Anastasia and Duck

Spicebomb

2012-01-27T14:52:00.000Z

The other evening I was casually sipping champagne at the Charlotte Street Hotel and catching up with other fashion bloggers I haven't seen since last year when, subito, we were kidnapped by hunky men all dressed in black, dragged across London to an abandoned parking garage, packed into an industrial lift, led into a pitch black room and then were subjected to an explosion of ridiculous proportions. No, this was not just another Wednesday night (or the Grindr-fuelled fulfilment of some bizarre personal rape fantasy) but in fact the elaborate UK launch of Viktor & Rolf's new men's perfume, Spicebomb.

If this is the world of Viktor & Rolf then I'm happy to pull up a chair and stay a while. Pink peppercorn martinis and buckets of champagne served up in a grimy warehouse space, molecular gastronomy finger-food (I particularly liked the spherification of olive but nobody else seemed to be a fan...) and a glitter bomb that covered us and our drinks in red sparkles. Yup, I could get used to this. [Stasie's note: we've actually been invited into the V&R world once before!]

Oh, and I almost forgot about the perfume! It has a spice and muskiness that certainly marks it out as the masculine counterpart to Flowerbomb, but the almost artificial sweetness would probably be better described as (I can't believe I'm going to use this word) metrosexual (*cringe*). This is definitely one for the gays, of which we are a fan :-)

xxx
Duck

Jean-Paul Gaultier menswear A/W 2012

2012-01-25T10:59:00.000Z

Being born in the 80s but a true child of the 90s I grew up with the glamorous fashion ideal of Cindy, Naomi and Linda necking a bottle of Bolli, snorting a line of coke and climbing off their Greek shipping heirs' laps long enough to swagger and pout their way down a catwalk, keeping just enough energy to shower their chosen designer with kisses and flowers at the end of the spectacle. Then I went to London Fashion Week and saw the reality of sexless twigs marching stony-faced to some avant-garde dance music, the whole show being over in under 5 minutes.

THANK GOD I WENT TO PARIS. Jean-Paul Gaultier clearly had his formative years in just the right decade and, thanks to being invited to his latest menswear show, I can now say I know what a défilé should feel like. Held in his own three-storey high salle des fêtes (that's what perfume money gets you), we drank champagne for 45 minutes before the show began and continued for a good hour afterwards. Models brought us macarons and a German TV channel interviewed me for the national news, all as I slid deeper and deeper into a delirious stupor. The feeling was compounded by being bumped-up to the front row. And then the show started...

Andrej Pejic! Tattooed abs! Models climbing the scaffolding! I may have let out an audible squeal. Apparently everyone else picked up on the theme of the show as soon as the music began - Sherlock Holmes's Discombobulate theme track. Unfortunately I don't watch shit movies like that but I soon caught JP's drift with the brick-prints (a 'trend', apparently), waistcoats, jauntily angled hats and sweeping capes. The styling really tied the somewhat eclectic collection together and amongst it all I picked out some truly wonderful pieces. The black jackets and coats with a pixelated green and silvery white tweed running through, leather highlights on cuffs and sleeves, a floor-length black fur lined gilet and a fabulous cropped tailcoat. The swooshy, pleated black skirt was infinitely better than the JW Anderson one I was hankering after last season and has instantly shot to the top of my list for A/W 12. And, finally, someone showed velvet/velour tops that I've been dreaming of for the past year! Oh, and they come in wine red with classic JPG sailor stripes? Who am I to argue.

By the way, thought you might enjoy this picture I snapped of Yu Masui before the show - are the ears Katie Eary by any chance?

And for those of you who don't go to the cinema to watch action movies (like me), the strangely sinister yet up-beat inspiration for the show...

xxx

Duck

Plastic fantastic

2012-01-23T14:42:00.001Z

The word genius gets bandied about quite a lot in the fashion world and I'm not convinced it's ever justified in such a context. But if there is one contemporary menswear designer I could even consider coming close to my definition for the term it would be Raf Simons, particularly as seen through the lens of the Jil Sander brand he currently heads. It seems like every season Raf comes up with a singular piece of design, that extra special item that works its way deep into my subconscious and continuously nags at me for the six months after fashion week until it finally hits the stores and I am forced to reach into my ever shrinking coin purse. Each cycle this article of lust will convince me to pay full price, right at the start of the season (the floral t-shirt in my header bar would be the perfect case in point). It's an illness, and I've got it bad.

I've already raved about the Jil Sander Spring collection here and here. The only decision left was whether I need the python print shoes, a python print t-shirt or one of the incredible strap-on harness bags? I think from the photos you can tell how I chose to answer that question. Sure it fits my iPad but AS IF I'm wasting this baby on carrying some mere electricals around. This PVC/leather beauty would be much more suited to holding, say, show tickets (already done in Paris where I finally got my hands on it after several emails back and forth with the store), a laminated photo of Anastasia or - dare I double-dose on the plastic? - my Chris Kane squidgy clutch. Anna even suggested wearing it sporran-style which kind of works as a first defence cock-block but, since it can easily be pushed aside, hardly functions effectively as a chastity belt.

Jil Sander iPad harness worn with a Marni jacket, Over The Stripes buckle printed t-shirt, Odyn Vovk trousers and a Maria Francesca Pepe tubular bracelet.

Oh, and with the fashion weeks over again, I now know which idea Raf has implanted in my brain for next season. The leather paper lunch bag. It will be done (so mote it be).

Runway snaps from Style.com.

xxx

Duck

P.S. Does anybody else think the internal lattice looks like a double layer of graphene? *geek alert*

Issey Miyake menswear A/W 2012

2012-01-21T23:31:00.002Z

It was such an honour to be invited to Paris to see the latest Issey Miyake menswear collection, as well as the main reason I capitulated and booked the Eurostar when I really should have been working. You know I've written about the brand several times, I've bought pieces when I can afford them, and I've pretty much worshipped at this iconic Japanese stalwart for many a year (although not perhaps as fervently as Brandon Acton Bond!). While other fashion houses often veer off in new directions with each head designer, Issey has stayed true to its original ethos even under the new creative leadership of a four-man design team. But that's not to say the Issey Miyake man isn't evolving; Issey's certainly still relevant and chic in that kooky, easy-going way it always has been.

I have to admit I wasn't really a fan of the sportier options on show - was that a pair of jeans?! - but I realise I'm probably not the typical menswear customer and there were still lots of reinterpretations of house classics for me to enjoy. The jackets came out top, either with a tartan that bled into black (kind of like what Shaun Samson has been doing in London since his CSM graduation) or with graded and washed-out stripes in red or blue. There was an awesome red poncho that would look INSANE dashing around Mayfair and some black plastic polygonal gilets and jackets that were beautiful though, I'm guessing, a tad uncomfortable. Given my current accessories obsession it's also not surprising that my favourite piece of the lot was a simple black bag worn over one shoulder and slung across the chest. There's just something about practical accessories worn in unexpected locations that's really getting me going right now...

My favourite pieces head-on as stolen from the Style.com app:

I'm still thinking about that bag...

XXX
Duck

Mama Mia!

2012-01-20T14:31:00.000Z

Helloooo people, sorry for not posting here in a while but if you follow me on Twitter or Instagram you'll know that I've been on a whirlwind two-day trip to Paris for men's week. I wasn't intending to go at all - The Thesis is calling - but then Issey Miyake invited me for the third time and I just couldn't say no again... And after all it's Paris, who could resist?

