Has British Style Affected the Fashion Retail Rich List?

British style is renowned for it's eccentricity, it's thrifty and changeable. Gone are the days of the Saville Row suits for most men who prefer to rummage through vintage stores, we long for a quick fashion fix for the most part. Whereas American style relies on items that last a lifetime, us Brits prefer a disposable and affordable style.

Vogue UK

Is it possible that our British style has affected the Sunday Times Rich List this year? Let's take a look at the Top 10 Fashion Retailers:

Brick Lane Style

I visited Brick Lane today and took the opportunity to take some photographs of the street style there. The style is really eclectic, ranging from vintage finds to urban brands. There was so many other street photographers there - I was photographed myself by one Korean style blog and even a woman from Vogue Korea! It really shows how inspiration can be gained from the people of Brick Lane. My personal favourite looks are all-black as they look really interesting with the mixture of textures and always chic and fashionable. I think come the warmer whether we will see even more exciting stuff!

Church Lookbook Part 1

I've started to put together looks for the Church-themed editorial which will be featured in our university magazine. I need 8 in total (it will be a 12 page spread with 2 double pages), so I started off with having three looks. I think I will try and make/photograph as many looks as possible so I can bin some if they don't work as well as the others. These are my first three ideas. I've just photographed them on myself for now to give me an idea of how it would look on a person as the model will be a similar size to me.

New Club Kids

I recently purchased the book "New Club Kids" to aide my research and help to inspire me in creating our Club Kid-inspired photoshoot for our group magazine that we are working on this term. I looked mostly at the men's fashion as we will be using a male model for this editorial but I also looked at the toned down version of Club Kid as I don't want it to appear too much like dress-up or even satirical but still keeping the very experimental fashion within.

I love the use of found materials in this look - the rope necklace!

Deneuve Slams Sky-Scraper Heels

‘It’s something that comes out of a slightly twisted desire, which, for that matter, makes for a rather twisted way of walking. I suspect that it has its origins in the minds of the designers, designers who have pushed the limits, who were imagining an extreme woman.

‘Everyone has fallen for it, women’s magazines first and foremost. Nowadays, a silhouette must be strong; it must create an effect, make an impact – all these powerful words.’ 

Catherine Deneuve, one of film's all-time sex-symbols charred the high heel in the Roger Vivier book. She stated that she much prefers a more demure heel, something that Vivier is the master of.

‘A simple, well-made shoe with the perfect arch is such a pleasure.

‘It makes us walk differently;  we feel free, emancipated, as if we can deal with life’s challenges. You must remember that in the 1960s, high-heeled shoes were for women of ill repute. They were reserved for those who were obliged by their profession to live up to a caricature.

‘Do women today really want to make caricatures of themselves?’

In Belle du Jour she deliberately chose for her character to wear mid-heel shoes by Vivier for her portrayal of the housewife-turned-prostitute. Although the initial reception was rather negative, mid-heels soon rocketed in sales. Once again, mid-heel and block-heels are making a comeback in the fashion world. Is it possible that we're getting sick and tired of uncomfortable sky-high platforms?

Does Paris Fashion Really Have to Originate in Paris?

What do we think when we imagine Paris style? Working in Paris has always been aspirational for many fashion-driven young people. It's the home of haute couture, as well as being known for chic, timeless style. Paris has a very particular niche in fashion. However, are todays Parisian fashion houses really located in Paris? Are we buying the idea of Parisian chic or the real thing?

Céline AW2013

STYLIST INSPIRATION: Venetia Scott

Scott is a woman of many talents, inhabiting many different guises; stylist, creative director and photographer. Her work caught my eye when flicking through one of my favourite fashion books "Stylists: New Fashion Visionaries". She credits French photographer Michel Haddi for introducing her to a more unique and unpopularised view of fashion. Much of her inspiration comes from the book Teenage Lust created by Larry Clark which revels in subculture and celebrates anti-fashion. She has since worked for Purple, Self Service, i-D and AnOther magazine. I think her work has a very retro feel to it but much more provocative. I feel that the people portrayed in the photographs have stories behind them which enriches them so much more.

