Losing baby weight can be a challenge, but there is no reason why you cannot look stylish while you lose the excess weight. Emma Harrowing shows reader and new mum Louise Dennis how she can look and feel stylish while she loses a few extra pounds.

After having three children 25 year old Louise Dennis from Besthorpe is struggling to lose her baby weight. 'When I had my first two children I found it easy to lose the excess weight, but since having my daughter three months ago I'm finding it hard to lose weight and get back to my slim size eight figure,' says Louise.

'I have a wardrobe full of size eight clothes but I cannot fit into any of them. Instead I'm stuck in leggings and long tops.'

Clothes

To help Louise look and feel stylish while her body gradually gets back to its usual size, I took her to see Debenhams personal shopper Emma for some tips.

Says Emma: 'There is no reason why Louise cannot look stylish while she gets her body back to the size it was. At the moment she is conscious of her thighs and tummy, which are areas that have changed shape after her pregnancy, so stretchy leggings and a baggy top seem the most comfortable choice. However, hiding your body under baggy clothes can make you look bigger than you actually are.

'To look stylish you need to emphasis the parts of your body you like to detract from the parts you don't.'

As Louise dislikes her thighs at the moment, a pair of dark denim boot cut jeans is just the ticket. The gradual flare at the bottom of each leg will balance out her body and make her thighs appear smaller. Worn with heels the jeans will make her legs look longer.

The jeans were worn with a fitted check shirt, which is still a big fashion trend and one of this season's statement coats – the cape.

'The outfit really makes Louise's legs look longer and her thighs slimmer,' says Emma. 'It is also a look that is easy to wear. With three children to look after Louise finds it hard to make time for herself, but this outfit is easy to put together and gives instant style.'

Hair

Hair loss is a common problem with new mums. Hormonal changes mean that there can be an increased amount of hair on your hairbrush when brushing and down the plughole when washing your hair.

'It was a bit worrying at first as big clumps of hair would come out of my head,' says Louise.

'My hair is also very high maintenance. I like having it straight but it is naturally curly and it's dry and frizzy which makes it difficult to straighten. I like wearing my hair down, but sometimes I look like a scarecrow if I don't have time to straighten it.'

To give Louise the smooth, straight tresses she longs for I put her in the capable hands of Sinead at Saks on Orford Hill.

Says Sinead: 'The blonde highlights in Louise's hair have made the texture of her hair drier which is adding to her problem with frizz. By changing her colour to a dark brunette her hair will instantly look glossy.

'For the colour I am going to put a chocolate brown colour all over her hair, taking sections underneath the parting which will be dyed ash blonde. This will give her hair a more natural look. By putting highlights underneath the top layer of hair, Louise will find that as her hair grows she will not get any re-growth. This will make her look last longer and it will be more economical as her roots will not need to be done.'

Louise wants a style that is easy to manage, so Sinead suggests a bob that is slightly shorter at the back than the sides.

Says Sinead: 'At the moment Louise has a lot of layers in her hair. While these take some of the thickness out of her hair they also make it difficult to dry and style. By cutting most of her layers out Louise will find that her hair is easier to dry and style.'

Makeup

To complete Louise's new daytime look, Steph at Yves Saint Laurent (YSL) in Debenhams gave her a quick makeup lesson in how to create a daytime look.

Get the look...

For the base

After cleansing and toning the skin with a two in one cleanser and toner, Top Secrets moisturising serum was applied over the face to hydrate and act as a base for makeup.

Perfect Touch foundation in a colour that matches Louise's warm skin tone was applied with a brush over the face to create a flawless finish. Touch Eclat was applied under the eyes to hide any dark shadows and across the eye lids to create a base for eye makeup.

For the eyes

Louise's eyes are kept natural with Heavenly Beige eye shadow which was applied all over the eye lids with a brush. Her eyes are defined with Astral Brown eye shadow which is applied in a line just above the crease of the eyelid and down the outer edge of the eyelid and half way across the lash line. An eye pencil was used to define the top lash line and was applied from the outer edge to the middle of the bottom lash line. False Lash mascara in black finished the eyes.

For the lips

As Louise's lips are quite neutral a vibrant red lipstick from YSL was applied to the lips. To prevent the red from bleeding a red lip pencil was used to line the lips prior to applying the lipstick.

For the cheeks

To bring some colour to Louise's face, her cheeks were dusted with blusher No.3.

The verdict

Says Louise: 'I didn't think that I would look good in jeans at the moment, but these make my thighs look slimmer.

I love the cape. It's a trend that I thought I couldn't wear, but it looks great over the jeans and it's really comfortable to wear.

My favourite item has to be the shoes, they are amazing. I love heels and I haven't worn any since the birth of my daughter. Slipping into a good pair of heels makes me feel glam and stylish.

'I don't usually wear bright lipstick but my lips look great. Putting on red lipstick is quick to do and it really does make me look stylish.

'I love my hair the most. It looks and feels amazing and I hope that it is easier to manage. The change from a blonde to a brunette is dramatic but I love my new look. Being a brunette makes my eyes look bluer and my skin look amazing. I look gorgeous!'