Fashion Voyeur

People will stare, make it worth their while.

Categories: The Archives, The Fashion Closet

APU JAN SS18 at London Fashion Week

Taking inspiration from the short lives of flowers, Apu Jan presented Before the Last Petal Falls for Spring Summer 2018 at London Fashion Week.  In this collection of 33 garments, Jan uses bursts of colour and texture variation to freeze their explosive beauty and capture the sensation of urgency in their short but fragrant life.  The collection pays homage to O Henry’s ‘The Last Leaf’ and echoes the theme of Edgar Allen Poe’s ‘The Fall of the House of Usher’.  It was also the first show of the SS18 season that saw Freemason’s Hall open up the Grand Temple – something that rarely happens during London Fashion Week and an absolutely unbelievable spectacle when it does.

‘Before the last petal fell, I remembered there was a garden in full blossom ;

Before the last leaf faded, I remembered there was a forest full of green ;

The last snowflake, the last sand grain, the last teardrop…

Nothing gold can stay.

So let me cast a spell for you, it’s necessary to freeze the beauty of flowers, it’s necessary to freeze the fragrance of coffee, and it’s necessary to freeze the fragrance of our youth…’

Using pattern to emote throughout the collection, ‘Before the Last Petal Falls’ takes us on a fantasy journey.  With motifs and patterns including blooming and fallen petals, leaves, trees, snow, ink, and manuscripts, the components play to the theme and the brands core elements of storybooks and fantasy beasts are evident throughout the collection.

The SS18 collection from Apu Jan features more of the designer’s trademark silk knitting which stands out in texture, Jan uses a self developed blend of jacquard and chiffon and varies between machine and hand knitting to create that signature and inimitable mix of chunky and uber fine texture all within the same garment – perfect for the intended season.

Strong oriental influences ring through this collection; mandarin collars, horse-hoof cuffs and 6/8 wide leg trousers with a wide set pinstripe set up the core shapes for a neutral palette of grey, black, white and grey with the occasional dancing pink petal dancing across the landscape.  Towards the finale we saw drop waist and empire line dresses with structured cape detailing imitating orchid type silhouettes and depicting the last stages of life of the flower, and burnout dresses with flute sleeves with a hint of Victoriana.  The standout piece in the collection was a grey dress with a structured capelet that drew gasps from the press as it floated through the temple.

Apu Jan is a master craftsman when it comes to working with printed satin; taking the finest print details and working them into a pattern only determinable at close range, which from afar creates additional texture and shape despite having been crafted in the lightest fabrics.

The show was set to the beat of DJ QuestionMark and a live orchestra, something that’s been lost in time over the seasons at London Fashion Week and something which created a real atmosphere on the day.  I don’t know whether it was the design talent, the live music or being seduced by the Grand Temple but this was one collection that piqued my interest Voyeurs…..

Pixie x

Categories: The Archives, The Fashion Closet

Hellavagirl Presents Human Meat Freaks for London Fashion Week SS18

During London Fashion Week there’s always one show standout show.  It’s one that’s usually hotly anticipated because of the spectacle of previous shows, for SS18 that show was Hellavagirl Couture.

If you’re not familiar, British designer Helen Woollams has created a brand synonymous with gothic, macabre glamour and fetishism.  A label that celebrates the weird and makes the outsider then norm.  It wasn’t too long ago that Hellavagirl Couture was given it’s big break, with Woollams named Designer of the Year in February 2016, this is one brand That’s rising with velocity and establishing it’s very own niche at London Fashion Week.

For SS18 Woollams treated us to Human Meat Freaks, a show that brought our deepest darkest fetishes to life in a pre-show ritual featuring circus performers and gravity defying acrobatics.  To the uninitiated it would appear that Woollams is out to shock her audience, we’ve become pretty close over the years I’ve been attending her shows and knowing the designer, the show is more about breaking down barriers and saying a massive Fuck You to society and conformity.  If a guy wants to wear a gown then so what?  In the world of Hellavagirl Couture it’s about owning your aesthetic and topping it off with a crown and a bold red lip.

