Murdock London launches body and skincare range

When Murdock London opened their first barbers store in Shoreditch in 2006, they brought the ‘old fashioned ‘male grooming experience back to the fore front and provided the man about town an alternative to the unisex hairdressing salons.  Here he could experience the luxury of a traditional wet shave plus the modern pampering facilities of facials and hairstyling.  The décor is masculine and reminiscent of the ‘Good Old Days’ when barber shops were thriving and making a ‘killing’ (especially Sweeney Todd).


Now Murdock have gone one step further and have launched their first body and skincare range this summer.  Like the concept of the Murdock stores, these products aim to bring a little masculine touch in to the world of pampering.

The simple packaging has quirky old fashioned sketches of quintessentially British sporting activities such as rowing and fencing, plus the sartorial British bowler hat and pocket watch.  This old style of ‘Britishness’ is continued in the inspiration for the range as the  ingredients used include English garden herbs like mint, thyme and rosemary. Plus quince, a fruit which was very popular in the Victorian times.

The range shows an easy grooming routine:

Cleansing Facial Wash -for every day.  Includes extracts of basil, mint, rosemary, thyme and wheat.  £24

Exfoliating Facial Scrub - once or twice a week to deep cleanse the pores. £24

Anti Aging Eye Serum – with concentrated cucumber distillate to hydrate and soothe the eye area. £36

Daily Facial Moisturiser - extracts of horsetail, pine, and rosemary £26

Lip balm – a fruit cocktail of extracts of apricot, avocado, cranberry and peppermint £8

Hand & Body Wash – basil, honey, peppermint and thyme £18

Moisturising Hand Cream – shea butter, cocoa butter, macadamia nut and sweet almond. Scent rosemary. £24

I must admit it must be quite daunting for a guy to enter in to the female orientated beauty section of a department store looking for facial washes and moisturisers especially if he hasn’t used them before.  So to be able to wander in to a male orientated environment and ask for advice on skincare products must be a less challenging experience. 

Available soon in the Murdock London stores and the Shop at Bluebird Kings Rd

www.murdocklondon.com

By Karen Grace

Personal Shopper & Image Consultant for Frumpy to Funky http://www.frumpytofunky.com 

London College of Fashion BA Season 2012

The London College of Fashion put on a great catwalk performance last week under a Big Top setting at Shoreditch’s Hackney House. Unlike the usual runways, a circus ring was the catwalk with the exit and entrance a maze of giant mirrored columns - a sophisticated take on the funfair’s House of Mirrors. It set the scene and anticipation for the ‘Greatest Show on Earth’.

‘Acts’ entered the arena thick and fast – 25 in all totalling 36 designers of menswear, womenswear, jewellery, accessories and sportswear.

The first act was a combination of menswear by Rory Parnell-Mooney, womenswear by Loko Yu and jewellery by Claire Pugh.

Rory’s collection titled 20XX had a feel of samurai warrior meets urban inner city. Although rich fabrics of leather and furs were used next to the less refined raw edged denims and cottons, the collection had a sense of minimalism as these luxury fabrics were used in a way that spoke of necessity against harsh elements rather than as an adornment. Colour palette serious taking no prisoners black.

Loko’s collection had a 3D dimension with the jackets and leotards being larger than life.  Shoulders on both were extremely wide from the straight sharp edged to the soft curved which undulated down the sleeves creating an hour glass silhouette. The collection mirrored body art growing out from the wearer as spiky beading sprang out of waistbands; tattoo patterns engraved the leather and piercings adorned the seams. 

Claire’s jewellery collection based on sustainable up-cycling was worn by both the male and female models. Although it had been created from old TV parts, it had a futuristic savage look with necklaces including shoulder pieces and nose rings covering mouths.

At the end of the show three awards were presented. Ashleigh Downer won the Barnett Lawson Award for the Best Use of Trimmings. Titled Crystallography embellishments took the form of rock crystals. Blood red crystals dripped from snow white faux fur garments singed with pink sending an anti fur message. Test-tubes with milky water hung off sleeves and adorned skirts like tassels. As though frozen in time under layers of ice, clusters of embellishments were trapped in the diaphanous white gauze fabrics. Strips of metallics glistened on jackets like the multi coloured layers of rocks with patches akin to moss and algae - all made magical in candy colours.

