most favorite day: SS12

Showing posts with label SS12. Show all posts

COLOUR.... MY EYES ARE DANCING

Posted by Bethan Holt, Fashion Junior at Large

Bright eyes... Meadham Kirchhoff beauty looks from AW12 (image from www.lloyd-evans.com)

Maybe it's the sudden turn in the weather from bright to dismal, or perhaps it's the amount of time the FashEd and I spend looking at the specifics of colour in our consultancy projects, or it could be that walking into most stores at the moment involves being confronted with such powerful, undiluted palettes. Whatever it is, my eyes have become addicted to complete overdoses of rich and saturated tones, whether it is the tangerine neon of the jumper I bought the other day, or the bloody rich maroon in J.W Anderson's AW12 collection, the picture of which I just cannot stop looking at. I feel like the pastel trend which so dominated the SS12 catwalks hasn't quite hit my consciousness yet. In fact, in a few weeks time these could become a diluted antidote to the intensity which is pervasive in my mind right now.

My colour obsession... JW Anderson AW12 (image from catwalking.com)

The road to York through Sledmere by David Hockney 1997 (from www.hockneypictures.com)

It was on a visit to the Royal Academy's David Hockney exhibition (a few days before it closed) a couple of weeks ago that I felt like my colour channel was properly attuned. The only way I can even begin to describe the feeling of looking at a Hockney painting is that it makes your eyes dance, so vibrant are the colours and the ways they're combined. The images which I have included here do not even begin to visually describe the effect of seeing a Hockney original. I would love to know how he achieves this insanely concentrated bouncing-off-the-canvas-it's-so-bright effect. His eye transforms the gentle browns greys and greens of the natural landscape into cyan blue leaves, lilac roads and pink skies. They're delicious and unexpected combinations.

More felled trees on Woldgate by David Hockney 2008 (from www.hockneypictures.com)

And the book I most want to read right now? A Pantone Colour Book. Odd, I know given
that I'm more often found with my nose buried in classic literature but the thought of looking
at that faded, brownish paper and uniform black type just makes my heart sink, especially
when I could be poring over seven pages of 'pink' representations.

I like to think that this new found colour obsession might be my version of patriotism,
given the upcoming Jubilee, bear with me here. One of the highlights of this month's
Vogue is the back page on which the magazine charts Her Majesty's colour choices
over the course of a year. It looks to me like The Queen might also be a fan of the Pantone
book, so considered are her head-to-toe choices of hue, from the palest of lemon curd
yellows to the rubiest of Wizard of Oz reds she seems to have worked her way through
them all. I can imagine her handing her circled colour choices to her dressmaker Angela
Kelly as reference guide to her latest outfit creation.

Devastatingly, I don't have my own Angela Kelly to rustle up something in my latest
colour whim so I will amuse myself a while longer looking at my new favourite Tumblr,
RAINBOW C-O-L-O-U-R-S

The Queen in colour (image from www.dailymail.co.uk)

IT'S TIME TO WEAR SS12 TRENDS!

Posted by Bethan Holt, Fashion Junior at Large

One of the many oddities of working in fashion is that we get two chances to talk about trends. For Spring/Summer 2012, the first chance came in September/ October last year when designers were showing their collections for the forthcoming season, which is NOW. Meaning that the time has come to revisit and properly embrace what we saw seven months ago by actually buying into what we fell in love with on the catwalks - whether it's the designer real deal or the high street's interpretation.

As is the FEAL way, we told you what you'd be buying now as soon as we spotted it on the catwalk but that was a long time ago. We thought that you might like to look back at our first thoughts on SS12 now that we can all get in on the action...

GUIPURE

This trend was so huge we did two posts on it . Unsurprisingly, it's all over the high street. Our favourite is Jaeger Boutique's bright white, ribbon waisted dress. This would see you through all manner of Summer pursuits, just don't go rolling in the grass.

Guipure at Preen SS12 (catwalking.com)

Alicia dress from Jaeger Boutique £220

Navy tee £22 River Island

Louis Vuitton SS12 (catwalking.com)

PRINTS AND PAISLEY

Print is still huge. Florals are a classic but if you want to be exactly on the SS12 pulse then a silky paisley or tropical jungle print are the ones to go for...

Up close with Stella's paisley

Stella McCartney paisley at her SS12 press day

Stella McCartney paisley print blouse £435 at Matches

Paisley dress £1,590 by Jil Sander at MyTheresa

JUNGLE

Up close: Joseph Altuzarra SS12 at the Harvey Nichols' press day

Palm print dress £65 at Oasis

Jungle clutch £437 at MyTheresa

UNDER THE SEA

This one was never going to be easy to translate - who has time to encrust their spine with pearls each morning or carry about clusters of coral to work a trend? Nods to sea life with watery colours, embellishments and rope details seems like the most sensible way to channel the SS12 mermaid fantasy. Unless you have a fancy dress party coming up, in which case, go all out.

Pearls backstage at Chanel (from http://somethingfrench.tumblr.com/)

Alexander McQueen SS12- coral encrusted mermaids (catwalking.com)

Peter Pilotto printed tee £256 at www.farfetch.com

Rope sandals £95 at Reiss

CROP TOPPING

A quick scout of the shops this weekend threw up plenty of evidence that crop tops are a trend pretty much every high street store has plumped for. We shared 8-minute abs with you at the time but really, who is actually ready for this? If you're not a 15 year old gymnast then maybe proceed with caution e.g a looser crop top worn over a high waist skirt/ short or under a skinny vest.

