Au Revoir

Au Revoir Roitfeld, you have served the fashion world extremely well.
But who will fill those almighty boots?

Andrej Pejic... the fashion equivalent to Marmite

You're either gonna love him or hate him... Yes him, meet Andrej Pejic the Australian male model that rocked male and female catwalks all through 2010. For the record I absolutely love the idea of sending a male model down a womenswear catwalk, especially if that model in particular is as beautiful as he is. I say 'idea' because the fashion industry seems to be full of nostalgia, looking back at the 'good old days' of fashion. But this is a breath of fresh air, something new to spark debate, and what we should see a lot more of in the future. Because that's what fashion is all about creating new ideas about the way we view the world, i.e. gender norms and constantly generating new ideas.

Ivan Campo we salute you!

The guy that served us in HMV in Manchester attached his band to the DVD (Breakfast at Tiffany's) I bought at the tills, I think this an absolute awesome way of creating awareness, which isn't pushy - and with it scribbled on a scrap piece of paper makes it much more friendlier and personal... I checked out the band and they are awesome! Take a look at their website http://ivancampo.net/ They definitely sold it to us! 

Gap Tooth... Once a source of ridicule now a fashion must have.

Imperfection is the new perfection. Gap tooth models are everywhere from Prada to Topshop, its so common now it makes me wonder when Primark will latch on and do their own version. Lara Stone is the pin up for this look with her magical creature-like beauty, which gives any look that certain edge. Out of them all though I have to hand it to i-D they take this trend and turn it into something different. The models in the pictures appear to have hardly any teeth whatsoever, never mind a tiny little gap which has made a fortune for a selected number of models. Take a look...

Colour my life...: New York - My time in the city that never sleeps

Colour my life...: New York - My time in the city that never sleeps

CHRISTMAS 2010 AD CAMPAIGNS

Hoorahh! Christmas is here! Cue tinsel wrapped round bannisters, flashing lights and inflatable Santa's on top of roofs. My grandma loves it, so much so her garden now has two lit up and MOVING electronic reindeer, we get on well due to our shared love of clothing, but this is where we differ, she is a garish Christmas fanatic God love her! And I am all about keeping it simple and traditional. Anyway to the point of this blog... Christmas ads are everywhere to re-enchant us once more with the festive season... They all seem to be built around the idea of families and friends... I especially love the John  Lewis advert - turning mass produced products into something special and unique to the customer - pure genius!

F U R: FASHION'S BIGGEST TABOO?

In 1985, 45 designers used fur, today around 400 use it for their products, from Giorgio Armani to Matthew Williamson. The ultimate guilty pleasure is back, the British fur industry is now worth £500 million per year and globally it’s worth £7 billion. Which makes us question what has changed? Fur it seems is more acceptable these days even though technological advances within textiles means that many of us can hardly tell real and faux fur apart. Channel 4 G Spot conducted a survey where they asked the public whether they would ever wear real fur. Out of 1,631, 22% stated that they have no problem wearing fur no matter where it comes from, 39% said that that they would only wear fur that’s ethically sourced, 2% would wear fur if they didn’t feel so guilty, and 35% would never wear fur as it being against everything they believe in.

I understand why someone would; if they had the extra cash lying around, buy in to the ‘real’ experience. Fur has long been associated with the elite leisure class; it signifies wealth, impeccable taste, and social importance. The reassurance you get from knowing that the garment is real and not fake, is more satisfying than if others knew whether or not it was. Fur is a timeless piece, it’s luxurious, making you feel empowered, evidently showing that you have ‘it’.

However, the way fur is sourced is far from the luxurious designer stores that it ends up in. Fur farming is banned in the UK, and as a rule of thumb the English are uncomfortable about it. However the rest of the world takes a different stance as Europe and USA have major fur exporting markets whilst over half the worlds fur comes from China. In China foxes are skinned alive so the fur isn’t damaged, just for our personal gain. Some people take the view that there is a middle ground where animals can be killed humanely by trapping, although trapped fur only makes up 20% of the fur market and is open to anyone as young as 13 if they hold a licence, inevitably there will be good and bad practises. But as consumers, we cannot make informed decisions due to the industry not being transparent. Even if we wanted to trace where our fur comes from we wouldn’t be able to as the fur auction houses don’t rate fur on where it has come from but on the colour and quality. So your fur coat could be made from 40 different pelts from 40 different places, with the slaughtering practises varying massively. It’s unquestionable that the industry needs to be more regulated, and more emphasis needs to be placed on good welfare practise assurance.

Ethical practises within the fashion industry as a whole aren’t up to scratch and the fur industry is just the same, which may explain our relaxing views on fur, we are used to hearing about certain brands exploiting their workers, and we still go out on to the high street in our masses to bag the latest trends and bargains so why does our take the use of fur have to be so different, surely we are humanising the animals a little too much?

Fur is a controversial subject but isn’t that what’s so great and interesting about the fashion industry. It makes people question what is acceptable by pushing social boundaries and throwing society back in its face. For now, personally I wouldn’t buy a new real fur coat, and opt for the faux fur. But if a vintage fur coat past my way, well it would be hard to say no.