Wolf Whistle

Puns of Steel

"Women are born to be creatures of adoration" says the website 6 Inch Heels Forever and although I agree that every woman deserves to be adored, I'm not sure this is the way to go about it...

...by making them wear six inch heels made of stainless steel. I am definitely a heels girl - I feel weird and uncomfortable in 98% of flats so believe me, this isn't coming from a heels novice - but... ouch. I'm wincing even looking at these bad boys. 

Via Baltimore Rich Girls. Thanks for pointing these out, ladies!

What do you think, ladies? Do shoes like this ever have a place in fashion outside of the fetish industry? 6 inches is too high for me anyway - my highest pair is about four and a half - but while you might teeter successfully in 6ers, would you consider these? I'm sorry, but I just can't help thinking it's lucky they're made out of stainless steel so I could wash the blood off.

Glam As You Can

Sadly I missed the first Glamcanyon party, but happily I got to attend this weeks! Katja, hostess with the most-ess, took 1225 (!) pictures and so I've been having fun pouring over the best picks of them, both at her blog and over at Viceland. Everyone is so sexy - I swear I fell in love with a dozen gorgeous girls and beautiful boys.

The first picture is of my gorgeous friends Harry and Katja (another Katja, but one as equally fabulous). That's my gold dress getting a much-deserved outing!

And here's what I wore:
Vintage sequin, lace & ruffle dress (£2.50 from Portobello Road Market!)
H&M kids glittery tights
Black sequinned Minnie Mouse ears from Topshop
Vintage A brooch
and my trusty Peacocks black ankle boots!

 I wasn't feeling 100% but I had a lot of fun and am so glad I went. I had about half a dozen different people take my pictures and I got all embarassed, uh oh! My friends put me to shame with their modelling skills. I need to practise my posing and pouting before the next one!

 



Also: great to meet you Colin, you buff ting!

In-Your-Face Inauguration

Yesterday was so exciting. I sat in a pub in Portobello Road with one of my all-time favourite people and we held hands and got all excited as the new President gave his first official speech.

I know that the fashion was by no means the most important part of the day, but I still couldn't wait to see what the delightful Mrs O chose to wear to their night of inaugural party-hopping. I loved the dress she chose from up and coming designer Jason Wu. Apparently even Jason didn't know she was definitely going to wear it. Congratulations!

BUT!

The real fashion highlight of the day was this:

Ms Franklin, can I borrow that phenomenal hat?

Powerpuff Girl: Purple Power!

   

Yes, this is kind of old news now, but I wanted to scan and show you a shoot from Grazia magazine from last week. 

For the non-British amongst you, Grazia is a weekly magazine that is like a miniature glossy. I know a lot of people can get a little bit snobby about it, but I'm a big fan and buy it most weeks. It really was a huge success story here in the UK: there really was nothing in this category (glossy, intelligent weekly) before it's arrival on these shores from Italy, where the original version has been running for 50 years.

 

Powerpuff Girls

Photographer: Mondadori
Fashion: Micheal Guasco
Make-up: Carolina Dali at Weinper & Co
Hair: Enrico Mariotti for Pantene

I'm sorry that the scans aren't super-amazing, but you can click on any picture to make them bigger if you'd like. The shoot itself is not massively impressive, but it struck me as interesting as it's just the colours I've been thinking about lately. Purple is always top of my list and I love that dark dark aubergine and the tough, bold black with flashes of bright purple. And that cascading hair on top, of course!

 

The picture above makes me want to wear my bright purple lace up shoes today!

   

 

                                                      

Finally: I love what felt like an unexpected colour combination of avacado and aubergine, but the more I think about it, the more it makes sense. Delicious!   

Sunday's Showcase:18/01/09

Ten looks I loved this week from around the internet. Let me know what you think!

Cute in checks! Love this outfit by solitaryconsignment
Seen over on Flickr at wardrobe_remix

I'm currently obsessed with black tulle, so this outfit  by onemoredress really caught my eye.
Also seen over at wardrobe_remix.

 

A beautiful girl in a beautiful vintage dress. Love this look!
Check out this lovely lady's blog over at Susie and Prue.

This lady is too good. Love the fringe, glasses, gloves, high waist, fur, ruffles... everything!
Spotted by Facehunter.

 

Shelley M is like a little rock and roll doll. So cute!

I was arguing yesterday with my friends about whether men should ever wear white jeans. Ed, you can use this as proof that sometimes it's amazing! Picture from Facehunter.

 

Another amazingly tailored outfit caught on camera by The Satorialist.
Love the brown and orange colour combination!

 

Frida, wearing a gorgeous vintage coat. Captured beautifully by Stil In Berlin.

 

Love Charlie's amazing look: especially the Comme Des Garcons skirt!
As seen on Stil In Berlin.

 

Yancy, I fancy you (and not just because it rhymes)
Check out his blog and Lookbook.

That's it for today. More looks I loved next Sunday!

