Fashion, Fragrance, Style and Your Horoscope

The award-winning website Get The Gloss recently asked me if it was really possible to choose products according to your star sign, or Sun Sign. The truth is, your fashion, fragrance and beauty choices – even your hair – is down to a combination of your Sun, Moon, Venus and Rising Signs. It’s actually a smart idea to tap these signs in your chart when pulling together a look, style or scent, because they advertise who you actually are. This is like the most fantastic signal for others who naturally tune into your four-sign combination too. So rather than walking out of the front door as a clothing clone of everyone else (and smelling like everyone else too) you are actually beaming out a message about your true self.

LEO

Nobody understood this better than Chanel, and I have written elsewhere on this website about her intense attachment to her Sun sign, Leo, and the importance of the Leo number (five) to her brand. I am very grateful to my friend Justine Picardie for uncovering all this information about Chanel – and much more – in her critically acclaimed, bestselling biography. If you only buy one book on Chanel, make it this one – I think the illustrations by Karl Lagerfeld on the French edition say it all, in terms of this being the approved, official version of her life!

TAURUS

I was friendly with Paula Yates, back in the day, and she was born with the Sun in Taurus. Her favourite perfume was Joy, launched during the Great Depression as a reaction against austerity. In fact, Joy was originally known as the world’s costliest fragrance. Taurus, of course, is the sign we associate with the most precious, priceless objects and possessions. I love this collectable edition of British Cosmopolitan magazine showing Paula at her beautiful best. Later this month, you can read a long interview about all the different zodiac Sun Signs and their connection with fragrance, at The Perfume Society, created by my friend, Cancerian Jo Fairley – in an exclusive interview with another friend, Leo author Maggie Alderson. More on Taurus – it is of course the Sun Sign of Her Majesty the Queen who is one of the richest women on the planet, and who wears deceptively middle-class clothes. She very seldom gets the big jewels out. When you meet the Queen, you meet her views on money, and spending, and extravagance, and thrift and all the rest. That’s very Taurus. It’s the same with Adele. The first thing you hit with her overall look is – pow – she’s an extremely rich young woman. If you have a big Taurus chart signature then your perfume or look will ‘speak’ your views on money.

It is amazing how often we will gravitate towards the fashion or fragrance created by someone whose Sun sign is the same as our own. I am a Leo and I’ve always been in love with Chanel make-up and fragrance – and at one point I did in fact own a beautifully tailored black skirt by her. (I gave it away to a charity shop one day. What was I thinking?)

ARIES

Your own sign (especially if you have a number of planets, asteroids, angles or points there) could find a natural connection with designers and visionaries who also have that sign dominant in their chart. Vivienne Westwood, for example, has a strong Aries signature. Are you drawn to her clothes, accessories or fragrance? You may have a number of Aries chart factors too. Aries is about pioneering, pushing, competing, fighting – I associate it with Lush as a brand, because Lush is so big on fighting campaigns. Of course, Miss Westwood is a fighter too. Back in the day, they used to ask me about Sun Signs and fragrance and I always thought ‘Red Door’ because Aries is associated with that colour (it is ruled by Mars, the red planet). The truth is, Lush is way more thrusting and pioneering than Red Door ever was – though once again, we have to remember, once upon a time it was extremely innovative to have a scent associated with a beauty destination. And a front door is very Aries/Mars! You push it open…

CAPRICORN

Sometimes it’s more complicated than that when it comes to zodiac signs and style. Christian Dior is associated with a very particular shade of pale grey, for example. We associate this colour with lead, and thus with Saturn (the planet linked to lead, by alchemists). Saturn rules Capricorn. So perhaps if you have a strong Capricorn chart signature you will be drawn to Dior’s fragrance or beautiful handbags.  I made this 2016 Horoscope Journal cover for a Capricorn friend who adores Dior. The ribbon comes from one of the boutique bags in Paris and the rest is, shall we say, created! Dior and the signature grey is not the whole story. We know that he came back from a massive slump to become the king of Paris fashion. He ended up at the bottom of the mountain and climbed, like the mountain goat we associate with Capricorn, to the very top. This sign is about trying and making it. When you think of ‘making it’ you also think of the two Kates, Middleton and Moss. I have written about this before, but these two Sun Capricorn women have gone an awfully long way up the social mountain very quickly in Britain. And in a country which is still pretty feudal with coats of arms galore, that takes a lot.

