contrasts.

black and blue, matte and shiny, leather and....leather.

always been an admirer of ADAM (a label that was on my 'shop report' short list...) and a/w11 hasn't let me down - blacks, blues, creams and greys (the bulk of my wardrobe in colour terms, then) plus checks, full and/or midi length skirts and a little sheer, texture and knit thrown in.

meanwhile alexander wang is doing capes and more capes - or "the curvy fashion girls's [sic] favorite" as derek blasberg tweeted during the show. right. sure. yeah. really? - featuring many a matte/shiny panel.

obvs awang is a fan of the 90s - he very much facilitated the grunge comeback, yeah? - but the shiny puffa jacket situation should be left there, imo. i leave the first look with you as the only example i picked out of said puffa situations, but it's really not the worst offender - and i love that the longer length at the back means you can see the padded inside; big fan.

the panelling really works better with the matte/gold sparkly knit pieces, right?

look 2 is really interesting - the knit blending into the silk - but may i enquire as to who isn't wearing shoes in winter? or for that matter, whose wearing knee boots with open toes and a toe post... hmm.

and at mandy coon it's all about the drama.

leather on leather and fur and belts and full length and black. and dip dyed black fringes, which are pretty awesome.

next a/w isn't so much about fall witchy vibes, it's about fall bikerwitch vibes, or something.

if the boot fits.

second post about shoes in a row. third if you count the ones in this weeks ebay post. third post in a row involving ebay.

good work!

so autumn is creeping up on us - the a/w lookbooks have been circulating for some time, and stores are starting to get their stock in. it's time, in my eyes, to start thinking about winter footwear, which is, of course, focused around the art of the ankle boot.

this year, i'm mostly looking for something with a platform, or perhaps a wedge, but mostly for the perfect tan chelsea boot. definitely not docs again, as my ill-advised foray into docs around this time last year will show you. stubby legs + 10 holes = not good. also the blisters were unbearable....

ideally i want pair of boots number 1 from this ebay post, but they were too big. i'm hoping a trip to absolute vintage, aka where i got my favoured flat black vintage boots last year, when i'm in london, will bear fruits, but otherwise....

if money were no object:

all from net-a-porter//clockwise from top:

chloe; £580

alexander wang; £555

alaïa; £1000

burberry; £475

gucci; £720

i find myself drawn to the wangs more than i ever was when they were on the catwalk, but the chloes would be perfect if they were a few shades lighter. (good job they're not then. £580!?).

if i save up a bit:

1-5 from nastygal; 6 from the outnet//top row:

sam edelman; $185

jeffrey campbell; $162

jeffrey campbell; $192

bottom row:

jeffrey campbell; $188

jeffrey campbell; $225

vanessa bruno; £115.50 on sale

seriously considering the vanessa brunos, if they're still in my size when i have money. they're also in black, and white (i think), on the outnet site...

the big mustard jeffrey campbell platforms AND the tall black ones are making me drool. =/.

the high street

top row:

asos; £45

asos; £40

asos; £45

bottom row:

asos; £75

new look; £60

topshop; £65

new look are ABSOLUTELY winning the chelsea boot race here. almost perfect. if only the elastic part was black! in fact, in a strange turn of events, i find topshop not to be ahead of everyone here - this is the best boot they have right now, and it's not all that. i assume they have some stunners up their sleeves, though, which will no doubt be in store soon. probably too soon, in the sense that they will be SO AWESOME that they will sell out before loan times. sigh.

the realistic

the questionably photoshopped ebay and etsy haul!

i'm not linking all of these - partly cos i can't be bothered, partly cos i'm watching a couple and maybe i don't feel like sharing, huh? though, the bottom left pair, which are here on etsy for $40 are too big anyways, so have at them!

pairs 2 and 6 in particular have caught my eye (and are both at seriously good prices right now) but maybe a pair of black chelseas would be good too?

in which direction are you taking your boots this winter, mes amis?

t-time

Amidst the AW collections, the occasional lookbook pops up for other lines. High street stores AW ranges might be a month or two away (to give them time to incorporate the new trends, no doubt), but higher end capsule ranges, and diffusion lines, are now popping up.

Case in point?

T by Alexander Wang.

pics from refinery29

I LOVE this range. I've never paid mass amounts of attention to it before, but it's not just the fact that I've been looking for a jersey maxi in grey and/or black that makes me love this one. (Coincidently, there are similar skirts already on sale on Wang's site, as part of S/S10).

Yes, yes.

