The Perfect (Twelve) LBD's...

I recently became aware of up-and-coming Brazillian designer Geannine Pollazzon, and thought I should share this gem of a find. This is her first season and the collection is a surprsingly simple but effective assortment of just 12 beautiful black dresses. No fuss, no distractions, no layering, no complications - just a variety of gorgeous dresses. Each dress is an intriguing mix of classic, timeless design with a unique and quirky twist.

Have a gander at her website and let me know your fave.

Currently Lusting After

Mousey brown/blonde faded hair...

Hmmmm.

Not sure when this colour started popping up on the coolest models and IT-girls, but I'm finding it mighty tempting.

As modelled by...

Bregje Heinen

Dree Hemmingway

GeorginaMay Jagger

Mirte Maas

Rumi Neely (Fashion Toast)

Rosie Huntington-Whiteley

(who, by the way, is the most sickingly beautiful and down to earth person imaginable in real life)

Grandma Knows Best (Installment 2)

My darling Grandma's latest fashion musings, which seem very relevant to the yearly party-season conundrum faced by many:

"I have been tossing up in my mind whether one accepts the invitation first and then buys something to wear, or whether one sees a beautiful garment and deliberately accepts an invitation to justify the indulgence. At the moment I am finding myself in the latter category. I have seen a lovely dress, but if I bought it I should probably wear it only once. Of course, I could then accept one of those invitations which, at the moment, seems irksome!

I believe it to be almost impossible to find a truly beautiful evening dress without splashing cash that is generally beyond my means. For this reason, whilst my wardrobe is more than well stocked in every other area, and combined with a general lack of appropriate occasions, genuinely stunning dresses are almost nil. For this reason I spent a bit of time today, provoked by my Grandma's email, daydreaming and 'browser-shopping' for my perfect gown that in a perfect world I would buy before having an invitation to justify it...

I managed (with difficulty) to narrow it down to just three:

Erdem RW Fall 2009

Dries van Noten RW Fall 2009

Zac Posen RW Fall 2009

(All images gratefully knicked from Style.com)

All three are timeless, striking, classic and elegant with just a touch of uniqueness. I imagine fastening myself in, taking a breath out and truly feeling invincible and stunning. And that's what a true gown should achieve.

Dreaming of Spring

This high street preview of Oasis' Spring 2010 collection in Drapers last week caught my eye, attention and imagination - and has stayed firmly rooted in my conscience since. The fabrics, colours, prints and general aesthetic really impressed me and sent me on an online hunt for a further sneakypeak. Unfortunately there seems to be a lack of images, but I did manage to find a few snaps on disneyrollergirl's blog which further cemented my interest in this collection.

Now, despite walking past the Oasis flagship store on an almost daily basis, it never crosses my mind to go in. In the past I have generally found their collections to be rather dull, repetitive and over-priced in terms of the quality and design you are paying for. It is due to my negative brand-association that I am so surprised to find myself lusting after not just one, but multiple, Oasis products.

I already had an inkling that I would want to spend next spring summer floating around in floral printed silk or chiffon mini and maxi-dresses, and these preview images are the actualisation of my daydreams. I don't know if maybe I am gradually maturing, but I am finding myself lusting after more effeminate, romantic and quality items that make me feel my most feline and feminine. In fact on my vintage bargain hunting yesterday it was these images that stayed in mind, and I was successful in scoring myself a floral silk maxi-dress (£14 from Beyond Retro) not dissimilar to these little beauts...

(above two images VERY gratefully pinched from disneyrollergirl)

P.S - How perfect are these for the typical summer wedding season conundrum...?? I foresee many, many women up and down Britain breathing a sigh of relief when these images start appearing in the press come the new year.

Hazy Lazy Winter Days

Owing to my increasingly hectic and demanding shedule juggling the final year of my degree, job and random interning, the opportunity to enjoy a few hours of winter sunshine is rare. I allowed myself the afternoon off today and relished the crisp and beautiful day in my local park, before heading into town to mooch around R.D Franks (specialist Fashion bookshop), Beyond Retro (amazing vintage mecca) and the Salvation Army. Came away with a few vintage bargains that I see becoming wardrobe favourites next spring - yay for thrifting!

