The view from my sick bed

I’ve been ill. The kind of ill that makes you recoil in fear when you glance at your reflection in the mirror. The pills I was prescribed made me feel worse. I hate being ill but here are a few things that I missed whilst I was in bed.

Ashley Olsen at the Golden Globes.

Ashley Olsen in Erdem at a Golden Globes after party

I love this Erdem dress! And aren’t those shoes the Manolo Blahniks made famous by Carrie in the Sex and the City movie?

I know everyone was going crazy for Kate Hudson but Diane Kruger looked amazing in Jason Wu. Makes me wish I had a reason to buy a fabulous dress… sadly I don’t! A girl can always dream.

Diane Kruger in Jason Wu via JustJared.com

Men’s fashion week in Paris and Milan. My appreciation for men’s clothes goes as far as there being nothing better to look at than a well dressed man.

Vivienne Westwood Mens A/W 2010

Vivienne Westwood showed what has been dubbed ‘homeless chic’ in Milan. I loved it!

Couture Fashion Week in Paris opened by Christian Dior.

Christian Dior Couture S/S 2010

That’s enough catching up for now. I’m better now, so expect more of the usual!

I’m an eighties girl

I know the nineties is having a bit of a revival at the moment, with Selfridges leading the pack with their concept pop-up store The Nineties are Vintage that is in store right now. But I am all about the eighties and it looks like Moschino is too. Shots of their Spring/Summer 2010 ad campaign reveal big hair, piles of big, garish jewellery, not to mention some firece looking clothes modeled by Isabeli Fontana.

Moschino Spring/Summer 2010 ad campaign via Fashion Gone Rogue

Bringing in the new year with a flashback to the old was a good move. Reminds me of the days I used to wear patterned Moschino tights… yeah, I did it. I’m not ashamed.

Moschino Spring/Summer 2010 ad campaign via Fashion Gone Rogue

Waste not, want not: The ugly side of H&M

This Spring, H&M have released a new collection to help ease the conscience of most of us avid shoppers and our love for ever-changing trends. The Garden Collection is made using only organic and recycled materials. All the garments have been produced using sustainable materials or using recycled PET bottles or textile waste. H&M has long had their organic cotton range and with this new collection, these efforts constantly remind us that we can enjoy disposable fashion more responsibly. This is the side of H&M I know and love.

The Garden Collection from H&M

However, there is another side to H&M – an uglier side. Yesterday, The New York Times exposed that H&M’s Herald Square NYC store was destroying perfectly good, unworn clothes and throwing them away. A passer-by found bags of mutilated clothes night after night despite H&M boasting that they give unused clothes to charity. This is appalling and unacceptable and as the article rightly points out, “It is winter. A third of the city is poor. And unworn clothing is being destroyed nightly.”

H&M released the following statement using their Facebook page: “H&M is committed to taking responsibility for how our operations affect both people and the environment. Our policy is to donate any damaged usable garments to charity. We’re currently investigating an incident in a NY store that is not representative of our policy. We will follow with more information as soon as we are able. H&M’s US sales operation donates thousands of garments each year through Gifts In Kind Int.” – but its not enough to say that something will be done, they must act on this.

As shoppers, we have a responsibility too. The reality is that we rarely think of the consequences of our desire and need for trendy clothes, often looking to brands such as H&M, TopShop and Forever 21 to give us a fast, cheap fashion fix. The picture is much bigger than an NYC H&M store throwing out unworn clothes – there is a bigger picture that we are oblivious to or rarely think of. The poor working conditions and low wages of sweatshops behind the mass production of the clothes and the carbon emissions in the transportation of those clothes to name but a few.

So where does that leave us? Is vintage the answer or should we buy from high end designers? Maybe we should not buy clothes at all? The truth is that these brands will continue to make clothes meet the high demand for trends and most of us will continue to buy them. At a time when most people are trying to make and stick to New Year’s resolution, what can we do to make sure that we enjoy fashion responsibly? I know that I don’t have the answer to this but I want to be more responsible. Do you have any thoughts?

Mutilated clothing found on West 35th Street last month via NYT

Beauty is all in the details

There’s nothing more satisfying than getting a good manicure and I’ll be prepping my nails for the new must-have colour from Chanel as sported by Lily Allen at the Spring/Summer 2010 show.

