The Big Plan

So I have been planning what I want to do with my time when I am in New York. I want to make the most of what I have to do and see. I will give you a quick rundown of my plans so far (Knowing me this is very likely to change!) 

Monday I will be exhausted from travelling, this ALWAYS happens to me so I will probably stay pretty close to the hotel, I will try to get to Time square because I really love how it looks! Tuesday I am heading downtown to do the majority of my retail research because of its amazing boutiques in Soho. I am also hoping to get a great deal of street style photography in Chinatown because of the asian influence in the clothes. Wednesday I am heading towards central park to go iceskating and do some more higher end retail research. I am also hoping to go and see a show on broadway that night! Thursday I am going to look at Brooklyn I am not entirely sure what I am going to do there yet but probably looking at the artsy hipster culture that runs through the veins of this iconic place (yeah i am pretty excited!) I am hoping to go to at least one museum and the new museum has a late night viewing Thursday nights. Friday we have our garment tour which means we will miss the trip to FIT to see their exhibitions which is a massive shame because they are amazing. I am planning on going early Saturday morning before our flight so that I don't miss out! 

That is my rough plan! 

Much love K xx

The Big Apple Awaits

So I am going to the concrete jungle, the big apple, the city where dreams are made, across the pond. I am going to New York City and as you can tell I am pretty excited. I must confess this will be the third time i have visited this great and wonderful city. But this is the first time I am visiting with a professional outlook with a real purpose to the trip other than to just 'see the sights'. I am not saying that the sights are not worth seeing, they truly are! I am just looking forward to seeing a new side to this great city.

I am planning on doing a series of blog posts  about what I am planning, doing and thinking about this trip that will all be labeled with the NYC tab if you want to follow my fashion adventure!

Much love K x

Cute and Casual

Cute n' Casual! 

Hannah love for crop top is once again translated perfectly into the autumnal season matching style  and comfort with the casual grey 

Lipstick Tribes

Every girl needs a good lipstick. It is a fact of life, there is no escaping the fact that somewhere out there is the perfect lipstick for you my friend. I would highly recommend going out there to find it. I personally don't think i have found 'the one' yet but i know its going to fall into the nude category as looking through my makeup bag it seems that 60% of my lipsticks are variations of nude. Not that this is a problem.  The problem lies in the fact that I am not at all buying into the lipstick tribe that nude lipsticks tend to be marketed as. This is something that I have only just realised when I started researching lipsticks for my course and I have to say that although it interested me it frustrated me greatly (as you will find many things do) as well.

There are three main tribes that the cosmetic industry promote lipsticks in: The Meta Feminine, The Sex Kitten and the Unconstrained Rebel. So these three tribes as fascinating and desirable as they may sound don't particularly relate to my day to day life and they are not things that I really desire to be in all honesty. Ten points if you guess which category nudes tend to fall into.... Yep you guessed it! The Meta Feminine, The most terrifying and unachievable idea that is shoved at women day in and day out. Yay. This frustrated me and lead me to take a deeper look at all three tribes and why the industry is so intent on using them. 

The Unconstrained Rebel. This is the tribe which allows marketers to let their creative juices flow without worrying about scaring off customers. These tend to be sed to sell the vampy dark colours and the strange greens and blues that nobody in their right might would actually wear on a Tuesday afternoon down to the shops.  I am probably missing the point and it is definitely a certain sort of person who can pull off this look. This look is usually advertised and seen as being a very feminist stance and very anti-beauty look at cosmetics. I really love this tribe I love the adverts they are the most eye-catching and they are the ones that in a perfect world I would emulate because they are so darn cool! but I don't simply because I am not half as brave as the girls with the attitude to be part of this tribe. 

The Sex Kitten. The Tribe which caters to our animal inside, allegedly. This is a go to tribe for the marketers as everybody wants to be sexy, I am not denying that. I mean I have looked at so many of these adverts and women and I am so so SO jealous of how self assured they are and of course I want to be them they are modern day goddesses! The reds and berry tones tend to be sold to this tribe emulating the Marylin's and Kylie Jenners of the world. I don't agree with the overt sexualisation used in this type of marketing that always seems to verge on voyeristic and obsessive objectification of women. However There are some killer femme Fatales out there that this tribe looks out for and you girls ROCK! 

