FUR GETS FUNNY: FENDI BAG BUGS HIT HARRODS

Posted by Bethan Holt, Junior Fashion Editor at Large

Fendi Peekaboo bag bug

High fashion was once the preserve of very serious clothes. It was straight-faced, not quite sensible but definitely targeted at being investment standard. Obviously there are always exceptions, but for the most part it was all about projecting a certain kind of pulled- together, grown-up vibe. You certainly wouldn't have expected to be able to compare a designer handbag to a character from Rainbow. Fashion has found its sense of humour though; think about gorgeous designer shoes by Charlotte Olympia and Sophia Webster which come with girly, fantastical themes likes carnivals, fairytales and Barbie. Or they way Karl Lagerfeld puts a hula hoop bag on the Chanel runway. Once upon a time, you'd have to go to  joke shop for that sort of thing, now you find it in… Harrods.

Fendi Bag bugs £375 each

This is where Fendi, whose FF logo incidentally stands for Fun Fur, have just opened a pop-up boutique for their Bag Bugs range which is fabulously colourful, fun and Instagram-able (a pretty crucial part of the strategy I'm sure). Creative Director Karl Lagerfeld introduced Bag Bugs for Aw13 and Silvia Fendi herself came up with their names- Snobius, Furyou and Nutty- as they are now a permanent fixture in the Fendi offering. They transform one of those very strait-laced, sensibly purchased handbags into a sweet statement. The only downside is that they are made from real fur. If mink isn't your thing, then the range includes purses, bags and scarves decorated with big, funny bug eyes. I particularly loved the Peekaboo tote which you can close up to look like a sleek, businesslike bag all the while knowing that there's a goggly pair of eyes inside. It reminds me of Zippy, hence the Rainbow reference.

The 2jour bag £1140

Totally amazing Fendi Baguette, bag bugged.

Fendi Bag Bug bags = Zippy dead ringers

More Peekaboo tote (£3720)

Oh and look out for Fendi's bag bug video which goes live on Tuesday, here's the teaser


L'invasion des Bags Bugs de Fendi by VOGUEPARIS

The Bag Bug pop-up is open at Harrods until November 30th- it's so fun, go! Find it through Door 9.

A DAY AT THE RACES

Posted by Bethan Holt, Fashion Junior at Large

The English summer is punctuated with social occasions ostensibly centered around sport- Wimbledon, Henley and, of course Royal Ascot to name but a few.  Today, I was very happy to be invited to join Harrods on the second day of this year's Ascot event. As an avid people watcher and fashion enthusiast (obviously) an event like Ascot is a treat to attend. If any of you have been watching and enjoying Grayson Perry's brilliant series 'In the Best Possible Taste' then you'd have loved the opportunity I had today to see how everyone from a Jordanian Princess to a Spearmint Rhino loving lad approaches a day at Royal Ascot. As one woman I overheard on my way home stated, "It's not really about the horses is it? I spent all day looking at the fashion".

Despite plenty of publicity surrounding Royal Ascot's new fashion police and strict dress code policy, it seems to me that there's still plenty of room for guests to express their version of occasion dressing. There were horsey upper class ladies in the paddock discussing the muscle tone in number 7's right leg who looked like they'd had their housekeeper run up their outfit from the old curtains. There were terribly chic older women in loose dress coats and just-dramatic-enough hats. There was also every kind of interpretation of 'fashion' from rebel girls in studded biker boots and vintage fedoras to TOWIE disciples in mega short body con and a layer or ten of fake tan. Interestingly, the further down the stand you went, the more 'trashion' it got. The Queen has been attending Royal Ascot her whole life and it's safe to say she has been witness to big changes in the attire of those who attend. If she's half the people watcher I am- she's probably not, as she's famously much more interested in animals than people- then the 2012 version is all the more interesting for the microcosm it shows of how we dress now.

So a huge thanks to Harrods for a delightful day out and for providing a conventional catwalk show of some great British designers to go alongside the all-day parade of what British women wear now.

What I wore today... Including a lovely hat from Mich Dulce- a Filipino milliner who makes hats with a bit of humour but not so much that you can't be taken seriously at an event like Royal Ascot, and in my opinion much chicer than a few feathers glued to a hairband.