I just got home last night, pretty much exhausted since I managed to really pack it in (5 shows, 1 shopping trip, 3 meals, 1 museum, and countless glasses of rosé champagne) so I'll try to get my show photos up ASAP - some of them are incredible! But I had to start with my amazing residence for the night - was it really just one night? - the so-trendy-it's-killing-me party hotel Mama Shelter. While not exactly in the nicest area (I was convinced a man near Gambetta metro station was going to stab me for my fur handbag walking back at night), the Philippe Starck converted parking garage is chic and outrageous in the most hipster of ways. Blacked-out carpets, polished concrete walls and seriously low-level lighting make it the perfect place to get up to naughtiness at night, as if I ever would :-) The bedside lights are hidden inside playful cartoon masks, the bathroom products are Kiehl's, the ground floor hosts what is apparently the IT place to dine in Paris - I've never seen somewhere that busy on a Wednesday night. It might have something to do with the male model waiters. Mama Shelter has also converted me to the wonder of Apple TVs; a television, radio, computer and shop all rolled into one. They even come with an iTunes stuffed with free movies (including an XXX version of Friends) and a camera to take your photos in bed (WARNING: these also get displayed in the bar downstairs - use with caution).

I may have only been there for one night but I think I definitely took advantage of all the facilities when my school friend Claire came over for dinner. And I'm planning on coming back very, very soon...

In top photo I'm wearing an Acne 'Paris' sweatshirt, Club Monaco shirt, Odyn Vovk grey trousers. Later I'm wearing a copper neoprene t-shirt by Giuseppe Virgone. The random selection of accessories include by Jas MB fur handbag, a Christopher Kane 'Aqua' clutch, a tinsel headband by John Rocha. The last photo shows my Liberty faux fur scarf and the Neil Barrett winter coat.

xxx

Duck

Forest Green

2012-01-13T17:07:00.000Z

That feeling of relief and satisfaction when you've waited so long for something and then finally you ~~get that call from Toys R Us and she's in stock~~* spy him all lonely and sad on a table, hugely discounted, just waiting for a lover to take him home and fondle him on a daily basis. Maybe nobody else wanted him because of the fur associations (it's sheepskin – and anyway, I love a bear); maybe nobody thought they could fit their oversized camera inside (I can if I push hard enough). I guess they hadn't been poring over photos of him on Browns and Liberty websites for months. Perhaps even everybody else bought him in black – I did consider it – but it's a new year and I figure it's all about adding forgotten colours back into the mix. From my Production Artisanale sweatshirt to a new Over The Stripes t-shirt, (wine-)bottle green is working its way into my wardrobe.

I took the accompanying forest pictures in Pollok Park near my house in Glasgow over the Christmas holidays and I thought this was the perfect time to show them. There's something about the green and the natural materials of the bag that make me want to get back to Mother Earth. Or it could just be the Jivamukti course I've started, my flatmate's radical feministic reworkings of Tara, and my growing fascination with raw food.

Talking about waiting and satisfaction, I think my first-author paper is almost ready to go to publication! It's been a long, hard slog but I'm hoping that seeing my name in print will give me the inspiration I need to get the rest of this DPhil finished. If any of you are perverse enough to be interested in interatomic potentials for magnetic transition metals then I may post a link here once it's online.

*Like you didn't know that's Joey and Alicia Mae Emory

Come on everybody, chant with me...

Om tare tuttare ture svaha

Green leather and sheepskin bag by Jas MB, coat by Neil Barrett, t-shirt by All Saints, trousers by Odyn Vovk.

XXX
Duck

Belated

2012-01-11T16:30:00.000Z

I realise I'm completely failing at my New Year's resolution to blog less frequently - I'm meant to be down to one post a week at this point - but since I've come back to London so much has been going on that I felt the need to blog again. I'm still in that rush to catch up with everyone I haven't seen for three weeks and I managed to kill two birds (*ouch*) with one stone on Sunday when we celebrated Anna's 26th birthday with lunch at The Delaunay (have the borscht, I dare you!). We may also have continued to celebrate "lunch" at Automat. And at a shisha bar somewhere in Mayfair. And at Novikov. Oops.

Doesn't look Anna look wonderful in her bejewelled John Rocha dress? I'm not jealous at all... It's my 26th in three months' time and I still have no idea what to do for it, though I did just receive a 25% off voucher from St Martin's Lane. Repeat?

xxx

Duck

Compensation

2012-01-09T18:00:00.000Z

This Christmas period was meant to be spent in the hustle and bustle of Istanbul - though sadly not for Istancool - on holiday with my parents. I was meant to see New Year in with an exquisite Turkish vegetarian meal and a firework display on the roof of our hotel looking out across the Topkapı Palace. Alas, it was never to be... After Father got an illness which meant he couldn't fly the week before Christmas we reluctantly had to cancel the entire trip. So, Mother and I started looking for things to do in and around Glasgow to compensate, so to speak, for our holiday being taken away from us so suddenly.

It was my idea to try out 21212 in Edinburgh, a relatively new restaurant which received its first Michelin star in 2009 and the founder, Paul Kitching, was recently named best chef in Scotland. I wasn't intending to blog about this but the photos of our dishes came out so well I just had to share them (all taken using the new 50mm f1.4 lens I got for Christmas!).

The waitress was very happy to manipulate the menu somewhat to take into account Mother's and my vegetarian predilections. We had a winter vegetable soup, an exotic mushroom risotto, a medley of vegetables with goat cheese, the extensive cheeseboard and a glazed egg custard. Nothing, however, was as simple as the names would suggest. The soup came as a composition of differently flavoured sauces and foams, decorated with dehydrated vegetables exploding with flavour. The risotto had a Madeira glaze on the side, parmesan and fennel seed crisps and a tiny cube of omelette hidden in the centre. Each of the vegetables had been cooked individually and nestled amongst them were chestnuts, cranberries and the juiciest olives. Dehydrated tomato crisps may be my new favourite thing... Even the glazed custard was layered on top of apple-strudel-tasting mincemeat and was accompanied by popcorn, crisps and a very flavoursome foam (quite an achievement). Even the wine was delicious - a bottle of La Rosée du Château Kefraya 2009 from Lebanon.

It was truly one of the best meals I've had in ages (even after Zurich) and certainly made up a great deal for missing out on my Winter break... But after this and a fortnight of surviving off Terry's chocolate oranges and Curly Wurlies, I think it might just be time to go back on the dairy-free diet. Or worse - the dreaded #LiquidDiet!

xxx
Duck

Schhhhpring

2012-01-05T18:30:00.000Z

I must have been at home way too long this holiday because all I can think about is the weather, and whether the lack of a proper frost and the persistent downpour will mean the crocuses and snowdrops will bloom too early, or too late... Parents! Anyway, today is the first day in weeks that the sun is actually shining in Glasgow, I've been left on my own for a whole 5 hours and something miraculous has transpired - I've realised that Spring is on its merry way! Screw the fashion blogger parodies - I just don't care anymore - I'm celebrating the oncoming Springtime with photos I took this morning of orchids in the living room (couldn't get any peonies on such short notice) and a thorough ogling of the Issey Miyake menswear Spring collection.

