French fashion Special 3 - The French high street

As promised I left my snowy mountains this morning and drove down to have a closer look at what a provincial French town has to offer clothes-wise.

To be honest I was expecting grey, grey and more grey. I was not entirely wrong, but in the midst of all these dull, dark colours I spotted the accessory I will be taking back to London.

This season the French are doing something big in fashion - literally: the oversize scarf.

They are in all colours, from clementine-orange to grapefruit-pink.

I later realised that the magazines are ablaze with the question: "the oversize scarf: do you dare, or do you fear it?"

I say: DARE.

Vogue featured it in an Amazonian shoot last year, and the effect is sublime: all wool, it really adds contrast (in colour and texture) to a black or uniform outfit.

The rest of the displays were well set out and embellished but the inside of the shops rather disappointing ...

Take your typical high street store and remove any items containing bright colours, tight fits, sequins and unusual textures (I am thinking the overly popular shinny or leather leggings). Now you have it: the French high-street.

Style, but safe style only.

French fashion Special 2 - do it Paris like Chanel

Cigarette-cut trousers, cropped bobs, a french actress once the face of Chanel and a french director: the French are so keen on their cinema - and their classic fashion - they are making yet another Coco Chanel film.

"Coco Chanel et Igor Stravinsky" staring Anna Mouglalis as Coco, should be released in April 2009.

The film is based on a novel by Chris Greenhalgh, Coco and Igor.

It is a romantic uptake on Coco Chanel and composer Igor Stravinsky's fiery fascination for each other. The producer, Jan Kounen, said it would be a film about desire, love and passion - Oulala!

Anna Mouglalis is going to rival Audrey Tautou and it could be a tie: both actresses appear to be a perfect fit for the role of fashion designer giant.

This could well suggest that Coco-style is the next French trend to follow.

The french Elle rates cigarette trousers as the trend of the winter - all very 1913 - and the magazine is full of ways in which to work it.

If you want a chic Parisian look this season try it with a tailored jacket, a bowler hat and Derby shoes. Very French, Madame.

I have yet to verify this trend rumour and see if all these items are actually lining shop displays (French stores are prohibited by law to open on Sundays), but I promise a full report on the french high street shops tomorrow.

French fashion Special 1 - France's next hot model

After a slight delay - I missed my flight yesterday - I am finally in France for a short holiday.

I decided to do a three-days-special on French Fashion.

I went through a bunch of magazines this afternoon and I came across an up-and-coming French model who seems like she could be big (not literally of course).

For starters, the 16 year old winner of the Elite Model Look 2007 contest, has a charming name and a stunning body. She moves in a very suave way, connecting with movement, every drop-points of the clothes she is wearing.
Adama Diallo could be the next Naomie Campbell - a la french.

She catwalked for Vivienne Westwood's Spring/Summer 2009 show, which is not an unnoticeable start for someone who has not even started to worry about her GCSEs.

She has got a really peculiar face, and she takes very special care of it (with mostly Chanel products). In an interview she admitted to always have a mirror on her, so that when someone looks at her quaintly she can check why.

Her features are striking, probably because her mouth is set in a continuous pulped pout. she has high eyebrows, high cheekbones and a roundish face - it could be baby fat, let's face it the girl in still in her best teenage years.

In short, she has more than a few elements of the new face: large lips, rounder face and slightly tabular features. It's all very lush.

To be honest, Adama is fascinating, especially when walking down a runway. She's beautifully odd - which, in modeling is the key to success - a little like an exotic bird with peacock feathers stuck on top of her own.

Natalia Vodianova and her fellow supermodels might well look out for this new sweet face.

Top Shop is deemed Wagalicious by Cheryl Cole

As it turns out I haven't been completely missing the fashion point by reading about the fascinating lives of Wags (yes, I have read the sequel A WAG Abroad as well and it actually is a really hilariously entertaining read).

Cheryl Cole, who does fit Alison Kervin's description of a superb Wag - tikka massala colour, impressive hair, even larger breasts and tight clothing - could be on her way to launch her own line.

After meeting with Kate Moss, she reportedly said she wanted to get into high fashion and the two girls started making plans.

The model-improvised-designer is rumoured to be in negotiations with Sir Philip Green to include her new Girls Aloud friend to work with Kate on her own Top Shop range.

I doubt there will be much designing, it will probably be an all-day-long window shopping job for the two fashion-fans.

Top Shop is betting on celebrities in an attempt to reach out to the high street customer (and not unsuccessfully it must be said if we take into account the Kate Moss collection still raises furies from fashion buyers).