Dolce and Gabbana SS12 (catwalking.com)

Buttercup crop top £22 at Topshop

Something a little more wearable... £36 at Topshop

SEA AND SUN (YELLOW AND BLUE)

Two of the biggest colours for SS12. I am brightening up today in a Peeps colour jumper. The combination of the two, like wearing your very own seaside horizon, was done most brilliantly by Jonathan Saunders.

Jonathan Saunders SS12 (catwalking.com)

J.W Anderson SS12 (catwalking.com)

Jonathan Saunders sun and sea dress £910 at Matches

Yellow lace dress (two trends in one!) £58 at Warehouse

UGLY SHOES

Still calling these "Ugly", yes.

Christopher Kane SS12 (catwalking.com)

Christopher Kane sandals £380 at The Corner

The FashEd choose these yellow sandals from Senso in her ASOS sale styling feature...

Senso £125 at ASOS

Biker sandals £515 Givenchy at MyTheresa

3.1 Phillip Lim at My-Theresa £335

SHOW AND TELL: WHISTLES SS12

Posted by Bethan Holt, Fashion Junior at Large

We probably don't need to tell you that if you're after cool, modern clothes which nod to the season's trends without being carbon copies of catwalk looks then Whistles is the place to head. But Whistles is on our minds this week, mostly due to a new little friend we've acquired courtesy of the PR team.

Meet our Whistles virtual pet! The little mouse has been distracting me all afternoon, as it demands to be fed, danced and played with. I think I've got more into my Whistles pet than I did my tamagotchi, back 1990-something. Uh oh. Anyway, the little mouse's real purpose in life is to invite us to the Whistles press day which is happening this Thursday. We can't wait to see what Jane Shepherdson and the team have come up with for Autumn/Winter. In the meantime, here's our pick of the Top Ten from what's in store now...

1. and 2. The Wisteria print pyjamas (there's also a tee which goes with this set). These are arguably the stars of Whistles offering this season. The trousers are pretty much sold out at the moment, although there are some available in department stores and hidden away in some Whistles stores. Luckily, the FashEd ordered hers back in October!

Wisteria jacket £150 and trousers £125

3. Pink striped trousers. A little bit more tailored than a pj plus they combine pastels and brights. A trouser with a side stripe is key for Spring/ Summer but will last well beyond that as well.

Wren striped trouser £125

4. Last Summer, Whistles' Carrie was THE skirt to have. Although, they've continued that style in various new prints and colours, the Lottie is just as lovely, especially in this very chic pale blue.

Lottie Skirt £110

5. This is pretty much a genius bag. Why? Because it will look fab all summer and carry all the sunglasses and buckets and spades you require. Then, come Autumn, you'll discover that it is also the perfect shade of winter turquoise (which will be key, trust us) and you can carry on using it right through to next year.

Fleur tote bag £135

6. It's navy and loose and would look amazing with a neon tee underneath. A summer no brainer for when it's not quite as warm as we'd wish.

Beatrice lace knit sweater £110

7. Whistles have invested heavily in this hot pink colour for Spring/Summer and this dress is a standout. It'll get you through many a summer wedding. The fashion edge comes from that the looser, cropped top part.

Josa tiered dress £175

8. Sport is a massive trend for SS12, as I'm sure you know already. I love that this sweatshirt could be styled up with silky joggers or just slung over denim cut-offs at weekends.

Edith drop shoulder sweat £50

9. Fit and flare is here to stay. This dress comes in lots of colours but I like the versatility of the navy. I'm a bit obsessed with the way the waffle cotton this dress is made from feels too.

Milla dress £95

10. This white guipure top is so SS12 it hurts- the cute Peter Pan collar, chunky lace and scalloped edges. It'll also go with just about anything too.

Daisy top £195

Now, if you'll excuse me I must go and play with my little mouse.

SOCKS AND SANDALS, BUT NOT AS YOU KNOW THEM

Posted by Bethan Holt, Fashion Junior at Large

I say "Socks and Sandals", you think...

Giving a bad name to the socks and sandals combination (from www.sandalandsoxer.co.uk)

right? Well, perhaps not THAT bad but this particular sartorial combination has a universally poor reputation, and quite rightly so really when the classic look involves camper friendly velcro straps and crusty old M&S calf hugging socks.

But here at FEAL, we've started to think that it's time to freshen up our perspective. And this week is the perfect time. If you're anything like me (and are in the UK!), you'll have been woken by blindingly bright rays of sunshine each morning. This leads you to don summer skirts and dresses and eschew a coat. Then, you leave the house and realise that the sunshine doesn't quite translate to temperatures balmy enough for your attire. I have made this mistake every day so far this week. But moving back into winter clothes is too depressing a thought to entertain. So our solution? Wear your summer shoes with socks to save your tootsies from freezing.

Here are some inspirational street style pictures to get us going...

From www.thesartorialist.co.uk

(From www.thesartorialist.com)

From www.vogue.co.uk

From www.style.com

I haven't yet seen a good photo of FLAT sandals and socks. I reckon at the very least the look requires a low block heel to get from Nanna to Fashion. It can go very girlish and cute if it's executed with a flatform and frill- anyone else remember the white frilly socks which you wore with school summer dresses? Going to John Lewis to buy them signalled the start of Summer when I was little.

I'm going to attempt a more grown-up version with a proper heel and perhaps a sleeker sock, though I have fallen a little bit in love with the lace ones below. Right now though, something a little bit toastier is required I think.

Here are some of our favourites... Find more on our new Pinterest page here