THE WEEK IN FASHION: NOVEMBER 21st-25th

Posted by Bethan Holt, Fashion Junior at Large

Rihanna in McQ on X-Factor (from fashionforlunch.com)

This has been a wonderful few days for London Fashion Week build-up after two of Britain's greatest fashion exports, Alexander McQueen and Stella McCartney, both announced that they would be holding shows during February's London Fashion Week. The Alexander McQueen house's younger line, McQ will be showing for the first time ever and has chosen London for the occasion. McQ's first store will also be opening on Dover Street next Spring. Meanwhile, Stella McCartney has held her catwalk show in Paris for years now but she is bringing a special one-off presentation to the capital. Next February's London event will be an evening affair to celebrate Stella's association with the 2012 Olympics, for which she is designing kits for Team GB. Not to be outdone by McQ, Stella also has plans for another store, this time in Brompton Cross. Until then, we can satisfy our Stella love at Selfridges' 'World of Stella' pop-up in January. Be sure to check out next week's Grazia for more McQ news from the FashEd.

A stellar 2012 for Stella (image from newsonlineinternational.wordpress.com)

NEWS JUST IN: Just as I thought all the excitement was over for another week in fashion, I've just seen the breaking news on WWD that over $400,000 worth of Louis Vuitton bags have been stolen in an operation by masked thieves last night at Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris. After last week's Marc Jacobs burglary, the designer is not having much luck at the moment.

Someone's on the run with a hell of a lot of Vuitton (image from coachhandbagclub.com)

A quite odd announcement from the Advertising Standards Authority this week; the images of 14 year-old Hailee Steinfeld sitting beside a railway line for Miu Miu's SS11 campaign have been banned. This is because they show a child in a hazardous situation. Obviously, that's completely understandable grounds for banning an image. However, they have have been all over the Internet and in magazines for months. This makes me think that the damage is done by now, so why ban the images just as they are being replaced with those from the Resort campaign anyway? I cannot help but think that is a clunky bit of bureaucracy rather than a meaningful decision. Am I wrong?

Look away children

On Wednesday evening, Net-a-Porter founder, Natalie Massenet interviewed Christian Louboutin at the V&A museum. You can see the best bits in the video below. Net-a-Porter were tweeting the event live. One of these tweets informed us that Mr Louboutin's dream woman to make shoes for would be Queen Elizabeth II. Interestingly, that very same day, some quite funny pictures were published of none other than Her Majesty (clad in her usual sensible black courts) shooting a concerned look at the Louboutin-esque footwear of Hayrunnisa Gul, the wife of Turkey's President, as she arrived with her husband at Buckingham Palace as part of their state visit to the UK.

Will Mr Louboutin be hearing from Her Majesty shortly we wonder? (image from dailymail.co.uk)

Rumoured supermodel couple Arizona Muse and Freja Beha Erichsen are the stars of Chloe's SS12 ad campaign. They were spotted at Chateau Marmont in LA, posing in dresses from the collection and generally having a fab time. We have hair and tan envy. 

Summery fun for Arizona and Freja (Image from fashionologie.com)

And now for something a little more sobering. Most of us probably think of Arcadia as the behemoth of the British High Street; an almost untouchable retail giant. So, when it was announced yesterday that the company's profits had dropped by 38% and that 250 stores would be closing it was a signal that the economic environment is massively challenging right now. We may have been expecting bad news from smaller chains and businesses but Arcadia's decision to close nearly 10% of its stores shows that nobody is immune.

If you need help with your Christmas party attire then may we suggest you pop along to Harrods which is hosting a day of activities in their 'Way In' partywear department (on the 4th floor) on Saturday 3rd December. Fashion Illustrator David Longshaw will be there drawing customers in their new purchases. Henry Holland will also be transformed for one afternoon only into a shopfloor assistant, on hand to advise customers on the best looks. Actually, that all sounds like a bit of a party in itself, non?

Karl Lagerfeld gets the David Longshaw treatment

As Christmas is on its way, we thought we'd let you know about a couple of good causes to get involved in during the Season of Goodwill...

Erin O'Connor with some of the bags which are up for grabs. 

