Halloween Haute Couture

To celebrate Halloween, here is an ode to the king of all things spooky and weird, the incredible Tim Burton. Enlisting the talents of beautiful actors like Jonny Depp, Christina Ricci and Helena Bonham-Carter, Tim Burton’s screen magic celebrates the macabre and the beautiful. His creative genius makes him one of the most important director / producer / writers in the world and here’s why.

Plus if you need a bit of last minute inspiration for tonights Halloween costume…

Edward Scissohands

Beetlejuice

The Nightmare Before Christmas

The Corpse Bride

Sweeney Todd – The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

Alice in Wonderland

Real Rock Chicks

Each time I write or say the words “rock chick” I almost cringe. For a start it’s a bit clichéd, the term has been bandied about freely over the last few years whenever leather jackets or distressed denim happen to be on trend. Secondly, apart from women like Chrissy Hines and Debbie Harry are there really any real rock chicks anyway?

Lets take it back 40 years or so, before the term rock chick was ever used. During the 60′s, a time of massive social change, rock music was created and became a way of life for many people. Bands like the Rolling Stones, created music for their own generation and it influenced everything, not least fashion. Though some artists, like Keith Richards and Jimi Hendrix had incredibly unique style, it was the women who hung out with these men that really led the way when it came to fashion. These were the original and real rock chicks; they created a new look, one that was relaxed, it was, don’t-try-too-hard, laid back and eclectic. It was a huge step away from the primped and preened Stepford Wives look of the 50′s and a step toward the rebellious freedom that the 60′s represented.

Anita Pallenberg, Keith Richards and Mick Jagger.

Both the Rolling Stones and their wives/girlfriends are the ultimate rock style icons. I love everything Keith Richards, Mick Jagger and Anita Pallenberg are wearing in this selection of photographs from the late 60′s and early 70′s.

Other style-forward rock chicks include, Beatles first-ladies, Jane Asher (looking amazingly Mod-tastic) and Barbara Bach.

Jim Morrison’s wife Pam and on a slight tangent, because they say that comedians are the new rock stars, Peter Cook’s wife, Judy Huxtable.

One rock star that was more stylish than any of the women he was associated was Jimi Hendrix, his military influenced jackets worn open here with huge medallions sound dubious but look amazing.

Images courtesy of flickr.com and rollingstonesnet.com

Am I Fur Real, Fur Faux, or Fur Vintage?

In the last 9 years, across Europe, countries like Sweden, England and Wales and The Netherlands have either banned or are phasing out, fur farming. This month our own government confirmed that it would phase out fur farming in Ireland within the next three years. Where many of us feel morally conflicted with the idea of the wearing and farming of fur, I had a bit of an episode today that made me re-consider wearing it…

I admit it, I came this close to buying a vintage fur coat today… literally this close, but I didn’t do it. I wouldn’t have considered buying it had it been brand new and sitting in the window of furrier shop, but the fact was, I knew the animal that died to make this coat was killed a long time ago. Long before it was ethically debatable to kill animals solely for their pelt. The coat itself was beautiful, it was a classic 3/4 length, with full-length sleeves a plain collar and single clasp in front but it was something else that made me debate buying it.

It was being sold for around €30 and I couldn’t help thinking what a terrible waste it was that an animal died to make a coat that may never be worn again if I didn’t buy it. From fashion designers to animal activists, everyone has an opinion about the killing of animals for the sole purpose of using their fur for fashion. I’m not here to preach mine, but simply put a question to you. Is it more acceptable to wear vintage / second-hand fur, which is bought from a vendor with no connections to the fur-trade, than it is to buy new? Let me just make myself clear, when I say fur I’m talking about fur garments made from animals that are solely used for that purpose. Animals like fox and mink etc.. not endangered animals, like leopard and tiger nor animals that are used for other purposes, like rabbit and goat. It’s a strange phenomenon, blog readers and writers and even friends of mine will say, “yeah, I wear fur, but only vintage…”

In Europe, there is a law against the sale and importation / exportation of ivory. It is banned outright which means it is illegal to ‘deal’ in it unless it is a proven antique. If it is worked, i.e. carved, it has to be pre June 1st, 1947, if un-worked; it must be over 200 years old. I have no desire to own something that once belonged to a now endangered species, but there is something relevant to the fur issue here. Should there be a specific date agreed, which would specify that a garment made of fur is vintage? Ivory is dated as such because it was banned then, fox and mink fur is not illegal nor does it come from endangered animals so how could a date be decided? The difference is that the debate is solely a moral one; should animals be made to suffer in appalling and debilitating conditions just so that we can wear a nice coat? Of course not.

