THE WEEK IN FASHION: 25th-29th JUNE

Posted by Bethan Holt, Fashion Junior at Large

Cloak by Giles Deacon and Jeremy Deller (image from guardian.co.uk)

We're sandwiched right in the middle of Britain's two big events of the year- the Diamond Jubilee and the Olympics- so this week was an apt time to launch Britain Creates, a collusion of fashion and art. Designers such as Jonathan Saunders and Mary Katrantzou worked with artists including Jeremy Deller and Mat Collishaw to create pieces for the exhibtion which underlines the creativity at work in the UK in 2012. The open brief given to the collaborators has resulted in an array of artworks from hats to sculptures.There was a launch and charity auction on Wednesday evening at Selfridges but the pieces will be on public view from 6th to 29th July at the V&A which has worked on the project with the British Fashion Council.

Screen print by Jonathan Saunders and Jess Flood- Paddock (image from guardian.co.uk)

Wednesday was a busy evening as it was also the night that the much anticipated auction of pieces from Daphne Guinesses' wardrobe took place at Christie's. It was a night of records after £133,250 was paid  for a Mario Testino portrait of Guinness- the highest sum a piece of his work has ever reached. The record price for a McQueen was also smashed after £82,250 was bid for an empire line gown which Guinness originally wore for a Harper's Bazaar shoot. All proceeds from the auction will go to the Isabella Blow Foundation. There are plans afoot for an exhibition of Blow's vast fashion collection which is now owned by Guinness.The dress's winning bidder was none other than Lady Gaga and Guinness took to Twitter to thank the star for her contributions:

'And, THANK YOU my friend Lady Gaga. You are a real person. and a great one! Your proof of friendship, your time was very touching XXXX'

Gaga replied:

'I am a passionate fashion collector & feel honored to support The Isabella Blow Foundation. Daphne Guinness is a pioneer for artistic women'

Daphne Guinness in the record breaking McQueen dress (image from telegraph.co.uk)

Fashion show attendees can always depend on Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana to put on a mega glitzy extravaganzana each season. The Italian design duo are now adding their name to the couture calendar with a show in their native Sicily on July 9th. However, the press will not be allowed in to report on the glmour as the event will be reserved for clients- only. It's an interesting move after Dolce and Gabbana's more affordable line, D&G, was shut down this year. This is another sign that the big money spenders who demand made-to-measure gowns have not gone away during the financial crisis. Now the mere mortals among us are left to mourn the fact we won't get to see anything from what is sure to be a molto fabulous occasion. 

A look from the gold and gilt-full Dolce and Gabbana AW12 show (image from catwalking.com)

It's been a nostalgic week for Spice Girls fans- myself very much included- after the launch of Viva Forever, a musical based on the songs of the 90s group. It's been written by Jennifer Saunders and produced by Judy Cramer. From a fashion perspective, the girls have come a long way since the pigeon -holed days of Sporty, Ginger, Baby etc. Melanie 'Sporty' Chisholm had swapped crop tops and adidas for a white tiered Acne dress and Victoria 'Posh' Beckham was naturally in a dress of her own much lauded design. The only Spice who hasn't moved on it seems is Geri 'Ginger' Halliwell who eschewed a designer number for the big appearence, instead making her own dress with a little help from Emma 'Baby' Bunton. It's safe to say that this DIY jobbie will not achieve the same fame as the Union Jack dress she ran up out of a tea towel for the Brits in 1997.

Spices reunited (image from telegraph.co.uk)

In other Spice news, the girls are apparently planning to auction many of their outfits- including the Buffalo boots which we think may be about to have a bit of a revival- for Save the Children and Children in Need. There are also whispers that Victoria is expanding her fashion portfolio even further with a collection designed with Sarah Jessica Parker, who previously dipped her toe in design waters with her role as Creative Director at Halston.

Beckham's new collaborator: Sarah Jessica Parker, who
 previously worked on Halston Heritage (image from marieclaire.co.uk)

Huge congratulations to Paula Reed who is leaving Grazia to become Fashion Director 
at Harvey Nichols. Her move continues the growing trend for moves from editorial to
 retail. Last year, long-time Vogue Fashion Editor Kate Phelan moved to Topshop while 
Lucy Yeomans has recently left her editorship of Harper's Bazaar to edit Net-a-Porter's
 magazine. We can't wait to see Harvey Nichols with Paula's touch.