Rose Irwin for fashion design technology (womenswear), Diana Auria Harris for fashion contour (swimwear) and Lili Colley for fashion jewellery were awarded the Fashion Innovation for a United Vision.

Rose Irwin - A patchwork of thin rectangular strips on trousers and tops are offset from each other bringing an illusion of the bright colours bleeding in to each other like a hazy mirage. Sport orientated with boxer shorts, track suits, t-shirts and knee length ski suit. All worn with matching visors or coloured scarves also designed by Rose. Colours were eye popping shades of lime, orange and bright blues. Fabrics used silk and cotton.

Diana - Swimwear with retro silhouettes of high waist bikini bottoms and cut out sections were modernised with the use of clear PVC. Pop graphic prints designed by Margot Bowman

Lili - Jewellery of Deco and spiralling geometric shapes in neon fluorescent LED colours

The Collection of the Year was the most coveted award and went to Sebastiaan Pieter Groenen for his Bespoke Tailoring menswear collection.

Here sharp structured tailoring juxtaposed with the fluidity and femininity of the knee length chiffon vests.  Suit jackets gave the impression of being in the final stages of completion with lapels, collars and sometimes sleeves missing. Raw edged gaps around the waist or down the front of the jackets exposed the contrasting coloured diaphanous vests underneath. Black was matched with pastel pinks and blues.

After leaving the Big Top the entertainment didn’t stop as we all moved to the atmospheric exhibition area for the private viewing  of footwear, accessories, jewellery and more clothing collections. 

By Karen Grace

Personal Shopper & Image Consultant for Frumpy to Funky http://www.frumpytofunky.com 

Graduate Fashion Week - Nottingham Trent University Show

It must have been daunting and exhilarating at the same time for the NTU students to find they were about to showcase their collections to a very packed audience. However nerves were kept in check as everything appeared to run smoothly.


Specialising in Fashion Knitwear and Knitted Textiles, here are a few of their knitwear collections in the show.

Lily Mason – titled ‘Contemporary Heritage’


Inspired by Britain’s rich heritage of textile production, Mason used traditional weaving patterns and added a modern graphic twist. The colour palette was an autumnal landscape of rusts, dark reds, and greys. Fine gauge knits were neatly colour blocked with rust and grey, whilst in contrast graduating shades of dark grey crept up cream cable jumpers as though being soaked in to the wool.


Although layering and thick fabrics were used, bulkiness was avoided. Instead slim silhouettes were created by checked pinafore dresses with contrasting checked aprons, thick woollen baggy trousers belted to show off the waist and blanket wool skirts with vertical fringing.

Holly Marke - titled ‘Minus’
Minus refers to the weather in a cold hostile terrain, but Marke didn’t layer her fine gauge knits as this wasn’t about keeping warm. The clothes representing nature’s ice architecture with long slim maxi skirts creating majestically tall silhouettes, embossed knit patterns forming crystallised 3D shapes and metallic yarns sparkling like frost. The colour palette kept to icy greys and glacial whites.


This ‘Minus’ collection definitely was a plus in the fashion stakes, especially the white woollen mini dress with cut out ‘ice crevices’ running down the sleeves.

Olivia Williams – titled ‘The Second Skin’
Based on the notion of the second skin being exposed as the first skin sheds. Knits were textured and weighted to create a skin puckering effect, whilst the laser cut patterns on fine leather and suede allowed the second skin layer to peep through. Colour palette was of course shades of nudes.

Tamsin Lakhani – All or Nothing
Taking inspiration from the Ghana Kente cloth and the Maasai Shuka fabric, this collection was rich in colourful stripes and geometric shapes. The stripes were not uniform but a complex of varying thin widths which in parts broke away from the ‘straight and narrow’. To keep the focus on these intricate patterns, silhouettes were kept clean with high boat style necklines and simple t-shirt shaped dresses with side slits.

Orla Emerson-Creak: Title ‘Beauty in Death, The Art of the Illusion’
A black and white mesh textured top seemed innocent enough until you realised the inspiration for that top was a swarm of flesh eating bugs!


Maybe it’s best to remain blissfully ignorant of the inspiration for the rest of the pieces and just appreciate the intricate weave, the shape and style of the collection.