“Inspired by our love for flesh, fetish and guilty pleasures, gender-less extravagance with a rock and roll edge. Non conformist Fashion for the bold”  Hellavagirl Couture

Human Meat Freaks built on the capsule collection produced for FW17 and made the most of the impressive showspace in the grand temple space at Freemason’s Hall.  The collection gave us bold harlequins with elongated proportions and striking sequins, huge black shredded gowns with an aesthetic reminiscent of Brendan Lee in The Crow and the most diverse cast of models this season.

In the Hellavagirl universe what sets you apart is your differences and that goes for the cast of models too, Woollams has managed to create an expectation for the unexpected and delivered something with undeniable edge.  Think Bad Romance meets Plato’s Atlantis and you’re definitely on the right track, in fact if Gaga is looking for a new tour wardrobe designer then Hellavagirl has her vibe cut, edged and belted with black leather and sequins.

Standout pieces included a two piece checked suit with an exaggerated sleeve detail proving the trend for a differentiation from a regular sleeve is going nowhere for SS18, and a green and black sequinned jumpsuit that I’d literally wear tomorrow if I could.  With white and dove grey added to the palette this season Woollams has proven that her ideas are far beyond the realms of noir.  this is one designer who’s far from a one trick pony, something she’s proving season after season, and that’s tricky to master with a niche that’s so small.  Hellavagirl Couture has fans baying for more and more show related chatter on the front row than most other shows put together, it’s probably the only show I’ve ever been to that got a standing ovation from the audience who pretty much stormed the runway just to be part of the spectacular finale of dancing models.

So how was the fashion?  It was good.  Damn good and surprisingly wearable for the brave fashionista.  Sure it’s out there, it’s big, bold and most definitely in your face, but if you’re suppressing an inner goth, or there’s a tiny part of you with the desire to act out, then Hellavagirl is all about rebellion and shunning the entrapments of conformity and there’s probably a part of you that’s curious about exploring that.  There are certainly pieces from the collection I could see myself wearing during LFW FW18 and lavishing the attention they receive, if fashion is about showing your personality then Hellavagirl is about sharing your deepest, darkest secrets; even if they make everyone around you uncofortable.

Pixie xo

Categories: The Beauty Cupboard, The Fashion Closet

SHOW BEAUTY BRAIDS BY SHOW DRY

You already know I’m a huge fan of SHOW Beauty, I could wax lyrical about the products all day long.  SHOW Beauty is one of those brands that you’re either aware of because you use and love it, or admire it from afar, or you’ve never heard of it.  If you fall into the latter, then let me give you the skinny:  SHOW Beauty is a luxury haircare brand born out of founder Tamara Ecclestone’s love for beautiful products, scents and ingredients that really work.  In a nutshell, it’s like having your cake and eating it, it’s the very best of the best and it fuses the luxury fragrance industry, with the haircare market to give a truly unique range of high quality, sulphate free hair products that leave you smelling better than Harrods Fragrance Hall.

SHOW Beauty Hair Fragrance Fashion Voyeur

So, you know that there’s a range of products that’s constantly being researched and expanded because you’ve obviously read my posts on the launch of Lux Volume, SHOW Beauty and the SHOW Beauty Hair fragrance right?  Well, London is also home to the physical arm of the business: SHOW DRY.

SHOW DRY is the ultimate blowdry bar.  Not only is it home to some of the best Hair Artistes in the business, it’s also a very cleverly thought out business that’s pitched perfectly to the needs of the client.  Ecclestone frequents the salon herself and every new member of staff inducted must first blowdry Ecclestone’s hair in her signature style, as well as create a custom up do.  That’s quite the test when you think Ecclestone’s hair is literally her crowning glory.