For the next week, Save the Children are hosting an online designer bag auction to raise funds for their No Child Born to Die initiative. There are plenty of beauties to choose from including bags previously owned by Sienna Miller and Samantha Cameron. Also in the mix are some beauties from Alexander McQueen, Sophie Hulme and Christopher Kane (his liquid clutch which Erin O'Connor is holding is AMAZING). You can bid until 4th December. If all that doesn't make you visit the site, then perhaps Tilda Swinton can persuade you... She says:

“Bid high! Bid so much higher than you think you will or can! Think of a dicey number and double it. And then double that. No fancy bag can ever carry what your generosity will mean to the children it will help to live. Make this beautiful object truly valuable by investing real money in real life - and carry the evidence with pride. Don't count the cost. Think of it as paying something back for all there is to be grateful for in your days.”

If you're still feeling charitable then Volcom are asking for your donations of denim you no longer want... More details can be found here.

BRITAIN'S FASHIONISTAS ARE WEARING... PYJAMAS

Posted by Bethan Holt, Fashion Junior at Large

Ben Whishaw as Sebastian Flyte in Brideshead Revisted

Here at FEAL, we don't usually say too much about menswear. But when John Lewis told us that their sales of 'dapper robes' were up by 91% in the men's department, our ears pricked up.I thought it was only girls who watched Downton Abbey, but John Lewis seem sure that the rise is a result of men wanting to emulate Lord Grantham's stately bedroom attire. Are the men of Great Britain going home and pretending to be turn-of-the century aristocrats? I certainly haven't seen any evidence of them wearing their new robes out and about, have you?

As Lord Grantham gets a bit too close to maid Jane, we get a good peek of his bedroom robe (image from itv/ mirror.co.uk)

Oscar Wilde posing in his smoking jacket (image from thisislondon.com)

I don't think Downton is where it all began though; I've been slightly obsessed with the 1981 series of Brideshead Revisited for years now and I studied Oscar Wilde at university. Recently, I've seen all these used as references for various microtrends such as the pyjama suit and the dandy slipper. Penelope Chilvers has even launched a bespoke service which lets you design your very own Dandy slipper.




It doesn't get more Dandy than Ralph Lauren's purple tasseled slippers

This pyjama/slipper combination feels luxurious and exotic- see the above still from the 2008 film version of Brideshead Revisited which is all about a louche and priviliged life where one really can recline in pyjamas all day long.  This is why I think there's more to this than wanting to be like Downton's main man. Although, as we're talking about John Lewis here, perhaps this is more of an older man buying into the Lord of the Manor lifestyle represented by Hugh Bonneville's Lord Grantham. Although he's loveable in his own way, he doesn't have that foppish air of extravagance and wealth which Oscar Wilde and Sebastian Flyte possess.

JW Anderson AW11 - Francesca Burns & Emma Elwick of British Vogue both have this pyjama suit by Jonathan Anderson, and have even been seen wearing them together

Louis Vuitton Resort 2012. You can buy this from November 21st. Top £700 and trousers £550

For us girls, pyjamas are a trend which is going to get hard to avoid. John Lewis say that we're already coming round to it, with sales of the 'luxurious nightwear' up by more than 200%. But it's the crossover to seeing pyjamas as daywear options which is really telling. J.W Anderson has already done some highly lustworthy day time paisley pyjamas for AW11. The Great Gatsby inspired Sofia Coppola and Marc Jacobs' collaboration for Louis Vuitton's Resort 2012. Once the SS12 shows came around, barely a show went by without some evidence of gentleman's silks and easy pyjama suits; Equipment's will be amazing (aforementioned on this blog). The High Street has already been offering mannish silky shirts and, in some cases, matching silky pyjama bottoms and palazzo pants. By next spring this will be a huge fashion thang, so you may as well be ahead of the curve and get into it now. So while all the boys are hiding inside, playing at being Dukes and Lords, it seems inevitable that the ladies will be out and about showing off their take on pyjamas as fashionable daywear.

Alexa Chung has included a pyjama suit in her new and rather good collection for American brand Madewell. Alexa's dandy silk Valentine pyjama is dotted with palm tree silhouettes; a New York Post writer was so enamoured of them,she wore them for a day out in Manhattan and wrote about it.

Chloe blouse, £600, Net-a-Porter.com

Alexa Chung for Madewell pyjama pants $200 

Derek Rose, purveyors of luxury pyjamas, have a few styles which could work well as daywear options...

