Valentine's Day is sorted

Alright boys I am making it really easy for you this year. Piper-Heidsieck has just released a present that is absolutely perfect for any occasion you have coming up for your lady. What is the one thing you know to be true about most women? They love shoes right? And they also love getting a little tipsy on the bubbly. Now imagine if you could give them both and tell them that each part of the present is a limited edition....?
Well the peeps at Piper and Louboutin have brought you such a delight. Watch out for the "Le Rituel" Box set coming to a store shelf near you at the end of October.

Breakfast at Tiffany's? That'll be $40,000 please!

So here's an idea...instead of that fall wardrobe you were eyeing up online at net-a-porter how about investing the money in a breakfast....with a $40,000 price tag....at Tiffany's....in London. No, it doesn't include a private jet from anywhere in the world, accommodation at The Metropolitan and a shopping spree at Tiffanys.  

But for this bargain price you do get the following:

• A croissant which has been coated with edible gold and diamonds and comes with hand-seeded Bar le Duc on the side.
• a cup of Kopi Luwak coffee
• a glass of cava....only kidding...it's Chambord and comes served in a bottle that has been decorated with jewels worth over $2.4million.

I want to know what the goody bag looks like. I also want to see who the hell signs up for such an idiotic meal. Can someone send Tiffany's the recession memo?

A new fashion mantelpiece

There's a new buddha in town...and he's name is Karl. He may have lost the big belly but this man means business. He stands at a great 10 inches tall and brings all style gurus luck and fortune for future collections for the bargain price of $190.  He is officially part of the Tokidoki family and apparently flattered to be adopted as such.  The Italian maker of these Japanese-Inspired "dolls" has truly captured the steely grey fox.  Since there are only 1000 being produced and will only be released in New York, Milan and Los Angeles for the Christmas season I am betting that these little numbers will be hotter than Holiday Barbie 2009.

Sartorialist Pairs up with Topshop

Scott Schuman has been mentioned by me several times before on this blog...he is the artist behind The Sartorialist blog which tracks trends across the globe through the eyes of a talented photographer. And once again Topshop is on the cutting edge for spotting talent and harnessing it to further their brand....pure genius.  Scott has chosen some of his favourite looks for London Fashion Week and put together similar outfits from clothing available to purchase at Topshop. Here are some of images available to view online.

Credit - Topshop

The Marmite of the Fashion World.

You either love her or you hate her. There doesn't seem to be much space for any feelings in between when it comes to the queen of the fashion world, Ms. Anna Wintour.

She sits in the highest, most coveted post in fashion - Editor in Chief of Vogue Magazine,USA. She is celebrating her 21st year in this position and has plenty to show for the time spent at the helm.  In fact, if you are reading about Anna here for the first time I think it is safe to assume you have been living under a rock for the past 21 years.

She is a household name, like Betty Crocker or Albert Einstein. I know these two sound like extremes but Anna Wintour will be remembered by people in all different walks of life - From those housewives that spend their days flipping through the pages of Vogue and dreaming of a life in the big city where styles change faster than their cakes fall...to the great minds of our time who shape our daily existence and improve our quality of life through great discoveries.

Anna Wintour, herself, is a great discovery.  She will be written about in history books. One day my own daughter will come home from school with a Social Studies textbook and I will see Anna's beautiful bob (the same style she has sported since the age of 14) staring back at me.

We will all have our own Anna stories to share with the next generation.  I can only hope that we can share Anna herself. The sad fact, that we all face, is that no one lives forever. And even sadder is the fact that Anna's daughter Bee has decided not to continue in her mother's footsteps. Does Anna have another that she has eyed up to carry on her legacy? Twenty years in charge has created some pretty big Manolos to fill!

The press have gone crazy with tales of her wild life. From setting up shoots as a teenager with Helmut Newton to running off with Bob Marley while in New York City, even her early years were clear indicators that this was no ordinary girl from London town.  In 1988, at the age of of 39, she turned Vogue in a direction with her very first cover, the November issue of that year.  This happens to be one of my favourite covers of Vogue USA and it's because it is such an important picture in time of how our world of fashion would change so drastically with it all laying in her fragile, yet controlling, hands.  Do you think anyone before Anna had ever dared put a model on the front cover of a magazine where not even the whites of her eyes are visible? Rather than following the usual pattern of beauty close-ups Anna let the world know Vogue was a fashion magazine. Yes it was going to showcase beautiful women but only in order to give the clothing a proper hanger for display.  The cover could be the cover today and that is how each and every cover since has been. They are works of art...and yes someone should consider doing an exhibition of ever cover she has done since this one. Wouldn't it be a wonderful trip through time?

I could go on forever about Anna Wintour. I have absorbed every article, book, blog, tv program, movie or picture there is that may in any way relate to her. I adore her for her ambition and her steely reserve. She needs no one and yet has a hold on everyone. There is no replacement for Anna Wintour. She is the Queen, Goddess, Empress and Ruler of Fashion.  All those that have anything else to say about it are most likely intimidated by her brilliance and ability to exist as an island in this world.  Remove your jealousy bone and take a moment, if that is all you have, to appreciate a legend in our own time.

