I’m a bit behind my schedule at the moment, I have to say I have been putting this post off for a while. I managed to get the menswear trend guide done a few weeks back and I did promise the same for the womenswear. My timing is a bit off, I know, what with fashion week starting in NYC for autumn winter, but hey, you still need to know what to wear for spring summer first! There are loads of fun trends for spring summer, so I’m sure they’ll be something for everyone. Whether you prefer classic pieces or are keen to get stuck into the quirky trends, this report will help you plan your spring summer wardrobe.

Underwater

Anything underwater related is hot for ss2012, but bare in mind this will probably a one season only trend.

Versace

Bra Tops – The Midriff

This season it’s all about exposing that midriff, so if you have the body for it, don’t be shy!

Viktor & Rolf

1920s

The catwalk was brimming with art deco and 1920s inspired pieces

Ralph Lauren

Candy Pastels

The summer wouldn’t be quite right without a dash of pastel colours. I’m particularly fond of this little number.

House of Holland

Ready To Shine

Put the in your face sparkle of sequins firmly back in your wardrobe, this season’s bling is that little bit more subtle. Using high tech fabrics and glistening silks it’s all about the ‘glow’.

Chanel

Peplums

This is a massive trend for spring summer and is the key silhouette for the season, so make sure if you want to stay on trend you invest in this look for your wardrobe.

Jason Wu

They say that only women lust after shoes. But I remember being stood in front an array of adidas superstars about 7 years ago, my heart thumping, excited that I had finally found a pair. The trainers I’m talking about where a replica of the very first superstars released by Adi Dassler, part of a 100 strong collection to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the iconic shoe. I remember getting a similar feeling when I used to play basketball in college and managed to get my hands on a pair of Jordans. I’m sure many of you can share a story of the day you made the upgrade from Hi-Tek to Nike or something similar, the sheer excitement a new pair of trainers brings, for some, is unlike any other. But the trainer or sneaker, which ever you want to call it, has come a long way from the original athletic shoe. They are as ubiquitous as say a pair of jeans or a t shirt and are a common staple in many a wardrobe. But when do they go beyond that? When are they no longer a staple, but the main event? The answer; when you’re a sneaker collector and you have 100+, that’s when.

Sneaker Freaks

Being British I’ve never actually called them ‘sneakers’ so I always wondered where the name came from. But after a little research I found it was down to the rubber soles, as they made little noise they allowed the wearer to ‘sneak’ around. But what fascinates me most about trainers is the sneaker collectors. These guys love to collect trainers, but not just any trainers will do. The rarer the better, this means, limited edition runs, exclusive lines or colours are the kicks that are most sought after, those and Jordans of course…

The Run DMC collaboration for the Superstar 100th anniversary

I Want To Be Like Mike

What’s the deal with Jordan’s I here you ask. Well, the Air Jordan line emerged along with Hip Hop, the Hip Hop culture gave them their street credibility and turned them into a status symbol. With a new release each season, it was the perfect endorsement to spark a collecting subculture.

Jordan XI's - Probably My Favourite

I only know about this culture of collecting trainers because of friends that were involved when I was in my teens. They would always be hunting for the latest Nike SBs (Skateboards) or dunks. Searching the internet for when a limited line was going to be released. But once they had actually acquired them it was all about keeping them fresh! The fresher they were you see, the better their resale value. So once they found them, wore them a few times, then put them amongst the rest of their hundreds of shoes, they always had the option of selling them. Bare in mind that most of these were rare or limited runs, so they could easily make the money back they had bought them for or even in some circumstances more.

The closest I could compare it to I guess would be thrifting for designer pieces, you spend hours looking through the racks to find those gems. But I guess once found they don’t hold the same value as a great ‘sneaker collection’.

If you have any of your own experiences with trainers then I’d leave to hear them, maybe you’re an avid sneaker collector. If so leave me a comment below.

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I seem to have been on a money saving mission during the last week because I’m writing yet another post about saving money. For those of you who are partial to splashing the cash, this post may not be for you. But for the frugal amongst you, keep reading because you’re in for a treat. I came up with the idea for this post when I was compiling my trend bible for the spring summer 2012 trends. Each season, I spend some time putting together a sort of mood board to highlight the new trends to my clients. While I’m putting them together I’m obviously studying the trends, but I also tend to start noticing ‘trends’ within the trends so to speak. We know that fashion is cyclical so what was hot once upon a time will come round and be trendy again. That’s why you often hear your parents saying things like “I remember those the first time round” but if you pay close attention you will notice something slightly different.

Wait…Wasn’t That Last Year?

Either it is the fashion designers being lazy or it’s always been this way, but if you look back to previous seasons they’ll give you a clue as to what trends are going to be hot for the coming season. By looking back you can start to predict the trends that are coming up, so there is no need to buy the trend guides published by the magazines, unless you want to of course.

