Graduate Fashion Week 2013

Following a patriotic Graduate Fashion Week (GFW) 2012 with a runway backdrop of the Union Jack, GFW 2013 went for the classic monochrome look with a super shiny black reflective runway and a chorus line of black and white tailors mannequins on stage.  In the centre of the runway, hazy beams of light shone down forming a circle.

These rays of light were the perfect setting for the winning collection of the International Show Award as they shone on to Angus Chiang’s (Shish Chien University Taiwan) futuristic collection of space suits ready to beam them up. The space suits ranged from the practical and wearable black aviation style jumpsuits to the outrageous and show stopping astronaut suit covered in colourful fabric carnations – maybe saying it with flowers is the universal language for that alien encounter.

Keeping with the bright colour theme was the winner of the Zandra Rhodes Textile Award – Kirandeep Bassan from Northampton University.  The main colour palette was of just three bright colours (orange, blue and yellow) but variations of shades gave depth and the illusion of many more.  Prints were everywhere right down to the high wedge clogs.  Texture was key as though the prints were exposing numerous layers of paint and brush strokes under a peeling surface.  Larger and smoother colour blocks became the canvas for contrasting shapes of circles and panels.

Texture was also key with the winner of the Stuart Peters Knitwear Award – Thea Saunders of Nottingham Trent University.  Patterns clashed wonderfully together ranging from period, classic and contemporary. Yellow woollen shag pile adorned chunky cable short jackets like swirling gold baroque embroidery, whilst multi coloured shag piles created an unfinished tapestry effect on a slimmer digital patterned jumper. Straight skirts and dresses knitted in an abstract and coloured take on the classic houndstooth were worn with jumpers in futuristic computer grid patterns.

Womenswear winner Hannah Williams of UCA Epsom went for minimalism in pale pastels and neutrals.  Latex fabrics, frayed hems and simple loose cuts gave the collection a simplistic first impression. But on closer inspection these shapes were like rubber casts ready to create another style as tactile trompe l’oeil brought a subtle 3D dimensional outline of lady like jackets with strings of pearls and an oversized zip fronted dress.  

Menswear Award went to Shauni Douglas with accessories by Olivia Creber, both from Edinburgh College of Art. Olivia’s false beards - surely the next must have sartorial accessory - certainly caught the eye as held in place by a mouthpiece, they bounced and swished as the model moved. The collection itself was a mix of Western tailoring and Middle Eastern layering of long tailored shirts to the knees and longer worn with shorter tops and coats. Prints were of oversized digital tartans and smaller checks alongside the richer tartans and geometric diamond patterns

The prestigious George Gold award plus £20,000 prize money went to Lauren Smith of Edinburgh College of Art. Air bubble designs, appliqué doodles, oversized coloured paper clips on exaggerated A line tunics with patch pockets, coloured metal eyelets and coloured thread trimmings and wide bell sleeves gave a feeling of childlike innocence and dreams.  Tulle mid calf skirts in neon yellow and pale blue added a light hearted flirty touch to this feminine collection.

This year’s Lifetime Achievement Award presented by Hilary Alexander went to Suzy Menkes fashion editor of the International Herald Tribune.

                  

By Karen Grace

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

American Intercontinental University 2013 Graduate Fashion Show

For their 2013 Graduate Fashion Show and marketing exhibition venue, American Intercontinental University (AIU) chose the spectacular One Mayfair on North Audley Street.  Formerly St Mark’s Church, this Grade I building is one of the finest examples in London of neo-classical designs.  In the centre of the impressive Grand Hall, the pure white minimalist runway juxtaposed with the surrounding Gothic decor of ornately carved dark wood and row of high stone arches creating a stunning and atmospheric setting.

The catwalk show included the collections of six final year fashion design students:

Hazim Bangwar

Designs were a science fiction take on the legend of King Arthur with the shapes and contours based on the Icelandic Volcano Eyjafjallajokull.  A colour palette of white and fabric including wide leather strips, the garments were reminiscent of the medieval knights armour plate and layered in an armadillo design. Sparkling silver nets used on sleeves and in between the strips represented the chainmail, whilst chunky cotton ribbons knitted together like wool created a heavy and stiff tunic. Knights in Shining Armour never looked so good.

