Tim Walker @ Somerset House

I took a holiday from the busy streets of London and landed in Tim Walker's exhibition at Somerset House and what an enjoyable time I had. Tim Walker is by far one of my favourite fashion photographers because the images that he captures are other worldly and steeped in fairy tale. For those who are not familiar with Tim Walker's work will at least know him from the AW12 Mulberry campaign which he photographed with the hairy monsters.

The free exhibition at Somerset is sponsored by Mulberry and is on now until the 27th January. There is a strong body of his work displayed along with props from the photographs and insights into the photographers thinking.

I recommend getting lost in this wonder land for an hour or two. See some of my favourite pieces below:

A quiet courtyard at Somerset House

Larger than life wasp, beetle and cricket

This skeleton was absolutely massive, maybe 20ft tall. It would be a great addition to anyone's home with Halloween on the way.

Something nightmares are made of, a gigantic doll

There's something fairytale like about this peace

Poor Scarlet Johanson

The march hare...Albert Elbaz



All things bright and beautiful

I am feeling very blog-chatty today so I am posting for the second time. After my month of splurging, I am going to try not to buy anything else this month. My wardrobe is bulging and I had to take a massive bag of bags to the recycling skip as my room was beginning to look like a whose who of the British high street; Urban Outfitter, River Island, Topshop...I am however allowed to look.

 

Below are three of my best discoveries:

 

Vampire fang sterling silver necklace by Verameat; available in various finishes. I actually read about this New York brand in Nylon's September issue. They have some really amazing pieces all made with high quality metals. I am not sure if they deliver to the UK, but I will definitely be enquiring once my spending ban is over. The necklace is my favourite and anyone who knows me will know why. I am a big fan of vampire related movies/stories/TV programs. Prices start at $90 for this beauty which is around £60, this is a bargain for a forever piece like this.



 

 

Second on my hit list are these gorgeous Red leather Harlem ankle boots by Jeffrey Campbell, available at Office. I happened upon these during my last visit to Selfridges. This footwear combines three of my favourite things: an ankle boot, a wedge heel, and something a bit quirky. I know the cut away heel, or horse hoof it you may, has been done to death but this ankle boot is so unassuming it doesn't matter. Mine for £115; I am usually quite cheap when it comes to shoes, but my Litas have proved that JCs are prefect for running around in and so worth spending a little bit more on.

This is my splurge item, something that I know I will never buy, but will continue to day dream about. This faux-fur lined leopard print cape from APC is what every autumn wardrobe should include. This piece is versatile, maybe slightly showy, but would work perfectly with a pair of skinny jeans and boots. At £330 it is out of my price range, but I can only hope that no one buys it and I can get my hands on it at a marked down price later on in the season. Fingers crossed!!!

Soo these are few of my favourite things...Enjoy the rest of your Sunday, it's back to work tomorrow!

Anna Dello Russo x H&M

So there was soo much hype about the collaboration between Anna Dello Russo and H&M, but the actual launch passed me by. I was heading to WH Smith's in Selfridges (they have the best selection of fashion magazines in London) when I stumbled across the turquoise and gold den. It was a visual explosion, of gems, glistening metals and ostentatious jewellery.

I am a huge fan of H&M and Anna Dello Russo who can only be described as Fab-u-lous! I was glad to see that the collection was exactly what I expected it to be, and ten times more but I think H&M forgot that Dello Russo is super fashion forward. I think the pieces in the range, although amazing were not that easy to wear unless you are a flamboyant editor of Vogue.

Check out some images of the collection in-store:

Almost life size Anna on VM Display

Amazing charm necklace, bling tastic at £99.99

Extravagant, black bird headpiece/fasinator!!! Why do I not have any amazing events to wear this to.

Accessorise with any pair of glasses.

 

I'm a big fan of packaging, and this hits the spot.

My favourite piece was these sunglasses on a chain.

 

 I can't wait until H&M's next collaboration with Maison Martin Margiela...

 

 

Melabelle AW12

Me and Fashion Somebody braved the cold autumn air and heading down to Notting Hill to see Melabelle's AW12 collection. The brand has not previously been on my radar but I was intrigued to see what the company had to offer.

Their AW12 collection is versatile with lots of co-ordinating pieces; mix and match if you like. The pieces are a combination of seperates and dresses sprinkled with some luxurious outerwear. The designer Bella Cagner describes herself as a bit off a tomboy which you can see have influenced her collections, although the pieces are feminine they are also understated and easy to wear.

Below are some of my favourite pieces, I love the print on the shirt especially it is easy to dress up or down!!!

In terms of price points, the range is probably a little pricey for me, especially after all of my recent purchases. But the quality of the clothes makes the cost of the clothing very reasonable; think Hobbs or Jaeger. Prices start around £71 for a tunic top through to £435 for a wool pea coat.

