Vintage Saturdays

 

 While everybody around me on the streets was wearing jeans, light boots, grey/black/brown jackets and scarves in the same colors, I was like a snowdrop flower emerged from a long boring and hard winter. To me, it was a great weather to still wear dress shoes and colorful skirts even though a cold wind was blowing here and there, but one could feel the warm sun and the fresh air of Fall. 

 I tend to enjoy this season as much as I can, by even wearing pretty clothes and drinking hot delicious coffees in elegant interiors. That's how my Saturday was like.

 Don't deny the fact that every woman desires to feel like an aristocrat and you can make time to feel like a noble lady if you find the right places. I guess I was influenced by Kate Morton's "The house at Riverton" and wanted to recreate the book's mood a bit. 

Have you read it?

 
Wearing: thrifted skirt and belt, ASOS shoes, Meli Melo rings, gifted earrings,H&M thrifted sweater.

Purple and blue for October

 

 It's been raining here for almost two days straight. Just when I decided to curl my hair and be all lady like. I am surprised it worked (not much for the curls though) as I usually am quite "meh" when it comes to dressing up in rainy weather. I always feel like wearing jeans and some sneakers not to ruin my fancy shoes - but sometimes exceptions can be made and luckily these white shoes ere not ruined. 

What can I say, Autumn came and it is staying. So is my melancholy and my "not-in-the-mood-to-do-anything" state. At least I can drink tons of tea and read books while gazing the rain outside from time to time - that is a lovely Autumn scenario for me.

 It's Friday (already!) Got any plans for the weekend?

 

Wearing: Bershka shirt, MiniPrix.ro skirt, Zara cardigan and earrings, New Look bag, Asos shoes.

Classy grunge

 

 Now this is an interesting turn: from floral prints to grunge patterns. 

Truth is I've always had a fancy for chequered prints but always hesitated when I was shopping. However, I decided to give in and since I saw this particular shirt in an outlet shop, I thought "what the heck" and went for it. I loved the soft cotton fabric, the simple design (sometimes I found shirts with huge ugly pockets or studs randomly placed on them - what?!) and the combination of colors is really to my taste. I suppose my mother would say that I am wearing a table cloth and to be honest that is my first impression when I see this pattern too; but sometimes table cloths can be really cool and fashionable.

 Have e lovely weekend guys!

   

 Wearing: Bershka shirt, H&M pants, Newt.ro bag, handmade earrings, Asos shoes, New Yorker sunglasses. 

 

Pijama shirts - or not?

 I received this blouse not long ago from Sheinside and this is not the first time I am wearing it, but it is the first time it appears on this blog. When I had to choose from a lot of other blouses I was reluctant at first because I am not one to have a passion for teeny-tiny prints such as these. Dots, flowers, hearts, stripes, whatever, not a fan, they made me think of pijamas. Instead if you show me huge beautiful prints (preferably in crazy colors) on..anything, then you win me forever. The fact is, I don't know exactly what made me choose this blouse, perhaps the color, this minty green I will always adore, and the bow on the neckline, so feminine and elegant, I have a thing for those. I am happy with it, this is one of those exceptions I gladly accept, ha! And I am quite stubborn.
Worn with neutral or pastel pieces and it fits perfectly. Red will do too, but not very bright ok?
And I got to wear my new shoes I adore so much! It was one of those wonderful days when you find something beautiful (like...from ASOS) in an outlet store at a price so ridiculously low that just simply screamed: "BUY US! YOUR FEET WILL NEVER BE HAPPY AGAIN IF YOU DON'T TAKE US HOME!" 
So yes, I suppose that would've been true.

 

Wearing: Sheinside shirt, thrifted skirt, ASOS shoes, random brand bag.

   

 

ASOS: HOW TO CREATE A BILLION POUND FASHION BUSINESS

Posted by Bethan Holt, Junior Fashion Editor at Large

Ok, so no get-rich-quick revelation here I'm afraid (despite what the title suggests) but instead some very interesting takeaways from a talk which I went along to on Wednesday night, hosted by The Industry at the very sleek and shiny Conde Nast Fashion College. In the latest in a series of fashion industry insider events, Lauretta Roberts of WGSN interviewed Nick Robertson, CEO of ASOS. In case you weren't aware, not only is ASOS sweet ambrosia to fashion loving, cash strapped twenty-somethings like myself but it is also astonishing the financial markets with its ever-soaring profits, up 23% last year. Clearly the two go hand-in-hand. In a fascinating but all too short interview, Robertson spoke about how he has taken ASOS from its "As Seen On Screen" beginnings to one of the world's biggest fashion retailers, on target to hit the £1 billion sales in the not-too-distant future.

