As we approach the New Year and head into 2011 I’ve been thinking about this world of fashion that I spend all my working life immersed in. I crave the exciting new, the twist on the old and the wow factor that shouts ‘Must have’ at me. I know in reality that the year ahead will be challenging as we ‘Shop our Wardrobes’ in eclectic style and buy clever for those special occasions.
For as long as I can remember as a Fashion Agent the perennial Trench Coat is touted as a must have item for the Spring season. At this stage we must all have one in out wardrobes. Mine got sent to the Charity shop recently. I’m fed up with Trench coats, I don’t want one and even though I had a gorgeous one in the Jaeger range for this Spring it wasn’t a good seller.
Please please lets seek out fashion this coming year that is ever so slightly boundary breaking and unsafe. I will do my best to find it and when I do I will post it. Don’t get me wrong here, I love good quality basics, they are the foundation of any womans wardrobe but spare me the yards and yards of news and magazine print about the boring Trench Coat!!!!!
I think we fall into two camps when it comes to the sales. There are no in -betweens that I’m acquainted with and I fall firmly into the ‘HATE’ camp. Even the word Sales leaves me cold. I know lots of women who save and organise their Sales expeditions with military precision and there are others who launch into them with no plan in hand and pick up whatever bargains they can bag. The fact that there are hoards of other women jostling side by side is no bother to them. I hate the fact that the rails and shelves in the shops look like a jumble sale, that you can’t ask for help and invariably buy something that lies unworn in your wardrobe until you finally give in and send it to the Charity shop a couple of years later.
I do make one exception though and it’s for great basic knitwear, Cashmere to be precise. Once you start wearing good cashmere it’s very difficult to retreat to cheaper wool/viscose. I remember the first time I went to America and was fascinated to see that every major store in New York had a huge range of cashmere sweaters prominently displayed. I thought then that there was no way that they would sell in Ireland where basics are much more likely to be wool/viscose and come from Zara or Dunnes Stores. I do think that now we are starting to appreciate good fabrics but If you are buying cashmere it needs to be really good quality, otherwise you end up with holes and bobbling . If you shop smart you should be able to pick up some goods quality cashmere basics at reduced prices. Choose cardigans and sweaters in easy to wear styles.
I’m fed up reapplying lipstick and admit to being a little obsessed with whether it’s still in place. I’m not comfortable with taking it out in company and applying it in full view of all around me, preferring the usually awful mirrors in the bathrooms of whatever establishment I’m in to ‘fix’ my lips. I remember when the Benefit lip/cheek stain first came out and used it for quite a while though eventually I got fed up with the one colour choice. Recently while in Vancouver I decided to check out Sephora and specifically look to see if the whole area of lip stain products has moved on. Stila have been doing lip and cheek stains for some years but the other two I wasn’t familiar with so I came home with one of each. Both are pretty good with a few decent colours in each range (though I still wanted more choice) and with the addition of lip gloss ( which seems ok to take out in company) is staying on pretty well. Problem is my lips feel bare and so I’m checking up pretty often which is proving to be just out of habit as the colour is still all there!
If you really want to do the full old fashioned red lipstick look and want the penultimate way to apply then look no further than the video tutorial from Illamasqua . This is a really brilliant and unique way to do the full on red lips look and one that may just be the thing for New Years Eve. I love Illamasqua which in make- up terms keeps pushing the boundaries. They are in BT2 in Dublin but if you are in London, do check out their counter in Selfridges which has the most amazing make up artists and if you have a little time do get them to make you up. They are unlike any other counter beauty staff that I’ve met before.
I’ve been thinking about the influence film and the small screen has on fashion. There is no doubt that since the Silver Screen was invented we have been visually moved to copy and adapt our dress in order to emulate and the stars of the latest big hit. I am interested in the new film, not yet out here, set in the world of Ballet, Black Swan starring Natalie Portman. I can find lots of reviews of the fashion and less of the film itself. It seems that the marketing world has put the cart before the horse so to speak and spent small or large fortunes not only on promoting the movie but promoting the designers and consequent fashion trends that the movie is supposed to spark. A rather dark movie by all accounts, ballet with a darkly gothic edge. Jewel encrusted cuffs and black tutus with soft and sensuous ballet flats and of course long hair worn up in a bun. Not sure that this movie is going to have me going into town wearing a tutu or black lace by day but I may wear the odd jewel encrusted cuff and my ballet flats a little more often, they are after all very practical and comfy. As for the movie, I will just have to wait to see what all the hype is all about….
I know it’s cold and miserable and I have made the mince pies, stuffing, Christmas cake, marzipan and royal icing, swede and carrot mash and the chocolate truffles. All in preparation for a few days of non stop eating, but it’s time to think of an altogether lighter recipe. This one would make a fabulous dessert for those who hate all things dried fruity. It comes from a really great recipe book by writer Diana Henry called ‘Crazy Water, Pickled Lemons.’ Lots of middle eastern recipes each one better than the last, a very rare thing as far as recipe books are concerned. I think this one is a Sephardic Jewish recipe and the inclusion of the whole orange makes this theory probable. Use a mid sized orange as the very large ones make the cake just a tad too soft.
