Archive for the ‘Style spotlight’ Category
Accessories, Behind the bag, Designer Fashions, Designers, Fashion Crush, Fashion Tips, Features, Handbags, Nostalgia, Opinion, Style spotlight
By Daisy Buchanan on June 13th, 2013
Lucy plotted this purchase carefully online. She wasn’t thinking ‘mummy bag’. She wanted something classy, classic, summer in the Hamptons, old school power bitch with a Filofax. But now the cream exterior is smudged with biro and stained with mustard, and the interior is a different, even more distressing horror story. She imagines an official government bag inspector rifling through it in dismay, ignoring the shinier signs of success (iPad, Marc Jacobs wallet, Chanel lipstick – in a colour that’s no longer available, but still) and shrieking with horror at the tampons who escaped their cellophane to roll in the bag dust like dirty hippies. And what of the other monstrosities? Nude Topshop ballet pumps with a busted seam that have started to smell ‘curious’. Camus to look cool, Jilly Cooper for luck and an old, unread Vogue doing the job of a document folder. Seven foil wrappings which once held falafel wraps from Leon.
Lucy sometimes finds life in London so overwhelming that she wishes she could climb inside her giant bag and wait for someone to discover her and look after her, like Paddington. Or she could set up home there – it’s no darker or smellier than her Clapham house share, and it’s much cheaper. Perhaps she’ll throw it into the sea and go to her parents’ in Dorset for a bit. She remembers walking around their hall, arms outstretched, feeling for wifi like a Knightmare contestant, and thinks again. She hitches her giant bag higher on her shoulder and its padlock narrowly misses the face of a passing cyclist. In London, you need all the weapons you can get.
Tags: "designer handbag", Accessories, Behind the bag, Daisy Buchanan, Osprey, tote bag, wardrobe stories
Posted in Accessories, Behind the bag, Designer Fashions, Designers, Fashion Crush, Fashion Tips, Features, Handbags, Nostalgia, Opinion, Style spotlight | No Comments »
Fashion Tips, Features, outerwear, Sleeves of the week, Style spotlight
By Lauren Bravo on June 1st, 2013
Cardigans are not the only fruit… Forgo the pastel weddingwear and sleeve up with this little patchwork jacket instead
I can’t wear cardigans. Or perhaps cardigans can’t wear me – I’m not sure, but either way the effect is always the wrong side of homely, as though I’ve been knitted and stuffed as a craft project. I wish this wasn’t so, though, because successful cardigan-wearing would be my ticket out of sleeveless Hades, but my arms just look sad in one. They know they’ve been “poured”, Daily Mail-style, into an itchy last resort. They sulk.
As it is, instead I’ve become a ‘little jacket’ person instead. Yes, we’re still in tricky Mother of the Bride territory, but the sharp outline of a little jacket trumps the woolly cosset of a cardie in my book. Especially when it’s as goshdarnit fabulous as this cropped patchwork jacket from ASOS. Ignoring the promise of “padded sleeves for extra shape”, which is making me think of those creepy barbecue aprons with pecs stuck on, it’s a summer saviour and no mistake.
With just the teeniest patchouli whiff of a yesteryear Camden Market about it, this would be your antidote to generic pastel summer occasionwear (or The Curse of Coast). It’ll work in the office, it’ll work in the park, but most crucially it’ll work at weddings. Stick it on over something swishy and simple, add some floral head attire, stand by the buffet table and do a face that says “oh this? I found it in a little souk on my travels and traded it for one of my sketches.”
Don’t say that though, you’ll look like a dick.
Tags: ASOS jacket, cardigans, cover-up, Lauren Bravo, patchwork, sleeves of the week, summer, weddings
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Accessories, Affordable Fashions, Fashion Tips, Features, Footwear, Gallery, shoes, Style spotlight, Trend Alert
By Lauren Bravo on May 28th, 2013
Blister plasters at the ready! The sun is out (well, it was yesterday) and we’re stocking up on sandals
We’re all wincing this week, right? The first properly sunny weekend of the year is like a siren call to get your toes out, and so we dutifully fish last year’s sandals from the bottom of the wardrobe and prepare to limp our way around town until the buggers have stretched themselves comfy again.
