Monday 26 December 2011

Queen of the Road










Source: Fashion Gone Rogue
Oyster Magazine
Photographer: Jason Lee Parry
Stylist: Cat Wennekamp

Ashley Smith stars in the December issue of Oyster Magazine in a shoot that I can only describe as a rebel's road trip. A prime example of how cost is indifferent to a great photo shoot, the styling is wonderfully simple yet the fabrics used such as leather and denim create such hard overtones, creating that grungy look. I love the piling on of jewellery and the overall looks that Wennekamp has assembled. You can check out more of her work here. Mostly I love the composition of the photos, I love the juxtaposition of the space around the woman and her car in some of the shots against the close up shots of Ashley Smith's face. The variation created is interesting to look at and if you go to Cat Wennekamp's personal site you can see how it has been used within the context of the magazine which is even more brilliantly composed.

The mood of the shoot has a 'fuck the system' attitude and appears to share a careless teenagers dreams, and love of life, the world and travel. It has a similar tone of voice to Rihanna's video for We Found Love, her collaboration with Calvin Harris. Again brilliantly styled. It seems there's a bit of a rogue trend going around.

Thursday 15 December 2011

There are 9,000,000 bicycles in Beijing.

So, home again. Back for Christmas in the Beautiful South. So knowing this you may also realise the reason for my lack of posting over the last month: some ridonkulously big deadlines which we've all worked hard for so that we can get back home, eat, drink and be merry (hooray) !





So to celebrate my return I thought I would write about a new blog obessession that I am nursing. Probably slow on the uptake, and I can't believe this because I really do like this blog, but I have only recently stumbled across Cycle Chic. One of the Guardian's '10 top Fashion Bloggers' Mikael Colville-Andersen, has based Copenhagen Cycle Chic around the concept of street style photography with a twist - the subjects of his photography are riding bicycles. His definition of the term being people that cycle in everyday  clothing as opposed to sportswear. As you may remember from various images I have posted on here in the past, I have a bit of a strange thing for bicycles in photos and Mikael has found a way to express this through a style blog. A lot of the photographs have a truly voyeuristic tone of voice, which is different to a lot of street style photography that we see today, as he has to capture the cyclists on the move instead of stopping them in the streets.

 Kudos Mr. Colville-Andersen.

Monday 14 November 2011

A new love.



Pinterest. A site pointed out to us this term by a lecturer has become an immediate love of mine. Almost taken over weheartit.com in the addictive stakes, pinterest has a similar concept whereby people can 'pin' images on the web and add it to 'boards' that they create on the site. You can also 'repin' images that others have 'pinned' on the site and browse through other peoples boards and favourite images. It really is a great place for collating inspiration. Take a look HERE.

Christmas is coming...





Source: All from youtube

The power of advertising. It is amazing the way certain ads can make you feel. All of these, for me, deliver a multi-sensory experience. Particularly, I think you will agree, the Coca-cola ad which after being shown on the breaks of Saturday nights x factor managed to take up all of my twitter and facebook feeds! 
The above and a city break in London over the weekend have definitely got me in the mood for Christmas, a period I love more than any other.

Friday 11 November 2011









Source: Various Google Images

A heavy focus within my current university project this term has been upon identifying myself as a creator. But a creator of what? This is the question that I have been tirelessly asking myself. Growing up I always knew I wanted a career within the widespread fashion industry, but only in the last year or so beginning my degree studies have I fully understood just how little this really helps me in defining my specific career choices. 
One of the tasks I am trying to get on with that will eventually be a part of my portfolio for this term is the design of a visual CV and business card/press pack. Truly deciding what it is that my self-promotion should say about me is a tricky task, especially as I am yet to really discover that myself. Finding something that truly depicts my design aesthetic as well as me as a person. With a couple of career paths in mind I'm finding it difficult to define my place in the industry, knowing where you want to be is hard enough these days without even thinking about how to get there!

That time of year









Sourced (In order): Asos (x5), American Apparel, Links, Urban Outfitters

It's that time of year again. My favourite time of year. Christmas. Which incidentally also means that its time to write my christmas list. As a poor poor student this is something that I have taken great pleasure in starting, given how very limited my budget has become these days. These are just a small number of things that I need in my life. Opting for a lot of black lately, I don't know if that's reflected from the grey weather we've been having here in lovely Nottingham or just the fact that I'm not feeling particularly creative when it comes to colour. Bright things never seem to feel right in the winter.
Can't wait to get home and sit in my christmassy lounge by the fire.

