The Louis Vuitton S/S ’14 show in Paris this year was undoubtedly the most spectacular of the season. As the last show created for the fashion house by Marc Jacobs, the extravagant display included all the highlights of the designer’s previous catwalk shows: the horse carousel, the fountain and the escalators were all there to remind us of how fruitful this 16-year-long relationship was. However, this time everything was black. From the stage props to every piece of clothing (save for the occasional mid-wash boyfriend denim), no other colour was showcased. Models walked solemnly with highly ornate, 5-foot-tall feather headpieces that echoed Native American themes, a look that was mirrored in the movement of the fountain water. Each garment was rich in details, with micro nets, polka dots, feathers, sequins and diamantes juxtaposed to create layers.
Photo source http://www.fashionologie.com
Photo source http://www.metro.co.uk
The predominant decade evoked was the 1920s, with tunic dresses, crew neck and demure shapes, with a nod to the Victoriana trend in the white, severe hair and make up. The whole show lent flashbacks to a derelict-yet-opulent, coal-soaked Dickensian scenery, which was strangely but perfectly offset by eighties-inspired pieces such as short, boxy blazers, circus leotards, tough boots and biker jackets. It is sad to see such a talent go, but it is time to see Marc Jacobs focus on his own brilliant lines and make room for his replacement, former Balenciaga designer Nicolas Ghesquière. Those are some big shoes to fill.
Photo source http://www.stylesnooperdan.com
Photo source http://www.voanews.com
A very funny post on looks and appearance from a certain someone I know…
My look is best summed up with a phrase “disheveled and mad”, which is how someone described my appearance recently. I dress mostly in a functional way. I’m so preoccupied with existential questions and life seems so up in the air that for the most part I don’t pay too much attention to what I’m wearing. I used to take this to the extreme and wear the same ugly, baggy garments every day. Usually they were hand-me-downs; I’ve spent very little on clothing in my life. Nowadays I dress pretty well, because by this point I’ve accumulated a decent wardrobe, filled out by my relations who for the most part have a good eye. It could be improved, but to some degree it joins functionality and style pretty well. I must be the way in which I wear the clothes that contributes to my shambolic appearance.
But generally it’s my…
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Last week I was lucky enough to attend the launch of the first capsule collection by the brand new label Mason Bentley, created by south-west London darlings Anna Mason and Kate Bentley.
Anna Mason and Kate Bentley
It all started with their blog MasonBentleyStyle and a small business idea of customising vintage pieces. From that the label We Love Vintage was born. However, the response was high and they quickly felt the need to expand and create more. Today they have more than 1,000 followers and plenty of plans.
The Grace top and the Audrey skirt. Photo source: MasonBentleyStyle
The collection presented at the launch was divided in three small parts: the winter, summer and staples mini collections. The winter section was mostly white, beige and black broderie anglaise dresses, tops and a beautifully refined skirt with a contrast lining. The summer collection was the perfect selection of pieces for a weekend on the beach, with a pink and blue palette and beautifully bright, bohemian-print dresses and a bikini. And the staple, transseasonal section consisted of silk blouses and dresses in mostly kitty (medium light) grey, white and nude shades. This last part included Mandarin collars, French seams, simple lines, extremely detailed finishes and playful tassels around the neck line. They source their fabrics from Italy, France and New Zealand and do not compromise on quality.
Beautiful summer print
The event was brilliant, and I managed to speak to Anna first briefly about exactly what they created and then interviewed Kate. Here’s a transcript of my questions and Kate’s answers.
Where are you girls from and how did you meet?
We met four years ago, when our daughters went to nursery school together, and we live on the same street. Anna is originally from Bath and I am from London.
How did you decide to work in fashion together?
We both knew that we had many talents that had been put on hold by having children, and when brainstorming ideas it emerged that we both had a love of vintage so we went from there. Starting by doing We Love Vintage was an easier way to start a fashion label but the problem was we didn’t have different sizes and once one item went that was it, we couldn’t replicate it, it was a one off every time so there was no scalability. Therefore we thought “If we can make that work then we’ll roll that into making our own label.” So we’ve used all the income we’ve made from We Love Vintage to actually start the Mason Bentley label.
The Bardot dress. Photo source: MasonBentleyStyle
Do you make the pieces yourselves?
No, we have an atelier that makes them for us – in fact it’s the same factory that produces pieces for Victoria Beckham. We have a seamstress we work with and she helps us with the patterns. Anna, however, does all of the drawing up [Anna worked in the past for the design teams of great names such as Valentino, Karl Lagerfeld and MaxMara], then we make the patterns and finally we send them to the atelier to get them produced.
The Vreeland shirt in silk. Photo source: MasonBentleyStyle
What are the roles between the two of you – who designs and who deals with the public?
Anna does design and I look after the business side.
I absolutely love your prints in the summer part of the collection. Where did you take inspiration from, for this whole collection?
This collection is very much based on some of the vintage ideas that we had with the We Love label. We took some patterns from that and then we developed further. So it’s quite a sort of vintage feel, modern vintage feel.
