Nicolas Ghesquiere Departing from Balenciaga

I've been super busy with uni work and will be for a bit yet but wanted to just acknowledge (though pretty late on this one!) the departure of Nicolas Ghesquiere from Balenciaga after 15 years. Throughout my younger teenager years when I was just getting interested in fashion properly and discovering various fashion designers, labels and their styles, Balenciaga was one that always markedly stood out. I'm writing this as though its an obituary and its not of course! I look forwards to seeing what his next move is and what direction Balenciaga take after his departure.

Just a select few of my favourite Ghesquiere Balenciaga designs. The last one is from my all time favourite collection of his, spring 2011. Been trying to work a similar look recently (with jeans instead of the shorts...):

Fall 2006 RTW

Spring 2008 RTW

Spring 2011 RTW

Image 1 / Image 2 / Image 3 / Image 4

Oops... Recent Haul

Sorry for the absence, been very busy with general uni stuff but I'm making a concerted effort to get back into blogging. Meanwhile, I've not been so sensible with money over the past month or so and have quite hastily stocked up on my winter wardrobe. I've tried to justify most of them by claiming they're things I needed but some... not so much.

Coat - Zara - £139.99

Yeah it hurt to type that out. The coat did indeed cost me £140, no student discounts or anything but its damn beautiful so that consoles me slightly. I'm in the process of selling my Debenhams coat from last year to lessen the price blow a bit but I am really pleased with this one. I've been after a leather jacket and a smart black winter coat so it kinda kills two birds with one stone.

Backpack - Urban Outfitters (Mens) - £44 (includes 20% discount)

This is the first of my student discount purchases. The big shopping centre in Sheffield is Meadowhall and every year they have a student 'lock-in' where big stores like Topshop have 20% off. While I don't turn my nose up at Topshop 20% off (as you'll find out in a minute...) they do it quite often but its great for shops like Urban Outfitters that rarely do above the usual 10%. Last year I used a tatty leather satchel I'd gotten off ASOS for uni. It had frankly seen better days and carrying books on one shoulder was starting to hurt so I decided on a practical purchase for once. Its a guy's bag and kind of oversized but I love it. I kind of want it to get beaten up a bit and look worn and the badge collection was bigger than that but they have a habit of falling off! I had a really great one that I got from a gig where a sub-pop band called Jaill were playing.

Leather Bag - Topshop - £60 (includes 20% discount)

When I got my first part time job at 16 I spent my first pay check on a lovely leather bag from Topshop that I used day in and day out religiously. Last year one of the handles dropped off and I reverted to using my beloved Rough Trade canvas. However, it's not really ideal for everyday and when I spotted this on a shelf in Topshop I instantly fell for it. I seriously love the shape of this bag and it feels like amazing quality.

Nighthawk studded boots - Office - £75 (includes 10% discount)

I remember seeing the original Chloe boot about two years ago and being a bit unsure about them but I needed to get some winter boots so I decided to try these Office copycat versions on and fell for them instantly. The buckle/stud detail is pretty badass so they're definitely the statement part of an outfit. They're also incredibly comfortable.

'a' Necklace - Accessorize - £4

I don't have much gold jewellery, always been more of a silver person, but this dinky little necklace just caught my eye. Works great on its own with white shirts and t-shirts.

NYFW/LFW Favourites

Mary Katrantzou (LFW)

It has become pretty much a given that Mary Katrantzou will be featured in my favourites. She has never done a collection that I've disliked and I fell for S/S13 hard. I love the exotic stamp theme that runs throughout it and the odd structures to some of the dresses.

Lacoste (NYFW)

I'm not usually one for sports wear but this was by far one of my favourite collections from NYFW. I love the repeat pattern sports detailing on some of the pieces, especially the polo shirt print and the simple outfits. It seems I love the two extremes: crazy structures (Mary Katrantzou, Vivienne Westwood etc) or just really simple like this Lacoste collection. The splashes of cobalt blue throughout the collection went well against the crisp clean white.

3.1 Phillip Lim (NYFW)

Dungarees are that one item I've always secretly wished I could get away with. So when these wonderful pink creations graced the catwalk at 3.1 Phillip Lim I was over the moon. I'm also quite taken with the floral word t-shirts, they remind me a bit of the craze for Frankie Goes to Hollywood style 'RELAX' t-shirts that were everywhere in 2006 but in a good way.

Mulberry (LFW)

Didn't like the ochre leather at the start of the collection (for some reason it reminds me of the 1970s, in the worst way possible) but as it went on it just got better and better. I'm really into tailoring at the moment and can't seem to get enough of the metallic brocades that are popping up everwhere. There is a rather lovely pair of metallic brocade cigarette trousers in Topshop at the moment that are tempting me...

