Some twenty guests, of which I was one, filled the big hall of the boutique – we had all seen the fashion designer’s most recent collection and could not wait to try on some of the clothes. Amanda and her assistants were on hand to help us choose the perfect outfit. It is not often that a designer shows off her work in person, so to try on these wonderful everyday and evening dresses and elegant silk blouses and skirts in her company was a real treat.
Tessa Packard was presenting three jewellery collections: Fat Free, a collection inspired by British sweets, Predator/Prey, featuring earrings, rings and necklaces with bees, and a unique set of jewels: At All Times. The designer says that the style of her jewellery is the perfect complement to Amanda’s elegant, minimalist hand; and it’s true, the long ‘Brighton Rock’ earrings with diamonds and watermelon tourmalines from the Fat-Free collection look very striking paired up with a plain black evening dress, and the same can be said of the combination of a black silk blouse, jacket and skirt with the ‘Smiling Buddah’ earrings in citrine and carved yellow jade.
Everyone was so engrossed in the clothes on show that the time for lunch crept right up on us without us realising. Up we went to the first floor, where in the middle of the bright, high-ceilinged hall stood two artfully decorated dinner tables: small stands of Tessa’s work flourishing in front of bouquets of flowers. Everyone took their place ready for delicious lunch. While waiting, we looked at jewellery chatted; models paraded around showing off stylish fashion-jewellery combinations pairing Amanda’s clothes with Tessa’s jewels. The looks we saw beautifully demonstrated how a perfectly matched outfit can make a woman look stylish, but if you add jewellery on top of that, your look would be complete and even more glamorous.
