Category: Coats
Classic Changes x
In a time when classics are everywhere with their nods to the past, their roots deep in heritage rules are still being broken…take blue with black…
(All photos from Pintrest)
And with New York fashion week starting today there’s the prospect of more twists and turns..will ugly shoes appear in the audience?..or will the power heel reclaim it’s rightful footing, if only for a week?…I for one will be watching with interest…
Laters, Kate x
Parkas x
(photo tumblr)
If I had to chose one item of clothing to represent modern London, it wouldn’t be the timeless belted Burberry Mac ..but the utilitarian street-chic Parka..
And it’s the one item of clothing you don’t have to spend a fortune on..because the truth of it is that the High Street does it far better than the designers who can’t help trying to guild the lilly when the appeal is the simplicity of three..
Army green..
Big sheepskin collar..
And a pull tie at the bottom..not to use..but just because it’s right.
Most of these are from ASOS who are having a truly GREAT parka sale – I can’t think of a more perfect item to be in a sale at this time of year..
Laters, Kate x
Laid back Layering..
The cooler air of autumn is seeping into London. Rumour has it the heat could yet return, but the aroma of moist leaves and wet earth make the mind turn to thoughts of jeans and easy cover-ups.
It’s not that one wants to dive into thick winter layers..it’s more about wanting to embrace that transitional phase, pairing summer favourites with something slightly warmer: Jeans with sandals, shorts with jumpers. These Frame Denim jeans hit the spot – made in collaboration with Supermodel Karlie Kloss they have the perfect legs that never seem to end..a bit like the model herself…
Overlaid with a Chloe Cape as those darker evenings close in. The cape is going to be a key piece this winter…at £2445 a pop this one – probably the most iconic of them all – has all but sold out already. It’s easy to see the appeal: Throw over a summer dress now..or later, over a winter coat when the snow storms hit. But I look at it and can’t help thinking…it’s a fairly basic pattern – in fact it’s the basic pattern that adds to it’s appeal…curve the corners, bind the edges it can’t be that hard…and you’d have you’re own designer version for a fraction of the price…
Anyone game?
Laters, Kate x
Dream Team x
Young British Designers started with a small group with a real thirst to pursue a brave new vision for design and has kept on growing.
It’s pure British design with it’s inbuilt ability to understand the rules..and then break them with a smile.
They don’t care about age – you could be 70 and a new designer with flair, the youth is in the brand. They acknowledge there’s limited experience, but YBD want to give young designers a chance on a retail stage.
And it gives us the chance to see the emerging talents – even spot them – before their ascension to the land of Fashion Gods and silly money.
Which means there are loads of things to look at – men’s included – it’s not about one voice, one style but a rich smorgasbord of everything brought together, everyone made stronger by the other’s presence.
And they’re have an awesome sale at the moment – including these 2 coats..just in time for the coming colder season…
Laters, Kate x
Delightfully Different..
There’s so much to love in Antonio Marras’s 2015 Resort Collection..
Embracing vintage concepts without the slightest hint of a costume: A-line cuts, boxy shapes, explosive prints with pop art polka dots and bubble gum pink all mashed together with culottes, cropped tops and ugly shoes.
It’s like eating the perfect four-course French meal with your fingers in an American Diner whilst wearing a bikini and a smile.
The creepers are a joy.
A touchingly aware cosmopolitan cocktail of ideas beautifully edged in black.
There’s a sense it will fit any body type: skimming, flaring and flattering, moving with giggles and grace.
A homogenous slickness of wearability.
It’s the clothes you’ve always wanted to shop for with that magic touch of satisfaction: you’ll look different…and you’ll look good.
Laters, Kate x
Rose Tinted x
(Women welders from World War II)
There are some clothes that my mother hates…but I love – Utility wear comes under that heading. I suspect it’s a generation thing..my Grandmother hated brass beds associating them with poverty, the Husband’s mother hates our wooden floorboards preferring her perceived luxury of fitted carpets. Then there’s the ongoing discussions between the benefits of a free-standing kitchen rather than a fitted one. We definitely see things with different eyes depending on our subliminal associations.
