Emerging Fervour

Style 3: The Wedge

The good old trusted wedge, it’s come in and out and will never disappear as far as I’m concerned. Some might remember I’ve stocked up in last seasons sale and my lovely Nicole Fahri wedges have already come to good use.

I love wedges, so comfy, stylish yet so easy to walk in, none of this wobbling about on a small heel. Having recently moved to Switzerland where every second street seems cobbled, they will be the choice of heel for me this season. Although careful, as they can be heavy and depending on the strap they could get very uncomfortable as they hang off your ankle. But these little things should not hold you back and if you’ve not got already one in your collection, make sure you get one!!

Here are some of my favourites under £150 (it was so hard again as Miu Miu, Christian Dior and all the great designers have created some master pieces):

Vivienne Westwood Anglomania @ Asos £120

Purple & angel wings, how much better can it get?

Some of us wear it as a political statement, others as a fashion statement – but what’s the story behind the keffiyeh?

image taken from adlicious.wordpress.com

Well, blogger Vicious Babushka reckons it’s just ‘perfect for that Israel-hating, Jew-bashing screaming, chanting, demonstration of solidarity with the scum of humanity’, however most of us are slightly less inclined to bash jews and more interested in having a pretty scarf around our necks, which happens to be pro Palestine…so the fuck what? There’s so much controversy linked to the Keffiyeh, that even Urban Outfitters had to pull it from their concession line. Oh and Dunkin’ Donuts discontinued an online ad featuring Rachael Ray wearing a paisley-patterned scarf after columnist Michelle Malkin claimed that the scarf resembled a keffiyeh. What the hell? That’s as unfounded as pulling bagels from Tesco’s.

So after all of that, it’s nice to see established designers, like Balenciaga embracing and evolving the keffiyeh into something as beautiful and fashion-forward as the scarves below. I want one!!! Although this is near impossible as they’re a few collections old…but still!

So the story behind the Keffiyeh is as follows…

Traditionally worn by Palestinian peasants years ago, it became a symbol of Palestinian nationalism and would later on be worn by the late Arafat…it was his trademark thing. He took a different take on it and instead wore it draped down his shoulder in a triangle shape, to resemble the outlines of Palestine. When Israel imposed a ban on the Palestinian flag being flown or displayed in 1993, the meaning of the Keffiyeh grew to also symbolise the Palestinian struggle.

Fast-forward to now, and China has practically monopolised the Keffiyah making business and has driven decade-old factories in Palestine to close down, with China producing at a cost of 40% less, there’s no competition. Check out the video below from Monocle, which looks at the last standing keffiyeh factory in Palestine.

Sitting at the Trends Show on a Thursday night at Somerset House for LFW was a treat to say the least! The crowd of beautifully chic or fabulously dishevelled ladies made my ‘I have an actual day job’ clothes feel dull and uninspired! It’s definitely true that women only dress to impress other women! I was totally over excited!

Candy Rock ∨

The first trend to come out on the catwalk called Candy Rock was pretty much personified by an amazing iconic Hervé Leger dress in a soft baby blue. There were pastel shades, soft frills and gentle waves dominating this trend which really brought to life the sweet element of all the pieces. This trend is very wearable with simple styling which I really like!

Swallows & Amazons ∨

As far as trends go, the introduction of Swallows & Amazons as a trend struck me as a strange one… but what a fabulously strange one! Literally a smorgasbord of micro-trends all on one catwalk – from breton to double denim (yes we are back in the 80’s!) and underwear as outerwear. This was more eclectic and generally a bit random but brilliant!

After wondering around the hundreds of stands (we have some amazing designers to share with you by the way but for later.. too much to tell you first!!).

We watched the fantastic catwalks shows yesterday and some top tips from the show in terms of what to look out for in AW10. The key message coming through was that trends are evolving from the season before as opposed to big shifts. We are not ready to give up what we love from SS10 but what we are seeing is a tougher more masculine edge to the clothes.

Firstly it’s all about fashion being USEFUL… sounds like a sensible word  but its all to do with simplicity and practicality but expertly designed clothes. We are wanting wearable garments that fit our life. So how does this translate into our lifestyle?

For work its all about soft tailoring, bold and strong grounded colours but bought to life with almonds and mints. Jackets are all about pleating and wadding and watch out for the colour linings! The must haves for AW10 are tuxedos with and pencil skirts.

With 2010 fast approaching, I was intrigued to know how our trends have developed over these past 9 years so after taking a look at New York Magazine’s trends of the 00′s I thought it would be great to include it in the run up to 2010.

Take a look at the years piece by piece including Uggs 03-06, skinny jeans 07-present, the rise of Louboutin 04-present, size zero 07-present and many more!

We all know the world and fashion goes round and round. I’ve stumbled across a video about the military trends in 1994 and you could easily wear quite a few of the outfits and fit right into the military trend. Oh and spot a young Naomi and Kate Moss in there!!

I do prefer the 2009 version though as it’s become much more edgy.

Check out these fabulous coats and shoes that bring any wardrobe up to date.

Firetrap £170 (at Coogles.com)

Sammie Jacket £350  (French Connection)

Tempest Jacket £115 (French Connection)

Religion victorian jacket £100 (at Coogles.com)

Villa blazer £45 (at Coogles.com)

Jamie boot £200 (French Connection)

Vivienne Westwood Pirata boots £350 (at Coogles.com)

KG Sevita boots £195 (at Kurt Geiger)

I love love love the pink trend this autumn/winter!! I’ve been an advocate for pink for a long time (nearly as long as purple) and am chuffed to bits that it’s just going from strength to strength. Ha ha, I’m finally trendy again, who would have thought.

I will certainly make the most of it and thought I’d share some of my favourites with you.

This Marc by Marc Jacobs jumper is on top of my wish list (£240 – farfetch.com)

How yummi is that one? (£160 – French Connection)

Slinky (£225 – Vivienne Westwood)

Love combining two trends, animal print & pink, how much better can it get? (£45 – French Connection)

Labour of Love is such a good name for a label and don’t they look like a lot of love went into them? (£64 – farfetch.com)

If you just want a taster, there is a bit of pink for everyone (£25 – topshop.com)

So, we all thought Sienna Miller had gone mad with her pants over black tights combo she wore back in 2007 at the premier of her movie Factory Girl. Oh how wrong we were! It seems big pants – or micro shorts as they’re fondly called are being seen on the derrières of a lot of big stars.

Even Asda reported an apparent increase in sales for black pants following Sienna’s underwear as outerwear debut, with a 230% increase in sales for big knickers within the first week.

Sienna’s look was the wearable version of this trend, teamed with opaque tights and a black jumper. For those of us who are on the more curvy side, which is most of us – this look would not be received in the same way I imagine. However whilst thinking of Lady Gaga, Katy Perry or Lily Allen (all of whom have added a twist to this look), this may not be such a bad idea. Just imagine, instead of trying to find the perfect outfit every morning, just reach for a jacket and those big pants you’d never let your boyfriend see you in, and you’re ready. Hmmm, who are we kidding? For any normal person other than the publicity-hungry celeb, there is no upside to this look. Go out in this and you’ll look like you’ve lost a lot more than just your trousers.