House of Holland (LFW)

I loved the House of Holland collection so much. It feels a lot more grown up than any of his previous collections but there were still elements of his trademark bursts of youthful fun. This dye tie was a particular highlight for me and I am desperate for it to trickle down into the highstreet!

What have been your favourite collections from the recent fashion weeks?

All images: style.com

Dolly's Delights

Published on Forge Press Online, the University of Sheffield's Student Newspaper 10/09/12

Back in May, Lifestyle went down to the Nicholls Building in Shalesmoor to speak with Dolly (AKA Jan Lupson) of Dolly’s Delights. Saturday August 18 marked the first birthday of her vintage clothing business, based in the vibrant setting of the Nicholls Building, with a weekend full of celebrations to mark a very successful year. Alice Burrow went to represent Lifestyle and see what was going on…

It was my first visit to the Nicholls Building and I couldn’t believe that I had been missing out for all this time! Situated on the main road in Shalesmoor, the Nicholls Building was home to a grocery wholesalers from the late 1800s but it is now home to an eclectic mix of vintage clothing and antique dealers, Dolly’s Delights being just one of them. It is the first unit you are greeted by when you enter the large first floor of the building, bursting with antique treasures. I spent ages browsing through Dolly’s wonderful wares and was particularly taken with an amazing vintage fur stole and a kitsch Coca Cola tin.

I found Dolly (Jan) upstairs in Gordie Cavill’s studio amongst piles of vintage clothing and I was immediately graced with some free dolly mixture (much appreciated!). Fortunately, the strangely murky weather hadn’t damped spirits and she excitedly ran over the day’s events, which had included a radio interview with BBC Radio Sheffield.

As part of the birthday celebrations, Dolly was collaborating with photographer Gordie Cavill of Source Photography who occupies the top floor of the Nicholls Building. He kindly let me take a photo of Dolly and it was much appreciated that he didn’t laugh at my simple point and shoot camera, which looked pretty feeble amongst all his equipment! Dolly’s Delights was offering 10% off all weekend and released 12 red balloons, one for every month of the business, into the Sheffield sky with gift vouchers attached. They’re still out there so keep your eyes peeled for deflated red balloons lurking in the bushes! For those who sadly missed out on the weekend, there are still various competitions running onDolly’s Facebook page. If vintage clothing, crafts and creative vibes are your kind of thing then get yourself down to the Nicholls Building and explore the treasures lurking within.

We’d like to wish Dolly’s Delights a very happy 1^st birthday, hopefully there will be many more years of antique treasures and celebrating to come!

Alice Burrow

The Nichols Building Website
Dolly's Delights Facebook

Photos by Source Photography
http://www.sourcephotography.co.uk/

A/W Trend #2: Dark Glamour

I've coined this term myself because to me its all about luxury with a gothic twist. In the dark glamour trend, black is the integral colour. It is brought to life by metallics (particularly gold) and jacquard patterns. Think smart cuts, tailoring, metallic detailing and classical prints like baroque and jacquard. Soften the trend up with velvet and light fabrics like chiffon.

Gucci Fall 2012Gucci is one of the main collections that comes to mind when I think of the dark glamour trend. It was mainly black but the velvet brocade detailing brought the tailored suits to life and I love the harsh militaristic styles against the soft chiffon fabrics. 

Dolce and Gabbana A/W 2012Dolce and Gabbana's collection was notable for its use of mixed textures like lace, velvet and fur. The gold baroque applique also sums the dark glamour trend up pretty well. Dresses with this kind of detailing are all over the high street at the moment such as this one below which I've spotted in River Island. Pairing a (faux) fur jacket with dresses in the evening would be perfect for this look.

Black foil baroque dress - River Island - £40

Gold Jacquard Jacket - £60 - ASOS

Jacquard Coat - Zara - £79.99

Jacquard Loom Trousers - Zara - £39.99

(Primark have a similar pair of trousers for £16)

This trend aso translates into beauty. Dark lipstick with simple eye makeup was huge in the fall collections and a particularly favourite of mine was Pat McGrath's work on the Gucci collection which was all about bleached eyebrows, simple eye makeup and strong lipstick.