A bit of a pap shot I'm afraid, but I think this must be Marie Mercie, who is well known for cat hats. This is the first time I've seen a summer style and I like very, very much.



Lace was definitely the biggest trend of the day. This navy lace was EVERYWHERE. It's from Next and is based on the Erdem style Duchess Kate wore in Canada last year.


From Prada guipure coats to this... That's the span of Royal Ascot fashion.



The horses were invariably handsome and groomed to perfection

The Fashion Show...

Vivienne Westwood

Giles

Ginormous Westwood shoes

Stephen Webster mini trilby

More Stephen Webster

Giles

Giles

Westwood

Giles

And something for the boys...

Todd Lynn

JUBILEE FASHION FUN

Posted by Bethan Holt, Fashion Junior at Large

The Queen at her coronation by Cecil Beaton (image from the V&A)

If by any chance you hadn't noticed, this weekend Britain will be in party mood to celebrate the Queen's sixty years on the throne. The streets are already bedecked with union jack flags and shops crammed with cupcake cases and celebratory tablecloths. We're loving the ways our fashion friends are getting in on the action with limited edition t-shirts and special exhibitions. So today we thought we'd bring you news of our three favourite royal related projects to get you even more excited about the weekend's festivities...

ASOS DIY CROWNS

Feeling a bit jealous about the major lack of precious jewels and tiaras in your possession?  ASOS are coming to the rescue with some very fun crowns designed by House of Holland, Preen, Julie Verhoeven and Danielle Scutt. The perfect headgear for street parties, fetes or river pageant watching over the Jubilee weekend. And ASOS want us all to get involved. You can download your preferred style here and then email the most imaginative portrait of yourself possible to irule@asos.com or tweet it with the hashtag #irule. ASOS will show the world the best pictures they get. Eat your heart out, your Majesty...

Me (looking a little sun drowsy) in my Preen crown

HARRODS DO JUBILEE BIG TIME

If anyone was going to go Jubilee mad, it had to be Harrods didn't it?  There's hardly a department left untouched by the occasion. True to form, everything has been done in a very tasteful yet properly patriotic way. The store kicked off their festivities by gathering the entire staff- thousands of them- to sing the national anthem and wave flags as they were showered in confetti as the store opened one morning back in the middle of May.



As well as the constant national anthem playing which will dominate this weekend, Harrods have a very special ball gowns display which is running in conjunction with the V&A's Ballgowns: British Glamour Since 1950 exhibition. A huge window is taken up with the gowns by designers including Erdem, Alessandra Rich and Valentino- all very stunning. Looking into the display conjures visions of debutante balls and state banquets.

In similarly regal fashion, Harrods have also commissioned a collection of 32 crowns from a huge variety of brands such as Jo Malone, Prada and Faberge- definitely one for every taste. The crowns and ball gowns are available to buy in very limited quantities I hear. Should you be interested, Harrods' personal shopping people are the ones to contact.

Lanvin's jubilee crown

And Valentino's... This is almost nicer than the Imperial crown itself, dare I say it. 

The fashion projects have linked up with the patisserie where William Curley has made special 'couture cakes' to complement gowns from the V&A's exhibition. They look far too good to eat, don't they?

And if you were wondering about the party bit of the occasion, then Harrods asked their Pinterest followers to make pin boards depicting the perfect Jubilee tea party. The winner, Fay Martin, now has her own window bringing the pin board she compiled to life... I think what I'm trying to say is that if you're not feeling the Jubilee happy vibes then you need to get yourself to Harrods pronto.

THE QUEEN'S JEWELS

The Sovereign's sceptre and the Imperial Stae Crown which have the largest cuts from the Cullinan diamond (image from dailymail.co.uk)

If you thought it couldn't get much grander than ball gowns and designers crowns then you obviously haven't heard about the mega diamond display which Buckingham Palace is putting on this Summer. I love that any jubilee comedowns can be cured come 30th June when a lots of the Queen's personal collection of jewels will go on show. One of the highlights is set to be seven pieces all cut from the same diamond- the Cullinan. It's the biggest ever found and was so huge that at first it was cast aside as nobody believed it could possibly be a real gem- we're talking major rock age here people. There are 9 pieces in the world made from the the Cullinan and the 7 on show will mean the biggest reunion to date. I still can't get Elizabeth Taylor's collection out of my mind but I have a funny feeling the palace's diamond exhibition could become my next obsession.

