Trend Trivi-uuuh. Coupla things I have learnt

Not everyone suits all trends! Just because your friends are wearing parkas with leather sleeves (big atm for some reason.. sort of a mini-trend), does not automatically mean you will look good in one too! I would say that if you mainly wear clothes to appeal to others and enhance your features etc., pay more attention to what actually suits you. Seems pretty logical but i see so many people who get it so wrong. To an extent that it isn't just my opinion- like obviously wrong. No-one is going to start yelling at you for not being 'fashionable enough' if you don't wear a leather sleeved parka (primarily because no-one cares enough to do that.. which is consequently why i'm talking about it on here..). And if they do, you can be like 'hey man! I'm sticking to clothes for my own kind. That makes me smart!' and they will walk away.

There is a difference between a 'fashion trend' and 'what everybody is doing', and people tend to get confused by this. An extreme example would be when boys decide to wear their trousers too low, exposing their underwear. IT IS TRULY UNFORTUNATE. Don't try to justify it by being all 'it must be fine because everyone is doing it.' Everyone doesn't read the terms and conditions before clicking 'accept'. Does that make it fine? No.

Don't think that you have to resort to expensive sources like Vogue or Elle or Harper's to get info on current trends. Once the actual trends are identified, it is difficult for magazines to get it wrong. the cheap mags like 'More' are pretty good on advising on the subject too, I find. Of course, the detail and the accuracy provided in Vogue etc. is of a higher quality, so if you are someone like me, you will go to more reliable sources like that.

People always say that charity shops are great for finding current trends, because trends tend to regurgitate a bit.. the looks are always different, but the actual clothing usually isn't. But I have never walked in to a charity shop and found anything on trend. It's always old jumpers and boring, shapeless jeans... I guess this depends on where you live though. In Kensington for example, I bet you'd find some great bargains on designer goods. and in central London charity shops, I bet the choice is better. Cos London is all fashionable, right? :)

As mentioned before, clothes come back 'in' all the time, so don't get rid of your key pieces from a season. Chances are, you will need that peplum top in 2023 or something. and those flared jeans from 2004........ perhaps you will maybe need them again too.. (hopefully not). Not that I have kept mine because I was teeeeeeny then.

This one i guess is just an opinion.. But imma add it anyway, because this is my blog. I really don't think it is a good idea to mix trends up too much. Like fair enough if you wanna wear a leather skirt and a top with a wintery floral pattern- that would look kind of nice. But dooon't try and do them all at once- it can look a bit funny and jumbled! People will think you are a fashion tool.

Leather Peplum top+ Printed Oxblood trousers+Geometric Patterned bag+Studded shoes+Military style jacket=
Well you can see for yourself.

Thats all I can think of for now. Might do a part 2 in the future.
By the way, I have seen so many girls wearing garments with moustaches- I think it looks a bit stupid.

Reasons.. Counterfeit products, Economy, Brand

For a few years I have actively hated the fact that counterfeit goods are getting produced and bought every day. It seemed logical to me that it could only have a bad effect on the economy, because it is illegal. But I decided to actually look in to it, to see if i have been thinking correctly all this time. Actually, I was going to do my college Extended Project on this, but decided to do it on the impact of war on fashion instead.

Please note that there is a difference between 'Fake' goods and 'Look alike' goods. Fake goods are when they are made to be passed off as the real thing.. the logo of the brand is used and it is illegal. A look alike good is designed to look similar to the genuine good, for example- the famous Chanel quilted bag is the genuine product, but many stores sell quilted bags- they are 'designer inspired'. This post is on FAKE (counterfeit) goods.

This wont be an essay, I'll just list and explain what I have found out. The bits in orange are the key findings.