Michelle Kasujja

In contrast to the cool Knights, Michelle Kasujja’s collection was a hot blaze of spicy red shades and turquoise. A fusion of Ugandan and Scandinavian traditional costume, hems of mid calf skirts were trimmed with decorative ribbons and some of the sleeves took on the distinctive Ugandan style of elbow length and broad puffed shoulders. Garments were adorned with rows of stiff thread necklaces painted red to match the pieces. Jump suits and baggy trousers gave the traditional dress an additional element of street wear.

Sarashka Bekhbat

Sarashka also chose a colour palette of rich red. This time with accents of gold and black, and inspiration from Tibetan culture focusing on eastern traditions with a dash of contemporary style. Using traditional hand craft techniques, the collection emulated the ceremonial styles of Tibet. Textures play a leading role with stiff cowhide and printed sheepskin jackets and collars worn with soft merino felted wool and crumpled silk gowns. The punch holes in the leather skirt were painstakingly all handmade by Sarashka.

Flaminia Mechoulam

Award winning design of the evening went to Flaminia Mechoulam’s collection.  All white for purity, the inspirations were of Tracing Light, ballet and water droplets creating a blurred femininity. Light fabrics of sheer cotton and georgette were layered for the blurred matt transparent effect created by Tracing Light.  Flaminia used approximately 100 metres of fabric for the collection. The cut of the garments were of round shapes and circles to create curves around the body and represent ballet movements.  She imagined a girl in a white gown dancing on the water and swimming underwater. The delicate hand painted pattern represents water droplets and a dusty layer of chalk as though the garment is drying in patches. The pattern was created by using a brush made from paper for the dusty marks and a pencil to splash on the water droplets. Finishing details included a picot edge stitch creating a curl to the hems and sleeves for volume and femininity.

And the boys were not forgotten:

Zaira Xitlalitl Aguilar Santoyo blends nomadic heritage with city life creating a flamboyant sartorial collection reminiscent of the Harlem Jazz scene Zoot suit of baggy trousers and long sack jackets. Here in toned down blocks of earthy brown and neutral shades with accents of red on trousers and the wide cravat tie.

Taylor Scopes-Upton

Award winner of last year’s December Fashion Show, Taylor creates an urban male lost in a concrete jungle with no awareness of heritage. This well dressed wanderer wears warm voluminous coats and jackets, striped knitted and waxed denim leggings, and chunky knits with a chunky knit shopping bag on wheels for all his possessions.

Images provided by AIU London

By Karen Grace

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

KMS California unveils TAMEFRIZZ

One of the main hair concerns women complain about is the frizz. Whether you have thick or fine, straight or curly hair, frizz takes no prisoners and loves all hair types. Unfortunately the feeling is not mutual and most of us hate frizz with a passion.  Usually fighting a losing battle, we’ll put our hair through various forms of tortures by overheating with curling or straightening irons, and smothering with far too many hair products, but still the frizz manages to rise in triumph.

KMS California has come up with TAMEFRIZZ that actually fights frizz on the inside as well as the outside with the magical fusion of technologynature. Technologynature takes and combines the advances made in technology with a few key natural ingredients that are known to nourish and smooth the hair.

The technological De-Frizz System improves the internal structure by strengthening it and increasing pliability. It also smoothes the hair’s cuticles and so the surface.

The natural key ingredients used are Pequi Oil, a Brazilian fruit found in the Amazon, and Acacia, a tree cultivated in Africa and Australia. Pequi Oil is rich in vitamin A and E known for taming frizz, and Acacia is rich in sugar derivatives with moisturising properties known for smoothing and increasing pliability.

Products available are the base essentials of shampoo and conditioner. The shampoo prepares the hair for frizz reduction and the conditioner smoothes and reduces frizz.

The next step on towel dried hair is either the smoothing lotion or the taming crème. The lotion detangles and manages frizz.  This lightweight leave-in formula also provides heat protection for styling. The crème controls hard to tame frizz with a light hold and also provides heat protection for styling. The crème can be used on dry air for extra definition and control.

The hero product is the De-Frizz Oil which can be used on towel dried or dry hair. This is fast absorbing and lightweight so won’t weigh the hair down, which is great news for people with fine but frizzy hair. The real breakthrough is that it will control humidity and frizz for up to 3 days. The oil can be used on dry hair for further reduction on frizz.

