Spring’s lace update is tablecloth chic. It’s net curtain chic. It’s massive scale for maximum impact. In acid colour, in black, in glorious white on white. Want. It. Now.
Valentino SS12
Thakoon SS12
Dries Van Noten SS12
Louis Vuitton SS12
Valentino SS12
Suno SS12
Valentino SS12
Suno SS12
Balmain SS12
Christopher Kane SS12
Felder Felder SS12
Giles SS12
Manish Arora SS12
Marc Jacobs SS12
Sass & Bide SS12
Suno SS12
Theysken's Theory SS12
Basically, I’m tacky as hell. I try to be subtle*, but I’m subtle like a brick. I LOVE shiny things like magpies love shiny things. Maybe it’s because I’m dead inside and it deflects attention away from my black soul? Perhaps. All I know is that shiny things make me happy. It’s hard to be sad when you have a shiny lazer cut leather skirt.
The Balmain is a DREAM of shiny embroidery, and the Felder Felder is a stroke of shiny grungy ’90′s genius. But bewarned, shiny! is not like colour – silhouette DOES matter. Cut, shape, proportion – think about what you want and what’s going to work for you. Unless you look like the birds above, if you get it wrong, it’s gonna look TERRRRRIIIIIBBBBBBBUUUUUULLLLLLLL. Team with a not-so-shiny plain t-shirt, or shirt (á la Jacobs) for a more demure take. Or throw caution to the wind and go all out, and wait for the magpies (me) to flock towards you and coo at your awesome shiny thing.
*no I don’t. I wear acid colour and leopard at the same time. The hack.
Spring Summer 2012 Colours fit to eat! Pastels! Palest greens, blues, orange. Think Neapolitan ice cream in a wafer – gotta have your neutrals!
Colour blocking is hardly a new concept – in fact, it’s a wanky fashion term to describe wearing plain colour together. To clarify, plain colour as distinct from garments with print or embroidery or any embellishment. So, basically, wearing clothes that aren’t head to toe black. What they MEAN is successful and interesting colour combinations together to create a fresh look that generally relies on simple and clean silhouettes so as not to confuse the issue or to look like a big mess of rainbow. Which is a lot harder to fit in a headline. Also, the word block sounds quite designy and weighty and modern, and the colour blocking look is quite modern, so I guess it’s that thing where it sounds the way it looks like. Kinda like sizzling sausage. Also, when you think of it like a block of ICE CREAM, then colour blocking becomes delicious. Like ice cream…
Hmmmm, I appear to be on some kind of weird food kick. We shall resume normal, non-food related transmission soon, perhaps after lunch…In the meantime, here are my Spring Summer 12 colour block picks.
10 Cosby by Derek Lam SS12
Chloe SS12
Kenzo SS12
Matthew Williamson SS12
Matthew William SS12
Yes I know it’s a printed blouse, my blog my rules
Michael Van Der Ham SS12
Again, my blog my rules.
Mulberry SS12
Philip Lim SS12
Prada SS12
Theyskens Theory SS12
VPL SS12
Ok this one is blatantly print but I just love the colour story and so it stays, alright?!!!
One of the benefits of working in a design studio is the amazing design & reference books lying around. I found one about Morocco the other day and I feel like it’s SO NOW. Wha? Mozaic prints, trompe l’oile geometrics, arabesques. And the COLOUR. I could get all zeitgeisty on it and delve into why I think Islamic art is having a moment in Western culture, but then I would have to formulate abstract thoughts into sentences and really, you’re probably more interested in looking at pretty pictures.
It all just makes me want to go to Marrakesh and nosey about in a souk. Sigh. But in an AbFab way, not an annoying, Sex and the City 2 way. That film offended me on almost every level. Like made my skin crawl and eye hurt. But that’s for another day. Here is why I wanna go ‘splorin in Morocco. Someone take me please. Thanks.
All of the following is true, and some of it may have influenced what I wore to meet my great aunt for lunch at the V&A this afternoon:
I saw Olivia Palermo last week and I now LOVE her. I live in West London. I recently decided it wouldn’t be the worst thing to look like a real girl sometimes. I love that it’s jacket weather again. Elderly aunts don’t appreciate that whole wearing Nikes with “smart” outfits thing. I have very few shoes that go with this dress. I wanted to wear green because it’s rugby day and I am fiercely patriotic when it comes to rugby – GO IRELAND!