Lily Allen sporting Particulière painted nails at Chanel's Spring/Summer 2010 show

The colour, ‘Particulière’, is a purplely brown that will look great with the season’s nude trend and seems much more wearable than the bogey Jade green people were going crazy for last season.

A closer look at the nail polish from the Chanel Spring/Summer 2010 runway

Though I’m not a major Rachel Zoe fan, I do totally agree with her advice that along with a smile, your hands are the first thing people notice. So I’ll be looking forward to getting a manicure with Chanel’s Particulière… though there is already a waiting list.

Rule Britannia

Every now and again good old Great Britain gives me a reason to reaffirm why I’m proud to be British and no I’m not talking about the extra bank holiday coming in 2012 because of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee but about that other famous British institution – TopShop. Tomorrow, the first of TopShop’s trio of Spring collaborations from Ashish, Ann Sofie Back and Jonathan Saunders, hits stores.

Ashish, Ann-Sofie Back and Jonathan Saunders for TopShop Spring 2010

Ann-Sofie Back kicks of the collaborative season with a line of 6 horror movie-inspired pieces. Dishevelled and slashed is clearly the inspiration for Back and her pieces will have you looking like a hot extra from Michael Jackson’s Thriller video (dancing skills not required).

Ann-Sofie Back for TopShop

Next up will be Jonathan Saunders. His second collection will be dropping on January 20 and it has more of a sexy, sultry bodycon feel.

Jonathan Saunders for TopShop

Last but not least, the Ashish line drops on February 3. Everyone went crazy for those leopard print wedges last season so let’s see what happens with the studded tracksuit…

Ashish for TopShop

Evolve: Independent Fashion Bloggers Links à la Mode

As we say bye-bye to 2009 and embrace 2010 with open arms, rather than compiling a long resolutions list, my fellow Independent Fashion Bloggers have inspired me to think of evolving – learning something new, trying new products, evolving in my style. So if you are looking for some inspiration this new year or something extra to read this weekend, check out these posts from around Independent Fashion Bloggers network.

• British Style Bloggers – positive body image campaign for 2010 needs your help!
• Daily Diva Dish – Urban Decay Giveaway – Book of Shadows, Volume 2
• Debutante Clothing – ‘Couture’, 1990s – Trends in Vintage To Keep and Say Buh Bye To
• Dedicated Follower of Fashion – Style Soundtrack: A Winter Wonderland. Plan a pretty outfit, listen to a pretty song
• El Fashionista – did an illustration for a 2010 Shoe Calendar (and there’s a high-res download!)
• Fashion Cents – gives you 3 tips for successfully shopping online sample sales
• Fashion Pulse Daily – snags an interview with the woman behind the lovely Love Rocks NY jewelry line, Limor Ratzabi Zenker
• fasshonaburu – surprising revelations about her personal style
• Fine Social – editorial – Color Theory
• grit and glamour – 2009 Fashion MVP – Which fashionista has transformed herself from LA-skanky to uber-swanky?
• Hello Beauty – Review of new Urban Decay Smoke Out Kits that make it really easy to do smoky eyes
• House in Tillford – A look back at the trends of 2009
• Ideefixemon – styles Rodarte for Target
• Idiosyncratic Style – Who do you think rocks the leopard spotted coat?
• Intrinsically Florrie – interviews the talented young fashion illustrator Derek Cardigan
• Retro Chick – :Ethical Design Spotlight – Cruelty free shoes from Beyond Skin
• Style On a String – The New Age of Sexy
• the3st – A conversation with Mei Mei Ding of the revived Central European brand Alter & Kiss, about the firm’s rich history and commitment to cultivating top fashion talent globally
• Unfunded – Christmas Detox, Coset Peekage and Secrets to Successful Thrift Shopping

Big red hair and stripes reign supreme in 2010 thanks to Sonia Rykiel

Get out that spangly new diary or calendar that you got for Christmas and mark February 20th as a date to remember. The eagerly anticipated (well at least by me) Sonia Rykiel for H&M collection will drop in store on this date. Sonia has done quite a bit to get us excited about the collection (that show in Paris) and the reasons just keep coming. Here are some images from the lookbook – thanks to nitrolicious. I love that the model looks like what I expect Sonia herself to have looked like when she was younger, with her crazy red hair and pale skin.

Sonia Rykiel for H&M via nitrolicious

Sonia Rykiel for H&M via nitrolicious

Sonia Rykiel for H&M via nitrolicious