Arianne on Madonna
Courtney Love recommended me to Madonna seven years ago, and I’ve been here ever since. The reason it works for us is good communication, trust — and an element of fear. Working with Madonna is like working in a fishbowl: the whole world is watching.
What people don’t realise about her is how incredibly down to earth she is — so direct, funny and she always makes eye contact. She has natural panache and knows how to dress herself in the morning — she’s not one of those manufactured Hollywood creations that needs help every day. Of course we disagree, though — it would be boring if we didn’t. She loves a cowboy hat, and after completing the Drowned World tour and the Music album cover, it definitely signified the end of the look for me (although she still sneaks one on occasionally).
Madonna’s style is dependent on her location. She is strictly macrobiotic and only eats food indigenous to her whereabouts — and she applies that attitude to her dress sense. When in England, it is all about tweed shooting suits from Dunhill, Holland & Holland or Stella McCartney. In LA, it’s all about sunshine and sport.
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The staples of my work are eBay, flea markets and lost treasures. I am also a bit of an Anglophile. I love the shopping in London — it has the best street style, and Portobello Road market is fantastic. I grew up in the 1980s, and the Britpop culture has had a huge influence on my style.
Madonna has given me so much good advice through the years: she has such strong opinions. She has taught me to have intuition but, above all, not to worry about what other people say about you and to be true to yourself.
JUSTIN HAWKINS & LUCY MANNING
Justin on Lucy
Having a stylist is like having an angel/devil on your shoulder. Lucy gives me watertight fashion advice — if I involve her every step of the way, I don’t make fashion boo-boos. She has also taught me that you can wear anything if you wear it with conviction and you don’t have to be a fashion victim to look good.
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We’ve known each other since school. When I see something I like, I always think, “What would my fiancée think?” then, “What would Lucy think?” Mostly, we shop in Dior and Hermès, but I love Owen Gaster — he’s utterly eccentric. My favourite thing, though, is a Collier de Chien dog collar by Hermès — I never leave home without one.
Lucy on Justin
Justin takes his inspiration from Kiss, Freddie Mercury and Elton John — he’s always loved catsuits. I have to insist on having a male assistant for costume changes, though, as he always goes commando. We managed to persuade Dior to make a catsuit for Reading festival, which they found interesting, as they’d never made one before.
His style has changed, but I guess that comes with money. I remember when we made all his catsuits out of £5 rolls of fabric from markets. When I shop, I’m always on the lookout for him — some things are just so Justin that I have to buy them. Together we’ve also worked with Jade Jagger and Sean Leane [Alexander McQueen’s jeweller] to personalise jewellery. Justin is really into it now, but he keeps flipping from gold to silver.
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Do we ever disagree? No way. What I say, goes — I try not to give him a choice.
ANNA FRIEL & DAVE THOMAS
Anna on Dave
I met Dave when I went out for dinner with Robbie Williams one night; we hit it off immediately. A couple of weeks later, I was on a Vanity Fair shoot and miserable because I had cut all my hair off and dyed it platinum for a role, but Dave gave me loads of confidence and made me feel fantastic.
The art of a good stylist is to know your style. I love colour and use it to represent my state of mind — green is my favourite. I hate wearing what everyone else does, but sometimes Dave will say to me: “It’s fashion, it works,” and I will listen to him. Also, he will look at a dress, say that it’s not enough on its own and help me with hair and make-up, and then add some stunning jewellery. Dave’s successes have taught me a lot, but, most of all, not to be pig-headed.
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Basically, my rule is, I dress myself as I do my house: timeless, yet with quality. When I first made money from Brookside, I bought two antique beds that have subsequently quadrupled in value. It is a great attitude to have towards your wardrobe, too.
Dave on Anna
Anna has become more confident since we began working together and can now really make a style look her own. I work on the big events with her, but also the day-to-day stuff, too — we were in New York the other day and decided at the last minute to go to Jade Jagger’s party We put together a fabulous outfit.
The best way to style is to understand your client and get inside their head: find out what they like, then take it one step further than they would on their own. Anna and I never disagree about clothes (although we do about other stuff), and she has taught me, too — such as introducing me to vintage. Now, whenever I travel, I’m on the lookout for pieces.
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Our partnership works because we are friends. I am always available for her, even by phone. Anna introduced me to Sting and Trudie, who have become my main clients. However, if Anna needs something, I will always make sure I make myself available — whatever I am doing.
EMILIA FOX & KATE HALFPENNY
Emilia on Kate
From the moment Kate bounded through my door, I knew I could work with her. She was so enthusiastic and completely understood my style. Kate started with my house, and we quickly realised we not only shared a love of furniture, but also clothes. When I see something I love and it’s expensive, I drag her to the shop to make sure I am not going mad or making a big mistake.
Kate has fine-tuned and expanded my existing style — she has encouraged me to wear things I wouldn’t normally, and customises pieces by sewing on sequins or lace. When she supplies me with whole outfits, it’s lethal, as I love everything and then have to go out and buy it. I call her the temptation queen.
Kate on Emilia
Emilia is boho but elegant. I have always worked with her own style, helping her to enhance what she already has, but she doesn’t need much day-to-day styling. When it comes to the big events, we try to work with a designer such as Armani, but also mix and match — say, Marni, Dries Van Noten and Bottega Veneta.
It’s as if we’ve known each other for a million years; we love exactly the same things, even though we are at different ends of the body spectrum. My proudest moment was the premiere of The Pianist in Cannes, when it won the Palme d’Or. Emilia wore a red-and-white spotty Joseph dress to the afternoon party and then a Catherine Walker to the evening. She looked spellbinding.