Milan Fashion Week - day 3

I'm off to Milan in two months time for 3-months of maxed-up stress for my MA final project. Two months late for Milan fashion week. 

Bummer.

However, I am enjoying perusing from afar this week's offerings. 

Blumarine. Thank you. Autumn/winter 2012/13 and there shall be colour. The Italian label's collection for the solemn winter months began with a cascade of bright fluffy coats over virginal white trousers and stark polo necks.

We as a nation, nay, as lovers of fashion, seem only too keen to shun colour as soon as the first leaves begin to fall. This is silly. 

Now who knows how I'm to feel when summer has ended and the winter months start to draw in. But I can bet I shall be thankful for the small glimmer of sugar-coated, e-number filled colours Bluemarine have just shown as part of their autumn/winter collection 2012/13.

Screw black. Forget khaki, grey and brown. If it would be hideous as an interior paint choice, I'm wearing it.

Oh and don't forget about trusty old metallics. They're still around in a big way it seems for next autumn/winter. Blumarine, Anya Hindmarch, Maria Grachvogel, Matthew Williamson have all shown metallics during the recent big four fws.

So, zesty colour for unzesty autumn and winter... yep, I'm with the Italians on this one.

Happy Halloween!

It seems a funny thing to say, Happy Halloween, but I'm jumping on the bandwagon and embracing all things dark and spooky today.

I'm thinking of wearing black lipstick today, all day - you know, to pop to the shops, whilst studying, walking the dog etc. I wonder what the response will be in my quaint English village when a figure resembling a half-hearted Lady Gaga pops down to the shop for a morning paper and pint of milk?

I'll let you know.


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CITY STYLE: Stockholm Part Two

Ok, so I returned from a five-day break in the Swedish capital on Wednesday, so thoughts of Swedish style and fashion are still pretty fresh in my head. Before I went, I focused a blog on my memories of Stockholm fashion, refreshed by countless online articles of chic Swedish style.

A great deal of critique on Swedish fashion, tends to balance between the genders. My own personal opinion too is that male style in the city is indeed as worthy a mention as female dress.

The five days I spent in Stockholm was sun-filled and very very warm; perhaps not the type of weather most people associate with Sweden. However, as my boyfriend's father (who is a long-term resident of Sweden will tell me) summers do tend to be so… ultra-long sunshine days and more often than not, the kinds of summers we Brits wish we had.

So back to fashion and men. I spent the majority of my time in Ostermalm - an up-market district where a glass of wine costs upwards of £9 and Ferraris frequent the seafront streets. Men wore rather quite short shorts in bolts of animated yellow, green and blue. Similarly with trousers, statement dashes of red, orange or coral trousers with smart shirts, care-free choppy hair and  groomed stubble looked dashing and inventive. Jeans were worn slightly skinny - not teenage angst skinny - just the right side of male chic. 

Step foot into one of the other city districts and still guys look smart yet blithe with a real sense of gentility. And not a tracksuit or piece of bling in sight. Ahhhh.

The stereotype referring to Swedish women certainly has truth in its origins - but I think its time to start bigging up Swedish men who have carefree gentlemanly style well and truly nailed. A bit indie, sometimes preppy, perky and sometimes quirky, Swedish male style is well worth a peek for a shed load of both male and female style inspiration. 

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