The salons themselves are uniform, the signature black and gold detailing oozes polished elegance, whilst the blush pink cuts through with a feminine edge.  My regular SHOW DRY salon is in Notting Hill and they always ‘manage’ my hair for me throughout each season of London Fashion Week.  I’m not too proud to say that I’ve been brought forward from second to front row because of an awesome braided up do by SHOW DRY during the FW17 show season and if that’s not a high five moment then I don’t know what is.

The SHOW DRY team live and breathe SHOW Beauty.  They know the range inside out, they know the dual purposes of each product and can teach you some hacks that will change your life, like using the Moisture Conditioner as a leave in serum – seriously guys, you blew my mind with that one, cue BOOM emoji.  They can prescribe the exact product from the range for your hair’s needs, but more than that, their styling skills are amazing.

When I first partnered with SHOW DRY for show season, I was coming out of a pretty grim period with my hair, remember my post on Overcoming a Hair Disaster?  Well this was around the time of said hair disaster and I was very limited on what we could create with what little hair I’d been left with.  Because of that, we decided to shoot for some funky braids that would conceal the damage to my hair and still showcase my awesome colour.  Fast forward to the SS18 LFW season and I’ve still never actually had a blowdry by SHOW DRY (although I’ve sat next to Tamara Ecclestone whilst she’s had hers done so can vouch) and I’m back here for another braided creation.

What makes SHOW DRY different than other blowdry bars is that here, your every need is catered to.  Whilst you’re in the care of the salon, you’re very well looked after. Each station has an iPad Mini with the latest magazines downloaded for you to browse, a lightning charger for your iPhone and a range of products for you to peruse.  Your iPad is loaded with a menu from which you can select drinks like Prosecco or custom blend coffee, or light bites like popcorn and other sugary treats whilst you’re coiffed.  The salon is both pet and child friendly too with dog bowls for your furry friend and a mini blowdry menu for your mini me.

In my case, my Stylist and I browse the internet for inspiration and find two styles that will work well on my hair and decide to mash them together to create something urban looking that will last for a couple of days.  She coats my dry hair in a mixture of SHOW Beauty Finishing Oil and Moisture Conditioner to not only tame it, but to also give it some grip, and gets to work on two African / Dutch braids.  Once they’re braided back, she sets about creating two braided buns at the nape and pins them securely.  Within around 20 minutes we’ve got a cool, urban style pinned in position and I’m ready to hit up my first show of the day SEMIR x GREENCODE.

SHOW DRY Braids Pixie Tenenbaum

SHOW DRY isn’t just about the Bouncy Blowdry – which they do amazingly – they’re also able to create bespoke styles depending on what you’re up to and your own personal style.  I’m working on the improving the condition of my hair right now as it’s a little delicate, it did start to thicken up again then had a bit of a dip in both length and condition after misplaced faith in a big name North East hair salon (you can read about that here), but who knows, it may even be thick enough to sport the signature blowdry next season.

Pixie xo

Categories: The Archives, The Fashion Closet

Ones To Watch SS18 at London Fashion Week

After a rough start to day one of London Fashion Week, I hit the ground running, albeit a few steps behind, with the multi-designer Ones To Watch show for SS18.  The Ones To Watch show seeks to raise the profile of emerging talent globally and the rostered designers are selected from a long list of emerging designers by a panel of industry experts.  It’s a must see show every season and if you’re an LFW regular, then you can guarantee that you’ll see these names cropping up further down the line.  They’re selected on a number of criteria and the resulting showcase is always a very interesting show.

“THE ONES TO WATCH SHOW IS THE PERFECT LAUNCH PAD FOR TALENTED NEW DESIGNERS. THIS SEASON’S FOUR DESIGNERS PRESENT COMPLETELY DIFFERENT VISIONS OF THE FUTURE OF FASHION. THIS IS THE SUCCESS OF ONES TO WATCH AND WHY IT IS SO POPULAR.”  MARTYN ROBERTS, FASHION SCOUT

The Ones To Watch show for the LFW SS18 season featured four strong designers, each with a different focus and style, I was already flustered on arrival after having to hot foot it from Kings Cross but a coffee and a chat with the lovely Donna Air fixed all of that and set me up for a pretty decent show.

