Fashion Fare Day 5 (& final) - David Koma

So today I went with David Koma which is pretty fitting since he is the recipient of the British Fashion Council's New Gen initiative, sponsored by Topshop and I've discovered a rather large part of my wadrobe is from the very same.


#LFW Day 5
Designer: David Koma

If I'm honest, it's been a bit stressful doing Fashion Fare for the last few days. Late nights and early starts mean I'm usually pretty groggy in the morning (also not my most favourite time of day) and having to do a mental scan of my wardrobe to fit in with the previous day's shows has become, quite frankly, quite trying!

However I have re-discovered old and abandoned items such as my hooded top that I wore on day 4, bought more than 5 years ago and have only worn once before, and old and once beloved items like my gold trainers which have now gone back to being a staple favourite.

So, gold trainers aside, here is the look according to my wardrobe:

Chiffon shirt - Long Tall Sally (via eBay)
Ballet dress with silk skirt - Topshop (via eBay)
Belt - Can't remember
Stockings - Primark
Shoes - Vivienne Westwood

Although I didn't have a shirt in the same blue as the model's, I had a dress with a tulle skirt in a similar blue so I figured that would be my intepretation of the blue in the original outfit!

The model didn't wear tights but it was freeezing today so I wore tights, well sheer stockings so that my legs still had that 'bare' look.

The shirt was not as see-thru as the David Koma but is the most see-thru I own and yes for all the beady-eyed readers I know I did not wear black shoes...

But to be honest after the last three days I'm pretty bored of wearing Black. The hoardes of people on my tube in the morning are always in drab greys, dark blues and blacks so I wanted to lighten it up a little.
Plus I'm disappointed I haven't been able to do a Vivienne Westwood look this week so this way I get to wear her shoes anyway!

VERDICT:

This was another practical outfit but still classy enough to attract positive attention. I normally wear this dress in the summer with bare arms but teaming with a light shirted material means I could carry this off as an Autumn/Winter look without the normal bulk of layering.

My husband will say that I've got enough clothes but over the last few days I've realised that between starting at university and leaving it, I've somehow lost the passion I had for maintaing my own personal style.
Why is my wardrobe so dark and uniform? When I was younger I didn't have much money to spend on clothes so I would cut up jeans and create a whole different look with them, I'd create images on the computer and then get them printed onto my tops, I'd buy dungarees in the kids section so they'd be cheaper (and tighter) and then wear it with heels.

As I've gotten older its become more important to me to 'fit in' so I've stopped doing what isn't seen as generally acceptable to those around me - my friends, family, workplace. Plenty of times in the last few years I've asked friends what they think about a purchase I was considering and their negative responses have often put me off buying them. Purple paint-spray jeans, skinny white leather trousers (luckily I did eventually go back and get these!), gold wide-legged trousers..

I love clothes and I love styling and although I have no plans to design my own label I have realised that I do like doing things differently and being thought of as weird for what is actually my own personal taste shouldn't stop me from being me.

Thanks for all your comments, I hope you will keep reading to see what I'll be doing next!

Fashion Fare Day 4 - Christopher Kane

My look for today was rather clasy Christopher Kane or so I thought, until the very fashionable manager of a local gift shop asked if it was 'S&M Day' today...

I loved my outfit although due to my newly disobedient feet I had to wear trainers to work - gold ones obvs - but I didnt realise wearing leather to a workplace that is not primarily fashion-based would cause such a stir!  The people on my tube seemed to like it though even though it was mostly hidden under my big furry (its fake dear readers, fake fur) coat but it seems wearing leather is always going to cause a reaction.


#LFW Day 4
Designer: Christopher Kane

My interpretation differs only very slightly!

Top - Topshop Unique
Body under top - New Look
Leather trousers - Tailormade
Shoes - Faith (RIP)

I know I didn't quite get the top right but hey I was pretty imaginative with it! If you look closely you may see that there is a slight bulge at the front just under my neck. This is because I am actually wearing the top back-to-front and the bulge is a hood that I stuffed down there to create a slash neck!
(The actual front is a crossover incase you are nosy.)

I'm rather proud of my leather trousers which I had made for me to fit my super-long legs but I was freezing on top which brings me to another problem. I am cold about....90% of the time. And that's not an exaggeration but apparently, models, who are about half the size of my UK8 and with probably none of the body fat, never are. Surely the AW2012 collection should be full of lovely warm long sleeved coats! With enough lining to make sure you can be naked underneath and still not feel the cold. Ah well I live in hope.

