Style Inspiration: Giorgia Tordini

I first came across Italian stylist, creative director and designer Giorgia Tordini’s style such on streetstyle stalwarts Garance Doré and The Sartorialist and have been following her style evolution ever since. A master in mixing high and low and menswear and womenswear elements, Giorgia’s style is classic with a modern twist... the perfect inspiration for everyday dressing.

(Images: A selection from The Sartorialist, Stockholm Streetstyle, Le 21eme, grazia.it)

Adventures in Online Shopping: Steven Alan

L-R: TEN bralet and high waisted undies, Isabel Marant suede Dicker boots, Steven Alan cashmere beanie, Etiquette Clothiers Sailor Stripe socks, Steven Alan x Daryl K stretch silk blazer, Claire Vivier green Messenger Tote, Steven Alan plaid boyfriend shirt, Steven Alan reverse seam shirt, Acne Needle wet cash jeans

Why oh why isn't there a Steven Alan store in the UK?! From TEN undies to Acne jeans, they stock all my favourite brands for essentials and their shirts are to die for! Here are a few of my favourite things...

All available from Steven Alan

Thought for the Day: Clémence Poésy

Boxy (most probably Chanel) jacket, black skinny jeans & the perfect pair of ankle boots. Does Clémence Poésy ever get it wrong?

Interview: CALLA

Toronto born designer Calla Haynes is the creative force behind her eponymous label CALLA, a Parisian based label built on the founding principles of relaxed luxury and wearability. Since the line's debut in Spring/Summer 2010, Calla's strong print designs and experiments with colour and texture have gone from strength to strength, earning her two ANDAM nominations and a prestigious collaboration with the house of Lemarié, one of Chanel’s metiers d’arts. I caught up with Calla to discuss what it's like to be a young designer in Paris and the ultimate capsule wardrobe.

Hi Calla! Where are you and what are you doing right now? Hi! Right now, I’m in my studio wrapping up all my Spring/Summer 2013 orders and launching production.

How did you get into design? I always knew that this was what I wanted to do but as a kid I never thought that I would wind up living in Paris. When I was in high school I made a lot of my own clothes. I made my formal dress and graduation dress. I applied to Parsons School of Design and studied there in New York for 2 years and then 1 year at Parsons Paris.

Tell us about your past jobs. What lead you to your current position? After my year at Parsons Paris, I interned with Olivier Theyskens at Rochas and then went on to work closely with him for almost 5 years at Rochas, and then Nina Ricci. After that, I worked as a freelance textile designer and collaborated with a lot of amazing people like Jeremy Laing and Erin Fetherston.

You’re based in Paris. What’s it like being a young designer there? It’s really exciting! There is so much history and savoir-faire here to inspire my work.

How would you describe the Calla aesthetic in three words? Relaxed Luxury + Prints

Who and what influences your designs? Art, nature and texture influence my print designs, and the ‘creative woman’ influences what kind of clothes I design.  I like to imagine her in a certain job, like a painter, or an actress, or an interior decorator, and then think up the kind of wardrobe she would need in her life.

Talk us through the design process. I do a lot of textile research to find interesting, special things.  Then I start on the print designs, which are done mainly on Photoshop but have some hand-made elements as well.  Separately, I design the silhouettes of the collection and at some point the prints and the silhouettes marry.

Prints are your signature. How do they evolve from season to season? They relate directly to the themes of the collection so it depends on how I’m feeling that season. I try to push their complexity and their beauty further each season with new techniques or new ways to mix them but I think they always stay a ‘Calla’ print:  abstract, poetic, romantic, feminine but twisted.

Who is the Calla girl? She’s a girl that works in the arts and at least appreciates them. She’s looking for unique, special pieces that make her feel special but that are easy to wear and work for her in her busy life.  She’s a bit of a ‘coquine’ – for me that means she has a shy side but also a wild side!  She’s really in control of her femininity and lets it come out to play when it suits her, but she also loves a jean and t-shirt.

How would you describe your personal style and how does that manifest itself in your designs? I definitely have a tomboy side that’s juxtaposed with my love of high fashion and addiction to cocktail dresses. Because of that, it’s really important for me to create a true wardrobe.  Separates are as important as dresses. My favourite pieces (t-shirt, skinny pant, boyfriend jacket) are well represented in my collection, as well as a sexy dress and a romantic floor sweeping skirt.

What’s your favourite fashion era? I don’t really have favourites, but maybe mid-60s London.  I love me a vintage Laura Ashley dress…

What are your 5 wardrobe essentials? Ha ha, I think I already answered that!

Printed t-shirt with a cool special detail, printed skinny pant or jean, boyfriend jacket in a cool tweed or jacquard, a sexy dress to convince my husband that maybe accompanying me to another fashion party won’t be that bad! and a dramatic evening look like my long printed skirts with a train.

Any beauty rituals? I’m so basic! But I do have a New York ritual to do a manicure / pedicure whenever I’m there.

What’s coming up next for Calla? Getting my new denim collection in stores. And I better get started on Fall 13!

Describe your perfect day. Getting out of the city, a nice long walk with my dog, lots of good food & wine, and laughing with friends. Discovering something new that inspires me like a great documentary or art expo.

See more of Calla's work on her website.
Calla is available to buy here.

Adventures in Online Shopping: My Chameleon

L-R: Thomsen boyfriend blazer, Hope garcon trouser, Thomsen bird print slim shirt, Rachel Comey boatneck swing sweater, Dieppa Restrepo croc print tassel loafer, Aesa small pleat cuff, Illesteva frieda sunglasses, Estelle Deve neferu three ring set

Here's a sneak peak at my fantasy shopping list (if money were no object!) My Chameleon stock a wonderfully curated range of some of my all time favourite designers, from New York based Rachel Comey to Thomsen, a shirt designer I first discovered when living in Paris. Wouldn't this be the perfect weekend outfit? And don't even get me started on that boyfriend blazer!

