So many people are frightened of colour,  don’t be.  How many black tie events have you been to where everyone is wearing black?  Black is a great colour but if you want to stand out from the crowd, wear something else – anything else.

One of the great advantages of being a woman is luxury of make-up. Even if a colour does not suit you, fake tan and a bit of blusher and that dress was made for you.  

Rarely acknowledged by the fashion industry, but short people exist. Apart from high heels and/or stilts here are a few tricks to make the most of a vertically challenged form. 

It is an absolute myth that short people should wear cropped clothes.  Short skirts and short tops make one look shorter and wider.  Number one visual basic rule – horizontal lines make things look wider.   What is a short skirt? A wide horizontal line.

Column dresses will give the appearance of being taller and thinner because it is an unbroken vertical line.  Wear long hair up – the cleaner that  vertical line is, the better the illusion of height.

Of course if you have spectacular legs – then ignore all of the above, your height does not matter.  

It is worth remembering that a lot of women pay good money to have enlarged breasts however many women who have a naturally large bust feel extremely uncomfortable about it.  It is particularly annoying when men talk to your cleavage all night.    

If you do not want to flaunt your cleavage, the biggest mistake that you can make is to wear baggy clothes, unfitted jackets or clothes that do right up to your neck. You will look dowdy and fat (particularly if you are short).

Try wearing a fitted gown and draping a long elegant scarf backwards over your shoulders.  This way the flat part of the scarf will hide the male focal point (bless ‘em).  Ultra glamorous - not a hit of matron and plenty of desirable womanly curves, without being obvious.

50’s clothes – don’t you just love them!  They knew how to dress real women in those days.  

If you have big hips and a small top try a full netted 50’s outfit.  Exaggerates the bust, extenuates the waist and hides the hips – perfect.

Halter neck tops will enhance what you have and of course there is the padded bra.

Failing that go for the flapper look. Those dresses were designed for people like you. In the 20's women used to bind their bust to flatten themselves out.

Instead of getting paranoid about whether you are a size 8 or a size 18  – you should be asking yourself:- Do I have a waist?

If the answer to this question is YES, then relax. 

There was a fantastic article in the Times about ‘Goddess Fat’.  It pointed out that if you have a body like Nigella Lawson or Kate Winslet, who only ever seem to pile on the pounds on their hips and bust, then your size is irrelevant.

As long as you have a waist then you are in a position to wear clothes that show off your curves and that includes a rounded belly.

If you cannot bare your womanly curves, Bridget Jone’s it – big corset underpants.

If you have great legs then a shift dress is the answer.

If you don not try an Empire style dress that gathers in under the bust and hangs freely below – slimming, soft, romantic and very sexy.  Highly recommended for pregnant women with swollen ankles.  

If you have short legs, avoid short skirts.

If you wear a long dress with a slit up one side you can have truly dreadful legs and still look sexy because the observer will only ever get a glimpse of the leg – the imagination is a powerful tool.

Sheer dark or neutral tights will also slim down the appearance of the legs; bright coloured and patterned tights will make them look bigger.

If you have big calves, then avoid three quarter length skirts.  Skirts that end slightly above or below the knee will be more flattering or wear knee length boots, which will hide a multitude of sins (and avoids the need for waxing.)