A Style Post: Heart Print Shirts & Leather Skirts

Hi All! 🙂

I bought a Burberry-inspired, heart print shirt. The trend exploded at the end of the summer, when everyone from Harry Styles to Clare Danes was wearing a version. I didn’t buy a designer one, mine’s from Topshop. I have a soft spot for a good shirt, and I’ve worn this one so much it has started piling. 😦 Sad times. It hasn’t stopped me wearing it, I went for a walk around central London on Sunday; I adore the City, Fleet Street and all around St. Paul’s on Sundays, it’s almost eerily quiet, most pubs are closed and there are very few people about.

It means you can wander around looking up at the architecture with a far smaller chance of bumping into an off-duty lawyer or banker, or stepping out in front of a taxi. It also means you can walk along from street to street and discover things you would normally miss on a busy week-day. Just off Fleet Street is a small alleyway, which leads to Temple Church.

Hanging with my ‘Plus 1’… No better dressed man than one with a briefcase and a cane…    

The skirt (vintage) is made of the softest leather and is incredibly warm, the Shirt (Topshop) and shoes (Miss Selfridge) were both seen-online-must-have-them-now, High Street buys. I love mixing high street fashion with vintage pieces. This leather bowling bag (M&S) is a little pop of colour and the gold buckles on the shoes (there are a lot of them) mirror the gold watch (ASOS) and vintage gold chain accessories.

Oh and this is what I was looking up at…

Yours, Whisty Xx

Biba & House of Fraser spring/summer 2014 preview

Hello!

At House of Fraser there is an obvious definition when it comes to the store’s designer fashion. On one hand it offers on-trend, edgy labels, like Acne, Sportsmax and MCQ; on the other is the every-day, classic labels like Dickens & Jones, Label Lab and Linea. The two style elements, classic and edgy compliment each other as well as being their own entity. For me a pastel tweed car coat from Linea worn with a pair of leather trousers form Bruuns Bazaar is the perfect way to wear both styles…

And then there is Biba, a mix of both day and evening wear, classic and edgy, from sequins and silk to Jersey and leather. Now in its 4th season for House of Fraser, Biba’s S/S’14 collection is its best yet. Hot pink leather coats, sparkling bead-work, statement clutch bags and that leather detail Macintosh are some of the key pieces…Here are the pieces that caught my eye for next season’s spring/summer style…

It is also worth mentioning the Biba interiors collection; thick fluffy throw-pillows, monogrammed towels and gold, black and white porcelain dining sets… and gold cutlery.

Other stand out pieces included:

A floral neoprene top and skirt by Bruuns Bazaar @ House of Fraser

Pretty pastel tweed from Linea

Label Lab and its inclusion of Graduates’ graphic prints for their ‘British Talent’ collection.Yours,

Whisty Xx

Kurt Geiger Spring/Summer 2014 preview

Hello!

For Kurt Geiger, spring/summer 2014 is a celebration of its signature spike heel; toasted with luxury leather bags and fantastic flats.

Whichever trend you embrace next spring/summer, Kurt Geiger has a shoe to match your style. Not to mention the bags, which are a particular leap forward from the classic clutch-with-shoulder-strap we’re used to from Kurt Geiger. Next season the brand is offering totes, bucket bags and smart organiser bags… which I read the other day were called ‘career bags’… a great description for the bag-I’d-use-at-the-office-bag…

Here are the stand out pieces from the Kurt Geiger S/S’14 preview showRed patent spike heel Kurt Geiger S/S14 shoe

Black and pale pink patent leather, and hot pink suede spike heels.Nude and black snake print, two-strap spike heeled sandals

More snake print spike heels, this time with no ankle strap

Perspex sided, classic courts with gold spike heels

The spring/summer ’14 bags
 

The spring/summer ’14 flatsMasculine tan and snake-skin embossed flats – beautiful

Black & white Harlequin and gold woven loafers

Cut-out white and black patent Oxfords

Next spring will be the first season Kurt Geiger’s flats will run home with the ‘most-coveted’ prize.

Yours,

Whisty Xx

November Metro Fashion Column: Maximise your Midi-Skirt

Above Average… Maximise your Midi-Length

Hello all,

The midi-length skirt trend eludes me. I think it’s partly to do with my trouble deciding how to wear it. This AW’13 I was determined to get to grips with it and bought two midi-length skirts; a fitted one in grey jersey and a full, voluminous one in soft black leather.

My initial attempts at styling the full midi skirt had me looking like a lumpy, frumpy granny; just missing a knitting bag and a set of rollers. After a bit of trial and error, however, I established what actually works – for me at least. Balancing out the volume of fabric below the waist was the key. A full midi skirt needs a loose, tailored blouse, in a pale, silky (not shiny) fabric. Best worn with sleeves rolled up and top button undone, just to show a bit of skin. Topshop.com has this polka dot print shirt (pictured £38), which is a great alternative to Mulberry’s heart print version. Heels are a must too, unless you’re lucky enough to be over 5’11” that is; flats found me channelling one of those extras in Grease with no date at the prom.