(Coat Zara // Striped Top Gap // Jeans Topshop // Boots Topshop//

Snood Zara // Bag Stella McCartney // Hat Vintage))

Photos by Marissa

A Very Stella Christmas

I had the great pleasure last night of attending the annual Christmas Lights turn-on at the Stella McCartney London store. And boy, what a night! Every year the Stella Team choose the most fantastic acts to perform and this year was no expection. We were treated to the delight that is the Mighty Boosh - comedy geniuses. And it was no run of the mill Boosh routine... oh no ladies and gents. We had them serenading us with heavy metal Christmas carols dressed as grannies (apart from dear Fielding who was more Marilyn Monroe-esque and enjoyed flashing his gusset).

Generally I find fashion parties a bit dull and repetitive, but trust Stella to come up with something fun, quirky, original yet accessible. Bravo!

Champagne + hot chocolate + mince pies + candy canes + Stella fashion + the Boosh + a santa attired one-man-band + celebrity guests ahoy = one bloody brilliant fashion party.

Stella with the Boosh boys on-stage.

N.B - Noel Fielding makes a surprisingly hot female...

Santa one-man-band. Immense.

Thought I'd throw this pic in of the amazing Pam Hogg in due her incredible, but slightly un-PC (considering the hostess) fur coat.

P.S - Noel has fantastic feminine legs and stella was looking hot to trot...

xx

Dull Days

(Alpaca Jacket by Vanessa Bruno Athe// Leopard Print T H&M// Leggings American Apparel//
Boots by Poetic License// Scarf Topshop// Bag Jigsaw// Rings - chunky gold Calvin Klein, all other gifted or vintage// Brolly - found!)

This Lass is Tooooooo Good

(images gratefully stolen from style.com and thefashionspot.com)

Constance Jablonski = The New Love of My Life

I truly think this might be the most wonderous hair I have ever beheld.

Her beauty is warming to the soul.

Ahhhh...

Boyfriend Bingo

So, the new Emma Cook for Topshop jumpers landed in store yesterday. I'm kinda in love with this one, but not enough to justify buying it as I'm unsure exactly how much I'd wear it. Also I do tend to steer clear of novelty items. However it is uniform time at work so we shall have to see...

Counting how many past lovers names you can tick-off between a group of friends is my new favourite past-time. I'd make a guess that my Topshop style advisor colleagues would be a winning team (20+ girls and 4 fabulous gays) guarantees a lot of ticked off names!

And for the record, I'm loosing the game at just one name ticked off on my bingo jumper... What a good girl.

Wise Words

"You see the woman across the room and you think,
she's so poised. But she looks at you and you are the woman across the room for her."

(Diane Von Furstenberg as quoted in UK Elle)

Trackie Loving

Anyone who has been to my house in the evening will be aware that I have a penchant for tracksuit bottoms. Until recently this was a fairly dirty secret, however, it appears that trackie bottoms (or sweat pants if you're yanky inclined) are making a bit of a stealthy comeback.

First I noticed the popularity of the Ashish skeleton tracksuit, then the Christopher Kane for Topshop collection featured some rather spunky eyeletted and mirrored ones, which led me to hope and pray that maybe my love would no longer be a filthy secret.

Alas, last week the Guardian fashion newsletter contained an article on their comeback, thus confirming my suspiousions. I put this down in part to the major resurgence of relaxed fit trousers this year, such as hareem pants, the 'relaxed' skinny and the pegleg. What ever the reasoning for it I, for one, am celebrating.

What do you say; would you wear trackies as serious daywear?

(Tracksuit bottoms by Stella McCartney for Adidas// Shoes by Topshop Boutique// Silk Vest Topshop// Leather Jacket Miss Selfridge// Scarf Vintage// Bag YSL Manifesto Tote)

Photos by Marissa

BamBam attempts Miu Miu

My dear friend and flatmate, Marissa, enlisted my help for a photoshoot to experiment with colour photography processing (for any eagle-eyed watchers, yes the below are the digital version, not film). The inspiration for this shoot was the Mert and Marcus shot MiuMiu SS09 campaign images featuring Katie Holmes.

Whilst I am clearly no Mrs. Cruise, and she (despite being a fantastic photogrpaher) is no Mert and Marcus, and we have a zero pound zero pence budget unlike super brand Miu Miu who will have splashed tends of thousands, I do believe our dear girl deserves a big round of applause for this.

Some examples of the orginal inspiration: