CBD living in style

CBD living in style

By Katie Wong Hoy

Sally MacKinnon opens the door to her modern CBD apartment with her statuesque physique dressed in a chic black outfit.

The epitome of class, it is clear she is following her passion although it has been an adventure getting here.

Sally gets paid to shop, but not in the typical way. She is a personal stylist and dedicates her life to helping women and men feel confident in how they dress.

She traces back her love of fashion back to the days of Barbie dolls.

“I’ve always loved fashion and clothing … I was a typical child who always liked Barbie dolls and loved dressing them and changing their outfits,” Sally said.

“As I got older, I liked designing and decided to make my own clothes.”

However, fashion was not her only passion. Sally always wanted to be a primary school teacher. Pursuing a career in fashion was not standard at the time, so she invested five years at university and worked as a primary school teacher.

During this time, her love of clothing never left her and Sally says she often received compliments from her students about her shoes and the way she dressed.

“I guess as my teaching career progressed and I could see that I didn’t want to be a teacher for the rest of my life, I thought, well, what else could I do?” she said.

“I decided to follow what I saw at the time as being a real emerging industry, being personal styling.”

It started in 2007 with a logo, some business cards and an advertisement in a magazine. Now eight years later, Sally owns a busy business Styled by Sally with two other women working with her.

Originally living in Albert Park, Sally moved to the CBD to be with her husband almost seven years ago and says the location is perfect for her.

“It didn’t take me long to realise, why would I move anywhere else? For me it’s perfect because I shop for a living … it’s very convenient,” Sally said.

“I just love that there is always something happening, that everything is really accessible … it’s a really easy city to live in.”

Sally has been the fashion expert on a television show, featured in media publications and has grown her business into what it is today.

Her next goal is to further develop the men’s section of her styling business and market herself as the men’s personal stylist.

When she is not working (which does not happen often), Sally says she loves to walk in the city, go to the movies with her husband and eat out at the array of cafes and restaurants the CBD has to offer.

And what is her number one fashion tip?

“Everyone should get dressed in front of a full length mirror every day … because you need to see how your outfit works from head to toe. That’s the only way you can see whether you’ve nailed it.”

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