Let me make it a little bit clearer, take the up and coming spring summer season. I know I haven’t done a trend guide yet (sorry it’s coming soon) but some of the trends that are big are pastels, whites, decorative, tribal, prints, amongst others. Now, I haven’t picked just any trends from ss12, no, I’ve picked those ones deliberately. Take a look at my spring summer 2011 trend guide and you’ll see some of the following making an appearance; minimalism (whites), prints, modern romance (decorative), and nudes which ranged from pinky nudes to beige nudes which wouldn’t be far from something you’d see in the Tribal trend this year. In fact my first ever post was in 2010 talking about how to wear pastels, which were on trend for spring summer that year. If you don’t believe me check out the pictures.

pastels 2010

Pastels 2012

Whites 2011

Whites 2012

Tribal 2011

Tribal 2012

So What?

So…. what I’m saying is if you keep an eye on the trends and follow them, you too will start to see some trends that always come around each season. A great example is the nautical theme, it will always be on trend for summer. Make a note of these trends when you are making a purchase for the new season and buy into a trend that will not only be hot this summer but probably for the next five after that. There will always be trends that aren’t repeated, I’m pretty sure the underwater trend will be a one hit wonder. So when you’re facing that dilemma this season between the dress with the seahorses on or the zebra print pay attention to the trends that have gone before it, that should help you make your decision.

If you’ve already cottoned onto this then you can relax knowing your spring summer wardrobe will be on trend and you won’t have had to spend any money on it at all. If you’ve not… jump aboard, it doesn’t take much work, in fact, if you follow the trends each season anyway you’re already doing the hard work. You just need to start reconsidering what you buy into for the season. If you want check out what previous seasons have had to offer, you can always find my trend guides here.

Sound like a good idea? Maybe you’re already doing it, let me know what you think by commenting below.

I go through stages where I love designer clothing and loathe the high street then it swings back the other way. I was recently checking out quite a few high end designer pieces and comparing them to mid price point high street and low end high street pieces. I tend to do this when doing a preselection for a personal shop to get a feel for the different pieces that are out there. I have to say that in some instances the high street trumps designers in terms of quality and price. Often you associate buying designer goods with automatic superior quality, but depending on what you’re buying it’s not always the case. There are still pieces where spending more does guarantee you quality, that tends to still be true when it comes to tailoring. But keeping your mind open can often lead to getting both great quality from the high street without paying designer prices. So if you want to make sure you’re getting the best quality for your money check out my tips below.

Designer Quality On A Budget

• I wrote a post about fabrics last year which I really recommend you read. You see, one of the key ways you to compare quality is looking at the fabric. Certain fabrics usually come with a higher price, most notably knitwear. If you’re comparing cotton to cashmere then you know the latter is going to be expensive because it’s a more luxurious fabric. But if you look around you can easily get comparable lambs wool pieces that would normally cost £100+ with a designer name for around the £35-£60 price mark.

• Another quality usually associate with designer pieces is the overall cut and fit of the garment. You pay more money because the fit is going to be better. But that’s not always the case, getting any piece of clothing in the correct size is always going to do wonders. So regardless of whether it’s from the high street or designer make sure you try on a few different sizes. Again, paying more does not guarantee a better fit. Take the results of my recent shopping trip for example; I was looking at white shirts comparing one from TM Lewin for about £35, Reiss for £80 and D&G for £135. In terms of quality there was no difference, in fact I actually thought the TM Lewin one was slightly better. In terms of fit the D&G shirt was slightly better than the others, but not enough to warrant £100.

• Which brings me onto my next tip, don’t forget about alterations. If the level of quality is the same as the equivalent designer piece then paying for an alteration will still work out cheaper. Take the shirt example above, I could easily have paid an extra £15 for the body to be adjusted if I had felt like it and I’d have still paid less than the same item from Reiss and D&G.

• Learn to thrift. I’m no expert myself but by simply following a few fashion blogs it’s taught me that if you put the time in you can easily find some amazingly great quality pieces from thrifting. I’ve never had the time to really get into thrifting, but I’ve heard that once you’ve had a few great finds it can become really addictive.

She knows good quality when she sees it, do you?

• The final way to is consider all of the above and wait for sale time, and take advantage of the money that is slashed off the recommended retail prices. If you have a clear idea of what you want and again are happy to take your time hunting for it during the sales, then it’s a great way to get great quality at cheaper prices.

Well I hope you’ve found this useful, if you have any questions or care to share some of your own tips on how you ensure you get the best quality pieces, leave a comment after the break.

