the fashion blog for the stylish bargain hunter
Kate Moss can do no wrong. Ever. Whatever she puts on she makes it look like second nature. To me, she is the very definition of a style icon.
Check her out on the Louis Vuitton catwalk earlier today – proving she’s still got it: Continue reading “[INSPIRATION] Kate Moss”
I am currently obsessed with E4’s New Girl, have you seen it? More specifically I am obsessed with protagonist, Jess’s style. Zooey Deschanel has a habit of taking on slightly kooky and quirky roles and Jess is no different. However, after close scrutiny, her style is pretty conventional and even a little conservative: think knee length dresses and cardigans with flat pumps:
If truth be known, it is probably Zooey Deschanel’s effortless loose ringlet curls that I am most obsessed with. Continue reading “[STYLE ICON] Zooey Deschanel as Jess in New Girl”
Last summer, in Ibiza, I became obsessed with the idea of a straw basket-style bag, à la Jane Birkin and Kate Moss (below) to carry my neccessities to the beach.
I searched for a suitable speciman but couldn’t find one that completely fitted the bill for price and size. Then, whilst doing a little virtual window shopping the other day, I came across this straw bag by Seafolly over on my-wardrobe:
Perfection. And only £35!
Will you be carrying a straw bag on your holidays this summer?
* Image sources: Kate Moss (left to right): 1, 2, 3, 4; Jane Birkin (l-r): 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
My latest style icon is actress Rachel Bilson in her latest role as Dr Zoe Hart in the new hit TV show, Hart of Dixie. Have you seen it? No!? Well, go check it out for yourself right now! Bilson’s character manages to combine laid-back cool with a little added sex appeal – a look that every young woman wishes she could pull off with such aplomb!
From the creators of The O.C. and Gossip Girl, Hart Of Dixie stars Rachel Bilson as a sophisticated and ambitious young doctor who has to swap her fast-paced life in New York for the down-home world of Alabama after her perfect plans start to fall apart.
Zoe Hart thinks she has her life sorted – she graduated top of her class from medical school, has the perfect boyfriend and is set on following in her father’s footsteps to become a cardio-thoracic surgeon. But things soon start to go wrong, and Zoe is forced to accept an offer from a stranger, Dr Harley Wilkes, to work with him at his small practice in Bluebell, Alabama.
Bilson’s wardrobe in the show is filled with covetable pieces and great inspiration for the glorious summer sunshine we’re currently enjoying here in the UK, whether you favour a chance to show off your pins in a mini skirt or cover-up in easy-to-wear peg-leg trousers, Bilson shows you how.
If you’ve missed the show, so far, make sure to catch yourself up and watch it on Really – there are still more than 15 episodes left in the debut series and a second series has already been confirmed for the US – so it’ll likely be back on our screens in the UK again next year!
I’m clearly having a “Rachel-Bilson-moment” as my Pinterest boards are currently filled with her! Particularly her dip-dyed hair* (see here).
Who’s your current on screen style icon? For a blast from the past, check out my post earlier this week on how Carrie Bradshaw’s style translates to 2012!
* I’m so doing this next time I go to the hairdressers!!
When I read this post over at Fashion Foie Gras about movies that make you want to reinvent your entire wardrobe and look, I couldn’t help but think of my own “screen moment” that made me want to alter my entire approach to style and fashion. It wasn’t so much a moment, as a character. Carrie Bradshaw. Sure, she’s the style icon who changed many a young woman’s wardrobe, for me that change was profound to say the least. Before Carrie (BC, shall we say!) I wore a uniform of jeans and t-shirts and trainers. After Carrie, I began to add skirts and dresses and colour to my wardrobe. Ok, so I’m still working on the colour element but I have definitely moved in a more girly phase since being introduced to Ms Bradshaw. She was original queen of colour blocking and clashing prints, Carrie Bradshaw inspired girls and women the world over with her outrageous outfits in the hit TV show, Sex and the City. Here, I’ve disected five keys looks from the Carrie-years and how you can wear them today, with finds straight from the high street!