Overall the collection is beautifully relaxed and the pieces within it would be a welcome addition to any modern woman's wardrobe.

Check out their website to find your newest store or buy online

Spending Spree

I blame fashion month and my Birthday, having recently come to the realisation that I have had a crazy month of spending. I am not rich, far from it but that hasn't stopped me spending my hard earned dosh on a crazy amount of items. Having said that I think they are all key pieces for the new season or am I just trying to justify the situation. Laid out before you are all of my wears including...

Dark red knitted pencil skirt with braces by Or Out £10
Black Pyjama print Shirt (not shown) by Max C £19
Blue/Pink/White strappy playsuit from Urban Outfitter £25
Light blue shirt from H&M £29.99
Green double breasted coat from H&M £69.99
Bright pink mohair jumper from H&M £29.99
Black/turtoise shell cat's eye sunglasses by Ralph Lauren £78
Yellow/white jewel earrings £3.99
Light green jewel earrings £3.99
Burgundy patent wedge creepers by Underground £135
Stonewash jeans with velvet knee patches (see last picture) by Topshop Unique £50
Jewel necklace (see last picture) from H&M £9.99

 

I love the yellow earrings and the pink jumper together, these are great transitional pieces.

This look is very AW12, I love the dark green with the dark red and the light blue shirt makes the look extra smart. The burgundy Underground creepers are edgy but smart.

 The only pair of jeans that fit me very perfectly; the velvet patches add a nice twist to a classic pair of jeans. This necklace is truly blingtastic only to be worn in a very casual way!!!!

Soo £329.94 + a gift of a pair of £135 Underground shoes later by wardrobe is bulging even more than usual, and my bank manager must be shaking his head.

New York Fashion Week

I have finally had a chance to start trawling through the millions of images uploaded on the internet from the NYFW shows. I am a big fan of New York fashion week because it is very commercial and there are lots of wearable pieces. I love creative clothing, but I also like to be able to visualise myself wearing the items.

Key New York designers I like to see are Proenza Schouler, Marc Jacobs, Alexander Wang, Victoria Beckham and Jason Wu.

Victoria Beckham's SS2013 collection was very crisp. I feel like she is getting into her stride now as you can begin to see signature details such as crisp tailoring and streamline silhouettes. I think this season had sports influences; tennis dresses spring to mind! 1960/70s could have also factored in as there were a lot of sixties minis and long flowing seventies skirts and wide brimmed hats.

Below are a few of my favourite pieces:

Moving onto Victoria by Victoria Beckham (smart business move, you need to be accessible to as many markets as possible without decaying your brand name); this collection was much more SS2013 in my mind. The colour palette was much softer. This collection was less cohesive compared to the main line but her diffusion line has less seasons behind it.

What I loved about the collection was tie dye dresses, french anglaise pieces, and the waist cinching ditsy prints. The collection is dress heavy, but then I love dresses. I also love the flatforms donned by the models. Way to be on trendy Vicky

I really want to give you my take on Marc Jacobs but I feel that it deserves its own posts.

British Fashion Award Nominations

Last week was my birthday, and I have to say I am quite glad it is over!! As it is always a time to re evaluate what I have been doing for the last year!!! I have been contemplating whether to change my style but it is what it is, I think that rather than being more grown up, I am going to take the last few years of my twenties and really mix it up!!!

Speaking of style/fashion (as always) me and my pal Fashion Somebody managed to get ourselves on the guest list for the announcement of the nominees for the British Fashion Awards. It was a really fun evening as it was held at the Savoy, absolutely love that place. Am planning afternoon tea there soon!

Harold Tillman reading out the nominations

Champagne was flowing, and there were canapes being served!!! It was great to be in a room some of the most influential people in fashion, and we got the opportunity to speak to Mary Katrantzou which was pretty epic! She was heading start back to the studio to work on her SS13 collection, I can't wait to see what she delivers.

Mary Katrantzhou

 

Also in attendance was Jonathan Saunders, Erdem Moralioglu, Christopher Kane, Simone Rocha and JW Anderson. I am super excited about JWA's collection for Topshop (will post some images soon). The guys all seemed pretty down to earth and friendly but I was to shy to go and speak to any of them.

If you want to know who the nominees where, click on this link which will take you to the main website.

I am glad I got to go and am looking forward to attending LFW's launch party next week!!! I have not had much time to see much of New York Fashion Week, but I did see a round up of Victoria Beckhams collection, and it was spot on. You can see that she has found her our handwriting and is slowly developing this further as I saw subtle details from her AW12 collection being re worked, such as de-tached arm cuffs and boned long bodycon skirts. Anyway I will go into more detail in my next post.

Till next time...