Sample Sale Alert

Party Outfit for under £100

It's hard to find versatile outfits, especially in the winter months but this little number should get you from work to play, chilling with the girls to a hot date. This playsuit (£50) is the definition of classic chic, I could see Coco Chanel wearing something like this. The tailoring makes it very sophisticated yet the little bows give it that little girly touch. This garment can be dressed down with flats or worn with heels for the full glam effect. The trick is too pick the right accessories. A pair of Art Deco earrings (£14), a beautiful delicate clutch (£28) and a slick of red lipstick (£4.25) is all this outfit needs to transform it into an on-trend party look.

*Students get 10% off all year round at ASOS with an NUS card but check here regularly for other discounts*

More Sample Sale Alerts

Good thing I've finished buying all my Xmas pressies coz with all the samples sales Im going to be S.K.I.N.T by the end of this year!

Not that far off...

New Illustrator Crush: James Jean

Came across this dude whilst doing research for Uni (oh and if I haven't mentioned already, I've gone back to Uni. Starting allll over again at Istituto Marangoni London - 3 year BA Fashion Styling degree).

James Jean is a Taiwanese born, LA based artist and illustrator. His works are macabre and surreal yet beautiful at the same time. He takes inspiration from Asian art, mythology, and anatomy. Childhood, sexuality and transformation are common themes in his pieces. His use of soft colours make the depicted grisly scenes somewhat inviting and strangely friendly.

Although he's knew to me, his resume is pretty impressive. He's been exhibiting his works since 2001 and even worked with Prada on an animated film for the S/S 08 collection.

Fashion for Dummies: Pronunciation

If you want to stand out in the fashion industry, you got you have a catchy or unusual name (unfortunately the latter are usually impossible to pronounce). We’ve all been there; faced with a name of a designer you have no clue how to pronounce. You have two options – admit you haven’t got a Scooby or say it really fast /mutter it under your breath and hope no-one notices. Major fashion faux pas (pronounced ‘foe paw’)!

But so you never end up in such a situation, here’s a list of fashion peeps you should know how to pronounce like a pro.

Let’s start with the big guns:

-Aquascutum: Ah-kwa-SKEW-tum

-Azzedine Alaia: Aza-deen A-LYE-a

-Bvlgari: BOOL-ga-ree

-Lacroix: la-KWA

-Christian Louboutin: Kree-styan Loo-boo-tahn

-Comme des Garçons: Comb day Gar-SON

-Dries Van Noten: DREEZE van KNOW-ten

-Hermès: AIR-mehz

-Hervé Léger: Air-vay Lay-jay

-Hussein Chalayan: Who-sane Sha-lion

-Junya Watanabe: JOON-ya Wah-TAH-nah-bay

-Lanvin: Lon-VAN

-Loewe: LOO-eh-VAY

-Moschino: Mo-SKI-no

-Proenza Schouler: Pro-EHN-za SKOO-ler

-Rodarte: Ro-dar-tay

-Thierry Mugler: TEh-ree MOOH-gleh

-Versace: Ver-sah-chee OR Ver-saw-chay

-Yves Saint Laurent: Eve Sane LAUR-ahn

Sample Sale Alert

Well thats my Christmas presents sorted then. For myself.

Designer Colab: Lanvin for H&M

Oh! What's this? A Designer colab with H&M that doesn't totally suck? Thats right boys and girls (mostly girls) H&M have teamed up with Lanvin for their next collaboration and I don't hate it! Sure it's all about how you wear it of course. Some of the dresses could look like Lipsy on a "The Only Way Is Essex" night out on the wrong person but overall - not bad, not bad.

The collection hits stores on 23rd November. Expect sleeping bags set up the night before, huge lines and maybe even a fashion cat fight or two.

Lina Osterman & Pudel Sample Sale

J'adore Paris

I fall in love with Paris a little more each time I go there and as well as being into fashion I'm also a total movie buff. Here are my Top 5 films set in Paris:

AMELIE

Amélie is a shy waitress in a Montmartre café. After returning a long-lost childhood treasure to a former occupant of her apartment, and seeing the effect it has on him, she decides to set out on a mission to make others happy and in the meantime pursues a quirky guy who collects discarded photo booth pictures.

