17 hours Ago By [email protected] (Nadia Breen)
A Belfast stylist has opened up on her career to date including working with well-known clients including Derry Girls star Saoirse Monica-Jackson. Katie Bryce's first introduction into styling was when she was appointed personal shopper at Topshop. The 31-year-old said this is when she realised she could "genuinely help people and change their opinions of themselves and their bodies".
Five years after working between personal shopping and marketing teams, she felt ready to take the leap into the freelance world work for herself. On the well-known clients she works with, Katie told Be : "I’ve worked with loads of amazing talent over the years from Peggy Gou, Eliza Rose, the amazing Irish trad group BIIRD - but I’m mostly known for styling the amazing Saoirse Monica Jackson." The North Belfast woman also opened up on what being a stylists entails.
She said: "Every day is different, but it’s a lot less glamorous than people may think! I always say it’s about 80% admin 20% creative. "SO much goes on behind the scenes to pull big jobs together and there's a lot of prep before you’re even on set. A typical day would start with client meetings to go over briefs and mood boards, making a styling mood board and then moving into the call in stage.
"This is where you reach out to brands to ask them to loan for the job for editorial, or if you’re working on a commercial shoot you’d have a shopping budget to buy the pieces. There's a lot of emails, lots of spread sheets and a bit of finance involved. "Once you’ve made your selects you can either arrange to have them delivered to set, or arrange collections (typically most stylists start out by running all over the city with large suitcases collecting pieces!)" She added: "Then you have to pack all your looks into suitcases and label everything, and once you get to set you and your steamer are best friends! Generally styling is about being super organised and reactive to things going wrong last minute, looks not showing up, clothes not fitting, last minute client or brief changes - you have to be ready for it all.
"It’s not all stress, and every time you see the final outcome it’s so worth it. There's also the travel element which is really exciting and I feel very lucky and grateful to have these experiences." Katie also told what the best parts of her job are.
She said: "The people - always. From Topshop changing room days to travelling with my clients and meeting new teams to work with. It’s the conversations, friendships and life long connections that stick with me.
" On how she would describe her own style, the 31-year-old said: "It’s ever changing, I’m pretty casual but then equally I’ll show up in bright green cowboy boots and nobody will bat an eyelid! "I’d normally say tomboy with a girlie twist. I love tracksuits and oversized silhouettes but try to give them a feminine twist with a cinched waist, adding a bow somewhere and always accessorising with gold hoops, chains and rings!" Katie explained that she "never" though when starting her career that she would end up working with celebrities. She said: "I wasn’t even sure I would ever be able to find a way into this world.
My career has definitely been a mixture of very hard work and a sprinkle of luck, sometimes you just meet the right person to open the door for you, and that's why its so important for anyone with the power to do so, to do it! "There's not many women (or people!) from Belfast working in this industry, and I’ll never stop shouting about this. Far too many creative spaces are dominated by privileged people, we need a total overhaul so that working class people can access the tools they need to be successful in many creative industries be it fashion, tv, journalism, music - whatever! "It’s impossible for people to create or find what they’re good at when they’re constantly worried about the cost of living. I hope that someone reading this who thinks they could never find their way in certain spaces know that it’s possible! Work hard and be nice to people and you really cant go wrong.
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