Burberry Prorsum Spring/Summer 2011 Show

One of my favourite shows from this season has to of course be Burberry's SS11 collection. The clothes took an edgier turn with sharp detailing and flashes of fluorescent colours of orange, lime and baby blue in the clutch bags and thin belts.

Christopher Bailey the man who can make a thousand stylish coats from one simple trench created a whole new Burberry aesthetic whilst keeping the timeless trench coats and adding new flair and zest to an otherwise always perfect collection.

The studded £15,000 biker jacket really took my attention but then the girl wearing it managed my capture my attention just that little bit more... Poor old Nina Porter, only sixteen years old and she's already gone and done a Naomi Campbell circa 1994 at Vivenne Westwood. You can't help but feel sorry for her in those teetering heels as she falls, but I have to give her support as she regained her grace by hopping off one foot.

There was great controversy over the use of snake-skin jackets for a few items and many fashionistas are questioning the true price of fashion? Would you wear real snake-skin if you heard how it was made?

The main attributes of this line were leather (lots and lots of it!), camel tones, fluerescent belts, bags and a few smock type dresses. Tight leather trousers and legging type trousers were commonly seen on most models and if this a sign for the future, well then...personally I can't wait! A few metallic items were featured which although they are of course without a doubt gorgeous, I can't help but be reminded of Balmain everytime I now see metallics or glitter. Maybe not so original?

However, I really am in love with the bags and the studded leather cropped trenches, they are a totally different direction for Burberry and therefore this is why Burberry is my favourite SS11 collection so far.

             (A few celebrities on the front row... Sarah Jessica Parker included)

Now we just wait until this season is seen on the fashionistas of the world. Who do you think will be next to pull of these looks?

London Fashion Weekend

On Sunday, I went to London Fashion Weekend at Somerset House in London. Having previously been in February I knew what to expect of it, but of course that didn't stop me feeling highly excited in anticipation for the day.

I arrived at 12:30 pm and promptly spent the next two or so hours blissfully walking around Somerset House gawping and touching all the clothes being sold (for those of you unware, this event is the opportunity for designers to sell their clothes to a larger market). All the items being sold, jewellery, clothes, shoes etc were sold at much lower than their regular price, so for me, this was retail heaven!

I was able to buy a simple DKNY top for everyday use for £10 and I also bought two books, one by Kelly Cutrone (boss of People's Revolution) and a book on the late Alexander Mcqueen's past collections throughout his fashion career (Genius of a Generation).

I was also lucky enough to buy a ticket to view the catwalk show, where the models showcased the clothes being sold inside Somerset House for the consumerist public. Zara Martin hosted the catwalk show and came across very well to the audience.

Afterwards, I met my grandparents for tea at the lovely Grosvenor House in central London, and ate just one too many scones!

(Pictures to be uploaded soon, I need to figure out how to upload them because blogger.com has changed the format!)

Shopping on the Net

Some of you love shopping, others hate it. Some have too much time for it, others have none. In the past ten years or so, online shopping has become an increasing phenomenon with Asos seeing a rise in the number of customers shopping on their website during 2009, and pocketed an average amount of £223 million that year.  In January 2009, average online weekly sales hit £178 million for retail websites. This makes for about 4% of the market.

Online shopping has become a way of guilt-free shopping. You look, you purchase, it gets delivered to your front door. The afterthought of cost isn't relevant until the clothes arrive on your doormat, and you realise you have just spent your three months wages on the new Celine it-bag. In the store, you look at the item close up, try it on for size and end up over-thinking most purchases and not buying them after seeing them in the flesh. Online the perfectly angled, clear-cut photographs seem to invite the customer to scream 'That's amazing I want it' and allow zero queuing time and quick entered credit card details or already stored details, which makes the process even faster. Within minutes the customer has bought 'impulse buys'. Nevertheless, its uses are endless. For deliver-to-your-home comforts, without the weightiness of dragging around 10 different bags along oxford street, it is simply a god send. The best part? If it doesn't fit or look good, you can send it straight back. For women who work full-time Internet shopping has become something of a saviour, meaning they can do high-end or high-street shopping from the comforts of their plush office chair or from their portable laptop at home.

The best high-end websites:
http://www.net-a-porter.com/ / www.theoutnet.com
http://www.my-wardrobe.com/

The best high-st websites:
www.zara.com
www.topshop.com
www.asos.com (Asos also covers designer outlet as well as affordable high street fashion)

Les Khakis De Chanel

Chanel's new shades for AW10

Khaki Brun, Khaki Rose & Khaki Vert

(Brown Khaki, Pink Khaki, Green Khaki)

Limited Edition and very soon to-be-spotted on the fashions editors nails for AW

Would you wear it?

A-line is one of the new seasons shapes for skirts, along with maxi's still fresh from the summer and new midi-length skirts as seen at Prada. Denim is still very much on trend and these two trends have been translated into a skirt first seen on the catwalk for Stella McCartney last season for SS10.

It has now been copied by retailers Reiss and Topshop into similar looking skirts for this season.

Reiss - £89

Topshop - £35

Now, don't get me wrong I love these skirts as an item, but when I look at these I can't help but think of my mum circa 1990's wearing these to work and taking me to school. They are nice but so...mumsy. However way you wear them - with a camel silk blouse or tan leather brogues, your still going to look older than your age. Perhaps this is one trend to skip out on.

CAMEL

I feel like I have missed out on so much since I've been AWOL and boy, have I. Hopefully in the next few weeks I can write down all my thoughts from the past few months into less posts than I would have originally have hoped for but with everything that I feel I need to say.

In case you've been absent from the universe, gone blind or asleep you must know that camel is the new colour for AW 10. Camel is everywhere! On coats, skirts, shirts, bags, oh my gosh the list just goes on. Nearly every fashion retailer is fast stocking their shops with items following this colour trend. Even I have latched onto this trend by buying a camel coloured duffel coat from Topshop (the go-to place for on-trend items, obviously at high st prices) and I will shortly be posting pictures of me wearing it.

Chloe was a big supporter of camel this season with nearly their entire AW collection being in some type of camel hue and also tan, oatmeal and chambray. It showcased camel pussy-bow silk blouses, high waisted/wide-legged camel trousers, skinny deep tan belts and long masculine coats.



This season camel has already been spotted on by the likes of Alexa Chung, Blake lively and included in the collections of Prada, Chloe, Gucci, Chanel and more.

 

Chloe AW10

Warehouse, Topshop, River Island, Asos, Urban Outfitters have all stocked their shelves with knitted camel jumpers, a-line camel skirts, duffel coats and parkas and fitted trousers. Hurry up and buybuybuy before it sells out!