Finally there is The Meta Feminine. The tribe that is supposed to encapsulate all that it is to be a woman. Long flowing hair, Pastel colours, Flowers, Petals, sultry looks. It is sickening to be frank it is also scary that still in 2015/16 this is still something that women are buying into. The meek and mild stereotype that has helped the patriarchy to control us for so long. I don't have a problem with femininity at all I think it is something that we as women should embrace but I think we should be able to be feminine and powerful and Unique at the same time. This tribe does not leave space for women to do this and that is what frustrates me about it so much. As you can tell I am slightly bitter that the lipsticks that bit my face fall into this category as I think that nudes should be sold in just as interesting ways as the luminous orange lipsticks and not in the cop out way that they always are. 

Rant over. Promise. 

Have you found your perfect lip colour yet? 

Much love K x

Musical Madness

I am a huge fan of musicals. I love them. I like to pride myself on my ability to sing along to the entire soundtrack of Les miserables, Sound of music and Mamma mia. I can't help but love them and you can put them down all you want but I guarantee you that there is at least one musical out there that will resonate with you and you won't be able to resist the toe tapping tunes any longer!

You could be wondering what this could possibly have to do with a fashion course but let me tell you this the costume designers for some of these musicals have really hit the nail on the head with their designs. There are some outfits that just resonate with audiences and really shape the fashion and cultural landscape: here are some of my all time favourites!

Grease : Sandy's Final outfit 

Olivia Newton John's outfit has resonated with women for decades and is still one of the most copied looks with people returning to this sexy style for inspiration time and time again.  I have to say however amazing the outfit was ( and boy was it a killer outfit) it is her hair that I loved the most!

The Sound of Music: Thunderstorm Dress

Crooning I am sixteen going on seventeen in a thunderstorm to the boy she loves is just so romantic is it not? This dress was one that from a very young age I wanted to own I loved the way it moves when she dances it was just like a princess dress and a ten year old me was desperate to be a princess... can't deny that I still want the dress now. 

Chicago: The Two Merry Murderesses

If there was ever a musical for the empowerment of women this has to be one go the best! The score was incredible the story is fast paced and full of energy but the best bit... the 1920's style flapper dresses! oh the fashion darling it is incredible... have I ever wanted a beaded showgirl dress more in my life than when I saw this musical... never? Do I actually own one....sadly no. 

Rocky Horror: Frank n' Furter 

This is a musical that I was given to watch when I was in my last few weeks of college...how it had eluded me all that time I have no idea. I have to say I went in open minded and I am so glad I did because the musical is provocative, sexy, and so wrong that it is right. I really loved it but I can tell that it isn't the musical for everyone because weird is an understatement. But my favourite outfit from it is the corset and suspenders combination because it is just so shocking and unabashedly raunchy. 

Seven Brides for Seven brothers: ALL OF THEM 

This is my all-time favourite film and favourite musical. Now I am not saying by any means it is the BEST musical, it is simply my favourite. I absolutely love all of the dresses through the whole film they are stunning, not because they are particularly decadent or intricate but because they are just so flattering to the women that are wearing them. I have wanted a dress like these for as long as I can remember and that is why they go on my list. I know it is not the most popular musical and probably didn't have a massive effect on the culture or fashion but for me personally it has had a huge impact in the way that I look at fashion and how I choose to dress. 

Much love K xx

Gluesticks and Pictures

Have you heard of Adam Hale, No? Well you should have, He is the mastermind behind 'The Daily Splice' an incredible Instagram account with over 109K followers. He is a collage artist who travels around London picking up the free magazines to splice them together creating interesting montages with a retro quirky feel to them.

I was incredibly inspired by his work and the way in which he places pictures together to create provocative and eye-catching visuals using just what he finds in magazines. I hadn't ever tried montaging physical pictures before and I thought it might be something fun to try so I spent an evening flipping through magazines and cutting out bits and pieces. To be honest it was just really nice to be creative for the sake of being creative, very therapeutic I would recommend it! 

I tried out quite a few different ideas emulating the artist but putting my personal spin on them. I can't say my montages are anywhere near as detailed or inventive as Hales, I don't have his skills with a scalpel but I think I did an okay job of splicing the pictures together to create something even vaguely beautiful. Here are my first few attempts below. 

Finally I thought I would show you my favourite creation.... I just feel that all the elements of this come together perfectly. The shapes of the material on the dress and the ribbons and the pink and blush colour scheme it all has a very sultry and sensual feel to it. I like how it is subtly suggestive but also aesthetic. So much so that I have pinned it up above my desk! 

I hope that you like my creations as much as I do and that maybe I have inspired you to try something a bit different too! If you have any artists that you think I should have a look at please give me a heads up I am always looking for more inspiration! 

Much love K x