Archive for July, 2010
Designer Fashions, Fashion News, Gossip
By Elaine LaPersonerie on July 20th, 2010
Poor old Snoop must be feeling a bit down about his clothing line, The Rich And The Infamous, where business has slowed to a grinding halt.
The singer, real name Calvin Broadus (I can see why you changed it, Snoopy), appears to have packed up and called it a day with his business venture, having shut down production. The line received some initial success when it was debuted in 2008, but took a hard hit from the economy’s decline in 2009. At first attempts were made to salvage the business, with Snoop making attempts to “do what we’re doing and try to keep the prices a little lower”. That seems to have been abandoned, now – bye, bye, Snoop’s fashion career.
He shouldn’t be sad though, there’s so many other things he could do with his huge piles of money. Lunchboxes? A tupperware range? Chin up, Snoop.
Tags: clothing line, dropped, Recession, snoop dogg
Posted in Designer Fashions, Fashion News, Gossip | 1 Comment »
Events, Gallery, Spotted
By Elaine LaPersonerie on July 19th, 2010
Barbados-born beauty Rihanna seems to giving everyone’s favourite kook, Lady Gaga, a run for her money in the onstage stakes. Ri-Ri donned super-shoulders, a bright red mohawk and crotch-crunching high waisted knickers for her live show at the Mandalay Bay Hotel & Casino in Vegas, where she proceeded to put on a pretty fantastic show complete with backing dancers dressed as soldiers, holding neon pink rifles, and a giant, pink tank. Which she straddled a lot. There were female backing dancers wearing what appeared to be yellow, metal bustiers too. Cool.
Looking fierce in her aforementioned shoulderpad/mohawk combo, Rihanna then upped the drama with a quick costume change into a sweeping, Victoriana-style black gown complete with flashing LED lights. A little bit eighties, a lot futuristic, the girl seems to have got her look down to a fine art now.
Rihanna’s come such a long way from her initial rise to fame with “Pon de Replay”, where headscarves, long girl-next-door hair and R&B attire was the look of choice. Now she looks like a different creature entirely -more like a pop superhero than the standard pop fare. It’s refreshing to see female perfomers like Rihanna, Gaga and Katy Perry all getting more creative with their on-stage personas and performances; it’s a new era for female singers, where music is less concerned with sex appeal and more about having fun (well, a bit of both, really, but music videos are way more fun and inspired than they’ve been in ages). Ri-Ri’s had a pretty tough time of it in the last couple of years and it’s great to see her looking sexy, confident and doing what she does best. Check the gallery below to see images of her pretty sensational stage show.
All images courtesy of WENN.com.
Tags: Las Vegas, live, outfit, Rihanna
Posted in Events, Gallery, Spotted | No Comments »
Designer Fashions, First Looks, Gallery, Trend Alert
By Elaine LaPersonerie on July 19th, 2010
All you need to know about Polaroid’s new sunglasses collection is made clear in the picture, left. Look at how happy she is! She’s young, fun, and probably on a boat dancing with Duran Duran! Probably. This is what Polaroid eyewear is all about; glamorous, retro, eighties-inspired power dressing for your peepers. Think Spandeau Ballet, Los Angeles, rich kids in convertibles and John Hughes movies.
The Polaroid frames come in a butterfly-palette of bold, bright colours and rich golds for that authentic “80′s America” look. Rent a Cadillac, pop on their classic Polaroid Aviator shades and some eighties tunes and BAM! You’re re-living your favourite teen movie.
The prices are genuinely pretty decent for designer sunnies – the prices start at approximately fifty pounds and are never more than eighty, which is a fair deal cheaper than what some of us shell out for Dior or Chanel. Check the gallery below to see a few of our favourites from the new Polaroid collection – I’m coveting the classic tortoiseshell wayfarer frames.
If your holiday is coming up really, really soon and you’re in a jam about where to get your sunnies from, don’t worry- the Polaroid range is going to be on sale on planes, cruises and airports everywhere as well as online.
