i see you

Another sunny Tuesday evening. I love all this warm weather! The days feel so long and put a massive, cheesy smile upon your face. I've been dancing on stars even more so since I started my new job. Fashion assistant, eeeeeek!

Here's some Kate Moss at la 2005. What a way to procrastinate when I should be selling clothes on eBay... My overdraft's going to EAT ME if I don't do something about it soon.

[Publication: i-D, Issue: September 2005, The Name Issue, Photographer: Tesh, Fashion Director: Edward Enniful, Model: Kate Moss]

SHOUT IT!!!!

I f***ing love glitter. And mussed-up hair. And bare shoulders. And pink (sometimes). Bring on the bank holiday weekend parties. Only TWO.FIVE days!!

[Images: Eight, 10th Muse]

Granny chic

Forget about the purple rinse, mothballs and baggy hosiery; granny chic is back and with a rose-scented vengeance. For the last few years dressing like someone of pension age has made its mark as a major trend in young, edgy fashion circles, with nightclubs and cooler-than-thou hotspots of London filled with an eclectic – if not a bit shabby – mix of fashion from decades past. It’s all about dressing like you’ve raided your Nan’s wardrobe after a sherbet binge, adding a playful ladylike elegance and a touch of costume to an otherwise humdrum noughties wardrobe. Young twenty-somethings can be seen proudly in pretty floral tea dresses, fox furs, nylon stockings, fishtail pencil skirts, lace-up shoes and 1950’s box handbags, their hair wafted up into pompadours and pouts smackered with pillar box red lipstick – the perfect attire for heading down the WI for a jive masterclass or a drink at the Black Gardenia. And let’s face it, what lady doesn’t want to dress like Diana Dors circa 1958?

And the catwalks have followed suit. Old-lady friendly staples – herringbone, paisley, hairnets, pearls and knee-high socks – are everywhere. We’ve seen tweed twin-sets, cat-eye glasses and netted gloves at Luella, pastel coloured dresses and quasi-orthopedic shoes at John Galliano and Betty Jackson, the fairy god mother of whimsical grandma chic, had a collection splattered with cheery ditsy blooms, a touch of lace and 1920’s inspired accessories.

Although today it’s practically impossible to miss this thrift-chic aesthetic, vintage only really began to get style status a decade ago with Kate Moss bucking the ‘current season’ trend and dressing her supermodel self in incredible designer one-offs – a beautiful one-shoulder canary yellow frock being her first foray. And now models, actresses, musicians – girls all over the world – are all over vintage like a rash. Alexa Chung is forever adorned in her little 1940’s floral tea dresses, doily cardis and tortoiseshell spectacles, a bright coloured pop sock zipping the look back to the 21st century, while Mary-Kate Olsen, with her floor-length crushed silk and velvet dresses, fur coats, backcombed bouffant and cascades of vintage jewels is practically grandma re-incarnate.


Lorraine Candy, editor of UK Elle, is not at all surprised by this resurgence of old, seeing it as a byproduct of our current financial climate. “You could see it as a make-do-and-mend reaction to the economic crisis. Or you could see it as simply beautiful investment clothes at a time when women need some convincing to shop. Either way, vintage featured in some of the season’s best collections.”


And if you like a bit of vintage, why not try these…

1. Pin up your Victory rolls, draw on your stockings and head to East London’s air raid shelter for a 1940’s Blitz party. You’ll be swaying to the Swing music in no time. www.theblitzparty.com/

2. Head to the Prince Charles or Electric Cinema for a nostalgic film in finest monochrome or sepia. www.princecharlescinema.com/,www.electriccinema.co.uk/

3. Embark on a course of lindy hop dance lessons. Jazz shoes at the ready… www.swingdanceuk.com/

4. Take a glimpse into the fairytale life of one of Hollywood’s most glamorous stars of the 1950s at the Grace Kelly exhibition at the V&A Museum. www.vam.ac.uk

5. Head to the Black Gardenia or Bourne & Hollinghurst for the finest retro tipple – Campari and orange is a must.

6. Treat your chum for afternoon tea at The Ritz. With freshly baked scones, jam and clotted cream to nibble on, ooops, there goes your 1940’s nipped-in waist in no time. www.theritzlondon.com/tea/

A homage: Alexander McQueen Spring 2001 RTW collection

One of the late, great fashion designer's most iconic shows.

The bastard child of Peter Weiss’ play Marat/Sade, a power-dressing city wardrobe and the witchcraft aesthetic of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the show was momentous from start to finish. Set in a starkly illuminated cube – which immediately became apparent as the holding cell of a mental asylum – bandage-clad models moved awkwardly around the space, their backs arched and arms flinching demonically as they peered out through one-way mirrored glass. With such an immediate shock effect it would be easy to gloss over the clothes, but to do that would be a tragedy.


The collection itself was spectacular; a mix of confident suits, easy separates and breathtaking dresses that would be perfect for a decadent ball or to shimmy down the red carpet. It was all about texture and embellishment in the most surreal of ways. A statuesque Erin O’Connor was swathed neck to toe in nothing but washing line pegs, while another model glared out at the audience; a headpiece of birds of prey circling above her head casting ominous shadows. Cascades of silvery mussel shells adorned skirts, a medieval castle rose dramatically from a shoulder and a top dripped with crumbling jigsaw pieces, exposing nothing but bare flesh behind. Feathers too were a major theme, bustling under skirts, cocooning necks and jutting out of trouser seams, becoming more extravagant and gratuitous near the end of the show with a giant Cinderella-shaped ballgown of plumes of feathers in jet and blood red.


Yet within this spectacle there were bounds of beautifully tailored, wearable pieces. In a palette of dusky pink, duck egg blue, stone, soft lilac, and chestnut we saw chic, oversized blazers, slim waistcoats, sleeveless shirts, pencil skirts and floor skimming suit trousers that created a modern, feminine silhouette. Androgynous touches – ties, wide-leg trousers – were off set with floral embroidery and garlands of appliqué flowers that looped and twisted upon tops like a helter-skelter, while halterneck cotton dresses stood out as perfect summer attire. Of course, some pieces were inevitably distorted in Alexander McQueen’s signature way – a blazer was worn as a skirt and a pair of trousers was smeared with paint rendering them and ugly and ruined – but predominantly they were chic, functional pieces for the confident, modern woman. Ordinary made extraordinary to breathtaking results.

Here are some highlights...

Oh, Kate!

Just got back from (another) evening househunting and was greeted with a beautiful candy and white issue of British Vogue at my door - with none other than an exceptionally pretty Kate Moss gracing the cover, all mussed-up Bardot hair and dripping with Prada chandelier crystals. My god she looks beautiful in the fashion shoot*. The Kate that time forgot. No longer the ravaged, roughed up version we have become accustomed to of late. No, she's back... For now at least. No wonder Jamie put a ring on it.

*These pics are enormous so click click to make them big!

[Publication: British Vogue, Issue: April 2010, Feature: Basic Instinct, Photographer: Willy Vanderperre, Fashion editor: Miranda Almond, Model: Kate Moss]

Voodoo

Tribal

[Publication: W Magazine, Issue: October 2007, Title: Voodoo, Photographers: Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott, Stylist: Alex White, Model: Kate Moss, Images from Alice's Wardrobe Wonderland]