Image from philltaylorblog.blogspot.com

The Paris Menswear shows are in full swing after Milan earlier in the week. Vogue Italia 
editor Franca Sozzani took to her blog to tell the world that a lot of what she sees at menswear
 shows 'is not a nice sight for anyone'. She was referring to 'cropped pants and polo shirts,
 so tight they showed through, depending on the body’s shape, toned-up biceps or curved
 bellies'. It's an interesting perpective when many Womenswear catwalk shows also contain
 looks which are far beyond the reach of the every day woman. However, let's not dismiss
 menswear altogether. Raf Simons' show won the praise of many for his collection this
 week which does, admittedly, have some of the elements Sozzani discusses- short shorts
 and big pink coats (a trending item after J.W Anderson also did one). Then there's Kim
 Jones' collection for Louis Vuitton which was a film-like nautical dream full of outfits
 I'm sure Sozzani would love. The quote of the day from Mr Jones? "I wanted to do a 
luxury version of things that are real" 

RAF SIMONS

A man version of the coats from Raf's last Dior collection (from catwalking.com)

Evidence of Mr Simons' art and archtecture obsession (image from catwalking.com)

 LOUIS VUITTON

I want to go on holiday with Kim's boys (image from catwalking.com)

Also at the menswear shows, history is being made with the longest fashion show ever, courtesy of Band of Outsiders. It's set to go on for 60 hours and you can watch what's going on in the Paris gallery where it's taking place by clicking this link. There is just one, as yet unidentified, model taking part and he changes every 90 minutes. The final three hours, tonight, will see guests invited into the space with the entire collection on show. A little bit of genius from Scott Stenberg, Band of Outsiders' Creative Director.

The model in the longest fashion show ever eating his dinner (image from fashionista.com)

Ever wondered what Karl Lagerfeld is doing when you hop on the bus to work or set off to the pub in the evening? Well now, you can find out after  the Chanel Creative Director told Harper's Bazaar the ins and outs of his daily routine. We learn that no hot drinks pass his lips, mornings are spent in a white shirt of 17th century design and all he seems to eat are steamed apples. Completely fascinating. 

A day in the life of Karl Lagerfeld (Karl's own photo, from harpersbazaar.com)

More music costume nostlagia now. This time from Lourdes, daughter of Madonna. She tweeted a photo this week of herself wearing a cone bra, the very same style made iconic by her Ma. This is the 2012, MDNA version, complete with hip caging, designed by the original creator himself Jean Paul Gaultier. I'm pretty sure every girl would like to have her moment in a cone bra- and who hasn't tried to recreate it using plastic cups? Lucky Lourdes gets the real thing. 

We wish you happy weekends with this video which has reignited our love for Lana del Rey. All you need to know is that she plays Jackie Kennedy while Rocky is J.F.K. It's beautful in a VERY Lana way...

NINA RICCI'S BEAUTIFUL NEW LA RUE BAG

Posted by Melanie Rickey, Fashion Editor at Large

Yesterday after a false start at Dover Street Market - a perfect excuse to gaze acquisitively (but pointlessly, as I'm only fit for a tent) at some Azzedine Alaia and Celine - we dropped into the Gazelli Art Gallery on Dover Street to see Peter Copping. Regular readers of FEAL will know Copping is the English artistic director of Nina Ricci Paris, and he has been in London to launch the brands' new signature handbag La Rue.

As with all things Peter does for the house (and in his life generally) the event was wonderfully charming and without the slightest pomp, and served not only to showcase the tactile bag and Mr. Copping himself, but also the work of British artist Jo Ratliffe and photographers Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin who joined forces to create the launch imagery for the La Rue bag.

Fashion can truly come alive in creative collaboration, and this particular collusion took shape in organic stages, beginning with  the development of the new signature Ricci bag, which got its debut on the runway in Paris back in March. "Ours is not like the Louis Vuitton show, where its every girl with a different bag," said Peter Copping, while giving the pink snake version of the bag a squeeze.   "We just did one new bag, the La Rue, but in different sizes and fabrications. After the show our retailers loved it so I wanted to do something special to share it with the press." With its series of soft pleats folding towards the central opening, and pretty grosgrain ribbon pull the La Rue is basically a Ricci-fied version of a doctors bag, and very lovely it is too.

The finished image by Inez + Vinoodh for Nina Ricci with Jo Ratliffe

To bring it to life for launch was another matter. Copping shot the Autumn/Winter 2012 Nina Ricci campaign with photographers Inez and Vinoodh, and when he talked of giving an extra visual push to La Rue the couple immediately suggested the British artist Jo Ratliffe, with whom they recently collaborated on a Balmain film (see below).  Jo works in the mediums of illustration, painting and animation and decided to bring a element of collage and fine art to the bag images. "Flowers made sense as they are exquisite in their own right but also made the bag the focal point. I know the Nina Ricci brand, and this feels right. If you look closely at the image, you'll see I hand painted many of the flowers in oils to make it feel more authentic." I then comment to her that dressed in full Nina Ricci with her pink hair and strong brows she couldn't be a more perfect muse for the house. At this she points out that until yesterday she and Peter had only met via email, but I get the feeling we'll see more from this creative partnership soon.

