When Gok Wan waxes lyrical about “great bangers”, he’s usually trying to coax the inner siren out of an under-confident woman.

But the fashion guru’s latest career move could see him extolling the virtues of actual sausages – as long as they’re the Chinese variety.

In the simply-titled Gok Cooks Chinese, the 37-year-old talks viewers through the cuisine he grew so familiar with as the son of a restaurateur and chef, stylishly serving it up in scallop shells, cabbage leaves and the like.

Although he’d “die of embarrassment” if he were ever called a TV chef (“Not because it’s a bad thing. Just because I’m not really. I’m a cook and I do my job on the telly,” he says), Wan insists he has been cooking his whole life.

“I used to work for my dad in the kitchen. And it’s one thing serving food for friends, but another serving it to people who are paying for it, because you have a huge amount of responsibility that comes with it. I think that’s where my confidence comes from.”

With the show, and accompanying cookbook, Wan is keen to debunk some of the myths about Chinese cuisine, and encourage us takeaway-loving Brits – who, he says, eat more Chinese food than roast dinners – to try making it at home.

“The biggest myth is that it’s really unhealthy and complicated and you have to use very exotic ingredients you can only get from Asia. All of that is wrong.

“Traditional Chinese food is super-healthy and it isn’t that complex. Once you’ve got the principles right and the preparation done, the actual cooking is the easiest part.

“It’s a slightly different discipline from cooking western food. Most of the ingredients, bar a handful in the entire book, you can get from a supermarket.”

FASHIONISTA: British style star Gok Wan does a makeover on Izaiah Cole, 5, in Auckland this week.

British fashion stylist Gok Wan looks out at thousands of fans in Westfield Manukau and asks who’d like a makeover.

Signs are thrown in the air, young people point to their mums, grown women jump up and down, some scream. Gok scans the crowd before he picks Maggie and asks her why she’s here. “I’d like to make the best of myself. I think I have a big tummy and I try to cover it up.”

“Who else tries to hide their tummies?” asks the master of makeovers.

Maggie plants a kiss on his check and trots off for her makeover. After the show, the 37-year-old star of TV’s How to Look Good Naked says he’s delighted at the response he’s had from women the world over.

“I think I’ve become a verb now, because there is a term called `Being Goked’. It’s lovely. It’s so nice to think that people actually want to hear my opinion and start embracing it when it’s a positive thing.

When Maggie finally comes on to the catwalk post-makeover wearing a navy and cream striped dress, Gok swoons over her, saying, “You look like you’re absolutely ready to go boating.”

The audience cheers. “I hate boating,” says Maggie.

Gok’s goal is simply to make women feel good about themselves.

A good starting point for women lacking confidence, he says, is to discover your body shape.

“That’s the science behind fashion and there are rules with that, because if you want to make things look optically different then you can employ those rules.

“It’s a starting point for anyone out there who’s slightly confused or has lost their way – for them to kickstart their opinion again.

“Once they get something right – and just by knowing your body shape is getting something right – it fills you with confidence, and it empowers you and then everything else slots into place,” Gok says.

And the body shape he’s seen most of in New Zealand is curvy.

“It’s lovely to see. It’s a bit of a dream for me because, as you know, I like curvaceous women. I like to dress them. Ask any of my friends who are designers or stylists, they will say the same thing: you want to be able to dress curves; it’s what makes you a woman; it’s what stops you from looking like a bloke.” And the biggest trend that’s about to hit our shores, he predicts, is the 40s look.

“You’re getting a tiny bit through, which is all the peplums and the long-length pencil skirts. Actually, I think it will fit the Kiwi physique really, really well.”

Check out some of my adventures whilst I’m down-under in Oz, with the hilarious guys at NovaFM! x

He cracked lewd jokes, talked about bosoms, and kissed a young man on the mouth, and the hoards clapped and cheered.

Hundreds of Gok Wan fans turned out to Albany’s Westfield Mall for the first of the celebrity stylist’s three Auckland appearances.

