Lights, camera, action for the G&T Style Club!

I had my first post lockdown shoot during the week and it was so nice to get back to it. I was shooting some looks for the G&T Style Club which is a collaboration on Instagram between myself and my pal, photographer Gill Horgan (@gillybeangirl). We started the club during lockdown to keep ourselves occupied and inject a bit of style into our stay at home covid lives.

We created a lot of videos together during lockdown but this was our first time since March actually recording together which was, of course, marvellous. What made it even better was all the other amazing local businesses we got to collaborate with on this one.

We were kindly asked by Rebel City Distillery if we would like to shoot in their cool new distillery down by the Marina and it made the perfect backdrop to all the fab new autumn/winter pieces that we shot. The distillery, which produces Maharani Gin, is the brainchild of Robert and Bhagya Barrett. It uses a unique spice and plant blend from a women’s organic farming co-op from Bhagya’s home place of Kerala, Southern India.

I chose some colourful pieces from Silk Peaches and Blue Fig boutiques to really pop against the brick work and copper which feature in the distillery and the blue of the label and bottle of the Maharani gin. One of my favourite pieces was a bright fuchsia pink suit from Silk Peaches that would be a great option for any upcoming events as it combines formal wear with a more laid-back silhouette.

I always think a suit is amazing value for money anyway as the jacket works equally well with denim and the trousers would look fab with a simple black or cream knit and dressed down with trainers. Another favourite piece was a leopard print dress from Blue Fig. Both Gill and myself are total leopard print fans and this dress looks great worn loose or given more structure with a simple belt. Again, trainers or some thick flat boots would complete the look.

As you know I’m a firm believer in the power of accessories so I styled the looks with the most amazing footwear from Amari shoe boutique which has such show-stopping footwear that you really won’t find anywhere else. My personal favourites being a chunky pair of white and silver trainers and a pair of mid-calf suede boots which Gill may or may not have on the top of her new season wish list.

Amari also stocks a small selection of winter coats and I may just have invested in a winter coat for myself…such is the perils of a stylist pulling looks for a shoot. It’s incredibly hard to resist amazing coats. Now, obviously, to finish all the looks and to really make those colourful outfits pop I had to feature the most spectacular pieces of jewellery and so Vereena of Colour Addict Jewellery was on hand to lend the perfect jewels.

Gill and I have quite different styles so it was nice to see the different pieces of jewellery we gravitated towards to complete the styling.

You can check out the first of these styling videos Friday on Instagram @natashacrowley @gillybeangirl.