High Street & Designers - a Collaboration worth collecting?

The Wall Street Journal just published a fantastic article taking a closer look at collaborations between high fashion designers like Stella McCartney and Issac Mizrahi with huge chains like H&M and Target.
This is a must read for all fashion followers. Click Here to read the article in full.

"The bottom line: Don't swoon at the sight of a glossy designer label—at any price level. Insist always on intrinsic value: The cut and fit, the fabric, the colors and unusual details are what really count."

We found one!

Alright, a friend of mine has a copy of the Grace Coddington Style book that was put out in 2002. She has held on to this book like it was the holy grail and there have been many times when I have flipped through the "book" looking for fashion inspiration from the styling god. There are over 400 pages of yummy photographs in the book and you are guaranteed to live a fuller, more fashionable life if you own this! The only problem is that it is out of print and you rarely, if ever, find one of these books in a used book store- trust me I've been looking. But, I have an ebay alert set up and found the following this morning:
THE BOOK
That's right folks - it's a copy of the book itself. It's in far from perfect condition but still worth the buy. This book is magical. I can only hope and pray that now Grace has received so much attention from the new documentary with Anna Wintour that someone will think to do a reprint!

The "Valentine's Day" Trailer!

Finally....and I can't wait to see what the Hollywood stylists have in store for us in this movie...

Bananas....omg!

OK we can't get enough of Amy Phillips spoofing Rachel Zoe. We love it and will keep you up to date with the latest as they come out...get ready to laugh your melons off!

Watch this one as well - the first installment. Hilarious. I die!

Hairstyle of the Week

Featured on the runway at Oscar de la Renta

London Fashion Week's Tea Party

The only place to be seen during London Fashion Week between the hours of three and six, other than on the catwalks, is at the Metropolitan Hotel taking afternoon tea. But this isn't just any tea, it's a tea specially organized to celebrate the 25th anniversary of London Fashion Week and it's sponsored by Lulu Guinness. This, of course, means it is a tea fit only for a fashionista. Expect low fat cupcakes, handbag shaped biscuits and numerous other goodies. We were lucky enough to get in before the crowds took over and filled the books for this weekend. Make sure and call now to try and get a booking before it is gone. And don't forget to pick up your 20% off discount card on the way out for the London Lulu Guinness store. Every woman needs a few Lulu accessories in their closets!

Finally! A preview of Jimmy Choo for H&M....

Get your boxing gloves out ladies! The new line for H&M by Jimmy Choo has been leaked on the internet...There are more handbags and shoes than you can shake a stick at! Even the clothes look interesting. The trademark one-shoulder dresses, of course, had to be thrown in for Tamara Mellon. We love it.
Check it out and let us know what you think!

credit: rodeo

America's Sexiest Woman? No, America's Sexiest Bad Girl.

Stylist Lies

I would absolutely kill the stylist that told me I was the only person wearing a certain dress, guaranteed! There must have been some serious firing going on after the VMAs when Pink and Shakira both turned up wearing the same leather stuffed Balmain mini dress!
Thankfully they both rocked the outfit equally and with different looks to compensate. Well played ladies. That could have been a real bitch-fight.










Kevin Mazur/Wireimage

Must Have Handbag

Michel Perrin debuted a new awesome handbag from the Spring Summer 09 line on the Martha Stewart show named after the lady herself and we love it!!! Definitely buy it in the brown crocodile.

It has pockets for everything you need - credit cards, pen, mobile phone, coins, ipod and glasses.  Martha suggests this could double as a man bag but I would shy away from that dudes.

Check out the segment on The Martha Stewart Show here.

Buy online now.

Every Rose has its thorn

Amber Rose attended the MTV Music Awards with Kanye West in an outfit that frankly she didn't need to wear. She might as well have shown up naked.  By now the whole world knows Amber has an amazing rearview and most of us are sick of having it shoved in our faces. Kanye must have been on his fourth bottle of Hennessey to allow this sort of get-up out of the house. Oh wait, Kanye demonstrated he himself has no class or taste with his horrible excuse for attention during the Taylor Swift's acceptance speech. So I am sure he was absolutely fine with the world taking in a nice view of every nook and cranny of his girlfriend. Another thorn for the Rose...time to call in Rachel Zoe

Jennifer Garner Dazzles in Toronto

Jennifer Garner has proven to women everywhere that it is possible to look absolutely stunning after having two children.  She looks better now than she did before she had her first adorable additions.  She is sporting a gorgeous Oscar de la Renta classic here while promoting her new film at the Toronto Film Festival. Brunettes - take note - green is an amazing compliment to you colouring!

Vogue October....Where's Dawson?

Check out the fierce green eyes. Deadly! This certainly isn't one of my favourite covers for Vogue. It looks like it belongs back in the day of Twiggy. Although if they want to frame it that way it wouldn't be a bad idea - Twiggy did, after all, just turn 60! Happy Birthday Twigs and magazine people get a clue and bring a more up to date cover for November. Michelle looks like she is about to be eaten by some kind of huge metallic bug!