Here are 7 things to know about the rise and rise of ASOS...

Nick Robertson and Lauretta Roberts in conversation for The Industry (image courtesy of Sam Atkinson for The Industry)

1. EMOTIONAL INVESTMENT

The first rounds of investment in ASOS didn't come from anonymous city investors but from Roberston's brother. "My brother had put in half and I couldn’t stand the thought of sitting around the table at Christmas having lost it all" he said as he explained exactly how the company survived the burst of the dot com bubble in its early days. Budding business starters might also be interested to know  Nick's assertion that when you have less investment, your venture is less likely to fail. Nothing to lose.

2. EDITORIALISE

Robertson describes ASOS's home page ambition "to look something like Daily Mail meets Style.com meets Grazia". While all kind of retailers are now looking to editorialise their offering, this principle was one of the founding ideas of the refined ASOS model as it moved from a website which sold a vast selection of stock to a more honed vision of an affordable online destination for the young fashion market.

3. SUPER-SERVE

I loved Nick's phrase "super-serve". "We are the only retailer which super-serves twenty somethings" he claimed. ASOS spends £110 million each year on supplementing global shipping. It's one of the numerous services which the delivery model could easily charge for accordingly. Instead there's always a free delivery and free returns option. What's more, they're easy to use. ASOS Premier gives you unlimited next day delivery for just £9.95 each year which if you're ordering every couple of weeks, must leave ASOS out of pocket. It's the new service with a smile.

4. DON'T LOOK OVER YOUR SHOULDER

"For years, we were just waiting for Harvey Nichols and Selfridges to appear". Just because those stores were great at bricks and mortar retail ended up not meaning the same for online. This gave ASOS years to build up their reputation and reach. Lauretta told us how Robertson once claimed that "he wanted to be the CEO of the Selfridges of the internet" as the CEO of Selfridges sat in the room. While this did not go down well, it does prove that an unknown brand can make a big impact, especially when their would-be competitors are absent.

5. LUCK

I lost count of the number of times that Robertson cited luck as the reason for his success. It's good to feel lucky, but it was more telling when he said, "I think it helped that we ended up doing lots of things sort of right".

6. YOU CAN NEVER MOVE QUICK ENOUGH, OR SLOW ENOUGH

"There's a lot we're not doing yet which I wish we were" claimed Robertson as he revealed that he had by chance invested in a drone company ahead of Amazon's recent announcement that they plan to begin using drones to deliver orders. But other new technology like virtual mirrors and online sizing tools has, as yet, failed to impress the ASOS team sufficiently to implement. The biggest focus for sizing is currently on providing accurate measurements for each size- the good old fashioned way.

7. CRUNCH THE DATA

Not something which Nick really touched on but it's interesting to note yesterday's Guardian story about a 37% rise in revenues at ASOS thanks to data analysis by EDITD. The information provided by the startup which we wrote about on FEAL a while ago has helped ASOS buyers to make the right decisions ahead of their competitors.

P.S Robertson revealed that out of the 150 web developers which he employs, only 2 are girls. So any talented lady web developers out there, go knocking on the ASOS door.

HOUSE OF HACKNEY X ASOS: GRUNGE JUST GOT REFRESHED

Posted by Bethan Holt, Junior Fashion Editor at Large

By this point in the fashion season, trends can start to feel a little tired. Everything which seemed so cosy, fresh and inviting back in September feels "done" by now but let's not kid ourselves that any of the SS14 stock which will land in the coming weeks is really going to be wearable for a while yet- unless we get a freak February heatwave. Nope, what is really required at this time of year is a new wave of inspiration to get us through the last dregs of Winter.

ASOS and House of Hackney have come to the rescue with a gorgeous new collab which suddenly makes grunge- one of the biggest Autumn catwalk moods to transfer across the retail spectrum- feel exciting again. All tartan-ed out? House of Hackney's giant tasseled scarf might make you think again. Or perhaps it's the new take on dungarees- cropped, printed and in velvet- which will pep up your fashion outlook for the dark, cold months ahead. I also love the silky checked slip dress which will do just as well for NYE as for Glasto.

Frieda Gormley, the House of Hackney founder whom I had the pleasure of interviewing last year, says that it's the girls of Dalston they're surrounded by every day who really inspired them, so much so in fact that they've called the collection "Dalston Tart". Cheeky. If you're a Dalston tart yourself, or perhaps find yourself over that way one day then be sure to pop into the House of Hackney shop on Shoreditch High Street where the brand's maximal, witty, Victorian dandy vision comes to life beautifully.

Happy AW13, take 2.

