MADE IN BRITAIN: ESK CASHMERE

Posted by Bethan Holt, Junior Fashion Editor at Large

You may or may not be pleased to know that this is not the place to come for tenuous posts about an impending royal birth. The post I happened to have planned for today though is in some ways fitting for the occasion because it is about something brilliantly British.

Ever since Chanel bought Barrie knitwear (saving them from the administrators) and then put on a lavish métiers d'arts show at Edinburgh's Linlithgow Castle last December, there has been a renewed interest in Scottish manufacturing, most specifically special Scottish jumpers. Stella Tennant, the aristocratic supermodel born and bred in the Borders,  dominated the July issues of Vogue and Harper's Bazaar. In Vogue's shoot she was shown at her home in Berwickshire, snuggled up in a woollen Chanel jumper dress and socks, lounging on a blanket. The message doesn't get more loud and clear than that: Scottish wool is where it's at.

Stella Tennant in July Vogue wearing Scottish knitwear by Chanel (via designandculturebyed.wordpress.com)

There are plenty of ways to get in on the act without resorting to pricey Chanel (divine as it is). Last Autumn, I came across ESK at a press day. The jumpers were indescribably soft and the shapes beautifully chic. If you were compiling a list of the absolute ideal versions of everything to have in your wardrobe, then these would be your jumpers.  The added bonus is that the ESK brand has a lovely story to it. It seems to me to be a great blueprint for good, honest family business entering the fashion sphere. Stuart Maxwell is ESK's Managing Director and has been working at his family's knitwear factory for over 20 years. Lorraine Acornley designs for ESK and comes from an impressive background with previous stints at Joseph, Pringle and Alberta Ferretti. They answered my questions about ESK... I love their elegant, no-nonsense approach.

How did ESK start?

A meeting of minds 18 months ago cemented a goal of making a beautiful knitwear collection that anyone with an eye for detail and quality would instantly get.

How are you different from other knitwear brands?

We make the whole collection ourselves in our own factory. This allows absolute control. Design pushes the production process and achieves wonderful integrated features and detailing. We choose yarns purely on quality and character, price is not a factor. This gives the collection an artisanal and considered edge.

Where did the ESK name come from?

Our factory is situated near the Eskvalley in South West Scotland and is called Eskvalley Knitwear. We stripped this back for our brand as it felt cool, edgy and modern.

Scottish fashion and manufacturing is having a moment after Chanel's show at Linlithgow last December. What is special about the Scottish way of doing things?

The Scottish tradition with fine textiles is engrained with centuries of experience. It's in our DNA, and this spirit permeates the products of our labour.

What makes the perfect piece of knitwear, do you think?

 Style, colour and integrated luxury.

Is it very difficult to find spinners and knitters with the right skills for your business?

Luckily, we have found the perfect knitters. Spinners are difficult to find but if you open your eyes, kindred spirits are there to be found.

You have a very strong design aesthetic and there are some great quotes and photos on your website, what inspires you?

Nature, architecture, modern design, photography and art. And fellow members of team ESK of course!

There are clothes and homeware… Is ESK a lifestyle?

Yes, but a real lifestyle that lasts after the trend has passed.

What gems in Scotland would you recommend to somebody visiting for the first time?

The coast between Southerness and Port Logan - quite a few miles. The Logan Botanical Gardens.
The beautiful Valley of Tarras. The Dunmore Pineapple, House of the Binns and Blackness Castle and Culross are all not far from Linlithgow Palace. The Fairy Pools on the Isle of Skye are on our list to see.

The Dunmore Pineapplae, how brilliant does this place look? (dunmoreperennials.co.uk)

ESK is available to buy in store LN-CC, Harvey Nichols and Joseph. Online at ESKcashmere.com

All ESK AW13 images courtesy of the brand

THE WEEK IN FASHION: JUNE 18th- 22nd

Posted by Bethan Holt, Fashion Junior at Large

Another week has whizzed by and there are plenty of developments to catch up on before the weekend...

Yves Saint Laurent outside the original store Saint Laurent (image from YSL twitter)

The news that rocked the (fashion) world so much that it was trending on Twitter on all day yesterday and this morning is Hedi Slimane's decision to change the hugely iconic YSL logo and Yves Saint Laurent moniker to SLP (i.e. Saint Laurent Paris). This isn't the first big change Slimane has brought about having already moved the brand's creative studio from Paris to LA. The outcry from the industry has been unmitigated. Here is a good example of the tone of tweet appearing on our timelines yesterday:

Fashion156.com ‏@Fashion156

#YSL rebranding to 'Saint Laurent Paris' sounds like a chain of downmarket budgets hotels. Why mess with something so iconic? thoughts?

