fashionvfashion

Bridal Gowns for Sale, Bride not included

2011-06-20T05:32:00.000-07:00

Having researched pre-loved and used sites for bridal gowns which have been used (mostly) and are now surplus to requirements I am intrigued by the relatively high number of brides who have obscured their identity, by various means. Why would something which was such a significant piece of clothing for these women need to be so clearly dis-associated from them at the point of sale? Has anyone sold a wedding dress and done this? I'd love to get your thoughts/ reasoning for your white out.

New York Fashion Week: DKNY's Love story

2010-02-17T09:07:00.000-08:00

Slouchy, oversized jackets and flirty pleat minis were key standouts pieces in Donna Karan’s sixties student inspired collection for DKNY. A young Ali McGraw was brought to mind with patchwork mini-dresses, cropped trenches and striped long-sleeved wool jersey tees finished with elongated scarves and woolen tights. 60’s penny loafers were given a harder edge though with a vertiginous 70’s platform finish. In a daywear palette of neutrals brown, tan, burgundy, and bronze, a gray hooded toggle coat was the standout outerwear piece in a story that looks set to cement the Love Story mood for a perfectly preppy autumn.

photos:Marco Madeira/Firstview.com

Jacobs goes marching on

2010-02-17T09:06:00.000-08:00

The new Marc Marc Jacobs saw the military trend galloping from strength to strength in a collection that could have been sourced from an east Berlin thrift shop – all eastern army surplus in a distillation of the vintage spirit that has driven the range since its inception. Khaki melton oversized coating, red square fur hats and little drummer boy jacketing sat with menswear-inspired tailoring for daywear which translated to pretty drop-waist lace and structured metallic brocade dresses for night. Relaxed styling and a spirit of thrift bonhomie imbues this collection with a likeability and accessibility which seems to grow by the season.

New York Fashion Week: Wang cuts and sews

2010-02-15T08:53:00.000-08:00

Alexander Wang chose Wall Street as the starting point for autumn, superficially taking the traditional banker's suit and deconstructing its classic menswear components to re-configure in torso exposing crops which fed into a 90’s referenced collection. A successful progression for a designer more widely recognized for his skills in easy jersey layering, though a silhouette that would be a challenge for any other than the most midriff-confident to carry off. Tailoring segued into elegant eveningwear which flagged lace and velvet as key autumn fabrics which echoed Lanvin in its elegant drapery and a more mature cocktail luxe for the older Wang customer.

Accessories are already 30% of Wang's turnover and the boxy calfskin bags, metal-detailed clutches and oversized ankle boots on show look set to keep sales on the increase.

photos:Marco Madeira/Firstview.com

Lanvin Loves Leopard

2010-02-12T05:24:00.000-08:00

Alber Elbaz at Lanvin offered some straightforward looks for pre-fall — grey flannel suiting, a black denim trench worn over a washed leather vest and skirt—but throughout Elbaz took his inspiration from the ‘leopard lady’; a real Frenchwoman that the designer and his team often see in the streets around Paris. Never without her leopard coat, even at the height of summer her animal aesthetic informed the collection's mix-and-match prints, collaged furs, and jewelled tops and skirts. Alber's more-is-more layering is sure to translate into an item driven big cat fest on the high street, but for those of you who can't wait till the autumn we love the look shown with a 50’s silhouette from Posh Girl Vintage, and for those of you on a more modest budget you can rock the look with an 80’s vibe for a mere £20 at Stegnome Vintage

Alexander McQueen dies.

2010-02-11T08:14:00.000-08:00

Very sad news today as the death of Alexander McQueen is announced, just days before the start of London Fashion Week and weeks before he was due to unveil his new collection at Paris Fashion Week.

McQueen trained in tailoring after leaving school at 16 and went to work at Savile Row’s Anderson & Sheppard, eventually making suits for Prince Charles. He had the distinction of being named British designer of the year four times between 1996 and 2003 and went on to be awarded the CBE, as well as being named International Designer of the Year at the Council of Fashion Designer Awards. Hoping to work as a pattern cutter tutor at Central Saint Martins he was persuaded to enroll in the course himself and after graduating set up his own label based in the East London. He went on to be named head designer at Givenchy in 1996, succeeding John Galliano, before joining forces with Gucci, who bought 51 per cent of his own company.

