AW Style at JOY

By eleanorsnare / October 27, 2011 / fashion / 4 Comments

This weekend I had the ace privilege of going into the Leeds branch of Joy for a styling event, set up with Hannah the lovely manager and Amy, a fantastic model (and staff member)! The Joy Leeds store is running an event in a couple of weeks (more on that later) and were looking for bloggers who’d like to take part in some fun activities; in fact, Joy asked me what I would most like to do in store, and styling some outfits was it!

The first time I saw Joy was in Birmingham, when I had originally thought it was an independent shop. However, Joy is a national brand with an online shop too, but each store is pretty unique and their collections sell out fast, guaranteeing you something a little bit different from regular run of the mill high street clothing.

I wanted to use the styling event as an opportunity to showcase the wide selection of items Joy has. From the outside, it can look like quite a hyper-feminine store, with lots of tea-dresses, florals, and delicate jewellery. Inside, it’s a different story, as their ranges include cool coloured trousers, body-con dresses, giant jumpers, oversized tshirts and fun printed shirts. I styled 4 outfits for AW, each with a patented Snare twist!

OUTFIT ONE

AW fashion season always sees a return to richer shades than the hues of summer, and this year’s no exception. Navy blue and ochre are a sophisticated combination, plus adding a masculine shirt shape to a feminine, lace dress is a nice juxtaposition.

OUTFIT TWO

Unsurprisingly, I also wanted to use some bright colours. People are really afraid of mixing bright or tonal colours together sometimes – who cares? It’s fun and incredibly joyous. I would recommend reading What I Wore 2Day for the most fantastic colourful (and print-tastic) outfits ever. These red trousers looked just clashy enough with the orange-red jumper to work with the cute bird print blouse: I’m not a huge trousers fan but thought this would be a good look for work (I said a good look, not necessarily suitable…)

OUTFIT THREE

Shazam! This is definitely something I would wear out and about, probably with coral pink platform heels. Again, bright colours that really pop when put next to each other are slightly broken up by a marly print man’s tshirt: lots of nice play with volume here with the tight cardi and billowing skirt.

OUTFIT FOUR

So I’m not sure if I said, but Clueless is probably one of my favourite films. I often find myself working a Clueless style when I’m er, clueless about what to wear. This is a fun ‘Clueless does Christmas’ look that combines a beautiful silk and cotton mix polka dot shirt with a tartan skirt and bold accessories. In the photos below, I layered a khaki green long sleeved tee underneath for more texture and warmth. It is AW you know!

I was surprised at the range of items Joy had in store, as well as the quality. The polka dot shirt was a wonderful texture and some of the party dresses were really pretty. I’m not a big fan of the high-street other than for basics, but I found Joy to be refreshing and have some exciting pieces that, while fashionable, weren’t just driven by trends.

The Joy store event is on Friday 4th November and features local acoustic bands, live mannequins, and a makeup artist. Details will be on the Joy website and blog really soon, but if you’d like some more information or for a press pack (bloggers included!) email leeds@joythestore.com

I’m going to be at the fashion event on Friday 4th and would love you to come down and say hi, maybe even show me what your favourite AW items are from their collection. So, what do you think of Joy as a store? And which of the outfits above is your favourite?

More pictures of the styling event in the gallery below