KMS California has brought out a limited edition Frizz Fighter Kit with the shampoo, conditioner and the hero De-Frizz oil. Plus a wide-toothed anti-static comb and sachets of the smoothing lotion and taming crème. Price £29.50 at KMS salons and while stocks last.

The individual products will be available as from June at KMS California salon stockists.

www.kmscalifornia.com

By Karen Grace

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

Nip + Man

With the average man in the UK now spending  around £1,786 a year on skin and body care products and the London man a whopping £2,500, beauty brand Nip + Fab decided it was time to listen to what men are looking for in their products. They also noticed that 30% of their customers buying the Rodial Glamoxy snake serum and 40% buying Nip + Fab Tummy Fix were men. And so Nip + Man was created!

The Nip + Man is aimed for the man who is between 24 to 45 years of age, shops at places like MR PORTER and Abercrombie & Fitch and reads fitness and fashion magazines.

The Nip + Man man also likes to work out, so the range has many products that will enhance all his hard work at the gym by helping to tone and sculpt specific areas. He’s not expected to use all the products, just the ones that target those areas he thinks he needs the most help with.

The Bicep Fix Price £12.95

This bicep enhancing gel won’t give you bulging biceps but it will help define the appearance of the upper arm area and improve tone. Many guys suffer from rough skin or the ‘chicken bumps’ effect on the upper arms. This gel is designed to help improve the skin’s texture and so make the arms appear smoother.

The Pec Fix Price £16.95

Again this minimising and sculpting gel won’t give you a six pack, but the fast acting formula will help improve tone, texture and smoothes the appearance of the pectoral contours.  

The Ab Fix Price £19.95

This toning gel has a combination of actives including the smoothing and slimming Gemmoslim to retexture and tighten the skin around the abdominal area.

The ultimate workout accessory is the Power Workout Fix which is a muscle warming serum designed for use post-workout to help de-stress the body and soothe tired muscles whilst improving the skin tone. Price £9.95

If working out is not your thing, there is no need to go to the gym to use the Super Hero product of the range: Manotox. Price £19.95

This anti ageing moisturiser flexes its own muscles and works on plumping and firming the skin.  Containing the active ingredient complex, Liftonin to minimise the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles and Gransil to help smooth the appearance of the skin.

Other products include a Turbo face wash containing caffeine for a deep clean energising facial wash; a Scrubbing facial wash to gently exfoliate the dead skin away; a Power moisturiser to brighten and hydrate and an After Shave power lotion to calm razor irritation and heal dry just shaven skin.

Nip + Man is available online www.nipandfab.com and is available exclusively at Boots until the summer.

By Karen Grace

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

Customising with Sepai TUNE IT

Spanish skincare brand Sepai debuts its new Tune It and Basic lines in the UK, exclusively at Selfridges.

Tune It does as it says, it enables you to finely tune your moisturiser, serum and body lotion for your own specific skincare requirements.

How: By providing you with a selection of concentrated actives sold separately from the base lotions. You then add your chosen actives into Sepai’s basic line products and Voila! You have your own personalised skincare treatment.

These actives are sold separately to the base lotion but due to their high concentration, they are not intended to be used directly on the skin without being mixed into the lotion. For ease they come in syringes (without the needle) which help push the contents into the base products.  The bottles of the base products are made larger to give enough room to add up to three actives plus enough space for mixing the new contents by shaking the bottle. Labels are provided so you don’t forget which extracts you’ve used. It’s  your own mini skincare laboratory.

There are eight facial extracts including:

Relax Like extract - a mini Botox effect by a powerful peptide that helps inhibit muscle cell contraction

Flashed extract - provides immediate tensor and illumination effect.

Volumising extract - for a plumped up younger looking skin

Elasticity extract - inhibits the activity or elastase (the enzyme responsible for breaking down elastic fibre) and so optimises the quality of the skin’s elastin. Designed to treat the flaccidity and firmness of mature skin.

Others include firming, lifting, brightening and tan prolonging

The seven body extracts range from combating the appearance of cellulite, help slimming, firming to prolonging your tan.

The base products are:

Invisible - a light serum with actives that improves skin complexion and light reflectors to visual soften fine lines and imperfections

Paparazzi - a light and antioxidant moisturiser with protective cell repairing actives and iridescent pigments to brighten the complexion

V7.3 Body Primer - a nourishing body lotion. Rich body milk that provides extra nutrition and has a silky texture based on natural oils.

