THE NEW SKIRT FOR SPRING: THE DOUBLE DROP

Posted by Bethan Holt, Junior Fashion Editor at Large

Every season has its own skirt. It might be a very particular length, a new degree of fullness or a new kind of cut.

Here at FEAL, we have decided to christen this season's skirt The Double Drop. More often than not, the double drop is a tube skirt but it also has incarnations in girly prom skirt styles. The crucial thing about it is that it finishes in two places. Not like those slightly weird mullet skirts of last summer which stopped at the knee at the front and mid-calf at the back. No, the Double Drop is perfectly straight all the way round but has two layers. Generally, the underneath layer is opaque and finishes a good few inches above the top layer which is always sheer or see-through in some way. It is both a quite sexy mini skirt and a demure ladylike item, clever non?

Burberry AW13

The Double Drop seems to have started life as what we liked to call a Show Your Knickers skirt (all about the technical terms). The SYK skirts was most famously immortalised in Burberry's Resort '14 and SS14 collections in which models wore perfectly pretty lace pencil skirts which exposed their granny pants. In fact, the one SYK which appeared in the AW13 show came with heart printed pants which are still available to buy here (now half price, yay). For the total look, wear underneath a latex pencil.

Burberry SS14

The Double Drop came in many guises on the catwalks…

A high waisted and barely there voile at Balenciaga, the modernist way.

Balenciaga SS14

 Asymetric and pleated with art peeping through at Celine...

Celine SS14

Cleverly, with shirt tails as a base layer at Erdem…

Erdem SS14

And with a lovely decorative, collage-like under section at Giambattista Valli.

Giambattista Valli SS14

The high street has a brilliant selection of double drop skirts. 

This white Oasis one is pleasingly crisp…

Oasis SS14 (not available quite yet)

This pale blue by Warehouse is also a good not-too-girly version. Also very subtle should you be self conscious about knees/ lower thighs.

Warehouse skirt £50

New Look's floral embellished double drop is very dainty...

New Look £34.99 (coming soon)

 You can always trust Zara to pay "tribute". Here's their version of the Celine catwalk skirt. They've abandoned the double layer notion but stuck with the opaque meets sheer thing.

Zara 39.99

A surprisingly fashion-y interpretation from Next but in ever-practical, work appropriate black.

Next £48

 And finally, a very ethereal version from Topshop

Topshop £65

SECRET 20% OFF SALE: OASIS FASHION ESSENTIALS

Posted by Melanie Rickey, Fashion Editor at Large

There's nothing better than a secret sale. Well, maybe there is.. a secret sale with a secret code takes some beating. You need to know the key, otherwise you can't get the magical reduction. I like it when stores do this kind of promo. It shows they are in touch with the fact there are savvy shoppers out there willing to go further to earn money off. Perseverance pays. Well, this week and next if you type "MAY20" into the box when you are at the Oasis online checkout you get 20% off. Simple. Oasis is a store finely tuned into the needs of the young British woman;  the English, Scottish, Irish or Welsh Rose if you like. When I think of the typically British summer fete, garden party, street party, school sports day, I think of women in the kind of smart and pretty occasion wear Oasis knows how to create. So, seeing as it is almost, allegedly, the summer, and we have the Jubilee around the corner I chose some patriotically hued prettiness with a sweet fashion edge to give you inspiration... Scroll further down to see what Bethan Holt has chosen for her top five..

Fashion Editor at Large Top Five

White lace fit and flare dress £150

Double split maxi skirt £50

Lace collar navy top  £28

Rose pendant £8

White lace shirt £38

Fashion Junior's Top Five...

I love Oasis's prints- just the right mix of trend and summery loveliness. Plus, I'm going through a tea dress obsession right now and the print on the one I've chosen is one of the best I've seen. It fits the mood without being too twee- the high street girl's alternative to Prada's postcard dresses.

Tropical jeans £48

Tan Jesus sandal £28

Scarf print shirt £60

Chintzy tea dress £85 

Bow sun hat £21

Go forth and shop, we're sure it's what the Queen would want...

