Jeepers Creepers

Ever since i started listening to ska and punk back in the day, i have wanted to get my hands on a pair of creepers, constantly idolising brothel sporters such as Brody Dalle of The Distillers and Tim Armstrong of Rancid for their rebellious footwear. sadly i never had the guts/ fashion knowledge to actually pull them off without looking like a teenage goth. to me they represented punk and rebellion in the same way as a safety pin through the nose would, but by the time i fell in love with them they had definitely been commandeered by black cloak clad depressants.

From their practical creation for the world war 2 soldiers based in North Africa their reputation was tarnished when the ex-soldiers found their way to the brothels of london, where the shoes gained the name 'brothel creepers' since then the shoes have been associated with subcultures of several generations which i think is where my rebellious association came from. from the teddy boys of the 50's to the Maclaren punk adoption in the 70's and were lengthened to boots for the Goths in the 90's.



Today creepers are getting their day in the mainstream and whether i like it or not, these platformed pumps have sprang up everywhere from catwalks to fashion shoots to the feet of celebs.
These photos are from Nathan Jenden show in London, i like the fact that the creepers are paired with feminine dresses.



Although i'd love to remain faithful to the classic style, but these beauts from Office are just too amazing, they keep the platform, the suede and the check pattern but with a killer heel attached...what would Rancid say?

postcards to beirut

this video from American band beirut isn't exactly brand spanking new, in fact it's from 2007 when their "The Gulag Orkestar" album was released but it is one of my all time favourite songs and videos...and bands for that matter. excitement for my forthcoming backpacking trip around europe has got me pining for beirut's european influenced sounds.



This video is directed by the absolutely amazing Alma Har'el who also directed the bands video for elephant gun which is equally beautiful. the reason i love this 'postcards from italy' video is the washed out nostalgia that it is centred around, it is a montage video yet remains personal and touching. for me it induces memories of childhood holidays and naivety.

Guinea pigs & Balaclavas

as if i havent rambled on enough about graduate fashion week already. i think my favourite designer of the week deserves a seperate post. Hannah Taylor is a graduate from Ravensbourne and i absolutely loved her mens knitwear collection from start to finish. think wool in every colour under the sun, hugely oversized winged jumpers, wool hair helmets, knitted balaclavas and pets faces...hard to picture? yeah it pretty much needs to be seen to be believed. her collection contained so much humour, from the George Formby soundtrack to the underwhelmed poses from the models, i just fell in love with it. the clothes themselves were so well executed and so creative that i thought she'd be a straight out winner. on leaving the show, there was only one name on everyones lips.

GFW

So the past week i have been in london doing work experience at graduate fashion week, which has been absolutely amazing. not only did i get to see all the catwalk shows and awards shows, i was also allowed backstage to get a closer look at the designs and designers. i even managed to blag a couple of goody bags to boot!

the weeks events were held at earls court and the hall was buzzing from the first day. my job was to seat people, VIP's and press in one section, the public in another (definitely not to be mixed up) prepare the stages for the shows and to find out exactly how the universities wanted the shows to run. basically doing a hell of a lot of running about. oh, and packing up 3,500 goody bags and getting paper cuts all up and down my arms.



here are some of my favourite catwalk moments taken sneakily to avoid a telling off-














i met so many amazing people and really enjoyed the entire week even though i was working 7am-11pm towards the end! it all culminated in a star studded gala show where the winner Myrto Samou was announced but more importantly i met erin o'connor, matthew williamson, giles deacon and claudia schiffer...who happens to be even more perfect in person!

love you, luella.

Luella has well and truly secured her position as my favorite designer ever with her spring/summer 09 collection!
the pastel shades and expert colour clashing just scream summer wardrobe and luella's signature ruffles and bows are out in force turning simple dress shaped into something special.

Luella states about the collection
"i wanted it to be a proper, ladylike character - but a bit psychedelic."

my favorite pieces are
and

maybe teamed with these topshop beauts

Snappy Happy

Something i've been quite interested in for a while is the idea of documentary through photography. i'm the worlds worst hoarder of photo's which is probably to blame for the demise in my laptops memory. My photos are separated by month and year, dating from 1989 (filled with embarrassing baby/toddler photos that i've scanned in) to the present (filled with nights out and uni work.) so when i came across this article in the most recent Vice magazine, it caught my eye.
i apologise for the dreadful scanning quality, a new scanner is top of my birthday wishlist!


The article profiles New York artist Jamie Livingstone who took a polaroid photo every day for 18 years, the result is a large and fascinating body of work which ranges from images that are shocking and thought provoking to those that are beautifully mundane.

"the images are become particularly moving as Livingstone chronicles his own declining health as he fights brain cancer. the series of photos end on October 25, 1997 when he dies in hospital, this day too is documented."
-Vice Volume 7 Number 2.

I found this particularly interesting because of my love of polaroid photos, i just think the colour balance and aesthetic of a polaroid is really beautiful and simple. this sight obsession can be seen on my waredrobe door at uni, with even more of my collection being on my bedroom wall at home.

La La Lula

i went on a bit of magazine shopping spree in waterstones the other day! picked up the new NYLON, Frankie and also Lula, a magazine which i'd been told about but had never bought before. basically i fell in love with it! its so romantic and feminine there is such a flow through all the pages and the styling is amazing!


i've found my new favourite magazine, shame it only comes out twice a year!
i like this photoshoot i found from a previous Lula magazine which i'm yet to get my paws on, it shows Natasha Khan from Bat for Lashes in pastel shades and playful poses.