Spring/Summer 2011 campaigns part I

With all of the shops clearing out all of the old AW10 stock and moving in transitional pieces already, it seems like a good time to look forward to the gorgeous campaigns which will grace our magazines in the coming months. The campaigns are very different, don't you think? Givenchy is my favourite, the image is so striking and powerful. What's your favourite?


Givenchy Spring/Summer 2011 - Daphne Groeneveld, Stephen Thompson, Iris Strubegger and Mariacarla Boscono shot by Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott. 

Moschino S/S 2011 - Yasmin Le Bon shot by Juergen Teller

Chloe Spring/Summer 2011 - Iselin Steiro & Malgosia Bela shot by David Sims

Balenciaga S/S 11 - Gisele Bundchen & Yuri Pleskun shot by Steven Meisel

Dolce & Gabbana S/S 11 - Izabel Goulart & Alessandra Ambrosio shot by Steven Klein

Olivia Palermo to launch clothing line

Ever since she graced our screens on axed reality show The City, the fashion world has been enamoured with Olivia Palermo. She has arguably better dress sense than Lauren and Whitney put together and she has that incredible swishy hair. Unlike the 'stars' of The Hills and The City, Olivia really loves fashion and lives it every day. A front row staple during New York and London Fashion week, she also models for Matches and Mango. Last month she told Elle that she's working on her own reality show, which isn't really surprising. What's also not that surprising is her announcement in Vogue Spain that the show will launch her first clothing line. I'm neither surprised nor excited about this. Yes, the girl pretty much always looks impeccable but that does not even put her in the same league as a proper designer. Do you want to see her new line?

New Year's Eve night out

There's only one reason to start weaning yourself off the Christmas binge:New Year's Eve. For most of London, this is the huge finale of the party season, the last hurrah before January detox and exercise begins. So of course, you need to spend most of New Year's Eve pampering and prepping for the night's festivities as well as a gorgeous little dress to shimmy into. Here are my top four dresses, perfect for whatever you might have planned, whether it's partying the night away, sinking shots at the bar or a nice, civilised dinner. 

Topshop waterfall asymmetric ruffle dress - £65
ASOS White beige leather high vamp shoes
Oasis rose corsage one shoulder dress - £40 on sale
Topshop Gala bow detail peep toe shoe boots - £60
Miss Selfridge mesh panel dress - £38
KG by Kurt Geiger Kitty
Rare Opulence asymmetric bustle dress - £95
Miss KG Bond - £80

Review: Kaleidoscope coat

The lovely guys at Kaleidoscope recently sent me this beautifully soft, warm coat to review. I really loved the texture, it didn't photograph very well so I took some close up pictures to show the lovely fur texture. The fur is slightly shiny which gives it a sophisticated look and makes it suitable for dressing up as well as dressing down. I've worn the coat almost everyday as it's perfect for the cold weather. The length is great, the perfect length for wearing with dresses and jeans and the high collar kept my neck warm, although I haven't accessorised it in the pictures, I usually wore it with a scarf. As you can see from the pictures, the sleeves are quite long which is a definite plus, as I'm fairly tall sometimes the sleeves are a little too short so I have to wear gloves if it's cold! The coat was slightly big for me but it was really nicely cut with defined shoulders and a nipped in waist. One of my favourite features was the bright red lining, adding a splash of colour to any outfit. 

 

The details..

Snuggle up with Electronic Sheep

Brrrr the cold weather is back. I'm not one to complain about it, winter is supposed to be cold and a little bit of snow never hurt anyone. However, all this wrapping up warm is a little overrated. Chunky knits are gorgeous and keep you snuggly warm, but everyone has the same idea and you end up wearing the same extra-long, chunky scarf and cute mittens as everyone else. Luckily, I have a knitwear secret up my sleeve - Electronic Sheep. The young knitwear label is designed by Brenda Aherne and Helen Delany. Their graphic knitwear, strong visuals and brights will definitely make you stand out from the crowd! I've fallen in lust with the Pyramids and Pipes collection, especially the signature knitted triangle scarves, hooded scarves and adorable bobble hats. 

Model Spotlight: Arizona Muse

You may not have heard of her fabulous name but you must have seen her gorgeous face. The 22 year old from Santa Fe has walked for countless hot ticket shows including Celine, Balenciaga, Dior, Sonia Rykiel Chanel and Oscar De La Renta in the past. However, she's just landed her first major campaign, ousting Daria Werbowy as the new face of Yves Saint Laurent. I think 2011 will really be her year, this campaign is just the tip of the iceberg.