GEMINI

I have spoken about Aries, Taurus, Leo and Capricorn so far. Gemini is an interesting sign to consider, because it is so strongly associated with communication. Gemini types tend to feel at home in the world of multimedia, publishing, advertising, education and so on. Even if they work in another field, their lives will be full of Instagram, Twitter and so on. They have a light, bright quality. It’s more evident if you have more than three factors in Gemini, though. Then you’ll be utterly typical of the sign.

Did you know we all have dominant signs? You have 34 horoscope factors in your personal chart in modern astrology. On average, you should have 2-3 factors in each sign of the zodiac. If you have more than three, then you are leaning towards dominance in that sign. Have a look at your chart now. Where do you see large, splashy patterns on the wheel? Which sign do they fall in? That’s where you will typically have four, five or more factors in a sign and that’s one of your big chart signatures. If it all falls in Gemini, you will be drawn to bags, jewellery or fashion which loudly announces the designer. I don’t necessarily mean a logo. It can sometimes be a particular necklace or frock. Gemini types like to send a message with their look.

They often have pieces which are conversation starters. You meet a strongly Gemini woman for lunch, take one look at her shoes and ask ‘Repetto?’ You are usually right. Marilyn Monroe was a Gemini who advertised a Leo scent (Chanel No. 9) but in typical Gemini style she made it a talking point. She turned the brand into a quote, by telling us she slept naked, apart from the fragrance. Heaven knows how many bottles of Chanel No. 5 that Gemini wit sold! We associate this sign with a wardrobe that talks – it sends a message. Morrissey, and his hearing aid and cardigan and quiff, was so typical of the sign. You saw him on television and you thought ‘What does he mean?’ Prince is another one. All that Purple Rain and purple suit stuff he began his career with, got everyone talking. Gemini types need the conversation and the question.

CANCER

And now, to Cancer, the next sign in the zodiac. This is Scorpio Alexa Chung making cakes for a good cause, and reminding us all what a Cancerian might look like. Doesn’t this photograph look all wrong for Alexa? Quite right. She’s a seriously sexy Scorpio. I know the pinny is just there to stop the cake going all over her classically black Scorpio shirt, but it also reminds us of ‘wrong fit’ fashion’ for your sign. For the record if you are very, very Cancerian then you tend to like designers and fragrances which speak loudly of your heritage. (The good old-fashioned British pinny does appeal to an awful lot of London Cancerian types I know). Paul Smith is a heavily Cancerian designer who famously draws on his True Brit background, heritage and history – not only to decorate his boutiques – but also to inform the scent which bears his name. When you think of Paul Smith you tend to think of 1930’s-1950’s Britain and that’s why the Japanese love him so much. He knows who he is. If you are strongly Cancerian then whatever your country, heritage, roots, culture and history – try to own it in your wardrobe. There is often a real nostalgia/retro vibe to Cancerian types. Debbie Harry is so typical of this – her Blondie fame was built partly on a vintage wardrobe (often a thrift wardrobe) that nodded to the 1950s and 1960s. Cancerian types look great when they reach into their culture, heritage, background and past.

VIRGO

Virgo is the sign we associate with the body. Never mind the clothes or shoes, let’s talk about your body first. If you have a dominant Virgo side then your actual shape is going to dictate everything you do (or do not) wear. I know Virgo types like my friend, the author and journalist Ros Reines, who have incredible figures and an ongoing relationship with the great outdoors. Ros walks Bondi. A lot. She dresses for her tall, elegant shape (which she has earned, by doing what a Virgo type does best – working hard and working out). If you are a Virgo type then your first port of call is your naked body in the mirror. (Ros did indeed go naked for The Australian Women’s Weekly).

Virgo is the sign which expresses itself through the body, right or wrong. So let us not also forget Amy Winehouse, whose struggles with drugs and alcohol (and famously, rehab) were part of who she was. They informed her songs. They told the story of her life (have you seen that amazing documentary, Amy?) and they get in the way, every time you think about the music!

I loved her look. So did Fred Perry. From her Sixties beehive to her perfect pink ballet shoes, she artfully constructed a style designed to make the most of her one-of-a-kind body. And then she began to channel other issues through her body. Not in a good way. Virgo is a really complicated sign for this reason, so if it’s big in your chart, part of your destiny (never mind the wardrobe) is to deeply explore how you act out mental and spiritual issues through food, drink and perhaps drugs. Mama Cass was a Virgo. Nick Cave is a Virgo. It’s a complex sign. If you are strongly Virgo, though, you dress for/about your shape. Your height. Your frame. This goes way beyond fashion into the complicated relationship Virgo types have with their own temple.