It is a reasonable marketing plan, however it will probably mean another notch lost in high-fashion credibility for the store.

Hopefully the full stiletto, boob tube and lager Wagalicious-style does not perspire too much into the range; if the project ever sees the light of Oxford Street.

Travel fashion

I'm taking the plane to go to France tomorrow which raised a major fashion issue: what do you wear while traveling?

It's an easy enough question when you are flying first class, have a taxi to drive you to the airport in time, and own a stunning designer luggage to catch the eye, but what about when you are flying with Ryanair?

First the obvious, avoid tight clothing, shoes over 5inches (for obvious reasons) and laced shoes - mostly because with airport security you will have to take them on and off at least five times before boarding.

Airports are curious places, everyone dresses in a particular way while traveling. It's never about tracksuits and comfy - it's a middle-ground fashion, maybe because you want to look good for the person waiting for you at the arrival.

Something warm is also a sound idea, because no matter what they say, once you are hovering at 13 000ft above the ground its freezing cold.

I am opting for comfy military-style ankle boots (I could run a race and win in these), shinny leggings and an oversize woolen jumper.

Now all I will have to do is perfect my on-the-go-make-up skills tomorrow morning if i don't want to be late for the airport shuffle ...

Maison Martin Margiela wigs out

Margiela s/s show 2009

Last night, in Bruton Street, London, conceptual fashion fans were having a Wizard-of-Oz-like minimalist party.

Picture the scene: waiters serving you candyfloss in the street, a path of tabi-toed footprints and a rather empty room with white, helium-filled balloons, clustering the ceiling.

That, Ladies and Gentlemen, was Maison Martin Margiela inaugurating its new London main store.

To contribute to the faceless randomness of the brand, Margiela released a fashion dance film, Make Up Your Mind.

Imagine an eerie dancing picture of naked women, with stocking-covered faces, and a blond-wig coat.

Definitely worth watching - the designer (who collaborated with Nick Knight for the footage) has an amazing way of presenting Anti-fashion fashion.

Flap your capes

Picture it: you are about to step in inside an icicle (an average British winter) and you're wrapped up like a Christmas present - gloves, hat, double tights, thigh-high socks, tight cardigan, jacket, etc. All items on the check list have been ticked.

Now, imagine for a minute that you are a superhero, what key signature piece of clothing did you forget?

Unless you are Catwoman - and in this case all the leather and PVC does the job - you could not imagine facing the world without a cape.

I am fully aware that capes are often assimilated with men wearing underwear over neon tights - and even though AF Vandervost did the 'underwear as outerwear' look in sexy creamy tones at the last shows, this is not what I am suggesting you do: I am a fan but it is far too cold to think of playing with under-layers at the moment.

Cover ups however are needed in any shape or form, and capes could well become the new coat.

They are shorter than your average musketeer or 16th century floaty cape, and more shapely.

I know that capes are by nature thinner than a fur coat, and I am addicted to warmth just as the next person, but I like to believe winter can be more stylish than wool bulging coats and hand-knit scarves.

Capes add structure to the silhouette, and with the superstructure trends lurking about, it will not look out of place.

New Look has a military style cape and Acne does a cape dress.

They are also not as breezy as we would imagine - it is true you might need to add an extra thin jumper under your jacket, but overall a layer is a layer. And if it is a stylish layer all the better.

Fashion humour: The Harry Potter signature spectacles

I was re-watching some Luella shows yesterday and I noticed a preponderant accessory in her Spring 2008 catwalk, that I cannot believe I missed before: the geeky spectacles.

We all know about glasses, they are hard to play with. They can be sexy in a secretary-style look, or downright horrendous.

It's very tricky to find a pair that fit your complexion, bone structure, haircut and character. Everyone who ever had to wear them as a child will agree.

So why bring back some of the worst spectacles ever created?

Large black frames do not fit many people, no matter how gorgeous your features - it a shape that does not work well. It tends to sharply break down the face and drown the nose and eyes under plastic rims while taking the focus away from the mouth. Thus creating a Picasso effect.

I understand Geek Chic, how it was tweaked to add some dangerous sexiness into the trend. It can look dazzling and Luella like Paul Smith, work it really well.

It is also perfect as an everyday look, this is partly why it was so successful last autumn and spring (and it is still around in the streets).

However the Harry Potter glasses are an anarchy-statement too far. It surely does make a assertion but maybe not the right one.

