Ain't no one trick pony...

There are two brands from NYFW that have overcome any connotations of 'celeb endorsed/designed brand' and they are Victoria Beckham and The Row. Both have developed and grown into marvels of modern fashion, and I adore both every season. They design collections and product that women want, and do it effortlessly and brilliantly. Now I can't comment on how much pencil gripping and sketching is done by the women themselves but I don't think that matters really, mostly because the product that both brands offer has proven to be desirable, edgy, coveted by women and commercially viable. 

If it was all about the name everyone would be devouring the product, but the price points of both are not as accessible and readily available to the Primark generation, and therefore these brands are pitching themselves at the seriously wealthy and seriously fashion obsessed. I believe you have to be obsessed to spend thousands a season, either that or just extremely fussy about what you wear. 

Anyway, to the collections, VB moved away from her usually structured and tailored offerings and produced a collection that is concentrating mainly on separates, and the mixed textures and fabrics of last season that VB has commented were extremely popular have made a come back in an attempt to please the women that love her product. I am loving that the silhouettes are really flirty, short and cute as opposed to the structured midi lengths that we have come to expect from Mrs Beckham. I loved that the collection had a chic and sporty element to it, and despite being less tailored and a whole heap more undone than she usually does it still looked polished and beautifully put together. 

As always her colour palette was muted, and emphasis was on cut and quality and I guess that is what Mrs Beckham's woman comes back for season after season. I loved that there was a flash of fuschia and oxblood to lift proceedings, the way that VB mixed textures and fabrics was the defining moment. The plastic looking triangle details on shirts was a weird edge that I loved. I especially loved that she has produced some of the classiest mini skirts, like ever! This is one celeb endorsement that gets top marks from me... 

I have always been a little bit obsessed with the Olsens, and have lusted after both their brands for quite some time now... I especially love The Row because it is a sure fire way to be able to look as louche, un-done and well fabulous as Mary-Kate and Ashley and this pleases me greatly. 

For S/S 14 the Olsens offered up their usual softly tailored, and louche elegance via Arabia, and I wouldn't usually dress up in robes and tunics day to day but as usual anything that the Olsen's say is cool pretty much turns out to be. I could imagine most of the looks looking stunning with heels and piles of trinket style jewels and stacker rings and looking more New York or Paris than Lawrence of Arabia... That is the magic of these two arbiters of cool, everything they touch seems to turn to gold and from the prices of this stuff the same goes. I loved that this collection was free from trends and looked absolutely nothing like anything else that other brands and designers offered up, and that's what makes The Row so cool, and proves that Mary-Kate and Ashley are far more than child actresses of yesteryear, they are designers of the most talented and fabulous kind. 

images style.com

The Daily Perv

                   

           

                   

I have become a little obsessed with the love baby of Humberto Leon and Carol Kim, also known as Kenzo. The current collection is nothing short of eye wateringly Perv worthy... The subject of today's Daily Perv is a clutch/pouch thingy with an eye embellished onto it.

Kenzo is to iconography what Yeezy is to hip hop, bad quotes and collaborations... It never used to be like this back in the day but when a brand has two stellar tastemakers such as Kim and Leon at the helm it's bound to produce some Perv worthy product... 

This season the tiger is still there in small quantities... The prints and such are clouds and eyes. The eye being the main focus if you take a peek at the show... Hence it appearing on all manner of things such as this pouch! So there you go... Some reasons for shameless perving/lusting/spending money...

Oh and also £150 for a designer clutch/bag/pouch/whatevs is well, cheap! 

Asian Persuasion

When quizzed about what got him so inspired by Geology for his s/s 14 collection Philip Lim reportedly responded with "standing on solid ground" which is apt I guess... being on this earth can only be a starting point to be inspired by it. Geodes specifically were the main line of inspiration for Mr Lim, and boy am I glad he is loving the sciences this season. As usual I was in love with the whole lot. Lim is well known for being an extremely commercially viable designer and brand, and stores he sells to only praise him for this. But that is what is brilliant, women may flock to buy but this isn't your usual easy-sell product. Season after season it is edgy, chic, wearable but equally really fucking cool. this is no0 Boring Betty stuff, it is aimed to be commercial for women who really DO fashion... he still maintained his sporty ethic that has become his signature, using techy fabrics and stunning embellishment and prints to bring his thematic point the fore of the collection. He used geode prints blown up onto brocade fabrics as well as intricate beading and sequin work, all mixed in with boxy, sporty and chic silhouettes that his brand has become renowned for. 

Alexander Wang proved for me why he is the hottest kid on the block with this collection... I'm a similar age and logo mania was at its height in the 90s when we were growing up, and this collection felt like his ode to the decade which is fast becoming seasonal inspiration in some form or another. When asked about the collection and his inspiration decade he commented "fashion was really fun, when there was wit and humor, and it wasn't so serious." Sadly due to the recession collections have oft become safe and about selling, and less about the creative outlet that fashion has always embodied in my opinion. 

