worn by Beyonce. Image courtesy of Beyonces Instagram page

 At the back end of the 90's, few designers-those of the more adventurous realm, including Dolce Gabbana and Fashions bad boy- the late Alexander McQueen had begun to experiment with sheer fabrics. By 2007, the trend was everywhere; and many Fashion houses were now sending nearly naked models down the runway. This of course, meant the ability to shock was slowly watered down. Fast forward to 2014; the see-through trend is no longer, just restricted to the runways of Paris, London and New York or to the brave  dare-to-bare celebrity.

Sheer trends on the runway

Its hot and accessible and at Dancing Dolls UK, we have definitely, concocted our very partly diluted additions. We first dipped our foot into sheer waters back in 2011, with our lace open back top, as well as one of our best sellers; the black-on-mesh all in one from our Beautiful Ugly AW11 collection.

 But, it was in 2014, were we really gave this trend, its DDUK injection;  bringing affordability and accessibility to this runway look, with our EVOQUE mesh panel leggings, PROVOKER catsuit and our BODY CONTACT bodysuit.
.

Evoque, Provoker catsuit, Body Contact by Dancing Dolls UK

Don't worry, we still haven't quite reached Amber-Rose-on-the-red-carpet-of-the-VMAs-2014 standard...and lets hope we don't! But we've now added a dress to the mix: our own sexy, almost sophisticated NOW YOU SEE ME midi, as well as our, GARNET midi and ELLISON co-ord

GARNET dress by Dancing Dolls UK. Image by Matt Sheehan. Model Charlie Pardington @ Alan Sharman Models 

Rochelle Humes, Katie Piper and Pixie Lott at the BAFTA Awards 2015

Because, its fair to say with some of the celebrity heavy weights: Jennifer Lopes, Kim Kardashian and Beyonce at this years Met Gala 2015, along with the celebrity lightweights: Rochelle Humes , Katie Piper and Pixie Lott at the BAFTAs 2015 and the other celeb elites, including  Frederique Bel at the Cannes Film festival 2015; all adopting the sheer trend with gusto, this year. You better hold on to your knickers, ladies. This trend is sure to last a whole lot longer.

Jennifer Lopez in Versace, Kim kardashian in Roberto Cavalli, Beyonce in Givenchy at the MET Gala 2015

Shop our sheer looks here

Ellison co-ord set. Image by Talia White. Model: Shawna Leigh

Till the next time xo

www.dancingdollsuk.com 
Follow Dancing Dolls UK on Instgram, Twitter or Facebook 

Shoes wisely

 StyleFile with Paulinah Eboh-Sampson: 
5 tips on choosing the right sandals to make your legs look longer.

You can usually tell, the hottest trend; not only based on your Instagram feed, but also by what every other woman is rocking; whether for a night on the tiles, dinner date with bae or any other 'lets look hot' occasion.
Whilst everyone is apparently, wanting: "something different to wear".
The hottest trend usually guarantees; you'll probably wind up in some way looking like a clone of somebody else.
Although that hot trend is VERY tempting- it looks fire in those on line images, in the shop windows, wore by that fashion blogger on Instagram and on that chick; rocking them at that hip bar, the weekend before last- unfortunately, this does not mean, it will look good on you!

A great example, this Summer's must have footwear: the sandal- from the strappy to the barely there. 
(Move over cute, pointy stiletto pumps in every Summer shade available.) Sandals are every where! From Primark to Giuseppe Zanotti, I can assure you, there is currently a dope variation available in most if not all UK shoe outlets.

So while, you may be slaughtering your feet, dying to look uber cool in this trend- the styles of late certainly have an extra dose of added painful hobble factor, I must add- even by high heel standards. Are you sure you have the right type of sandals for you and your body type?

From giving style advice to my customers and the never ending, on going styling projects I embark for my line Dancing Dolls UK; working with so many different models of varying proportions with various body types. I have learnt learnt a few cheats about working with your assets; wearing the right heels for your body and- yes, sometimes,  I had to learn this the hard way: having to crop or re-edit images and even to re- shoot whole assignments, when getting the styling for a particular models body type, oh-so-wrong. 

I've highlighted 5 great tips on choosing the right footwear to compliment your outfit.

TIP 1
The midi and calf length pencil skirt is currently raining supreme as a must have wardrobe staple. Unfortunately, if you have larger ankles aka 'cankles' or a petite frame- especially curvy and petite. Its likely this type of skirt will cut off at your calf -the widest part of the lower leg, making your legs seem even larger and giving you a stumpy appearance. Que Kim Kardashian.
 If you have succumbed to buying a midi pencil skirt or few, then avoid wearing them with calf hugging sandals, sandals with ankle straps or cagey ankle high sandals....unless of course the short, wide and dumpy look is what you're after.
Instead, opt for a pointy stiletto style shoe (yes- you can still wear them and look on trend.) A pair of pointy toe heels ALWAYS elongates the leg. 

