Colac Cup 2017 - Affordable Racing Fashion

Photo by John Jovic

Colac Cup 2017 - Affordable Racing Fashion 

Sunday the 12th of February did not provide us with the glorious summer sun usually seen around this time of year, however it did provide me with my first Fashion on the Field experience at the 2017 Colac Cup. 

Last year I created some headpieces that my clients wanted to wear to the Spring Racing Carnival. The spring season trends saw an influx of crowns coming through the once very traditional FOTF stages. 'Fantastic' I thought, another market to sell to, as I had mostly been focusing on Festival goers. 

I already had a deep passion for fashion, working in retail doesn't help my wallet, but it does keep me up to date with trends. I love a bargain, and love getting a compliment on an outfit that looks expensive, but really I've spent less than $20 on. 

When you actually research a bit about Fashions on the Field, the amount of time, effort and money these race-goers put into their FOTF outfits is really to be applauded. 

But how do you get a lavish on trend outfit on a budget? 

Photo by John Jovic - Heat 2 Colac Cup, Lady of the Day

Dress first. Obviously getting a dress online is not for everyone, but if you really search around different online brands you can always find a bargain. Try to find something that will suit your body shape, but don't get too caught up on the perfect colour or material. Accessories will be your biggest friends in FOTF, so you can match accordingly after you get the best dress, for the best price. 

The dress I wore to the Colac Cup I purchased from ASOS for about $21.00 early last year. The brand is 'Closet London' and it was just perfect with the Floral Topless Boater I made for the Geelong Cup last year. The hat itself, I purchased from the Op Shop for $5.00 I cut the top off, added some flowers and a glittery feather that I bought from Spotlight and that was my interpretation of 'Millinery' done. 

Don't be afraid to get creative and try making your own Millinery. You can find cheap Sinamay bases on the internet. Or K-Mart sometimes sell plain fascinators that can both easily be jazzed up with a hot glue gun and some creativity. This is the part when you can really tie that beautiful bargain dress together. 

Photo by John Jovic - Final Colac Cup, Lady of the Day

I finished off my outfit with nude BooHoo shoes that have a funky clear heal. These were about $25 on sale from the website. A Colette clutch, again on sale for $15. Lastly, big chunky earings and leather gloves I borrowed from a friend. 

I used blacks, nudes and blush pinks as my base palette. 

I did my hair myself in the morning, and after some help from a girlfriend with my make-up and a bra malfunction, I felt really cute and stylish in my outfit. 

Less than $100 in total. 

In my eyes, that was a win all in itself.

We braved the weather and headed to Colac, and all in all it was a really fun and exciting experience. 

The weather may have deterred the amount of ladies that actually entered on Sunday, but the ones that did were all class. I got to speak to a couple of the ladies about their outfits (including Doris, the runner-up on the day).The amount of time, thought, creativity and passion put into creating the perfect outfit is amazing. 

I made it into the finals, which was super cool and was more than I could have even expected. The photo to the above shows the winner on the far left (in the white), and the runner-up on the far right. 

Photo from my Iphone7plus - Aden and I after FOTF

So prepare early for your next race day and you too can have a cute, on-trend FOTF ready outfit. 

Thanks for reading, stay tuned for more.

Lots of love, Meg