Sunday, 25 March 2012

D&G- One last time


Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana are the creators of D&G. It was launched 9 years after the creation of their main line. The D&G line was created with urban influences. It was catered to more of a younger market. This line is a more contemporary, sensual, forward, and innovated line.

Last September the kings of Milan fashion week made an announcement just before the models graced the catwalk that the younger sibling to Dolce and Gabbana was to shut down (D&G) in order for them to concentrate on their main line.

It’s left many industry professionals baffled by the all of a sudden closure of the brand. Many have speculated that it may be due to the recent degrading of Italy and maybe due to the effects of the financial crisis. However, reports claim that the D&G line has been out performing the Dolce and Gabbana line in many Asian markets. D&G is a very profitable brand; therefore the financial crisis has nothing to do with the closure of the line. So that leaves us with, did customers get confused between the two lines and was there no actual difference between the two lines? Some have suggested that customers were confused between the names of the two lines. But does that lead one to close down a highly successful contemporary line?

It is expected that Dolce and Gabbana will expand their brand into more casual categories such as T-shirts and jeans. Well, that will at least leave us with best of both worlds.
Whatever the story is behind the closure of the D&G line, all I can say that it is one of the best contemporary lines in history. It combined both luxury and style into one.

Take a look at some of their best pieces from their collections.

ENJOY!!



Friday, 16 March 2012

Vera Wang- LOVESTRUCK


This month for my birthday one of the gifts I received was Vera Wang’s Love Struck perfume. I have been waiting for ages to actually buy it. Well now that I have it, it’s become my favourite all time perfume. My normal choice of perfume I would go for is Armani Diamonds, since then I never thought that I would find a perfume that smells that good. Well guess what, there’s a new perfume in town and its bought to us my Bridal dress designer Vera Wang.

Launched June of 2011, Lovestruck is a musky floral with a standard fruit bomb, cheerful, fresh floral, with pale woody-musky scent. Its wearable and it’s not overly sweet or fruity. The notes included in the perfume are guava, angelica, tuberose, lotus blossom, woods and musk.
As far as the design of the perfume bottles goes, I love the bouquet of aubergine flowers and gauzy ribbon on top. The print ads for lovestruck saw Leighton Meester, Queen B from gossips girl play modern day Romeo and Juliet

Overall, the scent is all summery, with a rich smell with hints of musk and sweetness. Lovestruck provides a feminine fragrance with an edge that dries down to a soft floral finish.

I would recommend it!


Sunday, 26 February 2012

Best dressed at the Oscars


Well, as we all know that tonight’s the academy awards ceremony. There are going to be many amazing dressed celebrities on the red carpet, can’t wait! Until then I want to walk down memory lane and take a look at some of my all-time favourite best dressed celebrities that graced the red carpet.

Here are my top 5 moments from the Oscars:

1.       Audrey Hepburn- in Givenchy 1957

Audrey Hepburn wore this white floral lace Givenchy dress as she picked up her Oscar for her role in the movie “Roman Holiday”.

2.       Grace Kelly –in Edith Head 1955

Grace Kelly stole the show at the Oscars as she won her first Oscar for “Country Girl” in 1955. At that time the mint satin dress was the most expensive dress designed.

3.       Cameron Diaz- in Oscar De La Renta 2010

Cameron Diaz wore this beautiful gold gown by Oscar De la Renta. This look was styled by my favourite stylist Rachel Zoƫ. This looked epitomised timeless glamour that was once seen by the likes of Sophia Loren.

4.       Halle Berry- In Elie Saab 2003

Another great gold moment at the Oscars, this time it was by Halle Berry who looked like a total goddess. This gown looked totally beautiful on the actress and the whole look which was styled by Philip Bloch was just pulled together elegantly. It was just pure perfection!!

5.       Penelope Cruz- Versace 2007

This dress was a jaw dropping show stopping gown. There was only ever one lady who can totally pull of this look. Penelope wore this Versace blush coloured gown with adorned feathers on the skirt with a tight fitted bodice at the 2007 Oscars. All I have to say is that she looked amazing.

 So, there you have my top 5 Oscar looks of all time.

