The Stylist is often the first person to arrive and the last to leave...

I was recently on a shoot and for some reason it dawned on me that a lot of people don't really get how many things you have to think about when you're the stylist on a shoot! I could write a book - but instead here's a few thoughts:

Most students new to styling don't realize that the stylist is often the first person to arrive and the last to leave. On a shoot everyone needs to see the clothes - the creative director, the editor, photographer, hair and make up artists and the celebrity or model, so it's important that all the clothes are set up as quickly as possible and then everyone else can get started.

There are some shoots where you know exactly beforehand what you will be using - you might have done a fitting already or it might be a designer's look book - every shoot is different but quite often you'll bring a good selection of clothes. After the shoot all the items are returned to the PRs or designers - the stylist doesn't keep the clothes but sometimes if a celebrity likes something her or she might be able to keep it or the PR/designer might send them something.