 

Shop the Spring/Summer 2011 trends in the sale

Happy Christmas everyone! I hope you are all having a lovely day with your families, eating lots, drinking lots and  generally being very merry. I will be spending the day rustling up breakfast for the family - about 10 of us - and watching movies while the parentals see to a huge Christmas feast. It's lovely when the whole family gets together, as we've all grown up it happens far too infrequently. Make sure you enjoy the day xx

There's always such a big build up to Christmas, it's very tempting to spend a couple of days recovering, slobbing out and eating leftovers. That is most certainly not what I will be doing on Boxing Day. I'll be up nice and early, creeping out of the house for the sales. I know most of them started before Christmas, but it's a little wrong to be snapping up bargains before the big day's over. It can be all too tempting to buy something, anything, just because it's cheap. My preferred tactic is to either stock up on classic pieces (hello Zara trousers) or next year's trends. It's easier to buy shapes or colours which to form the basis of your wardrobe. Of course there won't be lots of lovely floaty summer stuff about but quite a few Autumn/Winter trends made the transition to the Spring/Summer catwalk. There was lashing of black, tough biker touches as seen at Burberry, lightweight knits and cropped leather trousers a la Balmain. The latter is right at the top of my sale wish list. The other Spring/Summer 2011 trends I'm looking forward to are

Sheer - Alberta Ferretti
White - Alexander Wang
70s - Marc Jacobs
Brights - Jil Sander
Midi - Bottega Veneta
White lace - Alberta Ferretti

Julia Restoin Roitfeld in Tom Ford for V magazine

I'm back in the land of Internet, it's a Christmas miracle! Plenty of blogging to come over the next few days. First off though, a little Christmas Eve treat in the form of Julia Restoin Roitfeld's self portraits in Tom Ford. What a delicious combination! I'm a huge fan of both Julia and Tom Ford, together they make an impossibly chic picture of fashion perfection. 

Je suis sans Internet

This is my first ever post via iPhone. Its out of necessity rather than wanting to try portable blogging. My internets been down since the weekend, hence the lack of posting. It should be back before Christmas so normal blogging shall resume very soon!

Christmas gift guide - Under £100

Here's the last of my gift guides! Now if you're spending about £100 on someone, you can really go all out and get them something special - think premium high street ranges, statement shoes, eyecatching jewellery or even massaging slippers. 

Rare Opulence frill dress - £89

Topshop Barley OTK boots - £70

Miss KG Hamilton shoes - £85

Holistic Silk massaging slippers - £70

Daisy Knights skull bracelet - £88

Lucy Hutching @ My Wardrobe jet and crystal pendant - £95

Aqua @ Asos Jessica dress - £96 on sale

Christmas gift guide - Under £50

I guess if you're spending this much on someone you will know them pretty well so you can get something a bit more personal, like some knitwear, shoes or a gorgeous dress. My absolute favourite here is the Joomi Lim bracelet, jewellery is usually a good gift plus have you seen the bad ass spikes?!

Prada Infusion d’iris 50ml - £40

Topshop fairy print teddy - £32

Bombay Duck three-tier cake stand - £29.50

Miss Selfridge velvet crystal clutch - £28

Republic drape dress - £32.99

Missguided platform boots - £28.99

Joomi Lim chain bracelet - £38

Christmas gift guide - Under £20

You can get a lot of really good presents for the £20 mark so it was difficult to choose my favourites. For the fashion fanatics, there are loads of good books. I'm dying to read Luella's though. Shoes and bags are a good option if you know the person well, otherwise I'd stick to either make up or a pampering gift set. Scarves/gloves/hats are usually a no-no unless they're really cosy or quite quirky. I love getting my friends a photoframe and putting a picture of us in there, such a cute idea as it has meaning as well as being a nice gift. 

MAC Happily Ever After lip kit - £20

Lush Hello Gorgeous gift set - £16.95

Luella’s guide to English style - £20

Bombay Duck baroque photoframe - £14.95

Topshop loop knot snood - £20

Missguided hard case gold bag - £16.99

Asos Luna glitter shoes - £20

Win the iconic Lulu Guinness Lips clutch!

Yes, you really can win a Lulu Guinness clutch, the uber-famous, often replicated Lips clutch. The distinctive bag is so gorgeous and covetable and has an army of fans including Katy Perry and Agyness Dean. All you need to do is hop over to the Lulu Guinness website and pick your favourite lip colour, simple as that. Be quick though, the competition closes this Friday!

Christmas gift guide - Under £10

I'm going Christmas crazy this week, expect a week full of gift guides and gorgeous dresses for every Christmas party you have in your diary. To kick off the week, I've got my under £10 Christmas gift guide. I think this is something everyone needs, whether you're looking for stocking fillers or the perfect Secret Santa pressie. 

