THE WEEK IN FASHION: OCTOBER 15th- 19th

Posted by Bethan Holt, Fashion Junior at Large

I'm taking a day off today to catch up on life and sleep after fashion weeks and getting lots of projects done in the aftermath. Next week, I'll be at-larging it NYC for the launch of H&M's much anticipated collaboration with Maison Martin Margiela. In the very excited meantime, here's a quick rundown of the ten fashion news stories you need to catch up on from this week.... Happy Weekend!

1. Chanel saves jobs in Scotland as King Karl declares his next show will take place in bonnie Edinburgh

2. Alexa Chung hits back at weight critics

3. Not much love for Brad Pitt's Chanel No.5 ad



4. White shirts and jeans on Vogue Paris cover- Lazy or fabulous?

Image from disneyrollergirl.net

5. Iris Apfel covers Dazed and Confused in Comme des Garcons

Image from Standard.co.uk

6. Michelle Obama and Ann Romney are pretty in pink 

7. Milan throws out McDonalds in favour of Prada, cue anger and chaos

8. Winner of The Dorchester Prize is announced- Congratulations Augustin Teboul

9. Sneak a preview peek of Slim Aarons' new book La Dolce Vita 

Don't we all want to be right here, right now? Image from nymag.com

10. Tim Walker Storyteller exhibition opens at Somerset House

Image from standard.co.uk

THE WEEK IN FASHION: MAY 21st to 25th

Posted by Bethan Holt, Fashion Junior at Large

The sun has got his hat on AND it's Friday, hurray! Before we all decamp to the park/ pub here's your lowdown of everything that happened in fashion this week...

We'd have loved to give Prada's new video it's very own blog post, but alas there are only so many hours in the day so it takes pride of place at the top of the week's stories. In fashion terms, Cannes is liable to become a bit of a red carpet overdose. So Roman Polanski's short film for Prada, released as part of the festival celebrations, is a refreshing take on how fashion and film can produce properly exciting projects. We love Helena Bonham Carter's self-obsessed character and the power which her luxurious clothes the pearls, the silk blouse, THE FUR- have on Ben Kingsley as her therapist. Here's an extract from Stefano Francia di Celle's reading of the film...

"The fur represents the agreement that supports the relationship between the director and the fashion designer. Polanski is able to display a world which seems more authentic than the real one, thus interpreting and criticizing contemporary society. Prada creates original and non predefined roles for her work and produces a new language that filters into the recesses of traditional culture and leverages the potential of the new media. She is not afraid to produce what could be interpreted as a parody of the celebration of luxury, stigmatizing the world’s elite, the main target of her products"

Watch the video below to see intelligent fashion at its best...

We're not going to reproduce a million images of Diane Kruger and the like at Cannes- you can easily find that elsewhere. Instead I've picked out three girls who are rocking an off kilter look which definitely gets them noticed among the sea of perfect hairdos and flouncy gowns. 

Cassie is pretty convention until you see her half shaven head and mermaid waves. 

Lace isn't hard to spot in pics from Cannes, such blatant underwear showing off  IS Fiona Scarry

Olga Sorkina works a scary face painting (all images from fashionologie.com)

Back in Blighty, the country's creative community gathered on Wednesday night for the
Royal Academy's contribution to the Jubilee festivities with their party to celebrate Her Majesty's 60 years on the throne. The event was so star studded that the 24 Dames in attendance had their very own check-in desk. Some of our biggest fashion names including Giles Deacon, Vivienne Westwood, Erdem and Christopher Kane brought along their muses to show off their designs to the Queen. Hockney, who recently had a hit exhibition at the RA produced a drawing for the programme which each guest received. And finally, is it just me, or does Nancy Shevell, wife of Sir Paul McCartney, look like she may be wearing that Issa dress Duchess Kate wore to announce her engagement?