'They are actually good for the economy'
1) Because they are essentially advertising the real thing. It is a strange but true observation, I can imagine lots more people have been made aware of brands because they are around so many fakes. Think about it. Lets pretend fakes didn't exist. Unless you live in a place like Chelsea, how often would you walk down the street and spot a true Chanel bag? Rarely! Now lets resume to reality, where fakes do exist. The pattern and logo has been made more popular by the increasing distribution of fakes. So this could be good for the economy.. because it can encourage spending in high cost markets, providing the markets are domestic. Having said this, most of the goods, fake or real, are not made here, meaning an increase in imports which is preeetty bad UK-wise for the current account deficit.
Renee Richardson Gosline, an associate professor at MIT's Sloan School of Management, found that almost 50 percent of the women she studied who purchased a counterfeit handbag had purchased a real one within two and a half years.
This is due to the fact that they got complimented for their fakes, but im not sure i completely understand that.. because surely if someone were getting complimented for their cheap fake bag, they wouldnt see much point in splurging for a new one. Maybe they feel guilty? Maybe they should.
2) It can also be said that counterfeit goods improve production in the genuine markets. There may be an increase in competition between prestigious firms, because they are all fighting to appeal more to consumers. This increase in productivity is good for the economy because it increases employment, but also bad because it could result in workers undergoing longer hours, which may not be appealing. So it could have a negative impact on employment as well.

'This blogger is right, counterfeit goods are bad for the economy'

1) LVMH, the parent company of Louis Vuitton, is said to employ 40 lawyers and 250 independent investigators and to spend in excess of $20 million each year in efforts to fight increasing levels of counterfeiting of their products. [2]
The designer company must fork out all this money in order to protect themselves from counterfeiting. It's a shame that they must do this, because they could have spent this money elsewhere, such as advertising or increased production of the product- which would have had a positive effect on the economy of the country they are based in (could have had an increase in growth and exports).
2) Fakes damage the actual Brand. Demand for the fake goods can cause unemployment in the fashion industry, as the footwear and clothing industry in the UK is estimated to lose about 3.2% of their average revenue to fakes [3]. It doesn't seem right that an established Brand has worked so hard to develop a prestigious reputation, only to not gain anything from of it, because their work has been copied. Also, the brand loses its exclusivity, which is a crucial for maintaining the strength of the brand.

Overaaaall, I think that the conclusion should be up to you :) I just wanted to provide the list.

But for me, my original thoughts still stand. Despite the competition among the genuine brands, the production of counterfeit goods still has a negative impact on the brand in general. And as for the Economy, legal movements sometimes prevent the Brand from expanding, which means that there is not as big of an impact on the economy as there should be.

Sources: 
[1] http://www.ehow.com/info_8528744_effects-knockoff-handbags.
[2] http://michiganjb.org/issues/1/article4.pdf
[3] http://www.intangiblebusiness.com/Reports/Copying-Fair-or-Unfair~828.html

One's Attire on Formal Occasions.

I think if I were to receive a quid for the number of times that people told me not to go in to Fashion because it is 'Bitchy', I would at least be able to purchase these Louboutins: http://eu.christianlouboutin.com/uk_en/homepage/bianca-patent-1.html
Which would make me incredibly happy, for two reasons. First, I would still be working towards a fashion career, which is enlightening. Second, I would have these Louboutins, which is incredible. Everywhere is bitchy... Apparently those to Bitch to you will Bitch about you. Which is interesting- I almost believe that.

Anyway. It has beeeeen a whiiiiiile since I have blogged/posted anything- apologies. Not that it matters really... not many followers here. I decided to make a dress to my best friend's Made in Chelsea themed party like a month ago. I was pretty happy with it. By far the best thing I've made in terms of sewing detail and accuracy. So here is a picture.

In terms of designing it... I sort of didn't.. I had an idea of what I wanted it to look like but it was pretty much touch and go. As I made it, I'd change quite significant parts of the dress on the spot without really thinking about it, and I certainly hadn't drawn anything beforehand. I don't really use plans- I get too excited I guess and just wack out the sewing kit. Took me so long though- about 2 weeks. I'd start at around 11pm each night and work until about 2 in the morning. I have the desire to sew reaaaaally late in the night, no idea why.

I knew I wanted something quite classic, because I knew many girls going would just buy something from a shop and wear it with heels that did not match- just for the sake of wearing heels. something low cut and very short and hiiiiiiiiigh heels. I didn't pay tooo much focus on the MIC theme, though I'll admit that I am a fan of MIC. I just decided to go 'posh'. Therefore I didn't make the hemline as short as I usually would (red dress at the beginning of this blog is the opposite to what I wanted). I wanted it to be pretty so I created a sweetheart neckline.