But once the wounds have healed it’ll all be worth it, because sandals are really great this year. From totally flat to modest block heels and wedges, from space age perspex and clear plastic straps to fully earth-mother buckled leather styles, there’s a world of casually chic padding about to be had – and flip flops have never looked so mediocre.
So free your toes from the thong and let them wiggle freely in a pair of these strappy delights.
Hedley sandals, £45 ASOS
The perfect shade of canary yellow, the perfect single strap, the perfect mini heel - if these Hedley sandals from ASOS don't bring the sunshine out, nothing will.
Tags: ASOS, Bertie, Debenhams, Dune, Faith, George at ASDA, gladiator sandals, House of Fraser, Lauren Bravo, sandals, Steve Madden, TopShop, wedges
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Affordable Fashions, Fashion Tips, Features, Opinion, Sales and Specials, Sleeves of the week, Style spotlight, Trend Alert
By Lauren Bravo on May 24th, 2013
Metallics in the daytime? Don’t mind if we do! Long-sleeved but skimpy AND on sale, this Oh My Love dress ticks all our boxes
I’ve always been a fan of glam daywear. In a nonchalantly decadent way, you understand, not in a ‘walk of shame’ way – although we all know that can be plenty fun too. Ever since implementing ‘Fancy Fridays’, where about five of us wore cocktail dresses and suits to sixth form once a week for no particular reason (other than being 17 and by default, knobs) I’ve loved the thrill of wearing something glitzy in broad daylight. It’s probably because I’m terrible at proper dressing up, when then pressure is on and something inevitably always rips or spills or pinches or just doesn’t quite work. Meanwhile the element of surprise in wearing a sequinned top to brunch will always compensate for the fact you look a bit like Danny La Rue.
The trick is paring down a fancy frock with flats and a casual jacket, or teaming luxe fabric with an old t-shirt (I’m quoting this from fashion magazines of course; all t-shirts make me look like a Mum on a charity fun run). This year’s metallics obsession has been great news for us magpies, with even the dowdiest of shoes, satchels, jumpers and trews being given a Midas makeover.
So, onto our star of the week. This shimmering silver wrap dress from Oh My Love scores on so many different points, it’s like it’s auditioning to be the Robin van Persie of your wardrobe. Long sleeves, yes, but still skimpy enough for bonafide summer wear. That now-ubiquitous skater style, yes, but with a plunging wrap neckline for easier hefty necklace co-ordination. Plus, it’s reduced from £39 to £15 in the sale. PLUS, it looks vaguely like a sci-fi outfit from the 60s, which will be useful for all those space-themed fancy dress parties everyone is always throwing.
Give it the tights-and-biker-boots treatment until your legs are ready to come out from hiding (at our estimation they should get a good two and half hours or so in mid-August), then with sandals and beachy hair. Maybe a Barbarella bubble helmet. It’s your call.
Tags: metallic, Oh My Love. long-sleeved, silver dress. wrap dress, skater dress, sleeves of the week
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dresses, Fashion Crush, Fashion Tips, Features, Gallery, Get the look, Movie fashion, shoes, So you want to look like, Style Icon, Style spotlight, Trend Alert, vintage
By Lauren Bravo on May 3rd, 2013
Pour yourself a mint julep and swing those pearls – thanks to Baz Luhrmann’s new release, the 1920s are roaring straight back into our wardrobes
Are you a flapper? Do you flap? Not the type you do when you’ve got hot food in your mouth, but the fashion type, currently dancing its way across the silver screen again – on Carey Mulligan, Leonardo DiCaprio and Isla Fisher in The Great Gatsby, F Scott Fitzgerald’s masterpiece of jazz age ennui.
