SHOPPING at Christmas is stressful. Traipsing down Market Street or standing in endlessly long queues to buy a gift you’re not sure your mum will pretend to like this year, oh yes it’s all very stressful.
Add the pressure of finding a perfect Christmas party dress and it’s any wonder we don’t all have Christmas induced breakdowns. Finding the ultimate party dress is what gives me cold sweats when I think about Christmas.
I blame my mother. Dressing me up in a hideous velvet dress with tinsel wrapped around my head at the helpless age of three has scarred me for life. No amount of ‘oh isn’t she cute?’ and ‘what a little star’ comments made it any better or any less traumatic. Even now velvet is strictly banned from my wardrobe; no matter what time of year.
“People forget that it’s a free service and we can tailor it to your budget or your needs. “
With that childhood memory in mind, trying to find a Christmas party dress that transforms me from a scruffy windswept mess, who will inevitably fall into the Christmas tree, into a stylish and modelesque woman is a stressful task. It’s a lot to ask from one garment. Not just any standard dress will do it and there have been many failed attempts in the past. From too short and too tight to loose and ‘billowing’, it’s a minefield.
Send in the reinforcements; the personal shoppers.
Namely, Cath and Olivia of Debenhams in-store personal shopping team on Market Street. Both are encyclopedias of fit, fashion and shape, and are confident that finding a Christmas party dress will be a walk in the park.
So trusting them with my sizes I send them off on their mission whilst I sit on a leather sofa and drink coffee. It's definitely a less stressful start to Christmas shopping.
Shoes Maketh The Outfit Of Course
So who uses personal shopping?
“We have a varied range of customers, from children to all ages. I’ve been doing this for eight years and now have regulars that have been coming for almost all that time,” said Cath.
But why have a personal shopper? Aren’t they just the remit of the overtly wealthy or reserved for scenes in films like Pretty Woman?
“It’s more of a convenience thing. We have lots of people who work a lot or who are looking for a capsule wardrobe,” said Olivia. “We’ve also had lots of people who have lost weight and have no idea about their body shape. We really do have job satisfaction here and we change people’s minds completely about what they can and can’t wear. It’s about giving back confidence.”
So onto the dresses. After all, I have two Christmas parties next week and I haven’t even thought about tackling New Year's Eve yet.
The first dress is a form fitting red number from new designer Todd Lynn and comes in at £80. On the hanger I’m dubious. My wardrobe consists of black on black accessorised with more black so this bold crimson is already making me suspicious.
“It’s a great colour,” reassures Cath. “It’s great for day to evening, you can dress it up as much as you like with jewellery. It’s great double wear too, as you can pair it with black tights and boots.”
I’m still suspicious as I’m pulling it on. However hanger appeal has a lot to answer for, as what had initially made me cower turns out to be a flattering choice. This is where the knowledge of a personal shopper comes in handy, as I’m sure I’d still be panicking out on the shop floor if Cath and Olivia hadn’t picked this out for me.
Todd Lynn Dress £80
“If you pay a little more then you do get really good quality,” explains Olivia. “The designers at Debenhams do a good fit really well.”
Before I can get colour happy and begin trading my extensive wardrobe in for a rainbow palette, the second dress is out. The infamous little black dress. Always described as the failsafe option for every woman’s wardrobe it can still present a challenge. I’m still shuddering at the memory of a dress that was so short I couldn’t lift my arms at all for fear my hemline would ride above my waist.
“I have this one myself for going out over Christmas,” said Olivia as she held up a sequin dress by Red Herring. “It’s only £49.50 and with so many of the mega week discounts it’s a bargain.”
Fitted, sequined and short. Should be a recipe for disaster if my fashion history is anything to go by.
Red Herring Sequin Dress £49.50
The third dress is most definitely a challenge. Feathers, brocade and my ultimate dress nemesis, velvet is all rolled into one with the final dress from Lipsy. It’s the time old ‘shouldn’t work but does’ dress. It’s very fashion forward, and even as a fashion journalist I am unsure that Lipsy will have the answer to my party dress woes.
But lo and behold, once I’ve been zipped and tied in, the dress makes me look put together. Less thrown together mess and more of a grown up who knows what she is doing (dressing up is half the work). Velvet nightmares are banished and this is where the skills of a personal shopper are evident, as I know I would never have picked this dress to try on.
Black And Gold Lipsy Vip Dress £120
“It’s about trusting us,” said Olivia. “People forget that it’s a free service and we can tailor it to your budget or your needs. “
“We end up becoming friends with most of our customers,” explains Cath. “They’ll come and pop in just to say hello, we even had some come in with mince pies as pressies.”
Equipped with a new dress and my new weapon in, not just Christmas shopping, future event shopping I can survive the party season without breaking out so much as a bead of sweat. Niamh 1, velvet 0.
Cath and Olivia can be contacted at Debenhams, 1 Market Street, Manchester, M60 1TA. 0161 838 8432.
Debenhams are also offering one reader a personal shopping appointment and lunch for two in the store's cafe. To enter, leave your details below. We'll contact the winner on 20 January 2014.
