A Vintage Epic

So I've been talking about this shoot for a while now but here are some of the final images; see my website for the full story. The first thing you might notice is the crimping which I shall defend before you can say a thing! Now, the photog was terrified of it (of course coming round to it as soon as she saw the first look) with thoughts of the 80's screaming through her head. But I think it makes all the difference: it's both soft and feminine yet still surprising and eccentric. Simply curling and back-combing really wouldn't have created the same textures, and would have been too soft and girly next to the vintage dresses. However as a word of advice, I would suggest leaving it for those with long hair after a rather horrible result on my own short hair!

On our first day of shooting our model was Remia at Select, who was, at only 15, just amazing. She has one of the most striking faces I've seen, and really pulled off the British Eccentricity of the shoot. I totally love her in this red dress, an original 1950's number from Vintage Vanity, with the flash of studds and the Guccia at Larizia heels.



Latitaie is a gorgeous new face at Oxygen who shot the second day of our story. I particularly love the amazing straw boater hat I managed to find in the British Red Cross shop just off the Kings Road. It's one of the best charity shops I've been to recently with a whole rack of Ben de Lisi, Stella McCartney, Nicole Farhi among many other labels. But that day the only thing for me was the boater which looks fabulous on Latitaie with the maribu stork. Then as promised is the image of the printed leggings, which had a whole post devoted to them last week!

Diamonds, pearls and precious stones

My last shoot focused on vintage dresses which really needed toughening up and modernising. Just a few strong, statement pieces of jewellery was all it took. There are so many wonderful designers really pushing the boundaries, but here are just a few that I find particularly exciting.

Solange Azagury-Partridge, who describes her jewellery as 'talismanic ornaments layered with cultural depths...designs poised between pop art and ancient mysticism, irreverent and iconoclastic.' I would think she is best known for this Lips ring, but her other work is also inspirational. She puts this down to the fact she is self taught, so therefore has no preconceptions and can bend almost all the rules to achieve her single vision.

Rachel Galley, a Central Saint Martins graduate in 2004, is another of my favourites. Rachel says she 'draws her inspiration from intricate carved wood, bronze historic treasures, architecture, engineering, natural textures and objects found in our daily lives. She adds her own innovative twist with hidden compartments or containers, enabling the wearer to interact with their jewellery and adds bespoke, handmade fittings and clasps to give each piece her own signature finish.' Her work pleases me in a different way, it's intricate and personal, classic and elegant without failing to excite and remain modern and relevant. My favourite pieces are from the Memento Pillow collection.

Nathalie Melville, another Central Saint Martins 2004 graduate launched commission based fine jewellery brand in 2006. I've been lucky enough to know Nathalie, and to shoot her pieces a number of times. Her work is intricate and delicate, the pieces move with your body and are therefore a joy to wear. Her lace effect work, which is predominant in her collections, is beautiful, but her newest collection, Kensington Gardens, is moving forward from this. I can't just have one favourite so here are 3.
Alexis Bittar's first collections were inspired by 1920's depression era glass and by the Bakelite jewellery of the 1930's to create hand sculpted Lucite jewellery. His work is very sculptural and filled with statement pieces. Maybe each and every one of these designers deserves a full post to themselves in the future.

Fashion as Identity

Fashion is so often denounced as fad, a splurge of money, whimsical fancy reserved for the vain and egocentric. But would Madonna have had the same success without her changing and evolving style and image? Would the PM be taken seriously if he turned up in a purple suit – no matter how expensive, sleek and tailored? Would Kate Moss have stood the test of time if she had left it all to beauty? And would Michelle Obama be hailed an icon of our time if it were not for her personal style?

In rather simple terms these decisions we make, every day of our lives, tell the outside world who we are, who we want to be and what we want to achieve. It can change you and promote you. We change ourselves for our environment – friends or family, work or the opera, the shops or a drinks party – and every time we change it’s because not only do we want to be accepted through how we look, but because we want to say something about ourselves.

But is fashion really only about external appearance? A superficial layer behind which we hide? Or does it go much deeper, to the very core of our identity, which shapes who we are? Can it nurture your soul and give you personal confidence for whatever circumstance you find yourself in?

Listening to Radio 4 I heard a thought provoking interview with Catherine W Hill, a Holocaust survivor. She described the removal of their own clothes and possessions on arrival at Aushwitz as the stripping of their identity. Loosing their external identity in essence took away their internal identity. She recounted how women would tear off a strip of their prison uniforms to create accessories, scarves and bows for their hair. This was an act of resistance, an act of reclaiming individual identity, personality and self-respect. An act of survival.

So is fashion really just about spoilt women, exquisite clothes, huge amounts of money and superficial vanity? The example from Auschwitz tells us all we need to know, I feel. Fashion is a deeply personal, deeply meaningful and even existential feature of our lives. It is an intrinsic part of identity.

Cecelia de Lisle

Sunday brought another vintage fair; piles of vintage Chanel, Jaeger and Gerard Darel, all rather out of my price range however. But there was also a collection of hats, like nothing I have ever seen before and the most beautiful selection of vintage wedding dresses – all antique silk, lace and beading! The fairs regularly travel round the country, so I’ll keep you all posted on the next events.

My new vintage Dolce and Gabbana style jacket also got its first outing – I think it was received well! I went to see my best friend and singing sensation Cecelia de Lisle perform a set. She’s such an amazing talent, her first album is out now – I think on Itunes but I’m not good with these sorts of technological matters - and she’s also totally beautiful. We work together a lot, and here are some photos from a shoot I styled for her a little while ago.

