Addiction Eight: LEATHER

CELINE Catwalk images: Monica Feudi / GoRunway.com

Don’t let the current trend of leather scare you off with visions of Billy Idol or David Hasselhoff!

Leather has become very chic and an ultimate bit of luxury for your look this season. We saw a strong leather presence on the catwalk including 3.1 Phillip Lim, Versace, Hermès, Balmain and D&G. But no one did it better than the talented designer Phoebe Philo for Celine. She gave it a sportier feel especially with her leather tees, which I LOVE!

The great thing is you don’t need to stick to the traditional leather items like jackets or trousers you can now get leather dresses and even shorts! However to make it work you need to have leather that’s paper thin and soft. Also try alternative colours to black such as camel, beige or white.
I’m excited as this means I can FINALLY wear my BEAUTIFUL leather Chanel skirt that I got a few years ago. I’m planning on wearing it with a marble grey cotton tee from American Apparel, inspired by Agyness Deyn. I LOVE how she wears this leather skirt by Acne with a cool t-shirt, making it young and irreverent.
Even the beautiful Sandra Bullock chose to wear a black leather dress by the amazing Elie Saab for her first public appearance since her marital split.
Suede turn-up leather shorts, £360, Bird by Juicy Couture at NET-A-PORTER.COM
Leather tee, £300, Sea NYC at O2 Oxygen



Leather skirt, £175, Cos

Utility shorts £650, Chloe at NET-A-PORTER.COM

Addiction Seven: ANKLE BOOTS

Having always been a big fan of knee high boots I have to say lately I’ve found them a bit much and slightly dated. Ankle boots I feel are the way forward they’re fresher and just more NOW. Whether it’s a pair of wellies (like the Marc by Marc Jacobs pair that I’m desperate to get above) or a biker boot like these Carvelas (which I’ve been wearing to death this spring) shorter is definitely the way to go.

Leather biker boots, £150, Carvela at Kurt Geiger

Bootie, £90, Melissa by Vivienne Westwood

Addiction six: WINDOW SHOPPING

To celebrate their 135th anniversary LIBERTY has done a celebration window.

If you haven’t seen it you should get there now as it’s fantastic and you don’t want to miss it!

Addiction five: COCKTAIL RINGS

A good cocktail ring can be hard to find and I should know as I’m always on the lookout for one. They can always be counted on to help make an outfit especially if you are wearing something simple.

I came across an amazing one while shopping online the other day at Net-a-Porter.com, a favourite fashion websites of mine.



This Arty Aventurine ring by Yves Saint Laurent is to die for and I have fallen in LOVE. With this ring you can add a bit of luxury to a casual day look or be bold with a stunning evening dress.

The key is to only wear one statement piece at a time or you will look like a mess or even worse a try hard! Remember to wear it with confidence plus attitude and you’ll look amazing!


Arty Aventurine ring, £270, Yves Saint Laurent at Net-a-Porter.com

Addiction four: GRACE KELLY

I’ve just been to the V&A to see the GRACE KELLY: Style Icon exhibition.

Grace Kelly is one of the few iconic blondes that I admire; she was unbelievably beautifully and sophisticated yet sexy at the same time. The V&A has chosen to examine Kelly’s spectacular wardrobe, from three different stages of her life: The actress, The bride and The princess.

What I loved about this exhibition.....was seeing the actual dresses alongside pictures, posters and film footage of Kelly wearing them. It’s fascinating to compare the two, especially since I thought the pictures of Kelly in the dresses always looked better than the actual garments.







You might recognise some of the pieces at the exhibition from her movies. I absolutely adore the films Rear Window (costume designer Edith Head) and High Society (costume designer Helen Rose) with all the beautiful outfits Kelly gets to wear.


In particular I’d keep your eye out for a belted little black dress (above) made in silk chiffon from Rear Window, along with the teal satin dress and coat she wore to collect her Oscar. They’re both to die for!

The infamous Hermès bag named after Kelly because she was so often spotted carrying it is also on display. She clearly loved the bag as there’s a lot of obvious wear to it, unlike the pristine ones you see someone like Victoria Beckham carrying.

It’s obvious that Kelly still influences designers and styles today. One white lace dress in particular was clearly the inspiration for a recent Oscar de la Renta bridal gown (above right image).

What I wished......that there was more of the exhibition, lots more!! I also would have LOVED to see her wedding dress, as it's so iconic. It is a little known fact that the dress was designed by High Society’s costume designer, Helen Rose, and was a gift from MGM. It has inspired many contemporary bridal designers including Sassi Holford and Stewart Parvin who’ve both made a Kelly style wedding dress.

The exhibition is a must see for any dedicated follower of fashion!

It runs until the 26th September 2010 at the V&A


IMAGES
Top image: Photo courtesy of the Estate of Erwin Blumenfeld
All exhibition images photographed by the brilliant Gareth Cattermole
Grace Kelly with Frank Sinatra in High Society Photo: REX

Addiction three: LIBERTY PRINTS

This season is all about the prints whether it’s floral, tribal, animal or my personal favourite the LIBERTY print.

Now I don’t know how familiar you are with the US chain store Target. But if you aren’t they have been very clever collaborating with AMAZING international designers in a similar way to H&M. They’ve had exclusive collections from Anya Hindmarch, Temperley, Jean Paul Gaultier, Anna Sui, McQ Alexander McQueen and Zac Posen. NOW I’m excited to say they’ve done a range with Liberty of London!

You can find the Liberty print on bags, boxes, plates, tea pots, bedding, cushions, cups, glasses, dresses, tops, flip flops, hats and so much more at FANTASTIC prices. However if you live in the UK and can’t get to a Target. don’t be disappointed as this range is also available in London at Liberty’s!



If you’re a Liberty print girl too they are having a flowery flash mob Tuesday May 25th. For more details check out the Liberty blog .

Addiction two: GLASSES

For someone who’s wore glasses nearly all her life I am thrilled to SEE that specs are back in fashion! I always HATED wearing glasses; they were big, heavy and definitely NOT cool. I had some pretty shocking pairs as a kid back in the 80s. As soon as I was allowed contacts I never looked back until now.

I have some exciting news.... attention all four-eyed geeks.... to be truly cool this season you MUST have a pair of specs!

If you NEED glasses or even if you don’t, get several different pairs to help vary your look and style. It’s a great way of completely reinventing yourself this season.

I LOVE the current trend of taking a pair of Ray-Ban Wayfarer sunglasses and putting in optical lenses for that really bold 50’s look. This also allows you a more wide variety of coloured frames. It’s been so popular that Ray-Ban started producing optical versions of their sunglasses.

They’re even appearing in fashion shoots on models as a key accessory in magazines like Vogue and Grazia! All the designers have a range; including my personal favourites Marc Jacobs, Chanel, Prada and Valentino.


Glasses featured on me above include Balenciaga, Dior, Giorgio Armani, Emporio Armani, Gucci and YSL call 01423 520303 for local stockists.