For this look, why not grab one of Uniqlo’s UT tees? Try with the grey Minnie Mouse tee, or add a bit of colour with the yellow tee. Follow Carrie’s lead and add either smarten the look with a blazer, or go wild and add a statement maxi skirt.
For a Carrie-inspired colour blocked look choose a bold tee, in either pink or red or blue and team with a striped skirt, either go safe with a monochrome number from Dorothy Perkins or clash with this pleated skirt by Oasis.
Pearls and Carrie are synonymous with each other. Pile them on for a real Carrie-look. This multi strand set from Dorothy Perkins is perfect, or this from Oasis. If you’re not so keen on the necklaces, why not grab this pearl bracelet from Warehouse.
Think of Carrie and you’ll likely think of corsages! Wear them either in your hair, or pinned to your top, or tied around your wrist – wherever you choose, make sure they’re big! Any of these would work: pink from Oasis; blue from Warehouse; yellow from Dorothy Perkins; and burnt cream from DP.
Sporty luxe is another of this season’s trends that Carrie was working well over a decade ago! Team a luxe sweat (here or here) and a pair of fancy heels, or alternatively choose a slub vest with a mini skirt.
Long before Mary Katrantzou was clashing prints on the catwalks, Carrie Bradshaw was clashing prints on the sidewalks of New York City! Team a floral print skirt with a striped tee, or an animal print skirt with a floral top.
Another look Carrie sports a fair bit in the TV series is a crop top. This season they were all over the catwalks and are filling up rail space on the high street too. Whether you dare to bare everything in a bra top, or prefer to only give the illusion with a tie-front blouse, make sure you’re channelling the Carrie-look and choose bold prints or bright colours!
Which TV or movie character has most influenced your style?
Vidal Sassoon, the legendary hairdresser who sadly died yesterday, might not have been a style icon himself, as such, but he was certainly the man behind a few, including Elizabeth Taylor, Mary Quant, Twiggy, Jean Shrimpton and Mia Farrow. Sassoon’s attitude to hairdressing changed women’s hair styles forever. Whilst a weekly blow-dry might be the norm for some today, gone are the days of sitting under a hood every week to create a hair style.
In 2004 Vidal Sassoon told the Chicago Tribune that he was proud to have entered the field of hairdressing, saying:
“Hairdressers are a wonderful breed. You work one-on-one with another human being and the object is to make them feel so much better and to look at themselves with a twinkle in their eye. Work on their bone structure, the colour, the cut, whatever, but when you’ve finished, you have an enormous sense of satisfaction.”
His iconic pixie and bob cuts defined a generation and are synonymous with the 60s. But they have translated into each of the decades that have followed and right into the twenty-first century these angular styles are still as popular and striking as they ever were.
His advertising slogan was “If you don’t look good, we don’t look good.”
Has Vidal Sassoon influenced your style? Has a hair cut you’ve had been influenced by his iconic cuts? I know that I have been influenced by those women whose hair he’s cut, from the Twiggy/Mia Farrow pixie crop I had in my teens and the angular bob that I had cut at Fashion Week at the end of last year.
Last autumn I shared with you the photos from the Superga campaign starring Alexa Chung (see here). For SS12 the style icon is back and has been appointed as Creative Director for the brand. In fact, she was given completely free reign over the shooting of the SS12 campaign, the only direction being, “Go create”! Create, she did:
The campaign clearly reflects Chung’s laid back sense of style and she manages to inject a little fun into the shoot too. The brand’s classic 2750 canvas trainers are the supporting stars of the SS12 campaign and to celebrate, I’m seriously treated myself to a pair of the crisp clean white trainers to replace my rather old and dishevelled looking white Converse that may unfortunately have to be relegated to the dustbin.
