It now being more or less mid-April, I realise that SS15 can hardly really be described as the 'new' season anymore. But I thought the fact that it's been over two years (and one amateur, career-crisis-induced rebrand) since my last post would distract from the seasonal mistiming of this article. At any rate I was clutching at straws for a vaguely pun-ish post title, and if this has come at the expense of me pointing out my own appalling laziness then so be it.
I'll press on. Now I've established that the new season is well and truly here, perhaps anyone who has yet to spring into it would be interested in my sartorial advice for the remaining weeks of Spring. Though of course when it comes to style, the best thing to do is always your own thing, I think that some of the latest trends are certainly worth subscribing to - and besides, however much one strives for originality, one will always be constrained by the collections on offer by the vicissitudinous, trend-led high street. Here are a few suggestions.
LINEN
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| Zara, £69.99 |
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| play it cool with blue - Gant, £175 |
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| channel last season's trend for check prints with this Prince of Wales option - Officine Generale, £480 |
Lightweight, and therefore perfect for the improving English weather conditions, linen is a staple material for any Spring wardrobe. A slim, destructured, transitional linen blazer will serve you well in the office or on the beach (well, maybe not the beach just yet). Dress up with suit separates and smart loafers, or dress down with tee shirts, denim, and - dare I say it - crisp white trainers.
Pinspiration:
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| a linen blazer can tone down an otherwise risque double denim look |
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| nice mix of textures and patterns, as well as the classic pastel combo of light blue and pink |
PINK
Often dismissed as too feminine or garish, pink is in fact a colour which, when treated with respect, can demonstrate both elegance and sartorial bravery. And what's wrong with getting in touch with your feminine side any way? But be cautious, especially if you have light skin - tone down with darker tones (suggest navy) to maintain the contrast between clothes and skin tone. It's worth investing in pastel blue shirts to go with, suggest oxford or linen (available cheaply at uniqlo).
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| River Island lookbook |
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| Tom Ford |
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| Pinspiration - a daring combination of bold, brave colours |
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| Katie Eary channeled pink with the season's trend for the psychedelic 70s |
ANKLES
It's perhaps still a little early for shorts, but - as you can see above - it's certainly not inappropriate to begin by rolling up trousers at the ankles and going sockless. Cropped jeans and trousers were a big hit at Asos and Topman over the last year, and the trend looks set to continue, with various big names sending models down the catwalk with ankles on display. The sockless look is particularly alluring nowadays given that the fashion world's hatred of trainers is gradually dissipating. A simple pair of plain white trainers are no longer merely comfortable. Now, they're covetable as well. I recommend buying from quality Scandinavian brands such as Mads Norgaard, or Garment Project leather trainers from Urban Outfitters. Loafers are also a good choice.
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| pinspiration |
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| formal pinspiration |
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| Gucci |
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| Gucci SS15 |
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| H&M (imagine the trousers being folded up) |
(DISCLAIMER: I don't own any of these photos. Sources: Pinterest, fashionbeans.com or indicated brands. Please don't sue me!)
Apologies once again for my appalling lack of blogging. Hopefully slightly more regular posting will resume after my exams finish in two weeks time.
Anyway, as promised some time ago, this post is dedicated to my completed prom suit. I stuck to the Topman suit I bought online, however I must say I was rather disappointed by the trousers, whose darker shade of cream contrasted terribly with the lighter coloured blazer. In fact, though the trousers are very unique and elegantly styled in their own right, they go with very few blazers, I found to my cost, as I tried them with every tweed blazer I had at my disposal. Finding a shirt to go with them was also very challenging; in the end I had to resort to simple blacks and greys.
Having decided to ignore the trousers, I was left with something of a problem: what to wear with a patterned blazer designed to go with matching trousers? Perhaps black was the boring option, but in my desperation, it seemed like the option with the lowest risk of prom-night-embarrassment. To liven things up, I took a black shirt and glued diamantes all the way down the centre. You can't see it in these pictures, but I also stuck diamantes around the cuffs and applied a line of studded diamantes across the seam on the back which stretches from shoulder to shoulder.
The party piece of my outfit is the diamante bow tie. It may have taken hours of painstaking labour to apply the 3mm diamantes to the black backing, but the rewards were immensely satisfying - I relished each compliment all the more knowing that I had made the bow tie myself. Unfortunately I cannot take credit for the manufacture of my two-tone shoes, but they're such classic shoes that they've garnered almost celebrity-like status at my school. Would definitely recommend them to anyone seeking to stick out in a formal environment. They're also great for disguising an inability to dance!
Just to remind you, here's a picture of the suit from the Topman website
and here's me in it (looking a little uncomfortable)
You can't buy this bow tie anywhere, but contact me and I will happily make one for you (for a fee, of course!)
(diamante earring, on sale at Topman for 90p)
To those seeking to emulate my hair-do, a ton of hairspray is a firm prerequisite
My wing-ring from Camden
My babies.
A slightly more sassy pose!
Seeing as this must be my third belated post in a row now, I feel it is only fair to offer my faithful readers some explanation as to why I've been so inactive. I'd love to say I've been busy expanding my creative horizons through meticulous study of the latest upmarket trends, or that I've been occupied with the creation of an exciting new range of animal themed bow ties; however, the fact remains that I've been doing school stuff. Yes, I've fallen victim to the horrors of revision, and, as my A level's judgement day draws ever nearer, I don't see myself escaping the pull of typical, nervous pre-exam cramming. Which, to my deepest sadness, means even less blogging. Sorry all.