Tags: designer, eighties, polaroid, retro, sunglasses
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Gallery, Spotted
By Elaine LaPersonerie on July 19th, 2010
Last week it seemed you all felt that Pamela Anderson was indeed the least well-dressed celebrity in the world (sorry Pammy, still love you though), but now the heat’s being taken off her while we’ve got a fresh new batch of heinous outfits to criticise pettily.
You know the drill, guys – vote in the poll for the worst-dressed celeb and comment as you wish. My money’s on either Kylie Minogue or Macy Gray this time…
All images courtesy of WENN.com.
Tags: grace jones, jennifer metcalfe, jodie kidd, Kylie Minogue, worst dressed
Posted in Gallery, Spotted | 1 Comment »
Beauty, Gallery
By Elaine LaPersonerie on July 19th, 2010
We’re having a pretty good summer this year. So far, where I live it’s rained maybe twice, three times tops? That must be breaking some kind of record for Britain. It’s almost a little bit like we’re all on holiday – legs are coming out, men’s shirts are coming off, people are playing frisbee in their swimming costumes in the park and girls are basically stripping off in public in order to bake themselves as much as possible. But lets face it – while the weather is hot, most of us Brits are not resembling sunkissed Brazilian beauties right now. Instead, most of us (besides a very, very, lucky few) look like little pink prawns. With peely skin. Maybe not so sexy. There’s a simple solution though; be kind to your skin in the first place, and you’ll look healthy, youthful and sexy – Kylie Minogue puts her amazing, teenage-looking complexion down to wearing suncream absolutely everywhere, all the time. However, treat your skin badly and you’ll look like you’ve been lying on the surface of Mars for three weeks.
If you’re feeling a bit too pink at the moment (prawns of the UK, represent) then you should be thinking about giving a little back to your poor, sore skin. BigGreenSmile.com, a natural, eco-friendly beauty brand, have got a range of aloe-vera based creams and skin treatments that are sure to give your body a bit of a kissing-better. For those of you that are unfamiliar with aloe vera, it’s a desert plant that has adapted itself to cope with intense heat and sun exposure by storing moisture in its’ leaves. The gel stored up inside the plant’s leaves have natural soothing qualities that are good for relieving symptoms of sunburn, and also encourages faster healing.
There are vitamins in the skin treatments that are natural antioxidants that will prevent signs of ageing (no one wants to be wrinkly at the age of 20), work as a barrier against sun damage and make your skin all lovely and supple. So we can all feel lovely and smug when we put it on, in the knowledge that we’re gonna look hot forever, a bit like those ladies in the adverts for Simple Skincare.
The great thing about BigGreenSmile’s products is that they’re both eco-friendly and purse-friendly. Instead of shelling out for a really expensive aftersun, which probably won’t work anyway, an aloe-vera based product from BGS won’t set you back any more than a tenner. Check out the gallery to see which skin products Shiny Style is digging.
Tags: Beauty, biggreensmile.com, eco friendly, Skincare, sun burn
Posted in Beauty, Gallery | No Comments »
Celebrity Style, Fashion News, Features, First Looks, Retail News
By Elaine LaPersonerie on July 16th, 2010
For anyone reading out there who has whiled away hours daydreaming about being the next Rachel Zoe, or looking at badly-dressed people and mentally planning what you’d make them wear, good news – there’s a new college set to hit the Parsons Green area that could be a massive leg-up for anyone wanting to break into the notoriously difficult career that is professional styling.
LCS is aiming to do for fashion-lovers what the Brit School does for drama-lovers – nurturing the talents of the student, finding them work, and discovering fashion’s potential new shining stars. The founders of the college are none other than Wendy Elsmore, who has appeared several times in the role of fashion expert for This Morning and regular reporter for events such as London fashion week, and Kate Smith, international model. Also joining LCS will be the likes of Xanthia White, celebrity make up artist, and senior lecturer in fashion/textiles at the Chelsea College of Art & Design, Gary Page. Basically, they’ve all got fashion credentials up to their eyeballs.