Just like the selection of flowers, the collection is mostly neutral but punctuated with vibrant and unexpected colourful highs. While different every season, Issey always manages to maintain that carefree feeling which is perfectly suited to Spring and Summer. It's that I just jumped out of the shower and threw this buttonless linen jacket on kind of look, the way I always hope I'll feel and constantly fall short of. Can someone please send me a colour-blocked (*groan*) shirt? I really think it will help me achieve my effortless goal. And while we're at it I'll take the tessellated harem pants? I tried on similar ones in a more luxurious winter fabric last season and they were gorgeous, I just wasn't quite sure how to fit them into my wardrobe at the time.

Spring is full of new beginnings and I feel like I'm standing right on the brink of something... I'm at the cusp of my DPhil, waiting to tumble down the other side into viva-dom, careers, *gasp* relationships. Could Issey make a better wardrobe for this phase in my life?

Of course it wouldn't be Spring without Chloe mispronouncing her way through the OED...

xxx

Duck

Pause

2012-01-03T17:00:00.000Z

Pause. Hiatus. We're on a break. Not quite a Hello-I'm-Ross-I'll-sleep-with-other-people kind of break, but still, a break.

I'm seriously cutting back on the blogging for four reasons:

1. My PhD needs to come first and I just don't have the time I'd like to devote to this hobby any more.

2. I've got to a point where I'm not quite sure why I started blogging or what I'm getting out of it and need to reevaluate.

3. I've found myself pressurised by some in the industry (i.e. PRs) to write about/photograph things I go to. Things I may not want to read myself. I am not a journalist and this is not a magazine and I need to remember that.

4. There are some other things going on in my life right now that I need to focus on.

Hopefully this won't mean my blog is disappearing – more that I'll be posting less frequently, maybe once per week. I'd like to think this means my posts will also be much more detailed, more thought-through, more interesting. It'll certainly cut out most of the crap that has started to find it's way onto here. For example, I'll be posting more frequently during fashion week when I have lots of inspiring things to talk about. But the rest of the year things move much more slowly and we need to accept that. Maybe my blog will develop into something new.

Even though I'm slowing down with the blog, I'm certainly not leaving Twitter. Twitter has been a great source of information and a way of making new friends throughout the past year and I'd be crazy to give that up. So if I haven't blogged on here for a few days, you can definitely find me there...

xxx

Duck

Recap

2011-12-30T13:06:00.001Z

Huh, I guess my 2011 wasn't that bad really:

xxx
Duck

Packing Light

2011-12-28T12:35:00.001Z

'Packing light' is a skill Stasie and I have yet to master. I try to reduce everything down to the bare minimum but it just never works. Cut to me, last week, manoeuvring an oversized suitcase, a backpack and three large shopping bags down the gangway of a Virgin Pendolino (recently rechristened the Paedolino by Alex Fury). And that's just to stay at home for two weeks.

Still, over the past year I'm managed to edit my beauty bag down to the absolute base level of what I can get away with. 'Tis true that I always leave large bottles of Head & Shoulders, Sanex and Kiehl's herbal wash in my parents' house but apart from that I never move without:

Dry shampoo - Batiste - essential for the second day...

Lightweight moisturiser - e.g. Biotherm - because my skin is an oil slick

Miniature deep-cleansing face mask - e.g. Murad - see above

Hair glossing cream - Frederic Fekkai - it's my best feature

Exfoliant - Dermalogica - gives an alabaster texture

Eye cream - Malin+Goetz - a recent addition to my regimen

Perfume - Margiela - err, this is obvious

Lip balm - Aesop - I prefer moisturising creams to waxy sticks

What else does a boy really need?

xxx

Duck

3.1 Phillip Lim'd

2011-12-26T15:59:00.001Z

Just like at the start of the recession when VAT was slashed, shops cut all their prices and my income (pitiful though it was) held steady, I have been taking full advantage of all the sales going on at the moment. No need to wait for Boxing Day... Liberty, Harvey Nichols, The Corner, Browns, The LN-CC - all have been suitably raided and now I'm just sitting back, gnawing on a Curly Wurly and waiting for my 2012 wardrobe to arrive. The parents might be annoyed by this sudden flurry of spending but I guess they don't realise this is my major shopping period of the year. Plus, I just got 'paid' (doctoral students everywhere roll their eyes).

The first package to come through this week was an exciting one - a 50% off 3.1 Phillip Lim necklace I tracked down on The Corner. Made of metal, leather, plastic and fabric, this completely fits in with the industrial chic look I'm thinking of for January. It's a bit like those chunky Proenza accessories from last season - see Jen's DIY post on Style Crusader. There's something my scientific heart finds very satisfying about the symmetry and the geometric design. And the the carabiner-style clasp may even convince me to go outside with my hair up.

More sale haul posts to come. Everybody keep me away from Youtube...

xxx

Duck

Mulled Duck

2011-12-24T19:22:00.000Z

To make one mulled Duck, feed him five glasses full of home-mulled wine, allow to stew for 30 minutes in a cropped Acne sweatshirt and skinny Odyn Vovk jeans, then shake vigorously. Wait, that's how to make one vomiting Duck...

OK, well to make mulled wine I'd normally get an orange and stud it with cloves, float it off in a sea of heated wine, water, sugar and brandy, and toss in a star anise and stick of cinnamon for good luck. Then you just need to bring it all to simmering point, cover immediately and leave to 'cook' for ten minutes off the heat. But we were being lazy today at Casa di Duck so we just opened a jar of fairtrade mulling spice and chopped up an organic clementine. Still, the key ingredient was there - WINE!

Bottoms up!

xxx

Duck

Alex Loves Christmas

2011-12-24T15:50:00.002Z

Aye, a blogger's life, 'tis a lonely one, it's true. Especially since having moved out of Oxford, I am not longer invited to Christmas parties I can attend (or rather 'suffer', if we're including departmental disasters). So my one proper Christmas party this year was Alex Loves's, held in her gorgeous dinky home in Islington. There were other bloggers (Kate from Fabric of my Life), lots of people I'd never met before, and a drunken plastic Jenga game... Not to mention fondue (both cheese AND chocolate - my muffin-top is intact for Christmas day!), mulled wine, cocktails and quite an incredible light installation. Such fun rifling through Alex's shelves when she wasn't looking :-) Who else would have a Chanel pop-up book?!

Wishing a Merry Christmas to all my blogging buddies for tomorrow, and to Alex in particular! May you get all the designer swag your hearts desire...

xxx

Duck

Driving home for Christmas

2011-12-23T15:36:00.003Z

The title of this post isn't particularly accurate. I mean a) I can't drive - I failed my test after a whopping 46 hours of lessons and an incident where I somehow drove straight across a roundabout (my current theory is I actually left my body for 15 seconds) - and b) I got back to Glasgow on Wednesday. But if you're not allowed a bit of poetic licence at Christmas, when are you?

Saying that I've been back for two days now, I haven't exactly been on holiday because I have a big paper I'm supposed to get written before the big day. That's starting to look less and less likely but I'm persevering and only leaving the familial home to brave the ravages of Christmas food shopping in Waitrose and Whole Foods. The WASPs on the South Side are vicious. The rest of the time I'm cooped up in the dining room with my laptop, a jug of coffee and sheets upon sheets of my supervisor's impenetrable handwriting. Still, I am absorbing the festive spirit through my parents' obsessive holiday decorating; every square inch of our home is cluttered with tinsel, holly, candles, glitter, traditional Swedish knick-knacks, miniature pines... And let's not forget the giant Christmas tree bedecked with baubles from every city we've ever visited, plus the latest addition - the festive gourd!

