Revisiting All Saints

 

I first fell for All Saints when I was fourteen and would stretch my budget to buy something from this very different and fascinating store whenever I had the opportunity.  I just loved their visual identity from day one.  But in the last few years I felt their designs were simply getting too dark and gothic and, as for the price, just really silly.  So I stopped buying there and then even stopped going to browse.  And it seems I wasn’t alone as we heard in the press that the brand was suffering and at risk of collapse.

But All Saints on Regent Street caught my eye again the other day.  I was really happy to see that they have completely transformed their brand – and for the better!  The SS14 collection has introduced bold lines, clean cuts and strong silhouettes - perfectly bridging the gap between luxury and high street whilst keeping their strong identity. 

Let’s hope this is the start of a brighter future for All Saints.  I’m back to saving for a few pieces already!  

Take 5, Think Pink

Lets all take a minute to think pink!  If you haven’t noticed baby pink is here, there and everywhere at the moment, and quite frankly I love it! Here’s some pictures to get you in the pink. 

Hello my name is Paul Smith

If you’re planning a visit to Southbank I strongly recommend you take a little diversion to the Design Museum to see the Paul Smith Exhibition (15 November 2013 - 09 March 2014).

You enter the exhibition through a tiny room which represents the size of his first shop and emerge into a huge corridor filled top to bottom with framed artworks Paul Smith started collecting as a teenager.

The exhibition continues in a series or rooms; there are examples of clothes he has designed, examples of his shops around the world, mock ups of his work rooms, a room of abstract film images and another of ‘a day in the life of Paul Smith’ showing the build up to one of his catwalk shows and the end result.  

Although I have never been a huge fan of Paul Smith’s clothing designs, this was a great insight to how one of Britain’s best designer’s works and an brilliant chance to see all the amazing collaborations he has made.    

This is a very visual and interactive exhibition – definitely a good recommendation for a Sunday afternoon when you want to immerse yourself in a different experience.

Happy Birthday Kate!

Since the launch of her career in 1990, in the shoot “The Third Summer of Love” photographed by Corinne Day, Kate Moss has consistently been at the forefront of fashion.  Her 25 years of success have been remarkable and seen her front campaigns with the worlds most celebrated designers and brands.   

Over the years Moss has revolutionised the fashion idustry and gained iconic status, continuing to inspire designers, photographers and artists.  Close friend Naomi Campbell says, “I’m proud of Kate, I’m very proud of her, I think what she’s done and what she’s doing is phenomenal”.  She also says Kate “tries to keep the child within her” - perhaps this is one of the reasons she has remained so popular and fresh?  Would you put her at 40? I wouldn't.

With so many celebrated moments in Kate Moss’ career it is hard to pinpoint my personal favourites.  She has a lot to be proud of, with thirty four British Vogue covers, her own clothing designs for high street brand Topshop, as contributing fashion editor of British Vogue and the face of hundreds of fashion shoots and campaigns.  Here’s to the next 25 years!   

Made you look...

Todays trip to Camden led me to a great discovery of a brand tucked away at the back of Camden Market in what used to be a Victorian Railway Arch – ‘General Eyewear’.  The cool arch shaped structure provides the perfect space for the eyewear brand to display its unique range of luxury frames and sunglasses, mixing a vast range of modern and retro designs.

Not only did I love all the frames themselves but also the layout of the store, which is sectioned into three areas (A, B and C) and provides a museum like atmosphere. A is dedicated to the frames, B for the sunglasses and C for the workshop situated at the back of the store.  Near the workshop there is also a beautiful collection of patterned Perspex, which I assume customers can choose to be customised into their own frame designs.  I particularly fell in love with a green/blue/pink-patterned design, however, at the £250 price mark these shall only be added to my wish list for now.

Their website, which I jumped as soon as I got home, is equally as impressive (at www.generaleyewear.com).  All in all this little find has been the highlight of my day and definitely a brand I hope to buy from in the near future (when I have saved a few more pennies). 

Isabella Blow: Fashion Galore!

Bored with the rain and looking for something interesting to do?  Get yourself along to Somerset House to see their really great exhibition: ‘Isabella Blow: Fashion Galore!’ before it comes to an end on 2 March. 

    

Isabella Blow led an extravagant life in her work, her home and the clothes she wore and this exhibition gives a great insight into her unique character.  Attributed with discovering great talents and models, we get to see Alexander McQueen’s clothes from his very first graduation collection, where Isabella first discovered him, right through to his Oct 2008 collaborative runway show with Philip Treacy ‘La Dame Bleue” which was dedicated to Isabella after her shocking death.  We also get up close and personal with Philip Treacy’s creations – before this exhibition I had not seen much of his work and was absolutely blown away by its beauty and elegance!

My favourite part of the exhibition by far, was a look into Isabella Blow’s fantastic and slightly outrageous wardrobe – this, along with little notes about Isabella’s life and fun facts such as her favourite shade of red lipstick, her preference for writing with pink ink and how clumsy and forgetful she was (apparently, like me, she often left things in taxi’s) makes the whole exhibition more personal and intimate.

In the final section, we see selected clothes from the “La Dame Bleue” catwalk, accompanied nearby with a video of the runway show playing on a large screen.  This is where we can see the static exhibition come to life in a beautiful show themed around flying birds, which was one of Isabella’s fascinations and therefore a fitting tribute.  This bit really pulls on your heartstrings.  What a unique personality and complex life, and what a sad ending for someone with such energy and passion.  

Really beautiful.  Really worth you time.    Go even if it isn’t raining.