These base products can be used by themselves, but if and when you want extra help on specific skincare requirements, the extracts are the answer.

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By Karen Grace

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

New Anti-Ageing Duo-Prototype exclusive to Boots

The beauty market is saturated with anti-ageing creams but when a successful skin specialist puts his neck on the line to create as well as endorse a product then it does make you sit up, take notice and wonder whether it’ll help your own neck (and face) fight against the signs of ageing.

That skin specialist is accredited UK Consultant Dermatologist & Dermatological Surgeon MRCP DM Dr Russell Emerson who has teamed up with Concept Healthcare and developed a new anti-ageing cream and capsules which will be sold exclusively in Boots. This duo treatment is said to show dramatic anti-ageing effects within 4-6 weeks.

Prototype Anti-Wrinkle anti-Age cream

This cream boasts of a dual action: providing short term rapid tightening of the skin and long term strengthening of the skin’s connective tissue.

Main ingredients are:

Hyaluronic Acid (in low molecular weight so it can penetrate across the skin barrier). Whilst young we can produce enough Hyaluronic Acid which keeps our skin firm and well hydrated, but this deteriorates with age and those pesky wrinkles appear along with dehydration of the skin. This HA is said to hydrate, improve elasticity and lift to reduce deep wrinkles.

Retinol in the form of retinyl palmitate (Vitamin A and palmitic acid) – to accelerate cell renewal

Coenzyme Q10 which helps prevent the appearance of new wrinkles. The cream also contains Vitamin E, B5 and Shea butter. To make sure all the ingredients are protected from the air before the cream is applied, the cream is pumped out through an airless container system keeping it as pure and uncontaminated as it can be.

Prototype Softgel Capsules

The key ingredient in the capsules is Resveratrol which is extracted from the robust perennial plant Japanese Knotweed (scientific name: Polygonum cuspidatum).  Resveratrol is said to have many health benefits including potent anti-oxidant properties which help improve skin texture, reduce wrinkles and support new collagen production. It can be also found in red wine but before you decide to go down the option of drinking your skin to youthfulness, an average glass would range from 0.2 to 2mg whilst one little capsule contains 50mg. And it won’t give you a hangover!

Other ingredients include Vitamin C for its strong anti-oxidant action and B complex vitamins for their contribution in cell renewal, skin tone and elasticity.

Another plus is the size of the capsule, small, so easy to swallow and only one to be taken each day.

Available online now from www.skin-centre.co.uk and selected Boots Chemists from April.

By Karen Grace

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

Sorapol AW13/14 - Immortal

Sorapol AW13/14 collection titled ‘Immortal’ tells the tale of Xiaohe, a young girl given to a Chinese Emperor as a diplomatic gift.  As she travels through Asia, India and Persia to her final destination, she becomes deluded and begins to believe that she is the ruler of every land she visits, demanding the most exquisite jewels and luxuries. Designer Sorapol Chawaphatnakul certainly succumbs to these demands with extravagant silk fabrics, lavish prints, detailed embroidery and ornate finishings.

Wooden stilt sandals restrict the models’ walk to a slow pace and elevate the models into her ‘Xiaohe’ regal persona, high above those of her lowly subjects. The ornate headpieces designed by Emily Frances Barrett, give more height and ensure she stands majestically straight.

The collection is a mix of dramatic couture creations and those of elegant and polished Ready to Wear pieces.  For drama the skirt of one heavily embroidered outfit formed a wide and exaggerated fishtail design with the contrasting silk bottom exploding in to a voluminous bubble shape and sweeping the floor with its short train. There was a hint of Victoriana with long crinoline style skirts worn with peplum jackets  but without the austerity and plainness as opulence abounded  in rich silks, gold beading and the must have accessory of the back metal structure with high collar.

The Ready to Wear pieces were equally stunning with tapestry design on coats, intricate lace and embroidery and flowing silks and chiffons.  Styles ranged from tailored boxy jackets and straight skirts to smooth silk dresses and gowns.  Adorned with gold rope piping, shining mirror embellishments, and my favourite – small colourful pom poms in fluffy faux fur.

By Karen Grace

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