NEO DESIGN

With a palette of black, black and even more black, this almost gender neutral collection cast a stark contrast against the all white show space.  The brand was born out of a graduate project and focusses on the manufacture of the garments as much as the appearance of the final product.  This SS18 collection connected the past with the future with a range made for modern warriors.  Leather, quilting and rope combined in the deepest shades of noir to give an untouchable aesthetic making the wearer a force to be reckoned with.  A collection designed to give the illusion of power and one that certainly succeeds.

 JI WON CHOI

Ji Won Choi’s collection is one of vibrant colour with an underlying message.  The collection, entitled Excessivism, highlights the waste in our closets today.  Swathes of fabric cover the models bodies with exaggerated graphic lines, cuts and strapping.  Ji Won Choi is a designer defying the traditional fashion calendar by showing a seasonless collection, seeking to shift the focus to sustainability over fast fashion.

Bright, playful and clever with elements of wearability.  The message to society is strong with this one…

TRIINU PUNGITS

Pungits is an experienced designer with 13 years of design experience under her sequinned belt.  Normally I’m a fan of her work, a champion of self expression and freedom, her prints are to die for.  This latest collection for me was underwhelming.  Yes, sure there was the whole novelty foam hands thing but it wasn’t consistent enough throughout the collection to be something to sit up and take notice of and felt like it had been added for drama.

I loved the geometric lines, printed leotards and added red heart feature but the whole thing felt a little disjointed for me, especially after the success of SS17 and a meaningful and satisfying collection.  Interesting sure, but more filler than killer for me I’m afraid.  Soz Pungits.

STARSICA

Talk about going out on a high, Starsica SS18 rocked my world and gave Day 1 of LFW an injection of youth and vibrance with that all important wearability factor.  Taking it’s name from the term Star Seeker, depicting a wise man forecasting the movement of the stars and therefore predicting the future, Starsica represents the concept of ‘Everyday luxury wear with the anxiety of modern society’ and it gets it right on point.

Simple shapes and cut out detailing at pivot points gave a youthful edge to the collection and rolled head torches gave a nod to the explorer vibe hinted at in the brand name.  I loved this collection and there’s a space in my wardrobe for that gorgeous human heart sweater and Victoriana ruffle dress.  Despite being a playful collection, Starsica never loses its elegance and stays just the right side of wearable.  Definitely One to Watch.

Pixie xo

Categories: The Archives, The Fashion Closet

What I Wore: For London Fashion Week SS18

The Spring / Summer 2018 season of London Fashion Week is over and it’s been a rollercoaster!  From abhorrent terrorist activity and resulting bomb scares and evacuations, to the ceiling of my room collapsing, it’s been a whirlwind five days and that’s before we even get to the awesome display of design talent.

I’ve had my busiest season to date, hence no full blog posts yet – although they are coming!  And I’ve completely neglected my social channels because preserving battery life is everything during Fashion Week.  So to whet your appetite Voyeurs, here’s a quick post on the outfits I chose to wear to the shows this season, with a disclaimer on why they were not my intended outfits.

I packed my case meticulously with ten outfits.  Nothing particularly trend led, just a mixture of things that I own and like, and things that designers and brands had sent to me in the hope that I’d wear them.  Amongst these things was a pair of brand new metallic boots which led to the utter demise of my planned LFW SS18 Wardrobe…..

DAY 1

I left on the 8.38 Virgin East Coast train, which was delayed due to what we now know was a home made explosive device on the Parson’s Green underground.  This understandably delayed the arrival of my train into London Kings Cross considerably meaning two things happened:

1. I missed the Pam Hogg show, which I later heard was awesome. Dr Hogg is known for her wonderfully quirky and imaginative runway shows and I was gutted to have missed this one, but you know, bigger things were happening in London at that time.  I also missed the Billie Jacobina show which was a real downer – Jacobina’s creations are amazing.  Think pink, negligee, teddy bears, fur, voile and throw it all together and that’s Billie Jacobina.  The kitsch designer was promoted from presentation to runway for SS18 which is a really big deal.  I did get to catch her static exhibit at Fashion Scout, so all was not entirely lost I guess.