I hope you enjoy the photos, I've been experimenting with "editing" them in Swankolab on my iPhone (originally taken on the SLR). I particularly like the effect with the fairy lights and the baubles on the stairs. Now, back to that article...

I've also only just realised - nobody's ever asked me why we put Swiss flags up at Christmas time...

xxx

Duck

Christmas Wishlist

2011-12-22T10:56:00.001Z

Everyone's doing them right now so Stasie thought I might as well jump on the bandwagon (I do love a good wagon) and make up my Christmas wishlist. This one's a bit of a twist, I guess, because I limited myself to products which are available online. And since the winter sales are starting earlier and earlier - Hell, the packages have been arriving at Casa di Duck thick and fast this week - now is the perfect time to do some last minute shopping, or treat yourself to a new Christmas day outfit...

This year I've found myself getting into prints in a pretty big way and I predict next year I'm going to be similarly obsessed, so my first choice for S/S 2012 would be these dark green snakeprint t-shirts and scarves by Jil Sander - and they're already available online (1 and 2 at Oki-Ni)!! Who needs pre-ordering when the buyers are so on it? Since my hooded Christopher Kane sample sale find I've started to come around to hoodies - finally my ears aren't permanently frozen - and this Givenchy hybrid is calling out to me (3 at Mr Porter). 2011 may have been for me the Year of the Clutch but I have a strong suspicion 2012 will be all about fur accessories. I've been coveting this Jas M B shoulder bag (4 at Browns) with it's furry tuft for months and I recently discovered this Neil Barrett goat hair delight (5 at farfetch).

I can never resist a strong graphic t-shirt and this modern floral from Stolen Girlfriends Club has lace-up sleeves and is more than a little Prince Pelayo (6 at Stolen Girlfriends Club)... I mentioned it before but I'm still waiting for my secret admirer to send me this leather shoulder bag made by Ann Demeulemeester in collaboration with The Corner (7 at The Corner) - it's so casual luxe! Ever since I saw it on the runway at LFW I've longed to fondle the soft quilted leather on this JW Anderson biker jacket and I know it would go with just everything (8 at The LN-CC). Christmas time is all about the quirky comedy jumper (Hello my sweet Balenciaga) so I lurve this Nordic-cum-Kiss-Me-Quick style by Yohji Yamamoto (9 at The LN-CC). And finally, at the end of a (short) winter's day, I just want to curl up in front of the fire, put on Ab Fab reruns and relax with the scent of a Diptyque Pomander candle burning in the background (10 at Liberty).

What will Santa be stuffing down your stocking on Christmas morn?

xxx

Duck

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-20T10:54:00.001Z

Anastasia and I would like to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a fashion-filled New Year!

xxx

Duck

Fist

2011-12-19T11:00:00.000Z

No, Stasie hasn't taken up a new extreme sports hobby (*cough*), a fist is the shape I find myself making every day now to keep my fingers as warm as possible thanks to my obsession with cut-off gloves (or is it just a shameless attempted at sex-themed SEO?). While the fingerless style is practical in terms of outdoor Tweeting, it's really not suitable for the Winter weather we're experiencing at the moment. But it does allow me to show off my fabulous jewellery collection while attempting to look warm at the same time.

This weekend I just got another pair of grey cashmere cut-offs from Brora - I had worn straight through my last pair - which, at £35, were considerably more affordable than the inky blue suede biker gloves I was drooling over in 202 on Westbourne Grove (what, no website?!). Some days, however, I'm mixing it up with this festive Nonnative pair I picked up in the LN-CC sale last winter. If only I had more brown outfits to mix'n'match with...

Oh, and what do you think of my new Ja/Nein/Jain die from Zürich? It's how I'm making all sartorial decisions these days!

xxx
Duck

Happiness = Krug

2011-12-18T11:00:00.000Z

As Hugh Wright recently explained (much more eloquently than I could, of course), champagne is big business right now. You can barely get past the clipboard-wielding PR at any gallery or store party without a near-miss popped-cork-in-eye calamity or a bubbling glass being thrust into your mitted hand. Yet when I received an invite to the launch of Krug's happiness exhibition/auction I didn't roll my eyes. For you see, dahlings, this is Krug. Not even Eddy's precise combination of Bolly and Stoli could surpass its drool-inducing status - and it's the glamour as well as the taste that gets us going. Hell, Bianca's uncle won't have anything else at the table!

Who cares that the auction (organised by beehived and Chanel-ed to the gills Lady Amanda Harlech) raises money to support the select artists chosen to study at the Royal Academy? Who wants an antique guide to daffodils donated by Rupert Sanderson (£600)? Or a vintage photo of the Freud family (£800)? Who needs another 2009 Erdem dress (£1,500)? Well, maybe Alex... [Warning: if you want the signed photo of Tony Blair then you are beyond redemption]

I barely noticed any of these mere trifles, so paled in comparison their beauty was to the splendour of Krug. Or, maybe I just had one too many glasses :-/

*Hiccough*

Champagne - who said it's not a breakfast drink?

xxx
Duck

Christopher Kaned

2011-12-17T09:57:00.000Z

Saturday morning. It's freezing outside and I haven't bothered to wash my hair. I have to go into town to pick up the remainders of my Christmas presents ready for my old-fashioned wrapping party this afternoon (i.e. me + Stasie+ a bottle of sherry + Mariah's Christmas album)! So of course it's the perfect time to wear this layering piece from my Christopher Kane sample sale haul. I don't think I've had a zip-up, a hoodie or a gilet before. Oh well, if you're going to do it, better do it in Kane...

Galaxy print sleeveless hoodie by Christopher Kane, sheer t-shirt by All Saints.

xxx

Duck

A wolf in sheep's clothing

2011-12-16T11:33:00.000Z

You may or may not already know this but I'm a massive fan of Sweden. Actually, if you read my blog regularly you should know this but let's just recap for the sake of completeness. When I was a teen I took part in an exchange to Thorildsplans gymnasium in Stockholm, twice I travelled around the whole country with my parents (Stockholm, Umeå, Göteborg, Luleå, Uppsala, Malmö, Växjö...) and this summer I stopped by for my friend Lisa's wedding. The remoteness feels like home and the Norse fairytale nature of the countryside and the history appeals to my childhood fantasies of Asgard and the eight other worlds surrounding the Yggdrasill tree. Swedish fashion, in particular, manages to maintain a delicate balance between a modern minimalist aesthetic and a whimsical, romantic exuberance.

Taking this into account, I was delighted to discover the world of Tove Westling and her Varg (if you can't pronounce it properly, please move to the back of the class) PR company which represents Scandinavian brands in London. She invited me over for a fikapaus (cf. wikipedia) and a power meeting between Bob the PR-dog and Anastasia. I got Finnish cinnamon bun crumbs all down my new Balenciaga as we discussed fashion, physics, Scotland and Sweden, and the fact that Tove could very nearly have been Tove Jansson!

The Varg offices are heavenly; there are painted wood floors throughout, a stone fireplace and Christmas candles are nestled amongst the offerings from DAY (and 2nd DAY), Dagmar, Diana Orving, Finsk and Maria Nilsdotter. Bob potters around all over the place and generally rules the roost (mixed metaphors ahoj!). I loved the selection of prints throughout the collections and the Dagmar womenswear in particular. My ultimate favourites, however, were the pieces of jewellery by Maria Nilsdotter - I need a bat-winged ring - as well as her glorious feathered crown.