So anyway in conclusion, today is the day I finally realised that, despite many years of toe-pinching and successfully teetering, my feet are finally refusing to play ball. As a teenager, I could walk for miles and dance for hours wearing super skinny stilettoes or super high platforms. Not for me the glass-cut feet of my friends whose feet point blank refused to walk home after a night out on anything other than bare ground.

However. After failing to keep my heels on for longer than four hours, I've decided now is the time for insoles and comfort.

Although they are extremely pretty aren't they?

Fashion Fare Day 3 - Margaret Howell

Three days in and I still haven't learned to plan what I'm wearing the night before. Today was the first day I've had to try Fashion Fare on my commute and at work so my outfit had to be very practical.

With all the hoo-ha on my Twitter timeline about the Mulberry show (which sadly, I am not important enough to have been invited to) at first I thought I would try and emulate their 'monster look'. Big furry skirts, coats and gillets adorned the Mulberry models teamed with leather and lace and the occasional dog. Yes there was a real dog on the catwalk.

So I quite liked the idea of a furry skirt but not having one I then thought about putting one foot in each arm of my upside-down gillet and tying it around my waist with a belt - tres chic non?
I was good to go until I thought about trying to go to the toilet...

My final choice was quite unsual as its not a 'look' I'd usually go for but to be honest, at 7.30 this morning my husband wasn't really in the mood to wait for me to find a look I would normally go for so I had to just get on with it!

#LFW Day 3
Designer: Margaret Howell

My version:

Cashmere cardigan - Zara
Blue polo shirt - Espirit (Borrowed from Husband)
Tulle skirt - Principles? (Bought by Mum when I was aged about 18)
Shoes - Anne Klein iFlex (Borrowed from Colleague who purchased in Atlanta)

Despite my face in this picture and the fact that my friend asked if I had a hall pass to be out of school in the middle of the day, I did quite like this outfit. When I used to model I always felt I had to try and be pretty and girly all the time. It's only recently that I've felt able to just enjoy anything I wear and not feel the pressure to try and look like a Victoria Secret's model having a day off.

In my attempt to show my 'catwalk' I seem to have lost a leg...

With minimal makeup, my short hair and small stud earrings this was quite an understated look and my husband - who, having worked for fashion label James Lakeland, knows a thing or two about womens' fashion - said I looked quite cool and authoritative which is handy seeing as I'm a magazine editor in my day job.
  

 

For some reason I don't own a pair of Black brogues so I had to borrow this beautiful plum pair from a colleague and my feet sank into them with such relief I had to stop myself from going on eBay to try and track down my own pair from the US. (Ok I had a little peek but couldn't find anything in my size.)

So Day 3 was a learning experience in fashion and style. And I now have something else to add to my shoe shopping list...as if it wasn't long enough already!

Fashion Fare Day 2 - Clements Ribeiro

Day 2 of Fashion Week featured some well-known fashion houses including Daks, Jasper Conran, Temperley, Aquascutum, House of Holland and Stella McCartney to name but a few.

But the one I chose to emulate for my second day of Fashion Fare was from a designer I've never heard of - please excuse my fashion ignorance - but I've since discovered that the duo behind the label were Central Saint Martins students (yay, homegrown!) and I love the wearable, feminine look of the collection plus I've been told bright colours are flattering to my skin tone so it was a win win situation really.


#LFW Day 2
Designer: Clements Ribeiro

My mission today was to attend church and possibly pop into central London to see fab accessories label House of Flora's shop in Westbourne Park so the outfit needed to be practical as I was back on the tubes but thank God no rain today...!

Here is what I came up with from my own wardrobe:

Top - Primark
Belt - Cheapo shop from Birmingham during my student years
Skirt - Topshop
Skinnies - Topshop
Shoes - Clarks

I don't normally wear leggings or skinnies under skirts as I prefer to wear tights but I quite liked the way this looked as a complete outfit and it kept away the cold wind blowing up my skirt!
The pink and red clash is something I got over a few years ago and funnily enough a few people at church commented on how good my 'red top' looked so I guess people see what they want to see....!

Practially it was an easy outfit for commuting, the only snag was that my skirt didn't have much 'give' in it, meaning I had to take teeny weeny ladylike steps and walk sideways up the stairs at the train station.

I explained what I was doing to a group of eight-year-olds and the three of them had quite different reactions upon seeing the original look from the Ribeiro show so I'll end with their comments -


Eight-year-old girl number 1:



"I wouldn't have chosen that outfit."
Eight-year-old girl number 2:

"You didn't get it quite right though did you? Your top isn't the same."