Self Service

7 Ps of Promotion Zine

Over Easter I created a zine as part of our project about Kotler's 7 Ps of Promotion. I used Sandra Suy as my inspiration for an illustrator and tried to reference each 'P' in a illustration that represented the meaning of the word when used in a company promotion context. I think my final product is good however I think the illustrations could be refined and also if I had a scanner they would look much better than they do when I have taken photos of them. You just need to click the above picture to view it as an online publication! I used Joomag to do this.

TREND: Church

When browsing the trend forecasts and looking back at the most recent fashion week, I've been drawn to the "Church" trend. I've always been drawn to religious imagery as I love the grandiose power of it and also the emotion it evokes in even the most Agnostic of viewers. I think that large scale depictions of religious icons always feel very omniscient and allow you to feel that there is a presence of a higher power, especially with buildings such as Sacre Coeur chapel.

I think that these fashionable takes on religious iconography not only help evoke that feeling of supremacy but also aesthetically appear like the paintings of Michelangelo and Raphael. There are also fashions that remind me of church in other ways such as the "Sunday Best", vicar collars and nun habits.

I've collected some images which are both from recent collections and past collections, other editorial imagery and non-fashion imagery as this is something I want to explore through editorial in our group magazine as a stylist.

Alexander McQueen AW2013-2014

Barbara Hulanicki Illustrations

(photos found online)

(own photographs from Biba exhibition)

As I previously mentioned in my review of the Biba exhibition, I have fallen in love with Barbara Hulanicki's illustrations! They are certainly unique and they have the exact stylisation that I am always attracted to - I love the dolly aesthetic with exaggerated eyes and tiny mouths. The lines are very fluid and her illustrations are primarily line drawings with no colour. Her illustrations don't differ too much from my own in the past as I like this approach to drawing however I took it upon myself to recreate them in her style, using different fashion photographs as references, however keeping them quite contemporary as to not completely replicate the 60s-70s look. I did this using black watercolour and a fine brush and occasionally a thicker brush for the heavier lines, trying to keep them as free-flowing as possible and not beginning with any pencil drawings so that they were not too contrived.

Brighton

While I was in Brighton I took some photographs of the interesting buildings and graffiti. I loved how large-scale and detailed the graffiti was and there is a lot of street art to see on nearly every road. Many of the shops have really eye-catching shop fronts too which I think helps to show the colourfulness of Brighton and in that way it feels very different to London which is lesser so.

Becky

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Biba & Beyond

On Friday I had the chance to visit the Biba & Beyond exhibition at Brighton Museum & Art Gallery. Founder of the Biba brand Barbara Hulanicki changed the world of high street shopping in the 60s and 70s and since walking out on the brand after it's corporate takeover she's still as successful. The exhibition is full of the fashion, the lifestyle and the modern-day equivalents of Biba. 

At just £4 entry for the exhibition I was very impressed with the wide range of memorabilia that it showcased, from the clothes itself, original illustrations, make-up and other products, videos and even clothes to try on for yourself! The space itself was very easy to walk around in and to view everything up close unlike many exhibition where you are forced to distance yourself and barely get a real idea of what you're looking at. It all felt very personal with many interviews with Barbara herself scattered around and the fact you could try on a few pieces really helped to interact with it all. There was such a wide range of people visiting the exhibition from women who had worn and shopped at Biba in it's height and to young girls inspired by this style. 

My personal favourite part of the exhibition was by far the illustrations. Having looked at her illustrations before to inspire a photoshoot, it was wonderful to see them up close. I absolutely adore the "dolly" aesthetic of them and they're timeless, they perfectly illustrate the Biba customers such as Twiggy. I also loved the little make-up tutorial video of how to do the "dolly" look - definitely something I will be trying out for myself sometime soon! I also couldn't help but love the platform shoes, I felt that many of the fashion on display could easily be worn today and not look dated.

Below are my pictures from the exhibition of things that caught my eye.

Becky

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