Oh, and I'm very jealous of those copper paint-splodged pony-hair Finsk wedges. If only they'd make them in my size...

xxx
Duck

Aussie at The Soho Hotel

2011-12-15T20:00:00.000Z

Ooops, completely forgot to post these photos earlier in the week! Must have been all the excitement over Zürich, it completely slipped my mind... Anyway, Aussie invited some of us to a penthouse suite at the Soho Hotel to celebrate the launch of their new extra large sizes. I'd never been before (and it turned out Eve Barlow - who has a new Tumblr music blog here - was in the basement bar!) and the haircare brand had given the luxurious rooms the Down Under touch. There were giant kangaroos and crocodiles, spicy prawns (*gags*) and a lot of champagne to get us all going... Some of the ladies had their hair blown out but I never really like other people styling my hair for me - even my favourite hairdressers always muck it up. So I just decided to slink home with my oversized bottles of Colour Mate shampoo and conditioner to look after my own locks. Which reminds me, it's time to book my hair appointment before Christmas! Eeeek...

xxx
Duck

Crystallised

2011-12-15T10:34:00.000Z

Being the utter (drunken) klutz that Stasie constantly accuses me of - my undergrad degree labs were spent spilling molten aluminium on the linoleum floor, blowing 50 expensive bulbs, one after the other, because I had turned the voltage up way too high, and having a near miss with a flask of HF solution - I managed to shatter the back of iPhone when I was in Brussels a month or so ago. I'm not 100% sure how it happened but needless to say I was gesticulating a little too exuberantly and pretty quickly Mrs iPhone got to know Mr Cobblestone more than she might have been planning for a first date. I've been on the lookout ever since for a rigid iPhone case that can cover my technological shame and, whilst temporarily toying with the idea of a Hello Kitty number, I eventually settled on the slightly more expensive but ever-so-chic case made by Richard Weston.

Richard uses optical photographic processes to image cleaved surfaces of the world's most beautiful naturally-occurring minerals and, given my years of metallographic and crystallographic training, I know just how much effort (and pain!) that goes into producing the best possible picture. Maybe it was all that time interpreting stereographic projections, calculating volume filling fractions and deriving expressions for the structure factor but I've been left with an overwhelming love for the symmetries of crystal systems and the gorgeous macroscopic shapes that evolve under their influence. And now I can admire them every day on my phone...

iPhone cover in Elestial Quartz by Richard Weston, oversized pendant ring by Maria Francesca Pepe, nails in Black Pearl by Chanel. Time to start a new career as a professional hand model?

xxx
Duck

Zürich: a photodiary

2011-12-13T22:29:00.000Z

This weekend Mother and I took a trip to Switzerland, quite possibly one of my all-time favourite countries. This year we stayed in Zürich for four days, soaking up the city's Christmas atmosphere, wine and a large quantity of melted cheese. The little streets filled with boutiques around the east bank of the Limmat were beautifully decorated with holiday lights which got us in the mood and we certainly got a bit of Christmas shopping done, although more so in the foody basement of Jelmoli and the chocolate Heaven that is Sprüngli. The prices in general were pretty steep but we couldn't resist splashing out, (our bill in Sprüngli came to over £150 :-/ ) although I did put my foot down when it came to trying on Alaia at Trois Pommes. On the cultural side of things, we admired the huge Nahmad collection of Miro, Monet and Matisse on display at the Kunsthaus, explored the foundations of the Eidgenossenschaft in the Landesmuseum and wandered around the Gross- and Fraumünsters as well as the picturesque Rathaus.

The best reason to go to Switzerland, however, is the eating and Zürich definitely didn't disappoint. Following our trusty Wallpaper guide we made reservations at Blaue Ente (can't recommend the vegetable beignets enough) and La Salle (you need to have the olive risotto with herb mousse and the vegetables à la creme in puff pastry), both of which are in trendy renovated industrial venues on the outskirts of town - a bit hard to find on your own but certainly worth the effort! We got our cheese fix with an extra reif fondue in what happened to be the best place in town right beneath our hotel and we also happened upon one of the tastiest classic Italian restaurants I've eaten in for ages (Pulcino).

Oh, and I also caught up with Jen (aka The Style Crusader) over Kaffee und Kuchen. How Zürich!

xxx
Duck

Murdock London

2011-12-08T19:03:00.000Z

On Wednesday evening I popped along to the Murdock London store on Monmouth Street to celebrate the launch of their new online magazine, The Murdock Man. Not really being a manly man - OK, let's face it, I'm much more a girly boy (...or lady-boy?) - I've never felt the need to go into a traditional barbers and so haven't actually come across a Murdock's before. I've always assumed that since I have long hair and shave only sporadically, there'd be nothing there for me. Oh how wrong I was - the store is a beauty afficionado's heaven! But more on that later...

The whole set-up at Murdock is very The Sartorialist, very 'classic', basically all that I find a tad contrived in the way the fashion and grooming industries approach menswear at the moment. However, that isn't to say that everything doesn't look rather nice. It does. Leather seats (a bit like at the dentist), lots of wood panelling and tweed, a boar's head on the wall and, of course right now, swathes of Christmas trimming. For those of you into the whole Rugby Ralph Lauren look you'll be in your element. It's a theme which pervades the entire Murdock brand image and is of course evident on The Murdock Man.

At the party we drank mulled wine and hot toddies (I pretended to have a cough to get extra...) and were served rustic mince pies with cheddar crumbs and pulled pork butties. I still haven't worked out why there are always so few vegetarian/dairy free options at these events - you'd have thought the fashion crowd were all about the fad dieting, right?! Well, I stuck to my warming drinks.

The most interesting part of the night (apart from the booze) was getting to explore the marvellous array of products on offer. As one would expect there was a rather large display of Murdock's own brand, which has slowly been branching out into skincare, fragrance and even candles (loving the Black Tea scent). It's also set to expand even further, eventually replacing the other products stocked by the store.

I think this is a bit of a shame, really, because there were just so many skincare products I've never come across before! The grapefruit lip-balm from Jack Black was delicious (and oh-so-manly *cough*), the Marvis toothpastes are a modern classic and I think I'll definitely need to get my hands on some John Masters Organics in case I can't find another stockist. On the other hand, it must make complete financial sense to be expanding the in-house product ranges - especially now they're stocked in retail giant John Lewis!

In amongst the second-hand books, vintage aeroplanes and tweed scarves I also came across Michelle Sadlier from Karla Otto and and Pencil, George Ryan from Pencil, Nick Bain aka Bainser, Caroline O'Grady and Luke Barkley Young...

So maybe I'm not a Murdock Man yet... but Luke suggested I book to have my hair cut there to try it out! I'm just not sure they'll have ever cut hair quite as long as mine before. Dare I accept the challenge?

xxx
Duck

The Little Square

2011-12-08T08:30:00.000Z

Last week, after the Swatch Group Christmas knees-up, Bianca and I went for a wander around Mayfair looking for somewhere good to munch. There is a little area, hidden amongst the grandiose buildings and open squares, of cobbled lanes and miniature boutiques that I always come across by accident and can never find again on Google Maps. Well, luckily we managed to track it down and discovered this gem of a restaurant - The Little Square.

The cute Christmas decorations (combined with the already dark nights) totally put us in the holiday mood and the waitress's accent added to the Central European or Alpine feel to the place. Although the menu is a bit small, the staff were very helpful with adjusting a dish to my (painfully pretentious) dietary requirements. My potato tortilla came cut into galettes and fried to a crunchy crisp, served with a herby tomato salad and a delicious whole artichoke. I just can't get enough of artichokes at the moment. Oh, and the lemon syllabub...