Loved the elongated bell sleeves, the dogstooth patterned skirts and my own happy illusionary thoughts of a 60s Mad Men look.

Harriet Brean – title ‘Conservo’
Not forgetting the men, Brean’s inspiration for her menswear collection was a combination of skeletal structures, plastic polygonal forms and the construction of historic garments. She played with high contrasts of shine with matt finishes, soft with hard fabrics and bright colours of blue and orange with black.


This was a show which kept the audience captivated throughout by starting on time (long delays can really dampen enthusiasm) and of course the great collections themselves. Well Done NTU!

By Karen Grace

Personal Shopper & Image Consultant for Frumpy to Funky http://www.frumpytofunky.com 

Graduate Fashion Week 2012 - Gala Show

Here at Earls Court, fashion graduates from all over the UK and also a few international college graduates were able to showcase their collections to the press, public and most importantly to fashion buyers and designers. Coming of age in its 21st year, Graduate Fashion Week ended with a spectacular Gala Show enabling the nominated graduates for the coveted Gala Awards to show their collection on the catwalk.

Hosted by Caryn Franklin, the show had a Best of Britain theme with a large Union Jack design set cleverly disguising and incorporating the stairs and runway entrance.

Fashion Promotion and Media Awards were presented by designers Julien Macdonald, Mark Fast, David Koma, Fred Butler and Mary Katrantzou with celebrities Daisy Lowe, Zara Martin and Louise Redknapp to name a few.

Suzy Menkes, fashion editor of the International Herald Tribune, Daphne Guinness and George at Asda's brand director Fiona Lambert presented the top prize of the George Gold award (plus £20,000) to Chloe Jones of Bath Spa University.

Chloe’s collection titled ‘Our Father Who Art in Heaven’ was inspired by Gothic architecture, stained glass windows and the ethereal figures that inhabit them. The colour palette was shades of soft serene greys and the print was of angelic wings. Flowing ethereal floor length silk skirts were worn with sporty style organza hoodies and marl jerseys. The monk like organza hoods gave a halo effect whilst the metallic embellishments on the sporty jerseys created a stain glass effect. It was definitely Chloe’s night as she also won the Womenswear Award.

Presented by designer Matthew Williamson, the Menswear Award went to Riona Horrox at Edinburgh College of Art.

Titled ‘Jack the Lad’ this collection was about oversized garments and volume layering. Oversized long tailed shirts were layered with oversized cropped shearling and padded vests, oversized cropped bomber jackets and oversized shaggy shearling detachable fur collars. This Jack the Lad was ‘having a larf’ with prints and the colour accent of bright orange. He splashed orange on his oversized sweat pant jeans with the effect of brush strokes bleeding into each other. Prints of bright orange bushy fox tails let him strut around giving his unique version of a country gent. The fox tail prints hung around the neck and shoulders of shirts and jackets mimicking furry scarves and adding virtual layering.

A new additional to the Award list was the Ethical Award. The honour of being the first ever winner of this award went to Sarah Murphy of Northumbria University

Whilst designer Jeff Banks was announcing the winner of the Lifetime Achievement Award, renowned veteran catwalk photographer Chris Moore was armed with his camera in the photographers’ pit ready to snap the winner. But to his surprise it was his name Jeff called out – that’s one image Chris couldn’t capture, but I’m sure he didn’t mind.

By Karen Grace

Personal Shopper & Image Consultant for Frumpy to Funky http://www.frumpytofunky.com 

AIU Graduate Fashion Show

Set in the Old Truman Brewery in Brick Lane, American Intercontinental University (AIU) hosted its 2012 Graduate Fashion show and marketing exhibition.

Fifteen final year Fashion Design students showcased their collections of 6-8 outfits.

Backstage hairstylists from the Marylebone hairdressing salon Electric Hair created a feminine but androgynous look – volume on the top with hair flat at the sides and back.  A futuristic take on the 50s bouffant beehive style.

Makeup artists who trained at the Session School also created a twist on the 50s style.

The eyes were the main focus with the dramatic black ‘cat eye’ liner. The twist came with white eyeliner used close to the bottom lashes followed with another black line. Metallic and bold pastel shades were also used courtesy of the mineral cosmetic brand Bellapierre.

