Can I try some?

My preconception of Harrods is obvious. Snooty rich people, wandering around, with bags upon bags of shopping. Shop assistants looking down their nose at people they don’t think can afford anything. Doormen with top hats.

I was pleasantly surprised when my most recent trip to Harrods ended in a very full stomach, a new choice of perfume and a smile on my face.

Entering the perfumery, thousands of different smells whirled around, overpowering my senses. “You get used to it, imagine being in here everyday, it makes your sense of smell so much better”, one sales assistant explains how she deals with it whilst offering coffee beans.

After feeling like I’ve smelt a million perfumes, I go back to my old favourite, old reliable Dior. Then, the double ‘C’ catches my eye, and the sweet smell of Coco Mademoiselle drifts around me.



Can I ditch Christian for Coco? Maybe it’s time for a change.

Don't get your hopes up

Nearly two years ago, after making an impromptu trip to the Tate Modern, I got my first tattoo inspired by a sculpture, by Marcel Duchamp, I saw on my visit. So, the Tate Modern already has a place deep in my heart.

Walking up South Bank on a blustery Wednesday afternoon, complete with scarf-on-head to protect from the rain, the anticipation of seeing the sculpture again, that influenced my life, hit me. With the warehouse-like building looking almost oppressing, I felt something wasn’t right.

Making my way hastily through the other exhibition’s, dragging a very uninterested male friend behind me; I came across the case where Marcel Duchamp’s “Rose Sélavy” sculpture used to be. Used-to-be.

Rekindling my love for fashion...

Recently, my spare time has been filled with begrudgingly looking at pictures of catwalk shows on Style.com.

Prancing into Harvey Nichols on a chilly Wednesday morning suddenly made my entire catwalk gawking and stalking feel worth while. The bright, clean perfumery and make-up floor gave the department store a slightly clinical feel. But, how was I to know that, up the escalator I would find something that would make my heart beat faster than seeing Jude Law in the Epsom Grill.

I was starting to think that I was falling out of love with fashion, which saddened me. Until I saw a pair of leggings. Bizarre, I know, but these leggings made me feel nothing I had ever felt before. After staring at the Autumn/Winter 2008 Alexander McQueen show pictures in awe, I never thought that in front of me would be something he created. A pair of black leggings totally covered in sequins, amazing.

After this close encounter with a genius and embarrassing myself after seeing an amazing pair of Christian Louboutin shoes, it was time to go. It was time to go before the after-fashion glow wore off.

A Place like home

Possibly my new favourite shop in the whole of London, A Child of the Jago opened my eyes into the fascinating world of menswear, antiques and strangely enough, warthogs. I rushed into the shop, 15 minutes before closing, the shop assistant, complete with 80’s style George Clooney moustache, reassured me that it was fine for me to wander around and chill out for as long as I wanted.

I glanced at Joe Corre as he wandered up the stairs, “Hey, you alright?” he smiled. I stood there thinking: Oh my god, your mother is Vivienne Westwood and you helped design some of the underwear worn by the sexist women in the world like Dita Von Teese. I tried to be nonchalant, whilst stumbling on the stairs.

Downstairs, I was greeted by a very large, stuffed warthog, staring at me with its beady eyes; it watched me as I wandered around the room. The antiques and obscure objects that were kept in the basement of A Child of the Jago left me confused and bedazzled. A leg of a Hell’s Angel. A blood-stained vest worn by a knight. Cabinets full of antique razors and combs. The shop and its contents are most definitely a place of wonder.

All American Man

It was a trip to the House on the Prairie with Marc Jacobs collection for Spring/Summer 2009 shown in New York.

He used layered vintage foil fabrics, flattened boater hats and hobble skirts to create the Americana Country Girl theme which ran throughout his collections.

“Rhapsody in Blue” blared out from the speakers echoing patriotism whilst Jacobs models shimmied down the catwalk split with Stefan Beckman’s staggered mirrored pillars.

The key looks were gingham shirts, much like those seen in Jacobs’ 1992 collection for Perry Ellis, tucked into hobble skirts and cinched at the waist with cummerbunds. The mismatch and layering of various metallic foil fabrics gives the collection a vintage tone enhanced by the eclectic brooches, necklaces and tribal bangles. Jacobs also layered; simple shirts with buttoned collars and jersey jumpers finished off with Capri trousers to complete the prairie girl look.

With hair scraped back into a tight plait or turbans covering the hair, Marc Jacobs made it apparent this season that it is all about the clothes and the workmanship. He embroiders flowers and shapes onto the already intricate fabrics, the clever drapery and tailoring gave a powerful hourglass figure for a sophisticated but modern woman.

As the collection comes to a close it is apparent that canary yellow was prominent on Marc Jacobs’s mood board. The colour is scattered through his pieces, often contrasting it with bold colours like electric blue. He uses a wide range of colours, the deep reds and midnight blues used at the beginning of the collection and the prominent bright blues and yellows coming through towards the end of the show.

The key pieces of the show included: a flowing chiffon dress, cinched at the waist, features both canary yellow and electric blue in thick stripes, conjuring up images of a circus big-top. Tabard and apron style dresses were also prominent maintaining the all American prairie girl theme. The accessories were proven to be a major part of the show with most models carrying quilted shoulder bags, clutch bags or feed bags in a mismatch of colours and prints, often animal. The choice of shoe for Jacobs Spring/Summer 09 collection was a variant on the Espadrille which was tied up the leg. Simple sandals with a soft cone stiletto heel and ankle strap were also often teamed with the Capri trousers and power suits.

Jacobs collection although commercial is very wearable, each garment can be worn separately or styled in a different way, the New York designer just offers one option, the possibilities are endless.

He modestly states after the show, “I’m not interested in my opinion, I’m interested in what you think and what you see”, well Marc, you’ve done it again. With countless celebrities and industry professionals, Victoria Beckham, Elijah Wood and Cathy Horyn of the New York Times, to name a few, expressed their love for the collection, it is obvious that Marc Jacobs Spring/Summer show is seen as one of the best and most influential of the year.