All available from My Chameleon.

Interview: Christopher Kane

Sorry for the distinct lack of posts, updates coming very soon but in the meantime take a look at a recent interview I did with Christopher Kane at the Scottish Fashion Awards for Dazed and Confused Digital.
(Image credit: Christopher Kane S/S 2012 from Style Bistro)

The Essentials: The Little Black Jacket

Lately the fashion world's been a buzz with talk of Karl Lagerfeld and Carine Roitfeld's latest collaboration: The Little Black Jacket: Chanel's Classic Revisited. Styled by Roitfeld and photographed by Lagerfeld, the coffee-table book, set for release this autumn, features 113 of fashion's most stylish men and women all wearing Chanel's iconic jacket. The shoot shows just how versatile Chanel's coveted classic can be, whether it be paired with a breton top and cigarette pants à la Sofia Coppola, or with a pair of worn out jeans as seen on perennial style icon Jane Birkin. Hovering mid-way between a jacket and a boxy cardigan, the Little Black Jacket has not changed since Coco Chanel first designed it in 1924 when she weighed down the hem and silk lining with a gold chain to ensure that it sat perfectly on the body. Is it the ultimate wardrobe essential; classic, elegant and timeless. The only snag? The cost. At a cool $4,710, a girl can but dream!

(Images: The Little Black Jacket)

Deconstructed: Rochas Autumn/ Winter 2012 Look 21

Don't get me wrong, I'm one of those obsessives who endlessly trawls style.com after each and every show of fashion week, posied on the edge of my seat in anticipation of the weird and wonderful creations the likes of Miuccia Prada will conjure up next, but nothing excites me more than seeing something effortless and wearable on the catwalk. Case in point: Look 21 from Rochas' Autumn/ Winter 2012 show from designer Marco Zanini. Whilst the rest of the show was a kaleidoscope of bold, geometric prints, this look is exquisite in its understated wearability. The navy ribbed poloneck has just the right amount of cling, accentuating the body underneath. The skirt (not too long, not too short) adds a luxe schoolma'am-ish air to the whole thing. Proportions are kept in check with a nod to the Fifties - a simply belted cinched in waist. And finally, just a hint of the unexpected with the graphic print of the tights and a strong blackberry lip. Librarian chic at its best.

(Image: via The Sartorialist)

Photoshoot: New York 1962: Jean Shrimpton by David Bailey

You just can't beat the Sixties for good old fashioned style, can you? These shots of Jean Shrimpton taken by David Bailey for Vogue in 1962 encapsulate everything that the decade came to stand for, marking the dawn of a new era in photography and fashion as well as changing the face of class structure and sexual politics for good. Bailey and Shrimpton defied Vogue Fashion Editor Lady Clare Rendlesham, shooting mid-range (yet oh-so-chic) clothes in the grittier parts of Manhattan, with Jean doing her own hair and makeup. The shoot has been immortalised in a one off BBC drama We'll Take Manhattan, available to watch here on BBC iPlayer.

Look of the day

These recent photographs of jewelry designer Lara Melchior on vogue.fr make me long for a wardrobe consisting solely of silk shirts and loose fitting trousers. Citing Dries Van Noten and Phoebe Philo among her favourite designers, it is no surprise that for Melchior comfort is key. Her wardrobe is awash with simple jersey tee shirts by Isabel Marant, wide leg trousers and breton tops, all accessorised with her line of delicate gold jewelry inspired by Viennese Art Nouveau and Fauvism. The allure of her wardrobe lies in well cut, good quality, comfortable basics which work just as well for day as for evening. Plus, anyone who owns a pair of Chanel espadrilles gets my style vote...

I wanted to give a woman comfortable clothes that would flow with her body. A woman is closest to being naked when she is well-dressed — Coco Chanel

(photographs: Linus Ricard for vogue.fr)

Stand The Test of Time

Ever since the baby doll dresses and stacked wooden heels popularised during her reign at Chloé in the Nineties, Phoebe Philo has imprinted herself onto fashion's collective conscious as the go to designer for luxury, wearable staples that women want to wear. I, like every other fashion fanatic, have followed Philo's evolution from the romantic Chloé days to the more grown up, pulled together aesthetic at Céline and find myself victim to what can only be described as the current Philo epidemic. Inspired both by Philo's personal and professional style, I was interested to read this profile of the designer via The Independent website. Philo's straightforward, industrious approach to the world of fashion design, reflected in her classic, discreet creations comes as a breath of fresh air in an industry renowned for its frivolity. "I think it's quite liberating for women not to have to be so preoccupied with different silhouettes, with different things," she says. It is this no-fuss, substantial approach that has struck a chord with the educated, modern women who comprises the brand's primary market. The success of Céline undoubtedly lies in its wearability factor and relevance to the current economic climate. As much as we can admire the effort and hours of grooming gone into the larger than life outfits of the likes of Anna Dello Russo, it is currently much more desirable to be able to throw on perfectly cut pair of cropped trousers or a simple shift within a mere matter of minutes without having to forsake that million dollar feeling.

"I absolutely love fashion. I love doing new things and finding ways to swerve in a different direction. But one of the reasons why I try to use fabrics and cuts that don't go out of fashion is because I like the idea of women buying the clothes and then... I don't know what the word is... cherish sounds over-emotional for a relationship with a piece of clothing... but for a woman to feel proud, satisfied, comfortable and powerful in them, to wear them and get on with their lives." - Phoebe Philo

(photograph: Phoebe Philo by David Sims for Vogue Paris)