When I think of Elma
Postma I think of South Africa’s own sweetheart. She has been part of our lives
since 2000, when she started portraying the role of Dezi in 7de Laan. This actress can be regarded
as one of South Africa’s cover faces as she has been featured on a lot
of South African magazine’s covers.
Being an actress, it
enables Elma to wear different styles as each character she portrays has a
different look. She also goes to functions where she can wear formal dresses
now and then, but Elma considers her personal style to be more laid back and
very relaxed. As Elma spends most of her time in her car – travelling to the
theatre, going to voice overs, rehearsing etc., comfort is key. Although she
knows that it is important to look good when you are in die public eye, Elma
says that it is very important to “stay
true to yourself and who you are when you choose clothes”. Elma’s favourite
clothing item is a soft, black off the shoulder jersey that she loves to wear
with jeans and earthy inspired jewelry.
This friendly, loyal,
caring and adventurous young woman loves navy blue and turquoise colours
because it goes well with her green eyes. When I asked Elma if she is happy
with her current style, she said that she is currently a bit tired of the way
she dresses – mostly due to the fact that it is so easy to fall back into your
own comfort zone of wearing clothes. I, myself struggle to get out of my comfort
zone and to try out some new clothes sometimes, but to me Elma’s style has
always been classic. She knows what complements her body shape and what to
avoid -something few women have mastered. With Elma’s life being at a very
creative point – she would like her fashion to portray that.
If you ever had the
honour of meeting Elma, you would have experienced her amazing personality. I met
Elma when I was in grade 3 (almost 13 years ago) in a shoe shop. Back then Elma
was famous for her role as Dezi in 7de Laan. I remembered that I was rather
intimidated walking up to a celebrity and kindly asked if I can have her
autograph. Elma was incredibly kind and warm hearted and wrote me a little
letter which says:
“Carike,
Nice meeting you!
Enjoy everything that you do!
With love,
Elma Postma
(Dezi)
xxx
7de Laan”
I kept this letter in
my school album and it is a reminder to me that no matter how famous you get,
being kind is always a must – something Elma sets a great example of. What Elma doesn't know is that we both share the same hometown and be both went to the
same high school. Another thing Elma and I have in common is that we both love the designs of Anel Botha Couture, another lady that also comes from the same home town. Elma especially likes the vintage feel some of Anel's dresses have. It is great to see that talented people from smaller towns
can also make a name for themselves in the entertainment industry and Elma sets
such a good example for everyone out there.
I have a question in
the questionnaire where I ask the people I interview if they would like to have
a fashion stylist to help them pick out outfits for everyday living or special
events and it is always so interesting to me to read their replies. Elma thinks
it would be nice to have someone who can look at her current wardrobe and help
her to see how she can use her clothes a bit different and to throw out all the
wrong items.
The main idea behind the clothing I chose was to help Elma and
give her some tips on what I think will look pretty in Europe. I decided
to keep the palette simple so that Elma can mix and match these looks to always
look beautiful.
When it came to choosing tops/dresses I wanted to incorporate some
form of French inspiration and I did that by adding the striped black and white
blazer and the two crisp white shirts. I then decided to add the light wash
denim top as this will look beautiful paired up with the A-symmetrical white
skirt I chose. I then decided to add to shift dresses. The one black and white
and the other a dropped waist light grey dress. The black and white shift dress
is a classic piece and gives that Coco Chanel inspired look to it whereas the
light grey dress is more laid back but still stylish – like only the French can
do.
Choosing pants and shoes was rather easy. I like to keep it simple
and choose only basic items as this will make the mix and match part of
dressing up so much easier. First of all I decided to use a classic dark wash
blue jean in a bootleg cut – flattering for Elma’s body shape and a timeless
piece to have when travelling. Then I chose the asymmetrical white midi length
skirt and last I chose a pair of black ankle length leggings which she can wear
with both the shift dresses. I simply love nude coloured shoes – mostly due to
the fact that it works perfect with almost everything. For Elma I also decided
to choose nude coloured shoes as this goes well with the plain and light
palette I have selected for her. First, on the right, is a pair of cut out slip
on sneakers in a nude and white, then there are the nude pointy heels with some
amazing strap detail and last are the pointed stone/beige pumps. This will
ensure that Elma can walk comfortably wherever she wants to go.
When it comes to accessories the French believe gold is the way to
go. I believe that the French women are the trendsetters and so many can be
learned from them. When travelling overseas it is important to always keep your
own country in mind, bringing some of your culture to other places around the
world and that is exactly what I did when I selected accessories for Elma’s
trip. Starting at the bottom, I decided to use pearls in most of the
accessories as it is one of the most classic pieces a woman can ever wear. From
the right, I decided to use the diamante earrings, second was the rose gold
earrings with pearls and last was the crystal pearl earrings with diamante
detail. I then also decided to use a chunky cluster bracelet and a stunning
rose gold watch from Mimco. No French woman will ever be seen without her
sunglasses, so I decided to choose a pair of Eclipse sunglasses as this will
complement Elma’s face shape. Although it is currently summer in Europe, I
decided to throw in a light weighted white and black gridlock scarf when there
is a chill in the air. The natural straw hat I chose will go perfect with every
look that Elma decides on. Now, for a bit of south African inspiration I
decided on the protea shaped brooch from Stiki and when it comes to handbags,
the LDJ Collection was the perfect choice. While travelling I
decided on the light brown leather briefcase and the light brown sling bag.
Black and White Shift Dress from
available at Mr Price.
Grey Easy Waisted Dress available at Mr
Price.
Black and White Striped Blazer available
at Mr Price.
White shirt from New Look available at
Zando.
Utility White Shirt available at Mr
Price.
Light wash denim shirt available at Mr Price.
Cut-out slip on sneakers from Zoom
available at Spree.
Nude heels from Madison available at
Zando for.
Pointed pumps in stone/beige from Zoom
available at Spree.
Boot cut jeans in a dark blue wash from
Next available at Spree .
Asymmetrical white midi skirt from edit
available at Spree.
Black ankle length leggings from Mr
Price.
Pebble diamante stud earrings from Lily
Rose available at Zando.
Rose pearl and gold earrings from Lily
Rose available at Zando.
Crystal pearl earrings with pearl white
from Lily Rose available at Zando.
Chunky Cluster Bracelet available from
Woolworths.
Timepiece watch from Mimco available at
Woolworths.
Matt and Gold sunglasses in mid Brown
from Avant-garde available at Spree.
Natrual straw hat from Hurley available
at Zando.
Gridlock print scarf available at Mr
Price.
Protea brooch available at Stiki.
Light brown leather and cork briefcase
handbag from LDJ Collection.
Light leather brown and sling bag made
of cork from LDJ Collection.
So now I gave Elma ALL these items with endless options for mixing and matching, but I decided to style one outfit for her - just to give her an idea for the look that I was going for.
Have a lovely day.
C
xxx