FRONT

BACK

ZIP

I attempted to make the dress as well fitted as I could, given that I had no mannequin and no sewing machine, so accuracy was difficult. The finished result was a bit too loose. But I don't think anyone could tell- which I guess... is a good thing. http://www.victoriabeckham.com/dresses/aw12/ if you look at this collection by V-Beck, you will see that my dress is quite similar, as it has one stripe around the middle. Though of course her dresses are much longer.

NECKLINE

Call me boring or even ignorant, but I though that a black base colour would look the poshest. I did debate white but I know that black makes you look slimmer..

I wore this dress with black high heels, bit of a platform. No straps,  just simple. I wanted to straighten my hair but I didn't have time! So I just rolled with it and had a good time!!

wack on your pj's? My take on the pj look.

Have you just woken up and are munching on some toast and observing the weather outside your window? If it’s a nice day, you’re probably thinking ‘Yes! I can wear my new sundress with the platform wedges and my Dior sunglasses.’ If it’s a cloudy day, you’re probably thinking, ‘Burberry trench coat, where are you?’ But what if I were to tell you that you could look absolutely fabulous, just in those pyjamas that you’re wearing right now? I wouldn’t be lying. Provided that, of course, you’re wearing pyjamas... But hey, that’s pretty personal, so for the purposes of this article, I’m assuming that you are.

As you can probably guess, the Pyjama trend is rather difficult to pull off. For starters, in order to pull off the complete look, the top and bottoms should either be the same material, or the same colours. Following a glance at my depressing bank account balance, I decided to be creative and make my own pyjama set, using my mother’s old sewing machine. The top turned out pretty well. I was quite proud of it. The trousers? Fail. Let’s just say, the proportions are a bit… adventurous.

Moving on, I want to underline the fact that I really like the pyjama trend. Why? I know that many people choose to not follow fashion because they feel like it is uncomfortable. For example, take the skins trend. Tough times if you’re a vegan, or if you don’t have much money like me. Or Peplums, what if you’d rather not get caught on door handles? However, the pyjama trend is of course, very casual. Take a look Stella McCartney- the pyjama suits look very comfortable, but the monochrome prints make the garments look classy too.

Speaking of prints, you could always combine trends- buy taking a Jill Sander approach and going for Paisley. You don’t want to overdo it or course. If you’re petite, opt for smaller prints, in order to flatter your height instead of making you and your outfit look gaudy. Unlike my awful homemade pyjama trousers, make sure that your pyjama trousers are fitted, so that they sit properly at your waist, and then drop gracefully, definitely not skinny- more straight legged. Of course, it depends on the shoes you choose to wear with them. Heels would be the obvious choice. I like the idea of wearing transparent or open toed heels, so that it makes you look bare footed, which is almost witty- fashionably witty! If you’re not feeling brave enough for this, mules would be a very stylish approach to the ‘slipper’ look. Mules are very hot this season- be inspired by Louis Vuitton’s collection of sexy mules.

Keep accessories to the minimum, to further add to the simple look that this trend must convey. Silky materials will generally look more high fashion than cotton, and will have a cleaner look. And finally, if you feel like sewing your own pyjama suit, make sure you use a pattern- I speak from experience.

H&m's everywhere + Glamour + Harrods (- notes) = xToday [x BEING LONDON!!]

Today I went in to Central London to do some shopping. I got off at Knightsbridge first. Casually went in to Burberry- they were all so nice! They kept asking if i wanted any help..I tried to act really posh and not so 'OMGGG THIS IS AMAZING!' about everything- but it was difficult- Burberry is lush. 
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Anyway, moving on, went to Harrods. I dont really know where to begin.. I love Chanel. I saw Chanel and I walked straight through the Louis Vuitton collection without even looking- beeline. Eye on the big C H A N E L and its beautiful Garments. There were even a couple of books. I took a note of the ISBN of one. 
FRUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Word of advice: NEVER go for HTC WILDFIRE. ANY model. they SUCK!!! Took notes of current designs in each designer from my harrods trip today on it, and the wildfire has deleted them all. 


