Dalmatian print..?

Wearing animal print is on par of myself slipping into something glittery. Neither happens or will I attempt to change that, until I stumbled across the many outfits worn during LFW by celebrities. See you later Kat Moon and your leopard print of yellow of black, dalmatian print is parading its bold spots with pride. The safest way to wear this has got to be accessories or one statement piece like high waisted shorts or heels, I can’t quite see anyone pulling off a dalmatian dress without looking like a rubbish interpretation of Cruella (dressing up as her must be done with professional effort).

Faux animal print that is quirky and different appeal to me far more than more repetitive and familiar prints. For me it compares to a cocktail on your lunch break. Refreshing and naughty – it sets it apart from the norm and ultimately boring.

Watching the Unique show of S/S 12 online is a great example of what is to come with their gold motif and metallic garments, creating a difficult pattern to mix into your wardrobe. After their show of A/W 11 finally revealing themselves into the stores, it's hard to resist the spots. Looking forward to collaborating the new Tutankuman inspiration into my style but for now it's all about the dog print. So, if anyone refers to any type of wild cat being the new fashionable print, I'll be sure to throw a spotty bangle their way.

Plus I've always preferred dogs...

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The red jeans

I wish I understood the meaning of being happy with what you have. I know I am blessed with the many things I do have, and own. But whether that's the material girl inside of me calling out, to quote a terrible song, or a fashion fiend, I just seem to enjoy holding a spider diagram (very apt for this month) inside my head with ideas of new clothes to collaborate with my existing wardrobe.

Note these beautiful jeans below. I'd like to run through my thought process right now as I stare at them...

Mmm. They are beautiful. I could wear them with my black ankle boots. Definitely could wear them with my poncho. But does coffee match red? Who cares. I would make it match my mickey mouse t-shirt from when I was nine if I had to. Mmm they are proper delicious. Dress them down or up? I think they deserve both. Urgh, for £75 they deserve to dress themselves. Maybe I should just dip into my overdraft, who needs food and nights out at the pub? Oh wait that is all I am doing at the moment so that definitely would not work. Check eBay for lovely people selling their pair that don't fit them. Horrible people haven't posted any. Who wants Primark jeans off eBay? Are they even allowed to call them jeans with the minimal amount of recognised fabric? Mmm look how pretty and cherry red they are...

You see, I could go on for hours dithering about whether to purchase an outfit or not, 98% of the time I just give in, and roll around in my happiness for a good long week, until I spot something else I must definitely own.

So you see, I think I have successfully explained my method of consumption, and will now continue to do what I do best - resist buying for a couple of weeks, then give to the red devil that is temptation.

London Fashion Week 2011

So the time has come for another round of fashion week, and you can hear the buzz in the air especially as it is only a few days away. From next friday to the wednesday, at every hour, each designer will take to their stage at Somerset House to produce the exciting array of their creations of S/S 2012.

Working in Carnaby Street, (mans fashion capital) allows me to be a forefront of any events, such as the street catwalk, and witness the many shoppers who suddenly transform from their dowdy autumn jackets, to their luminous heels and carefully chosen blouses and contrasting lipstick.

I want to say I'll be keeping up with the shows and contributing all my opinions here, but this year it seems they have surpassed such an amount to keep up with. Working behind the scenes at my first (and last) fashion week in 2009, taught me the extreme pressure and work that goes into each and every one of these productions. We had a least 5 or 6 shows a day, in the Fashion Scout area, and even that was a lot of pressure. Hats off to the ridiculous schedule, and I will watch from afar, from all portals of website extravaganza. Not to forget eagerly awaiting my invitations to the shows...

Needless to say, I am excited to see personal favourites such as Christopher Kane, Mulberry, Louise Gray and Matthew Williamson showcase their collection.

Then it's time to relocate our attention to Milan...

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The dress

So it was exactly 19 weeks ago that Wills married Kate at Westminster Abbey and there I was standing right next to 'the' wedding dress of the decade.

I didn't really know what to expect as we slowly shuffled around Buckingham Palace, side-stepping past exquisite paintings and refraining the need to touch the gold painted furniture, until we made it to the ballroom, to see the dress eerily placed on a tiny mannequin. Effortlessly trailing with respectful lighting, the dress looked magnificent. It was then that I realised that I definitely did not appreciate the full craftsmanship that went into this stunning design.

Sarah Burton, now leading the McQueen brand with pride and tenacity, created this beautiful gown with direct instructions from the Duchess herself, along with an army of helpers to intricately place it all together.

From the official Royal Wedding website itself, it describes the dress materials and main attributes..

'The dress is made from ivory and white satin-gazar (stiffened organza). The shape of the skirt, with arches and pleats, echoes an opening flower, and the ivory satin bodice, which is narrowed at the waist and padded at the hips, draws on the Victorian tradition of corsetry - a hallmark of Alexander McQueen’s designs. The back of the dress is finished with 58 gazar- and organza-covered buttons fastened by Rouleau loops. The underskirt is made of silk tulle trimmed with Cluny lace. The train measures 2.7 metres.'

'The Duchess’s wedding dress reflects the work of skilled craftsmen and women from across the United Kingdom. The lace appliqué for the bodice and skirt was hand-made by the Royal School of Needlework, founded in 1872. The lace was produced using the Carrickmacross lace-making technique, which originated in Ireland in the 1820s. Individual flowers were hand-cut from lace and hand-engineered on to ivory silk-tulle to create a design that incorporates the rose, thistle, daffodil and shamrock. Each lace motif, some as small as a 5-pence piece, was applied with minute stitches every two to three millimetres.'