Anyway, in keeping with the theme of bad excuses, a particularly exciting essay on the impact of European relations in the period 1979 to 2007 has inhibited me from preparing a proper blog. So I've gone for (yet another) classic what's hot list. You know the drill: I show you a bunch of exciting, unique and quirky items, in return I give my wealthier readers the opportunity to buy me them by way of thanks (let never it be said that I am not a kind blogger!).
To make in some part up for my disgraceful lack of blogging over the last weeks, I've tried to throw in a few items which are a little more unusual. And I've tried my best to avoid Topman, H&M and River Island for a change - no easy task, believe me! So here you go. I'll try to do a proper outfit post next time. Also, don't think I've forgotten my prom suit promise; as soon as I've stuck some diamantes on the shirt, photos will be posted!
Creeper sneakers! As much as I usually detest anything with 'sneakers' in its name, I have to admit that I can actually see the advantages to these. As a tall guy, I'm forever tormented by a limit to fairly flat soled shoes. I have a pair of beautiful 1 inch flatform creepers which I've worn about once in my life, tragically. These beauties, to me, represent the solution. Also, thinking about it, I seem to be forever driving places in trainers (about the only thing I use them for) then hurriedly changing into nicer shoes when I arrive. Creeper sneakers could solve this problem as well.
(TUK footwear, £60 each)
(Vivienne Westwood salt and pepper leather jacket, £675)
(Golden Goose studded leather Gilet £626.93)
Leather leather everywhere and not a myth left from the ghetto....No other Bowie fans here? Never mind. You don't need to like David Bowie to love leather. And what's not to love about these two gorgeous leather jackets (alright, one's technically a gilet). I don't know about you, but diagonal zips and studs really turn me on.
(£58)
(£56)
(£58)
These shirts are the embodiment of snazziness. I'd never heard of Ezra Wine until I stumbled across a small collection of his shirts and jumpers on asos. I'm already a fan. Fantastically, the shirts I've selected here are all reduced from about £140 to about £60.
Well, I'm not sure where my sudden enthusiasm for Topman - a brand which I had previously condemned as being too mainstream - has come from. The point is, it's here now; and it looks like it's set to stay for a while at least. In fact, if they keep doing sales on the same scale as the ones they're doing currently, I don't see myself ever losing interest.
And when I say 'sale,' I mean SALE. A tonne of really nice items are up to 70% off right now - and you can take another 10% off if you have a student card! I could, of course, show you a selection of my favourites... But the list would contain almost half of the catalogue, and I wouldn't want to bore you with another selection of clothes I hope to own (one day, maybe).
So, instead, I've perused their jewelry collection, which is all 30% off, and picked out some must-haves. These are my faves (NB I haven't subtracted 30%):
I think chain earings are really cool. And I like skulls. No-brainer, really. £5.
I've never seen anything like this before, and I'm not quite sure what it's actually for. But I like it nonetheless. £8
I think chunky chain necklaces are really cool. This one has three chunky chains! As well as skulls and spikes! What more could one ask for in a necklace? £25 (not cheap either)
A split skull ring. Looks very pretty! £10.
Overlapping chains and crosses thrown in. Beaut. I imagine this would go well with a plain white vest top. £12
A feather bow tie?!?! How could I resist? £10
Spiky bracelets are fab. This one is a bit more interesting that the usual plain black/gold/silver spikes. £15.
Cross collar tips. This would really jazz up a plain shirt. £8.
I like bow ties (if you could call this a bow tie), and I like studs. Not really jewelry I'm afraid. £10.
A bendy cross and a funky chain, you say? £12
I've been tormented lately by the surge in availability (or, should I say, my realisation of the availability) of what I've aptly named snazzy suits. My torment was, of course, embittered by the fact that I've only recently bought my prom suit, which, at the time, appeared to be the only truly snazzy suit on the market. And by market, I mean the Topman, H&M and River island websites - I thought I'd play it safe. Yet only the other day I stumbled across some truly snazztastic little gems, which, apparently, I'd overlooked in my first search.
What is a 'snazzy' suit, you might ask. The criteria are quite simple:
- The suit must not be the usual dull shade of grey or pinstripe black.
- The suit must have something exciting about it, eg a striking pattern, a particularly slim cut, outrageous spikes or glittery lapels.
- The suit must make me physically yelp with excitement.
Here are some of the suits I liked best:
Regular fit patterned jacket from H&M, £59.99, trousers £29.99.
I love the combination of various shades of turquoise-y green. Why wear a jazzy shirt when you could wear a jazzy blazer, and combined it with a contrastingly plain shirt? I call this one the jungle jacket.
A Topman contribution. The TDM jacket is £180 (ouch!) the shorts are £80. There's also a lovely parka, which is similarly printed, for £180. Topman call it 'black camo print,' I call it 'funeral-floral meets snow leopard.'
Another H&M one. Prices correspond to the first. Nothing says 'I'm really brave' more loudly than orange!
A little higher up the market. An Oliver Spencer 'Portland slim-fit, cotton-twill suit jacket.' Jacket is £290, trousers are £180. Very mod. Love the stand-out cobalt blue and the lapels. Found this at Mr Porter; my new favourite website for Sunday-morning staring at clothes I can't have.
Even more high end. A Maison Kitsune check cotton suit jacket, £560, with shorts, £165 (makes the Topman suit look cheap!). Very vintagey. Very fabulous.
