Stressed But Well Dressed

Dahlia Stroud
  • 5.0 (3)
  • Society & Culture
  • Updated Daily

"Stressed But Well Dressed" delves into the link between stress, confidence, and clothing, helping listeners build a "well-dressed mindset" for success. Dahlia hosts weekly conversations with a diverse range of guests—psychologists, founders, authors, designers, coaches, TV personalities, journalists, a firefighter, a former cult member, marketeers, and even Miss Great Britain—to explore the impact of stress on identity, confidence, and mindset from unique perspectives across a range of topics. Expect thought provoking conversations, practical tips for success and a bit of fashion in the mix!

  1. 5d ago

    Season 15, Episode 3: Recalibrating your body image (with guest Anna Berkeley)

    Dahlia is joined by Anna Berkeley, founder of ThinkShape app to discuss why we are so obsessed with our size and how often we have a distorted view of what we actually look like. Anna explains how she works with women to help them have an 'out of body' experience, mapping out their shape and helping them to recalibrate how they see themselves. The conversation includes a dissection of why we are fixated with sizes and finding clothes that are flattering and why we need to change our mindset rather than cut out a label when we don't see a number we feel reflects the way we see ourselves. Anna has worked in the fashion industry for nearly 30 years, collaborating with some of the most influential brands in the world. She spent 21 years as a womenswear buyer, including seven years buying designer denim and womenswear for Selfridge’s, travelling to fashion weeks globally and working with over 130 brands. Her career spans iconic UK retailers such as Topshop and Reiss, luxury house Prada, and an 11‑year consulting role with designer Margaret Howell. She has also supported numerous emerging brands and contributes expert commentary to The Financial Times, The Times, The Telegraph and The Mail. In 2023, Anna launched Think Shape, an app designed to help women understand their body shape and proportions, empowering them to dress with clarity, confidence and joy. Go behind the scenes on the show at stressedbutwelldressed_podcast to find out more!

    Season 15, Episode 3: Recalibrating your body image (with guest Anna Berkeley)

  2. Aug 7

    Season 15, Episode 2: Buying Patterns (with Levanah Gates)

    In this episode, Dahlia is joined by Levanah — known as The Buyer’s Coach — for a deep dive into the world of Buying and what it really looks like to change career after years in retail. With 15 years’ experience as a Fashion Buyer across five major UK retailers, Levanah brings a rare mix of commercial insight, creativity and lived industry experience. Today, she specialises in coaching Buyers and retail professionals through confidence building, promotions, pivots and career transitions. Together, Dahlia and Levanah explore the practical realities of moving on from Buying: how to know when it’s time for a change, the steps to take before you leave, how much money you realistically need, and how to navigate the emotional and professional shifts that come with reinventing your career. They also discuss what makes retail professionals uniquely skilled — and how those strengths translate into new industries. If you’re a Buyer, a retail professional, or someone standing at a career crossroads, this conversation is packed with clarity, honesty and actionable guidance. Levanah, known as The Buyer’s Coach, is a career coach specialising in supporting Buyers and retail professionals. Before launching her coaching practice, she spent 15 years as a Fashion Buyer across five major UK retailers, blending creativity with commercial strategy, negotiating globally, building ranges and travelling extensively. Now based in the Midlands with her partner and daughter, her perspective on career success shifted when her daughter was almost three, sparking a passion for helping people unlock their potential at work. Since then, she has coached more than 200 Buyers and retail professionals one‑to‑one, guiding them through confidence building, promotions, industry pivots, and career transitions that feel aligned, sustainable and fulfilling. Enjoyed the episode? Go behind the scenes with Stressed But Well Dressed on instagram @stressedbutwelldressed_podcast

    Season 15, Episode 2: Buying Patterns (with Levanah Gates)

  3. Jul 31

    Season 15, Episode 1: Building your wellness toolkit (with Nicola Elliott)

    Dahlia is joined by Nicola Elliott, Founder and Creative Director of NEOM Wellbeing. Dahlia and Nicola discuss how Nicola built the NEOM brand, starting right at the beginning when she visited a health food shop in London, bought some essential oils and started blending them to see what would happen. The conversation includes Nicola's advice on how to build what she calls a 'wellness toolkit' and the reality of that fact this wellness is multi-dimensional. Dahlia and Nicola also discuss what it takes to become a founder and the moments of learning that Nicola experienced on the way to building the brand. The founder of NEOM Wellbeing, Nicola very much remains at the forefront of our brand nearly 20 years on. Having originally worked as a journalist in London for seven years, in 2005 Nicola decided to start creating therapeutic and effective blends using 100% natural essential oils from her own kitchen. Today, Nicola oversees the day-to-day running and creative storytelling to continue our mission of supercharging the wellbeing of the world. Keeping her finger very much on the pulse when it comes to education and trends, Nicola often shares her insider tips and tricks for getting the most out of your favourite NEOM product, collates monthly round-ups of the wellbeing wonders she’s loving or shares other advice. Her approach to wellbeing is refreshingly real and achievable.