Manolo Blahnik for Liberty rosebud print lavender bag - £6.95

Metallic luggage tags - £7.50

Accessorize sealed with a kiss ring - £6

Urban Outfitters love jewellery hooks - £10

Urban Outfitters black ear chain - £10

Republic bear hat - £9.99

ASOS thumb and finger ring - £10

Celine's five perfect trousers

I have a theory. The continual rise in popularity of the humble dress is down to one thing and one thing alone – ill-fitting trousers. Dresses, and to a certain extend skirts, are fairly easy to just throw on and go. When I’m getting a dress, I barely even bother to try then on. After all, not much can go wrong with the fit of a dress that a sneaky little waist-belt can’t fix, right? Skirts are pretty similar too, as long as it fits at the waist or hips then the rest should just call into place. Trousers on the other hand are a different kettle of fish. Depending on the cut and style, they’ll need to fit properly at the waist, hips, thighs, be the right length, flatter the old posterior and somehow manage to be on trend.

I simply don’t think that it’s something that high-street chains can pull off very well. I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve tried on a gorgeous pair of trousers only to be horrified at how poorly they were made or how terrible the fit was. Even these Topshop trousers which I instantly loved have been relegated to the back of my wardrobe now as they have lost their shape. Even my Zara work trousers are redundant now, the fit is actually pretty good, everywhere but the waist it’s just huge. The high street should definitely take note of Celine’s highly anticipated perfect trouser collection which is a capsule collection of five perfect trouser shapes.

With her dedication to carving out the perfect silhouette and emphasis on tailoring, Phoebe Philo is the perfect person to design the perfect trousers. She’s had an army of fans since her days at Chloe. I loved Stella Maccartney’s work at Chloe and thought she’d be a tough act to follow but Phoebe absolutely nailed it she put her own stamp on the established brand and simultaneously took it into a new direction. As well as being beautifully designed, her collections were a commercial success with sales going stellar. When she quit the label for a short hiatus, many eagerly awaited her return. Two years ago, LVMH lured Phoebe back to head up one of its quieter labels – Celine. For Phoebe, it was a great opportunity to work with a pretty blank canvas.

Her work at Celine has won her rave reviews, awards and she’s been propelled into that elite group of ‘one of the most influential fashion designers of our time’. At Celine, she has steered well clear of trends and has been producing collections of pared down, minimalist, utilitarian pieces with a slightly masculine edge. Her use of camel, zips, leather accents and clean silhouettes has already filtered down to the high-street, just look at Zara.

The trouser collection features five key shapes - the high-waisted wide leg from Celine archives, tapered leg, cropped tube leg, pleated tapered leg and the men's straight leg -  which will form the basis of your wardrobe, so it should be worth the hefty price tag. Celine have said ‘There is no shortcut to making an excellent pair of trousers, which is what makes them so rare. It takes a commitment to technique, a deep knowledge of tailoring and understanding of how to elongate differing female body alignments. Then there is the critical element: the fashion informed judgement which makes a proportion right, so it synchs effortlessly with a shoe, a top, a jacket for today’. 

Kinder Aggugini, the English National Ballet & Marie Claire

Whilst flicking through the January issue of Marie Claire, my jaw dropped and I stared in awe at some of the most stunning images I've seen in a while. The magazine has collaborated with the English National Ballet and Kinder Aggugini to create breathtaking, modern interpretations of three famous female characters to celebrate the 60th birthday of the ballet company. I studied ballet for 10 years so I was in my element pouring over these images. 


Kinder has created a luxe Cinderella, who's rags are gorgeous ethereal wisps of navy and cream chiffon over floral embellishment and a smattering of tiny crystals while Sleeping Beauty wears a modern, fashion tutu complete with white mohair and a skirt of broderie anglaise. My absolute favourite is a super saccharine sweet Sugarplum Fairy, Kinder has created a bubble hemmed tutu adorned with ribbons and bows in sugary pastel chiffon. 


Kinder commented "This project came up when I was tearing my hair out preparing for London Fashion Week. But it was a dream come true. To have creative carte blanche was so exciting. I wanted to create something fresh for dancer's costumes in these traditional roles, getting away from the traditional". 

My best friend's wedding...or what to wear to an Indian wedding

A couple of weeks ago, one of my best friends from uni got married. While attending Asian/Indian weddings is pretty normal for me, I’m sure not everyone has been so I thought I’d give an insight into it and Indian fashion. Indian weddings are generally very, very elaborate affairs; think 700+ guests, huge venues, elaborate stages and centrepieces and some of the most amazingly colourful, embellished outfits you’ve laid eyes on. As with any other wedding, the best part is getting dressed up...but Indian weddings take this to the extreme. A new outfit will cost hundreds of pounds, but you do get your money’s worth as the outfits are typically very heavily embroidered and made out of sumptuous fabrics like silk. Oh and don’t forget the shoes, bag, (gold) jewellery, bangles and optional trip to the hairdressers or beauticians to get mendhi done!