Wang embraced logo mania in a witty, louche, chic and utterly wonderful way... his name was punched into leather, stitched onto fabric and repeated over and over in a silly and audacious way that is just Wang. Other looks embraced his now signature sexniess, and fondness for androgyny and girls wearing their boyfriends clothes in an oversize, sultry way. Oh and that penchant for yuppie tailoring that the early 90s wholeheartedly embraced. I loved that as usual the Wang girl is about girl impressing and man repelling... just what fashion should be about... fun and dressing for yourself and nobody else. 

I have been perving over Jason Wu's collections for many a season and this collection didn't disappoint... Another re-interpretation of the 90s but this is by far one of my favourite takes. It brings back memories of Kate Moss in THAT see through slip dress, young, lithe, whippet thin, barely a bit of make up on her face and a cig in her hand. Fresh faced, fabulous and so cool. Wu's version was a sexed up, glossier and altogether polished idea of this and I love it. If you look closely there are lace corsets under slips and the most stunning hand embroidered fabrics. My favourite idea is these superbly glamorous pieces teamed with mannish jumpers and oversized bikers... almost an element of "walk of shame" about it, but with your head held high and best lipstick on so if you are slinking home you do it with s streak of fabulous and attitude. Which I think is what 90s grunge seems to look like now. A glossier, expensive and edgy older sister of itself. Love. 

Release the Ratchet

Ratchet

A diva, mostly from urban cities and ghettos, that has reason to believe she is every mans eye candy. Unfortunately, she's wrong.

I don't know about you but I've noticed that there is one street style trend in particular that only seems to be growing and growing, one that I have had an element of in my look for many a year now. You might not have heard the term "ratchet" before if you didn't embrace hip hop or don't have many friends from a black or mixed race heritage, or if you are just a wee bit too old or it simply passed you by.. Basically this terminology encapsulates the way young girls are dressing nowadays, kids as young as twelve are rocking the ratchet look and they are owning it in a way that only girls that age can... You remember before insecurities and boy impressing took over! That time when you wore whatever without knowing if it was cool, or sexy... In my day it was tracksuits, Reebok classics and AirMax 1s or 90s... Now it is all batty riders, American Apparel disco pants and Air Jordans with crop tops and a weave so bouncy it'd make Beyoncé's quiver in the corner for dear life. 

Basically the term was coined heavily in the 90s to describe a certain kind of girl, in this day and age it could sum up an entire generation, because it seems that thanks to the likes of Rihanna, Iggy Azalea and Nikki Minaj (and wannabe ratchet Miley Cyrus) embracing and releasing your inner ratchet is the way to be. It is a bit grimy, a bit ghetto, a tad slutty and a whole heap of pretty cool. Its all ghetto gold, big weaves, bitchy stares and grills if you can afford them. I love throwing a bit of ratchet into my look, I tend to wear it with heels to give it a bit of a grown ratchet edge. 

The 2013 ratchet has evolved, and this look is no longer the babymomma of urban youth and only seen in darkest pits of South London, Manchester and wherever else you might spot some street cool kids, it has been wholly embraced by the middle classes, especially young white girls who are consumers and lovers of some of the celebrities who have made this a look, and a modern and pretty cool one at that. 

As well as younger girls there is no shortage of bloggers and stylists who wholeheartedly rock this look, mostly in an ironic and extremely chic/edgy/random way giving it an altogether fabulous edge... Think baseball jackets, form fitting dresses, ghetto gold trainers mixed into a wardrobe of sharp tailoring, leather, COS, Zara, chic pencil skirts and designer shoes and handbags. Like a way of mixing hi and lo-fi but with a bit of a cooler edge. Especially with designers such as Givenchy, Kenzo, Céline, Rodarte and Chanel embracing tee shirts and sweaters and making them the most covetable items ever. Think Jourdan Dunn rocking Brian Lichtenberg sweaters and Chicago Bulls vests with heels and pencil skirts and you get the idea. 

For me it is just a random way of updating a look, or making it look a bit silly or edgy, I draw the line at grills but each to their own... Now pass the ghetto gold I'm off dutty winding and twerking just cos I can. 

image... Grillz by Christian Ferretti for Interview, April 2013

Heartbreak Hotel

As someone who has suffered their fair share of horrible heartbreak, I feel that I can speak candidly on this subject.. I am most saddened by the fact that heartbreak is a really personal thing and should be experienced and felt privately (unless like me you talk to folk a lot about how you might die without cookies and box sets to get you through) but in this day and age of internet blab-your-life-all-over-social-media you just can't wallow in your heartbreak anymore. You see with your "relationship status" changing on facebook you get that horrible influx of comments and private messages, as well as texts and phone calls from those that have seen it, that make it hurt that little bit harder. The most horrible is when your now ex changes it the same day or very soon after, making you feel like what you had meant about as much as porn clip and a hand full of tissue on a lonely night in, or a bunk up with some drunken sweetheart you stumbled across at 2am on a Friday night. My point is in this age old share and share alike (with your mates, their mates and that crazy man from Argentina that friend requested you at 3am last Tuesday and you randomly accepted) that has become the norm in recent times has meant that NOTHING can be private anymore. You can't even have a crap day without the world knowing and making you feel even crapper. Don't get me wrong it's nice knowing that your ex can see when you're happy and you've dusted yourself off and moved on, but they also know when you have drank a bottle of wine every night for a week, dodged the gym and lived off nothing but crackers in some mental way of dealing with your heart feeling like someone has ripped it out and puked on it. Well that is unless you do the "dignified silence" thing or delete them altogether at the same time as you chucked out everything that reminds them of you, I guess it depends what Heartbreak Habit you have.