let's go dowwwwwwwwwn memory laaaaane. </3


so.. Chanel: Typical Square Jackets. i remember now! 95% Cotton 5% polyester. But it was really thick cotton. In white, in black- some had a bobbly effect.There were trench coats. Made of Lambskin. And i came across some beautiful long white dresses. Quite embellished. One had a bow effect on the front- which surprised me. Thats not really Chanel at all.. But the other one was beautiful. There were actually some Shopper style bags. Made out of that thick brown material. Collarless cardigans.
Louis Vuitton: I remember there was one dress which was basically a lot of medium sized black sequins- but in the light you could see purple and pink. If teh word 'Magic' had a visual definition, this dress would be it. I dunno why really.. its just sequins. What really surprised me actually is that lately, Louis Vuitton's campaigns have included a lot of Broderie Anglaise. But there was none present in the collection at Harrods. 
Georgio Armani: I didn't spend too long in this section because the assistants werent very nice. But all i can remember is sparkly. I saw a blazer or coat which was very dark blue but had sparkles in it.
Dolce & Gabbana- really trying to remember- i think i took the most notes on this as well.Oranges. Lots of jewels as well. There was this one jacket which had about 12 massive jewels on the front of it- all different colours. It was quite nice, but i wouldnt wear it.
Prada. NICEST PEOPLE worked here! So friendly- very good customer service. Embellished collars on white shirts, and black and white squares. Like windows/grids.. I also came across a long fur coat. It was made out of e... E something. FML
Burberry: They like their trench coats, as usual. But some of them were silky. Overall Natural colours- tans and browns. Pale pinks. Oh and tribal. They have these amazing tribal-esque shoes. 
http://uk.burberry.com/store/bags-shoes/shoes/sandals/prod-38024191-raffia-platform-stiletto-sandals/
http://uk.burberry.com/store/bags-shoes/shoes/sandals/prod-38024091-raffia-platform-sandal/
how beautiful are these?!  
Miu Miu- They like their tablecloth/gingham brights atm. In dress form. Overall quite a bright selection
Gucci- Gold and metallics as usual. There was an amaaaazing long gold sequinney dress. It isnt on the website though.. and i saw Flapper designs as well. I think the flapper current trend has mainly come from Gucci http://www.gucci.com/uk/styles/290914ZW7351000#. Gucci also had a lot of orange- orange dresses and shirts.


I came across a beaaaautiful French Designer that i havent even heard of before. Ive looked on the Harrods website and online. I cant find it anywhere. Of course in my notes i wrote down the name. SO ANGRY. But i remember it was french, began with an A. had quite a few vowels in it. The dresses were quite clingy- some kinda see-through- but still very classy. Like body sculpture. Some were woven. There was a fantastic collection of plain white dresses too- so glamorous. But I cant for the life of me remember the exact name. And the internet is being useless with spelling suggestions right now.


The three designers I wish was there/i had seen are Balmain- lovelovelove Balmain dresses. Vera Wang- ideal wedding dress is a V. Wang and Louboutin- just because the shoes are.. out of this world amazing and the red sole is SAUCY.
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Back to London. I've always known that London is full of boutiques but ive never known where to look. I found somewhere 
http://www.carnaby.co.uk/static_content.cfm?page_id=20 
as I was walking through Carnaby street. Whoever is reading this, I recommend Style Showroom and Mnini. Style Showroom has interesting Jewelry- at a good price too. There was a good sale when i went in- and it isnt even sale season. The dress collection is superrrrr. I recommend it if you're a teen or in your 20's. Mnini- not too much choice- but still! Definitely worth a look round. Unique garments there. 
They are on the first floor and on opposite ends. Very tasteful clothes indeed! There are loads of little places on roads near oxford street- little roads. Some were so expensive. One said 'SALE' and i went in.. it was empty and there were about 4 assistants. I looked at the sles clothing and all were well over my budget. They were just anxiously watching. I had to sort of pretend to be deciding whether to get an item or not.. it was unfortunate. But all the shop assistants in general are very nice! Nicer than i was expecting for some reason.


And you know when you see people's 'my style' pages in magazines? You know.. like when some individuals wear really bright colours and socks with heels and that kind of thing.. and they say 'i wear this kind of thing every day'. Well i never really believed them- in winchester i dont really see it.. but there were so many people who dress like that in london! And it looked really good- just casual. like this kind of thing http://i55.tinypic.com/11aehw5.jpg


Ive loved London since forever- but i really have fallen in love with it now. Its just amazing- it might even be as good as New York City for me.. it's so glamorous. wwwwwwwooaaaaaoaah i havent felt this way about anywhere since new york.