The UK based TV star  – famous for his witty banter, dead honest approach and his love for women’s bodies gave a one hour talk on body shape and fashion.

The show was an interactive affair, with Gok pulling members of the audience up to chat, make jokes, and in one case- pash.

A good looking young man hauled up by the stylist proceeded to strip off his jacket (in order to show Gok his T-shirt).

Gok was clearly excited, and cheekily gave the young man a full frontal kiss on the mouth. The young man reportedly whispered to Gok “You inspired me to make this T-shirt”.

As one can imagine, the crowd went wild.

Gok’s approach to fashion and personal style may be unorthodox, but he has garnered a strong following by women who find his style positive and refreshing.

“He’s like one of us” Katie Hughes, winner of one of the Westfield VIP seats said after the show, “he really understands women. I watch all his shows, but he’s even funnier in real life than I expected.”

Eight lucky women got a Gok style makeover with hair, makeup and styling, and were paraded before the audience at their final reveal.

Chantall Turner sent in a photo of herself standing behind a wooden cut-out of a bloke, with just her head poking through.

Westfield deemed the image dire enough to award her a makeover.

Turner received a three hour styling session, Westfield vouchers, and her clothing, hair and makeup were made over on the day. “I have completely overhauled my wardrobe” she said.

“I learnt to get the grey out of my closet, and learnt some new makeup tips. My makeup routine was pretty stuck in the 80’s”.

During the public talk makeover winners and audience members were taught how to dress for their body shape with Gok, and the stylist also launched Westfield’s new online Body Shape Calculator.

Gok will appear at Westfield Manakau City tomorrow at 12.30pm and  Westfield St Lukes on Thursday at 5.30pm.

Gok Wan is keen to bring his hit TV fashion makeover show to New Zealand.

The How to Look Good Naked star arrives in New Zealand this week for a whistlestop tour.

Asked about filming an episode in New Zealand, he said: “Oh my God, that would be amazing. I’d love it and I know Kiwi women would love it too. I will have to get my thinking cap on to get that project started.”

The British style icon postponed a previous trip to New Zealand after injuring his back.

Wan said he hoped to catch up with his friend, New Zealand’s Got Talent host Tamati Coffey, while he was here. “If he is in town I would love to see him – we had a giggle.”

Wan said he had been impressed by Kiwi men’s sense of style.

“Whether it’s a rugged, really masculine look or polished ‘city suit’ style. They’re all more than handsome enough to pull off the rough-and-ready look.”

He said the New Zealand casual look was popular around the world at the moment.

“Dressing for the elements is something that Kiwis and Aussies share when it comes to fashion. I love the layers, textures and amazing fabrics like merino that you see in Kiwi fashion.

“The casual look is definitely big at the moment but I’d say that taking cues from the runway or hot trends to just kick outfits up one or two notches would really enhance the casual look.”

Wan added he would be heading to Ponsonby Rd for a bite to eat and shopping if he had the time.

Wan will appear at:

Westfield Albany on Tuesday at 12.30pm;

Westfield Manukau City on Wednesday at 12.30pm;

Westfield St Lukes on Thursday at 5.30pm.

British fashion consultant, author and television presenter Gok Wan gives us a preview of Westfield’s new Style I.D, plus a few other important style tips.
Tell us a bit about Westfield’s new Style I.D. and what it involves.

It’s all on the website (www.westfield.com.au/au/be-inspired/services/fashion-services/style-id).It’s about how to work out what exactly your personal style is with some guidance.

Can you give us some examples of how body shape affects fashion style choice? e.g. what “pear-shaped” women should be looking out for, etc.

It’s a big old question this one, if you go to the Westfield website again then you’re going to be able to get your body shape analysis, it will also give you all the tips on what to dress for your body shape, but just remember not all pear shapes are the same, equally not are all hour glasses, so just use the information that works best for you.

It’s a controversial fashion topic for many – are leggings okay to wear as pants, or a big no-no?