I tweeted a while back that ‘your heels are only hot if they’ve got a wedge at the moment’. It was a bit of a tongue in cheek comment  at the fact that every girl I seem to see wearing heels, seems to be wearing a wedge. From a styling point of view I’ve never really been a fan of wedges, I’ve always found them to look too ‘clumpy’ and much preferred the elegance that a stiletto heel brings. But just recently with the sudden trend meaning everyone and their mum are wearing wedges, it’s caused me to reconsider and take another look at the wedge heel.

Given my unconvincing view of the wedge, it would seem a strange choice to write a post titled ‘an ode to…’ but while I may be unsure when it comes to the look, you can’t help but notice the positives such a heel brings.

So what’s the deal with the wedge?

The heel was developed by Salvatore Ferragamo in 1937 when there was a shortage of steel because of the war. He was forced to hunt around for other materials and found by stacking cork he could develop a stable heel. As with most fashion innovations it initially was  scorned by the fashion world. But over time the wedge was taken in and soon became a fashion staple that is renewed each season in line with whatever the current trend.

Why have they become such a staple? Good question, the great thing about the wedge is that along with the platform they add stability to the heel. As the entire sole of the shoe touches the floor they make them easier to walk in rather than trying to ‘totter’ along in stiletto heels. The design of the heel also makes them more comfortable, you may not be able to wear stilettos all day because of balance of the shoe, however you’d probably be able to wear a wedge because the heel supports the whole foot as opposed to the ball of the foot and the heel. This makes them a perfect option for those that need a lift but don’t fancy the potential discomfort a regular stiletto may bring.

As I mentioned at the beginning of the post, wedges seem to be everywhere at the moment. So there are plenty of options if you want to get in on the action. You have a choice from sky high platformed flavours to shoe boots with with a little lift. If you’ve always wanted to wear heels but hate the idea of tottering around or the potential discomfort a heel may bring, then go give some wedges a try, you never know you maybe surprised.

As always I love to hear what you think, so if you’re a fan of wedges or even if you hate them, let me know!

Continuing on from last week’s trend guide I’m following it up with the second instalment. I’m sat trying to break in some tough leather hi tops. The last time I wore them they gave me the most painful blisters, to the point I was hobbling along like a penguin. So I thought while I’m sat around the flat I’ll try and break them in. On another note yesterday morning I was looking around the shops checking out what’s on offer. I tweeted at the time that is was so nice to see the sale stocking going and the fresh spring summer stock taking it’s place. Reiss had some really nice pieces coming through, they even had one or two really great bargains left over from their sale stock as well. So if you’re still looking to pick something up on the cheap now is a great time to go looking, just before it all get’s sent back.

Anyway, enjoy the next round of the new season trends!

Cropped Trousers

Great for an alternative formal summer look, the trousers coming down many a catwalk were cropped at the ankle.

Louis Vuitton

Suede

The luxe relaxed fabric comes in neutral tones this spring summer, perfect for those chilly spring evenings.

Hermes

Printed Shirts

If you’re looking for an on trend casual shirt this summer then this is the way to go, the bolder the better!

DSquared2

Sportswear

Technical fabrics, bright colours, zips, sportswear makes an appearance mosts spring summers and this is no different.

Burberry

Shirt Jacket

One of the hottest items for this spring summer, the hybrid between shirt and jacket will probably be one item that you’ll see a lot of on the high street this summer.

Costume National

Leather

Although leather is big for this spring summer, the Harrington is the key style for this season.

Gucci

Well that wraps it up for this season, again let me know what you think of the trends this season.

It’s that time of year again the trend guides are coming out in the women’s fashion magazines, the sun is starting to shine and the shops are filling up with new stock. Apart from consuming copious amounts of dark chocolate, fair-trade of course, my time has been spent doing some research in preparation for a personal shop I’m doing in the next week. I thought now would be the perfect time to introduce the spring summer trends for 2012 while I’m looking in to them. You might see some familiar faces from last year and also some new ones.

Netting

This is almost like a play on the lace trends in womenswear, whether guys in netted fabrics have the same sex appeal, I don’t know? But netting along with mesh knitwear are both key fabrics for this season, keep cool, stay stylish.

Ann Demeulemeester

Brights

What would spring/summer be with out a good old splash of colour. For those that are just itching to break out the brightly coloured pieces, your in look again this year as they’re still as hot as ever.

Costume National

Checks

If you’re wanting to opt for a print this summer then you can’t go too far wrong with checks. You can pick your flavour from subtle neutrals, to monochromes up to brights.

Gucci

Neutrals

A summer staple really, but neutral hues are always key and never look out of place at this time of the year. Make sure you pick a light weight cotton or linen to keep everything ‘breezy’.

Salvatore Ferragamo

Blue

What would summer be without a sprinkle of maritime goodness. Blue is one of the must have hues this season and the good news is it covers the whole spectrum.

M Margiela

Shorter Tailoring

Dropped trousers and shorter blazers are the name of the game.