Ma's Garments

We are doing major home improvements at the moment, meaning that we had to empty our loft a couple of days ago. Imagine my surprise when I found all these old clothes! They belong to my mother and she used to wear them all the time.. except for the boots. She only wore them while motorbiking. But hey, I'd wear them now. Gotta be edgy. Labels include Topshop and Chelsea Girl. Sorry about the placing of the pics below btw, blogger sometimes doesn't  understand the importance of aligning photos, when both are small enough to go side by side.

HA! We all know that my photography is bad, but woah. You can't even really see it. I would wack up Picasa if i was using my lappy at home, but I'm up in London at my G-rents atm- so no editing here! I love this Aran cardigan, these days they are sooo expensive and in my opinion, not even that nice. But this is gold- I like the neckline- sort of squarish. Has a Desperate Housewives look about it I think.

All the garments above were in my loft. I just like the outfit. It's the sort of thing I've seen in the Sunday Times' what are yoooou wearing? page. Maybe I should send it in.. and stand in front of a brick wall like they always do. I like the high-waistedness of the jeans. It'd be nice to wear a crop top with them instead of a top tucked in with a belt, which is regrettably what I always do with high-waisted leg garments. Showing midriff is in. Tribal Prints are in too, double win!

At first I wasn't sure about the pinkness of the jacket with the redness in the tribal top. However, I feel it would work. Just because there's only a bit of red. And hey, I've never really thought red and pink clash much anyway. It's not as bad as yellow and green.

It looks like I have titchy feet. Don't worry I don't really, I just need to work on camera angles. Maybe Elena could help. Anyway I like wearing these. Especially in the snow, it's nice to not fall for once. Hell, I could go jogging on ice with these!!!!!!but I wouldn't.

PASTEL POWER!!!

 It annoys me to think that this outfit has been locked up in my loft for ten years. Ten summers have passed- all of which I could have worn this. (I haven't really grown widely since I was 8) Pink shorts. PINK. I actually tried them with the bomber jacket above but i thoght it would be a bit risky. I also thought.. 'hmm pastel pink shorts+ tribal top+midriff' but then I thought that would = Fearne Cotton. Too many trends at once- don't wanna look keen or anything. But anyway I'd wear this outfit with white sandals in the summer. Or white wedges.

LOVE ^

mainstream fashiooooon

Mainsteam fashion. Sorry for using the word 'mainstream', but it seems like the only word which would fit.. When someone says 'Mainstream fashion' I automatically think typical High Street shops- Topshop, River Island, New Look. Some would argue that they're all the same.. that they sell clothes that 'everyone' wears. I can imagine that in your school, college, uni or whatever, there is a group or 'type' of Girl or Boy. They wear this kind of 'mainstream' clothing day after day.

The point I am trying to make is that the reason why we get these 'mainstream fashion' ideas is because we are surrounded by these high street stores. One looks at the mannequins with chinos and thinks 'This is a rather fashionable store, it looks pretty good. I'll get them..'  Then, this individual arrives at college only to find about 20 other individuals of the same gender wearing exactly the same item!
I've been there, by the way. I got a fur coat from a typical high street store- paid a good amount of money for it too. And then I arrive at college only to see about 3 other girls wearing the same one.. and it sucks. Because I think we all subconsciously link expense with individuality. Which is understandable- it must have been proven that the more expensive an item is, the less people will have it. I mean come on.. how many Chanel bags do you see around college? How many Primark black pumps do you see around college?

Another reason why your clothes are the same as everyone else's is because if you are a young person, you probably have a limited amount of money. This is why everyone has Primark black shoes. For this problem, refer to OAT.

So fellow bloggers (because there are so many..) if you own all the typical clothes and are not sure how to stand out from all the others, It all depends on OAT. Other garments, Alterations, Trend.
Other garments: She's wearing the green fur coat with sandals, a yellow handbag and a pair of old white baggy jeans. You're wearing the green fur coat with black skinnies, lace up ankle boots and a silk scarf. Clear winner? The latter.
Alterations: Don't like the buttons? Change them. Crop the jeans, sew the pocket on. Even add a brooch. It can make a massive difference.
Trend: If you have incorporated a current trend in to your outfit, such as a Paisley scarf or a pair of Mules, it will make you look the most fashion aware.

Anyone can wear the same garment
Such as a fur coat
But to stand out from the same crowds
follow the rules of OAT