Details of the Bergman summer dress
So can you mix and match all prints with any design, size and shape within each collection?
Yes, but only within each part for now. Because we make them to order, we can specify materials, lengths and sleeves to a certain extent as well. So it’s not bespoke but it’s made to order, which makes it slightly more exclusive. It gives us a good starting point.
Where do you see this label going – are you going to open an online store? Design a new collection?
Yeah, we’re definitely going to open an online store, then we’re going to do transseasonal pieces that we’ll gradually weave into the collection as well so rather than doing solely winter and summer collections, we’ll probably be more drip feeding in designs.
The bikini from the summer mini collection
So the quality and bespoke nature of the designs in reminiscing a designer’s method whereas the production side more akin to retailer’s.
Yes, that’s correct.
What are your favourite brands at the moment?
Chloé and Isabel Marant, who to us represents the “cool French” and in the same way we’d like to be the “cool British”.
I have to say I really noticed and love the attention to detail in each design. The sense of quality really comes across.
Thank you. We think that the inside should always be as beautiful as the outside so if you look at our gorgeous skirt, all lined beautifully, when you walk along, it kicks open on the pleat and you get the flash of colour.
A detail from the beautiful Valentina dress, from the winter mini collection…
… and the Valentina dress in its entirety. This is my favourite piece! Photo source: MasonBentleyStyle
Who is your target customer?
The Mason Bentley woman is clever, independent, calm, sophisticated and knowledgeable. I don’t think we have a particular age group but we’re certainly designing for our own age group (early thirties to mid-forties). We are aware that women don’t want to expose their arms all the time, that they want certain areas covered. It’s also about not necessarily wanting to do the tight skinny dresses but wanting a slightly more loose, elegant attitude to dressing, so that you’re feminine and sexy without being overtly so. But you still want to feel sexy, like the top I’m currently wearing has a slightly batwing sleeve so we don’t want to have that sort of cutting into your arm, it’s got that looseness and freedom.
What is your favourite trend at the moment?
I don’t dress too much in trends, I‘m at that stage where I found the style that works for me and I’m dressing that. There are certainly people I’d say I love what they wear, people like Emmanuelle Alt, Garance Dore’, Amanda Brooks, that sort of cool attitude.
The Bergman in black broderie anglaise. Photo source: MasonBentleyStyle
Mason Bentley is a truly British label, and it is refreshing and exciting to see a brand being born and developed with such enthusiasm in these uncertain times. With their uncompromising attitude towards quality and detail, I have no doubt that this clever duo will do amazingly well, and I am very much looking forward to seeing what they are going to offer to us next.
I am a great fan of J.Crew, so as soon as I heard that they were having a flash pop-up store event in London on the 24 and 25 May, I immediately put it in my diary. J.Crew’s highly anticipated opening in the UK in autumn 2013 was made even more exciting by the subtle but nonetheless definite hype of this event, which took place at the Western Transit Shed, an eclectically dressed urban warehouse conversion just a stone’s throw from King’s Cross Station, to sample J.Crew’s new range, take a few snaps and generally be a bit nosey.
On display were a dozen or so key looks from the upcoming Fall/Winter collection. The most prominent new trends were woolly print-on-prints, beautifully intricate gem-filled jewellery, Aztec prints, embroidery on clean-cut heavy-weight blazers, and brocade and geometric patterns. The exquisite wool and cashmere pieces modelled clean and simple lines, and were well complemented by the busy Central American prints. For men, there were work boots, puff coats and furry hoodies.
The only pieces actually available for sale were their classic cashmeres – in a small selection of colours. They also provided personalised monogramming, which won’t be available on the UK website, and customised, handmade collars to be worn on t-shirts. Sadly, they had run out of my size in the navy cashmere, but I’ll make sure to buy it online and perhaps try my luck and have it monogrammed at the Regent Street shop once it opens in the autumn.
More often than not, I am admittedly too quick to complain if something is not right with a service or a shop, so it’s only fair to praise a company if they do something well. So this is a quick post to let you know of a great service I received online about a fortnight ago. I promise you I was not paid or sponsored to do this, I just thought it was only fair.
I was browsing on ASOS.com to find a bag that I could use for my gym clothes. Until last week I was using a blue, “sporty” rucksack, i.e., a most unattractive piece of dorkness. Thankfully, the zip finally broke and I needed to find a better way to pack my sporty gear. So I was roaming freely on the website when suddenly I noticed a pop-up widget at the bottom right-hand corner of the page that said “Chat to a Personal Stylist”. I wondered whether they were going to try and sell me anything or if they would be getting my style or listen to my needs, so I thought I’d give that a try.
My chat with ASOS Stylist Chloe M
I was not disappointed! The girl at the other end of the ether was called Chloe M. She asked me what I was looking for and what my budget was. I said I wasn’t sure whether I was planning to invest into a good-quality piece or if I was after something cheap and cheerful. She talked me through my options and spent about 20 minutes looking for what could be suitable and in the end, as there was currently nothing suitable on the ASOS website, she didn’t try to push me into buying anything, which was much appreciated, and told me when they were likely to receive new stock I might be interested in.