Eight-year-old girl number 3:

"I don't like that outfit on her (model from the catwalk) but it looks good on you."

Fashion Fare Day 1 - Antoni & Alison

So we're already in the throes of the international Fashion Weeks which determine what we will be wearing come Autumn/Winter 2012 and today is Day 2 of London Fashion Week. But for me, the fun starts today.

I love fashion, obvs - the clue is in the name of the blog - but I wanted to know how easy it would be to make the transition from catwalk to sidewalk (that's pavements to us non-yankees) without having to buy the copycat version from Primark.

For me, real Fashion is about styling and creativity so I've decided to try and recreate one look from each day of London Fashion Week (Hereafter known as #LFW) and see just how wearable it is for the average person trying to get about on public transport, in all types of weather and carrying everyday stuff.

Please let me know how well you think I did and comment on how I could have done it better!

#LFW Day 1
Designer: Antoni & Alison

As the opener for #LFW I expected this to be a good show but the reason I chose this particular look was because, as separates, I felt I could make it work.

I don't usually go for long skirts as I hate it when things drag on the floor but at a session with styling guru Tanesha Westcarr of StylingSays, I was told that they suit me so I went for it!

Ok perfecting this look took several attempts so bare with me....

Bow-tie - Husband's
100% Cashmere Cardigan -  Zara
White body - New Look
Belt - Faith (RIP)
Dress folded down into a skirt - Jane Norman
ShoeBoots - All Saints

Do my boobs look big in this? Yes. Are my feet going to hurt after walking in these all day? Yes.

I had everything in my wardrobe except the shirt! But borrowing my husband's bow-tie gave me an idea...

Tuxedo shirt - Husband's
Peeptoe platforms - Nine West

Ta da! Quick change of shoes and husband's shirt in tow I finally had the completed look! Unfortunately I decided the shirt was too big and ditched it for my trip to Brick Lane for the first show of the day and also, in honour of being in Brick Lane, put my vertically-heeled All Saints shoe boots back on for the journey back to their birthplace in Spitalfields.

VERDICT

Lots of stares as I stumbled down my road to the tube station but not sure if this was because of my unusually glam outfit or because of the way I was walking - with difficulty. Luckily got to the station just as the train arrived and despite the initial foot pain I was still in good spirits as I arrived in London to find the tubes in chaos as usual and no tubes going to my destination. Now I'm used to London Underground and its inefficiency and usually I would huff and puff and get on with it. Not so with 5inch heels on, a long skirt and the rain. Oh did I mention I wasn't wearing socks?

So I was basically trying to find my way in the pouring rain with one hand holding both the umbrella and bunches of my skirt to keep it off the floor and the other on a map getting steadily soaked with every step.

Arrived at the show after 20 minutes of trying to find other fashionable looking people to follow - #fail - but just used the map in the end. Honestly I thought Brick Lane was supposed to be a trendspotter's paradise?

Seated in the front row of the Faith4Fashion event I managed to attract more stares but probably because I couldnt work out how to use my iPad to take pictures of the show rather than pictures of myself. (The self-facing camera is a fab idea in theory...)

Oops not quite what I was aiming at...

The show was fab and I'll post more about it when I get the official pictures back but I started to panic when I realised I would have to stand up and go to another venue when the show was over. Meeting one of my model friends backstage I spotted her FLAT boots and almost cried. Met the son of another friend organising the event and begged him to swap shoes with me. He declined.

To cut a long story short I couldnt bear to go to my second appointment of the day and staggered home instead while still trying to keep my dignity as a well-dressed fashion-y person. (Although I think this persona was waning from the minute I stood up after the fashion show.)

Why do designers always stick models in ridiculously high heels on the catwalk, even in ready-to-wear?? More flats on the catwalk I say! Bit like J.JS Lee who had her models in low-stacked boots for her show earlier today.

Anyway although I think on the whole my copycat look was a success, I have learned the following:

a) There's a reason models don't have boobs
b) I should have worn the tuxedo shirt and not a tight, white bodysuit
c) I do quite like long skirts but the slit isn't very appropriate for everyday wear especially if it keeps sliding    around preventing any attempts at ladylike seating.
d) Although I refused to pack a pair of ballet pumps because this would ruin the look and also mean more dragging of my long skirt in the rain...this was a stupid decision.
e) My All Saints boots were not made for walking
f) My All Saints boots were not made for walking

Let's hope I do better tomorrow!