The fact is that both the fur coats and the ivory art already exist, they were made and have survived. Should they be destroyed or in the case of fur, worn and enjoyed for as long as possible?  Some may argue that wearing a vintage fur may encourage other people to buy new furs, I’m not sure that I agree with this theory. If I saw someone wearing vintage fur it may make me consider wearing vintage fur, but that’s it. I’m still unsure what I feel about this debate; would I buy vintage fur? I know I didn’t today but I’m not sure that I never will.

The other option is to leave vintage fox and mink alone and go for one of these instead:

Clockwise from top left: Rue du mail by Martine Sitbone rabbit fur jacket £2755, net-a-porter.com. Preen Aztec Shearling coat £1855, net-a-porter.com. Burberry Prorsum rabbit and goat fur jacket £2495, net-a-porter.com. Faux fur coat £50 newlook.co.uk. Big foot fur coat £150 frenchconnection.co.uk. Vintage style faux fur coat £120 topshop.com.

Behind the Scenes on a Magazine Fashion Photoshoot

… or how the magic comes to life…

Looking over my shoulder (very) early on Saturday morning, I wandered along a less than salubrious lane on Dublin’s Northside looking for a photographer’s studio. As I turned a corner I spied a stylish bunch of ladies, wearing some fab outfits and knew I had found the right place. Said, stylish ladies were fellow fashion bloggers and I joined them in hanging around the on the cobbles, before going in for a photoshoot. The fashion shoot was to showcase the rising trend in Ireland (pun not intended) of bloggers posting ‘What I Wear’ posts. 8 style bloggers all in our favourite outfits, were to be shot by Lily Forberg for Stellar magazine.

I had read and commented on most of the blogs that were represented but hadn’t met any of the creators themselves. I was therefore, incredibly excited to meet the women behind some of the most impressive style blogs in the country. It was an honour to be photographed along with bloggers, Arsheen Qasim of FashionFilosophy and Blanaid Hennessy of Blanaid.com. These ladies have such amazing, individual style that I commented on what both ladies were wearing for Grazia Stylehunter last month. It was fabulous to meet the writers of some new and exciting blogs like, Leonn from cosmo-sparkle and Jess from GetYourFrocks. Meeting Laura Cunningham one half of the bloomin hilarious StyleBitches, Cathy from ThisIsAnOffshoot and Zohra of OpheliaFord was also incredibly impressive. These three ladies have all been blogging longer than I have and all their blogs are completely individual and original; it was great to meet them all.

So we chatted and complimented each other’s hard work (yes it was a bit of a love-in really) while we all decided what to wear and how we wanted our hair and make up done. After an hour or so all butterflies and nerves had been suppressed as we realised we were in such fabulous company and most importantly, none of us were going to be photographed wearing the same outfit. I mean, can you imagine… The horror.

Bloggers chatting, studying, reading, researching etc…

Our Wardrobe, well a tiny portion of it anyway!

“Think smokey and double it please”…

The bigger the better… oh and I have this crows wing I’d like you to stick in there somewhere if you could… Me getting my barnet fixed by the fabulous, Mr.Maurice Flynn. (photo credit Arsheen Qasim)

My moment to shine, which I made sure I did in sequins and pleather! The amazing Lily Forberg working her magic.

Line ‘em up and shoot ‘em. I love how different we all look!

Pretty maids all in a row… here we are with the utterly brilliant Corina Gaffey and Lily Forberg. To which we owe the whole experience. L-R: Blanaid Hennessy of Blanaid.ie, Zohra of Ophelia Ford, Corina, Jess of GetYourFrocks, Lily, Moi, Cathy of ThisIsAnOffshoot, Arsheen Qasim of FashionFilosophy, Leonn of CosmoSparkle and Laura Cunningham of StyleBitches.