Tuesday, 21 February 2012

The Best and Worst dressed at the 2012 Brits



I have literally just finished watching the Brit awards. Before I go any further I have to say that the best performance of the night came from Bruno mars, hands down. Anyway, back to all the fashion highs and lows. Some celebrities looked stunning and then there were some that didn’t really take any pride in how they looked.

So here are my best dressed women of the night.

Best Dressed


Rihanna looked stunning in this full length halter neck Givenchy, number which is straight from the runway. I thought she looked elegant and very sexy. However, even though I loved the dress and the whole look, I could not stand the leather long gloves.


I thought Nicole Sherzinger looked beautiful in her neon yellow Versace 2012 dress with gold studded detailing.

Pixie Lott was my overall favourite look of the night. She really stepped out and tried something out of her comfort zone. She looked mature and sexy.


Worst Dressed



Emma Bunton just looked like a mess. It felt like she made no effort to actually be at the Brits. I really detested the black slip showing through her red lace dress. The look wasn’t polished enough. The hair, make up and accessories were all very simple and boring. This look was a fashion disaster. 


           Anyway, I’m tired and off to bed for now………………..



Sunday, 19 February 2012

Fur in fashion


Now we all love some fur but time to time we seem to get it wrong. I’ve seen too many people over do it with fur, they just up end looking like a hot mess. Just like any other fashion staple piece you only wear one item at a time. This is the rule that is easy to follow and adopt.
For me the hardest trend for anyone to pull off is the Fur. Too many times people end up looking like a fake wannabe diva or a drag queen. Why do they look like this? Because they overdo it with the fur.


There are three simple steps to follow to get this trend right on dot:

1.      Only ever wear one item of fur at a time. Either go with a fur jacket/coat, bag or boots. Never wear all three at the same time.

2.      Wear your fur item with block solid colours. This will help you play it safe and keep it classy. The best way is to pair it with a pair of black skinny jeans, killer heals, and grey / black tank top, embellished 
 small jacket and a tote fur bag, splendid!

3.      Now, even if you can afford it, try not to by real fur. Many animals are brutally killed and in the process are being extinct for their fur. You can get an exact copy of real fur item pieces and clothes from your high street. So please be thoughtful in your purchase.


Here is an example of how to put together an ensemble:






Here are some examples of faux fur items that you can purchase from the high street. Note, no animals were endangered or hurt in making these items:


You can purchase this item for the small fraction price of £39.00 from:









Remember that fashion is all about keeping it simple and not over doing it in one trend.

Here is a link to an article from PETA about animal cruelty: http://www.peta.org/issues/animals-used-for-clothing/fur.aspx






Monday, 13 February 2012

Fashion illustrations



Here are some fashion illustrations that I have been working on to improve my drawing and shading skill.

ENJOY!




Wednesday, 8 February 2012

My Man Crush



Well there’s this one man that drives the fashion world crazy. He’s eccentric yet poise. He is very elegant sophisticated and calm. It’s the man himself MR TOM FORD. I think the world of this man; I even have my own Crush on him. He is just one of the coolest men in fashion, actually in this world.

He’s known to have turned around the fashion house Gucci and has an Oscar nominated filmed. What is it that this man can’t do; he dominates the world of fashion. He now has his own successful fashion label including a line of beauty products, which I must say are worth the price. He’s been the creative director of both Gucci and YSL. He’s a man who sticks to his visions and ideas.

Picture from: Style.com
I must say as someone who loves the fashion world and the business world, this man really combines the two in a creative way. He truly is inspiring, hardworking, and easy on the eye.
He is known to be outrageous and over the top with his ad campaigns. His critics argue that his ads are over sexualised and too racy. I think at first glance that’s what most of us think, but when you dwell into what he is trying to say through his ads you just realise that he is highly creative and that he pushes the boundaries. Funny how the talk of his ads actually gets him more popular!
Anyway judge for yourself……..



After all sex does sell !!


Check out Tom Ford's Visionaries documentary : Inside the creative mind:
                      http://www.selectism.com/news/2011/12/22/video-tom-ford-on-own-network/