    Season 15, Episode 1: Building your wellness toolkit (with Nicola Elliott)

  4. Jul 24

    Season 14, Episode 10: Facing uncertainty - get out of your own way (with guest Katherine Templar Lewis)

    Dahlia is joined by human scientist and science communicator Katherine Templar Lewis for a conversation about uncertainty. Together they explore why uncertainty feels so destabilising, how the brain interprets it as a threat, and the physical consequences that follow: cortisol spikes, restless thinking, disrupted sleep and that familiar sense of being “on alert” even when nothing is actually happening. They also unpack how we try to seek out certainty and why some of those habits help us while others keep us stuck. Dahlia and Katherine discuss what we can be certain about and how we can get comfortable with the levels of uncertainty we face everyday. Katherine Templar Lewis is a human scientist and sciencecommunicator. She specialises in neuroscience and neuroaesthtics as a driver of human first design, fostering connection and societal change. Her work translates scientific insight into applicable creative intelligence, accelerating it out of labs and into the real world with brands, agencies and creatives. Co-founder and director of Kinda Studios, an all women neuroaesthetics studio and lab and Chief Scientist at The Uncertainty Experts, a research project with UCL to explore how to turn uncertainty into opportunity. She is  dedicatedto interdisciplinary research, bringing science art and technology to solve the complex challenges we face today. Author of the best-selling book The Uncertainty Toolkit she is an experienced keynote speaker, presenter and contributor across a range of media, including BBC Radio 4, 5Live, Sky News, NBC Sport and NBC's The TODAY Show and VICE. Sheis also co host the award nominated Audible Originals Series Beyond Five Senses. Enjoyed this episode of Stressed But Well Dressed? Don't forget t follow the show and check out behind the scenes on instagram @stressedbutwelldressed_podcast

    Season 14, Episode 10: Facing uncertainty - get out of your own way (with guest Katherine Templar Lewis)

  5. Jul 17

    Season 14, Episode 9: It's wedding season (with Kate Halfpenny)

    Dahlia is joined by Kate Halfpenny, founder of Halfpenny London. Kate shares the story of transforming her side hustle as a wedding dress designer into a internationally recognised bridalwear brand with a flagship London store and a celebrity following. Kate shares the story of how she built the brand and the creative design process, the iconic moments and her top tips on what to wear to get married. Halfpenny London was founded by Kate Halfpenny 20 years ago, previously a coveted VIP stylist to Kate Moss, Rihanna and Cate Blanchett to name a few.     Halfpenny began as a bespoke atelier, now it's an internationally recognised name. Kate has been described as'effortlessly bridging the gap between fashion and bridal' and the woman responsible for changing the traditional landscape by creating something truly unique and heirloom-worthy for every bride she dresses - pioneering bridalseparates as a way of making bespoke accessible.   Growing up around her knitwear designer Mum, Kate’s love of clothes and early understanding of shape and textiles,meant a career in fashion was inevitable. In 1998, she graduated with a BA Honours in Fashion Design armed with a portfolio of corset style separates andbillowing princess inspired skirts which, unbeknown to her, was to lay the foundations of things to come.With her background in design and an inherent flair forcustomising, Kate started to create bespoke pieces for her black book of clients and, as word-of-mouth spread, private commissions came flooding in. Kate was styling big campaigns which saw her style some of the world’s most stylish women.In 2005, actress Emilia Fox commissioned Kate tocreate her multiple wedding dresses, resulting in instant industry recognition and accolades, earning her an enviable reputation as the go-to bridal designerwith a twist. Her eponymous brand, Halfpenny London, was born and quickly became one of the UK’s leading luxury bridal wear brands.Halfpenny London empowerswomen to express their individuality with an ever-evolving collection ofcontemporary dresses, interchangeable separates and statement accessories whichcelebrate the glory and nuance of the female form.Continuing Kate’s passion and dedication to craft and Britishmanufacturing, each garment is proudly made in London, England. Today, thebrand is worn by brides around the world, and Kate continues tocreate covetable collections from the Halfpenny London atelier inLondon.