I’m certain I can safely say that we were all really excited and incredibly grateful to the Queen Bee of Fashion Editors in Dublin Miss Corina Gaffey of Stellar magazine for asking us all to be part of the shoot. I would also like to thank Ciúin Tracey for working absolute wonders in taking the majority of these snaps with my ancient and past-it 5MP digital camera!

See here, for the run-down on Her Apparel

Whisty’s in the Press

I jumped out of my cab this morning and ran over to the Herald stand on O’Connell street, to buy a copy of the Irish Times… I pulled the magazine out from between its pages and turned to page 24! There I was, two photos and 500 words! I am so happy! I was interviewed by the fabulous Rosemary MacCabe a couple of weeks ago along with Blanaid Hennessy and Ana Kinsella of Ripped Knees. Our interviews were featured today, (October 24th).

I never thought I’d see my name in print on the same page as the words George Clooney!

She Wears it Well

Laura Whiston

whisty.wordpress.com

Laura Whiston started her blog earlier this year and is a full-time blogger. She also has a sister site, where she posts her personal-style photographs: herapparel.wordpress.com

“I started my blog when I was working as a journalist and found there were just so many restrictions – you’re limited to doing editorials that the magazine’s audience is interested in, for example – but there were a thousand other things I wanted to write about, so in a way it was borne out of that frustration.

“I read a lot of blogs and the ones that I really like, aesthetically, all seemed to be doing these ‘what I’m wearing’ posts – I think it really brings that person to life. In a way, it’s a validation of your opinion, seeing the person wearing the styles they’re talking about.

“As well, it can be really inspirational; when people blog about what they’re wearing, it might make you think: ‘Wow, I’d never have thought of doing that’ – something you don’t get from glossy magazines, for example, because they’re catering for an entirely different market.

“Really, the outfit posts are bringing me into the blog – my blog was quite commercial, showing what was new, what was out, not necessarily what I would wear – and I just thought it would make a statement about who I am, and make it a lot more personal.

“I’m always trying to think of ways to make the blog stand out, and this was just another way of doing that. I don’t promote that side of it much but it’s a link from my main blog so it’s like a sideline. Initially it was really nerve-racking and, while I try to post an outfit about once a week, I end up taking an awful lot more photos than that. I’ll take one and wince and go: ‘Oh no, that doesn’t work at all.’ I find that things look totally different in front of the camera to how they look in the mirror, which is frightening.

“I would love to see more people blogging about what they wear – when you walk around Dublin, you see so many amazing girls and guys wearing incredible clothes that I wish were showcased more. Especially because when you think about Dublin fashion, you often just think of tonged hair and fake tan and there’s so much more.

“I try to dress in my own style – I’m kind of a dress and heels kind of girl, very simple, and I’m terrible at accessorising, but I think it could get really contrived if you thought of it in terms of posting your outfits all the time, trying too hard.

“I’ve always been inspired by things you see on the street, more so than by editorial shoots and celebrities, but it’s important to do your own version. It’s always obvious if you’re showing a style that isn’t yours.”

Tell me About it… Studs

Bags that is, bags with studs. Alexander Wang bags with studs would be more specific…

I can dream can’t I? I can dream and buy one of these instead. Left, leather conical stud bag, £70 Asos. Right, All over stud bag, £28 Miss Selfridge.

Rocha Celebrates 30 Years in Fashion.

Last night at The Mansion House, Dublin 2, honorary Irishman and fashion designer, John Rocha joined designers Louise Kennedy and Pauric Sweeney in becoming the latest creative force to be honoured for his contribution to both Irish and world fashion. Moët & Chandon presented the designer with a personalised magnum of Champagne in recognition of his work of the past 3 decades.

Moët rep, Caroline Sleiman (pictured here with Rocha) said; “John’s designs are recognised all over the world for their quality and attention to detail. Every woman should own a piece from John Rocha, whether it’s clothing, accessories or an item for home”.

Over the past 30 years John Rocha has developed his brand, from a debut, Chinatown label and collections for AWear, Brown Thomas and Waterford Crystal, into interior designing, see the  the Morrison Hotel, D1, and opening has flagship store on Dover Street in London. This, according to Wikipedia, comprises a business worth a cool, €200M per year.

His latest womenswear collection for SS10 was shown at London Fashion Week last month and was a floaty, feminine celebration in soft pastel shades of pink, nude, fawn and pale blue. Tunic dresses and skirts were layered with cut chiffon to create a soft feather-like appearance; dress yokes were sheer and embellished with pearls and lace.

