The boy....

This is Redmond. He is the boy, my boy. Hear me out! I know, I know I'm bound to biased and all because he is my other half... the milk to my tea, the Chas to my Dave, the gin to my tonic (you get where I'm going with this don't you?) but even if he wasn't I would still act like a stalker weirdo and follow him and ask for his picture.

I am quite particular about my 'man shots' and any of my street style people choices for that matter, but I am particularly anal about the men I shoot. Due to a much smaller show schedule and roster of designers to be inspired by I find men's style and fashion in general can be quite limited. I have observed that the way they dress, and therefore what brands/retailers provide, is quite heavily determined by street style and trends. Unlike women's fashion there aren't huge shows/trends/designers to be influenced by and I find what is on the high street is very much fast churned product that some publications, and trend forecasters pick up on and label as trends that are seen on your average men folk and watered down to commercialised consumer level. My point is, I don't like guys who follow this vanilla, army like tribe of aesthetics. I look for guys who are effortless, quietly stylish, rocking something that stops me in my tracks, or makes me think "I could do that" or "I'd so rock that if I was a penis-packing man." 

What I love about this look is the simplicity, no hipster cliches, Boy London, or jeans rolled up so high he looks like he can't afford clothes that fit. Some of these elements on certain individuals make me stop and snap, but in other respects they can look overdone and a little try hard. With this I just like the simple components... waxed parka, selvedge denim, leather desert boots and a flash of green. With that I simply think my boy looks cool, a bit plain, but cool all the same. I am planning on stealing his jacket when he isn't looking. Oh and that jumper (which has awesome contrasting elbow patches that are hidden away here) would look good with my vintage denim shorts or one of my many pleated skirts... 

Let them eat cake at the beach!

As a self confessed fashion pervert I look forward to many a thing fashion related, especially fashion shows. Now there are many, many designers that I adore, respect and wish I could trolley dash their work rooms and never fail to look forward to their shows. But (yes massive but) there are two collections that never fail to make the hairs on the back of my neck stand up... Chanel Metiers d'Arts and Chanel Cruise. Now, don't get me wrong Couture and RTW are mean feats of fashion magic but personally I always feel completely enamoured by what Karl does in these two shows.

This week saw the presentation of the Chanel Spring/Summer 13 Cruise collection... As you can imagine I was muchly excited as unlike some designers Karl & Co put on a show for their cruise collection. The beauty of these collections is they are here solely for fun, the collections rarely reflect the upcoming spring/summer trends and are usually a nice sneak peek of what may or may not come next season, but are for rich folk to update their walk-in wardrobes. I was overjoyed when these photos tumbled before my eyes... In the gardens of the Palais de Versailles was a stunning coterie of looks inspired by the original wonderkind Marie antoinette, France's youngest and most scandal-ridden queen. Karl referred to the collection as "Versailles in a Socialist France" and hats off to the Kaiser it certainly was. You see Marie Antoinette and her courtiers were transpored to a futuristic, renaissance inspired trip to the beach. Eighteenth century details such as corsetry, panniers and fichus met with twentieth century delights such as Chambray, plastic and techno denim. Chanel showed off the talent of their various ateliers with boullion stitching, embroidery and sheer technical beauty, there was gold lame, intricate bead work in the shape of coral and to top it all off... little bobbed wigs in an array of ice cream pastels. Even the swimwear fitted in with the theme and didn't seem out of place among the britches and bustles. There were quilted leather bags fashioned in the shape of watering cans and brogue flatform shoes. If any of you darlings have seen the visual feast that is Marie Antoinette by Sofia Coppola, it was like a frilly, fancy fashion show scene straight from the film. Azaelia Banks and M.I.A were the soundtrack, and show DJ extraordinaire Michel Gaubert coined the term 'ghetto royale' to sum up the audio proceedings. I never thought anything could top some of the magical things Karl has done in the past at the Chanel shows but this managed to, it was a little frivolity and fantasy in these tough economic and political times, and I for one enjoyed being swept up in it all while I perused over the photos. Oh to have been there...

Sorry, I look a little grungy today...

Meet Pierre... First off doesn't he just have the best name? And secondly, yes, he is French (npt one of these hipster twits who change their name to look "edgy"). Pierre is a PHD student and sales consultant at Louis Vuitton. Smart AND a snappy dresser! I am more than impressed. Pierre never fails to look dapper in his uniform, but the photos here that I took leaving work with him on a balmy Saturday evening are proof that he is just as well put together outside the office as he is inside. There are a few reasons why I have a soft  spot for Pierre... the fact he apologised for looking a little grungy, the varying shades of black and last but not least... THE SHOES! Now I am a shoe pervert when it comes to anything mannish ie. a loafer, brogue, stack brogue, penny loafer, tasseled loafer, whatever! The more trad and boyish the better. I love the square toe, and looooong tassels and the slightly beaten up look of the loafers in question. I think I secretly want to own them. My favourite part of this look is the way the shoes have been totally juxtaposed with the beaten up washed out denim jacket, skinny jeans and grey camo printed bag. 

