M&S Back in the Game

Due for this Autumn M&S have produced a newly designed womenswear collection which you will all want to grab your hands on! Fusing high-quality fabrics with contemporary cuts this collection displays an easy elegance aesthetic. The collection features flattering dresses, beautifully cut coats and luxurious knitwear.

Coupled with this, Marks & Spencer have also put together an extremely captivating new campaign in order to celebrate this new exciting collection and features some of this countries most inspirational women.

The campaign was shot by renowned photographer Annie Leibovitz and focuses on 12 different women all from very diverse backgrounds and professions such as Grace Coddington- former British model and long-time creative director of US Vogue, Ellie Goulding- singer, songwriter and skilled instrumentalist and also Hellen Mirren- multi-award winning actress. View the campaign in the video featured below.

Topshop Pop Up Market!

Always managing to stay one (high heeled) step ahead in fashion, Topshop have as usual not failed to disappoint with a new savvy idea to entice consumers into their flagship store at London's Oxford Circus. Amongst three floors filled with the lastest fashion trends you will now also find situated on the second floor a Pop Up Market for a limited time only displaying selected boutique brands showcasing their seasonal collections.

Currently you can find brands Queenie, The Whitepepper, We are Hairy People and Never Fully Dressed which will be featured there until the end of the week. After this two more rounds of four concessions will be placed here for three weeks!

Exciting news, below is a preview of the current collections on display:

Images courtesy of INSIDE-OUT (Topshop Blog) 

Selfridges Drive-Through Service

The renowned high end department store which has been open to the world since 1909 otherwise known as 'Selfridges & Co' have recently unveiled that they will be opening the worlds first ever luxury drive-through service for their customers, which will be open from January 2014. The service will be operating from their flagship store situated on Oxford Street in London (the second largest shop in the UK).

Today, shops are becoming extremely dynamic, constantly competing on innovation in order to attract and appeal to consumers. This new strategy is incredibly ingenious, taking luxury to new levels as it allows shoppers to purchase via their online website before collecting their gifts from a reception area behind the store- meaning customers won't even have to get out their car!

Selfridges multi-channel director Simon Forster, claimed;

  "It will not just be the first drive-through service, it will be the best."

The British Designers' Collective 2013

(Left to Right) Yasmin Sewell, Rita Ora & Henry Holland

Today the 'British Designers' Collective' re-opens at Bicester Village which showcases some of the best  of home-grown British fashion talent. The pop-up boutique has been transformed over the last few days in order to launch the 'Future Vintage' theme which exhibits these established and emerging talent collections which will be open for the next eight weeks - with all items up to 60% off!

In collaboration with the British Fashion Council, the one-stop boutique is now open for its fourth year and featuring designers including House of Holland, David Koma, Peter Pilotto, JW Anderson and Roksanda Illincic. Each year a new British face hosts the big launch at the Collective and this year they featured stylish singer Rita Ora.

‘The concept of the shop is about future vintage, it’s really about an era of British fashion, It wasn’t about stock from a previous season or that you may have seen before, it’s  about gathering pieces from the best of British talent in one space. When you see it all right here it’s just great product and it becomes seasonless.’ 
Brand Advisor and Retail Consultant Yasmin Sewell, who curated this year's collection.

'10 of London's Top Young' Fashion Creatives'

As you may have already gathered from reading other posts on my blog, I am extremely passionate in hearing about the freshest undiscovered up coming design talent to hit the scene, therefore when I heard my phone buzz at precisely 06.01 in the morning updating me with my complimentary daily email newsletter from The Business of Fashion i was particularly intrigued by the subject heading; '10 of London's Top Young Fashion Creatives'.

The article demonstrates how London is a hub of creative talent, showcasing a wide and vibrant community of designers, stylists photographers, hair and make up artists, art directors and other fashion creatives (the list could go on forever). It celebrated how top tier design institutes and numerous support schemes across the UK help to support, nurture and establish these young entrepreneurs and BoF managed to speak to some of these rising talents to discover how hard work and determination has got them where they are today.

One of the 10 young flourishing creatives which particularly caught my attention was Matthew Josephs, a stylist from Finsbury Park who first realised his admiration for fashion at just the young age of thirteen! when he noticed John Galliano's AW'03 collection for Dior.

Matthew explains how he went to Central Saint Martins to study womenswear, but soon realised it wasn't the clothes he loved making, but instead creating the powerful looks.

Today Matthew has styled for a long list of renowned publications including i-D, GQ, Style, Vogue as well as consulting for young up-coming designers including Meadham Kirchhoff and Nasir Mazhar.

I highly recommend reading this article of these 10 talented individuals it is both inspiring and motivating! Read the full article here.

Cheap VS Chíc

It's all about shining bright in foil fabric for S/S13, the coloured metallic trend noticed earlier this year on the catwalk for designers such as Burberry Prorsum, Dior and Jonathan Saunders has stuck around with all sorts of garments filtering into stores and online in a mixture of rainbow shades.

As seen above, there are many ways to wear this 'space' themed trend with a wide price range, so whether your shopping the high street or have a special occasion coming up where you can afford to splash out a little more (or have a very kind bank account) then there are plenty of options to choose from. I have picked out just a few of my favourites of the above that I have noticed online and in the shops!  

1. Burberry Brit, Metallic Leather Bomber Jacket, £1,295.00
2. & Other Stories, Leather Mini Skirt, £79.00 *LOVE THIS!
7. Sophie Hulme, Metal Tab Document Clutch Bag, £440.00 *LOVE THIS!
11. Bex Rox Jewellery, Exclusive Gina Twisted Chain Necklace, £450.00

3. Maison Martin Margiela, 4. Zara, 5. See By Chloe Shoes, 6. Topshop. 8. IRO, 9. Versus By Versace, 10. Zara, 12. Zara, 

Now, it would't be right to cash in on these wonderful trends without accompanying them with the perfect make-up! I have picked out below some of my all-time favourite beauty brands in suited colouring which would go perfectly to match this trend. These metallic accents can also be used all year around with any outfit to help amp it up a little and add a luxurious boost to your look!

Favourites:

1. Rimmel, London Glam Eyes Gel Eyeliner, £6.49
5. Bobbi Brown Metallic Long-Wear Cream Eye Shadow,  £18.00  *LOVE THIS!
7. Topshop, Eye Palette in Atmosphere, £12.00
10. NARS, Velvet Matte Lip Pencil, Tender Night, £17.50  *LOVE THIS!

2. Bobbi Brown, 3. Chanel, 4. NARS, 6. Topshop, 8. NARS, 9. NARS, 11. Chanel,

The Cools, (New York) officially open to the public!

Throughout my final year at university, I have been focusing on conducting heavy research and analysis into the Independent market sector, specifically within fashion. So when I came across this article from The Business of Fashion website on 'The Cools' who are a curated marketplace showcasing independent fashion and lifestyle brands based in New York, I was extremely interested and so I thought I would share it with anyone reading!

Following a similar approach to ASOS Markeplace but with a much higher price point, The Cools is a social marketplace where you can discover and buy from influential independent brands, boutiques and sellers. The Cools originally launched in June 2011 as a members-only platform, however they recently have decided to expand to the public via their online website in order to offer more exposure to these emerging brands and inspiring designers.

The marketplace connects approximately 50,000 active users and due to market feedback the company has shifted its overall strategy and refocused on soley providing fresh, young, up and coming brands which will inevitably offer them a direct business-to-consumer channel. 

Womenswear Examples:                                          Menswear Examples:

To view more, visit The Cools here.                                        To view more, visit The Cools here.

Imagery courtesy of The Business of Fashion and The Cools.