The Background

Born 1^st September 1971, Rachel Zoe is probably the best known fashion stylist in the world.

She studied at George Washington University, majoring in sociology and psychology and after graduation in 1993 moved into stylist work for magazines including Gotham and YM.

Rachel eventually went freelance, and her list of past and present clients includes Anne Hathaway, Cameron Diaz, Eva Mendes, Nicole Richie, Jennifer Garner, Keira Knightley, Demi Moore and Mischa Barton. She is one of the most sought-after stylists for both red carpet events and editorial shoots, managing to clock up serious air miles between New York and Los Angeles in the process.

Zoe became a tabloid sensation when she began to dress Nicole Richie, and in 2008 Rachel got her own reality show, ‘The Rachel Zoe Project’, which takes a behind-the-scenes look at the daily rigours and delights of fashion styling for the A-list.

The Look

Think of Rachel Zoe and an image quickly comes to mind: statement bag, big sunglasses and even bigger hair. Zoe is unusual because she has built a reputation not just on her ability to fit someone out for the Oscars, but on her ability to influence fashion itself.

Zoe’s first flush of fame came in 2006 when she began to dress the mainstays of young Hollywood, Nicole Richie and Mischa Barton.

Ditching her youthful street style, paparazzi favourite Nicole Richie began to be photographed in flowing maxi-dresses and bug-eye sunglasses. An extreme departure from the style of her early twenties, the sophisticated vintage look borrowed straight from 70’s Halston, and took inspiration from Zoe’s own closet. The new look was an instant hit.

Fashion up until then had been concerned with only one mantra: make it short, and make it tight. Hipster jeans were the favoured way to wear denim, exposing belly chains (remember them?) and frantically-toned flesh.

But with the onslaught of the more relaxed Zoe silhouette, loose and billowing shapes began to appear on the catwalks. Before long, oversized had become a bona fide trend and it had one major advantage over the belly chains: with a few tweaks here and there, it looked good on everyone. This was fashion democracy at its best – if you wanted the full Zoe effect, you wore a maxi-gown with headscarf and Jackie O sunglasses. If you wanted just a taste, an oversized tunic dress or a pair of glamorous shades was enough to make the connection.

 

The success of the Zoe look was due to its ability to translate across age, size and shape. Zoe’s pioneering of oversized fashion catapulted her onto the A-list. Rachel’s own love for fashion got her snapped as much as her clients. Her look got even more coverage and magazines were running features on how to dress like Rachel. The stylist is traditionally seen and not heard, and Zoe was rewriting all the rules.

Her sharply-defined point of view was profiled and analysed by the fashion press. Her love of Seventies fashion revived the lost art of vintage shopping: hunting bargains in your local high-street is fun, but the lure of vintage was simple: you could end up finding a piece that no-one else had. Fashion as lost treasure – what’s not to love?

Turning fashion on its axis from disposable to keep-for-life, Zoe turned us onto the possibility of finding unique keeper pieces. She has proved to be ahead of her time: the tide in high-street fashion is turning towards individuality and craftsmanship, rather than slavishly-copied trends. It’s a new way of wearing clothes, but better yet, it’s a new way of thinking about them too.

Rachel’s embrace of fashion is anchored in a genuine respect for how it is created, from sketch to stitch. Rachel has done sterling work in tuning people into the idea of creating their own style, to be their own stylist, and make a style blueprint from scratch.

Rachel Zoe is not just a stylist – she’s a force for fashion good. Playing on her love of accessories, Rachel is now collaborating with shopping channel QVC, launching her own line of finishing touches. It’s the natural progression for a woman who thinks (and probably dreams) in detail.

What makes Zoe stand out in an industry awash with stylists is that she has her own point of view. It is easy to pick a Zoe client out of a red-carpet line up. They have all the hallmarks of someone who’s been dressed by a professional (glamour, poise, great hair and make-up). But what separates the Zoe client is that the dress will not only be occasion-appropriate, but it will be career-appropriate as well.

Rachel Zoe extols the virtue of dressing for the future you want, not just the present you have (however fabulous that may already be). Aspirational dressing isn’t just for WAGs – it can help women who are doing well on the career ladder, but want to do better.

Ambition is very much the elephant in the room in Hollywood. Everyone has it but no-one wants to admit that what got them there took absolute grit and determination. There’s nothing soft or whimsical about your favourite A-list actress floating down the carpet in an Alberta Ferretti. Don’t be fooled: on the inside, she’s as tough as old boots.

 

Fashion as personality is something Rachel’s cultivated particularly well, both with herself and clients. A red-carpet dress on client Anne Hathaway never looks ‘wrong’ or overdone: it looks like the dress was made with no other purpose than to sit on her back.

Glitz on its own is nothing new – or remarkable. Everyone, from the Soap Awards upwards, knows the basics of red-carpet dressing. What Zoe takes to another level is creating a style for clients that looks organic and evolved. Every look you see is meticulously ordered. Nothing is left to chance, but it just looks effortless.

Zoe’s most successful looks have been about the detail. Whether it’s a dress covered with translucent paillettes or an athletic cut in sunset chiffon, Zoe pushes us to expect more by slowly introducing braver, bolder shapes that challenge our pre-conception of what red carpet fashion should look like.

Many A-listers now hope to have careers that span decades, and staying with the same image for 50 years is not always the way to go. Ambition dictates that in order to move on, one must move forward. What Rachel understands so clearly about the fame game is that a style icon is never born, she is made. Not convinced? Look at Madonna. Never the same image twice and we’re still as fascinated by her now as we were in 1983. That is the mark of a true artist.

The Zoe team build style icons from the ground up: Cameron Diaz has made the transition from beach babe to urban sophisticate, and the changes have been so subtle they feel authentic. When you can’t see the stylist’s sleight of hand, you know they’re good.

Regardless of how far Rachel explores her move into merchandising, her primary role – stylist, taste-maker – has redefined how Hollywood looks today – and that’s bananas.

The Summary (how the Zoe effect can work for you)

- Redefine how you think about vintage fashion. It’s not just sustainable and purse-friendly: done well, it builds a library of fashion unique to you and your personality.

 

- Ignore labels and go for fit. Does it (a) fit you, right now, (b) fit with minor alterations (eg: taking up a hem or sewing on a new button) and (c) fit your current wardrobe and lifestyle. If your day-to-day life doesn’t much call for a floor-length kaftan, it may not be the best buy for you. A 70’s waistcoat or a pair of 80’s sunglasses are good examples of vintage slotting into a contemporary look.

 

- Approach style like a jigsaw puzzle. Look for pieces that will fit your personality and slot in with what you already own.

 

- Revise what you wear now: what could be taken to the next level? An incredible piece of costume jewellery can lift a faithful LBD, an intricately-detailed belt can make a maxi-dress that much more wearable when the thermometer’s not pushing 80 Fahrenheit.

 

- Think design. Many of the high-street brands are currently fighting for survival and this competition for our attention means they have to get creative. Keep an eye out for clothing with ‘good bones’. If it works on you, it doesn’t matter if it was made by H&M or Karl Lagerfeld himself. Fashion is, or should be, a uniquely personal enterprise. Go with your gut instinct and when it’s right, your style radar will pick up the signal loud and clear.

Rachel’s work in introducing us to vintage and the importance of a good accessory takes second place to her most important lesson of all: the importance of taking chances. Taking the road less travelled can lead to incredible things: buying that vintage necklace can unlock a whole new way of dressing, and your style should be as much a part of you as your fingerprint: indelible and one of a kind. Fashion’s not about the destination, it’s about the journey. So dress accordingly.

HELEN TOPE