Hockney's drawing which was given to all the guests (from www.thislondon.co.uk)

Ozwald Boateng and John Hurt looking mega dapper (from telegraph.co.uk)

Giles with Jessica Gough (image from telegraph.co.uk)

Her Majesty, in very on trend silver, chats to Sir Paul, in trainers, and Nancy, in her very K-Mid dress.

BREAKING: Super fabulous fashion blogger Bryanboy is to become a judge on America's Next Top Model. A match made in fashion heaven- Congratulations Bryanboy!

If there's ANYONE who can strike a pose, it has to be Bryanboy (image from www.zimbio.com)

Thought there wasn't any particular reason that you should visit the Peabody Essex Museum in Massachusetts? Ever heard of it even? Well, there is now an extremely good reason to visit after Iris Apfel, couture collector and official 'rare bird of fashion', donated 900 pieces from her fashion archives to their collection. Among the items Apfel explained why she chose the Peasbody to receive her gift, "I think they’re quite cutting edge. This museum is much more cross-cultural than others I’ve worked with and mixes it up a bit". Among the items now added to that mix are 19th century couture pieces and McQueen creations. Oh, to be the lucky curator who'll get to work amongst it all!

Iris Apfel with Alexis Bittar (image from ohemgeemag.com)

Topshop is just keep exciting collabs coming... We've already been spoilt with Mary Katrantzou, Maarten van der Horst and Richard Nicholl this year and it was announced yesterday that Louise Gray is next up. She will create some simple shaped pieces which reflect her fun, creative and colourful aesthetic as well as make-up- a no brainer really as bold beauty looks are always a key aspect of a Louise Gray show. Louise Gray for Topshop will be available at the end of August- just in time to give us something to smile about in the run up to Winter. Oh, and if there's any room to get in some of Louise's amazing boots then that would be appreciated please, thank you very much Topshop!

Louise Gray AW12 (from www.catwalking.com)

Recommended read: The first students to take Parson's M.F.A qualification are reaching the end of their course. This article from the NY Times looks at the graduates and examines what's in store for them all. There'll be a show at New York Fashion Week where the designers will be able to showcase their work to international press and buyers. It's a great insight into finding the balance between commericality and creativity, as well as  how the school positions itself next to Central Saint Martins. 

Work by Elisa Van Joolen, Talia Shuvalov and Carly Ellis- some of the designers who showed their graduate collections  at an exhibition last week (image from nytimes.com)

Agyness Deyn, who is looking particularly amazing of late in my opinion, has added another string to her modelling/ acting bow with a line of clothing for Dr Martens. The pieces are inspired by 90s couples and the grungy look she's famous for. "I love the style of some of the Nineties' most famous couples, like Johnny Depp and Winona Ryder and Brad Pitt and Juliette Lewis. I love that grungy look, that freeness and real vintage vibe" she told Vogue. While some may say that Agyness must have had help from her good friend Henry Holland, she claims that she actually "forgot to tell him". 

Agyness Deyn models her collection for Dr Martens (image from vogue.co.uk)

We're used to editorials pushing the boundaries and this week's big nudge came from Steven Klein and Patti Wilson for Candy magazine who depicted a (we think fake) pregnant male model in bondage gear and holding a gun. Just too much to compute all at once? Genius? A bit of both? What do you think?

Chris Fawcett tied up and up the duff for Candy (image from fashionista.com)

Getting the gun out (image from fashionista.com)

It's sample sale time... Two of the biggies are Erdem and J.W Anderson. Both happening next week...

J.W ANDERSON: June 1, 5-9pm, 73-75 Shacklewell Lane, Studio A007, E8. Cash only.

ERDEM: Tues 29 May (9am-8pm) & Wed 30th May (9am-6pm) at Future Gallery, Covent Garden. AW11 & previous seasons + accessories

And find deets for Jospeh, McQueen, Christopher Kane and more here from Elle

And video of the week goes to Hot Chip for two reasons. 1- Lara Stone's in it (that's the fashion bit) 2- it's directed by Peter Serafinowicz, the genius behind some of my favourite comedy sketches ever, including the Butterfield Diet

Now go forth and enjoy the sun in the knowledge you're well and truly clued up on what's happening in fashion. 

