eye eye, captain

Sweater Kenzo; Trousers Joseph; Bracelet Sydney Evan; Ring Shine; Boots Missguided

I spy with my little eye something beginning with...
There is always something by Kenzo placed towards the top of imaginary wishlist. Whether it's shoes, cap, or an item of clothing, it always seems to appeal to me. For autumn winter 2013, Carol Lim and Humberto Leon are once again the force behind a statement sweater that's distinctive at first glimpse (or capture from street style photographers...) and this time has the capability of warding off malevolent spirits. Does anybody remember Alexa Chung's evil eye nails? That's the first thing that sprung into my mind when revisiting the sweater and then I thought "hey, let's hunt out some jewellery to match"...

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Valentino AW13

To me, Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pierpaolo Piccoli have designed-up the perfect Valentino woman. She's the epitome of Italian beauty; elegant and tasteful with pleasing character. She wonders down the cultured side-streets,passing flourishing flowers that beautify the pathway like an afternoon rainbow captivating eyes with its blend of dreamy colours. She's filled with classic aesthetics but mixes her traditional artiness with fresh modernity and there's always pride in her appearance- whether that be her neatly plaited hair or the numerous feminine dresses layered over pristine shirts.

My shamefully appallingly edited pictures are back! (let's just say it adds a 'personal' touch to these posts) But it really had to be done. As I was scrolling through Valentino's autumn winter collection for the first time, I knew immediately it was probably my favourite from the fashion weeks. There's a graceful charm surrounding it which makes the dresses all the more desirable and, to put it simply, contains pretty much everything I look for in clothing. The only downside (apart from the price, of course) is I'm becoming even more jealous of my bro and mum's weekend to Venice in the next couple of months because wearing something similar to this while floating peacefully down the river before a meal of authentic Italian food would be perfetto, no?

all photos taken from style.com and vogue.com

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print galore

Let's go on a journey. A journey lead by OTT prints, vivacious colours and fashion week frenzy.
We begin in the present day, in an age where lipstick is a necessity for young women everywhere. So much so that it's no longer just an item for your lips, oh no, thanks to Holly Fulton and her exciting, innovative prints, lipstick now has the ability to beautify shirts, jackets, dresses, even trousers.

We then revert back to pop art. To a period of POW explosions and in-your-face boldness. Having spent eight years away from the runway, Tom Ford certainly made his return with a bang- grabbing my attention with the lively patterns or, in particular, the gold, gleaming hoodie which combines casualness with glamour and some kind of tiger-like print. BOOM.

But if we are going back in time we might as well pay a visit to the hippy era and transport ourselves into a psychedelic, hallucinatory whirlpool of positivity. It may be winter but one would never believe it  if meeting with these eccentric characters from Iceberg.
When looking through the collections during fashion month, there are always two kinds which I'm drawn to. The ones that I scroll through and continuously find myself saying the words 'oh my god, I want that' because everything is so perfect and well-suited for a place in my imaginary wardrobe and then the ones that are more artistic and just fun to look at. These fall into the latter and although 'prints' are something you see time and time again I believe they can never get boring because they can constantly be reinvented into something unique, as Holly Fulton has confidently proven.

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knit overload

There was once a time when knitting was seen as the work of the granny. When the image of knitting would be said granny sat contently in her living room, her hands moving fast and furiously as she produces a scarf, hat, maybe even a jumper that will be given as a gift and never worn. Knitting was laughed at by youngsters. It was a seen as a boring hobby for old people. Not cool. I'm eighteen and I'd love to start getting into knitting, especially when designers like Sid Bryan, Joe Bates and Cozette McCreery (the crew behind Sibling) bring out a fun, crazy side to knitting that's far from the stereotypical ideas of what knitwear involves.

Paired with sneakers, it's more youth than elderly and with the extreme thickness wrapped around the arms and neck, Sister by Sibling's autumn winter installment is a collection made for winter, not just a collection that will be labelled with the 'autumn winter' tag. Sure, many of the items are unlikely to be a real consumer hit but it looks exciting on the runway and I like that.

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#NYFW

A city dweller, an urban rambler

a lover of the lights, a lover of the sights

the buildings are her heartbeat, keeping her senses alive

the streets are her catwalk of which she owns with every stride

She is not troubled by a single thing, her attitude's calm and content

she's a skyscraper of style with a skyline of ambitions

strengthened by the inspiration from a land that never sleeps

I'd love my wardrobe to be filled with clothes from Rebecca Minkoff (above) and Rag and Bone (below) who have city style down to a tee. For days when 'dressing up' seems a chore and slipping on a pair of rugged jeans, a nonchalant form of knitwear and a slick jacket adorned with leather seems much more to your taste, these Fall collections could not be more fitting.