As you all should know by now I am a firm believer in something being a little off, a little skew whiff in an outfit and Pierre met my weird compulsions with the shoes. Oh the shoes, how I covet thee! However there was one more thing that threw the outfit off... the QUIFF! I adore a big old, rockabilly/teddy boy-esque quiff. The reason I heart Pierre's particular feat of hair wonderment is that it is always, ALWAYS perfect. I swear! Not a follicle, or strand outta place. He is so lovingly groomed I think he puts us girls to shame sometimes. One can't fault a metrosexual man who pays attention to detail. You with me? I really like how the well groomed aspect of Pierre kind of doesn't match the outfit either, and I am all for sartorial opposites, I think it's what makes the most well dressed folk all the more wonderful. I think it adds to someone's look and never fails to catch my eye when I'm chasing people around for the blog.

So without further ado, to Pierre! For proving the best the best thing to leave the nineties is the desire to look a little grungy sometimes. Well, artfully so. 

Marcy Marc, can you hear the beat of my heart?

Oh wow! Where do I start? This is Yee Ping... She is Marc Jacobs Brand Specialist on Ladies Accessories. Today she is well and truly living her brand values... "Why?!" I hear you cry... need you ask! The girl is rocking current season Marc by Marc Jacobs , oh boy does she do it well. Hubba hubba is what I thought when I bumped into her on my way to work today. You see me and Yee work in the same place and I have never seen her rocking anything but her uniform black and I was bowled over to see her this morning.

She politely asked me to conceal her face as she was all fresh faced and no make up... so I kindly obliged. I sort of like the whole 'faceless subject' thing sometimes because I think it makes it very intriguing and mysterious, and you have to guess what the person might look like. Yee is very pretty before you ask... 

Soooo back to the garms in question... I totally heart the whole lot! I love the way that she has juxtaposed a very prim, ladylike pussy bow blouse with an edgy neon orangey pink a-line skirt. My favourite part is the fact that the skirt is really stiff and rigid against the flimsy, frippery of the silk polkadot blouse. I adore the mash up of pretty-pretty polkadot being given a total bashing by the bold neon of the skirt. Even better is the fact she has toughened up such a feminine silhouette with sharp tailoring in brash black. Now I am not usually a fan of the ol' Ugg boot in a street style snap but it totally works here... "why, oh why??" you cry... because they are icy white and box fresh and look a little off with the Marc and the Mulberry. UH HUH HUH! I love a little off detail in an outfit, for me it is what makes it... and as Jenna Lyons of J Crew dresses by this mantra, I agree. Mainly because she is my idol, and I have a secret lady style crush on her... and if you google her you will understand my fashion fascination with her. Plus she has red hair, so that makes her a fashion god lady in my eyes...

Last, but oh sooo not least... ACCESSORIES! For me Yee has executed this perfectly, the Mulberry Polly Push Lock was one of my favourite styles of 2010-11 and it made me muchly sad I didn't get my little mitts on one, espesh since it didn't get repeated after it's two lovely seasons. In this situation I am loving it. I love a geeky, satchel style handbag and I think it finishes off the girlfest of Marc Jacobs perfectly. Oh and she has a Chanel brooch which totally feeds my hunger for the double C. 

All in all rather delightful...

Damn these itchy fingers...

pretty old peplums and pockets. 3rd may 2012.

a lesson in lilac. 3rd may 2012.

lady, lady in limoncello yellow. 3rd may 2012.

a few more illustrations my itchy fingers have been bashing out for you to peruse. enjoy. 

any enquiries please do not hesitate to contact me at amanda_alice@hotmail.co.uk 

watch me dance, watch me dance

i hear you in my heart, 1 may 2012

hang my heart out to dry won't you? 1 may 2012

look mummy, it's raining hearts! 1 may 2012

one day, in the not so distant future i like to think that my itchy fingers will lead me to a fancy career. you see aside from following cool folk in the street and what not i have a rather perverted passion for illustrating and styling (more on that later). i am building up to my own website but i am currently allowing my itchy fingers to go wild so i have enough work to whack onto a website. i hope that these crazy doodlings could help me to be something other than a shop girl full of day dreams. i like to believe that there is more to me than tip top customer service and an ability to transfer my love of the clothes i sell onto other folk. 

so, today i let my itchy fingers have a whole lot of dancing fun and attacked my sketch book. i have been developing my illustration style and have wanted to explore different forms of media from what i'm used to so i can show that i am no one trick pony. i like to think i am a multi talented unicorn with the ability to transfer what i like to think of as a "talent" (god i HATE that word, it makes me think of Simon Cowell and dancing dogs) to many different things and projects. when i get the old website up and running (christmas is my deadline) hopefully folk might want to you know, hire me and commission my itchy fingers for things. well here is hoping. so i'm going to cross all my itchy fingers and hope that it all goes well. for now here are a few of my doodles for you to enjoy.