Quaint and homely, but serving very fine and filling food indeed, I have now added The Little Square as a 'pin' in my favourite restaurants map file (it's at 3 Shepherd Market, if you're interested!).

xxx
Duck

Bloomin' marvelous

2011-12-07T08:20:00.000Z

A while ago I had the pleasure of spending a few nights in Hotel Bloom! (yes, the exclamation mark is part of the name - I'm thinking of having my name changed to Michael Ford! by deed poll) when I went to Brussels for the Modo Parcours, and I'm only getting around to uploading my photos now... Naughty blogger!

Despite its rather prodigious size for the title of 'boutique hotel' - I like to think of them all as cutesy chocolate-box sized operations - Hotel Bloom! manages to keep an individual feel throughout as they have invited different artists to decorate the walls of each room. My own miniature suite came in a 60s-chic olive colour scheme with curved furniture, a giant comfy bed (much needed for the hungover lie-in) and an, admittedly slightly garish, bright orange and brown mural.

The highlight of the stay was the breakfast which, with rooms from €66 a night, is a bloody bargain. A swathe of cooked breakfast options, cereals, toasts, fruits and of course my favourite continental staples like rye bread with thinly sliced cheese and cucumber <3 Can you guess which breakfast below is Girl A La Mode's and which is mine?

Many thanks to Elke Timmerman and the Modo Brussels team for sponsoring my trip :-)

xxx

Duck

In detail: Maison Martin Margiela S/S 2012

2011-12-06T11:09:00.000Z

You all know how much I like the Margiela aesthetic - clean lines, quality fabrics and then surprising bursts of colour, texture or print (although let's just pretend those V-necked t-shirts with the plasticky relief don't exist). I was pleasantly surprised to see the menswear Spring collection at Karla Otto's press day and here I have my three favourite pieces.

A round-necked white shirt with a faint vertical stripe would be so nice worn over black skinny jeans with my bunny rabbit pendant. The quilted biker trousers are the perfect alternative to skinnies and the padding means they'll keep me nice and toasty (strange that they're not in the Winter collection?). A wide V-necked sweater made with a loose-knit fabric weave is my definite favourite, but maybe it's because it's so similar to my Damir Doma jumper? In any case I'm looking forward to these guys hitting stores next season...

xxx
Duck

Cosmic Wonder Light Source

2011-12-05T15:31:00.000Z

Yeah, yeah I stole the title - so sue me! (please don't)

I've never lived with a friend before - I always had my own apartment in Oxford - so I'm not totally up on what usual flatmate behaviour is, but I'm guessing it's completely normal to spend a Sunday evening painting your friend's face and body, taking photos and then photoshopping the Hell out of them, right? Prepping for Nisha's postmodern poetic take on feminism/tantra/ritual I helped paint her up good and Goddess Tara style, though I'm still to see how she puts these to use. Anyway, the original photos inspired me to make my own artistic digital creations...

Maybe I should do a whole series of portraits?

xxx
Duck

Can you spell B-A-L-E-N-C-I-A-G-A?

2011-12-02T09:37:00.000Z

Oh no I didn't!

(Oh yes I did...)

German Shepherd jumper by Balenciaga, black jeans from Topman, t-shirt (not seen [WAIT - did I just do a not seen tag?!]) Helmut Lang. Scene of crime: Swatch Christmas party at the Westbury Club.

xxx
Duck

Dinner at Cuckoo Club

2011-12-01T18:29:00.000Z

Last night I was treated to dinner at the recently revamped Cuckoo Club, deep in the heart of my home-away-from-home, Mayfair. The last time I was there was for Jean-Charles de Castelbajac's store opening after-party - how time flies, that store has been and gone now :-( Things have certainly changed since the management brought in Barbara Hulanicki to give the décor a much needed redesign. The sea of purple lights suspended from the ceiling is certainly a highlight, although it had the unfortunate effect of adding an intense violet glare to most of my photos which I wasn't able to remove very successfully in GIMP (I am finally learning how to use it properly to save myself the £££ required for Photoshop).

Anyway, we were there to dine so I guess I should at least make a passing reference to the food... Seated at a table with Girl A La Mode, My Labyrinth, Style Slicker, Fashion Foie Gras, Platform Princess and Osman Ahmed, we grazed on platter after platter of luxurious, if somewhat heavy, dishes. The mixed tomato salad with burrata and pesto was fresh and delicious and I'm told the wagyu beef burgers were juicily divine, although my mushroom and truffle risotto was rather dry and claggy. The restaurant's strength lies in drinks and desserts, so, while I avoided the tempting chocolate cake and pear tatin, I really enjoyed my mixture of sorbets and cocktail after fruity cocktail.

On the whole it was what you'd expect from this type of venue - not exactly the best food I've tasted, but a glamorous location for a special event. Why else would they have invited a table of fashion bloggers to the relaunch? I did notice our table was definitely larger than the food bloggers' one...

xxx
Duck

Cocosa Trend Edit SS12

2011-12-01T13:41:00.000Z

The lovely guys at Cocosa just sent me over what they're calling their "Trend Edit" and I thought I'd share some of the photos here. Basically it's a bit like Elle or L'Officiel Collections with round-ups of the major shows from each of the fashion weeks (including menswear), cute infographics (Stasie's vomiting at my use of that hated word) and quotes from the power players. Handily, the review is almost pocket-sized so I can keep it in my desk drawer for whenever I feel the need to look up some related collections quickly. I'm afraid I don't think you can get your hands on a paper copy but there is a digital version here. Laura Weir also wrote a much more informative blog post about the Edit on The Fashion Daily - but for now let's just ogle the pretty pictures...

xxx
Duck

In detail: Inbar Spector S/S 2012

2011-11-30T09:55:00.000Z

It was quite incredible to see Inbar Spector's concertina designs in person during the TASK PR press day, all the more special because I had seen how well they move on stage when I experienced Gabby Young's latest concert. I was hoping to see Gabby's stage dress that sank into a pool of aqua every time she crouched down, but alas it wasn't in the show room. Still, the intricate folding and stitching required to create the honeycomb structures I did see must have taken hundreds of hours of work. The pieces had all the drama of Viktor And Rolf's Spring 2010 collection and yet seemed almost lighter than air. Little hints of gold leather lattice work pulled the bigger pieces together and sculpted the silhouette, although I thought there was perhaps a little too much gold on some of the more 'wearable' dresses.

xxx
Duck

My week in Twitpics

2011-11-29T10:18:00.000Z

Many of the works at The Other Art Fair (sponsored by Club Monaco) featured some of Stasie's friends... *gulp* stuffed. There were also heavy doses of irony.

The giant If Six Was Nine leopard-print poncho I chose to make an entrance in for Emily's bag launch at Coach.

Classical Chinese musicians entertained us at the Coach Christmas shopping party. There was also champagne...

Navaz multitasking over sushi.

Wearing my John Rocha "thinking cap" while coding...

I finally got my Christmas shopping started thanks to Feathers in Westbourne Grove.

Clearly we go to BBB for the...food.

Never can resist a jar of pickled garlic, especially if it's from Daylesford Organic.

A hint at my Mawi sample sale score - more to come later!