THE WEEK IN FASHION 22nd-26th AUGUST

Posted by Fashion Junior at Large

As August draws to a gloomy close, we have our usual round-up of the fashion news stories which have caught our eye this week, what better way to kick off the long weekend? Enjoy!

 Queen of the Statement necklace and bug-eyed spectacles, Iris Apfel has already (unsurprisingly) been the subject of a very successful exhibition, 2005's 'Rara Avis (Rare Bird)' at the Met. Now the 90 year-old style maven is to be filmed by Albert Maysles for a documentary.  Maysles seems to have a soft spot for the more eccentric members of New York's high society; he is the filmmaker behind  the 1975 documentary 'Grey Gardens' which charts the reclusive existence of Jackie O's aunt and cousin, Big and Little Edie Beale. While that is a heart wrenching story of dysfunctional relationships and social exclusion, we hope (and know) that Maysles' Apfel film will be more uplifting- how could it not be when it stars our favourite- in her own words- 'geriatric starlet.'

Iris Apfel is not scared of a chunky piece of jewellery (Image from fifka.pinger.pl)

After the incredible success of Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty at The Met in New York, speculation is building about how they can possibly follow it up. How long do they need to wait before doing another fashion exhibition without it just feeling like an anticlimax? Well it seems, that Miuccia Prada and Elsa Schiaparelli might be the answer. Before reading this news story I had never drawn the comparison between the two designers but they are actually a remarkably apt pairing, especially given their talent for making a subversive statement in their collections.
As a P.S to that Savage Beauty reference, don't forget to sign our #bringmcqueenexhibitionhome petition and use the hashtag on Twitter. The FashEd will have an update next week on the impact which the campaign has had. You will want to tune into that!

Schiaparelli in the 1930s. Image from (LisaWallerRogers.blogspot.com)

Miuccia Prada (Image from guestofaguest.com)

It is a truth universally acknowledged that Anna Wintour is the most powerful woman in fashion (isn't it?) but how about in the world? Well, according to Forbes she comes in at no.69, leaving the real superpower positions to the likes of German Chancellor Angela Merkel (no.1) and businesswoman and philanthropist Melinda Gates (no. 6). The world of fashion is still well represented with Gisele in 60th place, Andrea Jung, CEO at Avon, at 64, Diane Von Furstenberg at 91 and  Angela Ahrendts, CEO at Burberry at 58. Given that the fashion industry is one of the biggest employers of women around the world, we're glad to see some of the biggest players included in the power list.

Angela Ahrendts with Christopher Bailey. Under their supervision, Burberry became the first fashion company listed on the FTSE 100 (Image from thisislondon.co.uk)

The King of all collaborations will be unveiled on 22nd September with the Gala Opening of 'Ocean's Kingdom', a ballet composed by Sir Paul McCartney with costumes designed by Stella. Ballet is one of my favourite ways to pass an evening but the prospect of a production with music and costumes from two absolute heroes of their fields, neither of whom have ever forayed into ballet before, promises to be fresh and exciting and a must-see. Hopefully there'll be a big screen showing in London.

Paul with Stella and James on their farm, photographed by Linda McCartney (image from meetmeatmikes.blogspot.com)

Finally, Westfield Stratford City opens on 13th September, just in time for a pre-fashion week spree. Given that the space is in the heart of East London, it seems only right that the area's young talent and creativity is on show. Enter the Studio East panel which includes Roland Mouret and Erin O'Connor. They have chosen up-and-coming artists and designers to contribute to  creating a unique Westfield vibe. One of the winners is Julian J Smith who has designed glamorous uniforms for lucky Westfield staff- no dodgy fleeces or polyester monstrosities for them! Also look out for art installations and renewable energy initiatives from the Studio  East crew.

Julian J Smith's design for Westfield uniforms.