Although it is true that I did not end up buying anything from the website this time, her attitude was the right one and didn’t force me into purchasing something I didn’t need, so I will definitely go back to see if anything else more suitable has arrived, and I’ll also be looking to use the stylist advisor service again. I believe this is still the beta version of this online service, but hopefully they’ll see how good it is and make it a staple.
On a slightly different note, I ordered a pair of sling-back shoes from ASOS a few days before this episode and unfortunately the sling back on the left shoe was slightly loose. I contacted their customer service Twitter page and in the space of an hour they apologised and had already put in the post a new pair! I couldn’t recommend this website enough. Way to go, ASOS!
Have you ever had one of those mornings when your perfectly planned agenda goes hideously wrong?
For years I have been marvelling at how hairdressers can create the wavy look with hair straighteners, and I tried and tried on many occasions to recreate that, but with no avail. Then recently, on a Saturday afternoon, I just decided to randomly pick up my ghd and try it and magically it worked! How proud I was. I felt confident. I finally got it, I was on a roll, nothing could stop me now.
The look I was trying to achieve… ( Source: http://www.sheknows.com/)
So on a recent morning my alarm went off 40 minutes early, and I started to curl my hair at 9:35. I was due in at 11, so I thought I gave myself plenty of time to do my hair and do my eye liner before leaving the house at 10:20 and finishing my make up on the tube, in order to get to work with no rush. By 10:19, only the bottom half of my head was done, and it looked like sh*t on a stick. So in the next couple of last, panicked minutes at home I had to straighten out all the lame curls I had taken ages to do, and rush out of the house without doing my eye liner.
… and the look I ended up having, but only on the bottom half of my head (Source: http://tmtmshow.blogspot.co.uk/)
I don’t think I’ll try again, the good instance a couple of weeks ago must have been a one-off, never to be repeated again. A bout of luck.
Last week my friend Sara asked me if we could write a humorous post together where she would ask me a few questions about the latest trends and a couple of beauty doubts. I couldn’t say no! Check it out:
I saw Cady Heron wearing army pants and flip flops, so I bought army pants and flip flops.
Make sure you watch the Serial Mom clip.
Enjoy!
Here’s a food post – sorry, I do realise it’s been a long time coming, but I’ve been too busy to cook these days!
I thought I’d write about this vegetarian curry, which is low in calories but contains plenty of vitamins and a fair amount of protein from the chickpeas – and it’s dairy-free, which is always a plus to me, as I am dairy intolerant (in spite of all those recipes on this blog that contain dairy, which I find difficult to resist to, sometimes).
This recipe is for two people.
What you’ll need:
Preparation:
Wash the brown rice thoroughly and add it to a pot with water – I usually go 1 part rice, 2 parts water. Bring to the boil and then cover and simmer for about 30 minutes. Once the rice is cooked, the water should have been fully absorbed so just cover it and let it steam. This is my way of cooking brown rice, but everyone has their own method.
While the rice is cooking, chop the onions and garlic very finely and shallow fry them until lightly golden. Pour in the chopped tomatoes and your spices. I added about 3 teaspoons of curry and 2 of ginger, but feel free to adjust it to your own taste, and, if you prefer, go ahead and use fresh chillies and ginger instead. Bring to the boil, then turn the heat down and simmer for about five minutes. Add the chopped green pepper to the sauce pan – make sure you cut the pepper into fairly small cubes, about ½ inch – and the drained chickpeas and pour enough water for all the ingredients to be covered. Now cover and let simmer another 15 minutes, making sure you stir the contents regularly. Add your frozen spinach to the mixture and cover the pan, letting them defrost for about 15 minutes. If you add fresh spinach, just wait until they wither. Now check for salt and serve it over the brown rice, topped with the coriander.
In exactly four days I shall be attending my work company dress-up party. Theme? 1970s’ disco. I’m not even joking. I thought and thought whether it was worth it to invest into a very uncomfortable and totally un-re-wearable pair of white, knee-high platform boots, but then I decided that obviously that was a bad idea, and I always found the disco look so tacky, so I decided to compromise. I decided to go for a trendy, suave, beautiful and sexy hippy look. I wanted to go for Jessa’s look in Girls, wearing an ethereal, floral print dress like this
Source: http://www.shefinds.com/
Or a pair of statement palazzo trousers, in heavenly silk, such as these
Or you know, I’d even be happy with a kimono
Look at those outfits – she’s always cool! But issue A: I can’t find any of these timeless silk pieces; and B: they wouldn’t suit me as I am only 5ft 3in.
So I decided to do an online search for “chic 70’s outfit” and I found this lovely little link
Here’s a sneak peak image from it, but please make sure you visit it as it’s worth it:
Source: http://www.messynessychic.com/
And then I couldn’t stop laughing for a good 15 minutes. How did it even come up in my “chic” outfit search? What were they thinking? Am I destined to look like one of them at the party? How sweaty is it going to be, in all of that polyester?
Please help.
dressing4dinner.com 