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Fitted around the middle ... Kristie Alley in June in an outfit styled by Sophia Banks-Coloma. Photo: Getty

Australian stylist Sophia Banks-Coloma on dressing women of all shapes and sizes and why her world makes such good television.

It's not often the words Victoria Beckham and plus-sized are written in the same sentence but the dress shapes favoured by the Spice Girl turned fashion designer are what one celebrity stylist recommends for this group of women.

US based Australian stylist Sophia Banks-Coloma knows a fair bit about dressing for a fuller figure. She's styled Kirstie Alley for much of this year, starting as she joined the US version of Dancing With the Stars, and dressing her right through her transformation from a reported size 16 to the size 12 she is today.

"It's all about confidence," Banks-Coloma says.

Little black dress ... Kirstie Alley in March in another outfit styled by Sophia Banks-Coloma. Photo: Getty

"I think women should really embrace how they look and I think anyone can look fashionable at any size and show off their curves."

This means not hiding behind a tent dress or sticking to a uniform of leggings and oversized T-shirts, but experimenting with clothes that highlight the body's curves. Belts are good for this, thick or thin. Also structured and fitted dresses a la Mrs Beckham, which Banks-Coloma says is one of the most flattering styles.

You don't have to be super skinny to wear them, she says.

The belt in action ... Amber Heard. Photo: Getty

With Alley it was also about placing a focus on her smallest body part her rib cage.

"We just went for fitted dresses, a lot of jersey and things like that," she says. "Find your smallest part and accentuate it".

Utilising the services of a stylist is a relatively new concept for someone like Alley, 60, who has worked in the industry since the early 1980s.

Kristen Chenoweth at the 2010 Tony Awards. Photo: Getty

"[Back then] They just threw on a dress and went to the Oscars, they didn't have a stylist, no one cared," Banks-Coloma says.

"They were happy they didn't look like a model and they were just happy to be dressed like that."

These days stylists are de rigueur for people in the limelight. For Coloma-Banks it's yet another string to an already accomplished bow, having previously owned a boutique, designed for her own fashion label and more recently, worked as a costume designer on a film.

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Spring style

A design by Peter Morrissey for Big W, shown at the Sydney Fashion Festival. Photo: Getty

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Based in LA with her actor husband Matthew Coloma and their 2.5 year old daughter, she's in Sydney this week scouring the collections of Australian designers for outfits for clients such as Alley, Kristen Chenoweth and Amber Heard.

It's just one part of a job that has become as much about strategy as it is about dressing for a particular body shape.

"[Now] it makes or breaks which is why you have the phone call from the manager and the agent and they sit on the meeting when they're meeting you and you do a whole strategy, we're going to position you to be like this or that," she says.

"It's definitely a very thought-out thing because it's a PR-driven world these days."

Yet the drama of shows like The Rachel Zoe Project with the endless quest for the perfect gown, alternations not being done to specification or dresses not arriving in time for an awards ceremony do reflect some of the day-to-day situations stylists find themselves in.

Costume designing for the film Syrup, Banks-Coloma found herself stuck on the roof of New York's Rockefeller Centre with a ripped dress and only one hour to shoot the scene it was intended for. Given it takes about 30 minutes to get through the security and various elevators to return to the bottom she had to improvise with a red coat she had on hand.

On another occasion she had 20 minutes notice to replace a dress for a client about to appear on one of Oprah Winfrey's last shows as the original was damaged on the trip to Chicago.

It's these 'fashion emergencies', plus a varied client base that keep the job interesting for Banks-Coloma. And why she believes shows about her profession make for captivating television.

The Sophia Banks-Coloma trend breakdown for spring/summer 2011:

The all white look.

Coloured pumps - don't be afraid of bright tones and mixing it with other colours in an outfit.

Be gone colour-blocking, prints are back.

Pencil skirts, even floral patterned courtesy of Givenchy. Wear these with a shorter, but not cropped top, and a belt.

Belts thick and thin. Coloured belts too.

The cropped trouser.

Shorts will be around this summer but it's definitely the tail end of the trend.

Skirts in all different lengths, especially the maxi and 3/4 length. Wear it high and tuck a top in.

The silk shirt. This will replace the t-shirt as everyday casual wear.

Lace - black and coloured.

Her style tips for curvy women:

Best styles: wrap dresses, pencil skirts and jersey dresses. The flowing, boho-maxi style will add 3 kgs.

Find a great fitting dress from a heavier, structured fabric and make sure it is just slightly hard to do up. That way it will help hold you in.

Wear body shaping undergarments such as Spanx to "put your curves in all the right places".

Avoid outfits with lots of layers of extra fabric.

Apple shapes: Try a long-sleeved A-line dress, length just above the knee. Pair this with a wrap cardigan and a statement necklace.

Pear shapes: Your waist "is your best friend". Accentuate this with a belt, thick or thin. Even over a cardigan.

Follow this reporter on Twitter @SarahMcInerney

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