Shoot Locations

So here as promised are some piccies from the shoot recce. Think we’re going to come up with an amazing story here! Also, by some miracle of fortune, I found hidden away a selection of original 1920s and 30s dresses and accessories, and vintage stockings and undies in their original packaging – some still with their price tags on selling stockings for 12p! The pieces are so beautiful, and are going to be a dream to shoot.

Knowing Your Fashion Identity

Tomorrow my amazing photographer, Claire Pepper, and I are off to the country to recce a possible shoot location which we’re both very excited about. Think Cotswold stone, apple orchards, barns piled high with amazing treasures and the beautiful English countryside! I’m sure I’ll have some lovely pictures to put up soon, so more on that next week.

But my next shoot is with another super photographer Martin Dagucci. We’re looking into the concept of identity, and the transformational process of ‘fashion self discovery’, which, at least in this case, ends in the realisation you actually look like everyone else. But it’s started me thinking can one successfully, uniquely represent oneself through fashion without being boxed, grouped or influenced by something, something which you may have never even known was there?

A recent interview with Pop magazine Hannah Murray, (Cassie in Skins) comments:

Those specs are very on trend.

‘Oh I don’t know anything about on trend. Someone did tell me they were a little bit “Kurt Cobain meets Marc Jacobs”. I pretended to know what they were talking about.’

Style bubble comments:

‘It’s clear she (Hannah Murray) has a very set idea of her own style, yet from this quote it seems she has an un-awareness of fashion as we know it…She’s drawn to sheer tulle things, dropped waisted sequined flapper dresses, excessive plastic accessories and vintage sailor tops…However, by wearing her dropped waisted sequined flapper dress she’s not trying to make a reference/allusion to this season’s John Galliano because she is unaware. She simply likes what she likes…At the end of the day, it is fundamentally about making ourselves happy with clothes and being drawn to garments in an explicable way.’

Hannah, of course, did not declare a desire to be unique, but with reference to this particular pontification, without fashion or trend knowledge, she has still managed to buy into high end fashion trends, set out for her by designers and fashion magazines she has no interest in.

Well anyway, I will keep you posted on the shoot, and any possible self-discovery I may find!

Vintage Undies

My last shoot was a Vintage Undies story with a fabulous new face at Oxygen models, Pippa, and my partner in crime, photographer Claire Pepper. The pursuit of perfect vintage lingerie and vintage inspired pieces has led to the discovery of a number of fashion secrets.

But firstly, who could resist popping into What Katie Did, especially after all their press recently? (A full 5 page spread in the Sunday Times Style, Amanda Holden on the cover of Weekend Magazine, and even gracing the pages of Vogue). The store, tucked away in Portobello Green, is filled with beautiful yet reasonably priced pieces and is a great way to ease you into vintage styles. I shot the Harlow bullet bra and knickers for my story, but kept the bra unpadded, soft and feminine rather than pin up and sexy. The end results are gorgeous.



Also, check out The Girl Can’t Help it at Alfie’s Antiques Market in Marylebone. This is probably one of the best vintage shops in London, but that is definitely reflected in the prices. I fell in love with a £190 bodice with suspenders, (what these things can do for your figure), but made do with a 1940s prom dress which I customised into the most beautiful little satin bodice with netting skirt.


Maybe not so much of a secret was my next stop: Larizia on St John’s Wood High Street. Jackie, the manager, has a real eye, and one can spend hours drooling over YSL, Prada, Alexander McQueen, Miu Miu…I shot the bronze Gucci and the cream Balenciaga for this story.

La Magia, www.lamagia.com, is a real find, an online boutique selling a wide range of vintage inspired pieces, like the Little Minx ivory set (picture below) and Van Doren retro suspender belt, both of which I shot. And Vintage Vanity, www.vintagevanity.com is amazing for original one off vintage pieces – sizing can be an issue, but keep checking the site and you’ll definitely find something unique and exciting.


I also called in some retro inspired swim-hats from Saratoga Fine Lingerie – my personal favourite lingerie shop. It’s in Oxford, but Ann, the owner, is so helpful that if you can’t make it that far she’s always happy to help. www.saratogafinelingerie.co.uk

See my website, www.ellapearceheath.com to see the rest of the story.

Age Concern@183

Last Saturday I went to the opening of a new Age Concern Original Retro store on the Cowley Road in Oxford. It was truly amazing! Gem upon gem stashed away in every corner – hidden under a rail in a basket of scarves I happened upon a vintage Gucci and a vintage Liberty – both of which I snapped up for a total of £30. Then the next box along was filled with mounds of vintage undies – some of you may have realised that I have a bit of a thing for them! They ranged from £2 - £6, including a vintage pointed bra in its original packaging. I also spotted an original straw boater hat – just as seen in the Marc Jacobs SS09 collection. At £45 not so cheap, but certainly cheaper than a Marc Jacobs and it’s original. See this months Lula Mag for a shoot dedicated to boater hats, featuring Ellen Christine Millinery, Marc Jacobs and Early Halloween – but I think they missed a trick not finding an original one! Also check out the store for home ware – delightful tea sets and floral saucepan sets – children’s toys – amazing retro teenage mutant ninger turtles figures – an amazing collection of radios, and then, another of my favourites, taxidermy. The boss has a stash of taxidermy which he stores at home so he keeps the shop regularly re-stocked, and I would suggest if you’re looking for something specific, to just ask. But it really was a joy to see such a fabulous shop – the usual suspects are so often filled with cheap junk or totally overpriced garments about which the sale people are ridiculously snobby, and neither can be said of here.

Any other oxford fashionistas should also visit Reign, again on the Cowley Road, which sells fab original 1930s, 40s and 50s pieces, mainly by European designers. On Saturday I found a jacket, almost identical to the SS09 Dolce and Gabbana, seen on Gwyneth Paltrow on the cover of March 09 Elle.