If you follow fashion designer Wiggy Hindmarch on Instagram, you’ll be amazed by her charismatic approach to dressing. She speaks directly to her nearly 60,000 followers, showing them what she’s wearing (from her own collection) and, most importantly, how to style it. There are also no restrictions on how she dresses to accentuate her figure and provide maximum Wiggy confidence.
It’s this confidence that is completely contagious and makes you want to dress like him. Many celebrities think the same thing: The Wiggy Kit collection is used by confident celebs from Claudia Schiffer and Kirsty Allsopp to table decor queen Alice Naylor Leyland.
What makes the Wiggy Kit so wearable for all ages is its smart cut, thick fabric and well-placed straps and pockets. Hindmarch, who founded the brand nine years ago, says she has never been more grateful for the glamor of her designs.
“I recently went up my dress size and it’s not something I’m particularly fond of, but it’s true that I’m 47 and my body is changing,” she says. “I was a dancer and although I haven’t done any exercise since I stopped dancing at 18, I’ve always been lucky with my body. Now I’m catching up a bit. I know many people may not notice these changes, but trust me, if you see me in a bikini you can tell. The problem is that I know how to dress to hide the things I don’t like.”
She insists that cutting your dress size with your clothes is all in the details. “Proportions are very important,” she says. “Wearing clothes in a flattering way is all about getting the proportions right. Often on mass-produced clothing the seam is in a very standard location, but this is not always the best place for the seam on a woman’s body. I play with these proportions to make sure the cut is truly flattering.
For example, she’s a big fan of wearing high waists that “make her legs look longer” and “dark color on the hips at a very specific angle that helps slim down the hips.” A deep waistband helps “narrow the waist,” and emphasizing the width of the shoulders helps offset a heavier bottom, “something that often happens as we get older.” His jeans again have large, showy front pockets to slim down the hips.
Getting older doesn’t mean you have to cover up more; “I will always approve of something a little sexy.” This could be a little bit of flesh just below the bra line (nearly all of her dresses are cut so the wearer can still wear a bra) or it could be more cleavage on show. She personally does not like sleeveless dresses, but there are also sleeveless models in the collection. “But I’ll put a big bow on my shoulder or something to help me feel more covered and protected.” Similarly, she says she doesn’t like wearing shorts — “they just don’t make my butt look flattering,” so she designed her own version, with more shorts, “which provides more coverage.”
Hindmarch founded her eponymous collection in 2015. As a child, she was always “fascinated with fashion and clothes”. After stage school, she went straight into retail, working at boutique Capitol in Charlotte, North Carolina, and then for jewelry designer Catherine Prevost in London. Many of his roles involved working directly with and advising clients, as well as designing; “so I had a really comprehensive foundation of what women want from their clothes and jewelry.”
While cleaning out her wardrobe, she realized: “I had casual clothes that I wore in the summer in the city, and then a completely different holiday outfit. I thought it was ridiculous that they didn’t get together. “I wanted to create a holiday collection that could be worn at the beach as easily as on the school run in the summer.”
embroidered cotton top£275 and skirt£395, Wig Set
The first collection consisted of only 11 pieces, but quickly grew as items sold out. Unlike many brands, Hindmarch is working on an “if it doesn’t break” model; “I bring back old favorites in new colors or fabrics so customers can wear them in a different way.” The collection now includes much more than holiday wear: The SS24 collection, which has recently undergone its second “drop”, includes knitwear, tailored jackets and jeans, as well as a strong collection of special occasion wear for summer events. One standout is the knockout cherry red halter dress, which will be featured in the next collection.
The Wiggy Kit does away with unreliable traditional sizing and instead comes in sizes small, medium and large (Wiggy recently moved to medium in its range), all with very specific measurements listed for each garment, with ‘medium’ waists generally being around medium 77 -78cm or 30 inches.
Cotton and silk blend dress, £395, Wig Kit
What’s size-wise is that most pieces have some degree of flexibility: trousers can have adjustable waistbands, buttons further inwards or outwards at the side, dresses can have hidden elastic panels at the back, and looser garments can be fitted. – a linen dress, for example, often comes with built-in ties to personalize the fit. “This is very important because you may change sizes over the course of a month, or some days you want a looser or tighter fit than others,” she says.
Direct communication with his own customers emerges as a natural evolution of working in the workshop. “Since I don’t have a physical store of my own, this is a really great way for me to explain how to style a piece. I think a lot of women buy something online, it comes in a box, and then they don’t know how to make it look like the picture they bought it for. I want to show them exactly how to wear it and feel their best in it.
He is talkative, honest and direct; is eager to pass on all the tips. She generously reveals the product she believes makes her skin look so radiant, Vita Liberata Beauty Blur Face – “but without the fake tan in it” – and places to stay in South Africa, where she travels frequently.
jacquard opera jacket£765 and skirt£475; cotton shirt£225, Wig Set
He is his own best advertisement. She mostly wears her own designs, but she still has a few other favorite brands (mostly items she doesn’t yet make herself). Uniqlo is great for basics like t-shirts; She loves Aquazzurra for shoes and sporty Celine sunglasses. Besides her own jeans, she loves Citizens of Humanity, especially their barrel-leg “horseshoe” designs.
So she doesn’t believe in being careful with her fashion choices? “I think playing it safe as you get older is the kiss of death for style. This isn’t about mutton dressing like a lamb and trying to be young, but you have to act boldly, dig into your sense of style and go for it. Getting older is not a time to fade into the background.”
All shoes and jewelry are Wiggy’s own