CAN'T WAIT TO WEAR: CROSS-BODY BAGS

Posted by the Fashion Junior at Large

I feel as if, in order to truly appreciate the joy of the cross-body bag, one needs to have previously been devoted to its design antithesis - the clutch. There is definitely a time and a place for the latter, like elegant social occasions where you'll be sitting down for the duration of the evening, and only require a phone, credit card and lipstick. The clutch is not suitable for Fashion Week, which is a lesson I learned the hard way.

I erroneously took a Marc by Marc Jacobs oversized clutch to the London Fashion Week exhibition in 2008. It was heavy, it made shaking hands a chore, and carrying lookbooks laborious. Ever since then I've been a cross-body bag convert and devotee, and joy of joys it's back for the season and just in time for London Fashion Week this month.

Chloe - This looks like a vintage find from Beyond Retro

Dior - Alligator and snake skin styles are major this season. Love this one so so much.

Gucci - Tassles and double strap

Marc Jacobs

Louis Vuitton front view

Louis Vuitton - Possibly the most worshiped and controversial bag of the season as seen on Victoria Beckham (who claimed her bag had a specially made faux fox tail instead of a real one) and fellow blogger Bryan Boy

Click to shop these beauties:

Porenza Schouler, £1560

Oasis, £45

Marc Jacobs, £725

Clarks, £69.99

ASOS, £65

Photo Credits

Catwalking / Chris Moore

Net-a-porter.com

asos.com

clarks.co.uk

oasis-store.com

A FIRST LOOK AT OASIS SS10!

Posted by the Fashion Editor at Large

I really enjoyed the Oasis press day for Spring/Summer 10. The people there are my friends and I was lurking around watching the whole press day get organised, so on the day itself I actually didn't attend like a journalist, more like I had a cuppa and chatted to the design team about how their collection seemed to go down with the press.  Oasis have really raised their game lately, they have an excellent shoe and handbag designer in Emma Christmas and the Creative Director Nadia Jones (sister of Kim Jones) has taken the brand to a new level. Go Girls! And boy - Iain Ewing is the talented head of design there.  Oh and not forgetting Yellowdoor whose art team concieved the lookbook. So because I wasn't marauding around with my girlfriends camera (she put her foot down yesterday, and I bought my own one today - a spanky Lumix G1) I asked the team for a sneak preview of their SS10 lookbook, and in that way chose my Oasis top ten pieces. So here they are.

Black suede pencil skirt with fringe panel. Mmm..this one is as good as the ACNE one I saw in Paris.

These leggings make me happy. They have a Cirque du Soleil meets Pans People thing thing going on

Loving grey suede for SS10. This is a fringed biker jacket. Very Garth Brooks in Manhattan

I'm probably a bit late picking up on this shoe shape. Surface to Air did some similar, and Chloe Sevigny also created some a bit similar for Opening Ceremony. These are my first bet for the fashion shoe of next season.

This is how I will be dressing on next summers jaunt to Patmos. I like how the stylist Fran Burns used the belt of the cotton printed shorts in the models hair. Oh and a denim jacket with fringing and gold chain? Give me some!

This is my favourite piece I think. I'm so into these African prints at the moment. I'm call them Traveller Prints. They are the sort of thing you wear when you've cut loose from urban life and chilled out so much you've got to the point where going to the shop is a big event in your day. I imagine finding a dress like this in a hot dusty street market, buying it, and living in it all summer. Need baggy pants in this fabric too.

                                                                                                                                                        

Oasis are always doing clever little mini-collections, and this dress is part of their naive Trompe L'oeil range.                                                                                                                                                

I saw Olivia Palermo in a pale grey trouser suit the other day, and it reminded me that a woman can look very sexy in a suit in the daytime, and not at all butch. Olivia has inspired me, and this is two-piece definitely on my shopping list for spring.

One of my Grazia colleagues, Siobhan, is really backing the shift dress for spring. I didn't see the shift dress thing at first viewing of the collections, but now the shows are over I am seeing them everywhere. This is a lovely dress.

Ok, so I will not be wearing spray on jeggings (or in normal speak jean style leggings) next season. Heaven forfend. But I think anyone with a touch of flamboyance about them will be able to carry of this suede tunic with copious fringery. And it is in pale grey suede! Mmmmm.