Vintage Love Affair

I visited London today. I adore London. If there is ever anything new in Britain you can certainly find it in London first. But, although I do love a brand new garm to show off, I have the biggest, juiciest soft spot for vintage clothes. And they are rife in the capital.


Vintage shops aren't pricier charity shops, the clothing they sell are high fashion pieces enjoyed in past generations, with the wear and tear that come from the times they have lived through; parties, shopping, divorce and some, even the day Diana died.


So vintage clothes have to prove that they are robust. But they can't be worn just for that reason, or we would all be wandering round in rigger boots and and water sealed army coats. No, a lot of them are truly beautiful and give your day that extra bit of oomph. Some can even set a trend.

TopShop

Like the fur coat, or faux fur coat preferably. When the winter rolls round they can give that edge against the macs galore. And from visiting Leeds Festival it became clear that they began (again) in the vintage shops.


The vintage 'look' is very popular in fashion today, therefore many high street retailers make copies and styles similar to vintage pieces so that everybody can create any 'old fashioned look'.
Topshop do many lovely items such as this white, swing crochet dress which reflects the sixties fashion of these style dresses.


Sometimes a full vintage outfit can really stand out and make a bang, and sometimes just an accessory can turn an outfit in  completely the opposite direction. Like the PERFECT handbag. A vintage handbag could draw anyone's attention.


I can sense a vintage shop coming like a bad smell and love them to the foundations. However, my bank balance does not.

Fashion that talks

LOOK magazine

When I saw a picture recently of Cheryl Cole wearing a very flattering and fashionable black maxi dress, I first thought well trust Cheryl to pull off what would look like a bin bag on me. But as my train of thought continued on its tracks, I started to think of the year she has had. Divorce, press stress, weight issues and life threatening malaria is to name but a few of her worries. So... maybe dressing in what would be described as a bin bag on me isn't her way of flaunting or showing off, but inadvertantly wearing her feelings.

This can happen to everyone and anyone, wearing clothes that mirror how you feel. It can be done on purpose, such as dressing down on a relaxed day to say you can't really be bothered; or it can happen unconsiously, like with Cheryl Cole.
The messages you can send through clothing can be large or little things. Maybe showing confidence instead of insecurity. For example, Nicola Roberts wears very pale dress, saying that she is ok with having a very pale skin colour, one that is generally unwanted when in the public eye.

It is not uncommon for public relations advisors to dress their 'clients' using the knowledge that they could send a message to the public or even a potential consumer or customer. Fashion sells, and fashion persuades.

This technique is used heavily not only in the media, but in politics too. Before the most recent general election, it became apparant that party leaders and representatives were wearing the colour tie that representated their party. This sends a bold message of support and leadership to public, getting the public to listen.


Everybody in the public eye wants to be listened to. Everybody will use any resource to be heard, and fashion sells, fashion persuades and fashion talks.

THE Party Dress

The reason I started up a blog was because I wanted to tell people about the current and upcoming season of fashion, so where better to start than, my personal favourite (and what seems like every second person’s worst nightmare) ; the party dress.

Donna Karan

Over the past few months you must have been blind to not notice the maxi dress. It has been everywhere, dressed up, dressed down and dressed to go to a party. Whilst other trends have often wavered by this point (like wet-look leggings when people began to realise it looked like they had been dragged backwards through the 80’s), the maxi dress has proved to still be going strong when it appeared on the runway of Donna Karan 2011. This means we should look forward to another season of not having to worry about the state of our legs when in a rush to get ready for a party.

ASOS

Or maybe the maxi dress isn’t for you, but your still not particularly knee confident, then next season is definitely your season. The midi party dresses have already starting appearing and personally, I am all for jumping on this bandwagon. I can't really see a fault with midi dresses, they avoid all being-slightly-tipsy-in-heels-and-tripping-over-the-bottom-of-your-maxi-dress ordeal. But equally, means you can bend over to pick up your bag that you dropped without accidentally flashing everyone and having to hide your face for the rest of the party. So for me they really are a win-win situation. Now, like I said, the trend isn't really in full-swing yet, so there are limited styles to pick from, but there will soon be a whole array.

ASOS

Another length decision that has to made when choosing a party dress is massive trend of the moment, asymmetrical. Whether  this means the back is longer than the front, or the left is longer than the right, it’s up to you. But there are generally gorgeous and something different to look at. Beware of some extra attention in these, 99% of the time it is good attention.

TopShop

TopShop

But what if you are traditional mini dress kinda girl? There is no need to panic that you won’t be on the asymmetrical trend . The one shouldered chiffon mini dress is everywhere. The only worry I have with these (apart from a strong breeze) is that you will blend in with everyone else as everyone else will be wearing one.

If your mini dress isn't chiffon, then it will almost certainly be body con. These can be gorgeous, on certain people. Generally the people who have decided not to have pasta for tea before the party. However, we are saved slightly this season. Rather than last season’s fashion of bearing every nook and cranny for all to see, many body con dresses come with a ‘wrap’ effect, giving a little more leeway at tea time. For example the new topshop ones.

If you decide that you’re not all for the grecian effect then your body con dress will probably be velvet, or fake velvet at least. These seem apt for the winter, look elegant and give a chic twist to a party dress , although I can’t see a massive future for them seeing as they are weather dependant.

ASOS

When it comes to choosing the upper half of your dress it can be rather difficult. There's full arms, one arm, capped sleeves, thick straps, spaghetti straps, one shouldered and strapless. Making the best decision on these depends on your dimensions. For example, the theme of asymmetry is still strong here, with many dresses being one shouldered. But if, like me, you have wide shoulders, a thick strap dress is generally a better option. It not only hides your shoulders, but enhances tininess of your waist. Perfect.

The colour of the season is a dusty caramel colour, but with party dresses, my opinion is going for a dress which suits you, the colour compliments you and what you feel comfortable (even if its only a bit comfortable) but mostly confident in. Your dress should make you feel like you could conquer the world, and win the battle of attention.

I love a good party, and an even better party dress and this winter there is definitely a beautiful, if maybe a little less traditional selection that i can’t wait to get my hands on.