    Season 14, Episode 9: It's wedding season (with Kate Halfpenny)

  6. Jul 10

    Season 14, Episode 8: A Sign of the Times (with guest Antonia Johnstone)

    Dahlia is joined by Antonia Johnstone, Re-Founder and CEO of Sign of the Times, oe of the UK's largest luxury resale marketplaces. Dahlia and Antonia discuss the value of a circular marketplace, the luxury market and what to look for when investing in a piece that is going to hold or grow its value. They talk the celebrity wardrobes they would love to raid, how to maximise the value of your wardrobe and an insider view of some of the celebrities who have shared what they have bought and sold through Sign of the Times. Antonia is CEO and Refounder of Sign of the Times, one of the UK's largest managed luxury resale marketplaces. An economist by training, she has grown the business through organic growth and three strategic acquisitions, bringing realM&A experience to a sector that is rapidly professionalising. Sign of the Times is a 50-year-old Chelsea institution that has re-circulated over 350,000 preloved luxury pieces across its lifetime, operating across three locations,selling into 40 countries, and powering resale for major retailers including Farfetch and John Lewis. A passionate advocate for circular luxury and smart purchasing, Antonia combines deep market data with a genuine love of fashion to help clients release real value from their wardrobes. Find more about Stressed But Well Dressed on instagram @stressedbutwelldressed_podcast and follow the show wherever you get your podcasts!

    Season 14, Episode 8: A Sign of the Times (with guest Antonia Johnstone)

  7. Jul 3

    Season 14, Episode 7: Keeping it real (with guest Kelly Lundberg)

    In this episode, Dahlia sits down with Kelly Lundberg to talk about the foundations of a strong personal brand. Kelly explains why the most effective brands come from knowing yourself well — your tone, your values, your way of speaking — and staying consistent with them. The conversation focuses on how easy it is to slip into messaging that looks polished but doesn’t feel true, and how to recognise when that’s happening. Kelly offers practical insight from her work with founders and leaders, showing how authenticity becomes easier when you stop trying to impress and start trying to communicate clearly. It’s a steady, thoughtful discussion about identity, confidence and the habits that keep you aligned. Kelly Lundberg is a personal brand strategist, author and speaker who has spent more than a decade helping founders, leaders and creatives articulate who they are with clarity and confidence. Known for her practical, human approach, Kelly supports clients in finding a voice and presence that feels natural rather than manufactured. Her work spans brand positioning, storytelling and visibility, with a focus on helping people show up consistently in a way that feels true to them.

    Season 14, Episode 7: Keeping it real (with guest Kelly Lundberg)

  8. Jun 26

    Season 14, Episode 6: Not everything is urgent (with guest Kim Palmer)

    Dahlia is joined by Kim Palmer — founder of the Clementine app and co‑author of Not Everything Is Urgent — for a conversation about the architecture of urgency, the psychology of confidence, and the cognitive mechanics behind hypnotherapy. Rather than treating stress as a personal failing, they look at the structural forces that keep women in a state of permanent acceleration, and why “quiet confidence” functions as a counter‑cultural stance rather than a personality trait. Kim breaks down how hypnotherapy actually works at a neurological level - how accessing the subconscious allows you to interrupt long‑established behavioural loops that logic alone can’t touch. The discussion moves between identity, habit formation, and the politics of pace: what happens when you stop responding to every stimulus as if it’s critical, and how your sense of self shifts when urgency is no longer the organising principle of your day. If you are guilty of people pleasing and interested in building your confidence through control rather than being the loudest person in the room this conversation is for you. Find more about Stressed But Well Dressed on instagram @stressedbutwelldressed_podcast Read 'Not Everything Is Urgent' not everything is urgent by Kim Palmer, Ian Haworth, and Shashank Sharma | The Pound Project Find out more about Clementine App: About — Clementine App

    Season 14, Episode 6: Not everything is urgent (with guest Kim Palmer)
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
3 Ratings

About

"Stressed But Well Dressed" delves into the link between stress, confidence, and clothing, helping listeners build a "well-dressed mindset" for success. Dahlia hosts weekly conversations with a diverse range of guests—psychologists, founders, authors, designers, coaches, TV personalities, journalists, a firefighter, a former cult member, marketeers, and even Miss Great Britain—to explore the impact of stress on identity, confidence, and mindset from unique perspectives across a range of topics. Expect thought provoking conversations, practical tips for success and a bit of fashion in the mix!

Information

  • Creator
    Dahlia Stroud
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    158
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Dahlia Stroud
  • Show Website
    Stressed But Well Dressed