THE DREAMERS

Paris, spring 1968. While most students take the lead in the May 'revolution', a French poet's twin son Theo and daughter Isabelle enjoy the good life in his grand Paris home. As film buffs they meet and 'adopt' modest, conservatively educated Californian student Matthew. With their parents away for a month, they drag him into an orgy of indulgence of all senses, losing all of his and the last of their innocence. A sexual threesome shakes their rapport, yet only the outside reality will break it up.

ANGEL-A

André, a small-time ex-convict, seems to owe money to everyone in Paris, including a crime boss who promises to kill him if he doesn't repay him by midnight. After failing to find protection from the American embassy and the French police, a despairing André scrambles onto a bridge over the Seine, intending to leap to his death. He is surprised to see a tall, beautiful girl clinging to a rail on the same bridge, apparently preparing to end her life as well. She jumps, and he jumps too, suddenly resolving to save her life. After scrambling ashore, she tells him her name is Angel-A. Together, they take a cruise on the Seine, repay André's creditors, visit a Parisian nightspot, and more, as Angel-A helps André. He learns that for this purpose she has fallen out of the sky and into his life. André finds himself falling in love with this mysterious beauty.

FUNNY FACE

Fashion photographer Dick Avery, in search for an intellectual backdrop for an air-headed model, expropriates a Greenwich Village bookstore. When the photo session is over the store is left in a shambles, much to salesgirl Jo Stockton's dismay. Avery stays behind to help her clean up. Later, he examines the photos taken there and sees Jo in the background of one shot. He is intrigued by her unique appearance, as is Maggie Prescott, the editor of a leading fashion magazine. They offer Jo a modeling contract, which she reluctantly accepts only because it includes a trip to Paris. Eventually, her snobbish attitude toward the job softens, and Jo begins to enjoy the work and the company of her handsome photographer.

THE TENANT

A quiet and inconspicuous man rents an apartment in Paris where the previous tenant committed suicide, and begins to suspect his landlord and neighbors are trying to subtly change him into the last tenant so that he too will kill himself.

Very.co.uk - very on trend

I've been a very.co.uk virgin until now. I decided to get this faux fur gilet as its very on trend for this season and will be great for layering up in these next few chilly autumn months. I took my gilet to Paris this weekend as a test drive and it was the perfect versatile jacket. You can wear it with dresses, long sleeve top and jeans, boots, heels - the list goes on.

Fur was also all over the catwalk for AW10 and will never really go out of fashion, so if you buy one thing to last you through the winter I would suggest this.

Click here for the women's best sellers of Very and also check out the exclusive collections from PPQ and Preen.

LFW 2010: If I was a boy...

I've never been that interested in Menswear but this season might have turned me. I mean Ozwald Boateng was just immense. He went all out - short film about his career, acoustic performance and a hundred, yes a HUNDRED male models wearing his latest collections (SS11 & AW11) at Odeon Leicester Square. The show started off with monochrome and ended with his trademark bright suits. After the show the models walked up to Saville Row - Boateng's home. Unfortunately they legged it too fast so I didn't have a chance to follow. Here's a selection of my favs though:

Also I didn't get a chance to attend these shows but I have had nothing but love for these designers from day one.


James Long:


J W Anderson:

LFW 2010: Masha Ma

As far as debut collections go, it doesn’t get better than Masha Ma’s show on Sunday 19^th September. Every piece was cut, tailored and styled to perfection. New designers like her are the reason I go to London Fashion Week every season.

Although the collection is called Icebreaker and inspired by “rugged buildings in the meatpacking district in New York City”, there was a somewhat futuristic air to it. The electro industrial soundtrack went perfectly with the space-age foil on canvas skirts, airy capes and the odd almost alien-like flower pockets on some of the garments. Ma mixed strong elements such as silver and steel with the elegance of fine draped cotton, adding a touch of ice blue and blush pink to the otherwise grey, silver and white palette. I also fell in love with the silver knuckle-duster type rings all the models had on. I’m sure Lady Gaga amongst other celebs will be spotted wearing Masha Ma’s designs soon. This designer will be on everyone’s lips this season (and the next one too I have no doubt).

Offset Festival 2010

Offset festival is great if you want to check out up and coming bands but don't feel like/can afford to leave London. You also get the choice of camping on site if you want get the whole festival experience.

This year I was there helping out the peeps who ran the Not So Popular blog, interviewing bands and taking pics backstage. Kap Bambibo, Bo Ningen, These New Puritans and Eighties Matchbox B-line Disaster were personal highlights.

I also couldn't resist doing a bit of style spotting. Enjoy!