Decadent, libertine and eternally gorgeous, flapper style is the smart lady’s fancy dress era of choice because it’s more original than the 80s, less polyester-flammable than the 60s and less restrictive than the 50s, all those roomy waistbands allow for far more fun at the buffet table.
In normal life, though, it’s a trickier one to integrate. Unless you work in the kind of office where kooky feather headbands are tolerated round the coffee machine, the look is a more obvious choice for evening, when you can drape yourself in sequins and hit up a speakeasy* (*Wetherspoons). It’s also not an ideal look if you’re prone to spills – pastels and muted neutrals abound, as does Daisy Buchanan’s signature summer white.
Plus there are two other big obstacles to pulling off the 20s trend, and they’re bobbing about on your chest. As Thoroughly Modern Millie showed us with her beads that wouldn’t hang straight, those drop-waisted dresses are friend to the flat-chested gal, but a couple of cup sizes can take you from the beautiful to the damned. Or at least the ‘damn, that dress be hanging off her like a valance sheet’.
But hey – we ain’t about prohibiting here. Just find an embellished deep-V instead, or flap it up with accessories. Mid-heeled T-bars and Mary Janes have a fashion ‘moment’ so often you may as well stock up now, and there’s no desk-to-dancefloor situation (we have those ALL the TIME, right?) that a sequined cape can’t solve.
We’re also rather taken with Gatsby style as bridal inspiration… but one thing at a time, yeah?
Eden bib collar necklace, £19 Accessorize
I know, I know – you already have twelve ‘statement’ necklaces and you can barely afford the chiropractor. But look how beautiful this one is! Stick it on with a t-shirt and you’ve got downtime Daisy, the look she favoured for schlepping around the morning after all those gin gimlets.
Tags: 1920s styles, Art Deco, Baz Luhrmann, Carey Mulligan, evening dress, evening heels, flapper dress, Lauren Bravo, Leonardo DiCaprio, sequin cape, sequinned dresses, t-bar shoes, The Great Gatsby, vintage
Posted in dresses, Fashion Crush, Fashion Tips, Features, Gallery, Get the look, Movie fashion, shoes, So you want to look like, Style Icon, Style spotlight, Trend Alert, vintage | No Comments »
Gallery, Style spotlight
By Elisabeth Edvardsen on January 22nd, 2013
We love the new hairstyle of First Lady of the United States, Michelle Obama, sported at her husband Barack’s inauguration recently. For the Ball, Michelle opted for a dramatic, yet stunning red gown by designer Jason Wu – whose designs she also opted for four years ago. Teamed with shoes by Jimmy Choo, the First Lady looked stunning as she celebrated with her husband. Earlier in the day Michelle wore a tailored navy coat by Thom Browne.
Over the years Michelle has shown the world she has what it takes to be high up there among the fashion savvy, usually opting for knee-length gowns, sometimes in strong colours. Take a look at some of Michelle’s looks from the past years in the gallery below.
Michelle Obama
First lady Michelle Obama arrives Commander-in-Chief's Inaugural Ball at the 57th Presidential Inauguration in Washington, Monday, Jan. 21, 2013. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
Tags: "Michelle Obama fashion", First Lady of the United States, michelle obama, style spotlight
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Red Carpet, Style spotlight
By Elisabeth Edvardsen on January 8th, 2013
Actress Emma Stone looked as glamorous as ever at last night’s premiere of Gangster Squad in Los Angeles.
The 24-year-old – who is dating fellow actor Andrew Garfield – wore a sizzling red strapless dress by Lanvin, teamed with a statement necklace and killer Louboutin heels.
This is not the first time Emma has impressed on the red carpet. Take a look at the gallery below to see more of Emma’s sartorial choices.