3. To make the cream, melt the marmalade in a small pan. Let it cool slightly, but don’t let it set, then mix it with the mascarpone and yoghurt. Add icing sugar to taste and the orange flower water.
4. Sift icing sugar over the cake and serve with the marmalade cream.
I have cabin fever at this stage. Every expedition outside is of major proportions and demands several layers and a shovel. I am listening to the radio and am listening to all the travellers stuck in Dublin Airport trying to get out or others far away trying to get home. This fun video is from Vancouver Airport courtesy of Air Canada and where I was a little over a week ago. I am missing Canada and especially my family there and this is a little reminder.
Vancouver has a very similar climate to here. In fact it is warmer there at the moment though you can ski all winter long half an hour from down town on either Grouse or Cypress Mountains which loom large on the North Shore. We are coming to the end of the coldest Winter on record here in Ireland and are back to lighting log fires and stoves and shoveling snow. Obsessed as we are with our changeable weather there is nothing else being talked about at every check out and street encounter in the country. It’s either on the way or we are in the midst of it. The salt has either run out or the roads are not being cleared. The pavements are lethal and the ER departments are filled with broken bones.
The uniform of choice for every woman in Vancouver is as below with the addition of a shirt and cashmere or other warm jumper and gloves. So lets all take note and buy warm, practical yet smart durable clothing and lets at least get through it all warm and cosy. The gorgeous warm Electronic Sheep hats and scarves are available from Clerys Dublin and Bow in the Powerscourt Centre, Dublin and make great presents.
I’m often confused working in the world of Fashion as I live both in the present and future at the same time. Yesterday was a good example when I was working at dealing with orders for delivery now, and previewing Arnotts Spring Summer Ladies Fashion at their Press Day. I love looking at the next seasons offerings and Arnotts certainly had plenty to ooh and aah over. Gone are the heady Celtic Tiger days of bling bling and fast fashion, we are now well on the way to clean lines, minimal silhouettes and sheer simplicity. The 70′s are definitely a key factor in the inspiration stakes. I particularly like the cool safari dress from Gerard Darel, the trench coats which were in lots of the collections and the trousers in different shapes, high waisted, kick flares and cargo contours being prominent. Biker Chic features and the 50′s and 60′s are still headlining continuing the mad men fascination. Maxi dresses are soft and romantic and strong again.
The edited collections on show yesterday included Ghost (which seems to be cheaper than the last time I looked at this label), Heather which is laid back LA and for the first time one of my favorites Irish Designer Heidi Higgins with beautifully simple timeless classics and London label Lungta De Fancy loved by the celebs and great for artfully draped pieces combined with elegant layers. Hobbs was looking stronger than last season and Jaeger is going from strength to strength and completely gets the whole good value simple and elegent theme with the main Jaeger and Boutique By Jaeger collections. Strong colours feature with a palette of orange red and pink with purples and blues in contrast with the neutrals making a return for next Summer with lots of white underpinning the entire season.
So here are some of the pieces that I picked as my favorites
Gerard Darel €215
Gerard Darel €225
Heather Cardigan €130
Heather Tunic €80
My Summer Shoe Choice €95+Peep toe €85
Hobbs Dress €265
Ghost Dress €125
Ghost Maxi €255
Blue Hobbs dress with Jaeger Silk print shift
Arnotts Spring Summer was strong on great value and I was really impressed by the price points through all the collections. Bags and shoes are as strong as ever with great lingerie which includes the fabulous Pleasure State, Princess Tam Tam and Yummie Tummie. Lots of carefully bought collections across all areas which is what a great store should offer. Arnotts has it all in spades… I’m baking ny Christmas Pudding and thinking of Christmas day and Summer all in one……moment!
I’m just starting to think about Christmas presents and it’s around this time of year I like to treat myself as well as everyone around me. The thoughts of giving and receiving give me that warm feeling and memories of a roaring fire, chestnuts and unwrapping gifts have me smiling to myself. Some people don’t enjoy giving and I think they are seriously handicapped. There is nothing more rewarding than gift giving, whether its a home backed box of mince pies or a more lavish item such as a bag or item of clothing that you just know they wouldn’t have bought themselves.
I popped into the Westbury Mall today following a visit to the Arnotts Press day which I will have plenty to write about tomorrow. Two little boys with their dad were buying a pair of pink leather gloves for their Mum which they chose themselves from Paula Rowan who was doing a brisk trade in her most fabulous collection of stunning leather gloves. I left her to her selling and headed around the corner to visit the Nina Divito pop up shop because even though I have looked at these stunning shoes before I thought it time to try some on.
Nina’s shoes are truly works of art though I wasn’t sure how comfortable they might be. I was pleasantly surprised as they fitted like a glove and I have seriously fallen in love with a pair which are now top of my Christmas wish list. Cheap they are not, but for a stunning work of shoe craftsmanship, design and execution these exceed all the top designer shoes I know of. Perhaps it’s the fact that they are not mass produced, perhaps it’s the beautiful leather or the design, or the fact that they are designed by a really talented and special young Irish designer but whatever it is these are shoes to fall in love with and wear in comfort and above all magnificent style.
Nina Divito Shoes and Art are available from Unit 12 Westbury Mall, Dublin Phone 00353 (01) 6719697 or from Brown Thomas Dublin
