The delightful Lauren Dilena is much-followed on her social media platforms for her immaculate street-style, finance-friendly ensembles and polished hair and makeup looks. The Westfield SA Senior Stylist constantly evolves her fresh and thoughtful aesthetic, forcing us to ask just how she does it.
Gracing her C/MEO COLLECTIVE two-piece with her signature romantic touch at the UBET Adelaide Cup on the March long weekend, Lauren was a trackside sensation as the Social Media Ambassador for the Festival Gardens area.
Her soft glamour hair, styled by Ben from M Y S T Y L E S Q U A D, was adorned with a custom boater hat by Mimi-Jane Millinery, whose colour palette was highlighted by Lauren’s burgundy-brown lip and shimmered eye look by Nirvana Manly.
Lauren began her Race Day preparations the evening prior, packing her handbag with supplies and ensuring her footwear were well equipped to venture over all terrains. From headwear to Hollywood Tape, learn from the woman who makes poise look effortless before your next day at the races....
LET'S TALK FASHION...
When dressing for the races the first thing I do is:
When it comes to any race day I love to explore different styles outside my comfort zone. So first I always have a look around the stores or even at home for vintage pieces or fabrics to see what my mother and I can make and create. It’s always a fun process when it involves us two brainstorming ideas over a glass of wine.
For this year’s Adelaide Cup I decided on:
I worked with the Australian Fashions Labels girls this year, which was so much fun! And I ended up wearing my dear friend Siham (head designer of C/MEO COLLECTIVE) striped combo shirt and culottes, this collection is out in April. However I put my spin on this and changed the shirt to a halter wrap top (the sleeves are wrapped around my neck) - it’s always fun wearing pieces multiple ways.
But also in my top 3 outfits were:
Also from Australian Fashions Labels as well, and mostly C/MEO COLLECTIVE. I find they fit my body type best and really work with my style aesthetic.
When dressing for the races I always ensure:
I wear comfortable footwear and make sure my bag is packed the night before with all my essentials as it’s always a big day and don’t want to forget something vital - this also saves me for rushing in the morning.
Footwear looks like:
I do love sexy stilettos, but make sure you place the heel stoppers on them, this will save your feet and shoes from getting destroyed. I also enjoy block heels and a mule.
LET'S TALK HEADWEAR....
Then comes the head wear, this year I chose:
A beautiful Mimi-Jane Millinery boater hat, which was custom made for me. I felt so spoilt and special. I really loved working with Mimi, she’s so talented and has an eye for style. I can’t wait to work with her again and see what we can come up with.
I always try to chose something different that I haven’t worn before, I love pushing fashion barriers and I love seeing how you can style different silhouettes as headpieces. As we all know, the races is always about the headpiece, so I say go bold or go home.
My hairstyle to complement this was:
My style squad app, they are a mobile business that arrive to your house to style your hair and/or makeup. I had the amazing Ben and he was so lovely to work with. We ended on styling my hair in an upstyle, waved and fish braid at the back. I absolutely loved it! And will definitely be working with them again.
LET'S TALK BEAUTY...
My makeup look for the races must:
Stay on all day!
I chose to go with a makeup look of:
Brown lips with a tint of burgundy and smoke with a slightly shimmery eye.
This time, I turned to:
Nirvana Manly, because she’s so talented and we always have fun working together on fun different looks together. She always knows how to work with my features and always makes me feel a million bucks. I’m very lucky to be able to work with my friends.
I packed in my bag:
Everything. Hollywood tape, heel stoppers, bandaids, lipstick, concealer and if I’m lucky I sometimes can fit lollies as well.
On the day make up touch ups look like:
Just a bit of lippy!
Then when I get home, the first thing I do is:
I have a shower, and look over hilarious and fun photos from the day.
One final tip for dressing for the races:
Remember the races is always about having a fun day out with your friends and if you want it can be about expressing your own personal style. The key to a successful outfit is confidence and comfort. If you’ve achieved this, you can rarely get it wrong!