The show was hosted by TV stylist Nick Ede. First on the catwalk was Nazish Kalani’s collection titled Elixir of Refinement. Kalani’s aim was to portray a polished demure look. Using a palette of white, ivory and cream for  hope and the light seen at the end of the black tunnel, she returns to  gentle and humbler roots. The overall look was neat and simple, but a closer inspection revealed many textural layers with fabrics of crisp cotton and the denser felt being used (which in some pieces Kalani actually made). The folds in the long skirts were voluminous with fine pleat detailing on tops. Fringing trimmed the hem of a coat whilst a basket weave design gave texture to a black sculptural jacket.  

A few more of the design students were:

Basma El Ajou whose collection was titled Allure du Maroc. Inspired by the beauty of Marrakech, Basma created simple designs adding drama with a colour palette of petrol blue and orange to interpret the lush gardens, spices, terracotta tiles and radiance of Marrakech.  Rich fabrics of wool with cashmere and silk jersey were used. The key looks were the dramatic sweeping floor length cloaks with hoods adding a sense of mystery and the low crotch style harem style trousers.

Padraic Cowley with a collection titled Brown Paper. Starting with the British country tweed look, this collection became an eclectic mix of the gentry and the worker styles.  Short tweed coat, jodhpur style trousers worn with full blouse and a long coat of Aran wool with leather patched elbows mingled with a peasant like frayed shawl and elongated Aran jumper with waistcoat complete with the skeletal frame of a rowing boat. Earthy fabrics included organic flannels, cord, tweed, leather and wool.

Johnny Wang, collection titled Chaos: 3286. Partly inspired by David Attenborough’s Frozen Planet, Wang shows the earth ice bound in the year 3286. His collection is a patchwork of the high tech and the low primitive, a combination an explorer on an epic expedition would need to survive. Fabrics are rubber, plastic and synthetic fur. The fur ranges from stark white, candy to black, but always with a sheen as though reflecting the light from the blinding snow. Sleeves are exaggeratedly long and hoods deep and structured.

Celebrities watching the show included Zandra Rhodes who handed out prizes to the award winning AIU student designers at the end of the show and DJ Jodie Harsh.

Images provided by AIU London

By Karen Grace

Personal Shopper & Image Consultant for Frumpy to Funky http://www.frumpytofunky.com

ASOS Marketplace and the University of Westminster Fashion Students

ASOS has given the University of Westminster’s second year fashion students a chance to produce ten new capsule collections to sell on their Marketplace website for this High Summer 2012 season.

But it hasn’t been handed to them on a plate. These students didn’t just have to design and create the collections, but were also responsible for the fashion shoots, look books, business plans, market research and all business and commercial decision making.

A daunting task but when students from the Fashion Design course join forces with the Fashion Buying Management course you have the makings of a successful brand house. Ten groups were formed to each create their own brand and collection for the project.

Designer students Georgina Atkinson, Emma Charles, Rachel Raheja and Anjini Maxwell formed the brand ‘HAUS’ with fashion buyer students Karen Hanratty, Andra Vilmane, Clarissa Rawlings and Alex Stavreva.

The HAUS Brand

Their key inspiration was taken from the Bauhaus Movement, especially Bauhaus architecture. This Modernist style broke away from the ornamentation of buildings in the 1920s and concentrated their designs more on the functionality of the building with the demands of urban living and new technologies available.

Like the Bauhaus buildings, the pieces in the collection are minimalistic:

Buttons are concealed on the shirt and coat whilst the collars on both are almost nonexistent in their narrowness.

Straight and curved lines juxtapose in the cut of the garments:  Simple rectangular shaped garments with rounded shoulders created by drop shoulder seams, cap and the sporty raglan sleeves.  Blocks of oblong layers add depth whilst curved outlines are created with colour blocking.

The inclusion of modern colour blocking using a bright blue accent brings a pop of bold colour to an otherwise neutral palette, managing to keep the starkness at bay whilst the purity of the styles remain. Fabrics used: wool crepes, cotton twills, wool suiting and shirting fabrics.