However, Pierre Bergé, Saint Laurent's partner and the person who probably has the closest emotional ties to the house, is not so worried. In an interview with L'Express he declared that the name change is "an excellent idea". Furthermore, Bergé states his confidence that Slimane can take Saint Laurent back to being "a house of creation" and to the "prestige which is at it's heart". It's interesting to note that Saint Laurent Paris was the original name the house worked under and so it is really a revisiting as opposed to a complete novelty.

Raf Simons' new menswear ads (images from dailymail.co.uk)

Paris' other newly instated big name designer is, of course, Raf Simons at Dior. There have been no shocking Dior announcements from him thus far however images of his eponymous menswear line's ad campaign were released this week and show that Raf is perhaps indulging any temptations to shock via this outlet. The imagery shows deconstructed bodies in a collage-like style. Many have called the campaign, entitled Run Fall Run, weird but I think it's quite beautiful and just what we have come to expect from Raf. Now bring on the new Dior!

Givenchy AW12 ads with Stella Tennant (image from fashiongonerogue.com)

More Autumn/ Winter campaigns are being released every day. We reported earlier in the week on Prada's look of the season and today I'd like to bring Givenchy's to your attention. Tisci favourites Stella Tennant and Joan Smalls are among those who feature in the shots inspired by "the energy of a rave".  Mert and Marcus were behind the camera and Carine Roitfeld  was styling- fashion dream team.

Gary Richardson, legendary hair colourist from Daniel Hersheson, very sadly passed away last week. LOVE magazine, with whom he had a close relationship, posted some great images of his work which we'd love to re-share...

Images from www.thelovemagazine.co.uk

As guest designers at this year's Pitti W event, taking place this week in Florence, Peter Pilotto and Christopher de Vos were bound to pull something special out of the bag. The images from their presentation in a Florentine palazzo confirm those suspicions. The pair, who are already famed for their complex and form enhancing prints, installed a "digital kaleidoscope" at the venue which projected the prints- inspired by medieval manuscripts- onto surfaces all around. The result is an "old-meets-new celebration"which is depicted not only in the setting but in the garments themselves.

Peter Pilotto at Pitti W (image from Vogue.com/ Peter Pilotto)

Pilotto's prints on the walls of the palazzo (image from vogue.com/ Peter Pilotto)

Here's an up-close look at one of the pair's new tailored pieces at their London resort press day this week.

You know by now that we're suckers for little snippets of King Karl news so I loved these pictures The Telegraph found this week of what appeared to be the Chanel designer in a fishing boat in rough waters. Cue daydreams of Chanel SS13 being comprised of macintoshes, galoshes and gold spun fisherman beards. No such luck though as it's actually Karl impersonator Jörg Knör who regularly dresses up as Mr Lagerfeld. Oh well. 

Karl at sea images from www.telegraph.co.uk

I was sad to miss G-Shock's Maarten van der Horst vs. Sibling party last night to celebrate the launch of  the watchmaker's new collaboration with the Fashion East designers. Sadder still that I can't possibly choose a favourite between Maarten's surfer florals and Sibling's colourful animal designs. Lulu Kennedy, Fashion East founder and LOVE Editor at Large, sums it up when she says the designs "are perfect for summer" and "represent the fun spirit of Fashion East". You can get one at G-Shock's store at the Truman Brewery.

The reason I couldn't make it to G-Shock last night was because I went along to hear Melanie speak on My Daily's panel discussing the future of fashion in the digital world. She was joined by the brilliant Mary Katrantzou, LOVE Editor Alex Fury and Sasha Wilkins of LLG. It was a fascinating chat to listen in on and I learnt many things, including the fact that designers plan their catwalk looks according to Style.com's layouts so that when the pictures are up the looks are grouped together in rows of six- observe the colour coordination in this screen shot of Prada AW12.

Left tonight: My Daily editor Libby, Sasha, Alex, Melanie and Mary (image from mydaily.co.uk)

Finally, I know we're almost a week late on this but if you're NOT one of the 4 million people who's already seen Abercrombie and Fitch models dancing to Carly Rae Jepsen's Call Me Maybe" then get to it. Perfect Friday night getting ready to go out entertainment. Just beware the cheese factor is off the scale... Happy Weekend!