Very Art Deco- the Leila Blue£109.99

Modern Paisley- the Nelson Silver £109.99

NOW FOR SS12

Stella McCartney's paisley pyjama for SS12

Close up of Stella McCartney paisley

Close up of Stella Mccartney foulard silk, the main motif of her collection

Paul Smith SS12

J. W Anderson's paisley suit for SS12



Photos: Fashion Editor at Large, catwalking.com

PAISLEY, FLORALS...WHAT WE DID TODAY....

Posted by Fashion Junior at Large

It's all go here at FEAL towers but fear not, we haven't forgotten you dear readers. It may be short and sweet but we wanted to share some rather awesome prints we saw today at Jonathan Saunders and Stella McCartney. Suddenly all the work we're doing on the trends for SS12 seems to have come to life and we can actually imagine wearing them- or dream of it,  more realistically, in the case of Saunders and Stella.

At Jonathan Saunders

The indescribably divine Jonathan Saunders, with models

At Stella...

I thought I could never love a nude shoe...

WILL YOU WEAR THE NEW UGLY SHOES?

Posted by Fashion Junior at Large

Stella McCartney SS12

I would hazard a guess, correct me if I'm wrong, that you have at least one pair of shoes which you can barely walk in, they rub the skin from your feet and blister with such ferocity that they can easily be filed under the category of 'torture instruments'. But you wear them anyway. Heels have never been the most practical item but in recent years they have reached fetishistic levels thanks to the likes of Christian Louboutin, Alexander McQueen et al.

Christopher Kane SS12

Well ladies, the tide has turned in what seems to be the most extreme way we could have anticipated. There are still enough super high platforms gracing the catwalks this round of fashion weeks but a few highly influential designers including Christopher Kane and Stella McCartney have begun the backlash by showing shoes which look plain ugly to my eye, usually accustomed to some femininity and leg-flattering in a shoe. I am not saying that these shoes ARE ugly because our perceptions are really quite fickle and can quickly change once we become used to a new shape or style. But this one's a tall order, will I really wear a shoe next Summer which resembles the 20 year-old flip flops my Dad has had since the first summer holiday I can remember?

J.W Anderson SS12

Furthermore, these shoes are about much more than just offering a comfortable alternative. My current shoes of choice are slipper style flats- they are a dream for rushing about town but also look elegant and feminine. So, the new uglies are more about the issuing of a blatant, unmistakable challenge to fetish 10inch heels. My slipper flats just get on with their job whereas some clumpy sports sandals scream, 'LOOK AT HOW COMFORTABLE AND UNSEXY I AM'. I, for one, will be fascinated to see whether this a trend which translates or a catwalk gimmick. Surely pigs will fly before we see Anna Dello Russo in a nice sensible trainer?

THE ULTIMATE NEW EASY

Posted by The Fashion Junior at Large 

One of the biggest trends which seems to be emerging from the SS12 shows is what we at FEAL like to call 'the new easy'. Essentially, this comprises beautifully cut basics in luxury fabrics which you can throw on to feel instantly glamourous and dressed up but also super comfy too. On Saturday, I viewed the new collections from silk shirt stalwarts Equipment and L.A girl about town label Joie (which counts Rachel Bilson, Blake Lively and Kate Bosworth among its fans) Both, in their own ways, have nailed this New Easy. At Joie, there are riviera stripes, jumpers perfect for throwing on over denim shorts on a Summer evening and pleated sundresses in lots of hot colours.

Joie

Joie- These two pieces make a perfect L.A kind of casual summer outfit

Meanwhile, Equipment offers something altogether more classic but still totally lustworthy- the Fash Ed could barely contain her excitement when I told her about their pyjamas for day which come in their own fabulous silk pouch. In my own Summer holiday fantasy, I would mix up the pyjama top and bottom options, throw on some heels and diamonds before hitting the bar for cocktails with Coco Chanel and Elizabeth Taylor.

A pyjama really does sum up this new easy and seems to me to be a very welcome off-shoot of the twenties and thirties references which are threading through many of the keys shows. One look at Greta Garbo or Joan Bennet in their easy, chic pyjama-y get-ups and any sane designer would see they had an instant woman pleasing hit on their hands.

Greta Garbo (Image from Rex Features)

Joan Bennet (image from hollywoodheyday.blogspot.com)

 A smattering from the catwalks:

From this morning's Stella McCartney show (image from guardian.co.uk)

Silky nightdress at Lanvin (from catwalking.com)

Sheer at Richard Nicoll (catwalking.com)

 Unless otherwise indicated, photos are by Fashion Junior at Large.