'SWEAT BABY, SWEAT...'

The Strokes or should I say ‘Venison’ played a secret gig in Camden’s Dingwall last night: their first in the UK for over 4 years, sold out in seconds… I was one of the fortunate few who managed to scoop up a ticket (and keep it, unlike the many that were circulating the Internet afterwards, selling for an astonishing £800 on ebay!!!)

Ok guys, so in order to tell you how AMAZING this gig was, I also have to tell you something pretty gross… I have literally never been so hot in my life: so much so that by the end, probably around the time the band were playing hits Last Night and Under Control, the crowds’ vapoured sweat was actually dripping from the ceiling. I was near the sound booth and couldn’t help noticing the techys using towels and even people’s coats to frantically try and wipe of the brown drips that were raining down on to the equipment. Julian’s hair went from a reasonable fluffy do to a flat moist mess-but of course he still rocked it… it most likely had something to do with the studded leather he remained wearing, even through out the sweat fest.

But don’t think that it wasn’t all worth it because it truly was! I think even the band was astonished at the buzz of the night stating that ‘this is crazy!’

The guys played a string of their biggest hits, including one of my favourite ever songs, Hard to Explain, but no new material, despite rumours that a long-awaited fourth album has been completed.

The big night even attracted other big rock stars such as Coldplay, The Libertine’s Carl Barat and Luke Pritchard from the Kooks who were hidden amongst excited fans in the crowd.

So I am guessing a comeback tour is in the pipeline, well I bloody hope so… I would definitely LOVE to see the guys play live again!

GFW 2010...

So Graduate Fashion Week has now come to an end… Being a recent graduate myself, I of course was involved in Graduate Fashion Week as an exhibitor showcasing the work I produced for my final major project (visit http://mook-magazine.blogspot.com for more details) but also was lucky enough to be classed as VIP Press (well on the Tuesday anyway) as I spent the day assisting fashion journalist and blogger, Susie Bubble, renowned for her blog, Style Bubble. I was invited to attend all of the shows on that day, seated of course on the coveted front row! :p

(Me with Susie Bubble)

Although I only managed to catch around 7 shows in person, I began to notice a few trends cropping up across the different courses’ collections… This will most likely be seen as a negative to all the students/designers concerned (being truly original is desired amongst all creatives.) However, I believe they should all see it as a positive reflection upon the depth of their initial research and inspiration, highlighting their trend forecasting skills to be top notch!

TREND NO.1 Draped Fringing...

(Left to right: Donna Marie Ratcliffe - De Montfort, Melanie Austin - Arts University College Bournemouth, Alexxsia Elizabeth - Bristol UWE, Frezia Alnisa Zaraat - De Montfort, Jo Bee - Nottingham Trent)

TREND NO.2 Perspex Neck Pieces...

(Left to right: Thi Nyugen - Ravensbourne, Roxanne Newman - AUCB, Maria G N Lazari - De Montfort, Alice-Jane Hutton - De Montfort)

TREND NO.3 Faux Hair...

(Left to right: Izabela Targosz - Nottingham, Naomi New - Northumbria, Alexander Grace Warland - AUCB)

TREND NO.4 Digi Print...

(Left to right: Jessica Hart - Bristol UWE, Jessica Thompson - Central Lancashire, Sera Ulgar - Ravensbourne, Rachel Browne - AUCB, Martha Ingle - Nottingham, Gina Webster - Birmingham)

B.O.F In Conversation with Jefferson Hack...

BoF Fashion Pioneers | Jefferson Hack in conversation with Imran Amed from The Business of Fashion on Vimeo.

TRULY INSPIRATIONAL...

FASHION EDITORS' STYLE...

Featuring new fashion within the pages of their magazines is not the only way fashion editors set the latest trends...

GRUNGE...

Kate Lanphear - Style Director, ELLE US.

FUR...

Carine Roitfeld- Editor In Chief, Vogue Paris.

PARTY DRESSES...

Katie Grand- Editor In Chief, LOVE

FOALE & TUFFIN EXHIBITION...

(The famous 'Double D' dress, 1966)

It's swinging in 60s style at the Fashion & Textiles museum, London, with a focus on the fabulous work of Marion Foale and Sally Tuffin. The exhibition follows the journey of the design duo, from their very first meeting at Art College to the formation of their Carnaby street shop, ending in Knitwear and Chinaworks (the two art forms, the pair create today.)

(Original design sketches)

Interestingly, the exhibition showcases a reconstruction of the Foale and Tuffin boutique, located just off Carnaby street in the 1960s. Scaffolding was used as rails and the 'mod' colour palette of red, white and blue, was dotted around the store as well as the light bulb shop sign.

ONE TO WATCH: THE MORNING PAPER...

From Sweden...

Epic synth sounds...

Beautiful melodies...

'Nuff said!

A VERY BRITISH GLAMOUR...