THE BRITISH FASHION AWARDS.... CANDID CAMERA

Posted by Bethan Holt, Fashion Junior at Large
I've gathered up some of the pictures which guests were tweeting and tumbling as a bit of change from the night's official pictures.

There also are a few videos from the night's proceedings. If you weren't there then this is surely this is the next best thing?!

Abbey Clancy with Kristen McMenamy(from LOVE magazine's twitter)

Model of the Year, Stella Tennant, with Kristen (from LOVE magazine twitter)

British Style Award winner Alexa Chung, in Christopher Kane (from Net-a-Porter tumblr)

Amber Le Bon in Peter Pilotto *jelz* (from net-a-porter tumblr)

Caroline Sieber's shoes- pretty sure they're Charlotte Olympia (from Net-a-Porter's twitter)

Christopher Kane, winner of the New Establishment Award (and soon to be Uncle to sister and business partner Tammy's new baby) from Net-a-Porter's tumblr

Chris Kane accepts his New Establishment Award....

Daphne Guinness in Gareth Pugh (from Grazia's twitter feed)

David Gandy chats in the Net-a-Porter lounge (from net-a-porter tumblr)

Kate Moss with Sam Gainsbury, to whom she presented the
 Isabella Blow Fashion Creator award

Kate on stage (from Laura Craik's twitter)

Fashion blondies, Poppy Delevigne and British Fashion Cultural Ambassador,
Laura Bailey (from Laura's twitter)

The 'Loser' table- I can definitely see Paula Reed from Grazia, Jonathan Saunders and
 Kristen McMenamy. Losers indeed! (from LOVE magazine's twitter)

AW, Mary Katrantzou (Emerging Talent winner, yay!) with Alexander Fury from
showstudio.com (@fashedatlarge)

Watch Mary winning...

Sarah Burton backstage after winning Designer of the Year (Grazia's twitter)

Sarah accepts her award as Sam Cam looks on (from @fashedatlarge)

Watch Sarah collecting her award... 

Stella looks on as her mate Kate poses (Grazia's twitter)

Stella and Kate (BritFashAwards twitter)

Watch Stella getting her award...



You can watch all the event highlights here:



And the winners were:


DESIGNER OF THE YEAR - Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen

DESIGNER BRAND - Victoria Beckham

RED CARPET AWARD - Stella McCartney

ACCESSORY DESIGNER - Charlotte Olympia

MODEL - Stella Tennant

BRITISH STYLE AWARD - Alexa Chung

MENSWEAR DESIGNER - Kim Jones

EMERGING TALENT AWARD - ACCESSORIES - Tabitha Simmons

EMERGING TALENT AWARD - MENSWEAR - Christopher Raeburn

ISABELLA BLOW AWARD FOR FASHION CREATOR - Sam Gainsbury

NEW ESTABLISHMENT AWARD - Christopher Kane

BFC OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN FASHION - Paul Smith

THE WEEK IN FASHION: SEPTEMBER 5th-9th

Posted by Fashion Junior at Large

Before we get on with the business of the day, I just need to tell you my own fashion news highlight of the week. Last night, at Vogue's Fashion Night Out, I spied the delectable David Gandy as I walked along Bruton Street. Of course, the moment I spied him my, erm, journalistic instincts kicked in and I chased after him to ask, rather blatheringly, for a photo. He kindly obliged. I'm ashamed to admit that I'm still not entirely familiar with the machinations of the FashEd's camera so my image is, to put it mildly, terrible. But hopefully you can just make out an Adonis-y silhouette.

Sorry David, I'm no Mario Testino. Things can only get better.

 I didn't manage to get around too many FNO events as I was attending a talk about another aspect of my work with the FashEd. However, I did poke my head into Liberty for a yummy Mahiki cocktail and then went on to Stella McCartney (via Bond Street which was madness). A little while ago I blogged about the polka dot, and in particular Stella's dress. So, I was thrilled to play at being Natalia Vodianova as well as having a little dance at the disco. I also thought Nicoletta who works as a supervisor at the store looked amazing in her sheer polka dress so couldn't resist sharing this photo with you.

So those are some snippets my VFNO. Now onto other stories making the news this week- it's been busy!