The intensive foundation course promises to give each student a clear understanding of skills and knowledge to build upon, giving them as strong a foundation as possible to build upon. Students will learn dressmaking and garment construction, styling for brands, television, film, magazines and stage, whilst working towards creating a portfolio piece to show off their talents to potential employers.
It sounds like a dream come true to me. If you’re sitting at home dressing up your cat as you read this, wishing you could style real people, click through here for more details on how to apply to the foundation course.
Tags: hammersmith, kate smith, london college of style, Stylist, wendy elsmore
Posted in Celebrity Style, Fashion News, Features, First Looks, Retail News | 1 Comment »
Beauty, vintage
By Elaine LaPersonerie on July 16th, 2010
If you’re like me and love anything a bit old-fashioned or retro, you’ll be happy to learn about London-based company Lipstick & Curls, a team of hair and makeup geniuses that run workshops for women, teaching them how to recreate the looks and styles seen on such silver-screen heroines as Marilyn Monroe, Greta Garbo and Jayne Mansfield. And who wouldn’t want to be a Marilyn or Jayne, even if just for the day? I want some of what they had.
Founders of Lipstick and Curls, Amanda and Natasha are vintage veterans that have been working as freelance make-up artists for film, fashion and television for years, but are now available to the general public. You’ll be able to see the girls, Amanda and Natasha at work at the upcoming “Vintage at Goodwood” festival, where they’ll be transforming festivalgoers into whatever they want – from a 1920s, Louise Brooks flapper girl to a 1950s rock and roll babe (remember that bit at the end of Grease when they sewed Olivia Newton John into those trousers? Yeah, like that). If you won’t be going to Vintage at Goodwood (I won’t, sob) then check the Lipstick & Curls website here, where you can book one-on-one sessions with them or for a girly party. Let’s revive old-school beach bunny glamour lounging at the seaside this year.
Tags: Beauty, burlesque, lipstick and curls, pin up, vintage
Posted in Beauty, vintage | No Comments »
Affordable Fashions, Gallery, outerwear
By Elaine LaPersonerie on July 16th, 2010
I Love 2 Love is an up-and-coming boutique leather company that boasts a fashion-forward capsule of leather jackets that promise to stand the test of time. With generous reductions happening on the site at the moment, now is the time to check them out.
A favourite of mine out of the capsule is IL2L’s asymmetric leather biker jacket – an updated spin on a timeless style made iconic by heart-throbs such as James Dean and Marlon Brando, IL2L has stripped the biker jacket down to its’ bare bones and added in asymmetric angular detail to create a cleaner, more modern look. It’s a bargain for real leather and is an easy way to toughen up a girlie outfit in seconds. Another piece that caught my eye is their pleather hooded bomber jacket, which will be going on my wishlist come pay-day. It’s definitely a cool way to keep your hair dry when it’s raining (or disguise yourself from people you know when you’re doing the Walk of Shame in the morning).
IL2L not only sells their own designs, but also sells hand-picked products from other well-known and well-loved leather brands such as Bench, Fossil, Hooch, Kipling and Lee Cooper.
If you’re looking for a leather jacket at the moment, definitely take a minute to check out their site or check the gallery below for a few of my favourites.
Tags: boutique, il2l, leather, outerwear
Posted in Affordable Fashions, Gallery, outerwear | 2 Comments »
Affordable Fashions, Fashion Crush, First Looks, Gallery, jewelry
By emilyborrett on July 15th, 2010
I don’t know about you, but I’m a huge sucker for anything a bit kitsch – I’m the proud owner of a bizarre stuffed carrot with long eyelashes, and a technicolour piggy-bank in the shape of a kitten – but I find sometimes that it’s a very fine line between something being really cutesy or really tasteless. If you like cute, but don’t like tacky, I recommend you check out the new Autumn and Winter collection from Chelsea Doll.
