It wasn’t just a move to the Middle East that had an impact on Carmen’s taste and style. “I had a series of big life changes at once,” Carmen explains. “New country, new job, newly single… All big but exciting life shake ups.”

If you find yourself nodding along in agreement, you’re not alone. A life-changing event such as moving countries, ending a relationship, suffering a personal loss, recovering from illness or changing careers can have a huge impact on how you approach getting dressed.

“What we wear is an expression of our self-identity,” Professor Carolyn Mair, founder of the consultancy psychology.fashion and author of The Psychology of Fashion, tells Stylist.co.uk. When people go through a big change in their life their style is bound to change, too.

That’s what happened to Anna, 32, after the end of her eight-year relationship in February. One morning she woke up, took out a garbage bag, and dumped half of her wardrobe into it.

“Maybe it’s because it was so cold,” she jokes to Stylist.co.uk. “Or maybe it was because I needed a fresh start.” Using Marie Kondo-esque principles she assessed whether each item filled her with joy and made her excited to wear it. Everything that didn’t was packed away for a few months.

When she surveyed her closet she was struck by – excuse the pun – a remarkable common thread. Everything that was left after her sartorial purge was rainbow bright. “I just wanted to wear the happiest, most colourful, most insane things,” she says. Banished to the bin bags was anything black and dour.

What happens to your sense of style after a life-changing event?