Gucci A/W 12 Makeup Details (Image credit)

MAC Dark Shine lipstick / NARS Larger Than Life Lipgloss / OPI Nail Varnish

(Runway photos from Style.com)

A/W Trends #1: Coats

This weirdly humid but horribly rainy weather that has been  on a constant for the last week or so is getting me in the mood for autumn and uni starting again. I was going to do one big blog post on A/W trends but I'm going to split it into several individual posts instead. Coats are like my thing so naturally they get to go first. A coat graces nearly every single outfit I wear in late autumn and winter so I like it to be perfect and usually get a new one every year (or every two years if it was a particular expensive affair).

1970s Luxe

Matthew Williamson, Mulberry, Moschino Cheap & Chic

'Fuzz' sums this trend up better than 'fur' and to me is very 70s inspired. I could image walking down the street in a coat similar to the Matthew Williamson one with orange bell bottoms and platforms with 'Get It On' by T-Rex blasting in the background. I also highly recommend taking a look at Mulberry's latest ad campaign inspired by 'Where the Wild Things Are', I think it is great.

Tiger In the Jungle Bomber Jacket - Topshop - £250

English Heritage

Ralph Lauren, Daks, Vivienne Westwood

English heritage made an appearance in quite a few A/W 2012-13 collections. Forget quilted jackets and Jack Wills, this is all about fine tailoring - dog tooth, tweed and argyll. These kind of coats would look amazing with brogues and statement knitwear, in a similar style to Ralph Lauren.

Military

McQ, Altuzarra, MaxMara

The military coat surfaces every year but slightly different each time. This year the focus appears to be on khaki (such as that seen at Burberry Prorsum, McQ by Alexander McQueen and MaxMara) or sharp black jackets with brass buttons.

Military Coat - Zara - £89.99

Mannish

Matthew Williamson, 3.1 Phillip Lim, Paul Smith

This is one of my favourite coat trends and the one that I'll probably try and buy into once autumn comes around. I really like the look with a fitted suit underneath similar to what Paul Smith has done above. However, for those that aren't confident fully embracing the masculine trend this winter then a mannish coat paired with a feminine dress would look great, or if you do decide to go for the suit then pair it up with heels.

Grandfather Coat - Urban Outfitters - £185

Oversized

3.1 Phillip Lim, Jil Sander, Acne

Celine, Balenciaga, Celine

This trend featured so heavily in the fall collections that I had to include more than just a select few designer pieces. For the most part, this is kind of entwined with the 'mannish' trend because of the oversized tailoring of the coats but Jil Sander and Celine managed to put a feminine edge on these masculine shapes by using feminine colours. A few years ago I had a coat from Topshop that would have fit this trend perfectly - I regret getting rid of it now!

Boyfriend Coat by Unique - Topshop -£250

Louise Gray for Topshop

When it comes to the Scottish fashion designer Louise Gray, think glitter (LOTS of glitter), fun, colour explosions, clashing prints and organised chaos. Gray has recently joined the likes of Mary Katrantzou and Christopher Kane and has collaborated with British high street giant, Topshop. Interestingly, it is the first makeup collaboration Topshop have ever done and there is quite a bit of excitement surrounding it.

Louise Gray (image credit)

Louise Gray Fall 2012

The clothing collection is only a very compact one with six pieces but I think that together they sum up Louise Gray's style. A style that has been generating much excitement at LFW since she burst onto the scene in 2007. For me, personally, there are a bit to many sequins going on and I certainly couldn't wear them casually (though I wish I had the guts to!). However, this t-shirt below is amazing and with it's long length I could see it being a perfect dress for a night out with a pair of ruby red heels.

Sequin Long T-Shirt (image credit)

Louise Gray for Topshop trousers

Unsurprisingly, the makeup collection channels Gray's signature eccentric style. It is all about strong colours and adventurous looks. Gray is rarely seen without her strong eye makeup which reminds me of a child that has been let loose on their mother's makeup (in the best possible way!). The collection includes blusher, lipstick, glitter, eye liner, nail varnish and surprisingly even makeup brushes. In an interview for The Sunday Times Gray explained that she wanted everything right down to the packaging to have the wow factor.

Mascara (image credit)

Lipstick in 'Legend' (image credit)

Nail Varnish 'Junkyard' (image credit)

I'm not very adventurous with make-up; liquid eyeliner or a smokey eye on a night out is about as crazy as it gets. However, I'd like to try this collection as perhaps it'd encourage me to change my ways! While I doubt I'll be walking down the street with blue and orange lines around my eyes any time soon, it might encourage me to venture into brighter colours and different looks. I do particularly envy that Gray doesn't care what onlookers think. I also love that she is modelling the collection herself as its a bright and colourful collection so who better to do it!

This collection goes on sale this Friday.