The Queen wearing the Imperial State crown early in her reign (image from dailymail.co.uk)

THE WEEK IN FASHION: 12th- 16th MARCH

Posted by Bethan Holt, Fashion Junior at Large

The Week in Fashion is back from its fashion month break and ready to bring you, our lovely readers their end of week fashion news round-up. Following the marathon of catwalk shows you'd think people of the fashion world might have spent the week collapsed on the sofa in the recovery position, however I'm pleased to say that there's plenty to tell you about...

Samantha Cameron, in Alessandra Rich, and Michelle Obama, in Marchesa, at Wedesnday's State Dinner (image from dailymail.co.uk)

Just in case you hadn't noticed, Dave and Sam Cam dropped into the White House for a few days this week to visit the Obamas. Instead of your average bunch of flowers or bottle of wine, the Brit contingent came bearing gifts of a ping pong table and a Jonathan Saunders scarf. There was a State Dinner attended by politicians, celebrities and other powerful people like Anna Wintour. The US Vogue editor picked a Chanel couture gown which she had already, shock horror, worn once before back in 2009.

Anna Wintour at the Met Gala in 2009. She wore the same dress to
Wednesday night's state dinner (image from www.nymag.com)

Michelle and Samantha naturally did us all proud on the fashion front. Alessandra Rich dressed the PM's wife in a floor-length, high neck blue lace gown from her Spring/ Summer collection. The style reflects the new covered up fashion mood we're feeling for AW12. It has been said that the dress was Sam Cam's own way of bringing a bit of real-life Downton Abbey to Americans who are going crazy for the series. Meanwhile, Mrs Obama went for her tried and tested State Dinner look- knockout dress and chunky necklace. Her outfit was by Marchesa; luckily Georgina Chapman, the woman behind the label, was at the dinner to see her good work in action. During the visit, Sam Cam also wore a few of her favourite London designers including Emilia Wickstead, Burberry and the gorgeous Roksanda Ilincic.

SamCam in Roksanda Ilincic with Michelle O in Zac Posen (image from in style.co.uk)

Huge congratulations to Lucy Yeomans, currently Editor-in-Chief at Harper's Bazaar, who will be moving to Net-a-Porter to head up their editorial offering from September. The move is another indicator of the way retail and editorial are becoming ever more intertwined. DisneyRoller Girl has written about what this means for the fashion industry. Jenny Dickinson, currently at Elle, will become Acting Editor at Harper's Bazaar. We look forward to seeing Net-a-Porter with the Lucy Yeomans touch.

In more moving-about news, Barney's Ney York Vice President and Fashion Director, Amanda Brooks, resigned this week and announced plans to move to the UK. We wonder if we'll be seeing her take up a big job in London sometime soon?

Nicholas Sarkozy awards Franca Sozzani with France's highest honour (image from fashionologie.com)

Congratulations are also in order for Vogue Italia editor, Franca Sozzani who was awarded France's highest honour, the Knight of the Legion of Honour, in Paris this week. Many of the great and good from Italian and French fashion were there, including Raf Simons, Karl Lagerfeld, Stefano Gabbana and Domenico Dolce, indeed Franca was wearing straight-off-the-catwalk Dolce and Gabbana for the occasion. Franca is the world's most accessible Vogue editor, with over 80,000 Twitter followers and a daily blog on the Vogue Italia site. She posted Conde Nast's Chairman Jonathan Newhouse's speech the day after the ceremony, it's a great read.