M Loe




So as you may or may not know, I am a fashion student desperately nursing a long term addiction to lookbook.nu. Whilst grabbing my daily fix this afternoon, I stumbled across something a little different. We're all familiar with the blogger who illustrates her looks as miffy bunnies, but this is something new I've discovered from lookbook poster M.Loe (check her out here). A recent development on her posts, she has begun to dress in the style of some of her favourite cartoon/animated characters and stick handmade features onto her face to replicate them. Just a bit of fun but really effective and picks her out from the rest of the users on there.

Saturday 5 November 2011

Lovers Rock

Source: Vogue Russia
Models: Adam Levigne and Anne Vyalitsyna
Photographer: Alix Malka

This shoot for the most recent issue of Vogue Russia, saw up and coming super-couple Adam Levigne and Anne Vyalitsyna pose for a shoot capturing the zeitgeist of classic rock: nudity teamed with sequin all in ones, blazer jackets, guitars and black and white seduction. Something I felt a little ambitious for Levigne given Maroon 5's debut album being heavily lenient in the direction of pop from what I've heard so far. However, saying that the majority of the imagery definitely captured the considered theme (some a little cliche, I felt) and   showcased the couple in a great light, both of them look amazing in the photography. I feel like they might be seen a fair amount more in this industry as time goes on, watch this space.

Milkshake Delight





Not normally somebody with a soft spot for a great deal of colour when it comes to my own wardrobe preferences, this shoot by Jesse Laitinen really grabbed my attention. The brilliant sky blue compliments the candyfloss pink and create a concoction of 50s milk bars colour palettes that I was entirely drawn to. As much as I appreciate the colour contrast within the first image, the subtlety of the neutral ensembles that follow compliment the background equally as effectively although in a completely different way. The styling is tailored with a real laid back feel and is reflected throughout even the hair and make-up with the juxtaposition of slicked back and wispy frizz of her peroxide curls. A look that I wouldn't choose for myself but is absolutely captivating in this editorial and a lighter hearted edge to high end garments.

Monday 17 October 2011

London Town







Source: All pictures are my own

One day over the summer me and a couple of my course mates Jade and Alice ventured to London town to take some street style photos for a Summer project at uni. I shall be posting these street style pictures when they are nearer to completion, but whilst we were there we also took some time out to pop into a few vintage boutiques (when in Brick Lane....) We stumbled across a newly opened vintage warehouse named Blitz, and this was vintage on a professional level. The shop was wonderfully designed and the decor was cosy and uniqe. Decked out in dark wood, with kitsch interior aspects, it was a perfect vintage haven. Although a little on the pricey side, the clothes were in exceptional condition and the variety was spectacular. I have never seen so much denim or patterned 70s shirts in all my life. I took a lot more pictures but I'm sure you'd rather check it out for yourself HERE

Sunday 16 October 2011

Week Four

My final week.
I cannot actually believe how fast the past month has gone. Although it has been exhausting undertaking this full time placement, it has been a very fulfilling experience, and a real education. I feel as though I have gained a thorough understanding of what it means to be a BA and have been given responsibility which I may not have been given in a different company. 

Athena for the final week went through one of my consumer profiles aswell as running through critical paths and range plans with me which I needed to consult with to track orders and organise the Best and Worst for this week. 

This final week was a lot of fun for me at Monsoon; I feel as if I have formed a great bond with people in several departments and in doing so have also gained some great contacts. This week I got to attend a fair in the reception/canteen area of the magnificent glass Monsoon/Accessorize building in aid of the charity that the company have set up. It was great fun as there was loads of old VM for sale, which meant I could buy some really quirky and unique pieces for the new uni house, aswell as raffles and stalls to take part in a few different activities. 

Drinks and a picnic were a lovely farewell from the team aswell as a card, I will really miss being a part of the team! I had a great experience from Monsoon and would without a doubt recommend them as a company to work for. One key thing I did learn from my internship would be that although I thoroughly enjoyed my experience and learnt so much, buying is not really the avenue that I would like to continue down. I feel that it is too business focused and logical for me and I would prefer something with more creative free rein. 