LIBRA

When we come to Libra we are automatically talking about dressing for a former, current or potential partner. And also choosing a fragrance that he/she likes. Libra is all about the marriage, the relationship or the business partnership. If Libra is in mourning for her lost love, her wardrobe will take her back there. If she is obsessed with someone new, his/her taste and preferences will make quite a difference to Libra’s shopping choices. This is the most famous Libran in music. John Lennon. His first partner was Paul McCartney. They wore identical suits and had the same mop-top haircut. The next long-lasting partner in his life was Yoko Ono. Today Yoko wears John clothes, just as John once wore Yoko clothes. I think it’s fair to say, Libra dresses for love. Why not?

SCORPIO

Scorpio is a sign expressed very well by Alexa Chung, who I mentioned earlier. Black is the Scorpio colour. Why? Because it’s the colour of mourning – or it used to be, in Victorian times. We associate Scorpio with death, because the Scorpion is the only zodiac sign which can directly (and pointedly) kill a human being. We also associate Scorpio with sex, and thus with marriage – ‘Until death do us part.’

During the reign of Queen Victoria it was customary to wear black if you were widowed. After Prince Albert died, Her Majesty wore mourning clothes for years. If you have a lot of Scorpio in your personal horoscope then you may favour black too.

It is also the colour of lingerie. We associate black with fishnet stockings, which takes us back to sex again – and when you think of sexuality, you think of Scorpio!

SAGITTARIUS

Sagittarius is the sign we associate with travel and foreign cultures. I know two Sagittarian men who have entered monasteries or adopted cults, from other countries. I know a third Sagittarian man who travels the world to war-torn countries to work for a children’s charity. The fourth Sagittarian man who immediately springs to mind has lived all over the globe – but never actually returned home to his own country. Your fragrance, wardrobe, personal style and approach to everything from your haircut to your shoes may reflect this. There is a whole generation of people born with Uranus in Sagittarius (represented by this vintage suitcase, below) who either wear the clothes of the traveller, or who have a suitcase fetish. Look around you on the street. Every second person is wearing a backpack. That used to be an item only worn by a hiker, back in the 1950’s and 1960’s. Today the backpack is the clothing of choice (I had a Prada backpack, in the Nineties, did you?) That’s the Uranus in Sagittarius generation. Neptune in Sagittarius people also have that backpack/hiking boot/water bottle vibe. If you have a lot of stuff in Sagittarius in your chart you’ll look global, or foreign. Or you’ll look like you belong on a horse, or hiking. Brad Pitt in the weird beard phase was a very good example of that. He has the Sun there. Isn’t it amazing how the Uranus and Neptune in Sagittarius generation have turned old suitcases into collectables?

AQUARIUS

Aquarius is the sign which (if you have a lot of it in your chart) suggests tribal dressing. Aquarius rules the group. It is amazing how often heavily Aquarian people will choose a personal style which belongs to a particular musical cult, or maybe a popular movement, like Women’s Liberation, back in the 1970’s. Aquarian types want to be seen as part of their specific, handpicked, personally favoured ‘pack’ and that’s how they find each other! They don’t want to look like everyone else, but they do want to look like ‘their’ people, because the difference in hair, shoes, clothes, cosmetics, fragrance and the rest, sends a wonderful radar signal to others who think as they do, and feel as they do. You can see the wavy-line Aquarius logo on this sweater, featuring Charlie Brown. In fact, he wore a similar sweater in Peanuts. Charlie was one of the gang. He was in the tribe with Snoopy, Linus and the rest – and you can’t think of Charlie Brown without thinking of Peanuts.

PISCES

Beyond Aquarius, we reach Pisces, the final sign on the zodiac wheel. Pisces is associated with the fishes, which swim in opposite directions, and with Neptune, the planetary ruler of Pisces – and thus the sea, the ocean and all kinds of water, from the river to the spa. Pisces is one of the easiest signs to pin down in fashion, beauty, hair and fragrance as it has no interest at all in the real world, and a tremendous fascination with fantasy. If you are strongly Piscean then you use your wardrobe as a kind of dressing-up box, to become who you think you are – or what you want to be. It usually has nothing to do with what everyone else wants you to be. Do you remember the late, great Elizabeth Taylor? Not only was she a classic Pisces, she fell in love with her role in Cleopatra (below) so much that the basic toga style, heavy jewellery, upswept hair and dramatic eyeliner stayed with her for years. Even when she was supposed to be Liz Taylor of Hollywood. Pisces doesn’t do ordinary or normal! Heavily Piscean people are escape artists and they like weird glasses, wigs, pastel hair colour, dressing like a romantic heroine/an historical figure. They don’t do jeans, trainers or leggings.