Dolce

Soft Tailoring

Casual tailoring in cotton and linens, crumpled pieces, unlined jackets, it’s summer time baby, relax!

Lanvin

I hope you enjoyed the first part of the trend report. I know it can be difficult for men to find what’s on trend each season, so I hope this has given you a little bit of foresight into what’s going to be popping up on your high street as the spring summer creeps ever closer.

As always I love to hear what you think, if you love the trends or hate them leave me a comment and I’ll be sure to reply.

Another quick one today, my scheduled has changed so I need to either prepare my Tuesday blog post in advance (start thinking about it on Sunday) or wake up a little bit earlier to give myself more time. I always fail to plan for the amount of time I spend messing around checking out Facebook and Twitter before I actually make my way to my own blog. So it leaves me with 30 minutes to write a post and find pictures for it. Anyway I said I’d keep it short again this week so I’m putting a question to you all.

What are the top 5 things you put in your bag?

I just opened mine and could only really count 4. Check out the picture below, but you’ll find an old packet of Halls Soothers which I always just keep kicking around. My old iPod and Sony headphones, my Bottega wallet and my diary. My mobile phone and keys I tend to keep on me in my pockets.

Anyway.. I’ve shared the top things I put in my bag…. now it’s your turn!

The other day I was going through my email when I came across an email from a few months back from someone that I met at a networking event. The person was asking me if I knew any single professionals that I could refer to them and their dating agency. I decided to check out the website, just to have a nosey. I noticed that on the site it specified “is an exclusive social network for attractive dynamic eligible professionals looking for a serious relationship.” I thought it was odd that they had specifically mentioned that one criteria for membership is that you have to be attractive. What do they deem as attractive? I’m assuming they mean attractive on the outside.

But then you wouldn’t join if you thought it was full of unattractive people. While some people may dismiss that style plays a part in attraction, I still feel that if you’re not making an effort in the style stakes then you’re shooting yourself in the foot. The good news is, nowadays just like you can learn to improve oneself, through self improvement or even how to pick up girls, through a dating coach, you can learn to improve your style through an image consultant. So if you are looking for love this year and fancy a few extra tips to help you improve your style then keep reading.

Now I did quite an extensive post on this almost a year ago which I suggest you check out style & attraction first. That will provide you with a great grounding and basis to start from. This post is going to be a little more experimental and optional, so by all means give some of these quirky tips a go, but they’re not a necessity.

• Look into women’s accessories – You’re probably thinking I’m crazy right now but hear me out. When I was single and on the dating scene I had this crazy idea of wearing women’s accessories because they were designed for women. So women were automatically drawn to them. At the time loads of guys were wearing those rosary bead necklaces, but I found this old vintage beaded necklace kicking around my mum’s room. Every time I wore I received comments and compliments about it so ended up wearing it quite a lot when I went out.

• Consider a ‘sexy stereotype’ – now this is not really something I’m keen on but I’ve seen it mentioned before and thought I’d mention it. It’s up to you if you think it would be something that would work for you. A sexy stereotype is just dressing in a particular stereotypical way for example dressing like a rocker or a hipster, or a hip hop guy. The idea behind it is that some women are attracted to particular ‘types’ by dressing like that type of person you’ll be more likely to attract that type of woman. Like I said, it’s not really my cup of tea but if you like the sound of it….give it a whirl.

Hip Hop Mogul Sexy Stereotype??

• Highlight Your Killer Feature - As it says on the tin, one thing that I recommend women to do is highlight their best physical attributes. You can take that same concept and try it out yourself, so if you’re particularly proud of your arms wear t shirts that high light your arms. Again this is not a necessity, it works on the same basis on the ‘sexy stereotype’ and I say go out there and try it.

Now these tips are a little bit more experimental than normal, I guess you could call them ‘alternative’. If you’re after something a little less ‘out there’ then check out the original style and attraction post.

Let me know what you think?

A couple of weeks back now I came across a blog post on North On Harper that made me laugh. It was similar to the original Inappropriate looks post I did a while back. But this time it was just a normal girl at an airport sitting down with her thong out. Her sister managed to take the photo of the girl while she was waiting in the airport. Alexis, from NOH, and I got into a little twitter conversation about the whole thing. I had mentioned on New Years Eve I had seen a girl walking to the train station in some grey leopard print leggings that were see through. I could see her underwear from 50ft away, however she was with her boyfriend so it puzzled me that he had a. not seen it and b. not mentioned it her?

I’m keeping this post short today as I’m a little pushed for time but take a look at the photo that Alexis’s sister took and let me know what you think?

We also joked about making a ‘crimes against fashion’ gallery, but I’m not really sure how that would work. If anyone ever found themselves in such a gallery on your blog I can imagine it wouldn’t go down too well. Anyway… the concept is cool, not sure if it would be possible to make it a reality.

What do you think?