''The bride’s veil, made of layers of soft, ivory silk-tulle with a trim of hand-embroidered flowers, was also embroidered by the Royal School of Needlework. The veil was held in place by the Cartier ‘Halo’ tiara, which was lent to The Duchess by The Queen. The tiara is formed as a band of 16 graduated scrolls set with 739 brilliants and 149 baton diamonds, each scroll being divided by a graduated brilliant with a large brilliant at the centre. The tiara was made in 1936 and purchased by The Duke of York (later King George VI) for The Duchess of York (later Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother) three weeks before he succeeded his brother as King. The tiara was presented to Princess Elizabeth (now The Queen) by her mother on the occasion of her 18th birthday.'

It was fascinating to learn of the extreme effort that went behind the production, and this is so apparent when looking at it close up. I also couldn't quite comprehend how small this dress was. The waist is astonlingsly small, 22 inches to be precise. To put it in some perspective, I'm 27 inches, and Victoria Beckham's famous size zero is 23 inches...so you can imagine how this dress looked quite surreal, almost fit for a porcelain doll, rather than an English woman.

Needless to say, the dress was fantastic as it eerily stands behind clear glass, with dim lighting recognised for the preservation of our most treasured and historical garments of years before, rather than a modern design. But thinking about it, this dress is sadly never going to happily live in Kate's wardrobe like most of our traditions, it will always be remembered and admired behind a window.

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Cellardoor Magazine - Issue 7

Quick posting today, after the complete failure of a published article last week with a different name attached to it, less said the better, I have good news to another that was correctly posted!

Cellardoor Magazine have released their seventh issue, with some fantastic features, beautiful graphics and with intelligent quirks that make it their own.

Take a look at page 83 for my own contribution, 'Create the perfect Shabby Chic look'.

To view the magazine click here. Hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

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Topshop rant...

I hate to say it, but Topshop is no longer my favourite place to shop. I know I'm possibly one of the last people to notice the appauling materials and manafacturing of the clothes but that doesn't change how headstrong I'm feeling at the moment.

Simple T-shirts, tops and jumpers have risen in extreme prices. I can't even justify paying £35 for a top that is sub-standard in materials. It bobbles, fades and eventually looses its thickness. I've already lost a maxi dress to them due to quite embarrassingly finding out they were going see-through.

Most of the things I own that goes up on eBay is also Topshop. When it is no longer fashionable and the material has gone past all dispair, I have no choice but to pass it on. I've also had a number of items that have needed fixing, due to seams or extra's falling off.

Not to forget my purchase of a £70 coat that did not even keep me warm. I actually have a few items from Primark that have stood the test of time far longer!

So, if I am going to keep my word and shun Topshop for a while until they sort themselves out, which is highly unlikely, my replacement is Zara. Oh Zara why have I not noticed your beautiful tailored, long lasting, soft and fashionable clothes for nearly half the price?

I bought two fantastic tops from there this week during my lunch break. Working on Oxford Street is an absolute nightmare for money savers! But great for replacing all the Topshop rubbish in my wardrobe. These two tops were simply tagged as 'basics' but they exceed the quality seen in the high price ranged clothes in Topshop. Absolute winner for me.

Now I am not condemning them completly - their lookbooks, leather goods and makeup range is all pretty amazing. I just have a right peeve at the moment with their overpriced clothes!

It might be the location of the store that I visited that held the best saught after items - but I hope the one local to me in Southampton matches up as I spend all my student loan in there this year!

Do you agree?

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Fiction

I've finally made the transition between reading the heartfelt and rather depressing true story books to one of non-fiction. The way stories should be and I believe I'm finding them much more interesting to read.

I have to admit I've been a pretty poor reader in the past - I would much rather cuddle up with a magazine than a book, but now it seems all I do is read magazines for work and play, I need another escape route that does step too closely in the work category.

Just a couple of months ago I finally finished reading 'Memoirs of a Geisha' and I was devastated halfway through to realise it was just one big bloody made up story. Even the author made it seem so realistic, talking to an old lady who used to be a Geisha during the war, and now she's passed it she wants to tell her story... and I fell for it. I think I lost my excitement about the book a lot because I really thought it was the only first hand account of what life was like for the entertainers of Japan. What a loser...

Although I did learn some Japenese. I now know that 'Geisha' means artist, an 'Okiya' is the home they lived at, 'danna' - is the 'unhusband' of Sayuri (main character) and 'mizuage' is a posh word for not popping your cherry.

Enough of me trying to prove my recent education in eastern history! The latest book I have just finished reading was a Richard & Judy summer read - which you cannot fault. Those Finnagans have never got it wrong, well the books I've read anyway.

My best friend's girl - Dorothy Koomson, is a great read - not the gripping the book and biting your nails suspense - but a gentle read for my delightful commute to London I suppose. It involves a lady, Kamryn, left with the decision whether to adopt her best friends daughter (who came about after her best friend and boyfriend slept together). This is because her best friend dies. I didn't ruin this for you. It says it on the 'blurb' on the back of the book anyhow...

Looking forward to my next read. Adele Parks - Men I've loved before. Couldn't tell you what its about, but give me a few weeks and I'll be sure to update you on the success of it. At work we get a lot of books sent to us for reviewing, so it means a cheap read for me which could possibly turn out for some online reviews.

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