Although women interested in fashion follow today’s trends, I don’t think the majority of us shop the catwalks for a head-to-toe look: apart from celebrities in the thrall of a stylist or earning the pay of the latest ‘Big Brand’ dress, and young fashionistas wanting fast throw-away fashion. Nor do I believe that we should all change our identity with each new season. In short, we do observe trends and nod to them, but don’t entirely follow them. We can be influenced by the looks laid down by today’s designers, without being a slave to them. It is about feeling good and looking individual, by putting your own twist on a look or outfit. The trends have never been more accessible than they are today, with the use of Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and all the glossy fashion magazines, giving us all a live stream of up-to-the-minute looks, advice and catwalks at our fingertips.

We should make fashion fit us now, not the other way around. In the midst of a ‘credit crunch’, which we are hopefully now showing signs of recovering from. One thing is for sure, our shopping habits have changed. We are now looking for items that will instantly update our wardrobe, focussing a little more on durability and wearability. We want items with timeless aesthetics that transcend the seasons. It’s all about how you want to look as an individual. It’s about not wanting to wear what everyone else is, and feeling confident to do so.

Trends will always be the drivers of fashion, and there are some amazing designers out there creating them for us, but being individual enables us to cherry-pick items that work for us.