Style Spotlight: Emma Stone
All images: Press Association
Tags: Emma Stone, red carpet style, style spotlight
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Style spotlight
By Elisabeth Edvardsen on January 2nd, 2013
Poor Anne Hathaway… Life must be very miserable for the 30-year-old actress who has been seen as a “good girl” with “no sex appeal” up until now.
Let’s just forget for a moment that she recently married to the “love of her life”, is tipped for an Oscar for her performance in Les Misérables, and graced with model looks that can carry off both a short crop and long tresses, and the fact that she managed to look fantastic in a fitted catsuit…
Speaking to Harper’s Bazaar Anna said: “I’m not cool. When people come up to me in the street, they often want a hug not a photo, and they want that because they like my work.”
“For a long time it was me and her [her manager] against the world. I was seen as this bizarre-world good-girl cartoon that I in no way identified with – very vanilla, very sweet, very accessible and not interesting.
“I had no grit, no sex appeal.”
Truth is that Anne looks very much like a screen siren in her long - often figure-hugging, sometimes romantic and floaty - gowns on the red carpet. Take a look in the gallery below for some of Anne’s sartorial choices over the past years. Life’s not so bad now, is it Anne?
Anne Hathaway Style Spotlight
Actress Anne Hathaway attends the Hugh Jackman star ceremony at the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Thursday, Dec. 13, 2012, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Dan Steinberg/Invision/AP)
Tags: anne hathaway, red carpet fashion, style spotlight
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Fashion News, Gallery, Style spotlight
By Elisabeth Edvardsen on December 12th, 2012
Hunger Game star Jennifer Lawrence has been voted the world’s most desirable woman, beating fellow actresses Mila Kunis and Emma Stone to the post.
The 22-year-old has been awarded the title in an international poll by online men’s magazine AskMen.com, winning the majority of the 2.4 million votes.
The blonde beauty, who now sports long dark tresses and won votes due to her ’down-to-earth attitude’, has showed off a lot of different looks on the red carpet this year. Take a look at Jennifer Lawrence’s style evolution below.
A star is born
Jennifer Lawrence arrives at "The Hunger Games" world premiere held at the Nokia Theatre L.A. Live on March 12, 2011 in Los Angeles, Ca (AP Photo / Tammie Arroyo)
All images: Press Association
Tags: Hunger Games, Jennifer Lawrence, red carpet style, world's most desirable woman
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Celebrity Style, Fashion Crush, Features, Gallery, Style Icon, Style spotlight
By Andrea Petrou on April 24th, 2012
We’ve had our style eye on Jessie J for a while now, pinpointing her as the one to watch many moons ago.
And it seems we were right with the singer carving out a fashion niche for herself thanks to her love of Versacesque 80s patterns, skintight catsuits and cute hotpants.
Her new role as a judge on the BBC’s talent show – The Voice UK- has also done wonders for her style profile with many sitting up and taking note of this young singer.
One thing we heart about Jessie is that she’s not afraid to experiment with her look opting for some styles that could be seen as garish.
This includes a wardrobe of leopard print dresses and trousers in bright colours, however, the singer has a way of toning these down to make them items we all want to wear.
We want her as our new wardrobe sharing BFF.
See the gallery below for her style.
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: 80s prints, fashion, Jessie J, judge, leopard print, style, The Voice UK, top five looks, Versace
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Celebrity Style, Gallery, Style spotlight
By Andrea Petrou on March 27th, 2012
Sophie Dahl’s life has been like a fairytale. The granddaughter of author Roald Dahl was spotted at her super curvy stage by a scout after she helped pick up her shopping, and the rest, as they say, is history. Gracing the catwalks in basques and lingerie at the beginning of her career, the supermodel broke the super skinny taboo showing that curvy girls could be just as beautiful.
She also paved the way for plus sized models to be considered in campaigns and on the runway. However, like many a celebrity in the spotlight the pressure to be skinny took its toll and Sophie shrank down to a teeny, but still as beautiful size 10.