His distinguished technical ability and fearless approach to design was matched only by a creative vision which gave rise to some of the most dramatic and inspired catwalk collections of the last decade. Fashion has lost one of its best and most rare.

Breast is Best

2010-02-02T10:13:00.000-08:00

Forget the haberdashery department: the shoulder pad has been relegated to second place in the styling accessory pecking order as we now say yes (I’ll take two please), to the nipple cover. As underwear goes outerwear for this spring summer Selfridges report a 20% increase in sales of the nude modesty managers. Women investing in sheer luxury underwear and lace bodies are no longer hiding their assets under a bushel, but want to preserve some element of modesty as they follow the lead set by Dior, Gaultier and Berardi in the move from under to outer. If you’ve got it, flaunt it. Just not all of it apparently.

Dior, Jean-Paul Gaultier S/S10

Photos: Monica Fedi/GoRunway.com

Spring/Summer10 Couture

2010-02-01T09:27:00.000-08:00

Couture is still finding its way in its process of evolution and development if the Spring/Summer’10 shows are any indicator. Whilst fast trends, fast fashion and recession-busting pricing still drive the high street, couture is addressing a shifting demographic and client base. If modernity and a more youthful outlook point the way forward in the search for a new client base, then designers were reflecting this on the catwalks in both day and eveningwear. A fresher approach was evident in both styling and fabrication, with lamination, lurex and metallics updating the traditional swathes of tuille, taffeta and lace. Now in his fifth year at Givenchy, Riccardo Tisci hit his couture stride with a 70’s inspired collection which managed to balance a confident menswear-driven tailored approach with a glam-rock sensibility. Tisci clearly has the design sophistication to address his core clientele, but as importantly the commercial awareness to appeal directly to a new generation; music a-listers who know the value of an alliance with high fashion when it comes to self-promotion. Fully-beaded and electrically-hued jumpsuits and skirts may have jarred with traditional notions of couture, but were pure GaGavenchy

Givenchy Haute Couture

Photos:Monica Feudi/Gorunway.com

The Revolution will not be televised

2010-01-13T10:27:00.000-08:00

The A/W10 pre-fall collections are looking heavily committed to military following next summer's plethora of uniformed neutrals. At Chanel Karl Largerfeld charmed the very disposably incomed of Shanghai with an homage to the Paris of the East with Maoist suits and communist caps. At Burberry Prorsum Christopher Bailey has, unsurprisingly, conjured a much more British affair, with a very regimental take on military in army khakis and air force blues. Epaulets abound as the shoulder maintains it's importance as a silhouette definer even into next winter. We're stalking the last vesitges of the sales to channel winter military in anticipation of a khaki driven 2010 as the credit crunch (and the snow) shows little sign of abating.

This Ralph Lauren padded jacked from Harvey Nichols offers double bang for your buck covering both military and sportswear trends - very Swiss paratrooper. And it's reduced from £420 to £162.

photos: Style.com

Severely stylish men

2009-12-18T10:16:00.000-08:00

With his movie debut A Single Man, Tom Ford shows he's just as much of a stylist in the director's chair as he was at the helm of Gucci. Based on Christopher Isherwood's 1964 novel of the same name, Ford’s screenplay for A Single Man is an ambitious literary adaptation which uses the backdrop of L.A. during the Cuban missile crisis to tell a tale of a melancholic British professor trying to come to terms with the death of his lover. Ford lavishes his camera over every stylistic nuance and detail: sharp black suit, white shirt (only white shirts) and black tie, immaculate silver tie clip, high shine black loafers. Mad Men, A Serious Man and now a Single Man: 60’s inspired menswear wardrobes hasn’t looked so good in decades.

