If we didn't really hate the term 'girl crush', we'd certainly use it to describe the satorial affection in which we hold Phoebe Collings-James. The 26-year-old multi-disciplinary artist (she uses unexpected materials like chewing gum to make her artwork and has shown all over the world) and founder of feminist website C**t Today, as well as a Premier model (she walked for Sister by Sibling last week at LFW and has collaborated with Dior) Phoebe Collings-James is one formidable lady.
We could write pages on her achievements, but to keep within the context of our weekly Debrief style dissection, we're going to embrace the fact that she isn't afraid of the simplicity that is a ladylike statement dress and strappy sandals. And that thanks to Phoebe's accessory-lite attitude to dressing, even the prettiest of dresses always look ridiculously cool rather than Palermo matchy-matchy on her. Props.
Let's dissect what else works and why:
The strapless LBD
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Thought the minimalist-Posh-Spice-strapless-LBD had had its day? The all-singing all-dancing red carpet may say so, but Phoebe's effortlessly beautiful rendering of the item says otherwise. Channelling '90s Calvin Klein minimalism (very Rihanna) she isn't afraid of the simple life (no, not that one). When you've got hair as awesome as that, you kinda can keep it stripped back on the accessory front. See? Everyone could do with a fuss-free black strapless dress.
Don't be afraid of a classic statement dress
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Dresses have had a hard rap, recently. Suddenly eeryone got a bit nervy when it came to the idea of an 'occasion' dress. We found ourselves opting for mini skirts, or perhaps leather trousers instead. But screw that! Phoebe isn't afraid to go old-school classic in structured red Vivienne Westwood or super-dinky checkerboard Louis Vuitton. Everyone deserves their own Pretty Woman moment, in a dress like this.
Pink can be edgy
If ever there was any doubt, pink has had a re-brand these last few seasons. Or at least the pink coat has. But what of the pink dress? We haven't seen any of those around. Which is why we applaud PC-J, for not being afraid of the pink dress, whether it's fuchsia or blush pink. As ever, she stops things from being too girly with a longline number – pink mini dresses run the risk of looking very _TOWI_E – and keeping things clean of acccessories. Try this beautifully fresh Carven one.
Don't be afraid of boyfriend dressing
She may be a dab hand at a slick dress, but Phoebe knows that there's nothing better than breaking out our your own recognised style. For every chic dress, she'll appear in a vintage pair of faded jeans or a suit. Never has eveningwear been such a flexible dress code; so take advantage of that.
Be the canary
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For all her chicness, Phoebe's clearly a girl who can carry off some pretty rad get-ups. There's kind of nothing cuter than her in this green and yellow tweed shortie suit. It's not easy to pull off a Chanel-on-acid two-piece but she does, with aplomb. Our lesson here is just to try on the unexpected; this isn't going to be a look that suits everyone but if you own it then people aren't going to argue otherwise. Especially when you ooze confidence like Phoebe does.
Everyone needs their own Naomi moment
Deal with anything life throws at you heroically seems to be one of Phoebe's lessons we're most into adopting. After tripping on the Sister by Sibling catwalk at London Fashion Week recently, instead of going all weepy she cheerily Instagrammed a picture of the incident with the caption 'Everyone needs their own Naomi moment!' Yes, they do. Sadly, most of us won't get one. But there's something to be said for picking yourself up and dusting yourself off in the face of embarrassment. Kudos.
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Pictures: Getty, Rex
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.