I’m not a personal lover of leggings, I think that what you should do is if you want to wear a pair of leggings or get that silhouette then maybe go for a ‘jodper’ or go for a ‘cigarette’ pant.

Do you believe there’s a go-to accessory that can finish off any outfit?

I always think that a bag finishes off any outfit, whether its oversized day bag, whether it’s a beautiful clutch bag, or whether it’s an over the shoulder micro bag – for me they are the perfect accessory.

We’re heading into winter in Australia soon – are there any colder-weather trends that we should be looking out for?

I think simple knit layering in micro knits is a really good way to finish it off. There’s a lot of metallic out there at the moment so make sure that the material has got some metallic through it if you can, it adds a moment of glam to sometimes the most boring outfits. Jersey also has made it off the runway into the high street, so make sure that when you’re wearing your jersey it is as fitted as possible and not slouchy, so it doesn’t look like track pants.

Women will also be looking to invest in a pair of boots. Do different styles of boots suit different body shapes better than others?

No, boots are generic pieces which should fit most people, the only thing you might struggle with is calf size, but pretty much boots are fair going for everyone.

Does great style have to be expensive or can it be done well on a budget?

I think everyone can look absolutely amazing regardless of what you’ve got to spend, obviously the less amount of money you have the harder you’re going to have to work, but sometimes you get creative and you earn a lot more out of your outfit by doing it that way.

Read the complete article here: http://nz.lifestyle.yahoo.com/fashion/features/article/-/13761381/q-a-with-fashion-consultant-gok-wan/

Gok Wan very kindly gave us his top five, non-negotiable classic wardrobe buys, as well as his new season accessories hit-list last week, but we got so much more out of our interview with the How To Look Good Naked host than a shopping list (or two!). Gok is still on the road with his Style Tour for Westfield, so before he departs the country we thought we’d share the rest of our chat with the ever-bubbly, makeover guru. From his career switcheroo, to the trends worth investing in, to his ultimate jzushing tip, see what else Gok had to say . . .

How did you get started? I’m not formally taught, so I never went to college, and I think that really stayed in my favour really. So everything that I’ve done has come with a lot of mistakes over the years, and I think that’s how you learn the best. Originally I was a hair and makeup artist, so that was how I started…. And I worked as the lead hair and makeup artist for a stylist in the UK… and she was brilliant, and she was a commercial stylist, and one day her assistant didn’t turn up for work and she said “Can you assist me if I get another hair and makeup (person) in?” and I did it, and I LOVED it. And I thought to myself, literally on that day, “I think I’m going to give up the hair and makeup business for fashion.” But that was a LONG time ago now! I worked my way up, and did all the shitty, crappy jobs — as you do — until I started to get a name for myself.

Read the complete article here: http://www.fabsugar.com.au/How-Look-Good-Naked-Host-Gok-Wan-Shares-His-Top-Trend-Styling-Advice-How-He-Got-His-Start-more-23269032

TV review: Gok Cooks Chinese saw the makeover man swap nude catwalks for sizzling woks with a surprising amount of success.

The TV presenter on learning to use chopsticks and being front-of-house, aged five, at his parents’ restaurant

There’s something magnetic about Gok Wan: British stylist, television idol, out-and-proud gay, the kind of man who can say ‘‘bangers’’ a lot and mean not sausages but breasts, and have his raving followers say it right along with him.

In his book, Through Thick and Thin, one image is particularly indelible: a younger, emaciated Gok, wretched with self-loathing and stuffed full of laxatives, flushing a pizza down a toilet, piece by piece. From these depths, he has emerged a healthy and compelling man with what seems like boundless self-confidence. It’s this self-confidence he tries to pass on to the women he styles.

Gok is coming to Canberra yet again. He’ll be at Westfield Woden on Friday from 6pm to 7pm doing a show during which he’ll sketch a new look to suit audience members’ assets. The shopping centre’s stylists will then bring the look to life.