A Day At Caulfield

Going on from my previous post, here's the outfit I wore to the Caulfield cup preview day. 

I chose to wear this Forever New skirt, after spotting the dress of the same print at the Vogue runway at Chadstone vip night. The graphic print was a real standout to me on the runway. I decided to wear separates for the preview day, thought I'd save the full race wear outfits for the fashion stakes contestants.

Forever New skirt, Sportsgirl silk top, blazer and necklace, Lovisa flower headpiece and nude heels from Betts. All brands are available at Chadstone shopping centre.

Chadstone Runway

On Wednesday as part of LMFF, the fashion capital held one of their great VIP days with lots of special offers. The night included two runway parades showcasing various brands from Chadstone which I happily sat to watch after spending hours working and shopping. I think all up I spent around 11 hours at Chadstone!

Key trends from the two runway shows.

Bold prints

 1) Camilla and Marc dress, Tony Bianco from Santini shoes 2) Romance was Born from David Jones dress 3) Thurley dress, Aldo shoes 4) Nicola Finetti from Myer dress, Aldo shoes 5) Country Road dress, Steve Madden shoes

I love the Camilla and Marc kinda fruity/floral shift dress, the same print as the one from my last post at LMFF opening night runway. I also mentioned in that post I loved the Romance was Born collection which included this second dress pictured. Prints like this work great with blocks of colour, for the runway show the prints were paired with bright coloured coats, clutches, shoes, even a touch of bright lipstick or nails can finish the look. Continue reading to see these looks.

The Peplum

The peplum has been popping up all over the runway, the red carpet and various retailers recently. This silhouette gives the illusion of a smaller waist and curves so what's not to love.

Here are some designers who included peplums as a feature in their looks for the upcoming season.


Stella McCartney ready to wear Autumn/Winter 2011/12 collection

look 40

look 35                                      look 37

Dianna Agron wearing Stella McCartney for the Late show with David Letterman.



Elie Saab ready to wear Autumn/Winter 2011/12 collection

look 37                                      look 43

look 7                                        look 23

Elie Saab resort 2012 collection

I love the colours Elie Saab used for the dresses in the resort collection. Being a single block colour makes it more about the silhouette.

Givenchy ready to wear spring 2012

look 20                                         look 16

look 24                                        look 22

look 27                                               look 29

look 30                                      look 31

Marc Jacobs ready to wear Autumn/Winter 2011/12

look 49                                        look 51

look 12                                             look 18

Retailers have adopted this trend as well. Here are some pieces which are currently available in stores or online.

Sportsgirl Kims structured dress $149.95 - also available in white

 

Forever New sculptured strapless dress $129.95

Lolitta dresses

 Nikita dress $69.95              Uma dress $69.95

Asos sleeveless corset bodycon dress $52.60

so what do you think of this trend, would you wear any of these looks?



The Rediscovery Of Jeans

Now it may not seem like a big deal to most of you...but for anyone who knows me, I never wear pants. I recently bought this pair of jeans and literally the few times I've worn them all my friends have commented on how it's so weird to see me in them. I can easily say I haven't worn jeans for at least a year and a half.

I decided I should give them another go and thought maybe a new pair would change my opinion of jeans (that being they are unflattering or uncomfortable).

These jeans are super skinny with a slight ankle crop which means they're not too long for my shorty legs. They're also so stretchy and comfortable.

Wearing - Sportsgirl livvie jeans $99.95, dusty shirt in rust $89.95, monique mini wedge $79.95

Sportsgirl triple square necklace $19.95

Forever New sling bag $39.95, old Sportsgirl ring

At the moment we have renovations going on at our house, so I made use of the real props around x

Online At Last

This week there happened to be two major Aussie fashion brands finally branch out -  by opening their online stores! I'm talking about Portmans and Forever New. I often visit the sites and pleased both brands decided to have online stores, makes it that much easier to view the range than flicking through a lookbook.

Portmans new online store - view here

It's great that both brands have online stores now because we can finally view sale items! Before we could only see new or full price items through the lookbooks.

It's good to see these stores branch out into the online world, also considering other major brands have been for a while now. I guess in these times where a lot of shoppers are hitting up overseas retailers online, they need to be in a position where they're accessible in the same way.

I actually never buy clothing online, it's not easy when sizes differ so much from each store and style. You have to know a stores sizes very well to do it. Think I'll stick to books and accessories for my online purchases. If I really like something then I'll go in store and try it on.

Forever New online store - view here

I find online stores as a great place to compare items in each store from the sale prices to the colour and cut. It's definitely worth checking out a few places before making a purchase when there are so many variations of similar items around. Honestly I used to be a massive 'browser' in stores but since working during a lot of retail hours...I find I don't have as much time to look at 10 stores before buying something. Online stores means I can browse when it suits me (which is usually at 1am)

Features from Forever New's online store include

-selecting a certain collection to shop, while also viewing the lookbooks

-colour palette selection

-price range from cheapest to most expensive

Also, to celebrate the new store opening Forever New is offering free shipping for the month of August.

Forever New Pop Up Runway

As most of you probably know, this week was the L'oreal Melbourne Fashion Festival.

Tuesday I popped by the sidewalk Forever New show at Fed Square.

This Autumn/Winter collection was introduced as 'enchanted princess' and was inspired by ballet. The show opened and closed with dance performances to music from Swan Lake. 

Here are a few photos I snapped.

 

 

 

The ballet inspiration can easily be seen in the tulle skirts, lace details, beading and feathers. 

I like that they also had some stronger looks in the collection (instead of it all being inspired by ballet dresses) like the fitted blazers and the jackets... and it's good they threw some denim and prints in too.

The colours are all very typical of Forever New, sticking to neutrals, cream, grey, pinks and a little black. Forever New is always pretty and honestly, these colours make up most of my wardrobe but I have heard a lot of people say that their clothing never changes which I think is kind of true. They may have different cuts and styles depending on the season and current trends but generally they have the same colour palette. Is it good to be consistent if it works or should they change things up sometimes?

If you want to see more photos of the collection they can be viewed here.

Rewind To The 50s

I've really been getting into 50s style dresses lately. Last month I bought the Marilyn Monroe dvd collection which includes 8 of her films.

from 'The Seven Year Itch' (1955)

I bought the collection at JB HI FI for only $16!

I love them and I love the clothes! So it's a good thing that 50s inspired looks have been featured across runways for spring/summer 2011 as well as appearing in my favourite stores so I can grab them.

The 50s were all about being super feminine so the focus was on boobs, tiny waists and big hips.

 

Betty Grable, Lauren Bacall and Marilyn Monroe in 'How to Marry a Millionaire' (1953)

50's inspired dresses

Forever news collection includes full skirts and prints, giving the dresses a classy 50s housewife look.

Forever New Valerie corsage dress $79.95

Forever New Agnes Polkadot dress $99.95

Forever New Floral prom dress with sash $129.95

Bardot ruched and pleat dress $129.95

 Valleygirl Metallic Strapless dress $24.95 from $34.95

Topshop Scoop back dress by Annie Greenabelle 61 pounds (AUD $97.95)

In Sportsgirl 50's Hazel dress, Betts shoes