Sparks flying: Arizona and Freja for Chloe (image from telegraph.co.uk)

My own personal number one model, Arizona Muse, has this week been announced as the new face of Estee Lauder. The beauty giant's Creative Director, Richard Ferretti, told WWD that "Arizona is warm, engaging and smart. She has an innate graciousness that we believe will translate to whatever advertising we choose to do with her." Apparently, Muse's first Lauder ads will be out "within a year". We can already enjoy Arizona in ads for Fendi, Massimo Dutti and Chloe, in which she appears with Freja Erichsen, her sometime girlfriend. Arizona has said that she is a big fan of Estee Lauder's Re-Nutriv- we're adding that to our shopping list this weekend then.

House of Holland SS12 (from catwalking.com)

If you're planning a spot of shopping this weekend then may we suggest that you head to Harrods where the new House of Holland collection drops today? We've had a sneak peek and love the Miami pastel shades and over blown animal prints. Our favourite piece might just be the pastel panel shirt (above). Harrods have also made the lovely Mr Holland their designer of the month. They've given FEAL this little video in which Henry talks about how he started off working on magazines before moving into design- his big break came when Gareth Pugh and Giles Deacon wore his tees to take their bows in 2006. Check out the full interview below and on the Harrods site

Else Schiaparelli, the Surrealist designers whose label Galliano was said to be in talks to
reinvent this week. 

There is still plenty of designer musical chairs action going on. And it's only increased this week with news that Derek Lam is leaving Tod's after six years designing for the classic Italian label. There have also been rumours that John Galliano is set to make a return. Vogue and WWD reported this week that he may have been set to reinvent Schiaparelli, which is now owned by the Tod's group. However, Galliano's spokesman claimed they were 'rumours and nothing more'.

Alexa Chung in Holly Fulton, one of the designers who'll be up for grabs at the British Designers Collective (image from Vogue via catwalkqueen.tv)

If you're a regular reader, then you'll know that we're getting prepped to visit the British Designers Collective at Bicester Village which launches next Wednesday. So, we were very happy to hear this week that one of Britain's best fashion ambassadors, Alexa Chung, is the spokesperson for the initiative. She'll be there on Wednesday and so will FEAL so look out for updates on what Miss Chung loves about the fact we get to buy pieces from the hottest Brit designers at Bicester Village's reduced prices.

Avenue 32 is a new web shopping site which gives each designer their own space- the aim is to make it a personalised experience, more like popping into a designer's own boutique than scrolling through web pages which group many brands together. Just a few of the designers who have areas on the site include Giles, 3.1 Phillip Lim, Preen and Emilio de la Morena. We like!

Now Avenue 32 have created a film 'What are you gonna wear?' which showcases the new designers landing for SS12. To celebrate, they are also offering anyone savvy enough to enter the chance to win a £4,000 Spring/Summer wardrobe. You can find out more details and enter here- what are you waiting for?

Mary and the team in their knicker factory (image from dailymirror.co.uk)

Finally, we hope you were all enjoyed Mary's new show 'Mary's Bottom Line' on Channel 4 last night. It's a three-part series in which Mary dusts off the sewing machines at an old textile factory in Middleton and employs eight young people from the area to launch her Made in Britain "Kinky Knickers". It's pretty emotional but also a really interesting exploration of how the decline in manufacturing has affected whole towns in the UK. And the knickers, I can personally vouch, are lovely. Get them now at Liberty, in-store and online. Our favourites are the pink and peach.

THE WEEK IN FASHION: NOVEMBER 21st-25th

Posted by Bethan Holt, Fashion Junior at Large

Rihanna in McQ on X-Factor (from fashionforlunch.com)

This has been a wonderful few days for London Fashion Week build-up after two of Britain's 
greatest fashion exports, Alexander McQueen and Stella McCartney, both announced that
they would be holding shows during February's London Fashion Week. The Alexander 
McQueen house's younger line, McQ will be showing for the first time ever and has 
chosen London for the occasion. McQ's first store will also be opening on Dover 
Street next Spring. Meanwhile, Stella McCartney has held her catwalk show in Paris
for years now but she is bringing a special one-off presentation to the capital. Next
February's London event will be an evening affair to celebrate Stella's association
with the 2012 Olympics, for which she is designing kits for Team GB. Not to be 
outdone by McQ, Stella also has plans for another store, this time in Brompton Cross.
Until then, we can satisfy our Stella love at Selfridges' 'World of Stella' pop-up in 
January. Be sure to check out next week's Grazia for more McQ news from the FashEd.