To celebrate the work of fashion photographer Norman Parkinson and launch of 'A Very British Glamour', the book which showcases his most famous portraits, Somerset House is holding a small exhibition of his work in the Terrace Rooms. I went along yesterday, as have been a fan of Parkinson's work for a while now and thought it might be a good place to start for 'inspiration' for my FMP at uni...

Most of Norman's photographs are based around his key idea which was to take models out of the studio and into the street, creating some of the most beautiful location shots of the 40s and 50s...

DOES ONE SIZE FIT ALL...?

I really like the concept that Terry Richardson has worked into the latest issue of V magazine. In the feature 'One Size Fits All', Richardson has photographed the latest looks for spring 2010 on both a typical size zero model and a plus size one, proving that they can work on any figure! Being, not a twig, but a size 10/12 girl myself, I do find that some clothes just don't suit my figure, but is that really true or is it because we are only familiar with tiny shorts and crop tops being paraded on stick thin models as apposed to the size of an average girl in the pages of our fashion magazines?

Recently the argument against size zero has risen again; with Mark Fast choosing to use size 14 girls in his shows this September and Alexandra Shulman writing to designers demanding they send larger sample sizes...now this... It will be interesting to see what happens in a couple of months during the a.w 10/11 shows...

ONE TO WATCH: JOSH WELLER...

Singer-songwriter, Josh Weller, had his first taste of fame in 2006 when he used to perform in a group headed ‘Josh Weller and the Availables.’ After moving to London in 2008, Weller later began work as a solo artist, playing small venue gigs and house parties. Josh has recently been featured on fashion and street style blogs as a notable style icon: It may have been his melodic Elvis-Costello-style pop rock songs that got him noticed, but it is more likely to be his iconic vertical quiff hair style, geek-chic glasses or maybe his vast collection of vintage bow ties one of which he is always seen sporting.

Weller’s witty, fun and thought provoking lyrics are inspired by the works of Woody Allen and Richard Pryor; comedians which he says have a strong influence when it comes to song writing. This is reflected in his satiric latest single ‘It’s Christmas and I Hate You,’ featuring Paloma Faith, another rising pop musician, who also happens to share Josh’s vintage inspired style.

Josh’s style takes the classic, tailored look of legendary Hollywood and Broadway ‘Rat Pack’ stars, such as Fred Astaire and Frank Sinatra and gives it a contemporary-cool, eccentric edge. Dress sense is something that Josh is often asked about, so much so that he fears it is becoming more important than the music he makes. Last month Josh told Clash Music that his style ‘...came about purely from the music I like… It is a reflection of who I am and I sometimes feel that if my music was a person then it would probably dress like me.’

Josh is currently finishing writing and producing his debut album, which is due for release next year, so watch this space...

(This is part of an article I wrote for Mpdclick)

THE BRITISH FASHION AWARDS...

Firstly, no I wasn't there...I wish (my invitation must have got lost in the post or something...?) But some really really cool people were... Kate Moss, Georgia May Jagger, Vivienne Westwood and Grace Coddington (my inspiration) were among the most stylish Brits out in force last Wednesday night to celebrate the best of British fashion talent at the British Fashion Awards 2009. The night, held at The Royal Courts of Justice in London and sponsored by Swarovski, saw an array of designers, editors, stylists, models and industry VIPs united by their love for fashion and outstanding creativity.

The event presented 11 awards in total including Collection of the Year, Outstanding Achievement in Fashion Design and the special, new for 2009, London 25 honour which was won by Kate Moss.

2009 certainly has been Burberry chief creative officer, Christopher Bailey’s year: If his latest Burberry collection being the most talked about show ever, due to the brand’s triumphant return to London fashion week this summer and receiving an MBE from the queen wasn’t enough, he also managed to bag 2 awards on the night. Bailey collected the prestigious BFC Designer of the Year as well as receiving Best British Designer Brand, for Burberry; a well deserved recognition for all his achievements for the fashion house.

After a slight tumble off the stage into the Orchestra pit below, model Karen Elson presented American Vogue’s Creative Director and ‘The September Issue’ star, Grace Coddington, with the Isabella Blow Award for Fashion Creator. In her acceptance speech Grace portrayed a modest outlook and a trivial look of confusion after questioning if she was truly deserving of the honour, stating that she doesn’t design the clothes, she doesn’t do the make-up, she doesn’t wear the clothes, so why was she winning the award? Grace might not recognise her own creative greatness but her amazing eye for style means she is undoubtedly one of the most inspiring and talented stylists of our time.

The British Fashion Awards, seen as the ‘Oscars’ of the fashion industry, was a brilliant way of rounding up the year’s celebrations that commemorated 25 years of London Fashion Week.

[This is part of an article I wrote for mpdclick during my on going internship...]

(from left: Kim Jones, Kate Moss, Vivienne Westwood, Grace Coddington, Daisy Lowe, Christopher Kane, Christopher Bailey.)

IMAGE SOURCE: http://www.britishfashionawards.com/