Although we haven’t seen too much of the model of late, her style is still one we love. Keeping in with the classic look the model is often spotted in LBDs on a night out.
When she’s with her hubby Jamie Cullum, Sophie will often opt for cute ballet pumps, whilst small kitten heels come out for an evening event.
Sophie is also happy to try different trends with tartans and patterned fabrics being staple pieces in her wardrobe.
See the gallery below for all her style.
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: curvy models, diets, green tea, Jamie Cullum, Plus size models, Sophie Dahl, style spotlight
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Celebrity Style, Gallery, Red Carpet, Style spotlight
By Elisabeth Edvardsen on March 16th, 2012
The Hunger Games actress Elizabeth Banks is one of those you immediately recognise but can’t really place (or is that just me?).
She’s the cute next door kind of American girl, with beautiful golden locks and a charming smile. A rising star in the world of film, Elizabeth has also made sure people have taken notice of her as she’s graced the red carpets recently. Showing off in on-trend block colours, she’s certainly one to watch.
Check out the gallery below to see some of Elizabeth Banks’ recent red carpet looks, including the lemon yellow sequin Bill Blass dress she wore to the UK premiere of The Hunger Games.
Showing that it's not just Angelina that can do legs!
All images Press Association
Tags: "Elizabeth Banks", Celebrity Style, red carpet fashion, The Hunger Games
Posted in Celebrity Style, Gallery, Red Carpet, Style spotlight | 2 Comments »
Gallery, Style spotlight
By Andrea Petrou on December 12th, 2011
In monochrome with a nod to the 80s
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Tags: Cannonball, downloads, fashion, Little Mix, single, Spice Girls, style, Tulisa, X Factor winners
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Style spotlight
By Elisabeth Edvardsen on December 9th, 2011
We all know one of the most important beauty commandments is to get enough sleep, and we do try our best to get the recommended hours each week despite living hectic lives. But it seems like Florence and the Machine singer Florence Welch has another opinion altogether.
Florence says she feels ‘special’ when she realises she has stayed awake for over 24 hours and that her ‘favourite mode of being’ is having not slept. She continues: “The reason why it’s so special is because you know that it’s going to crash. As soon as you go to sleep, you know everything will be reset double and work will be double.”
This may be the case Florence, but we still do love our beauty sleep.
If Florence’s ‘sleep idea’ has anything to do with her choice of fashion we do not know, but take a look at the gallery below for some of her outfits over the past couple of years.
Tags: Florence and the Machine, Florence Welch, style spotlight
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Style spotlight
By Elisabeth Edvardsen on December 8th, 2011
New York City is known for its fashion and style and Jessica Biel did not disappoint the crowds as she turned up in a stunning Valentino dress at last night’s ‘New Year’s Eve’ premiere. Biel teamed her Valentino gown with vintage looking Lorraine Scwartz jewels, red nails and natural flowing locks – and looked every part the film star she is.
Photo credit: Press Association
Tags: Jessica Biel, New Year's Eve premiere, valentino
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Lucy plotted this purchase carefully online. She wasn’t thinking ‘mummy bag’. She wanted something classy, classic, summer in the Hamptons, old school power bitch with a Filofax. But now the cream exterior is smudged with biro and stained with mustard, and the interior is a different, even more distressing horror story. She imagines an official government bag inspector rifling through it in dismay, ignoring the shinier signs of success (iPad, Marc Jacobs wallet, Chanel lipstick – in a colour that’s no longer available, but still) and shrieking with horror at the tampons who escaped their cellophane to roll in the bag dust like dirty hippies. And what of the other monstrosities? Nude Topshop ballet pumps with a busted seam that have started to smell ‘curious’. Camus to look cool, Jilly Cooper for luck and an old, unread Vogue doing the job of a document folder. Seven foil wrappings which once held falafel wraps from Leon.
From:What does your selfie say about you?