Dress, Urban Outfitters; Sweater, American Apparel; Jacket, Stolen from my Mum; Boots, from Ave Maria years ago; Hat, Urban Outfitters; Sunglasses, present from my mate one very hungover morning
My flatmate told me I had to smile in the pictures because she doesn’t like the whole moody blogger thing and that I look “much better” when I smile. Which made me do the face on the top.
These were the best bits of Topshop/BFC’s NewGen area at Somerset House, according to me, when I visited on Saturday. I was sad because Holly Fulton & Michael Van Der Ham have yet to show so they only had last season’s collection, and JW Anderson had like 4 things on his space. But I was happy because there was a bunch of awesome new stuff, like David Koma’s amazing collection, and Paler//Harding’s incredible shirt-based collection, Thomas Tait, and Simone Rocha’s INSANE new collection, and Sister by Sibling’s super fun one, and……..I am in danger of gushing.
David Koma AW12
Yea.
Let’s just have a little moment for how insanely good Simone Rocha is. This season was her first proper show, and from seeing the pieces up close and personal, she is really ready to play with the big boys. The level of quality and detail in her work is so developed and refined, and her colour pallate and ability to play with texture really is something special. I particularly loved her shirt with the wooly collar, was so cute, and then the lace blazer, and the wooly/perspex dress. Dream.
Simone Rocha AW12
Simone Rocha AW12
Also, this was my first season knowing about Thomas Tait, and I can’t wait for more amazing things from him.
Thomas Tait
And finally, Sister by Sibling totally made my rainy day with their cheeky little barbie dolls at their space. Love it.
Sister by Sibling AW12
Hung out in Somerset House again today with my pal and blogger extrodinaire Ana aka Ripped Knees. She was kind enough to take a pic of me to share with you nosey parkers. Here I am wearing clothes, in front of the Fashun Week hoarding. A nice lady from Company also asked to take my picture, I think because her iPad case was the same colour as my skirt!
Shirt, American Apparel; Cardigan, Comptoir des Cottoniers; Skirt, thrifted; Coat; custom hacked to pieces; Shoes, Carvela; Hat, American Apparel; Scarf, Urban Outfitters, HOLGA
acid pop colour for the win!
I have been meaning to features these shoes for ages as I bought them in the sales at Christmas and I love them to pieces. They are half-brogue-half-creeper and really this picture does the soles no justice, but they are comfy and awesome. My mother thinks they look like nun shoes and she may well have a point but no matter because they look GREAT.
Also loved having my lil Holga with me among the millions and millions of ever clicking DSLRs. Yes, I had my slr and was snap happy too, but I just always feel a bit more comfortable using film – you have a finite amount of frames, so you are forced to think more. One of the things about the circus that is Somerset House is how many pics people shoot off – I wonder how much they really think about what they are trying to capture or whether they are hoping their expensive lens and body will accidentally capture something special. Perhaps I give my fellow bloggers less credit than they deserve but it’s definitely a thought.
J SMITH ESQ AW12
J SMITH ESQ AW12
Fashion Week’s not just about frocks. One of my favourite parts is going through the exhibition and perving on the shoes and accessories. I brought my camera so we can perve together. If you want to buy me any of these things I would be very very happy.
MALENE ODDERSHEDE BACH AW12
CABINET AW12
CABINET AW12
CABINET AW12
JOANNE STOKER AW12
JOANNE STOKER AW12
It is a very lucky thing when you find a place that is truly your own; somewhere familiar, comfortable, fun and full of adventure & mischief. For a full on decade (gulp, old much!), the Pod was my spiritual home, guiding me through my teens and early 20′s, opening me up to every kind of music, meeting all kinds of everyone – some of whom have become my closest friends – and generally shaping the person I am today.
photo by the very talented Johnny McMillan before he was famous
I am deeply saddened by its sudden closure last weekend, without even so much as a massive blowout night. It marks the end of a massive chapter of my life. On a less selfish note, it marks the passing of a cluster of venues run by people who always stood by their musical ideals, who maintained integrity and quality of acts at all times. They brought really really really good music to Dublin. They also supported local talent, enabling local promoters, bands, producers and djs to put on some of the best nights Dublin has ever seen.