Kim Kardashian : She may be the queen of the internet, but she is also queen of championing the dumpy, stout look with her regular ill styled ensembles for her frame

TIP 2
 Wider feet? Well, unfortunately, your feet are just too wide to successfully carry off wearing dainty sandals, without looking like ducks feet in heels.

I know, it sucks to hear that, right? This means barely there sandals are not for you. I repeat (slowly shaking my head)- the barely there sandals are not for you!

For wider feet, when opting for an exposed sandal, such as the barely there style, try a T bar or similar style variation. The T bar running vertically down the length of your foot, creates the illusion of slimmer, more slender feet. Any decorative feature running along the centre of the design, also works well with wider feet.  

Giuseppe Zanotti sandals

TIP 3

Go nude- if your skin tone permits it; as in wear nude coloured heels- not literally, obviously. The nude hue will always make those pins look even longer, as it disguises where the leg end and your feet begin.

TIP 4
Go for a higher heel, as high as you can manage it. Just be sure the heel height is in correct proportion to the design of the sandals, so that means DO NOT at any time settle for the kitten heel...like ever! The only part cute in those two words is its relation to the animal. The heeled cruise liner style shoe is never a good look!

TIP 5 

Rupert Sanderson heels

Strappy, gladiator or calf high style sandals: These types of silhouettes are best complimented with trousers, circular midi skirt, a mini skirt (above the knee)- either pencil, but preferably an A-line or skater style ensemble to allow you to cheat on having the best pins in town. 

There you have it. You're shoe game knowledge is fully equipped, so shoes wiesly..... 

Follow my personal blog for more style tips from my regular StyleFile  
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Till the next time Paulinah xx
#teamDDUK
www.dancingdollsuk.com

Disclaimer: I do not owe the images used in this blog and where possible/known credit has has been issued to source . No copyright infringements intended.

Photo credits: Fake leather, Walk In Wonderland, Haute pink pretty, Kirsty Doll, Glamradar, Kristina Bazan for Jimmy Choo

Peaches & Cream SS15- Behind the scenes

You may have seen a few of the gorgeous finished edits starting to float across social media from my brand: Dancing Dolls UK's latest collection 'Peaches & Cream' for Spring/Summer 2015.
But, with so many pieces from the collection, I think it'll be a while before, you see the full range. So...whilst, we wait for the rest of the images, myself included. Here is my favourite behind the scenes image from the set of the look book shoot last week.

#bts #behindthescenes 'Peaches & Cream' #SS15 #peaches #cream The new collection for #Dancingdollsuk #handcrafted by Paulinah Eboh-Sampson. #photography by: @taliawhitephotography. #model : Shawna Leigh #fashion #fashiondesigner #mumpreneur #entrepreneur #femaleboss #girlboss #handmade #couture #instafashion #swimwear #

A photo posted by Paulinah Eboh-Sampson (@dancingdollsuk) on Mar 4, 2015 at 10:20amPST    

 ABOUT THE COLLECTION
"Peaches & Cream" the SS/S 15 from Dancing Dolls UK; focuses on the manipulation of the DDUK impression, with a variety of added new designs.
Using the palette, as the reoccurring focal point for the collection, rather than a collection derived from emotional or physical inspirations.
You will note candy flossed shades of creams, pinks and whites; complimented with varying shades of peachy hues, from pastel tones of damask through to vibrant coral. All accented with dashes of jade and stone.

Look out for our very  first, special curated selection of wedding guest ensembles, specially dedicated to the bridal season, with gorgeous bridal guest attire and the modern bridesmaid in mind.
Model: Shawna Leigh @ Dream street models
Photographer: Talia White
Make up & styling: Paulinah Eboh-Sampson
Garment assistant: Marisa Scott

Can't wait to see the rest? ....Ah ok- well, here's a few more sneaky behind the scenes images, captured by my current intern, Marisa.
Enjoy!

You can follow my work via the official Dancing Dolls UK instagram page and keep an eye for the new collection, which shall be strolling all our usual outlets over the coming weeks.

Till the next time xo

Peaches & Cream S/S15

“Peaches & Cream” the upcoming S/S15 installment from Dancing Dolls UK; focuses on the manipulation of the DDUK impression, with added new designs. It uses the palette as the reoccurring focal point for the collection, rather than a collection derived from emotional or physical inspirations.
You will note candy flossed shades of creams, pinks and whites; complimented with varying shades of peachy hues from pastel tones of damask through to vibrant coral. All accented with dashes of jade and stone.
Look out for our very first, specially curated selection off wedding guest ensembles, specially dedicated to the bridal season with gorgeous bridal guest attire and the modern bridesmaid in mind.

Peaches & cream will be available via the Dancing Dolls UK website and our usual outlets from early March 2015
We shall also be offering a limited range of chic hand bags, contributing to the appreciation of the collection. These bags are of very limited availability (Like seriously limited- we'll only have 10 available) and will be available online with the launch of our collection in March. If you wish to pre-order one of these beauts, contact us by emailing us at enquiries@dancingdollsuk.com

Available in 4 colours: jade, white, stone and pinky-peach 

Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and/or Twitter for seasonal offers and discounts.
Until the next time xo