MAKE IT FUNKY

Whyred S/S 13

And here's the fairest of them all - Whyred. My fave show of the season is randomly a brand whose style reminds me a lot of East London. 













{Photos by Kristian Löveborg}

HEADS WILL ROLL

Ida Sjöstedt S/S 13

Ida Sjöstedt put on another of my favourite shows this season in Stockholm.

The trappings are major - the fairy tale castle backdrop, candy floss coloured  hair, flowered sunnies and platform pumps all immediately give you a sense of what kind of girl these clothes are for, and get your imagination going as to the feel and story of the whole affair.

Sjöstedt also gives a nod to current trends like hi-lo dresses and an obsession for all things pastel, which is fine - perfect to keep her in the loop... for now. I do wonder though, if people are going to still be going in this direction in 8 months when it's actually time to start buying S/S 13 clothing... After all, the whole purpose of these shows is to get excited about what's NEXT, not to receive an reaffirmation of what we're already into.

There are certainly some amazing pieces - the tailoring of the trousers for example is exceptional (front AND back ladies) and I could totally see myself in many of the items - I just feel like something falls a tiny bit short in the styling of the clothing itself. Why would you send a girl down the runway in trousers and just a bra? No matter how much we love the pieces as separates, it looks like the model's taking a walk of shame home... Take away the backdrop and the staging and it becomes a bit more apparent. 



In any case,  Ida Sjöstedt knows how to stage a SHOW and fill it with some amazing clothes - a show which, for all my blustering, I am actually kind of gutted I missed.

{Photos by Kristian Löveborg}

HERE WE GO AGAIN

Stylein S/S 13

I didn't go to Stockholm Fashion Week this summer for the first time in 3 years - I've been having a pretty good time in London so I'm not complaining. BUT! I love looking at what I missed - especially since so many of my favourite brands are Swedish. 

Stylein's taste level is phenomenal - I feel this brand always gets it right. I'm a big fan of the muted palette, the tailoring, the mix of prints and fabrics, and the  shapes they create around the body. A Stylein show always looks feminine in an understated way, without EVER crossing a line into cutesy or dull or OTT. We only serve good taste here, thanks very much.

{photos by Kristian Löveborg}

LIKE HONEY AND TROMBONES

Jenny Grettve and Ravishing Mad had a showroom far away from the center and in that showroom, on the 2nd floor of an apartment building, I met with them and spoke to them about their collections for S/S 12. So, I went into the elevator

up the stairs

and down the proverbial rabbit hole.

Jenny Grettve is both an architect and a fashion designer, a fact which comes through in her sculptural pieces. She's got something interesting to say about eco-friendly fashion which stuck with me: "Make fashion you can wear for a lifetime."

So true - why don't we just get it right the first time?! If you produce quality, well-made and classic pieces, then people will love them for years and won't need to buy more or waste the ones they have already. Right on, Jenny! Her pieces stand up to the rhetoric; have a peek at some of my favourites (including the perfect wide-legged trousers she's wearing herself):

Also, have a look at an art video she produced of the entire collection below:

Anna from Ravishing Mad was an exercise in contrasts. Her style is irreverent and her ideas are complicated - when describing her denim she said "I intentionally do everything the denim world tells you not to do." I could see what she meant - instead of distressing her jeans, she paints directly on the fabric. Her creations have high waists and ample thighs, and she even uses denim to create sculptural haute couture pieces inspired by evolved skeletons and and rorshag tests. I only wish I'd gotten a picture of the amazing 3/4 length navy silk jersey dress she embellished - with burn marks.

My favourite piece of denim from her S/S 12 collection below:

And a few more pieces from the same collection which I found on her website:

   

A great fashion collaboration made in Malmö (pronounced "malm-oh"), the 2nd city of Sweden, which these girls hope to make as much of a fashion hub as Stockholm. They may just be on to something.

{title: From Anis Mojgani's poem "These things are how you make me feel" - like honey and trombones! This is the very first of his poems I ever heard, and still one of the most beautiful. Video above.}

EVIDENTLY, I DON'T EXPERIENCE THINGS AS RATIONALLY AS YOU DO

Another huge hilight of Stockholm for me was the Stylein show, which began with dance video art as the show was inspired by dance and movement. 


Now that I look again at the color palette, it's incredibly sophisticated - neutrals, dusky earth tones, pastels and a gentle floral, with subtle metallic accents - which means that every woman can find something to complement her skin tone. It's easy elegance; I kept thinking, it must be so easy for the models to slip into these pieces on backstage. 


I especially loved the hair and makeup - a soft smokey eye and a high messy bun. I can see this look working for just about everyone. 


OK enough talking from me, pics below - some taken by me, mixed in with images from http://www.mercedesbenzfashionweek.se.

The garments were just as incredible from the back:

Detail shots:

Later I went backstage to take some pics of the Max Factor makeup area. Heaven!

Want more? Visit the Stylein website here.

{title: From the poem "Hurling crowbirds at mockingbars" by Buddy Wakefield}