Yesterday, John Galliano was found guilty of making anti-Semitic remarks. He received a fine of 6,000 euros which he will have to pay only if he re-offends. He must also pay a nominal 1 euro to each of the victims of his crime. It's a shame that this saga has dragged on for so long now but we hope that a line has been drawn which mean Galliano can concentrate on getting himself well.

Vogue Italia never fails to disappoint and this month's cover is no exception. We are completely intrigued by their transformation of Stella Tennant which must surely have involved some photoshopping, don't you think? Her impossibly cinched waist  and brutal piercings are said to have been inspired by artist Ethel Granger who claimed to create the smallest waist ever at a mere 13ins.

Ethel Granger (image from chicquero.com)

Following on from Love magazine's What Lies Beneath shoot, we bring news of a rather unlikely case of fashion photography plagiarism. This time Steven Meisel seems to have done two very simailar editorials for Vogue Italia and W magazine, both featuring Raquel Zimmermann. Having shot every cover of Vogue Italia since 1988, Meisel is no stranger to working with the team there however this was his first time working with W. Each shoot is a kind of before and after sequence, showing models in natural, off-duty poses and then in more stylised, made-up looks. While self-plagiarising doesn't really hurt anyone (apart from making you samey), the real issue here may be the effect the discovery has on Meisel's relationship with the two publications, especially given the contrasting relationships he has with both. The fact they both belong to the same publishing house, Conde Nast, entangles the issue further.

On the top is the Vogue Italia shoot, On the bottom is the W one (Image from telegraph..co.uk)

The unbelivably successful young blogger Tavi launched her new online magazine Rookie and from my older eye it looks very cute yet savvy. Tavi is fitting in her editor-in-chief role around teenage mundanities such as school. If any of our younger readers have a point of view on the subject we'd love to hear it! We also love Tavi's recent attempt to recreate the Hailee Steinfeld for Miu Miu ads. More pictures over on Style Rookie.

Tavi does Miu Miu (image from stylerookie.com)

This week, Lisa Armstrong has begun her tenure as Fashion Editor at The Telegraph. She kicked off in the best way possible with a fabulous Tom Ford interview ahead of his showcase on Sunday of London Fashion Week. We learn that Mr Ford is partial to an episode or two of The Only Way is Essex, his cultural highlight of the year. Lisa and Tom debate whether the British sensationalist ways go back to Punch (Tom) or Chaucer (Lisa) and he divulges that a woman at her best is slim and limber. There's a bit of sex in there too.

Tom Ford gives the middle finger to TOWIE naysayers. (image from fashionindie.com)

Another wonderful interview in The Telegraph, this time Kate Finnigan talking to Katie Grand. Images of fashion brilliance are conjured with Grand's tale of drinking in Azzedine Alaia's apartment with Grace Jones while watching films of the designer's show. 'I die I die' Jones apparently exclaims. And that's just another day in the life of Katie Grand. Cool. Read the interview for amazing insight into Katie's role in honing the collections of the likes of Marc Jacobs, Ungaro and Jonathan Saunders.

Katie Grand (Image from oystermag.co.uk)

 Yesterday, Topshop Chicago opened its doors with a little help from Phillip Green, his daughter Chloe and Miley Cyrus. So, quite a different vibe from April 2009's New York launch with Kate Moss as the star attraction. It has long been speculated that Chloe is set to take on a bigger role at Arcadia but we wonder if her position so firmly at her Father's side is an indicator of his anointing her as his successor. Of course, it will be a while before that actually happens so in the mean time Chloe will be kept busy with her forthcoming appearances on Made in Chelsea.  And while Miley Cyrus may be the 4th richest person under the age of 30 in the world, the choice to have her open the store sends an entirely different message from the previous Moss affiliations.We wonder if Miley and Chloe had a who's-richer-off, and more to the point, who would win?!

Miley is flanked by the Greens outside Topshop Chicago (image from Topshop)

Finally, I have mentioned the Diana Vreeland book,film and exhibitions which are coming up before but this week we'd like to give a special mention the film 'Diana Vreeland: The Eye has to Travel', which had its premiere at the Venice and Tulleride Film Festivals at the weekend. The FashEd proclaims herself to be Diana Vreeland's biggest fan and is already planning her trip to Venice to see the exhibition at Palazzo Fortuny.

Diana Vreeland ( image from brookspeters.com)