The students said of their collection –“The brand and collection is ‘HAUS’; an 8 piece collection of womenswear inspired by the Bauhaus movement, where, similarly with architecture of the 20^th century, we have used creative techniques for exciting pattern cutting, developing a wearable and well constructed collection. The Collection pioneers structure and innovation whilst combining both modern and traditional tailoring”

The ASOS Marketplace is an ideal platform for the students to gain experience of the fashion industry in the real world and a great opportunity for a wide exposure of their collection.

Model: Amy McDonald

Photography: Daniel Fraser

www.marketplace.asos.com

By Karen Grace

Personal Shopper & Image Consultant for Frumpy to Funky http://www.frumpytofunky.com

Christian Louboutin Retrospective Exhibition

This exhibition is a must for every shoe-a-holic out there. Not only does it showcase numerous glamorous red soled shoes, but it lets you catch a glimpse of the Christian Louboutin world and the inspirations behind the making of these beautiful creations.

Mr Louboutin's first passion was watching Cabaret shows, the showgirls and their costumes fascinated him. Household Design took this passion and incorporated it in to the exhibition layout, creating a fun and glamorous atmosphere. The exhibition takes you on a journey through Louboutin's key inspirations.

The journey starts before you set your own red soled shoes in to the exhibition as Louboutin shoes hang like circus acrobats down the centre of the stairwell. Upon entering the exhibition, you'll find a wall completely covered in the lasts Louboutin has used to create his wonderful shoes.

Behind the wall takes you in to the main room where a red centre stage is in the shape of a 17 metre long inverted shoe. Around the stage are the Showgirls inspired glitzy shoes set up in a chorus line, each with their very own foot light shining upon them. An elevated section shows a 3D hologram of Dita Von Teese and a giant pair of Louboutin shoes putting on a short sparkling performance.

Radiating from the Showgirls stage are five of Louboutin's other key inspirations:

Travel

Travel inspired shoes take pride of place on red velvet cushioned swings hung from a fairground carousel. Photographic images of cities and places are illustrated on the carousel’s panels representing places where Louboutin has visited.

Transparency

A glass helter skelter acts as the mirrored display shelves for shoes and boots. Louboutin is a great fan of transparency as it creates a sense of nudity in the shoe. Materials used are lace, mesh and metals. The styles range from the African feeling of the  Massai sandal made of PVC, lambskin and elastics to the more sci-fi Kriptonite  shoe made of calfskin, tulle, strass and metal spikes.

Entertainment

A giant spinning top includes elements of a grand piano. The enormous black piano keys become the stands to display individual shoes. In this collection is a pair of heeled ballet slippers (imagine the ballet dancer already on her toes, and then add a long stiletto heel) encrusted with Swarovski Elements and created for the English National Ballet courtesy of Swarovski.

Architecture
Architecture inspired shoes are displayed on sundial plinths within an enclosed topiary walkway. On one of the plinths is the highest pair of wedges I've ever since - almost skyscrapers.


Handcrafted
This is the one-off design section featuring very expensive and precious handmade bespoke shoes. They are displayed on two glass shelves and can be viewed through 'opera' glasses and magnifying lenses to see up close and personal. Creations include a Rolls Royce fronted shoe; Guinness heeled shoe, Wedgewood shoe and Marie Antoinette style shoe.
After the wonderment of the Cabaret style main room, you can enter in to a recreation of Louboutin's Parisian studio. Here the 6 stages of design to create a shoe are shown. It is also a treasure chest for curious eyes as we see objects that inspired the making of Louboutin shoes. Also here are Miss Piggy's bespoke shoes, Louboutin Barbie dolls, more shoes and a few men’s shoes. Sorry guys, but this is the only place in the exhibition showcasing men’s footwear, but you will not be disappointed.

This pop up studio then leads on to a biography room displaying photos and snippets of information throughout Louboutin's 20 year long career. Here are also twenty of his most iconic shoes which have been reissued for his 20th anniversary. Even if you are not a shoe-a-holic, you'll still be awestruck by the whole concept.

Can Christian Louboutin put on a great show? He certainly Can Can!

The exhibition is until 9 July at the Design Museum, Shad Thames, London SE1 2YD www.designmuseum.org

Image credit: Luke Hayes

www.lukehayes.com

By Karen Grace

Personal Shopper & Image Consultant for Frumpy to Funky http://www.frumpytofunky.com