Stasie soaring high above the shoppers of West London.

xxx

Duck

In Detail: Givenchy S/S 12

2011-11-28T13:00:00.000Z

One of the most exciting press days I dropped by this season was at Karla Otto's London headquarters. Usually I'm in-and-out as quickly as possible at these things but this was two floors of the most exquisite brands and I practically had to be dragged out of their feng shuied offices kicking and screaming. The majority of my time there was spent examining Givenchy's SS 12 collection for men, and the womenswear accessories. At the time of the show everybody was raving about Givenchy turning over a new leaf and stepping out from the dark shadows of previous collections. Up close it's true, everything is light and mouth-wateringly bright, but the feeling of the menswear is very similar to the last few seasons: sporty, casual, unexpectedly luxe. My favourites have to be the printed or sequinned sweater tops with cutaway bellies at the front, giving an overall egg-shaped look. Not quite sure I have the stomach for that style anymore [Editor's note: ever] so I better start looking for the ideal undergarment now, in preparation for the inevitable purchase in Paris when these guys hit the sales around about June. Who knows - maybe I'll even have finished my DPhil and have a job by then!

The womenswear accessories were quite possibly even more exciting than the menswear, although it's hard to tell because everything was so ohhhhh-inducing. We all know I <3 a clutch and Givenchy gave us two options - a vibrant orange croc skin envelope (hello my previous blog post...) and a floral printed nylon and leather number. While the orange is simply to die for (and comes with a matching visor for the ultimate chic look on the golf course) I imagine the floral is going to be more in my price range, unless Stasie decides to jump into bed with Riccardo pronto. And doesn't it look so cute worn with my tattoo t-shirt from the S/S 11 collection? It was fate that I was wearing it that day - and I'll still be claiming it's fate when my credit card comes out in February.

xxx
Duck

Clutched

2011-11-27T17:03:00.000Z

Someone call the doctor because I think I have a problem!

Yesterday Brooke and I spent the perfect West London Saturday (now that I'm a local) with brunch at Tom's - sadly no Bloody Marys on the menu - followed by a morning of touring our favourite shops, lunch and wine at BBB (4pm) and a leisurely stroll home to a much-needed X Factor coma. I've only really wandered around Westbourne Grove a couple of times, and usually I'm on a mission for a particular object, so I hadn't quite realised how many AWESOME shops there are! At Matches we fondled the Celine and Christopher Kane while lamenting the poor menswear buy; at Diptyque I picked out my room scent for the new year (Pomander); at Feathers we both managed to find perfect Christmas gifts for our parents. We even dropped by Wolf and Badger for a fruity cocktail and a gander at their latest collections - in love with the Mark Giusti leather goods!

I also managed to keep my spending in check because, thankfully for me (if not for the fashion industry), many of the sales have started early again this year to try to boost pre-Christmas profits. Case in point: this great faux croc clutch found whilst perusing the rails of Whistles. There were a couple of other excellent clutch examples but this one took my fancy because: a) I need an alternative to my Christopher Kane squishiness for less 'dressed up' occasions, b) the zingy orange colour is a good way to drag myself out of my wintry SAD wardrobe dreariness and c) it was reduced to £27. Can't argue with that.

Now, if only I could somehow overcome my highly impractical clutch addiction...

xxx
Duck

Ann Demeulemeester (thecorner.com)

2011-11-24T12:30:00.000Z

I'm not usually one for blogging about the myriad press releases I get sent - believe me, there are enough crappy blogs out there for all that "content" - but when the giddy Shelly from Karla Otto sent me over these images of Ann Demeulemeester's collection created for thecorner.com, I just couldn't resist reaching for the Publish button.

Not one to go for high/low collaborations (thank G-d!), Ann has designed four basic pieces - trousers, tank, waistcoat and bag - to be sold exclusively online. They are kind of like Ann's iconic style distilled into a capsule wardrobe. My favourite individual item is possibly the tank with its paint-splattered pattern looking like star constellations from afar. However, given the current lack of Muscle Mary arms (or any kind of arm 'tone' whatsoever) tank tops are total verboten; I'm simply not allowed to like them. The nabuk leather bag, on the other hand, is gorgeous and allowed. In fact, it's exactly the kind of easy-going, shopper style bag I've been searching for. And it's soooo luxe.

So people, the question is this: how on Earth do I convince my parents that £560 isn't too much to add this bag to my Christmas wishlist?

Photography by Erik Madigan Heck.

xxx

Duck

Fashion Foie Gras / Coach launch party

2011-11-23T10:45:00.000Z

Congratulations go to Emily, who last night launched the bag she has been designing with classic accessories brand Coach. The Fashion Foie Gras tote is oversized and all-American looking (just her style) and comes with so many internal pockets for all your knickknacks - one even looked big enough to hold a whole iPad! The party was suitably fabulous with model waiters (I really think we need to develop a term just for this phenomenon, fashion parties never seem to employ wait staff challenged in the facial department) serving champagne and 'vodka cocktails', gingerbread geese to take away, a fun photobooth and lots and lots of bloggers. Just off the top of my head I bumped into Alex, Danielle, Simon, Navaz, Catherine, Marian, Shelly... It was also the perfect excuse to whip out my leopard print If Six Was Nine poncho. Cue confused stares/squeals of joy.

Now the question you've all been asking yourselves - when is Duck coming out with his own designer line? I've been thinking long and hard about this and narrowed it down to two options, Issey Miyake or Littlewoods. Thoughts?

Congratulations again, Emily!

xxx
Duck

Sample sale alert

2011-11-23T10:19:00.000Z

Just giving you the heads-up about two big sample sales I will definitely be attending this month! Issey Miyake starts today and McQueen starts next Wednesday. Perfect for some early Christmas present browsing - or just for me!

xxx

Duck

Browns shopping list

2011-11-22T10:20:00.000Z

OK let's admit it, any trip I make to Browns is going to turn into a shopping trip. It doesn't matter how stressed I am or how little money is in my account, Mrs B and her fashion angels (devils?) are going to convince me to purchase something. And so the Browns/Browns Focus press day really turned into a mental shopping trip and here is the S/S list I eventually "narrowed" things down to.

My favourite pieces can be sectioned into three groups: prints, textures and accessories. The best prints come on Australian Dion Lee's skirts and dresses (like this shattered crystal look above) and Joseph Altuzarra's vibrant jungle patterns (parrots!). I still can't get over how amazing the laminated dried flowers are on Ostwald Helagason's pieces nor the highlights of silver fibres hidden inside folds of Pedro Lourenço leather. The multicoloured stitching on Leutton Postle's premier retail collection (there are some amazing photos of these pieces on Kit's blog!) makes me want to doll myself up with a Native American headdress and shake it in front of the fireplace. My favourite accessories come in the form of Olympia Le-Tan book and ointment bags ("ointment? That one sticks in my craw too"), and Laurence Dacade's statement shoes - especially the black lace sandal. Laurence also designs the shoes for Chanel...

So, what will you be buying (from what's left after I've ransacked the joint)?

xxx

Duck

#SIXby6Bloggers: Style Salvage Steve

2011-11-21T09:00:00.000Z

Tomorrow the #SIXby6Bloggers project shoes go on sale and so the time has come for my final outfit post featuring Steve Salter's (Style Salvage) leafy printed walking boots. Ideal for a long autumnal country walk - or a stroll around our decked courtyard (Duck doesn't really do The Great British Outdoors) - these shoes are of a sturdier variety than the others in the SIX/farfetch collaboration. Even the spongy outer surface appears to be wipe-clean which is probably rather practical given the washed-out pale tones you wouldn't want getting all muddied up. These are definitely the more interesting of the two menswear shoes, although the boot style isn't really my usual shoe shape. But I could get used to it...

