On Thursday, May 13th, I had the pleasure of meeting fashion stylist extraordinaire Daisy Lewellyn at her book signing that took place at one of my favorite LA clothing stores, Runway Boutique. Dubbed as the Queen of Effortless Chic, she has recently unleashed all her timeless secrets about bargain shopping with her first publication, Never Pay Retail Again: Shop Smart, Spend Less, And Look Your Best Ever. That evening, I was able to learn more about the person behind this great style guide as well as garner some tips that every budget-conscious, fashionista should know.

Daisy Lewellyn: Oh, gosh, there are some many things I want readers to learn! First of all, I want them to know that it doesn’t matter if you live in New York or LA, or a small town in Oklahoma. You can still look fantastic and feel like a celebrity even if you don’t have that celebrity budget. Just knowing that its not all about the price tag or the designer label, but more about the fit, your lifestyle, and making sure that its what you like to wear.

KL Style: Now, I’ve read different interviews about how you got your start. There are a lot of Chocolate Fashion Blog online viewers who are aspiring stylists and wanna know how can they break into the fashion industry? Any advice for them?
Daisy Lewellyn: Its funny that you asked because my website www.daisylewellyn.com did just launch and I have something called “Career Corner” because I have a lot of girls and guys who come up to me and ask how to get into the industry. I say the best way to break into the industry is to do an internship. An internship is going to be your first step in the door so you can learn the basics. You can’t get hired until you know how to do the job and you can’t get the job until you have experience. So, the best way to get experience without having experience is an internship. Also, just be humble. Humble beginnings can go a long way.

Daisy Lewellyn: Yes, I started at Howard University and it was an amazing, amazing thing to do! As you know, Howard is the fashion mecca and I did an internship/one year exchange program at FIT (Fashion Institute of Technology) in New York. That was really great because like you said, I went to Honey magazine which was thee “It” magazine of all time. It was great and I learned sooo much about the fashion business that I didn’t know. I was not a designer or a sketch artist, but I knew I wanted to work in fashion so I said “Ok, I’ll be a celebrity stylist, that sounds good!” And then I started to learn about editorial which involves styling and working with the clothing on photo shoots so I thought “Oh, I really like this!” So that’s how I really got my start, and I just never stopped going. I moved to New York so quickly after graduation to start at InStyle magazine and kept it going from there.

KL Style: What was your most memorable styling experience?

Daisy Lewellyn: I love DRESSES! I AM A DRESS GIRL. I love them because they are so easy. When the weather is “iffy” I have the easy solution, its called “TIGHTS!” That one word can change a life! Dresses are so great because they can go from season to season with tights, peep toes, booties. For the LA girl who wears boots in the summertime, they can go without tights during the day and put them on when it gets cold at night. There are so many ways to wear dresses with cardigans, blazers, and layering. I do a lot of unexpected layering under dresses. Most importantly, one should pick a dress that works for their lifestyle and body type. There are so many dresses out there that one dress is never the same as the next dress. You like vintage, color, a classic look, a stretch jersey fabric or a sateen fabric. Making sure it works for your body type is key because the dress won’t do you any justice if it doesn’t look good on you.

Daisy Lewellyn: The book is a shopping guide, but I talk a lot about inspiration. I think you need to be inspired in order to feel good about yourself and to change your wardrobe. I’m inspired by smart, strong, career women whom are mothers. I’m really inspired by Diana Ross. I’ve never met her, but she’s amazing! She’s still a mom and she loves her children. I love Beyonce because she encourages women to love their bodies. When Beyonce came out, everybody was happy about their curves and that wasn’t very common. I’m also really inspired by the two women I dedicated the book to. The two women who are the original bargain babes: my grandmother and my nana. They taught me that no matter where you are going, you always look your best. If you have $5 or $500, make it look like $5,000 which is very inspiring advice. Right now, I’m just inspired by women who are just strong and into their careers, but also into their husbands and families. These are women whom don’t feel like they can’t look good because they’re busy. They work that out!

KL Style: What’s next for Daisy Lewellyn?
Daisy Lewellyn: A show. We’re definitely in talks with producers and networks about producing some fun kind of show.

Daisy Lewellyn: Well, definitely about fashion, but going beyond fashion and making sure you know that it’s a lifestyle. When you get dressed, it’s more than just a special occasion. Everyday is an occasion! If you’re going to the Piggly Wiggly, that is an occasion! How do you dress for that occasion? Never Pay Retail Again is an ideal kind of show because it embodies everything from fit, lifestyle, beauty, bargains, soccer moms…everything. So, definitely a show is in the works and products are coming soon. A line of ‘Effortless Chic’ products because I’m all about QUICK AND CHIC because that is what being effortless chic is all about. So, I’ll be working on a line of products that hopefully will be coming to you soon!

For more on Daisy Lewellyn, visit her website www.daisylewellyn.com and pick up her new book, Never Pay Retail Again: Shop Smart, Spend Less, And Look Your Best Ever, at a local book retailer near you.

Sarah Jessica Parker

Kim Cattrall

Kristin Davis

Ashanti

Julissa Bermudez

 Vanessa L. Williams

Padma Lakshmi