Having been a young child who enjoyed playing in mud, skateboarding and football as much as I did socialising with my Barbies, there are still moments in my life where I take delight in letting out my inner tomboy. Thankfully, with the help of these collections, if ever in doubt I know I can turn to Rebecca's and Rag and Bone's creations as the perfect source of inspiration.

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Kenzo aw13 mens

ATTENTION NIRVANA FANS: Yes, I am very aware that the lyrics are 'on a plain' but whilst writing this post I could not get the song out of my head and thought it only fitting to change the spelling for the purpose of it making sense.

Sat on a plane, far away from the liveliness of everyday life,

your destination calling, your previous abode waving goodbye

the sky is a sea of serenity,

the cumulus gatherings are cushions of hush

there's a sense of invincibility when distant from the ground,

 a sense of freedom when flying around.

Ever since Humberto Leon and Carol Lim replaced Kenzo Takada as creative directors, I have fallen more in love with the brand. Not that there wasn't anything wrong with the founder and fundamental force behind the clothes' identity but ever since the takeover there's been a surge of energy and fun creativeness that never fails to catch my eye.

For Fall they were inspired by endless trips on aeroplanes and staring out of windows at the continuous sights of blue and clouds. This comes across flawlessly in the prints covering jackets and the fluffy fabrics.
The collection continues with trademark Kenzo-style patterns found on the likes of trousers (paired with a toned down blazer for an effortlessly stylish look) and bold colours such as the shock of pink. And, of course, the occurrence of a tiger sweater.

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snow walk

This bracelet's entitled 'snow angel' and I made it one evening before Christmas with snowy scenery in mind. When waking up this morning to the sight of snow covered trees and a blanket of white thrown over the garden, I knew it was the perfect opportunity to photograph it. Afterwards, I wondered around my village while enjoying the sound of the crunching beneath my feet and sight of flakes falling in my steps. I took some photos so cue frozen ponds and the return of Rudolph. (It may also be worth noting that there is now loads more snow since these were taken)

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winter headband

You may have read about my fondness for this season's florals in a previous blog post. Well while I was at a local car boot sale a few weeks ago, I spotted these purple and blue artificial flowers and immediately pictured them placed on my head. There are so many tutorials scattered about the internet on how to make your own headband but I believe that this way is the simplest and most efficient- plus all you need is a headband, flowers and a glue gun. To complete your flowered creation, secure the stemless flowers onto a blob of glue, making your way along the headband with as little space in between as possible. Really, I can't think of anything easier :-)

Once upon a time...

I know  it doesn't feel right to be plunging into next season's trends (although it's hard to avoid them) when there's still some weeks of 'summer' left but I've fallen in love with the winter florals. To me they conjure up images of a dark fairytale, as there is something mysterious but magical about them. As a result, I decided to interpret my new liking onto a sleeveless T-shirt using fabric pens brought from New Look. I'm not totally sure what to make of it though as I know I'm not the greatest of artists!

Lara love

'Winter florals are deeper, richer and more potent

than ever before. In the heart of the Oxfordshire

countryside, Lara Stone is bewitched'

There's a glowing beauty surrounding this photoshoot (found in the September issue of UK Vogue on sale now). Lara's golden blonde hair complements the radiance of the setting sun and her captivating brown stare fits amongst the enchanting flowers mysteriously budding in time for next season. She peacefully hides in the midst of nature, elegantly laying above water like an undisturbed swan and resting upon branches and enclosed greenery like a comely, genial bird captured through the lens of Ryan McGingly. 

Alexander McQueen Autumn Winter 2012 campaign film

Breaking news: A space ship of futuristic, sci-fi induced clothing is heading our way in time for autumn and Alexander McQueen (with model Suvi Koponen and director David Sims) have just boarded that ship.

At first the autumn winter collection is a bundle of creatively furry, fluffy, beauty which leaves one wanting to leap amongst the copiously snug dresses and curl up and nap like a tiresome kitten, but there's more to the dark visors (those that mysteriously accompanied each model on the runway earlier this year) than what meets the eye.

Slip one on and you are transported into the midst of space with exploding hypnotic rainbow colours bursting and travelling around you. Not fazed in the slightest, you will stand motionless, transfixed by your surroundings. This is not the 60's though and an LSD- provoked adventure, this is 2012 inspired by the future.

What do you think of the film? Is it what you'd expect from an Alexander McQueen creation? or has Sarah Burton taken it too far?