It’s that time again – SS11 press days. Here’s what caught my eye at ASOS…
And the pièce de résistance…
The ladylike, Louis Vuitton-style dress. There’s really nothing better than a full skirt is there?
#EDIT# ASOS asked me to remove some of the images in this post for obvious reasons (they don’t want anybody stealing their ideas now do they?). I’ll put them back up when the time is right…
Okay, I’m going to level with you dear readers. I’ve been back from Ibiza since the early hours of Sunday morning and I still feel exhausted. I want to sleep for 1000 years but real life must commence. I have plans for a big, heavy, serious post this week (god knows it’s overdue) but for now I’m easing myself back into blogging with a little story on the return of Biba.
What do we know about the old Biba? It was an iconic London fashion fixture circa the 60s / 70s. Owned by the gloriously named Barbara Hulanicki who described the Biba clientèle as ‘postwar babies who had been deprived of nourishing protein in childhood and grew up into beautiful skinny people: a designer’s dream.’ (you just went way down in my estimations Babs.) The company folded in 1975 and after a couple of half baked attempts at a relaunch the latest venture comes via House of Fraser…
What do we know about the new Biba? It’s not going the way of clean simplicity and minimialsim I can tell you that much. New Biba is embellishment – sequins, feathers, beading, ruffles – akin to the Balmainia era.
Perhaps not my cup of tea but they have done a zzzzzexy leopard print faux fur coat (which at £150-£200 is actually a lot more reasonable than I was expecting) and a gold necklace inspired by the Biba logo, which in my eyes was always the best thing about Biba.
The brand new collection drops in stores and online on the 9th September. Check it out, if only for old time’s sake.
Given the fact that I author a style blog it’s pretty obvious that I like to shop (one glance at my severely depleted bank account would also confirm this fact). These are the London shopping gems on my radar at the moment…
When I got an invite to the launch of Vintroville recently I was a little sceptical I’ll admit. Retro clothing emporiums are in very ample supply here, so I was intrigued as to what owners Meryl and Laura thought they could offer the seasoned vintage buyers of east London.
Based on Hackney Road Vintroville isn’t in a location you’re likely to stumble across by chance, but if you’re near Brick Lane you won’t regret making the 10 minute journey. The shop is small but space is used to full effect: clothes arranged by colour line the walls, shoes are paired neatly under the rails and handbags sit atop a white shelf which snakes its way around the circumference of the room. Every nook is filled.
Meryl and Laura’s discerning eye for vintage is evident. Fed up with finding crusty, stinky and overpriced items in the area’s well known retro stores they decided to open a vintage shop with a difference – all the items had to meet their strict criteria for wearability, affordability and quality. The result is a wonderfully edited collection of treasures. The girls also buy in the odd item from new designers or small labels who specialise in reworking old garments, like the ‘I am a Secret‘ cashmere jumper by Laura Laura.
Vintroville is already frequented by some well known vintage fans. Florence Welch, who apparently uses the studio next door, came by one afternoon and ended up buying a dress that Meryl and Laura had nicknamed ‘The Florence’ (a floaty chiffon maxi number of course). How perfect is that!?
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Before last week’s press day event I had no clue that Anya Hindmarch Bespoke existed. How could I have lived without it for so long!
Described by Anya as ‘the most exciting thing I have ever worked on’ the shop is so inconspicuous that my colleague Laura and I almost walked straight past it. Step inside and you’ll see glass cabinets filled with handbags, jewellery boxes, wallets, diary covers and key fobs. Look closer and you’ll notice rolls of luxe leather in rich colours. Then glance into the side room and you’ll discover a workshop, where all the magic happens.
Anya Hindmarch Bespoke, as you may have guessed, personalises leather goods. You decide on a message and they will emboss it on your chosen item, in your own hand writing!
Dotted about the shop on Pont St are examples of gifts already sent. A white compartmented memory box with the words ‘To my darling daughter on her wedding day, I’m so proud of you. All my love, Mum x’ had us both a little choked, but our favourite was a gift from Anya herself to ‘Dixie’ (her god-daughter?). It was a diary cover intended to see her through every stage of life – on one side the words ‘Gap Year’ and ‘Uni’, on the other ‘Career’ and ‘Husband’. It was possibly the best thing I’ve ever seen, ever.
Anybody who is rather found of me and is wondering what to buy for my next birthday can find Anya’s Bespoke shop here. Thank you.
Posted in Press Days
Tagged Anya Hindmarch Bespoke, Best shops in London, Vintage shops, Vintroville
Relative MO is really riding high on the PR wave at the moment. They have so many great clients, and at their press day, held in Somerset House, I was lucky enough to bump into one of them – Dominic Jones. He’s one of the sweetest people you could ever hope to meet – unassuming, modest, softly-spoken and enormously talented – and he kindly offered to talk me through his AW10 collection, the second of his career to date.
Made from silver and rose gold (which is looking so fresh right now in my opinion), this collection picks up where the last one left off. Last season he gave us fangs and claws, this season he gives us skeletons and skulls. Each piece is anatomically correct – made from casts of Dominic’s eBay-bought collection of animal bones (!) – and it’s often a bit of a challenge to figure out what exactly you’re looking at. Bat skull heart pendent? Scorpion tail bracelet? Croc-skull cuffs?
And I though eBay was all fake Fendi bags and obsolete gadgets!
You can buy Dominic’s current collection from Matches.com.
