Today, we are interviewing Style and Confidence Coach, Julia Rees for The Code of Style Magazine.
Julia grew up in Liverpool, England before moving to Cambridge where she studied Pathology. She moved to France in 1993 and retrained as a secondary school teacher, before becoming a Personal Stylist in 2016.
She was born in the UK, but has lived in France for more than 25 years and combines her understated English charm (and accent) with her knowledge of French Style to help women become the best version of themselves.
Her unique approach to Styling means that she doesn’t just tell you what you should be wearing, but she gives you the tools to discover your own unique personal style, and the process to change the way you look and feel FOREVER!
Take a read and find out more about Julia and her services.
1 Can you tell us a little more about yourself?
I am a Style & Confidence (Life) Coach and I am passionate about helping women transform their personal and professional lives by (re)discovering their style, confidence and inner beauty so that they can become the best version of themselves, tap into their true potential and live their lives fully.
I have been through many of the life changes that women commonly face: I have had two children (and I wasn’t one of the women whose body bounces back to its pre-pregnancy state a mere 6 weeks after giving birth), I have moved my life to another country (and one where I didn’t speak the language to begin with) and I have suffered my own share of health and confidence issues.
I have also changed careers with the corresponding need for a change in image from pathology student to Finance Director to High School teacher and finally to Style & Confidence coach.
I believe that all these life events have led me to an understanding of the problems we all face at various stages in our life and I have developed a six step process to help women find their style, confidence and inner beauty so that they can look and feel their best every day and live their lives to their highest potential.
“I’ve learned ‘how to’ find my style and my confidence and now I want to help other women confidently step into their new style, and see the woman they always knew themselves to be when they look in the mirror……. forever! I’ve been where you are! I understand your struggles as I’ve had them myself and I know my step by step process works.”
2 Can you tell me about how you got started in Style Coaching? Have you always had an interest in Style ?
It all began in 2015 when I experienced “fitting room” meltdown first-hand on a shopping trip with my daughter in Paris. I had been looking forward to it for ages, but hadn’t taken into account the fact that I had been ill for a few months and had put on weight!
I can remember taking a pile of clothes into the changing room as usual, full of excitement. And then came the shock! I had no idea what styles suited me anymore, I couldn’t fit into the size I used to wear, and it was ‘hello to dressing room meltdown’, and baggy t-shirts! And all of a sudden, shopping was no longer any fun! I don’t know who was more shocked – me or my daughter!
But, not being one to accept defeat, I decided to take a Personal Stylist training course so that I could rediscover my style and get my confidence back. I became so passionate about everything I had learned that I decided to take a leap into the unknown and launch my own styling company and ‘Style with Julia’ was born to help other women find their style and confidence.
I started by providing “done for you” services, such as color analysis, body shape analysis, wardrobe detox and personal shopping, but I soon realized that I missed the “coaching” aspects of the teaching profession and so I took a Life Coaching course and “Style with Julia” evolved into a Style and Coaching Service.
I have just launched VIRTUAL style coaching in July 2020, so my services are now available WHEREVER in the world you live!
3 What is the key piece of advice you have for women about Style?
I would say to wear what makes you happy and what makes you feel good.
What you wear sends a powerful signal to yourself about how you perceive your self-worth and directly impacts your confidence, your interaction with others and your esteem.
When you make the effort to dress your best, and show your body it is valued and respected, you will feel good about yourself, your confidence will soar and the ripple-effect will impact every aspect of your life.
We’ve all had days when we feel a bit down or depressed, so we throw on a baggy jumper and sweatpants, and then we catch a glimpse of ourselves in the mirror and we feel even more depressed, so we nestle down in front of the TV with our two favourite guys ‘Ben’ and ‘Jerry’, and the cycle self perpetuates.
It’s like the ‘chicken and egg’ scenario: because you don’t feel good, you don’t take care of yourself and make an effort to look good and yet not looking good affects how you feel about yourself.
I encourage you to do the exact opposite when you feel a bit down. Put on your favorite outfit – the one that shows your curves to their best advantage and that wouldn’t make you hide behind the couch and pretend to be out when someone rings the doorbell!
When you make the effort to look good, you feel good and that encourages you to step out of your comfort zone and that’s where the magic happens
Make a vow to yourself to wear something every day that boosts your confidence!
My mantra is “Look Good, Feel Good, Live your best life “
4 So, do you believe that Style can influence your life?
Absolutely, your style communicates who you are, what you value and what your dreams and desires are and it takes just 7 seconds for someone to form an opinion about you.
We are all judged on our appearance, and it probably won’t come as a surprise to you to know that women are judged more harshly than men!
This isn’t fair, but as we know it’s true, we can make it work in our favour and make sure that our clothes are sending the right messages.
Your style can open the door or get it slammed in your face!
5 How do you want women to feel after working with you?
I want the women who work with me to feel confident, empowered and ready to take on whatever life throws at them.
Image matters and I am passionate about helping women to harness the power of style and learn to use clothes as a tool to increase their confidence and get the life they want.
6 I notice you have been in France for over a quarter of a century. Do you think this has influenced your style?
Yes, definitely! French women are renowned for their effortless chic, and whilst we can’t and shouldn’t “copy” anyone’s style, there are some tips and tricks we can learn to get the effortless, understated elegance that the French are renowned for.
I offer free webinars for “How to get effortless French chic” and “How to dress like a Parisian”, and you can find out more about these in my Facebook group.
7 What clothes should women steer clear of?
Anything that doesn’t fit or flatter them. I think that many women don’t know and dress for their body type. They want to stay in fashion and wear the latest trends, but many of these trends just don’t work for them!
If you’re uncomfortable and worrying about what you are wearing it’s probably not the best choice for you!
I’m convinced that when you have mastered the art of dressing for your body type, getting dressed in the morning will be just that much easier, and you will enjoy receiving compliments on your new look.
8 What has been the biggest challenge/ hurdle you have faced so far?
EVERYTHING. One big struggle was getting to grips with the technology. I had no idea how to create a website, set up an e-mail list, create a Facebook Group, do a video ……etc. It has been a huge learning curve, but I’m enjoying the process and they are all useful skills that will serve me in the future.
I have also struggled with patience, I would create an offer and wonder why it wasn’t selling and I would look at other stylists and wonder “What am I doing wrong?’
But, it takes patience and persistence to build a brand, and we learn from our mistakes and disappointments, and I now look at every moment of disappointment as a learning opportunity to be better.
9 What has been the biggest lesson you have learned so far ?
Well, apart from patience, I have also learned that it takes a lot of hard work and time investment. “Do the work.” and don’t cut corners!
People always appreciate when you go the extra mile and over-deliver, and from a personal fulfillment point of view I want my clients to feel like I really have made a difference in their lives.
10 What are your aspirations for the future?
I would like to offer a more extensive range of coaching, and also to collaborate with business coaches to offer an entire package to help the career woman, in terms of her style & confidence (my input), but also in terms of her career development.
I am also launching online courses to make my style and confidence tips accessible to everyone (from October 2020)
11 What is your favorite pastime?
I love to travel, although obviously it is not so possible in the current situation, but when I can I’ll hop on a plane and explore new destinations. I believe travel is the one expense that makes you richer and that learning about other cultures and lifestyles is a truly rewarding and enlightening experience.
12 Where can we find out more about your services?
You can find out more about my services on my website and you can also find my style, lifestyle and travel tips on The Velvet Runway.
And of course, you can find me on Instagram, where I combine both Style & Travel tips.
Thank you for taking the time to talk to us, Julia! We hope you enjoyed this article and you can check out some of the other women we have featured here.
