Monday 27 February 2012

Helloo?

London Fashion Week is for the lucky few but London Fashion Weekend is LFweek's little sister and, as you may be aware, is open to the public. Unfortunately I paid £15 for a ticket to a show at The Harrington Club, London, last Friday. I had no idea what the event was and even the location was unbeknown to me. I followed my friends who knew the promoter, dressed up and eagerly anticipating the evening.

What a night.

While the overly gay (that's coming from the girl whose picture is next to 'fag hag' in the dictionary) and harassing ("Um, everyone, you should know that I like to the be the center of attention so what are you doing talking while I'm on the mic?") host needed to shh please, the free drinks we were offered took a long while to arrive, and everyone sat round the tables in anti-social groups.

And then the clothes. Oh wow I never thought I would come across a 'fashion designer' who had not a single concept of fashion. I don't want to name names, but we watched only a few collections before choosing to pick up our coats and bags (£2 wasted at the cloakroom) and heading off to Jalouse. I won't discuss the evening from that point on- mainly because I don't remember it and I probably don't want to remember it; note. I have never, ever, ever been that bad!
The only few designs I enjoyed were sported by men. Maybe that was for the wrong reasons... (cheeky!) but I did actually find the hooded collection a little appealing. One example;
A few of the looks may have reminded me of the dementors from Harry Potter (perhaps another reason for their allure). Moreover, I'm pretty certain I have seen very similar ideas before but nevermind. We shall move on.

One more thing before I head off to bed. Sorry for this abusive post but I must show you a photo from this morning. On my way to college I saw a lady who had clearly put effort into her appearance. 'Ooh' I hear you say, and yet I died a little inside when I spotted her (you might enjoy the pun of 'spotted' in a moment). Her leggings may have been black but her shoes matched her bag, which matched her shirt, which matched her jacket, which matched her accessories. They were all leopard print. I mean seriously, but helloooo?
It looked worse from the front, but I felt awkward enough secretly taking a photograph of her. No way was I risking her noticing me.

Wednesday 22 February 2012

When I am older, I want to be a trendy mummy.

I live in a village predominately occupied by the very old or the very young. (The young, of course, accompanied by their parents). It's a lovely place to grow up- we have a large green, a pond where the kids can feed the ducks, and although we are still part of London (central London is only a bus ride away), we don't get the noise and bustle that's typical of a busy city.

I'm currently on that bus, and though I shall update this on a laptop later, I can't help but comment on the fashion of my neighborhood. Perhaps the advantage of Central London is the glitz and glam on a daily basis that this small village can't offer. Indeed, I feel rather out of place in my boho midi dress and my snake-print brogues.

But, then again, I don't expect much. Once you're past the age of 60, I expect you're past the point of caring what Vogue says. And who's judging the 3 year olds?

I am not judging anyone by the way- in fact, the majority of my area are well kept and well presented.  But looking at these families and these OAPS reminds me of how I want to live my life; you see I have it all set out:

Following University, I shall become part of the fashion industry (lets hope!). I intend to live and work in Paris for a couple of years, New York for a few years, and London for the rest of my life. After marriage (if anyone will take me!), I shall bring up my children in a place just like I was brought up (hopefully, this very village). At this point I shall be one of those chic and well-groomed Mothers who will follow the latest Vogue and Bazaar while still maintaining the sensible appearance of a Mum. While some of the Grannies and Mums who I see don't quite put the effort it, I shall be sleek and glam.

No more boho dresses, but I can keep the brogues. I'm thinking
From left to right, top to bottom: Jason Wu- sheer striped fine-knit silk sweater, Jonathon Saunders- oval waffle-knit cotton sweater, Isabel Marant- Luz hooded cotton and linen blend cardigan, Alessandra Rich- silk-cloqué and crepe gown, Hakaan- denisha mesh pencil skirt, Burberry London- cotton twill and raffia effect trench coat, Alexander McQueen- embellished cotton skull T-shirt, Alexander Wang- printed high-rise skinny jeans, Helmut Lang- asymmetric paneled cotton-blend sweater, J Brand- Zooey leather-trimmed linen-blend blazer, Christian Louboutin- Miss Tack 100 leather ankle boots, Yves Saint Laurent- New Chyc calf hair knee boots.