This is pretty much the perfect diffusion/basics line - the cut of the vests, the trousers, the skirts, the jumpers, the cardigans, and of course the tees, are all on trend, but not too invested in the trend to make them obviously part of this season and no other. The look piled up on top of each other obviously gives off the grungy feel Wang is famed for, but taken individually, the pieces all give off that cool vibe to illeviate any outfit.

And of course, black, grey and white all easy to slip into anyones wardrobe.

Head and shoulders above his main line, velvet-saturated AW collection.

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W-elcome to the new year

I've given you a day off, a day to sit about and break your resolutions* and watch TV**, so now let's launch into 2010 - what better way than a look forward to Spring (WHICH IS LITERALLY AROUND THE CORNER! Ignore the snow outside, it is nearly spring, honest!).

US mag W done a spread; vidi:

Lemme see if I (and you...) can pick out some iconic pieces/favourites....

Prada perspex shoes, Chanel + clogs, Miu Miu animal print shoes, a lil' bit of Comme (i do love that sheer full length trench effort), a smidge of Burberry, some Rodarte, some Alexander Wang, some Balmain, ALEXANDER MCQUEEN FUCK YEAH!, the complete runway look off of Dries Van Noten that I absolutely adored. That skirt, man, I love the drape..., a bunch more Rodarte, and oh, I can't remember who done what. Due to laziness I'm not gonna go looking back for the lace ones, and the lace up skirt look I remember liking (middle look, last pic), nor the sparkley effort (Prada again? One of the Italian houses fersure.).

I'm not a very good fashion blogger, am I? Must remember which designer done what in future. Gah.

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*other than my previously mentioned style resolutions, mine are to eat healthier and make the most of my time. Yesterday I ate a McDonalds, some christmas chocolates, some of Ana's birthday cake, some toast heaped in butter, and sausages and mash, in which the mash closely resembled Mt Everest, but covered in gravy.

Clearly, these were resolutions meant to be broken.

But New Year's Day doesn't count, right? It's from today, right? Yeah, I thought so.

**AHHH DOCTOR WHO ISN'T DAVID TENNANT ANYMORE, WAAAAAAAH ;___; ETC. Big Fat Quiz of the Year was ace, as usual. TV highlight of the year, every year, for me. Never as good as the year Russell Brand and Noel Fielding were on a team, but I will accept Russell and Jonathon Ross. Or David Mitchell and Charlie Brooker. Classic. Also Rob Brydon's 'man trapped in a box' impression; genius.

S/S 10, Part Uno

So, this is purely a "so far I like" kind of situation.

This is also a "I haven't posted for a few days" kind of situation.

This is also a "I've just spent a lot of money finally booking the ol' Europe trip" kind of situation.

Woo!

So...

Yes!

Let's look at some fashion an' ting.

Alexander Wang

So, Mr. Wang had an american football theme going on. As with a lot of Wang collections, I'm not a fan*, per se, but there were some awesome pieces - the structured jumpers which looked like the protective gear 'dem footballers wear are pretty cool.

*I mean, I'm a fan, but his stuff is not necessarily stuff I'd wear, yknow? Not my style...Apart from the TOTALLY AWESOME sheer layering in the last 2 looks.

Rebecca Taylor

Cute prints, cute shapes, cute layering...I love the blue/white stripe jumper, and how the blue is in a gradient. And the grey dress is HOT.

Gary Graham

SHEEEEERRRRRRR! NUUUUUDDDEEESSS! lovelovelove.

....I'm just gonna let the pics do the talking. But this is a lot of love.

Charlotte Ronson

I am literally all about the sheer leggings/bodysuits.

Boy by Band of Outsiders

Currently lusting after the bandage skirts. A lot. The cross straps and the striped pieces? nomnomnom.

Julian Louie

Um, once again, epic love for sheer, nude, and layering. It's like I've been channelling my love of these things to the minds of designers - I should really be doing trend prediction, right? I hope I get that placement! Haha.

Anyways; I do love the frilly/fringy details on the 2nd look; despite not being a frilly kinda gal...kudos!

Marc Jacobs

Ahhhhh Marc-y Marc; ye can do no wrong. Well......maybe not. These are looks I love from S/S10, but as a collection I'm not a fan - toooooo manyyyy frillllssssss! Erg. Sorry dude; take the girly down a peg plzkthanks.

I'm mostly LOVING the styling - belts and corsets over jackets are highly awesome, especially over the army style jackets. Tempted to check out the army+navy store, cos Karlie Kloss is SELLING ME THAT on the 4th look.

Also; finale dress = stunning.