Against the melee of chiffon, there were more severe, structured pieces; over-sized jackets, stiff-crocheted peplums, black trouser suits and city shorts. I don’t need to mention the glory of the headwear.

Catwalk images from Vogue.co.uk

More on Autumn… or “I love your name and your numeral”

I’ve been wanting to write this post since I started blogging about the joys of autumn, but it’s generally been too nice a day to do so. My feelings were mixed therefore this morning, when I pulled back the drapes (they’re 10ft, so I guess that means they’re drapes?) to see the rain battered window panes behind them. I thought that there was no point posting about fabulous autumnal days when, instead of sitting inside reading / writing, we could spend time outside kicking leaves about. I have been doing a bit of leaf-kicking in the grounds of Trinity myself! But a rainy day meant that I could finally indulge myself in this post.

It is the glorious autumn sunshine, the kind we’ve had a fair amount of this month that inspires me and makes me want to write. It also makes me want to watch movies set in Massachusetts, more specifically, Cambridge, MA. It is the part of Boston that is home to both MIT and Harvard and is one of the most popular parts of the US to film seasons and seasonal changes. The 1970 film, Love Story is a perfect example of the portrayal of seasonal Massachusetts. It’s based at Harvard University and before you groan and grumble that this is a fashion blog and ask what this post has to do with fashion, hang on.

Love Story is amazing for late 60’s autumn fashion; if you’ve seen it then you’ll know that it stars Ali MacGraw and Ryan O’Neill. (Ali MacGraw was once part of the hottest couple of their time, the rather handsome Steve McQueen, being the other). It is Ali MacGraw’s character, Jennifer Cavalleri’s wardrobe that I refer to when I talk about the perfect autumnal fashion in Love Story. From the beginning of the movie, through to the winter scenes her wardrobe is fantastic; I have posted images of the character below, interspersed with a few pics of Boston and our very own TCD, in the ‘Fall’.

To get the Jennifer Cavalleri look, think Camel coats, with the collar turned up at the back; accessorised with knee-high, fur-lined boots, a faux-fur Russian-style hat or a woollen hat and scarf in University colours. Underneath that, think colour-block dresses, simple skirts belted at the waist and red or black opaque tights. Finish off the look with some on-trend over-sized glasses, et voila.

Fall Boston by Mark Grayden

Images from, Love Story, Facebook, TCD.ie, Boston Press, Corbis and Mark Grayden

Innamore by Manolo Blahnik – An Ode to Toes

Oh how much would I love to put my perfectly pedicured tootsies into a pair of these. Classically Blahnik and utterly beautiful, these shoes are so great that if I were to wear them, I’d fall at my own feet…

…An aside, Whisty dude, you can’t even afford the pedi. let alone the Manolos… The Innamore shoe, (€585), is available at The Shoe Rooms, Brown Thomas, Grafton Street.

All that glitters. How to wear… a Sequin Jacket.

I don’t about y’all but I’m delighted that the ‘all things must be sequinned‘ mantra has lasted through spring / summer and into AW09. It is such a feminine look and because sequins have been applied to everything from ballet pumps to winter scarves they suit everyone. My recent post about wearing sequinned cardigans has made me want to wear them and everything else sequinned all the time. Alas I am yet to save for the Karen Millen sequinned cardi, I therefore will have to wear the sequinned jacket I bought at the secret boutique sale last week instead. Oh it’s a hard life!

I chose this sartorial beauty because, well, 1. it was reduced from €460 t0 €80, 2. it’s navy blue instead of the usual black, and 3. it fits me really well and has on-trend 3/4 sleeves. I wore it out yesterday evening to go for dinner and afterwards, to the cinema to watch Scarface. I couldn’t sit through nearly 3 hours looking at the amazing wardrobe of Michelle Pfeiffer without indulging in a few sequins myself! I teamed the jacket with distressed jeans, a plain white tee, some fierce heels and smokey eyes. I love the fact that it is dressy and laid-back at the same time, I felt just as comfortable in the restaurant as I did watching the movie, (hair up at the movie, down for the meal). I also like that it gives just a little nod to Balmain SS09; sequins, studs and ripped jeans.

More pics here.