Jo Ratliffe, me, Peter Copping

The pink croc version of Nina Ricci's La Rue

The La Rue launches in September. www.ninaricci.com

Here is Jo's work with Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin for Balmain featuring Kate Moss

To see more of Jo Ratliffe's work go to www.JoCanDraw.com

FEAL'S TOP 5 FASHION GRADUATE COLLECTIONS 2012

Posted by Melanie Rickey, Fashion Editor at Large

The LCF show this Thursday night is still to go, but I've put time and effort into seeing as many student graduate collections as possible this summer because these guys are the future of fashion, right? What struck me with this year's crop was that most womenswear fashion design graduates seemed to be playing it safe with their skills and especially their creativity; they want, nay need, to get a job, and jobs are more likely to be found in the mass retail sector than they are in high fashion due to sheer economies of scale. I lost count of the number of times I wrote "Wants to work for Whistles/Monsoon/Adidas/Jigsaw/TopShop/Topman, (*delete as appropriate), which is no bad thing, but I guess I was looking for that elusive jolt of excitement you get when a new talent emerges. The textile design, print design and knit graduates were on another level with their experimentation, however, which kinda made up for the rest.  They say a recession breeds creativity, and it does if you look hard enough. Here is what I loved... (LCF I'll get to you tomorrow!)

1. ERIN HAWKES - CENTRAL SAINT MARTINS

Erin Hawkes from Central Saint Martins was the highlight of the CSM BA fashion show for me. Her collection showed that she has a hugely sophisticated eye for proportion, colour, fabric and style, as well as having brilliantly quirky references from nuns to 90s street style and experimental Japanese design. Erin's collection earned her the night's big prize – the ‘L’Oréal Professionnel Award.

2. TOM CRISP - ROYAL COLLEGE OF ART

Tom Crisp from the Royal College of Art MA course made me want to be a 21 year old man, just so I could wear his collection with a sense of authenticity. Though I would happily wear most of his collection as myself, now. His clothes were alive with technique, and radiated the fact that Mr Crisp is a highly creative force. I expect he has already been snapped up by a luxury fashion house. If not, why not? Or better still, start his own brand. Is it me, or does Tom Crisp sound like a brand name already? 

3. SERENA GILI - CENTRAL SAINT MARTINS

Serena Gili, a knitwear graduate from Central Saint Martins, chose to showcase her extraordinarily beautiful and intricate tops with resin egg-shaped skirts, thus putting them on the pedestal they deserve. My appreciation of her work was heightened when I saw the above close-up on Serena's Tumblr. I would love to see more - and even buy a piece from this designer whose influences covered everything from Queen Elizabeth I to Faberge. 

4.  CHLOE JONES - BATH SPA UNIVERSITY 

With this collection Chloe Jones from Bath Spa University earned herself the two top prizes at Graduate Fashion Week, namely the Gold Award, judged by Suzy Menkes and Daphne Guinness, which saw her pocket £20K to pay for either a year of fun, or to pay for two years of an MA. I'm sure she will be plumping for the latter.  She also took home the award from best womenswear collection. The way she mixed nomadic silhouettes with sporty references and a kinda Game of Thrones  vibe struck me as fresh looking and modern minded.  

5. XIAOPING (FIONA) HUANG - UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL LANCASHIRE (UCLAN) 

I missed seeing Xiaoping's turn on the Graduate Fashion Week UCLAN runway because I was judging the Media Award, but when I bumped into Mary Katrantzou backstage, she told me to check her out and I wasn't disappointed. This is what I was talking about earlier when I said some of the textile students had gone all out to express the limits of their creativity.  If I was creative director at a bold-face luxury fashion brand I would want someone like this on my team. Xiaoping, or Fiona as she prefers to be known so impressed Mary Katrantzou and Liberty of London's Managing Director Ed Burstell that she was awarded the Zandra Rhodes Textile Award. 

All catwalk photographs by Chris Moorte/Catwalking.com. 