I think fashion has a great sense of humour and sometimes, certain pieces must be taken as just that. Not everything on the runway is meant to be worn.

Fur silhouettes

There are a lot of fringed and fur coats all over London.

Today is not the first time I notice a particular silhouette that winter only accentuates: oversize upper-body wear.

Especially as fur is the new way of keeping warm in glamorous hippy-chic style.

Love it or hate it, it is the new texture.

No need to have real fur of course, but it is true it adds some statement to a coat. And most importantly it keeps you warm and snug.

Posh takes Selfridges by storm

Victoria Beckham is everywhere, on magazine covers, all over the news and in Selfridges...

Well, her dVb dress collection was anyways. That is, before a bunch of angry fashion-avid shoppers ripped the hangers bare.

By 3pm, only three of the 58 dresses purchased exclusively by Selfridges were left dangling on the rail.

The dresses are breathtaking, even with a price tag of about £1800.

Posh's influence in fashion is only beginning. She knows her fashion lesson and she is intent on showing it.

She told the Times: 'Being in the Spice Girls, fashion-wise probably didn't open any doors. If anything it shut doors and I've had to bang them down.'

Doors have been banged down (if only those of Selfridges), and in a month, Harrods' doors better beware as the range is going on sale internationally.

Victoria almost rivals Anna Wintour in terms of immaculate, perfectionist style and determination. The devil knows what these women will do with fashion next.

All I can say is that I can't wait to see.

The new hand: fingerless gloves and dazzling colours

Gloves are the new hands.

They are everywhere in all shapes and forms: they are the new accessory of the winter, and designers have declined them from classical to crazy.

They go from John Galliano red suede to Miu Miu's frilled leather pair to some puffy sleeves on eBay.

What most of them have in common: they are fingerless.

To me this means nail varnish.

After all, if the hand is covered the nails stand out even more, and it is a perfect excuse to match the nail varnish to the bold colours of the rest of the accessories.

It is also easier than trying on fluo eye shadows and it adds a personal touch to winter styles.

Burgundy and bright red are in vogue, but it is easy to break the mould and go for something dazzling.

Chanel does marine blue and gold. Bright green, yellow, clementine and myriads of other colours are easy to find cheaply at Camden market or smaller stores.

DIY: maybe not for me...

Vivienne Westwood does it all the time to perfection, but with novice seamstress skills, turning a shower curtain into a wearable party dress might not be the best idea...

With the credit crunch, DIY fashion is the new craze.

It is true that, to some extent CIY (Craft it Yourself) does work – adding a few feathers and buttons to a plain black cotton t-shirt can sometimes give you a cool Art Student, edgy, Agyness Deyn-like style.

But most of the time DIY looks a little too much... well, DIY.

Also, the style does not particularly fit the party season: it only works for you if you already have that 'I can pull of anything, I could not care less' kind of look.

It is also time consuming: for non-expert hands, giving that dusty LBD a makeover could well take up until Christmas.

At least...

Other options

For those who, like me, prefer well-cut numbers with a DIY touch and a reassuring label. It might be worth considering the high street stores.

I am not talking about poor, sequined, runway-imitations. There are some luxurious party dresses that cost less than £70.

A Zara lace dress, very close to the Prada collection, has a smile-inducing price tag of £49. And you can get a Giambattista Valli-inspired, red ruffled cocktail dress, for only £55 from Next.

If you think about all the five pound notes used to buy textiles, ribbons and buttons, the plain cotton black dress that probably cost £20 and the lost hours fighting a stubborn sewing machine, maybe fighting a crowd in Central London might not be that bad after all.

Festive Rykiel

Paris is going stripy for the festive season with the Les Arts Decoratifs (Paris's Decorative Arts Museum) teaming up with French designer, Sonia Rykiel, to create fashionable gifts.

The display windows are set up with myriads of items, from a teddy bear to sequin bags, all in limited edition.

The Museum is celebrating its 40th birthday by showcasing the Sonia Rykiel Exhibition (running from the 20th of November to the 19th of April 2009).

The Queen of Knitwear invented the "un-fashion" by working in favour of women's individual personality.

The exhibition follows Rykiel's signature styles: lace, stripes, rhinestones, black and slouchy pantsuits to name but a few.

If you are in Paris for the festive season, it is well worth checking it out. It could make for an original Christmas present.

Stephen Jones, The Outstanding Milliner

Milliner extraordinaire, Stephen Jones, received this year's Outstanding Achievement Award at the BFAs on Tuesday.

