Saturday 5 March 2011

as luck would have it..

For the last three or four weeks I have been banging my head against the wall. I am currently doing my Final Major Project for university, and couldn't for the life of me think of a 'wow' factor. 

I had already decided on shopping pages, furniture pieces, a profile on Jez Burrows - who was a star an answered all of my questions, a full interview with Botscene owner and designer Myles Hunt... but after that i ran out of ideas. Having started so well i was gutted to think that i might have to put something average in my work, i needed the final piece to be at least two thousand words.

And then, just as i had decided to give up on it for a while, put it to the back of my mind and concentrate on all the other pieces i had to be working on, the perfect thing happened to fall right into my lap.

My mums friends cousins daughter - confusing, i know-  is an amazing up and coming shoe designer. Her shoes currently retail between £200 and £300, and my gosh, they are stunning. Kat Maconie, has agreed to do a face-to-face interview with me. The 'wow' factor has definitely been found! I have to ring her after she gets back from Paris fashion week and before she goes to Brazil... she is definitely a busy lady. At only 26 she is doing amazingly and really leaving her mark on the fashion industry. I am so excited to meet her. 


Now, if only i could afford a pair of her shoes......



www.katmaconie.com

Friday 11 February 2011

Style icons no more?


Style icons? Are they no longer fantasy icons but now the girls-next-door? With women such as Alexa Chung and Cheryl Cole being named as some of today’s top dressed women where has the timeless elegance of the real icons gone?

Once upon a time Twiggy and Claudia were the images that filled young girl’s imaginations, along with pictures of true Hollywood glamour. Nowadays it’s less about glamour and more about the out-of-bed look with stars such as Kate Moss advertising the over-casual style.

Reality TV programs such as Americas Next Top Model are reinstating the idea that any girl, any place can be a style icon.  I am undecided whether this is an idea I agree with. Shouldn’t a fashion icon be someone we strive to be like but know we’ll never match them? In my mind I’m pretty sure that a style icon shouldn’t be someone dressed top to toe in Topshop clothes that anyone can go out and buy.

Friday 22 October 2010

Clutching at Straws

All i can think about at the moment are oversized clutches. Yet i just cant seem to find the right one to make me part with the cash. I see pictures everywhere and this just makes my lust even bigger, this certainly is not just a passing fad, the more time that passes the more i want one.

 Big enough to carry my phone, diary, perhaps a book - I like to carry a book around with me for when i'm on a train or those occasions when you're on your own and you think  "this would be the perfect time to read a book". And all this for under £50. Surely i'm not asking too much. I've seen a couple I like on asos that i think i'm going to buy, it is impossible to tell with a bag until you have it under your arm.


Monday 11 October 2010

Sunday 3 October 2010

Vintage Deli





“A varied mix of outstanding one offs and timeless beauties”. This is the tag line of Vintage Deli, and it really does depict the very essence of vintage clothing. Vintage Deli was set up in 2009 and is still relatively unheard of, this is great for you and me, means we can pick up some real gems without the huge price tag so often attached to vintage clothing nowadays.

With a huge selection of clothing and accessories both on line and in shop – if you don’t mind popping to Norfolk for a quick peruse – there is bound to be something that tickles your fancy. 





(pictures: vintagedeli.co.uk)


Sunday 26 September 2010

Flab aint Fab


Since when has morbidly obese become more sociably acceptable than size 0?

Being 5ft 10” and a size 8 I have gotten used to people telling me that I am “too skinny”. I am never sure how people expect me to respond to this. I am not a healthy eater, I know that much, but not in the way these people seem to think. I eat far more than is healthy, and the food that does go into my mouth is often junk food. I have never limited what I eat and have never had to worry about it, but if I ever try to explain this to people they simply will not believe me. What annoys me most is that people are more than happy to criticize those who are skinny. If I turned around to someone and told them they were too fat everyone would think I was a callous bitch.

The size zero debate that has been going on for years now has set me thinking about those role models that lean in the other direction. The Gossips lead singer Beth Ditto, for example, may be this. The ultra-controversial punk rocker that is loved across the world, but she is unhealthily large.

Being that size and such an influential position can only be seen as irresponsible to be setting such an example. At 5ft 2” and weighing in at 15 stone her BMI is dangerously high at 38.4. A BMI of over 30 counts as obese. This seems to me to be just as bad an example to be setting for young girls as the size zero phenomena. Yet she is celebrated by fellow celebrities, journalists and designers alike, not just for her talent but also in a few cases as a muse, getting to sit front row at Jean Paul-Gaultier and Chanel at Fashion Week. How many industries bigwigs got moved to second row to accommodate such a ‘large’ personality?

I understand that at least if girls follow by Beth’s example they will not be making themselves ill and will learn to be happy with their body’s whatever size and shape. I can’t help but expect if they looked into the health issues related to obesity then they might drastically change their opinions. Heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes are just a few of the associated risks; nowadays obesity is considered a long-term disease.

This seasons London Fashion Week was met with the usual mixed reviews, when British designer Mark Fast sent a size 14 model down the runway. Some say it was time that bigger girls showed that fashion wasn’t just for the tall and thin.

Lets face it, high fashion is one of those things that will never truly be accessible for those over a certain size - so why bother?

Although being skinny is considered unhealthy, the fact of the matter is, that being obese is a disease.  The size zero debate will continue to be a constant battle but what many don’t turn their ignorant heads to is how Britain has become the biggest country in Europe.

Monday 13 September 2010

Bensoni Ready-To-Wear Spring/Summer 11

Whilst flicking through the latest shows from New York Fashion Week on vogue.co.uk i came across Bensoni. I'm not going to lie and pretend i am the fountain of all fashion knowledge, so i will admit, i have never come across Bensoni before.

But, boy oh boy do i like what i see. I flicked through numerous shows before reaching Bensoni, including Victoria Beckham, which in my opinion was a complete let down, and all i could think was that i had seen it all before.

Bensoni though, seemed to offer something completely new and fresh. Asymmetric laying and and bold bright colours make it really stand out. They really work the contrasting patterns, they carry it out in such an understated fashion that they manage to pull it off seamlessly.


Delicately thrown in along side the eccentric mix of pattern and colour are some beautifully tailored dresses in shades of white, nude and beige. The perfectly executed ruffles around the neck add just the right amount of femininity to make the collection work.


(pictures: style.com)