The only way I can describe the Chelsea Doll brand is.. Claire’s Accessories for grown-ups. Bows, glitter, cute little animals are themes in their jewellery that are given a bit of a fashion edge. My ultimate favourite from the new collection is their gorgeous lace and metal deer brooch, which is an easy and cute addition to a blouse or cardigan, and is a snip at a mere six pounds. If you want to channel your inner little-girly side this season, check out the new Chelsea Doll collection in the gallery below.
Tags: a/w line, chelsea doll, Jewellery, kitsch
Posted in Affordable Fashions, Fashion Crush, First Looks, Gallery, jewelry | No Comments »
Ethical Fashions, Gossip
By emilyborrett on July 15th, 2010
This is the PETA ad campaign that has been banned in Montreal, Canada for being too “sexist”. Bosses were in a flap over the ad because they objected to Pamela’s body parts being labelled as if into joints of meat – their objection was that the campaign “objectified” women. Upon arrival to the city for the launch of the campaign, Pammy was denied entry to the event.
Pamela Anderson (if you’re reading Pam, I LOVE YOU) has been collaborating with PETA for several campaigns now highlighting the immoralities of animal cruelty. Everyone’s favourite vegetarian glamazon was furious at Montreal’s objection, saying :”In a city that is known for its’ exotic dancing and for being progressive and edgy, how sad that a woman should be banned from using her own body in a political protest over the suffering of cows and chickens. In some parts of the world, women are forced to cover their bodies with burqas – is that next? I didn’t think that Canada would be so puritanical.”
Dan Matthews, head of the PETA movement also added: “I think that city officials are confusing ‘sexy’ with ‘sexist’.” So what do you think? Sexy or sexist? Share your opinions by voting in our poll and adding comments below.
Tags: ethical fashion, pamela anderson, PETA
Posted in Ethical Fashions, Gossip | 2 Comments »
Ad campaigns, Advertorial, First Looks, Gossip, Gossip Girl
By emilyborrett on July 15th, 2010
Gossip Girl star and self-proclaimed “bad girrrl” Taylor Momsen is set to become the spokesperson for the “Material Girl” line, designed by Madonna and Madonna’s wonder-girl Lourdes. The eighties-inspired juniors’ collection is set to hit Macy’s in the U.S.A next month.
I’m surprised that Lourdes herself wasn’t chosen to front the brand; after all, Madonna is the original Material Girl (as Macy’s keeps reminding us) and Lourdes is the spitting image of her pop-icon mama. Taylor looks her usual surly, racoon-eyed self posing for the brand’s first ad campaign in a stripy miniskirt, black fur gilet and some very Desperately Seeking Susan-esque biker boots.
If you’re as curious as we are about Lourdes’ and Madonna’s new clothing range, Material Girl’s first EVER advertisement was released on the internet and can be viewed here.
Tags: ad campaign, Madonna, Material Girl, Taylor Momsen
Posted in Ad campaigns, Advertorial, First Looks, Gossip, Gossip Girl | No Comments »
Affordable Fashions, Fashion Crush, Features, Gallery
By emilyborrett on July 15th, 2010
If you’re looking for a few cool, collectable pieces to carry you from summer through to autumn this year, check out the work of James Anthony on the online crafts community, Etsy.
Miami-based James Anthony specialises in silk-screened t-shirts and dresses for both men and women. As all of their t-shirts are supplied wholesale by American Apparel and Alternative Apparel before being printed on, you know that you’ll be wearing an updated, edgier version of the clothes that the UK already knows and loves. The tanks and tees are perfect for making the most of what’s left of the summer weather and are a festival statement by themselves – we’d recommend you don’t go out wearing just the tank though, put some knickers on at least.
The brand lists its inspirations as “revenge; satin; Capri and Acapulco; men who wear flannel; champagne and caviar; mink; turbans; mink turbans; oil; torturing those of a lower social station; yelling; hissing; blackmail.” Fair enough. The prints are taken from antique and historical imagery such as 18th-century anatomical illustrations, engravings and paintings for the stark, bold prints that end up on the clothes. I came over all spooky coveting the skeleton-printed silk tanks (I’m planning to buy some and team them up with teeny-weeny daisy dukes and big old boots) and fell in love with the geisha-print scarf which is going to be keeping me warm come September, when the weather gets crap again.