I'm wearing Steve Salter / SIX London / farfetch shoes, a PAM patchwork t-shirt, JW Anderson tie-dye sweater, Odyn Vavk grey jeans, a copper plate ring - a present brought back by Anna from Stockholm - and my Comme des Garcons Homme backpack.

xxx

Duck

No 3

2011-11-19T15:55:00.000Z

Being dragged backwards through a box hedge maze in the middle of the night, blindfolded, while white-labcoated models douse you with cold water and scream at you RUN SEXY RUN! That's what Maison Martin Margiela's (untitled) does to me. Now imagine discovering that feeling also comes in a limited edition silver bottle that could keep forever on your mantle piece. Maybe you could even keep your ashes in it. You could understand, then, why my credit card came out. I'm going to have to eke out every last drop of this stuff (or use it liberally for Stasie's bird bath).

[Oh, and then to my delight I discovered every box comes with a secret membership code and a special video game you can play on the Margiela Parfums website! Glee.]

xxx
Duck

Gilty Pleasure

2011-11-18T18:17:00.001Z

I knew it would be virtually impossible to get through this post without making some kind of pun so I thought I should get it over with in the title and be done with it. Moving on... This morning I was treated to a slap-up breakfast (and super early morning wake-up call) at The Savoy so that I could find out about Gilt.com, which is just launching in the UK as of today. I've known about Gilt for a while, and was desperate to sign up when they did their amazing collaboration with Lady Gaga, but, alas, it wasn't available to UK shoppers until now. Gilt is one of those flash sales websites (along the lines of Cocosa and Vente Privée) but it dwarfs its competitors when it comes to the variety and number of sales it holds every day, particularly in terms of American or Japanese brands currently difficult to find in Britain. Also, Gilt doesn't just sell women's and menswear (with brands like Proenza Schouler and Alexander McQueen), but furniture for your fabulous home as well as stays in some of the most exclusive hotels and villas around the world. All at a massive discount. And - mega bonus - the discount is even bigger on US brands because you get to bypass the mark-up we usually have to pay in the UK :)

I also must say it was very interesting to get to meet Kevin Ryan, one of the founders and CEOs, who set up two other very successful companies in the same year as Gilt - Business Insider and 10gen/MongoDB. It's amazing that someone can have so many great ideas and the tenacity to see them through to completion. It makes me feel rather inadequate that I don't have my Master Plan all sorted out by now. Suggestions on a postcard, please, for the Materials Science PhD student with a penchant for blogging and oversized silk bunny ears?

Anyway, Gilt still works under the traditional invite-only policy that some its competitors (i.e. Cocosa) recently dropped. BUT if you click here you can join easy-peasy-lemon-squeezy and enjoy the free shipping to the UK for this week only!

Now, time to hide all my credit cards from Stasie...

xxx

Duck

SIXby6Bloggers: The Man Repeller

2011-11-18T16:00:00.000Z

In order to shoot my second #SIXby6Bloggers collaboration post I had to rope in Anna to model for me, as unfortunately I don't quite fit into the size 4s designed by Leandra Medine aka The Man Repeller. In chunky blocks of burgundy and navy suede with a dinosaur spiked spine these shoes pretty much count as a 'foot party' all of their own, but I just had to over-accessorise them with some Maria Francesca Pepe crosses and chains. If you can make something look Buffy gothic then why not, right? Anna said these guys actually feel pretty comfortable - there seems to be a reasonable platform inside - and I think they are probably the trendiest out of the whole SIX/farfetch project.

I'm sure the residents of Dover Street (like, ummm, Comme des Garcons and John Rocha...) are happy we aren't stopping their traffic any more to find that perfect shot!

Anna wears shoes by The Man Repeller / SIX London / farfetch, sunglasses by Ilesteva, crucifix chain harness and stud bracelet by Maria Francesca Pepe, patent lambskin jacket by Marni, vintage sequinned dress by Fendi, fur gilet by Clements Ribeiro, band ring by Eva London and large plate ring from Stockholm.

xxx

Duck

Sixby6Bloggers: Facehunter

2011-11-17T16:01:00.000Z

Some of you may have heard about this already - some of you not - but recently online shopping emporium farfetch.com helped to organise a special project for six influential bloggers to collaborate with SIX London to design their perfect pairs of shoes. SIX turns 10 this year and currently produces shoes for bStore and Opening Ceremony so you know they aren't going to make any old crap. Now before you get your knickers in a twist I wasn't one of the lucky six, but farfetch did give me the opportunity to borrow the original samples and be the first blogger to take my own photos with them :)

The designers included Susie (Style Bubble), Caroline (Caroline's Mode) and Alix (The Cherry Blossom Girl) but my favourites were Steve's leafy boots (Style Salvage), Leandra's killer heels (The Man Repeller) and Yvan's navy and red 'trainers' seen here (The Facehunter). In the spirit of supporting other bloggers I thought I would shoot the shoes in street style shots, styled up how I would wear them. Yvan's shoes are casual and practical but just a little bit quirky, probably what you might expect from one of the most popular street style bloggers...

I'll be posting the photos over the next couple of days in the lead up to their sales launch next Tuesday so definitely pop back if you'd like to see them outside the official press shots.

I'm wearing shoes by The Facehunter/Six, a leather-lapelled jacket by Acne, a galaxy print top by Christopher Kane and zipped-ankle biker trousers by JCDC.

xxx

Duck

Inside Margiela

2011-11-15T14:07:00.000Z

Few shops leave an impression on one's imagination quite like the Margiela store in Brussels. Gleaming in clinical white, the maison boasts the full collection of MMM products including fabulously overpriced trinkets such as feather pens, empty snow globes and graffitied motor cycle helmets. The carpet is a trompe l'oeil wood effect, the windows have paint-swishing windscreen wipers and the rickety staircase is a death trap waiting to happen (cue Charlie's "I can think of worse things than dying in Margiela!"). I was so busy taking it all in I barely had a chance to look at the clothes, although I did admire (and pick up) a limited edition silver bottle of my favourite (untitled) perfume only available in store. I also got to sign my name on the mirror next to the likes of Karl Lagerfeld and Jean-Paul Gaultier.

Heaven.

xxx
Duck

In detail: Corrie Nielsen S/S 2012

2011-11-14T10:41:00.000Z

Last week I got a chance to investigate Corrie Nielsen's collection even further at the Forward PR press day. The looks I loved on the runway were even more impressive close-up where I could examine every element of sharp tailoring and what must have been hundreds of hours of pleating, steaming, sewing in her Somerset House studios... Hope you enjoy the shots :-)

Oh, and rumour has it Corrie is planning something quite different for next season so keep your eyes peeled!

xxx
Duck

Clara

2011-11-13T11:30:00.000Z

Another day, another post of me eating. This time it was lunch in Bonsoir Clara in Brussels, a cute brasserie type of place with an eclectic and delicious menu - including three vegetarian main courses (this is surprising for Belgium)! I had a pan-fried vegetable assortment but I just had to blog pictures of Charlie's duck with polenta and the classic steak frites the others opted for. While everyone else tried a glass of ice-cold Vedett, I couldn't resist my favourite Kir Royal. I would recommend Bonsoir Clara for a lunch or light dinner, but please be prepared for the staff with short tempers (one of them shoved Alex's SLR and Chanel out of her way, no questions asked) and a rather slow service.

xxx
Duck