There are three quite broad types of clothing you can wear to a wedding. A salwar kameez is the easiest and simplest type of outfit, it consists of a top and trousers. The top will generally be quite fitted and can be full sleeved, short sleeved or sleeveless. The trousers can either be loose fitting which is quite traditional or tight fitted which is a lot more modern and popular. You can also wear a lengha which is a long skirt and a matching top. The skirt is generally the focal point and heavily embroidered. The top can either be as embellished or a bit plainer. And of course, the third option is the classic sari, which I will describe in a bit more detail later on in the post.

I attended two different events for the wedding, the first didn’t require much dressing up so I wore a salwar kameez. I went for fitted trousers which had a gold sheen to them and a plain-ish top with a bit of embroidery on the front and back. This outfit is very understated and compared to others at the event I was pretty under-dressed. That’s ok though, I saved the big guns for the wedding. For the wedding I chose to wear a bright blue sari which was elegantly embroidered but not very bling compared to what other guests wore. To be honest, I’d rather wear something a little bit plainer but sophisticated rather than something overly embroidered and over the top. Sometimes (a little bit) less is more.

I think most people are familiar with what a sari looks like, but what you may not know is that it is over 5000 years old! They were mentioned in the Rig Veda which is one of the world’s oldest surviving texts. Saris or draped/wrapped outfits have been depicted in ancient poetry, texts and scriptures across the Asian continent from Tamil poetry and Indian sculptures from the 1^st-6^th century AD. That little factoid blew my mind; it’s amazing to think that a certain way of dressing has existed for so long and essentially remains unchanged.

A sari outfit consists of three basic elements – the sari fabric, a petticoat worn underneath and a blouse. The sari fabric is actually a whole piece of unstitched cloth which is draped, pinned and tucked into shape.  All of the saris I own are silk and have gorgeous patterns and lots of embellishment on them as I wear them to weddings but they can also be made out of cotton, chiffon and nylon. The petticoat is worn underneath the sari as the fabrics can be quite sheer. The blouse is very short and can be backless, halter-neck, have short sleeves or thin straps. For weddings, they usually have a lot of embellishment and embroidery.

There are various styles depending on where you’re from. For the purpose of this post, I’m going will be talking about what I know which is the Punjabi/Indian style where the sari is wrapped around the waist with one end draped over the left shoulder from front to back. Luckily, most saris can be bought ‘ready made’ so you just need to clip it together and wrap it around once. I do have some saris which are just one really long piece of fabric which are a bit of a pain to put on – my mum has to help me get dressed and I slowly spin in a circle as she tucked and pleats the fabric around me.

This is a very, very simplistic description of how to do it but I’ve never managed to do this myself, it’s incredibly hard to get one long piece of fabric to look so beautiful! One end of the sari is quite plain and the opposite end is very elaborately embroidered, the plain end needs to be tucked into the waistband of the petticoat and the rest needs to be wrapped around the lower body once. Then the fabric needs to be hand-gathered into even pleats and tucked into the waistband, although this sounds simple enough it’s pretty much an art form to get the pleats the right size, using the right amount of fabric and leaving enough fabric free to finish the rest. The fabric then needs to be wrapped around and the body and finally draped over the left shoulder with the intricately embroidered end hanging from the back of the shoulder. 

Here’s my sari which took about 10 minutes to put on as it was ready made. Sorry for the random streak of sunshine, hopefully it helps you see the colours better! 

December sample sales

Just in time for Christmas shopping, here are some London-based super sample sales. 


Friday 10th - Sunday 12th December - theRemedi (several brands)
Saturday 11th - Monday 13th December - Jean-Pierre Braganza
Sunday 12th December - Thomas Wylde

Covting bad-ass Joomi Lim jewels

Last month, I attended the Push PR press day and saw what lots of independent brands have in store for us next season. One brand that caught my eye was Joomi Lim, the dangerous looking spike jewellery was right up my street. Although the name may not be familiar, I’m sure you will have seen some of Joomi’s work – she started out designing headbands and hair pieces and some were seen on none other than Blair Waldorf! This is Joomi’s first jewellery line and I loved the contrast between prim and proper pearls and bad-ass spikes. These striking pieces are just crying to be worn out with a gorgeous gown, battered biker boots and a ton of attitude.

The collection is available at NYLA Boutique and my stand-out pieces include the mace earrings, studded cuff and bracelet and . Santa, if you’re reading, I’d love to discover one of these bad boys in my stocking. I’ve been good this year, I promise!