Eighties and Nineties

This has been a long time coming, I have my London Fashion Week blog post to write, but in the mean time I want to talk about the resurgence of the 80s and 90s in fashion. Not even just in fashion actually, but across all areas of culture.

Look at the music that is happening right now, there are melodic references to decades pasts and music production to support this. I am listening to Haim, big time at the moment and you can not deny their nineties tinged heart break anthems. They cite the likes of TLC and En Vogue as heros.

Moving on from music comes art with the likes of David Bowie educating us about outfits gone by. He is something of a legend so I am super happy to let him be my muse. Can not wait to see this exhibition.

Back to fashion, my favourite pass time, here are some of just a few brands who are reliving the good times. So to begin with the outrageous Rihanna (well everyone enjoys thinking of her that way) and her collaboration with River Island. The presentation is like an episode of Sex and the City, in season 1/2 before the fashion got big. I kind've loved the collection, but don't see myself running around London bra-less and knickerless to hide any lines which will most likely be on show in one of these slinky dresses.

 

Anyone living in London, or a cool cosmopolitan city will know about Boy London, yeah you know what I'm talking about, the black on white iconography on street wear silhouettes and accessories. You aint no one to you've rocked a truckers hat with 'BOY' emblazoned on it. Straight from the eighties, the brand reminicises about the days of disco. I kind've feel I should stay away from this trend, but the more I see it, the more I want a voluminous t-shirt to call my own.

 A complete guilty pleasure; The Carrie Diaries centres on Carrie Bradshaw pre her SATC days, it is such a teen drama but I can't help but watch, especially when you take into account the ingenious eighties fashion. People may cringe, but amidst the tafetta and puffball skirts there are some inspired pieces; and why did people stop wearing stilettos? Hello eighties, glad you're back again, sport's wear and scrunchies, of course you can't go wrong.

Finally the Dries Von Noten's, SS13 collection and its ode to grunge. Think Nirvana and Kurt Cobain's check shirts. They have of course had a luxe make over premium fabrications paired with floral seperates. If I had an extra bit of change in my pocket I would spend it all on Dries von Noten.

Don't look back in anger I heard you say (Oasis lyrics)...look back for inspiration for this season's trends.

Nail Art

I think that nails have had a real renaissance; partly due to the economic situation and party tue to social networking where people can share their designs. I have a massive tin full of nail varnishes, from nails inc, through to Barry M and love trialing new designs on a regular basis. It costs a lot less than a new outfit and can update any look.

My nails don't tend to last more than a day or two so I can't recommend a best brand but my friends swear by OPI and Essie. I do think that a good topcoat can prolong your nails though, I recommend Seche which can be brought from Liberty in London. My general process is 1) a base coat (Sally Hansen does a good on), 2) one thin coat 3) a second thicker coat 4) any design work would be next 5) Top coat.

Here are some of my best design work:

This design was achieved with two coats of Barry M Mint nail varnish, and one coat of 314 colour nail effect by Barry M!

Two coats of Potion by No. 17 nail varnish and one coat of 311 colour nail effect by Barry M!

Two coats of Peach Melba by Barry M and the design was created by using one coat of Red Nail by H&M nail varnish as an outline.

I can not remember the name of this nail varnish but it is by OPI, two coats.

Two coats of hopscotch nail varnish by Top Shop, check design was created using black and white nail art pens from Primark!

Black Leather (PU) Trousers

I try to be experimental with my fashion choices and style; but I am always hesitate when it comes to major statement pices. Case in point the leather trousers; they have been a big hitter for the last couple of seasons for the winter months.

What I like about this this year's version is that it has a looser, more sportier fit which is perfect for me as I have quite chunky thighs. Rather than clinging the new style of PU trousers skim!!! There are loads of different types out there at varying price points. I took the plunge and decided to buy a PU pair from H&M for £34.99, I had to take the waist in a bit but they are a good fit and slightly tailored. I decided not to go for real leather mainly because I wasn't sure how many wears I would actually get out of the trousers or how long they would be cool for. Let's not forget after all once upon a time leather trews were for the Bette Lynchs and Liz Mcdonalds (see. Cornation Street) of the world.

I couldn't find the exact pair of trousers that I have on the web, but here are some of my style ideas for the leather trousers which can be worn for work or play!!! The trousers below have a similar fit to my ones but are actually from Whistles priced at £350.

I hope you give them a go as well, you will be suprised at how versatile they are. Remember to soften them with something less harsh on top like a knit or cotton tee!

A long time coming...

I haven't written in a while mainly because I have been super busy at work and haven't had the mental capacity to do anything afterwards.

I am just watching the first two episodes of the Carrie Diaries, which is supposedly about Carrie Bradshaw in her teen years before Sex and the City and am feeling all fashion-y and inspired again. For those of you who are interested, it is actually quite good, especially if you like teen american series and eighties fashion (which having been born in that decade I love), you can watch the episodes here.