It seems only right that he should wear the crown: Stephen Jones is a master in his craft.

On the night, Suzy Menkes, Fashion Editor of the International Herald Tribune commented:

'There are only a few people from any given generation in fashion who transform the territory and Stephen is one of those. His work often defies categorisation and surpasses imagination - his hats inhabit that rarefied land where fashion meets art.'

The statement says it all: Stephen Jones and hats have enjoyed a winning 30year old working relationship.

He has contributed to British fashion in a unique and innovative way, working with Jean Paul Gaultier, Vivienne Westwood, Comme des Garcons and Marc Jacobs to name only a few.

The skilled hatter has also turned to films from Elizabeth, The Golden Age, Atonement and more currently, Coco avant Chanel.

This is one man who we hope will never stop designing.

What is sure, is that the next fashion week (to be held in February 2009) will be all about hats: the V&A is awaiting the event to present ‘Hats: An Anthology by Stephen Jones'.

Hat it up: the new hair

I spent the weekend in Brighton and it made me realise the importance of hats.

First of all, the temperature dropped to some ice-age digits, which meant that even though I do not usually wear winter hats, my ears did not leave me the choice.

Luckily I had thoughtfully packed a black woolen hat.

I am not the first one to be taken by the trend, Samantha Ronson never goes out without a hat, and in Brighton it seems to be just as popular as seagulls and gale (the gale might actually be the reason for wearing hats).

Hats and hair accessories are making a huge breakthrough in fashion, from tiaras to bowler hats or fur caps and hoods.

It's nothing like eighties or nineties hats with an excess of feathers, pearls and other decorations.

The purpose of the hats have changed: hats are not to cover the head so much as an accessorise statement.

The best of all is that they match everything, I am personally looking forward to increasing my collection.

Avoiding the chill in style: winter coats

There is no escaping it now, winter has arrived and autumn jackets no longer suffice to block out the chill.

Winter coats are everywhere in magazines at this time of the year. It is all about the 10 best buys, or the 10 cheapest warm coats.

However people stay away from statement coats. The catwalks are full of them but it is easier to pull off a Russian inspired, encrusted coat with fur trims, when you are wearing it inside for the eyes of the camera.

It looks gorgeous but is it warm enough? A winter coat must not be on the bulky or the heavy side (unpractical when living in London and the top layer goes on/off/on/off as you move from bitter cold to overheated tube station).

I hate having to hide under layers and layers of jumpers and wool until I look more like a sheep than a person.

I personally would hibernate if I had the choice.

Unfortunately - and I am not the only one - I cannot stay indoors all day feeding on steaming drinks and radiators. But I cannot walk out looking like a grizzly either.

So what is the magical solution to all of this?

I power-layer - some days it goes up to five.

It is only a matter of finding thin but warm under-layers, then adding a jumper and finishing off with a large woolen dress cinched at the waist. Over that of course comes your habitual autumn coat or warm jacket.

If that sounds a little uncomfortable (it all depends if you are used to loose clothing or not), the statement fake-fur coat is the best option: it's OK if it's bulky, it was styled to look that way.

It is also a perfect way to show off legs in quirky tights.

A day at TiGi

After 5 hours of head nudging, mild colour burns and intoxication due to inhaling too much hair spray, I am finally free to show off my new cut and let out some of the hair and beauty gossip I overheard (as a hair model for TiGi you hear a lot while your hair suffers hardship for - free - beauty).

A lot of people go for a haircut when the colder months start. It is probably the shorter days and the chill that make us crave that little extra confidence.

Also, hair is the tip of your style-iceberg: it is the only paranetre that stands out from under a huge warm but often boring, winter coat.

Like shoes, hair creates style

Hair is all about personality this season. Nick Irwin, TiGi's European creative director was saying that many clients ask for a lot of warm shades at the moment.

The reason for this come from the catwalks: multicoloured eye make-up has been taking centre stage lately, but it's harder to pull off a cyan blue mask on an every day basis (unless your life revolves around rave club nights...), so hair is the easy option.

There is also the return of the classic cut with a quirky edge: a lot of new trend revolve around structural, almost sculpted designs. Vidal Sassoon invented the sharp cut in the late 1950s/early 1960s, and like everything in fashion, it is coming back.

With haircuts, outdated is irrelevant.

I went for a short cut with an 80s vibe and dark warm colours - there is no denying that red is on top of the game at the moment. Three of the models asked for some shade of fire in their hair today.