All of these were found after a quick flick through Net-a-porter and I think this selection is pretty accurate to what I have in mind. While the Louboutins add a touch of glam, casual t-shirts and sweaters enhance the Mumsie-feel. Alexander McQueen is, of course, a staple item, and while the printed jeans add something of the exotic to an otherwise dull wardrobe, the grey blazer is classy, formal, and structured. I chose grey because otherwise there is just far too much black, and a black blazer seems inappropriate for a Mum. 


I'm just counting on a husband who can pay for all this... ;)

Monday 20 February 2012

London Fashion Week

So everybody is buzzing about London Fashion Week. Possibly the most annoying bit was the girl on Facebook who uploaded pictures of her outfits; 'London Fashion Week outfit 1', 'London Fashion Week outfit 2' et cetera.
She then continued with the statuses and photos.
Okay I get it- you are invited to London Fashion Week and yes I'm a little bit jealous but I just, don't, care. Why? I don't quite see you giving me your invite. :p

I haven't posted in a while because I have been passed out in bed and when I say 'passed out', I mean ill, and when I say 'ill', I can tell you that I get every kinda ill that my body has to offer.
I won't give the gory details but I can verify that it has been nicely finished with a coldsore. Yummy. (sarcasm)
I won't bring you down with more negativity, although, I did just finish watching the McQ Autumn/Winter 2012 live stream on their Facebook page and I feel very disappointed. I don't agree that Khaki is back, I don't think that the hair was 'cool', 'interesting' or 'trendy' (I just thought that it looked like a bulb of garlic), I only caught a little interest when the deep pink-red hues appeared and I only liked the large coat which was clinched in at the waist, forming a 50's poodle skirt-esque shape.

Alexander McQueen is, as you might well tell, one of my all time favourite designers. However, it seems their contemporary collection of McQ this time round, is not in my favour. Ah well.

I'm not sure where you can watch it now that it is over, but this is where it streamed.

On a lighter note, I found my dream wedding dress. I have always said (oh my poor dear future husband) that I shall wear either Vera Wang, or Alexander McQueen. Preferably McQueen but it must be an original and not designed by Sarah Burton. By the time of my wedding (if anyone is willing to put up with me that is), this could be extremely difficult to find. So of course, I have to have options. I may be 17 but you have to plan for these things. In Tescos however, I spotted this (Oh God, imagine a Tesco's wedding dress!)

The model annoys me (what a fake smile) (also go away that's my dress).
No clue who it is by, but isn't it just so intricately sparkly and prettttyyyyyyy. I'm such a girl.

A few more quick things. I was browsing a book on Vivienne Westwood in Art the other day (ahh, so productive) but, strangely, few pages made me gasp with delight and I found little that hooked me. I'm usually a big fan so I blame whoever put the book together (I tried to find it on Amazon but I can't remember the front cover/ name, sorry!). This, however, J'adore
It's just so sleek and sexy (and French?). It makes me think of the Cello: not quite sure why.

Before I go, here's what I wore today with a simple pair of jeans and black shoes: chunky, bright (possibly too bright for The Queens Gallery, Buckingham Palace (oops; I was there today)), not particularly flattering, but hello retro;
Quite a contrast to Westwood's work above eh?

Wednesday 8 February 2012

I will keep following the sirens

Oh dear. Once again, the title is a quote from a song. I become temporarily obsessed with one song for a few weeks and it seems to be my only inspiration for a post title at the moment. This current title refers to 'White Nights' by Oh Land

Indeed, my titles echo my lack of inspiration and I think that I am in need of fresh air; fresh ideas. For now, however, a rather simple and boring post. Apologies.