I love a good Chore coat, like this one from Toast. But my mother would see small, grubby, repetitive work with a touch of coarse. Clothes reduced to their bare essentials with aprons and housecoats abandoned for their practical purposes because the undercurrent of domestic containment is just too strong.
But for me there’s an intrinsic quality – I embrace the practicality, the structured comfort, the soft detailing, the wholesome vintage charm. Instead of servitude and drudgery it represents a time when we took pride in making things from scratch..when it seemed there was more space to breathe.
(Also from Toast)
(By Sisters by Sibling SS14)
Of course, you could just see them as brilliant coats, perfect for layering in this bridging the weather time till the lazy days of summer truly hit…
Laters, Kate x
Button up.. x
Pheobe Philo has done it again. With her Fall 14 RTW Collection, she’s stood outside the circle and injected that tiny little something which like the flapping of a butterflies wing, goes on to rock the very foundation stone of perceived style: Should buttons by symmetrical?
I’m a symmetry girl me: Don’t get me wrong – I love the unexpected, I embrace the fun…but buttons? Don’t they look like a mistake if they’re out of alignment?…or not…? (And there’s that one earring thing to contend with too..)
Quirky or subverted? A quiet act of rebellion or just plain wrong? A new signature out of the trap of mediocrity and a new escape route from containment?…or does it actually make the hairs on the back of your neck stand on end?
Or is this the phase where you first look in horror…then slowly digest…before finally realising it’s the best thing since sliced bread? (those shoes!)
Or are their some things that even the great Pheobe Philo can’t change…?
Laters, Kate x
Isa Arfen..
It always feels odd to be looking at AW when the pinchpoint decisions for Summer seem so much more pressing. On the flip side I still have my Winter clothes still hanging in my closet making it much clearer to see leaps of faiths, gaps, necessities, worn-outs and Objects of Desire..
The category that Isa Arfen falls straight into.
Graciously engaging it’s like cashmere from the street.
Observations both historical (those gold boots!) and contemporary.
Sharp lines with volume yet precision cut.
There will be much smiling this Autumn!
Laters, Kate x
Serendipidy..
Sometimes worlds start to collide..like today! Two of the lovely brands I’ve discovered on my Blog travels have taken their visions further: The dynamic Claire from Air & Grace has just launched her website! Yay!
Find out exactly why I think her shoes are so special..
And meet Grace..the urban, kooky, stylish muse of the Brand! You may also recognise a bit of the style of writing on the Website..Claire was here last week to crunch some words together..
And the charismatic children’s label the Fableists? They’ve just launched a Kickstarter Project…
Making it the ideal time to invest in a classic canvas Chore coat..(in my size please!!)
Or the smock dress I’ve been meaning to get..and check out that Blue chambray shirt..divine..
Buy knowing you’ve helped the people who want to get it right…it’s about great clothes for kids that are beautifully made with love, design and sustainability…which ticks every box in my book.
But at the end of the day..it’s not the buying that really matters… we can do much more: We’re all plugged into that cyber-energy that runs like a river between us and the world…send out a post, a tweet, an email – spread the word. If each one of us sent off little paper boats of information out onto the current, the result would be incredible…these are now the little people starting out with new Brands in a dog eat dog world….but with the thought and attention to detail these guys have, they really should be the Companies of the future…and they will be, with that kind of support behind them.
Sometimes it’s the little things that really matter: Let’s do it for the good guys.
Laters, Kate x
Etro-vert… x
I was at the Country Home and Living Fair last week where I fell in love with a stand selling loose, square pocketed coats made of that incredible paisley silk/wool blanket material – like the shawls you see in all the Jane Austen films that just sing warmth and wealth. The feelings of desire caught me by surprise so I resisted (particularly as I have a coat fetish) but there was something about their bohemian utilitarian ease that majorly pulled at my heart strings.
Etro cultivates that same vibe, where the smell of old Europe meets the heat of the exotic.
Not for the faint hearted there’s statement in their presence.
But the power of expression is a freedom and joy that should be shouted from the roof-tops..and anywhere else..
Laters, Kate x
Maison Bentley Style 