The conclusion of my day: an excruciatingly long wait - the good thing is that I had time to read Vogue from cover to cover - a quirky look and free hair smoothing products.

What has a girl got to complain about!

I want to look like a cyborg

I watched the strangest movie tonight, about a girl with bleached eyebrows who believes herself to be a cyborg.

The Korean actress, Su-jeong Lim, is stunning and I am a cyborg but it's OK is incredible:



Not only because of the randomness of the film and the storyline, but also because of the aesthetic of it all.

Which made me think: after being taken by the pale, milky ginger complexion yesterday, I am now in awe of the Korean features.

I didn't know anything about beauty the Korean way so I did a bit of research. This is what it is all about:

1. a milky complexion
2. sculpted features
3. large eyes

Su-jeong Lim certainly has all of that.

The interesting thing is the similarities between red-heads and the Korean beauty standards. It is the freakish fascination for peroxide features on one side, and the imitation of European complexions on the other.

Karen Elson and the cyborg actress could almost swap over.

I think the issue needs more investigation... I promise an update as soon as I find out more about it.

A twice-queenly statement: tartan and carrot-tops

Today at lunch, I had a model-scout-like revelation: my ravenous attention was distracted by a carrot-top.

No, nothing to do with vegetables, I found myself staring at a tall thin ginger girl: not particularly beautiful but striking.

And since everyone seems to be going to the hairdresser at the moment, why not try copper?

Red-heads being the ugly-ducklings is ancient history, not since Elisabeth I has translucide skin, invisible eyebrows and tangerine hair been celebrated.

Orange haired models and celebrities have been everywhere over the last years, from the breathtaking Tilda Swinton to Lily Cole who's trademark is her fiery-fall of hair.

British Vogue interviewed red queen, Karen Elson, in their Glorious September 2008 issue about the red phenomenon; and model agencies are reported to be encouraging carrot-tops to come forward.

The strangely pale creatures are up for fashion domination.

I cannot pinpoint it but there is something arresting about red-heads - something about their almost erased, complexions. Maybe it is the bone structure or the fact the definition of their features gets lost in a milky skin.

When I found myself staring, I realised I was so dumstrucked by this carrot-girl because she reminds me of Queen Elisabeth (or at least the stately idea I have forged of her, as I cannot claim to have met the woman).

So it all revolves around the queen as style icon after all: I might have to go out and buy a tartan suit to match the hair - and the royal airs of the season...

H&M is trying it haute with Comme des Garcons

We have seen the advertisements everywhere, and since yesterday the Comme des Garcons collection is finally in store. The high street is trying for haute, starting with H&M, and failing.

I am not trying to suggest that the Japanese label is doing a mediocre job at trying to radicalise the lower high-street. Rei Kawakubo could not be dull if her life depended on it.

But it is simple maths: you cannot go fashion forward and anarchic if the available funds for an outfit that originally costs £500 are divided by 10.

Anyways, the truth is we don't usually go to Oxford street to buy clothes which are experimental, chaotic and downright futuristic.

Much less to H&M where a dumbed down pret-a-porter piece, costing under a tenner, is usually expected.

I am not denying there is a craze for high-end-fashion imitation, at affordable prices (the most expensive Comme des Garcons for H&M, is a £199 dress - not bad for a designer that is far from, even occasionally, affordable).

But doesn't all of this kill the whole dynamics of the fashion business? Not to talk about the aesthetics of a middle-of-the-street design.

Comme des Garcons is a revolutionary label that exaggerates shape, cut and colour to style new silhouettes.

Kawakubo's collections are undoubtedly attention-grabbing, but it is a tough job to fish out wearable pieces from her shows.

Unless you are into cobalt blue ruffled bloomers, asymmetrically layered trench-coats in clashing motifs or dresses with origami cut-out legs, as an everyday style.

That is the main difference between high and haute: wearability. (And costs of production.)

The problem with designer mass production, is that with price restrictions, original collections suffer.

What's the use of owning a Comme des Garcons piece, if it doesn't look anything like the brand signature style, the material is poor and the cut only half as good as a Top Shop piece?

Of course, if I had three wishes I would use one of them to make high fashion available to my scorched bank account. A girl can always dream!

But the dismal fashion reality is that experimentation needs money - the kind of money, we poor folks that dress in H&M don't have.

But that is not a reason to feed us mediocre, supposed high-end couture.

A cheap find can look just as stylish (and in this case much more distinguished) as a designer dumbed-down polka shorts and low-crotch trousers (by the way, I do not recommend those to anyone).