I found a few amusing images from the photo shoot last week. You may not know Clementine, but I hope that you find these as entertaining as I do! Haha!

The image below is a photograph taken in Spain by Cullum in the summer 2011. It was taken on an old, film mamiya camera (£3 at a car boot sell!). I really love this image; the muted tones are incredibly alluring- truly the image of white sand and clear sky. The bright blue that I'm wearing however both reflect the sea in the distance and stand out emphatically.
 

I found this particular image somewhere online. I have absolutely no clue where from, but isn't it pretttyyy?

I found this image in some old files on my old computer. I remember how much I loved this outfit and hence I snapped away, intending to upload some photographs to the blog. I, um, never got round to it...awkward pause at my poor blogging skills... but here you go now. It's a leather skirt from topshop, a white jumper from topshop (which was uber soft and borrowed from a friend), and a thin, double-wrap, studded belt from I-have-no-idea-where (which I also borrowed from a friend). This close-up is the only photograph I could find. I really liked the contrast of fabrics; soft on leather on metal studs. Edgy meets comfortable. 



That is all for now, although, hopefully you may have noticed the new layout? I decided that to go with the new year, it was time for a new look.

Friday 3 February 2012

Oh my

Found these images which made me 'Ooh'

 Finally some attention on Viktor and Rolf's wonderful designs. I don't think I have seen a photoshoot where they used this dress before, only images from the catwalk. The contrast brings out the divide beautifully.
Couldn't resist
My friend was tagged in this photo on facebook and I asked if I could use it because she looks so beautiful and I just melted into the bright colours.

Wednesday 1 February 2012

I had everything; opportunities for eternity

The title lacks class and style but sometimes you can't help but write down the lyrics currently playing. Also with the way my life is turning I feel that these words are appropriate.

Now, you may have deliberated that I wish to be a part of the ever-growing fashion industry. Indeed, I have my heart set on it, but I am yet to choose a department.
Photography, journalism, design, stylist, productions; the possibilities are endless.

For now I am young (and wild) and free so I grabbed my bestie and forced her to model for me. I wanted to take an aim at styling and fashion photography, and although I knew that posing for photos would make Clem die a little bit inside, she is so pretty that I wouldn't take no for an answer.

I used GIMP (aka. free photoshop,I am not kidding you it is almost identical) and toyed with my creations.
Let me know what your opinions are, feel free to shred me to pieces (try and be kind), but hopefully they should be to your taste.

Oh and remember that this is my first time, I'm no Nick Knight.



(Yet)

 Perhaps a little extreme but I love the ephemeral beauty here. Also the lack of contrast and deathly pallor remind me of bit in The IT Crowd when the Vicar calls,

"Death! Death is coming. Death is here. Death is outside. There's no escape. You can run- death will catch up. My, who's that knocking at the door? Yes. It's death."

(But indified by quite a bit)
 
Hello casual yet slightly seductive posture. Oh and shoes: Topshop, tights: no idea, jumper: Mum's old posh swanky stuff, earrings: Urban Outfitters
 
You can see she got quite into the modelling job. We took these images quite late so the stark contrast and creative lighting was already in place on the bridge.
 
Jumper: models own (Urban Outfitters?), skirt: River Island, boots: Carvela, necklaces: assortment of vintage and antique treasures
 
Isolation
 
We had less worthy shots with this outfit as poor Clem got a little tired. That girl can't go long! Leggings: boogoo/misguided?, denim shirt: vintage, jumper and boots: local charity shop, earrings: Urban Outfitters

Possibly one of the biggest issues is narrowing down the final selection from the hundreds that get taken. I got carried away and started snap-snapping like the Paparazzi.
I also created a short video. While snapping away with the camera, I took aout 40 seconds of quick footage to experiment. When I arrived home I decided to play around with the footage and after some chopping I came up with this: