Monthly Archives: January 2010

Marion Cotillard, Dianna Agron, Julie Bowen, Kate Hudson

It was a case of it being all white on the night at the 2010 Screen Actor’s Guild Awards, held in Los Angeles over the weekend.  Stars of screens both silver and small turned up for the ceremony in which actors come together to honour one another’s work – but also try their very best to outshine each another on the red carpet!

One of the recurring themes in the frock department appeared to be a taste for wintry white.  A popular choice on the red carpet during the awards season in 2009 also, perhaps it’s because they’re all itching for sunny springtime in warm California?

Paula Patton, Kyra Sedgwick, Jane Krakowski, Katrina Bowden

Whatever the case, if you’re inspired by the crisp and clean feel of white, then make sure you check out thousands of white clothes and accessories from top designers and high street stores, all together in one place on Empora.com.

[Images: PicApp]

Dannii Minogue may be expecting her first child but don’t assume her fabulous fashion sense will take a hit as she switches her attention to maternity style.

The X Factor judge looked positively radiant at the National Television Awards on Wednesday night, in her first public appearance since announcing the happy news. She showed off her three-month bump in a gorgeous strapless prom dress, which has been hailed by many as the favourite frock of the night.

It seems Danni’s style influence is growing by the day, with shoppers eager to get her look as soon as possible.

“Searches for ‘prom dresses’ on Empora.com have gone up by 300% since the National Television Awards” says Empora spokesman Alexander Straub. “Dannii Minogue’s style kudos is rising in the UK, no doubt helped by her and Cheryl Cole’s fashionable appearances on The X Factor”.

The X Factor has been a career-boosting measure for both Cheryl and Dannii, but Dannii’s stylish handling of her pregnancy could connect her with a whole new audience of style followers.

[Image: PicApp]

On one hand we’re reluctant to spread the word about Net-a-Porter.com‘s fabulous £25,000 shopping spree because that is one competition we want to win.  Badly.  But on the other hand, it’s the type of good news we love to pass on.  Spreading the joy and all that…

To celebrate Net-a-Porter‘s one millionth customer, the online designer boutique are putting up a prize of £25,000, which you will be free to spend in any way you wish on luxury clothes and accessories.

All you have to do to be in the running, is register your details here.  No purchase is necessary.  The competition closes on 11 February at midnight GMT so don’t dilly dally around – make sure you enter now!

And to start creating your wishlist, check out all of Net-a-Porter’s wares here.

A bit of bling never hurt anyone.  Well, that’s what we’re telling ourselves (and our credit card) after spotting these gorgeous Alex Monroe feather hoop earrings at any rate!  We’re choosing to ignore the damage they are bound to do to our bank balance, and instead focus on how much they will glam up our ears.

These eye-catching 22-karat gold-plated sterling silver earrings are definite conversation-starters and are perfect even for those who are usually sensitive to certain metals.  At £225 from Net-a-Porter, we think that’s a small price to pay for true style.

When actress Sienna Miller announced back in 2006 that she and her designer sister Savannah would be launching a clothing label Twenty8Twelve (named for Sienna’s birthday), the truth is, the fashion world weren’t holding their breath waiting for anything ground-breaking.  ’Just another celebrity fashion line’ was how it felt at the time, in a market saturated with seemingly dozens of celeb-turned-designers.

But Sienna and Savannah proved themselves worthy of their place in the land of style, winning plaudits from the fashion press and financial backing from Pepe Jeans.  And, nearly three years after their debut Fall 2007 collection, the label is still going strong.  They’ve opened a store in London’s Notting Hill and showed their A/W 09/10 and S/S 2010 collections during London Fashion Week – and they show no signs of slowing.

UK Vogue editor Alexandra Schulman said of the S/S ’10 collection: “[It's]… just right for a rock chick: wearable, a bit romantic and very sexy”.  C’mon Spring!

SHOP CURRENT SEASON TWENTY8TWELVE HERE.

When it comes to fashion, Katie Holmes can often be a bit hit and miss.  When she gets it right, she looks amazing.  When she gets it wrong, let’s just say she gets it wrong.  But not on this occasion, thank goodness, where she’s worked casual chic to a ‘T’.  A form-fitting Little Black Dress gets the leather jacket treatment, but we love how she’s given the outfit a fresh twist by opting for an earthy beige shade, rather than conventional black.

It also allows her to tone down her makeup and keep her hair natural, for a casual red carpet look we wouldn’t mind seeing more of.

SEE HOW YOU CAN RECREATE KATIE HOLMES’ CASUAL CHIC LEATHER JACKET LOOK HERE.

Another week, another weird shoe.  We’ve managed to find this space-looking rubber wedge sandal just in time for our Editor’s beach holiday – but whether they will find themselves on the ‘Must Pack’ list is questionable.

Melissa has been gathering the fashion column inches in recent years with their eco-friendly vegan shoes and the collaboration with Vivienne Westwood on several designs have proven extremely popular.

But this design with Zaha Hadid… well, they’re another story altogether.  What do you think of them?

We hope you can sense the sarcasm when we say we never saw this one coming: Alexa Chung, UK’s fashion ‘It’ girl, has now switched her attentions to fashion design?  Well, blow me down!

She’s a regular feature on best dressed lists, has modeled for the likes of Vivienne Westwood and Pepe Jeans, and Mulberry even recently named a bag after her.  So call us crazy but it’s not altogether surprising she’s looking to extend her fashion kudos even further.

Alexa has been brought on board to lend her magical fashion touch to Madewell, the sister brand to American favourite J.Crew.  Alexa has apparently been offered collaboration opportunities aplenty over the years, but said herself that she was waiting for the right thing to come along.  ”I love how the vibe is a mix of vintage and new,” she told WWD of the Madewell brand.  ”It completely clicked with me.”

The collection is said to include tea dresses, touches of lace and velvet, printed tees and oversized biker jackets – all very Alexa-like touches we’re sure you’ll agree.

‘Alexa Chung for Madewell’ is due in US stores in September.

Lately it’s felt a bit like one fashion-house-gone-bust rumour after the next – it’s very sad times in the fashion world.  So when there were rumblings that visionary designer Yohji Yamamoto‘s label was on the chopping block, we felt pretty down indeed.

Luckily, it’s not the end as we know it, and although the label has closed down both its New York stores (and there is a question mark hanging over the Antwerp store), Yamamoto is continuing to trade from its Paris and London stores.  There has also been some restructuring within the management and board of directors, so fingers crossed they can steer the brand back into calmer waters.

SHOP YOHJI YAMAMOTO DESIGNS HERE.

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Hot on the heels of Topshop‘s Spring 2010 lookbook, comes our first peek at New Look‘s spring collection.  We love that there’s a return to a lighter shade of denim and, seriously, who could resist the pink and white gingham dress?  (Not us.)

Florals are lovely for spring and we’re looking forward to seeing them around – but it’s also nice to see New Look not taking the obvious route and instead playing up the trends for stripes and bolder graphic prints.  We’re definitely eyeing up the leather tassel jacket – the perfect thing to throw on over your denim cutoffs and a basic vest top for cooler spring days.

What do you think of the looks so far – and what have you got your eye on?