Party feet by Mechante

If the continuous, unstoppable rain has left you in shoe crisis (none of my footwear seems to be appropriate for this weather), you may need some inspiration for pretty booties. Well we're in luck, because these beauties are Mechante AW collection and I can't wait for it to hit the stores. I am loving what I've seen, especially all the embelishment like studs, beading, animal print and a great attention to detail. In your face miserable weather! This autumn my feet will be stylish and ready for rain or shine.
Have a stylish day.

Stylish answers - by Nancy Van Ostren

AW 12/13

I met Nancy Van Ostren few seasons ago at London Fashion Week, where her chic sculptural collection caught my eye (see it here). Her high quality luxury womenswear label  is functional yet elegant, full of strong tailored lines. I caught up with her after the madness of fashion weeks and asked her few questions..
1.) You recently exhibited at Paris Fashion Week. How was it? How the French and UK markets differ?
Paris was great. It's not only the UK and French markets when you show there, it's global. Japan, Italy, Middle East etc. All are very different!

2.) You've just designed your fourth collection. Does it get harder or easier as you go on?
A bit of both. You know what sells and what buyers are looking for but I like to push myself that bit further each season.

3.) When you're designing, have you got a specific type of person in mind? Who is the typical woman who wears your clothes.
I think it would be impossible to design a collection without thinking of the customer. The women that wear my clothes are fashion conscious but have their own identity. Very confident in what they do and wear.

4.) There are new designers popping out all the time, what advice would you give to people thinking about setting up their own label?
Research, research, research! Where do you see yourself selling? Who are your competitors? This is crucial as you can make a beautiful collection but if you don't target the right stores and see where your competitors are, well, all you will have is a beautiful collection!

5.) Where can people buy your clothes?
At the moment we mostly sell in the Middle East. We are in talks with a few UK and European buyers to stock for next season. We also offer a made to order service - just drop an email to sales@nancyvanostren.com

6.) What inspires you?
I do have an obsession with architecture - I love encapsulating the structure into my clothes. I also love machinery and anything with a futuristic element!

7.) What are your hobbies/passions other than fashion?
I've just taken up snowboarding which I hope to keep up as a hobby! Football is a big passion of mine also - I know we share the love for the same team*!


8.) And finally what can we expect from your label in 2012 and beyond?
We are working on bringing in knitwear and prints into the collection. I love hand knitting - it's very relaxing!

*Arsenal

AW 12/13

Alice Palmer at London Fashion Week

I discovered Alice Palmer's work a while ago and loved it so much that I did an interview with her for Futurespace magazine. During London Fashion Week I had a chance to see her latest collection at a presentation she held at a swanky suite of Corinthia hotel (I never wanted to leave that place). All her creations are hand knitted and oh so fabulous. The dress worn by a model below was so beautiful! The attention to detail and interesting shapes are one of the great things about Alice's work. Check out some of the pictures I took on the night, including one where Alice is showing her pieces to Kate Nash, the amazing room, but mostly the gorgeous AW 12 collection.
Have a stylish day.

Milan Fashion Week AW 12 - Blumarine

Many autumn winter collections tend to be quite dark, but the one Anna Molinari prepared for Blumarine was anything but, yet it represented many big trends for the next season. First of all fur is going to be huge and I love the colourful options. Also a big furry bag has been seen on many catwalks including this one.
But what I loved the most are all the metallic pieces. Get ready to shine an wear metallic in any shape and form. The dresses that closed this show were exquisite. Some were very mermaid like in the best possible way. The attention to detail and finishing touches were abolutely amazing. What do you think?
Have a stylish day.

London Fashion Week AW 12/13

Can you believe tha fashion month is over? It always goes so quick.. Over the upcoming weeks I'll be looking over my favourite shows, emerging trends, the best on catwalk for AW 12/13.
Starting with London of course. We saw some amazing collections over the five days, but I have to say I was a bit disappointed with few designers. But ever the optimist, I'd rather concentrate on the positive. So here are my two absolutely favourite shows.
Marios Schwab's (above) designs are simply stunning. The exquisite finishing and attention to detail is breath taking. The clothes were jaw dropping. So feminine and beautiful. I want everything.
Antonio Berardi's (below) show was one of my favourite last season and again, he didn't disappoint. He used a lot of peplum, which is going to be massive come autumn, and created pretty womany silhouettes. Metallics and colour blocking also featured heavily, everything done in a perfect original way. I'm Antonio's biggest fan.
Have a stylish day.

(photo: Style.com)

Prints galore by Proffesor Weston

The extraordinary story of proffesor Richard Weston, originally an architect, whose work has taken the fashion world by the storm, continues with another successful venture. You may have heard about the Weston scarves, each printed with an image of a precious stone, that are already stocked at leading retailers such as Liberty and Net-a-Porter.com. The latest product he's got his amazing prints on are vest tops, that have just been exclusively launched at Harvey Nichols. Inspired by the natural beauty of gemstones, Richard Weston's striking products are a work of art.
Prints have been on fashion's forefront for a while now and are going nowhere. They featured heavily on the AW catwalks, so it's definitely a trend worth investing into. These beautiful tops are a good way to introduce print into your wardrobe. They are cool and will look great teamed up with skinnies and flats for a stylish day full of errands.
Have a stylish day.

Yellow, yellow everywhere

New York Fashion Week is well under way and some strong trends are already emerging. We've seen luxe sportswear, prints, lots of flat shoes (!) and colour blocking is still big. When it comes to colours you can expect quite a wide palette. But the two that stood out for me are white (there were two all white collections so far by The Row and Bebe), and the one that will be everywhere come SS 12 is yellow. Whether you go for over all look, one item of clothing or accessories, you shouldn't be seen without a shade of this playful tone. Yellow was the only colour in otherwise black and white collection at Helmut Lang , who after few years of absence returned to catwalk. Queen of prints DvF used accents of yellow in her colourful collection and Preen did too in a light and feminine way (love their bellow the knee skirts). Donna Karan, Monique Lhuillier and others couldn't resist either.
And the same goes for men, as seen at Perry Ellis and Michael Bastian.
The good news is, if you find the right shade for your skintone, yellow can be very flattering. And it's a good mood lifter.
Have a stylish day.