New Fannie Schiavoni Delights and the Blogger Chain

Alice Palmer SS10 with Fannie Schiavoni, LFW

I think you might have noticed me harking on about Fannie Schiavoni, I believe I was one of her earliest followers, even beating Miss Style Bubble to the post, when I shot some of her grad collection back in January. As I posted a few months ago Fannie is making waves, stocked not only at Browns Focus, but now also at Kabiri. Fannie launched her SS10 collection last Saturday on-line by gathering together 6 fashion bloggers who simultaneously posted an image from her collection, in a self-named fashion chain. She also showed her collection alongside Alice Palmer, with Fannie Schiavoin's tough metals contrasting beautifully against bare skin, and the soft origami pleats and folds of fine jersey knits which draped weightlessly. Later this week I will be shooting some of the new collection for a major album shoot for Noush Skaugen, so I promise backstage pics over the weekend, and a full update on the shoot soon. For now, here are my favourite pieces from the Fannie Schiavoni SS10 collection.

Hermes Pour Liberty: design history

Finally I had a chance to visit the Hermes Pour Liberty pop up shop which has taken over the scarf room at Liberty. Everlasting chic French perfection meets fashion forward cool, yet traditional British heritage, in what should make a perfect combination. It's a little like buying a limited edition print - I feel I should frame it and hang it on my wall!

Creative director of Hermès silk, Bali Barret, said of the collaboration: “For us Parisians, Liberty is the British icon. The idea for the collaboration was to create a fifty percent Hermès and fifty percent Liberty scarf in order to make a one hundred percent truly exciting hybrid collection of scarves and ties. Choosing to print our famous Ex libris on to the famous Liberty Tana Lawn classic flower print was the perfect solution”.It was reported that stylists would be on hand to explore different ways to tie each scarf, but I seem to have missed that; the extremely charming sales assistants unfortunately seemed to have no idea what to do with the scarves. I'm not sure this is exactly what the organisers had intended... Other events - including mini-fashion shows - will be taking place whilst Hermes is in-situ until 18th October so watch this space. The real perk, however, is the range of other Hermes scarves and accessories also on display, as it is fabulous to be able to touch and try on anything, unlike in any normal Hermes shop. I couldn't resist a few treats, so I left a very happy customer with the light blue and pink Liberty/Hermes collaboration scarf, a classic silk Hermes, and a beautiful gold Hermes scarf buckle to finish the look. So chic and Parisian!

See the Liberty Blog for more event details or visit http://www.liberty.co.uk/ for further information

Christopher Kane arrives at Topshop

Crowds of shoppers queued on Oxford Street this morning as Christopher Kane for Topshop went on sale. They had good reason, this collection has all the Christopher Kane touches you would want, and the simple garments still have the essence of luxury without the massive price tags - at £40-£160 there's probably something for everyone. Mirrors, eyelets, gems and embellishments are a major feature throughout the whole collection. There is also a brilliant range of accessories such as the leather pouch bags with tiny mirrors and, my favourite, mesh and rivet details shoes and boots. In conjunction with his main line range success with the Gorilla print, his collection for Topshop uses a crocodile print which is fantastic, and with the t-shirt at £40, much more affordable than the £215 main line version. Shop the collection at Topshop online.Main line Christopher Kane Gorilla print

New York Fashion Week: Nicholas Petrou, SS10

Inspiration for a major project looking at Superheros - just thought I'd share.





All photos by Andrew Yang, 2009

A Shared Aesthetic - continued!

Another beautiful Minoan piece which I had to share

Ring, before 2000 BC, Gold

A Shared Aesthetic

Minoan Bee Pendant, 1700-1500 BC, Gold
Alex Monroe Bee Pendant, 2001-2009, Gold

Craftsmanship, beauty and luxury; some of the words I most associate with the real essence of fashion. On a recent trip to Crete's Archaeological Museum the jewellery of the Neolithic and Minoan periods, 5700-1100 BC caught my attention. For, as far as we have come, these pieces of Minoan jewellery in front of me could have been entirely modern. This ancient display of fashion raises interesting questions into an ingrained value of aestheticism which we share as humans.

Neolithic pieces from 5700-2800 BC show abstract stone and clay pendants and charms. Late Minoan pieces, 1400-1200BC, show gold flowers, carved ivory, bangles, pins and rings, and vivid gemstone necklaces. Typical Minoan jewellery consisted of thin coils and chains of linked and plaited gold wire, and gold foil fashioned into petals and rosettes. Stamping and engraving were also common techniques used in the manufacture of Minoan jewellery, as was gold granulation and filigree. For me, the most remarkable pieces I have seen is the Minoan Bee Pendant, picture below. Taking this one example, jump thousands of years to the 21st Century, and Alex Monroe, leading designer of gold and silver jewellery, holds his famous Bumble Bee pendant at the centre of his collections, picture below. His collections too feature filigree pendants and charm bracelets. He too draws of the nature around him to produce jewellery inspired by flowers, leaves, birds and butterflies.

It is quite remarkable that our modern society still turns to the same inspiration, and still uses similar metal work techniques as our Minoan 'ancestors'. Could this be taken to suggest we have an ancient aesthetic ingrained in our modern society? The continuation of a shared aesthetic over so many thousands of years must teach us something about the history of fashion. Interestingly, and please do shout out if I'm wrong, I have never seen an article or fashion story looking at the art of the Minoans featured in any glossy. How can we in the fashion industry rule out such a section of our history, and what have we missed by doing so?

Counter Culture sneak preview

A little something to wet your appetite! Full story up soon.