My Heartbreak Habit goes like this...

1. Box up the memories in a Chanel box/shoe box/rubbish bin. (Dependent on what type of ex)

2. Delete his number (but write it down so you can arrange to collect your stuff and hide the scrap of paper)... I lost the paper when I moved home...

3. I'm too nice to delete off Facebook so I hide them from my new feed til I am ok with stuff.

4. Only text/Facebook stalk/call when you have drank one too many Pornstar Martinis... I am far too sensible for these shenanigans when sober


I think what I am saying is that there a few things we can keep private these days, and I think some things should be respected and kept private, and for me break ups are one of those things. So the next time you are planning a smug facebook status why not consider that person you once loved more than those Loubs you got in the sale and write about what you just ate, X Factor, iOS updates or the bowel movements of your newborn child/puppy that you usually fill my news feed with. I swear it'll make you feel better being the better person... especially cos your ex will just act like a douche and write something tosser-esque that all your mutual friends will inwardly, or vocally mock them for. And you will look like the cooler one... 

1987 the icon...

                   

                   

                   

My illustration work will be featured in an awesome little show that my friend Stephen Kavanagh and a couple of his pals are putting on in celebration of quite simply one of the best things to come out of the year 1987... the AirMax1

If you happen to be a fan of the humble AirMax you should get yourself down to it if you can... as well as art work and installations following the theme of 1987 and the AirMax1 there will be 150 pairs on show for you to lust after!!! If my stuff wasn't in the show I would be going just for a shoe perv!!! 

So come celebrate, support and have a general show perv...

Pink is the new black...

Carven

Simone Rocha

Honor

THE SKIRT!!!!

Topshop Gwenda heels, £58, I also NEED them in lilac...

& other stories blouse

Zara 

Cos

Confession time... I am not usually one for trends, or "following" anything fashion related, however I have a dirty new obsession. A brand new fashion perv if you must... Pink. Yes the girlies, tackiest, fluffiest colour of them all. And not just your average fuchsia, I am talking sugary, candy floss hued, Pepto Bismol/Calpol pink. 

But this so ain't pink as you know it... I'm talking mixing textures like leather, PVC, and angora with a dash of gossamer light silk... I'm talking wearing princess coats with lilac stilettoes and yesterday's mascara (and knickers) This look will be a mixture f the subversive, the slutty and downright decadent. I will be mixing shades of sugary pink, teaming full, fifties skirts with transparent blouses and high heels... It will be my way of doing Stepford wife meets Linda Lovelace with a kick of Paris Hilton and Anna Dello Russo for good measure. I like to think of it as Hi meets low brow. 

I realise that my winter wardrobe would be resembling a pastel paint factory when I saw Simone Rocha's collection which was inspired by her Grandma... and i realised this was the way forward. I have already acquired a baby pink PVC pencil skirt, blue slut shoes and a mint green oversize cable knit jumper. Next are lilac pointed toe heels, and sheer check knee length kilt, a baby blu jumper and lashings of lemon. 

You see my idea of being all Lady Lady always has to have a twist, I am just not a girly girl and although the silhouette will be twee and oh so chic there will have to something "off" about proceedings. Such as lashings of ghetto gold, black n ail polish or a flash of bra through a see through gossamer fine blouse. You see what I'm getting at? A little slut to my Stepford... That is just me! I love to do things in a not quite perfect way, I think it makes a look interesting and all the more exciting. Where i8s the fun in utter perfection and looking pristine and "done"? I like to think there is none, and that is how I will justify my Naughty Granny look that I intend to spend the entire season owning all for myself. The baby pink PVC has already had her debut and the reaction was rather fabulous... For the next trick I will be teaming her with my oversize mint jumper and some silver brogues and cute frilly socks. Mostly because I can and partly because I love freaking out boys and nothing is weirder than a stripper skirt and Granddad jumper and shoes. 

I am loving the sheer breadth of what the upcoming season has to offer but grunge (bored of this already) and pared down minimalism are all very well, I feel like channelling a crazed Granny, or an undone lady rather than what else is being offered up. It just feels a bit more original and skew whiff than the usual cookie cutter trends that have been churned out. Plus I am definitely happy unless I am man repelling and impressing my fellow girls. It is more fun that way and the less put together I am the more comfortable feel in my own skin... Mostly cos I will be in a gay bar, dancing to disco and not worrying if the nearest bit of man candy is checking me out, cos I have the wrong equipment!

So think pink, if you've got any sense that is!