Maybe Supermodels should leave designing to the professionals?

I think sometimes models confuse their being styled with the idea that they have style. 

It is fair to say that after you have been dressed by some of the world's greatest minds in fashion some of their genius could have rubbed off on you. However, the chances of this occurring I believe is very slim (nearly as slim as the models themselves).  But I always like to give people the benefit of the doubt. Hence my excitement in awaiting the collection of Erin Wasson...one of the world's current "supermodels."  Erin has perfected the grunge look both on photoshoots and in her everyday life.  With this collection she attempted to translate her own "style" onto the catwalk with the hope of clothing the masses.  The only problem is that somewhere along the way it got lost in translation. There is no real style here other than the look of someone that just rolled out of bed.  This may work for Erin but it won't work for Henrietta Housewife. Try again next year?

New York...New York! Don't stop til you get enough...

Oh how I wish I were in New York City sitting amongst the fashion glitterati right now. Unfortunately, I have a day job that I must keep in order to fuel the fashion obsession. So I am sitting in London watching as one by one the designers post images from their collections hours after the catwalk has been stomped with stilettos and drowned in the light of photographers' flashes.

September is better than Christmas. Designers give us the best possible present in many different ways. First of all, just as summer is ending and the darkness descends, fashion reminds us that there will be another summer and it's just around the corner. The toned tummies float down the runway reminding us that we have nine months to prepare for wearing these gorgeous creations. We are allowed to drink champagne without regret and snack on the fashionable mini cupcakes that are making the rounds for we are entering a season of heavy knits and chunky textures that hide every possible dimple in our thighs or sagging bingo wings. Make lists now of what you will buy from these Spring Collections and place it in a drawer, to be forgotten until the winter looks as if it will die down. But do make your list....the shows seem to get better and better as the days pass...

Here are some highlights, and what I have marked on my own list of "must buys"...

Alexander Wang

The Couture God- Chado Ralph Rucci...

Forbes and Fashion

Forbes has announced 2009's most powerful Fashion Magazine Editors and the list goes a little something like this:

10. Ann Shoket (Seventeen) - Will she be able to hold this post for much longer? The magazine looks to be in a spot of bother as teenage readers are now turning to the internet for fashion news rather than shelling out hard earned cash for glossies. "Seventeen's advertising pages decreased by 15.2% over the first half of 2009 when compared with the first half of 2008. And Seventeen.com's year-over-year unique users decreased by 10.1% from July 2008 to 1 million in July 2009."

9. Joanna Coles (Marie Claire) - You may recognize this editor from her starring role in the new reality series "Running in Heels"...one of the many fashion magazine shows making the rounds at the moment. Apparently it's premiere set a record for the number of viewers of a Lifetime Channel production - 4.2 million viewers! Fashion sells people!

8. Kate White (Cosmopolitan) - Cosmo is in trouble. Even more trouble than Seventeen. Their ads dropped by 20% this year compared with last. Never good. But really who is reading Cosmopolitan anymore? Sex used to sell, now the articles are all the same and the fashion isn't taken seriously.

7. Ariel Foxman (In Style) - I am actually surprised this magazine isn't higher on the list. I have always been impressed with what In Style throws into the glossy mix. In fact I have yet to buy one of their magazines that hasn't filled my heart with glee. The magazine has actually increased ad revenue under his watch. Well done Ariel. Keep up the good work!
 

6. Glenda Bailey (Harper's Bazaar) - Bailey has also jumped on the reality show boat with "The Fashion Show" which seems to be helping the face of the magazine. I believe she should be further down the list but Forbes didn't ask my opinion.
 

5. Linda Wells (Allure) - Honestly, who is writing this list? I personally do not buy Allure and have never been grabbed by one of their covers. Wells has really turned this magazine into an online success so I am not sure if that qualifies her as a success in the glossy world. I wouldn't be surprised if Allure went completely digital in the next 5-7 years. For beauty online this really is the go to site.

4. Lesley Jane Seymour (More) - Ok, now we are talking. Here is an editor, and a magazine, that deserve a high spot on the list. So often women over the age of forty are neglected in the fashion world. We're all about the size zero 19-year-old. Advertisers know a good thing when they see it which is why Seymour has managed to increase add revenue by 9% this year. I am in my twenties and I read this magazine for fashion and beauty tips. It says it's for the older generation but this magazine is fantastic for all ages!

3. Robbie Myers (Elle) - Another editor promoting the magazine through reality television and a strong online presence. Do you see a pattern here?

2. Cindi Leive (Glamour) - Well this magazine is all of the sudden the most talked about on the planet after featuring a plus sized model and appearing in every newspaper and on every national television show. And now there are rumors that the whole magazine next month will feature larger ladies....hmmm....

1. Anna Wintour (Vogue) - no surprise here at all. She is the Queen of all the land and will be until she is "too angry" to continue.