If you want to get your mitts on a James Anthony print, you can find his clothes sold on Etsy.com here.
Tags: american apparel, etsy.com, handmade, james anthony, silk screen
Posted in Affordable Fashions, Fashion Crush, Features, Gallery | 1 Comment »
Beauty, Department Stores, Gossip, High End Department Stores
By emilyborrett on July 14th, 2010
Unless you’re one of those rare porcelain beauties such as Dita Von Teese or Sophie-Ellis Bextor, all of us girls look and feel more confident in our bikinis when we’ve got a bit of a golden glow. And in light of all the more recent medical evidence that we shouldn’t cover ourselves in olive oil and marinate ourselves in the sun for six hours a day until our skin begins to look like Italian leather, more and more of us are turning to fake tan as a safe solution.
But it isn’t really safe, is it? Medically safe, yes, with the exception of Jordan and Alex Reid who allegedly inject tan into their skin and spend a week throwing up afterwards. But I’m talking about fake tanning disasters, the ones that leave us weeping and frantically scruffing ourselves with lemon juice, refusing to leave the house to buy milk because of our two-tone skin. I’m going through a tanning disaster right now – I’m beautifully bronzed on the front, cottage-cheese white on the back, because I forgot to rub it in properly.
However, Debenhams have a plan that promises to end our fake-tan woes, and prevent us from ever looking like Dale Winton again, by launching the Fake Tan Tone Chart – beginning at “Pale and Interesting” and ending at “Radioactive Orange”. If you hit that, you’ve gone too far. The chart has been introduced to every Debenhams’ beauty hall in Britain and is there to give novice fake-tanners an indication of what shade of tan will suit them best, and which is the best product for their skin. Consultants will be on board to help customers assess what’s best for them.
To everyone at home currently suffering from a Fake Tan Disaster- don’t worry. There’s a place where you can get help now.
Tags: Debenhams, Department Stores, Fake Tan
Posted in Beauty, Department Stores, Gossip, High End Department Stores | No Comments »
Celebrity Style, Gallery, Spotted, Spotted in London
By emilyborrett on July 14th, 2010
Fearne Cotton’s made it into this week’s “Spotted In London” again, as always, leaving the Radio One studio looking like a true Londoner in a slouchy, mustard yellow skirt teamed up with an animal-print blouse and denim shirt. If you look closely you’ll notice that she’s wearing the same leather uber-heels that she was spotted in last time – shoes so fierce that they practically wear her, not the other way round.
Amy Winehouse and Diana Vickers were both spotted again too – Amy was papped at the “Psychosis” première (bizarrely, so was the lead singer from The Darkness) sporting a huge grin and even huger hair, showing off her tan and her new healthier figure in a clinging magenta mini-dress cinched in at the waist with a leather corset-style belt. Meanwhile, Vickerz was spotted leaving the BBC One studios looking very Florence Welch in a pretty cotton white maxidress.
Mollie King and Una Healy of The Saturdays were also looking good in simple outfits leaving the MTV studios in Camden; Mollie looked the quintessential girl-next-door in a crisp blue shirt and denim micro-shorts, while bandmate Una Healy opted for a more sexed-up approach to her outfit by pairing up her denim with a cropped shirt tied at the waist to show off her very brown midriff.
Jordan was also spotted leaving the MTV studios in the daytime, looking a lot scarier than The Saturdays and looking a lot like Donnatella Versace’s evil sister. Her accessory: those stupid lips. No wonder she never looks very happy.
Today’s “Spotted in London” award goes to Fearne for being creative with her fabric and colour combinations. I never thought I’d like mustard yellow but I’ve been proved wrong. Good job.
All images courtesy of WENN.com.
Tags: Fearne Cotton, Jordan, Spotted in London
Posted in Celebrity Style, Gallery, Spotted, Spotted in London | 1 Comment »
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