When it comes to casual shoes are you loyal to one brand or do you like to mix it up? Do you wear Superga trainers or Converse or another brand?
It seems that the 21st century route to being a style icon is to have a Mulberry bag named after you. First, Alexa and now, Lana. Mulberry’s new “It” bag, The Del Rey, named after the hotest singer of-the-moment, Lana Del Rey was launched at their recent AW12 show at London Fashion Week. Naturally, Ms Del Rey was seated on the front row at the AW12 show, alongside fellow celebrities, including Pixie Geldorf and Michelle Williams:
But when looking at these photos from the front row, I couldn’t help but notice that Lana Del Rey had turned up in what could be called a “Sugar & Spice-approved outfit”: skinny jeans and flat ballet pumps, as opposed to the heels and dresses of the girls around her! A girl who’s unafraid of following her own style and not compromising her comfort is a style icon for me. That’s what is, afterall is it not: being comfortable in your own skin and the clothes you choose to wear.
Of course, she did team the simple look with her new bag:
What are your thoughts? On the bag? And the girl’s style?
Images via thebaglady.tv; dailymail.co.uk; and omgeemag.com
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Last week you may remember that I posted about my latest Style Icon, model Edie Campbell. After I posted, Full Circle got in touch to tell me about her campaign for them, which was named by British Vogue as one of the best advertising campaigns for Spring Summer 2012, alongside Natalia Vodianova for Stella McCartney and Kate Moss for Mango. British model, Edie Campbell, has been named as the new face of Fullcircle, following in the footsteps of Rosie Huntington-Whiteley. Moving from Burberry, Edie’s laid back effortless style, beauty, charm and keen interest in art made her the perfect face for the campaign.
Ever since she was first cast by Mario Testino for British Vogue for a story about up and coming Londoners whilst still at school, Edie has become synonymous with modern British elegance and artistic style.
Full Circle also sent me through some exclusive, never-before-seen photos from the campaign of my style icon:
The new Full Circle collection is equally as chic this season using the traditional attributes of Asia as the core muse for design choices, it embraces delicate femininity featuring sheer fabrics, muted tones and hints of florals that combine with Japanese prints and design. Highlights include a hand drawn bird print range featuring this chiffon jumpsuit:
However it is the follow-up to their Neo Classic collection that really caught my eye. Bold & Blocked takes inspiration from Piet Mondrian and his legacy. The Dutch painter’s highly influential style, combining blocks of primary colours with a grid of strong, black lines, has become a popular reference point in art, design fashion and culture, with designers from Yves St Laurent to Christian Louboutin referencing his work.
*Taken from Full Circle’s brilliantly curated blog.
It is this Grey & Yellow Mix Maxi Dress that is my absolute favourite piece from the collection:
What do you think of the advertising campaign? And its star?
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It’s been a while since I did a style icon post. I think I had kind of exhausted all of my style icons… until now! Edie Campbell has been on my radar for a while but I only recently really started to give her any real consideration for inclusion in this series.
As soon as I started my research for this post, I knew I’d chosen right! In an interview with Vogue Italia about 18 months ago she replied, Flat, always always flat. When asked about her favourite type of shoe. Risotto, as her favourite food, and her fashion tip? “Love Yo-self.”
At just 20 years old, Edie Campbell has already graced the front covers of a number of fashion magazines, including Jalous, Elle France and Tank:
She has also appeared in campaigns for Burberry, Stella McCartney, Orla Kiely, Marc by Marc Jacobs and Just Cavalli:
And walked for many of these, and other, fashion houses too:
Off duty, Edie Campbell’s style is a mix of modern cool and 60s hippy chic.
And Edie’s style icon? Well, according the interview with Vogue Italia: Danny Zuko!
What do you think of Edie’s style? Are you a fan? Are you a fan of this series and pleased to see it back? As ever, if you would like to write a guest post about your style icon, please let me know.
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