Hayley Brown Photography

For my elective this term, I'm taking Art Direction and Styling. We're working in groups and I've been put in a group with Hayley Brown who is studying Fashion Photography at London College of Fashion. I love love love her fashion portraits and wanted to post her beautiful pictures up here so you could see, too.

  

 

  

(The leather jacket boy is my favourite. Swoon!)

 

 

Looking forward to working with you, Hayley!

Click to see Hayley's Flickr account or visit her super cutely designed website for more.

Best of the rest: Pre-Fall 2009

Ten of my favourite looks from Pre-Fall. Roll on February!

Alexander Wang

Sexy boiler suit? Yes please: I like a good oxymoron.

Chanel

Please, please, please do a version of this, Topshop.
I need this amazingly insane dress in my life and on my back.

Missoni

The show was cluttered, with lots and lots of what they do best - prints, of course - but still cosy. This gorgeous dress was my favourite look.

Oscar De la Renta

What can I say? Lately I'm a sucker for orange and I've always been a sucker for a beautiful floral. It's not ground-breaking or brand new, but it's still delicious.

Phi

Too good. Seriously. This whole collection is good but this look blows my mind.

Proenza Schouler

I look forward to the Proenza Schouler show every season and this one was definitely not a disappointment. This was my favourite look (mmm, sequins) but the whole collection is pretty damn fantastic. Can't wait to see those boots up close!

Rachel Roy

Her pre-fall collection didn't seem to have an over-riding theme (maybe all will be made clear in February at the A/W shows) but there were plenty of stand out pieces. This ruched column dress is my favourite.

Burberry Prorsum

More ruching! So lovely.

Rag and Bone

I'm enjoying the boyfriend clothes sensibility of Rag and Bones latest, especially those killer shoes. Mmmm, grey and white brouges.

And finally, Monique Lhuillier. Oh, yes!

OMG: Balenciaga Pre-Fall 2009

God bless you, Style.com.  I'm currently obsessed with looking at the Pre-Fall collections on that magical fashion website. And really: I mean obsessed.

The Pre-Fall collections, for those of you who read this because you love me and aren't  necessarily into fashion at all (shout out to my mum!), are basically a little sneak preview of what we'll get next Autumn/Winter. It's becoming more of an official 'season': it used to just be shown to the important fashion people, but now more and more the collections are being made and shown. the more commercial items that will hit the stores between May and July, after the major Spring/Summer drop off and as Autumn/Winter is still being produced.... (I do hope those last few sentences struck the right line round about helpful and not even a smidgen close to patronising.)

I get more excited about the A/W collections in general than I do about S/S, so I already can't wait for February. Pre-Fall is giving an addict a few little shots of joy... And one of the most joyful of all is Balenciaga. I keep just shuffling this perfect little 26 piece slideshow round and round like half a deck of cards.

I think the two silhouettes of the two looks above are just perfect. Love the asymmetric skirt with a causal jacket. And those boots! The gloves are one not for me, but finish the looks just right.

It's been five years since I wore trousers, but these perfectly tailored grey beauties above left are making me hyperventilate. Maybe if Zara does a good version I'll give it a go. (In the changing rooms, at least!)

These two dresses are futuristic in a classical way. Ruching is a massive  trend for Pre-Fa,ll and it's done wonderfully here - and I love the clash of a delicate dress with decidedly un-delicate boots. Yes, the whole collection makes me think of a beautiful, well-dressed future where one day I will own some Balenciaga... I think that day may still be some way off, sigh.

 

Stitching The Gap: Charity Fashion Show

The amazing fashion designer Danielle Scott-Haughton (who I had the pleasure of interviewing before) is taking part in a fabulous show called Stitching The Gap tonight! Unfortunately I can't attend, but it promises to be a great night.

All proceeds are going to the The African Carribean Leukaemia Trust, so it's your chance to look at some amazing underground fashion and help people in  need at the same time! It's at The Shaw Theatre, Kings Cross and starts at 19.30. You can still get tickets from Urban Tickets or pick them up on the door. 

Designers:

- Angela Baruch Knowles
- Omar Mansoor
- Justin Hustlin
- VA-G
- Cut and Swallow
- Kelly Jade
- Alusine
- Swanz Flyy
- Momo
- Precious Attire

Model of the Moment: Joan Smalls

While browsing the shows for whatever season, I tend to look mostly at the clothes. Every once in a while, though, a model will just jump out at me and that's it - I'm off running to Google to look at everything they've ever done.

This time it was a shot from Oscar De La Renta's Pre-Fall collection. That was the picture and the model is a lady called Joan Smalls. (Wow, I sure do love the 1950s primness of that moniker!)

 

Joan is from Puerto Rico, is 5'10.5 and has modelled for Dillards,  Liz Claiborne,  Neiman Marcus,  Ralph Lauren.com  and Saks, amongst others. She is represented by Elite in New York and City Models in Paris. And she has the huge privilege of being my current model obsession. Well done, Joan!

I love her - especially those eyes, gosh - and I know this gets bounded around a lot by pompous fashion people but... I love how expensive she looks. Don't hate me for saying that!

More Joan please, magazines!