As Copenhagen climate summit draws to an end, those attending:delegates and protestors

2009-12-17T04:00:00.000-08:00

Pictures: Joa Paglione/Demotix,Olivier Morin/Reuters, Christian Charisius/Reuters, Anja Niedringhaus/AP, Scanpix Sweden

Tis the season to keep the tills a ringing

2009-12-16T10:18:00.000-08:00

Primark A/W09

Arthur Ryan, Chair of Primark has been voted the 5th most influential person in British fashion in the industry trade magazine Drapers. The company continues to thrive on the Uk high street, showing a 20% increase in total sales for the year to Sept.12th. After negative press and store protests over ethical trading issues Ryan appointed an ethical trade director and almost doubled the audits on its supply factories to 1,000 in 2009. Though if sales are any indicator it seems in the recession the price at the till remains the predominant cost on a high street fashionista's mind.

Seeing spots for spring

2009-12-14T02:52:00.000-08:00

That perrenial favourite the polka dot is back for 2010, so even though we're in the midst of Christmas preparations, we're looking forward to seeing spots before our eyes as we warm up for spring. Michael Kors was one amongst many designers plumping for dots for next season, offering them in modernist splashes of monochrome with more than a nod to animal prints. We're not suggesting head-to-toe dottiness however, so spotty accessories are on hand to add a graphic statement to spring's primary palettes. Marimeko and Commes at Dover Street Market have bags and wallets that tick all the round boxes.

photos: Style.com

Catfunt: art n culture east style

2009-12-10T11:54:00.000-08:00

The catfunt website is great if you're interested in art and culture in Hackney and East London: Made in China '69 -art in East London. For fans, there's a post about Viggo Mortensen on Made in China '69.

It's tweed. All tweed.

2009-12-10T07:58:00.000-08:00

We love the 60's edge to this tweed jumpsuit from autumn '95. Feels perfect for next winter. Let's see if something like it shows up on the autumn/winter catwalks in February

photo: Satoshi

Not the first denim debacle.

2009-12-10T06:17:00.000-08:00

Nothing comes between Brooke and her Calvins. Not even Kim Jong-il

Swedish department store bans North Korea's first designer denim

2009-12-10T06:00:00.000-08:00

Kara slim fit Oke loose fit

PUB, a long-established department store in Stokholm has removed Noko jeans from its shelves one day after launching the North Korean designer denim following widespread media coverage over the brand. Is this the first time a jeans brand has become a political hot potato? In Korea it would be ironically, as jeans are banned as a symbol of American imperialism. That's why Noko (NOrthKOrea) are only available in black and not indigo.

Photos Erik Wahlstrom

M.A.O. womenswear designs A/W10/11

2009-12-09T09:59:00.000-08:00

A model artist

2009-12-09T06:04:00.000-08:00

Christina Kruse in Anna Molinari brocade micro minidress. Photo: Mark Borthwick
Italian Vogue November 1996.

Still a Passion For Audrey and Givenchy

2009-12-09T04:49:00.000-08:00

A Givenchy haute couture black chantilly lace cocktail gown, worn by Audrey Hepburn in the 1966 film ‘How to Steal a Million' achieved £60,000 at the Kerry Taylor Passion For Fashion Auction in London yesterday, far surpassing its guide price of £20,000. The gown with wrap-over back, high neck and full skirt edged in a horsehair stiffened flounce is finished with a narrow black patent belt and matching crop jacket. Givenchy created a very similar cocktail gown as part of the house’s haute couture collection for A/W 1966. Even in recession there is clearly still a huge appetite in the market for clothing worn by iconic stars of style and screen such as Audrey Hepburn. A couture garment worn by a bona fide star might appear to be the epitome of designer and celebrity collaboration if market value is any indicator.

photos Kerry Taylor Auctions

2009-12-08T12:11:00.000-08:00

Fashion is a verb:to form; to give shape or figure to; to mold.

Fashion is also a noun: the prevailing mode or style, custom or conventional usage.

By definition this dress has been fashioned, but is it fashionable?

Do Commes des Garcons fashion collections, anti-fashion collections, or make fashion?

It has been constructed.

But is also de-constructed.

It is a dress

But also a coat.

It is black and white.

And a litttle grey.