Issey Miyake!

Thank you so much to the lovely people at Issey Miyake who sent me over this wonderful printed shirt as a belated birthday present (I refuse to refer to this as 'gifting' *shudders*)!  I actually got my hands on it at the end of last week though what with the photoshoot and doing some ACTUAL PHYSICS WORK I have been a tad busy, but now I present it to you in all its technicolor fantabulosity (along with my messy student living room...).  Hailing from the SS 2010 collection, the abstract floral print is exactly what I have been looking for and certainly fills that gap in my wardrobe which I thought could only be satisfied by a 90's era Versace silk shirt.  And it's made in super lightweight cotton with a loose kimono-style design which means it's perfect for the summer.  Happy Birthday to me!

Floral print shirt by Issey Miyake

Denim shorts by GAP

Leather boots by Kurt Geiger

Thread bracelet by Liberty

Printed fabric ring by Eley Kishimoto

I'm having my birthday party tonight at St Martin's Lane, so if any of you happen to pop by say hello :-)

xxx

Duck

Tim Soar press day

For Autumn 2011 Tim Soar is all about outerwear, and I can't wait to get my hands on it, especially those contrast sleeves... 

The womenswear features androgynous or masculine looks which are a little like Alexander Wang AW 2010, and one of the jackets has a seriously fabulous leather and fur collar.

xxx
Duck

Henrik Vibskov knitwear

When I was in Berlin for the weekend visiting David, I took the opportunity to go to Agency V's press office and have a gander at their Autumn/Winter collections.  First on my list was Henrik Vibskov, whose The Eat show I caught in Paris in January.  What stood out for me then were the knits and I certainly wasn't disappointed seeing the pieces close-up.  I love the combinations of bright colours with darker, earthier tones in a weave that looks modern and yet traditionally Scandinavian.  I'm starting to think I better switch to a more intensive yoga routine so that I can pull off one of these knitted vests - at the moment I'm looking more like the epitome of skinny-fat than hipster slim!  I also spotted several other great brands at Agency V but I thought I'd save those for another post - the Vibskov knits deserve this space to themselves :-)

xxx
Duck

Eva London photoshoot

Apologies for having neglected the blog since last week but I've been having an alternately stressful and relaxing Easter weekend, and trying to enjoy the few scraps of sunshine I'm likely to see this year.  On the relaxing front I got to do a spot of beauty product shopping in Liberty and catch a matinee performance of Cinderella at the Royal Opera House with Bianca, while the stress was mainly generated by prepping for an ad campaign shoot on Saturday for Eva London.  Meera and I were stylists for the day, and since it was a jewellery campaign we couldn't pull clothing from PR contacts and so had to rely on our collective designer wardrobes, with a little help from the fabulous Lira Leirner!  Despite being rather last-minute, it all managed to come together on the day and I think Anna came away with some good shots.  The models were the delightful Joe and Olivia from d1 (you may recognise Joe from Georgy Baratashvili's lookbook), Eloise Chong (as seen here) and Lauren Lapidge.  Mike Lin was the photographer for the day, and the hair and makeup skills were provided by Stephanie G-M, who has the most amazing hair I've ever seen - it's like what would happen if My Little Pony fell into a candy-floss machine...  Which reminds me, I need to make an appointment at Bleach! 

I'll be posting the finished ads as soon as Anna releases them :-)

xxx
Duck

Blood by Boris Bidjan Saberi

Boris Bidjan Saberi's AW lookbook just arrived at Casa di Duck and it's a stonker!  You might remember my report from the show in Paris last season, held underground, in the dark, with a glaring red light illuminating skateboarding models in what looked like last season's clothes?  Well it just goes to show that presentation technique can really influence your opinion of a collection, both negatively and positively.  In the dim light of the basement space, I, for example, was unable to tell that a third of the collection was cast in gory (and gorgeous) blood red.  Now there's a departure for Boris which was completely missed by the audience - or at least me! I love this butcher-shop look of red on red, layered jersey, leather and latex draped so elegantly about the body.  It might be reminiscent of All Saints, but it looks a damn sight better quality.  If I had been able to see this kind of detail at the show I might have written a more positive review... Now I'm actually considering buying half this stuff; I particularly want some of the red trousers and long-johns, as well as a few of the more tailored pieces from the darker section.  I just wonder what the price point will be - I'm hoping halfway in between All Saints and Rick Owens, but I have a feeling it will be closer to the latter :( 

Just goes to show, don't judge a collection by its fashion show!
Duck
xx

A Prada summer lookbook

This fabulous lookbook/manifesto for summer came with my Prada creepers and it was simply too good not to share.  Kind of shows some striking similarities with my spring/summer moodboard, n'est-ce pas?  This one is getting laminated and stored in the special closet... [Editor's note: ewww, not for that!]

xxx
Duck