This week, our head of fashion Zoe was tasked with swapping her leggings in favour of some of Claudia Winkleman’s best BBC The Traitors series three outfits – all styled to come in at under £150 each
If there’s one thing I’ve learnt from watching The Traitors, it’s that Claudia Winkleman is the most fashionable woman on TV at the moment. Of course, her role as the host of the hit BBC show is gripping enough on its own – with all the secret alliances, suspenseful banishments and heart-stopping twists. But what I really tune in for each episode, as a fashion lover, albeit a lazy one? Her outfits.
From her sleek monochrome looks to those effortlessly cool oversized blazers, everything about her style screams confidence and mystery. Her stylist Sinead McKeefry has mastered ‘countryside chic’ but with a cool, slightly androgynous twist so well – and Claudia wears the pieces better than any model.
With small and luxurious brands highlighted each week from a mix of Scottish and British designers, as well as some top names like Balenciaga and Bella Freud thrown in for good taste, the ‘Claudia effect’ has become the new ‘Kate effect’.
Zoe’s The Traitors style makeover
I’ve been watching her this series thinking about how I could incorporate some of her Traitorcore style into my own work wardrobe. As a journalist, I’m not expected to come into the office wearing wearing blazers or dresses. In fact, nobody bats and eyelid when I plonk myself down with my laptop wearing what can only be described as athleisure. Because of this, I’ve become a lazy dresser.
So, as someone whose usual office look consists of either stretchy fabrics or oversized shirts, I thought it was high time to swtich thing up. And what better way to bring some drama to my work week than by channelling Claudia’s bold, brooding aesthetic?
In a moment of madness I decided I would come into the office last week for my three working days (I’m a home worker – I couldn’t bring myself to commute for the full five) dressed in some of Claudia’s best outfits from The Traitors series three. Even better, I’ve given myself a budget of around £150 per look, as most of us certainly don’t have thousands of pounds to splash out on a new look.
Here’s how it went when I swapped my comfy casuals for a full The Traitors wardrobe – and spoiler alert, the reactions were just as surprising as the show’s plot twists.
Monday – Countrycore combo
I think this coat, knit and boot combo is such a good example of Claudia’s season three style on TheTraitors. It combines elements of comfort with texture, layering and a hint of glam, but of course, with so many elements comes one big price tag.
This is the look recreation I’m most proud of because I thought each element felt both high quality and served the countryside ‘Traitorcore’ style Claudia is known for. I admit, my wellies did feel a little out of place at work – going forward I’d swap them for a regular knee-high brown of black flat boot. One friend who I met for lunch did say it looked like I had a work meeting at 11am and vegetables to plant at 3pm, but I think if I’d worn this outside of central London – ie back home in Dorset where the above picture was taken – I’d feel comfy and confident in this countryside look.
Shop Zoe’s look:
Total outfit cost: £138.99
Wednesday – Grandad chic
For episode four, Claudia entered the castle wearing a patterned jumper straight from my dreams. The exact knit is Barrie rose-motif cashmere jumper will set you back £1,410 on Farfetch, but of course, who has that kind of cash in the real world?
I recreated the brown tones of this look with some loose trousers, an oversized jacket and a boyish knit to mimic the cut of Claudia’s designer one. Paired with a brown boot, this was the outfit I ended up loving the most – and the one my colleagues said suited me to a tee. I was even stopped in Sainsbury’s after work by a woman who wanted to know where my brown coat was from.
Shop Zoe’s look:
Total outfit cost: £152.35
Friday – Layered monochrome
Claudia wore this all-black look early on in this series, and it played on my mind enough for me to brave recreating it. Her blazer is from The Vampire’s Wife, and costs upwards of £1k on its own, but I was convinced I could get a similar effect with high street alternatives.
The moment I looked in the mirror after pulling this look together I knew my friends at work would have something to say. Thankfully, I wore this on a Friday and they’d already started to get a bit used to my new look, because if I’d waltzed into the room with my Starbucks in this black mini and blazer combo, I think they’d have been too stunned to speak.
As it happens, most of the comments were positive (after they finished asking if I’d really got on the underground wearing this), with just one person in the kitchen wanting to know if I was sneaking off to a job interview. However, when my boyfriend came home that night to me wearing this, he immediately wanted to know if I’d been at a funeral. Ouch.
Shop Zoe’s look:
Total outfit cost: £129.50
The conclusion: blending my style with Claudia’s
I’m surprised by how much I’ve loved my week dressing like Claudia. It was daunting at first, and I felt like the whole of the Waterloo and City line was staring at me, but the encouraging comments from my friends and colleagues have really made me realise how nice it is to be proud of an outfit – and how much of a dopamine hit it is when you try something new that makes you feel great.
Of course, there are elements of each of the three looks that I wouldn’t wear in the future. I don’t see the ruffle elements of the black blazer look seeing the light of day again. But I’m definitely going to team a blazer with some cool necklines in the future. And the green knitwear – I thought I was going to hate the colour, but I ended up really liking the combination of a check jacket and the green knit.
What I’ve learnt from this week, and from Claudia, is the subtle but very effective art of layering. I got into such a rut wearing a jumper and some trousers or leggings that I forgot about the beauty of layering up an outfit to make it magical.
I leave you with two more looks I created for the week – looks that blend Claudia’s style with my own. I do, however, fear my work colleagues may never be impressed by anything I wear again thanks to my efforts this week!