2. I attended my first show of the day wearing my train outfit.  I landed in London, ran to my hotel, which luckily is a stones throw from the station, ditched my shiz and literally legged it out the door to catch the much hyped Ones To Watch runway show in Holborn.

So, this outfit is an eclectic mix of AND / OR jeans (which I love), with a sheer, black ballerina skirt layered over the top.  On top I’m wearing a Year One Collective spoof tee and my Starlover Clothing custom painted leather jacket.  Obviously I travelled on my own and had to cut a dash so didn’t have anyone to grab a picture but I featured in Donna Air’s Insta stories wearing this and she said it looked cool so, ’nuff said.

DAY 2

My most jam packed day and one where I knew I’d be cramming a good weeks worth of regular people activity into 24 hours and for that reason comfort came high up in my list of priorities.  I chose a Maison Margiela MM6 Denim shirt dress.  Simples.  The best bit?  Pockets.  Crammed with protein bars, my Oyster Card, hotel key card, San Pellegrino water & gum.

Remember those metallic boots I told you about?  Well they broke on Day 1 running across a road into the show venue and sadly died that evening, leaving me with one pair of metallic fuschia flat loafers to get me through the entire week.  I topped this off with bed hair and a tiffler from Marks and Spencer.

DAY 3

Another crazy schedule climaxing with the awesome Hellavagirl Couture show, and a link up with SHOW DRY London, the salon arm of SHOW Beauty who very kindly look after my hair during London Fashion Week.  After fixing me up with some super cute Dutch braids, I set off for my first show of the day wearing high shine PVC fetish store pants and a custom printed slogan tee made specially for me by Virgo Seven UK.  On my feet?  You guessed it, those feet murdering pink loafers with white fishnet socks.

DAY 4

Day 4 was wet, with intermittent downpours; I knew I wanted to be warm.  I also tried to keep the afternoon free to go buy Plankton a present in Hamleys and get myself out of the fashion bubble and take in some London architecture.  None of these things actually happened, I took on extra shows and headed out into the cold with yesterday’s braids, Topshop tweed shorts and a cosy Primark sweater.

Part way through the day after The Great Foot Massacre of London Fashion Week, I went back to my hotel to switch into jeans (Plankton’s) and socks which I bought that day, mid hissy fit.  I met a photographer friend for drinks that evening and he told me convincingly that I managed to style it out….

Front Row for Dumpty Studio SS18 LFW

DAY 5

With the finish line in sight, I let out my braids and whizzed the flat irons over my hair to give a soft curl and after waking up to a suitcase full of water and rubble, I was left without my intended outfit.  When your hotel ceiling collapses, sure it’s funny at first, until you find your Mark Fast sweater is soaking wet & your underwear is laced with plaster dust.

Luckily I was well equipped with a wipe clean PVC A-line skirt from Primark, some purple Wolford fishnets (never go cheap when it comes to fishnets) and I cut a dash to Monki to buy this Where’s Waldo-esque red & white striped tee.  I added one of my signature metallic tattoos, this time a diamond gifted with the Fenty Beauty press pack and a deco style necklace from M.I.Accessories.  Job done.

By this point my feet were destroyed and I’d adopted a penguin style walk that even I couldn’t style out.  Note to self, sneakers or sliders next season.

The next morning I shamefully put on yesterday’s outfit to head to the station and make my way back up North to a slower pace of life.  After experiencing the tornado that is London Fashion Week, and my busiest schedule to date, I’m ready to do this all over again in six months – albeit in better shoes.

Pixie xo

Send me your top tops for packing light and treating blisters for the chance to be featured in an upcoming post!