ALL THE SMALL THINGS

Posted by Bethan Holt, Fashion Junior at Large

This time of year can start to make one feel really quite weighed down. First of all, there's the eating- even before Christmas day itself, there seem to be interminable cupcakes and tins of Quality Street and Miniature Heroes knocking about, not to mention the carb fest that is "party food". Then there's all the shopping, present upon present to buy, rolls of wrapping paper and festive cards. The loading up which began several weeks ago is now beginning to feel like an enormous weight which it would be rather nice to fly away from, cast off all the possessions and unnecessary stodge and just lighten up.

Mini Miu Miu heels worn by Elle China's Leaf Greener, photographed by Tommy Ton (jakandjil.com)

If we cannot grow wings then the next best thing might be downsizing which, rather luckily, is right in line with where fashion is going. Gone are the mega Towie heels of yesteryear, replaced with a stocky, ladylike block heel which the Queen would be proud of. As opposed to the giant, Mary Poppins bags of mere seasons ago, it now seems so much fresher to be carting around little more than a teeny cross-body bag just big enough for a phone, a card and a lipstick. After all, how often do you actually use the entire contents of your make-up bag which we usually insist on hauling around "just in case". I think it's a state of mind more than anything else, cutting the ties and losing the fear. Our backs will thank us.

A very small bag, photographed by Tommy Ton (jakandjil.com)

The ultimate lightweight inspiration comes courtesy of Louis Vuitton who have recruited three street style stars- Mira Duma, Hanneli Mustaparta and Elin Kling- to prance the streets of Paris, hands free with just their sweet and small cross-body bags to carry their worldly goods. The message is that life is just  trillion times more fun without baggage which is quite a statement for a brand whose core offer is enormous trunks and sizeable handbags. 2013 is set to be the year when fashion is kind to us- we can wear heels which aren't absurd and bags which don't break our backs. To celebrate, here are some late additions for your Christmas list... small but perfectly formed.

Jimmy Choo rebel bag £550 at My Theresa

Marc by Marc Jacobs spot bag £350 at My Theresa

ASOS chunky gold heels £40

J Crew Janey silver gold chunk pumps £243.75

Topshop snake bag £28

Zara jewelled ballerinas £59.99

Miu Miu crystal small heels £460

STYLING IT UP: WHITE SHIRTS

Posted by Bethan Holt, Fashion Junior at Large

Peter Lindberh's supermodels in white shirts (image from thefashionbloggers.blogspot.com)

Pretty much every "grown-up" lady I know has a perfect white shirt. It's a staple element of the wardrobe of most modern women. Until now, the white shirt has either been buttoned up with a suit for business meetings or worn loose and mannish as in Peter Lindbergh's supermodels portrait above. However of late, it's started to inch into actual fashion territory too.  By that I mean that it's been used as key styling tool on the catwalks and, most importantly, is Alexa Chung's new favourite thing to wear to big events.

Alexa in Christopher Kane at the Scottish Fashion Awards

In our day-to-day work, the FashEd and I are constantly hearing about how consumers are trying to save their pennies and are reluctant to invest in whole new looks. This makes the white shirt's new lease of life even more exciting for those of you out there who want to look of the moment with out breaking the bank. Step forward our new formula-

1. Take a blingy party dress from your wardrobe.
2. Wear with white shirt.

Ta da! Ok, so it's pretty simple but the basic principle is that you can revive old skirts and dresses just by wearing them a new and now way, namely by priming them up with a crisp shirt rather than baring flesh or using a cardigan  to cover up. Take it a step further by adding gems to the cuff or a ribbon round the collar. It is imperative that the shirt is taken far, far away from corporate connotations to achieve the right level of nowness- Kristen Stewart wore a Stella white shirt get-up recently which would have been rather fab had it not been for the overly staid jacket that got plonked on top.

Kristen Stewart in Stella (image from mydaily.co.uk)

Alexa in Marc Jacobs plus shirt at the Met Gala (image from mydaily.co.uk)

It wasn't actually Alexa who started this trend- though she's it earliest real life adopter. On the AW12 catwalks, there were white shirts sprinkled into many of the major shows. Giles' show notes even thanked Gap for the provision of white shirts throughout. Roksanda Ilincic kept the shirt within its menswear roots but added fur and sporty cuffs. Simone Rocha put huge knitted panels on hers while Stella's were embroidered in cobalt blue rococo patterns. 

Giles AW12 (image from catwalking.com)

Roksanda Ilincic AW12 (image from catwalking.com)

Here are our favourite white shirt picks, just keep it well away from a suit jacket, unless you work in a law firm...

ASOS £25

Reiss £79

Topshop £32