One small silver lining is that the Pod’s love child, Bodytonic, is still going strong, keeping Dublin awesome. And I have been assured by the powers that be that Pod will still be running gigs, just not in the Pod complex…And so, in a final personal tribute to possibly the most influential place I have ever spent time in, here is a small history of the Pod, according to me:
3 Tracks that defined the Pod
This track forever reminds me of POGO, run by Bodytonic, and Nic James, the lobby bar dj who was and still is one of my favourite djs of all time ever. And he’s a real nice lad to boot. Also, this track is a bitch to find, it’s all white label and jazz, hence the lack o song :/ Although I do have the vinyl. Even if it’s not much use to you, and really it’s just a bit of a brag.
2) The Libertines – Can’t Stand Me Now
This track reminds me of my friend Carol, who brought me to one of the first ever Antics, where I ended up djing and messing for several years. It was, literally, one of the funnest times of my life, and it’s weird still meeting people now for whom Antics was their first club experience and how it has in some ways shaped them.
3) The Eurythmics – Sweet Dreams
At the start of the electro craze I used to play the Jacques le Cont version, mixed with Soulwax’s NY Excuse. They go real well together. People used to go ape, and that is one of the best feelings in the world and is the reason I love djing.
4 Outfits that define the POD. Without pictures, for soon to be very obvious reasons
1) Grey low waisted skinny jeans, u neck tank top, massive elasticated waist belt, long slim knit cardi, teamed with slouchy boots.
This look was so 2007. I wore it religiously to nights like Backlash, which was briefly in the Pod, to Antics, to every gig I ever went to at that time. It was cool, relaxed, and handy for blending into the going to work brigade if you ended up at a party til all hours, which invariably is what we did every night. It’s actually funny how there used to be a stage that I decided what to wear out on the basis of what looked least ridiculous the next day on the rollover…Ah those were the days!
2) Denim skirt (usually homemade), 3/4 tights, bright gaudy tshirt, pumps
Denim skirts pretty much define Antics for me. It was the age of the indie cindy. What more can I say.
3) Day glo jeans, oversize Bonde do Role tshirt, bright yellow massive vintage embroidered jumper, converse
When Nu Rave kicked in, I jumped on board and took to wearing RAINBOW as my colour story. That Bonde do Role is one of my most favourite tshirts of all time ever – bought at a gig they played in Crawdaddy.
4) Disco Pants, oversize tshirt, pumps
Over the years, disco pants have become something of my dj uniform – they are comfy, but shiny enough to be a bit fancy and the baggy tshirt thing is probably a learned behaviour from all the boys that I dj with (two of my favourites pictured above – but shhhh don’t tell them it’l go to their heads)!
me, circa 2008ish. the STYLE.
10 Best Gigs
This is really difficult because I have been to SO MANY and I almost forget what I have seen!
1) LCD Soundsystem, Tripod – twice
2) Jurassic 5, Redbox
3) Switch, POD – this was literally one of the most mental nights of my life
4) Bonde do Role, Crawdaddy
5) Booka Shade, Tripod
6) The Kills, Tripod
7) Lykke Li, Tripod
8) Rahzel, Redbox
9) Chromeo, Tripod
10) Little Man Tate, Crawdaddy
3 Reasons it’s going to be FINE
1) Bodytonic
2) Emergence – another gang of good lads who cut their teeth in the pod
3) Stenaline – rail & sail from like 30blips. just sayin’.*
Oh, and Whitney died last weekend too. That was sad. May they both rest in peace.
*lol jk Dublin you’re deadly really.
Found myself at the Christopher Raeburn presentation at London Fashion Week’s headquarters in Somerset House this afternoon. It made me want quilted trousers. The design team tell me they were made from some amazing military grade fabric, as is a lot of Raeburn’s amazingly industrial, functional work. Sadly I would look like a beached whale in quilted tapered trousers, but I would happily settle for one of the amazing parkas, or even one of the caps or bags. Raeburn is one of the Topshop BCF Newgen Designers, and won the British Fashion Award for Emerging Talent-Menswear, so don’t be surprised when he soon takes over the world with his upcycled and sustainable design. Oh you didn’t know that he’s really committed to sustainability? That’s because he does it the way it should be done – by being really good at design first and foremost.
Overall the collection for me was characterised by big hoods, navy, green and yellow, sumptuous wool, military parachute fabric, utility & function, and awesome quilted sock-cover-thingys for massive wedges. The pieces are all still wonderfully feminine but for the kind of girls who aren’t afraid to jump in puddles.
Christopher Raeburn AW12
I want this coat and this hat. I would be a better person with them on, if sadly still nowhere near as ridey as the model.
Christopher Raeburn AW12
Christopher Raeburn AW12
Christopher Raeburn AW12
Quilted Trouser NOM.