A stellar 2012 for Stella (image from newsonlineinternational.wordpress.com)

NEWS JUST IN: Just as I thought all the excitement was over for another week in fashion, I've just seen the breaking news on WWD that over $400,000 worth of Louis Vuitton bags have been stolen in an operation by masked thieves last night at Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris. After last week's Marc Jacobs burglary, the designer is not having much luck at the moment.

Someone's on the run with a hell of a lot of Vuitton (image from coachhandbagclub.com)

A quite odd announcement from the Advertising Standards Authority this week; the images 
of 14 year-old Hailee Steinfeld sitting beside a railway line for Miu Miu's SS11 campaign
have been banned. This is because they show a child in a hazardous situation. Obviously, 
that's completely understandable grounds for banning an image. However, they have have
been all over the Internet and in magazines for months. This makes me think that the damage
is done by now, so why ban the images just as they are being replaced with those from the
Resort campaign anyway? I cannot help but think that is a clunky bit of bureaucracy
rather than a meaningful decision. Am I wrong?

Look away children

On Wednesday evening, Net-a-Porter founder, Natalie Massenet interviewed Christian Louboutin at the V&A museum. You can see the best bits in the video below. Net-a-Porter were tweeting the event live. One of these tweets informed us that Mr Louboutin's dream woman to make shoes for would be Queen Elizabeth II. Interestingly, that very same day, some quite funny pictures were published of none other than Her Majesty (clad in her usual sensible black courts) shooting a concerned look at the Louboutin-esque footwear of Hayrunnisa Gul, the wife of Turkey's President, as she arrived with her husband at Buckingham Palace as part of their state visit to the UK.

Will Mr Louboutin be hearing from Her Majesty shortly we wonder? (image from dailymail.co.uk)

Rumoured supermodel couple Arizona Muse and Freja Beha Erichsen are the stars 
of Chloe's SS12 ad campaign. They were spotted at Chateau Marmont in LA, posing
in dresses from the collection and generally having a fab time. We have hair and tan envy. 

Summery fun for Arizona and Freja (Image from fashionologie.com)

And now for something a little more sobering. Most of us probably think of Arcadia as the behemoth of the British High Street; an almost untouchable retail giant. So, when it was announced yesterday that the company's profits had dropped by 38% and that 250 stores would be closing it was a signal that the economic environment is massively challenging right now. We may have been expecting bad news from smaller chains and businesses but Arcadia's decision to close nearly 10% of its stores shows that nobody is immune.

If you need help with your Christmas party attire then may we suggest you pop along to Harrods which is hosting a day of activities in their 'Way In' partywear department (on the 4th floor) on Saturday 3rd December. Fashion Illustrator David Longshaw will be there drawing customers in their new purchases. Henry Holland will also be transformed for one afternoon only into a shopfloor assistant, on hand to advise customers on the best looks. Actually, that all sounds like a bit of a party in itself, non?

Karl Lagerfeld gets the David Longshaw treatment

As Christmas is on its way, we thought we'd let you know about a couple of good causes to get involved in during the Season of Goodwill...

Erin O'Connor with some of the bags which are up for grabs. 

For the next week, Save the Children are hosting an online designer bag auction to raise funds for their No Child Born to Die initiative. There are plenty of beauties to choose from including bags previously owned by Sienna Miller and Samantha Cameron. Also in the mix are some beauties from Alexander McQueen, Sophie Hulme and Christopher Kane (his liquid clutch which Erin O'Connor is holding is AMAZING). You can bid until 4th December. If all that doesn't make you visit the site, then perhaps Tilda Swinton can persuade you... She says:

“Bid high! Bid so much higher than you think you will or can! Think of a dicey number and double it. And then double that. No fancy bag can ever carry what your generosity will mean to the children it will help to live. Make this beautiful object truly valuable by investing real money in real life - and carry the evidence with pride. Don't count the cost. Think of it as paying something back for all there is to be grateful for in your days.”

If you're still feeling charitable then Volcom are asking for your donations of denim you no longer want... More details can be found here.