Getting the jersey tube skirt to look OK on me took a bit more practice; I was hoping for Molly Ringwald’s style in The Breakfast Club…

Though substantially less than the full midi skirt, the tube skirt still has a lot of fabric, and worn with long tops I looked strange and misshapen. I realised that with the midi-length tube skirt, shoulders/lower arms/décolletage (and midriffs) need to be flaunted. Inspired by Louis Vuitton AW’13, I chose this this lace camisole by Zara (pictured €69.95) and wore it tucked in; with my hair up it actually looked quite dressy.

By happy chance I also discovered that a fitted cashmere polo neck looks good with both skirts too. Pushing the sleeves of this Bottega Veneta (pictured £728.90 farfetch.com) up past my elbows, I’d be happy to say the midi is all mine this season.

Yours,

Whisty Xx

September Metro Fashion Blogger Column – AW Trend Agenda Continued

Hi all,

Here’s September’s Fashion Blogger column from the Metro.

Autumn Winter 2013 trend agenda continued… Festival season is over people. Electric Picnic has spewed forth its sea of carefully ragged denim, Hunter boots and ubiquitous Ramones T-shirts for another year. It’s time to concentrate on clothes that don’t suit being covered in mud and beer. Last month, I talked about the top three trends for this season; pink coats, high shine loafers and leather pencil skirts.

Happily, this season’s trends don’t stop at three key pieces, so we’re adding more to the A/W’13 trend agenda list. If you’ve read my blog you might know I am into vintage in a big way. This season, rather than create a cringe-worthy pastiche, designers have incorporated the most appealing elements of the ultra-feminine 40’s and 50’s vintage looks; the full skirts, the neutral colours, the elegant, quality tailoring etc. The skirts aren’t floral printed with voluminous netted underskirts, they’re ox blood leather, the leather giving them volume instead. Zara claims dibs on this one (pictured €159). Handbags are classic bowler shapes in buttery claret leather and have two top handles plus a cross-body strap for modern versatility.

I’m jumping on the M&S bandwagon, have you seen those ads? If it’s good enough for Dame Mirren… I love this one (Pictured €99). And the cable knit jumper – happily adorning every fisherman from here to Kenmare – has finally found its feminine side. Hobbs added flowers to its knitting pattern and created this Wheatsheaf cable knit (pictured €130).

These pieces are modern day classics; like the Macintosh of the 30’s, the tuxedo suit of the 20’s or the shift dress of the 60’s. We know where the style originated but we’re adopting it and taking it into our era. This style is ours and the very last thing it is, is vintage.

whisty.wordpress.com

Yours,

Whisty Xx

August Metro Fashion Column – AW2013 Trend Agenda

Hi all,

Here’s August’s Metro Fashion Blogger column.

Twice a year fashion writers jump over themselves to write about the new season collections and trends. Me included. Every august, post summer sale-fervour, the time comes to study the Autumn/Winter trends. I always find myself thinking it’s too early; surely we still have weeks of sunshine left in which to enjoy our summer wardrobe? Then I find myself fidgeting in pastel dresses, getting a chill in shorts, then craving cosy wool layering and edgy winter separates.

Happily, the top three trends in the new season’s agenda are transitional, so adding one of them to your late-summer wardrobe will subtly update your look right now, plus you know it will fit straight into your autumn/winter wardrobe when the temperature drops.

Pink Coats – a huge trend, seen at Céline, Jonathan Saunders and Simone Rocha, they’re definitely a buy-now-wear-now A/W’13 trend. Pink coats came in dozens of shapes; overcoat, Crombie, cocoon and tailored; this trend is all about the shade. Pale, rose, frosted and dusky made up the palette of pink at shows last February. This Penneys/Primark Crombie-style coat (Pictured €40) sets off the pretty shade with masculine tailoring.

High-Shine Shoes – patent leather was seen on the feet of models in collections from Christopher Kane to Prada and Chanel. Black high-shine is here in a big way. These patent leather loafers from Pied a Terre (pictured available at Arnotts, €175) combine high-shine with classic loafers – flats (anything but ballet) are high on the A/W12 trend agenda – see Michael Kors, Boss and Louis Vuitton.

Leather Skirts – this season the leather skirt is either full-on voluminous or sleek and fitted, but always past the knee. Calvin Klein and Prada – in bright red – had glorious full skirts while Simone Rocha showed the pencil skirt in super high-shine. This is a leather take on the Hitchcockian screen siren; cinch in waists or team with oversize sweaters. Fran and Jane’s silver leather pencil skirt (pictured €119) gets it right.

I’m for it ready. Bring on the new season… bit by bit.

whisty.wordpress.com