Alexander Wang VS Lew Magram

Alexander Wang makes sex happen, right? Right. I get a kick out of looking at his hot-to-trot pieces but I have to face that my type of sexy is really not compatible with Wang's. (Gosh, I hope I have a type of sexy at all!)

Still, I'm completely mad about his Pre-Fall 2009 collection, especially this meshed wonder.

But years before AW started bringing sexy back, there was Lew Magram. I'm loving the mesh and swooping uh, breast panels. (Words are failing me here. Sorry about that, loyal readers.)

My heart is saying yes yes yes to this dress, but my ample bosom and starving purse are both saying no. If all your signs are pointing to yes, though, you can get it on Ebay here, as sold by seller aundrea24. Currently at $16.10 (£11!) and ending today. This is a bargain, right? Right!

Team with ankle boots (preferably studded), black opaque tights, messy hair, and attitude. There you go: I've just invented your new favourite outfit! You can shower me with thank you presents later.

Katie Holmes for Miu Miu

Do you care about Katie Holmes? I can't say that I really do, but I do care about Miu Miu. Really, rather a lot, in fact. So I was eager to see the new KH 4 MM S/S09 Campaign.

And so, here's the first look. What do you think? Right now I am thinking 'Meh' but I'll reserve my real opinion until the whole set appears. Do love the cat-eye make-up though! Foxy.

P.S. Don't worry, Li-Lo: you're still my favourite Miu Miu girl yet!



KH images from Grazia. Cheers!

Fashionably Undead: Fumie Sasabuchi Artwork

The Undead: a new concept of beauty?

Plenty of people would argue that the vast majority of high-fashion models are walking skeletons, so Fumie Sasabuchi's artwork transforming models into literal skeletons seems uncomfortably unnerving and yes... a little apt.

Fumie Sasabuchi adds pen, pencil and ink drawings of exposed bones, muscles, sinews and organs to magazine fashion images, literally changing traditional symbols of beauty into the living dead. The comparison of death and Chanel makes for an interesting one!

 

This last image is my favourite. There's something really powerful in the idea of the sheer bones being an item of beauty - or in the case of these, death being the ultimate aphrodisiac. It's definitely a concept that deals with lots of taboo ideas. I don't want to put words in the artists mouth, but these pictures remind me of anorexia and its fetishisation. Size zero, anyone?

I Love Luella: Mood Board Project

Last term, for my Elective module on my Fashion Journalism course, I took Fashion Graphics. It was really fun: I made a new friend (Hi Emily!), got taught by one of my favourite teachers  (Hi Peter!) and hopefully picked up a couple of new skills along the way.

The module was composed of three mini-projects and I wanted to show you one of them, which was to use digital collages to create a mood board explaining the look, feel and inspirations behind a label of your choice - I chose Luella Bartley's label, Luella. To be honest, it was the first label that popped into my head and as I sat and thought about it, it seemed  to me that her signature styles would be fun to explore. Her inspirations seemed to scream out to me: Ghost World, chintzy florals, old cartoons, superheroes, witches... the list goes on!

So these images are my final pieces. I was really pleased with them (especially as I'm still a complete n00b when it comes to Photoshop) and I hope that I managed to sum up the feel of Luella as well as I could in only a few pages! Click on any image to make it larger, if you so wish. Credits for some of the individual images are at the bottom.

And do let me know what you think!

These collages are made from images taken from all over the net. I didn't create any of the individual pictures shown here (although I did write the text) and I don't want anyone to think I'm claiming credit for their beautiful artwork. Unfortunately I don't have the details of each picture saved, but if you spot one of yours, let me know.

I used drawings by Kris Atomic and Style Bites, (which seems to be on hiatus... come back!), various photographs and images from Flickr, and Luella catwalk images from Style.com. Last but not least, the beautiful paper backgrounds came from this amazing creative commons set by Playingwithbrushes. Thank you all so much!

Time for Tee: Best of Threadless 2008

I'm not exactly known for having mad skills in decision making, so the Threadless best tee shirt competition 2008 is currently driving me crazy. Sure, I'd like to vote, but how can I pick with so many great entries?

Here are my favourite ten! What do you think?

Easy Steps by Pascal Rivet

Captured Nostalgia by Chalermphol Harnchakkham

Secrets of Magic by Chow Hon Lam.
(This one is darrrrk. I kind of like that about it.)

Shredded A (for Amy!) by Brock Davies.



Word! by Matt Palmer. Hahahaha.



Birds of a Feather by Ross Zietz.

Red by Kneil Melicano.

The Sound of Colour by The Boy Fitz Hammond
I love this! Internet puns for the win.

I think this one might get my vote. Although I love Threadless, I'm not a massive tee shirt wearer myself, but I can definitely imagine me in an over-sized version of this space cat nonsense number - preferably with some ridiculous leggings to clash with it. Amazing!

"Mister Mittens Big Adventure" by Joe Van Wetering.

Actually, maybe this one should be my personal winner. After all, this is Wolf Whistle!

A Patchwork Wolf by Richard Lee.