Serena Gili backstage image: - idonline.com

Serene Gili close-up from: http://ohwelloneirataxia.tumblr.com/

PREEN RESORT 2013: FLOWERS AND STRIPES AND ALL THINGS NICE

Posted by Bethan Holt, Fashion Junior at Large

The first time I met Justin Thornton of Preen was almost a year ago at the presentation of their SS12 collection during LFW. Then, the references I heard were "Virginia Woolf"and "Bloomsbury". For AW12, that continued in a similar vein with Victorian botanical illustrations and Beatrix Potter mentioned as starting points. However, Resort '13 is a turning point for Thornton and his wife, Thea Bregazzi, who together design Preen. This time, it is contemporary artist Jeff Koons whose work has inspired the (amazing) collection which "should make people excited about Summer and holidays, whether they're going away or not" Thornton told me yesterday.

Blown up flowers on paint splash backgrounds at Preen Resort

Jeff Koons' Landscape (Waterfall) II (from www.jeffkoons.com)

Jeff Koons' Landscape (Tree) II (image from jeffkoons.com)

Florals have not been abandoned but there's definitely a new, graphic boldness to them. There are overblown hydrangeas and poppies, splashed in bright, popping scarlet, magenta and cornflower blue. However, they're foregrounded against bold, wide stripes which takes away any English country garden connotations.

"Many of our customers are in Australia or the Middle East, so this collection isn't about going on holiday for them" Thornton explains. Thus, there are all the pieces which make up a practical wardrobe- a pencil skirt, sweaters, riffs on the white shirt and excellent colour blocked suits which "came from the idea of a 70s tracksuit". Sportswear features heavily; there are 3 different sweatshirts in the mix.  The cropped style has sold very well so far I was told but my personal favourite was the scuba version below.

My favourite....the scuba sweater

Tailoring inspired by 70s tracksuits (image from style.com)

And a final tip from Mr Thornton on arm shapes "we're really feeling a wide, kimono sleeve. It's very 80s and just so easy". See white shirt below for evidence- you heard it here first. 

Preen's new favourite arm shape

Flowers and stripes

All images by Fashion Junior at Large, unless otherwise indicated.

FORGET FASHION, ITS ALL ABOUT TRASHION

Posted by Melanie Rickey, Fashion Editor at Large

Trashion. The word tells you what it is. But does it? If you'd asked me a month ago I would have told you the word conjures up images of TOWIE laydeez and girl chavs out on the pull of a Saturday night wearing cheap clothes and fake Angel by Thierry Mugler. These women want to look trashy, but they could not be called fashionable by any stretch of the imagination. Still, Trashion was what they seemed to be, and when we talked about it, Bethan (Fashion Junior at Large) said this is what she thinks of as Trashion.  When I googled "Trashion" to see what the popular conception of the word is, Wikipedia told me it was a movement in which followers made clothes out of trash.

Trashion, or just trash? Chloe Sims from TOWIE (via Sabotagetimes.com) 

Oh bejeezus!

In the last week, though, I've begun to sense a whole new life for the word Trashion in that it has become a genuine anti-good-taste fashion movement that is alive and kicking in popular culture, and WARNING!! its about to rear its head as a major fashion look this Autumn.

Being from the fashion school that treasures edgy, attractive chic (my other classmates include Kates Moss and Bosworth),  I do appreciate good taste but sometimes bad taste is good, as a palate refresher if nothing else, and that time is now.

Having watched Grayson Perry's excellent recent three part Channel 4 show "In the Best Possible Taste" (watch it on iPlayer here)  I've seen how relative the concept of taste actually is. Grayson made me realise how boring and predictable having good taste or the "right" taste can be. It seems the next generation down have realised this and the more experimental and fashion aware among them have been embracing what I would tern the true meaning of Trashion for most of this year,  namely the gilt laden, fucked up hip-hop inspired sportswear meets animal print clad sex vixen look so beloved of girls like Rihanna, Jessie J and Rita Ora.

Their influence is, I reckon, one reason why for Autumn fashion designers from Dolce Gabbana to Gucci and Meadham Kirchhoff have opted for more gilt, heavy Christian Lacroix inspired beading and tacky baroque styling than Gianni Versace In his heyday. In fact, Rihanna and to a lesser extent Rita Ora, Jessie J and scary Nicki Minaj have become the recession fashion pin-ups - every young designer I meet has dressed or wants to dress them, and their look is the currency of now for young fashionistas.

So, for the time being I'm embracing it, and kidnapping the word Trashion for the fashionistas.

RiRi rocking her Trashion (via thesun.com) 

Rita Ora (via thesunco.uk) 

THIS WEEK'S TRASHION ESSENTIALS

£15 at Topshop

Bling sunglasses £20

£40 at River Island

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!