Spring trends: Shorts

mmeeeehhhhhh....shorts? in the summertime?... really?.....yes really.
As unoriginal as it may sound shorts are in this season, but low and behold they have been given a big revamp in the process. Shorts are the best way to show off legs in hot weather as it means you can run, jump, skip, or as I prefer to do, just lay around in the grassy park without worrying about a rising hem line. For daywear safari and denim styles are the way to go, while leather has made a strong (and rather bold) appearance on many of the runways in either black, brown or tan. Conversely shorts have also made a tailored comeback as seen at the Hussein Chalayan, DKNY and Hermès shows, making them a fresh alternative to a skirt or trouser suit at work. Taking the look into evening styles, Prada, Valentino and MaxMara have all given the look a glamorous upgrade with luxe fabrics.

Daytime & Playtime:

 Denim shorts need no introduction, as seen at Dsquared (Top) try rolling up the hem and pairing them with a baggy t-shirt and some ankle boots for an edgier look. Topshop Unique (Bottom) have shown off the safari look with a khaki knicker skimming number. Despite the midriff also showing, the look stays cute with high socks, a cropped polo and a slouchy cardigan.

Work:

Michael Kors (Top), DKNY (Centre)  and Karl Lagerfield (Bottom) have both shown that the tailored short is wearable in the office, keep the hemline long and the fit loose, we don't want things to get inappropriate.

Evening wear:

Valentino (Top) and Matthew Williamson (Bottom) show that slinky fabrics make shorts instantly sexy, the perfect companion to a floaty chiffon blouse or a structured blazer.

Leather:

This is by far my favourite look of the lot, but also I think the hardest to pull off...perhaps this is why I like it, I personally would never dream of putting anything that tight or shiny on my badunkadunk, however Hermès (Top), Chloe (Centre) and Alexander Wang (Bottom) exemplify that with the right accessories leather shorts ooze a cool and confident sex appeal.

And finally once again, I turn to my trusted Vivi to give examples of how to put together more wearable outfits with the same high fashion concepts...

The last image also puts together the top 2 trends of the minute: Military and Sports Luxe. Amazing!

Hope this has helped inspire you to think about wearing shorts in several more ways than you did before, and if any of you have the courage to buy a pair of leather ones, I applaud you.

Spring trends: Bows

So here we are in the middle of April, and HALLELUJAH spring is here and summer is just around the corner!
Daffodils are in full bloom, while flowers and leaves are beginning to bud on the trees. And isn't the balmy weather glorious too. Curious how with just a glimmer of sunshine, optimistic UK dwellers are out with the shorts and sunnies, finding any grassy spot to bathe in the warmth of the sun (I have even seen a few people  resorting to the small green patch on top of a round-a-bout).
And so hand in hand with good weather, out comes your spring wardrobe that has collected it's fair share of dust over the winter months. During springtime, most people naturally think florals and pastel colours... the high street is currently overflowing with peaches and duck-egg blues and enough variations of paisley and floral print to make you just want to put an end to it all.
However, over the next few blogs I will suggest several ways of incorporating spring trends into your own wardrobe without going overboard, and also several ways of refreshing a trend to make it your own.

Big Bows are always spring fashion favourites. They radiate youth and fun, and easily transform an outfit. Lets turn to the catwalks for some inspiration...

 Moschino, Prabal Gurung and Marchesa all decorated their lines with bows big in size and texture.

These dresses, by Valentino, Yves Saint Laurent and Prabal Gurung are all donned with pretty bows to make give more structures items a playful look.

In order to keep bows looking grown-up glamorous, stick to either dark colours or rich textures. This provides a sophistication that contrasts and compliments the youthful image that bows create.
Bows are not only beautiful on clothing but also as an accessory. However the same rules apply.

These high fashion beauties by Milly by Michelle Smith on the left, and Marc Jacobs on the right, are so young and vibrant. However bows this big are for the more bold hearted fashion lovers among us, and if you are looking for a more day to day wearable option,  I have found a couple of examples of a more toned down alternative that still send the same playful message. A winner combo seems to be red velvet.
Dark red and velvet are both heavy in terms of mood and material and so are usually associated with winter or autumn fashion lines.  In this example, Ray Bans and an oversized t-shirt have also been incorporated to add a sense of masculinity in order to stop the look from getting too girly-girly.

This is a cutout from Japanese fashion magazine ViVi, my fashion bible, (I will give it a formal introduction in another blog) and here the bow is used with a floral print, a great look for spring, however colours are kept quite dark to keep everything looking grown up. Although here the model is wearing a fur coat for an autumn/winter look, a blazer or demin jacket is a lighter alternative for cool spring days.

Culture Shot of the day: Photography from around the world

 I have a real love for photography, and although I never get behind the lens myself, I love seeing how a photographer has captured a moment or what message has been put across through a photo.

American photographer David LaChapelle is my all time favourite.  His photos are vibrant, busy, rich, surreal, eccentric, truly bizarre and best of all, very controversial; most of them are quite risqué, hitting the ball way out of the 'cheeky' park, containing heavy sexual innuendo, lots of nudity as well as  implying criticisms of the silly celebrity obsessed society we live in. It's nice to see a photographer with a bit of uumpphh. Ironically, many celebrities are great fans of his work and are often featured in many of his pieces. Here are a couple of examples, I have refrained from featuring the more...ahem... graphic examples of his work, but I hope you get a small taster of the way he does things

Amazing stuff! His pieces are so different from much other photography I have seen, and his unusal juxtapositions of pop culture are facinating works of art . If you are curious to see more, check out his online studio. 

With a similar style is Japanese photographer Mika Ninagawa. Dubbed the most popular photographer in Japan, Ninagawa like LaChapelle is heavily involved in fashion photography and magazines and uses bold colours and juxtaposing images for a unique, eye-catching effect, that appeals to those craving a modern more edgier, statement form of photography.

For more examples of Mika's work have a look at her official webpage.

Who are your favourite photographers and why? :)