Week Three

I started the week in the Jersey department this time, so far my favourite few days at Monsoon. I was hoping to gain a little more responsibility as the longest standing intern, this proved to be right and I gradually took on more and more as this week progressed. I had to compile Best and Worst sheets, stickers and organise month’s worth of samples and lab dips.
Source: Monsoon website (These were a couple of the garments discussed in the office whilst I interned.)

Again, I was learning more and more about the role of a BA and I really enjoyed this for the reason that it really allowed me to form opinions about what sort of experience I would like to undertake next. The time I spent back in Trousers and Outerwear this week were spent doing more labels, meeting and greeting suppliers, liaising with stores to get staff feedback on product etc., carrying out trend research for SS12 product. 


I also managed to visit both the VM department and Press Office, which I really enjoyed, as I feel that although I have enjoyed my experience, I may be better off following a slightly more creative direction. The mock shops were particularly fascinating to see as I got a better understanding of how they determine VM and an insight into what the Monsoon store ‘re-vamp’ was going to look like.

Week Two



Monday morning. My first returning Monday in a long while, the fuzzy Monday morning feeling was one that had become slightly alien to me. I found on my little desk space that Athena had left me a small list of things to be done over the next few days. Something else that I found was really good, as I felt that I had a purpose in the department. As far as interns go I feel very lucky as this seemed to be about a lot more than making tea. 

The majority of my week was spent within the Kids department, as a new intern had started who was a lot younger than me in Trousers and Outerwear. It was really great to experience a new area within the brand as I could see how their work ethic spanned across a multitude of departments. The Kids department was MANIC. A couple of staff down and a presentation at the end of the week, my responsibilities here lay mostly with arranging range boards for all Best and Worst products across Baby, Boy and Girl, for months June to October. That is a lot of pins I tell you now.  It was reasonably stressful as the boards had to be perfect to be seen by the big guns, and there was a lot to be done and not that much time. 

The more I learnt about being a buyer, the more different it was to how I imagined it would be. I spent a lot of time photographing product, and so I quickly became familiar with what was being bought and developed. This really helped me in many tasks that I was given, as I was able to talk and write about product that needed developing whilst attending fit meetings, aswell as sourcing product from the wardrobes.

Monsoon Internship


Ok, so I know that this was in June. But it is only now that I am getting around to posting about my brilliant internship at Monsoon in the Summer. Sadly, due to the company's confidentiality policy I was unable to take any pictures of my experience (waaaaah), so the pictures that I have included are taken from the internet.

Week One


So, after my long awaited first week at Monsoon I am beginning to experience the full effects of what it is to be in a full time job. A working girl, in London. And it would be an accurate statement to say that I am loving it. My first day I was a bag of nerves, although I have undertaken various work experiences before none of them have been as high profile as this or indeed as long. So there I was, about to get my first big mouthful of the feast that the fashion industry is. 

The team that I was set to be working in was the Buying Department: specifically Trousers and Outerwear. I was greeted by Athena (my mentor for the next 4 weeks) and another intern by the name of Danielle. Both were immediately friendly and any fears that I had had about the nature of the people I would be working with and the atmosphere within the work place were banished. 

The first couple of days of the week certainly were taken up by building colour palettes to send out to suppliers and clientèle, a pretty simple task which may sound boring but I was actually glad of. Whilst yearning for something important to be responsible for, I was actually grateful to be eased into my new surroundings. It really gave me a chance to learn the dynamics and ‘geography’ of the office, whilst carrying out a task that was necessary but at the same time not too demanding. The rest of the week was a mixture of small tasks really, steaming clothes and sitting in on meetings. The latter of these was an especially valuable experience for me, having no real comprehension of what it meant to be a BA before this week; I definitely feel that I have begun to understand what the job role entails. One other part of my week was sourcing product within the department and sorting out garments for sample sales.

Athena also asked me to write a PEST and SWOT analysis for the brand, as she felt that it is especially important for me to be familiar with these models if applying for a job within fashion. She went over them with me to give me pointers and I now feel a lot more confident with these, having received direct feedback from someone different to within my studies.