So last week I was away for work, I went to Bread and Butter in Berlin for four days and then onto Paris. The B&B tradeshow was immense, the square footage alone was enough to make you drop your jaw, add to that the crazy amount of brands under one roof and it was buyers heaven. They had four main exhibition spaces, and my favourite was the Fire Department at the L.O.C.K which was a small area dedicated to smaller brands like Tanner Goods, Andersen-Andersen and Gilded Ages.

Moving on, after Berlin I headed to Paris in time for Men's Fashion Week or #PMFW if you are into the hastaging mullarkey. On of my highlights were bumping into Kanye West on the street, thanks to my iPhone 5 I have this photograph.

I am not normally one for men's fashion but as I was in the vicinity I decided to check out the London collections showspace in Paris. It was great to see some really inspiring British designers in Paris, a home from home some may say!

My favourite designers were:

Sibling - I am a big fan of Sibling mainly because of their Sister by Sibling women's range. However their Men's range is equally as flamboyant and bedazzled so I love it also. I am pretty such I could easily wear 70% in a size small.

Nasir Mazhar - It's all about the sport's wear at the moment as the eighties is coming back in a big way albeit more contemporary. Mazhar laid out some great tracksuits with clashing prints and colour blocking. If I did sports wear i would be wearing these pieces.

Astrid Andersen - His collection is actually beautiful, it is hard to believe that it is a men's collection! Ignore the silhouette, it is all about the fabric which is screen printed to perfection. There was something very cosmic about Andersen's pieces, it made me want to dig back in the fashion archives and see what I could find.

So there you have it my travels...

Oh yes and in other news, I brought a pair of black PU black leather trousers from H&M, bold fashion move I think! More on this later!!!

What's in my bag? 100th Post

I can't believe it has taken almost two years to get to my 100th post, but here I am. I thought I would take the opportunity to do a classic 'what's in my bag' post:

Marc by Marc Jacobs shoulder bag (see more marc jacobs handbags)

I can also harp on about my new Marc by Marc Jacobs black leather bag, which is amazeballs!!! It is quite an edgy look, and the leather is super soft and smooth.

Inside my bag is: black A6 notebook by Muji, black patent purse by Anya Hindmarch, keys, red knitted gloves by Accessorize, sunglasses by Polo Ralph Lauren, prescription glasses by Christian LaCroix, headphones by Apple, IPhone 5, body spray by Ted Baker, Lipstick by Nars, oyster card holder by Accessorize, pen, hand cream by Sanctuary, Halls Soothers, Vaseline pot, lipgloss by Mac, small torch, Ibuprofen, mirror by Accesorize and a business card holder.

I am actually suprised by how many things I was actually able to fit into such a small bag.

House of Holland

So New Year, new fashion season. While checking out the various sales this month, I also started to notice the new season pieces arriving in my favourite stores. Urban outfitter is a great place to find diffusion lines/ designer labels that won't bankrupt you.

I have found myself lusting over pretty much everything from Henry Holland's pre SS13 collection. I love the fact that everyone seems to do some sort of cruise/transition collection to get people delving further into their pockets.

The main theme for Holland's collection is these weird little Pom Pom creatures which I adore. As per usual his collection is surreal and fun and the little critters are featured on dresses, skirts and jumpers. Check out the video below that Henry did with the Pom Pom peeps...

 

Here are some of my favourite looks from the House of Holland's latest collection.

 

The shirts are definitely the first on my hit list!!! I also hope that the shoes in these Look Book pics are for sale because they are so damn cute!!!

 

 



Sale Items

So I tried to do a Vlog on the sale items that I brought but it was way to large to upload in the end. I am mainly disappointed with this year's sale as it didn't really seem to have much in it, and the discounts where not at a high percentage on the highstreet. The really good sales came from places like Selfridges and Libertys and even then the products were out of my budget.

I did manage to pick up three things in the sale that I was really proud of, see below. I am also eyeing up a couple of other items which I may buy...the Prade Mary Janes that I was also looking at were reduced to £315 just outside of my price range!

Sale Buys:
Mint Knitted Jumper, Monki £40 reduced to £18. This will keep me warm through to March! I love the volumn and the bell shape.

Marl Grey T-Shirt, Monki £15 reduced to £3. It is a great causal piece which I can layer with bits and pieces. It's a nice slouchy shape as well so it sits just off my shoulder. I wore the t-shirt on New Year's eve with the skirt below.

Floral Pencil Skirt, River Island £28 reduced to £10. Florals are going to be another big trend for SS13 so this is a great piece to carry me through next season. The background is really dark so it works well throughout the seasons. The pencil skirt is a key item in my wardrobe mixed with smart or casual pieces.