Farlows - 'A Country Affair'

Farlows blogger event. © Rosie Hallam

 I was delighted to be cordially invited to Farlows evening event at their prestigious Pall Mall flagship store.  It is every country enthusiasts dream mecca and we were all transported from the busy urban streets of London and encouraged to embrace our inner countryside flair.  Myself living outside of London in the leafy county of Berkshire I have always had an affinity to the countryside as I can literally walk 30 minutes down the road and be surrounded by rolling hills and woodland so Farlows offered a home from home atmosphere. 

We were all set the exciting style challenge to pick out an outfit, with free regin of the entire store and the new a/w12 collections to play with with the chance to win the exclusive opportunity to dress the stores window. So off we all went to seek out the pieces to style and dress up in... it was so much fun and like being a kid again but having a shop full of clothes to choose from! 

Farlows blogger event. © Rosie Hallam

 This was my look styled courtesy of Anita, from Anita's Vintage Fashion Fairs who accompanied me on the evening. The clothes where so comfy and well made, many of the items including the dress (that I wearing above) and printed jumpers had a real vintage feel to them.  I selected a few pieces for Anita to wear too below: 

What do you think of our looks? To see ours and the other wonderful looks created on the night be sure to check out Farlows Facebook page... 

And don't forget to like for your best look as your fav blogger may be lucky enough to style the amazing Pall Mall window.

Farlows blogger event. © Rosie Hallam

Lipcote just got Prettier

Lipcote, and their brand new pack just got prettier - 

How lovely does that look! With a gold capped luxury bottle matched with gold intertwining illustrations and bold Lipcote red Lips. The revamped look has been created in collaboration with Lipcote's favourite illustrator Dora see more of her fantastic pen work here: http://www.okdora.com/dora/ she is an amazing talent. 


If you would like to get your hands on the new Lipcote packaging it is available via Superdrug . They will also be at this years BINTM Live, find Lipcote in the beauty area.   


The logo has also taken on a brand new look:

yet it in someways has not deviated to far away from the original... absolutely love this vintage 1950's packaging (below). You can trace Lipcotes iconic 50 year design history on their website, with the story so far. 

www. Lipcote.com

Sarah-Leigh's Style Files & Hepwrights Summer Social

Vintage and an evening soirée... would not have to ask me twice, I am there. I had the great pleasure of being invited by the lovely Sarah-Leigh from her beautiful eponymous blog Sarah-Leigh's Style files and Catherine Wright of Hepwrights Vintage to their first Summer (Sadly if we can accept we ever had one) Social on Thursday 15th September. Set in the treasure trove manor of Hepwright's vintage boutique in Southampton, a collective of like-minded and creative individuals gathered for a great evening of drinks, nibbles, light entertainment and networking.

Catherine announced that when she opened her shop over a year ago she never did have an official opening party so it was nice to have such a lovely turn-out of friends, colleagues and people whose work they admire to have almost a belated celebratory evening and with the possibility of sparking perhaps new collaborations and projects with each other. Everyone in attendance had nothing but praise for the the hostesses as it was interesting to find out that much alike my hometown of Reading, Southampton and the surrounding areas in the South are indeed a hotpot of creatives however it is much more dispersed. Unlike the capital were you can readily identify hubs of artistic/creative related areas, the towns and cities just outside London are in desperate need of such fantastic initiatives to help bring compatible groups of people together.

I must say I thoroughly enjoyed myself so much so that the time ran away with me and I was so busily soaking up the atmosphere of the evening chatting non-stop that I really forgot to get snapping, however here are a few of my lonesome photographical offering from the evening, however be sure to check Sarah's blog for a professional take.

Gwan is a fresh new fashion Zine produced by talent photography/ styling duo, Sophie Sabados and Lauren Brown. Gwan is like no other think the youth representation of Skins but fused with the vision of Noel Clark...

Gwan can be defined as a congratulatory term, an expression used by young people to show encouragement, admiration and approval for one another. It is an attitude. An approach to life and style that can’t go unnoticed.

Gwan is a pictorial zine that focuses  on the spectacle of today’s youth in all its glory. While others follow we make up our own rules, finding inspiration in the vibrancy and energy of city living youth. We don’t allude to high fashion, instead  embracing  spontanaeity, experimentation and doing  everything to the max.

Behind the Gwan zine is two girls who have grown up in and around London during the nineties and noughties. We have drawn on our own experiences in the making of Gwan, leading us to recollect and take a look back at what made us who we are… Now we invite you to do the same!

Sophia Sabados & Lauren Brown

The talented ladies behind this project Sophia & Lauren (left), have as they rightly should, attracted a huge amount of interest and intrigue in their large print photography zine. Business cards emptied out features on Vice and Volt Cafe, shortlisted for Lifetime IT Media & Design Award at Graduate Fashion Week... and winning it! For this unstoppable duo this is surely only the start in their illustrious creative careers... 

The girls picked up their award at the London Graduate Fashion Week final Gala show: 

"It's a great feeling to know that the blood, swear and tears that we put into this project has been been recognised by some of the top people in the fashion industry - It makes it all worth it" - Lauren Brown

"Gwan actually looks like it was put together by women with brains, who recognize the 21st century for the fun ride it is. It's a hurricane of fresh air." - Vice

Highlighting some of UCA Epsom's finest talent is my ultimate pleasure... blown away by the ridiculously high standard of FPI's recent graduates I am proud to be apart of such a great alumni.

Elise Augustin is one particular student who has shone throughout the degree for her passion and determination in everything she has set her mind to. Being on the parallel pathway of imaging it is always very exciting to explore what artistic projects the imaging students have been working on.

Elise Final Major Project was developed with giving graduates like ourselves in mind, providing them with a physical a virtual platform to showcase their work. Tactile Technology space operates as a counlunstancy studio; where creatives can work and express their ideas.    

"Tactile Technology demonstrates a new dimension in fashion space utilising the skills of model making, set design, film, photography and new media design solutions, we aim to showcase and cultivate the creativity from different disciplines." 

GFW: Day 1: Edinburgh College of Art

Graduate Fashion Week: Set-Up Saturday

I was over-the-moon and admittedly slightly shocked upon seeing my name on the selected students list for Graduate Fashion Week this year.... I could not actually believe my work had been selected to be showcased at GFW.  I have been attending GFW for years and never imagined actually being one of the exhibiting students it is an amazing platform for any graduate... and being selected for one of the prestigious marketing awards is even more exciting. 


After a long day of exhibition stand set-up, which did not go without its challenges... I just wanted to share with you some of my phone snaps from the day. I am hoping to cover GFW as much as possible and will aim to post my daily insights. 


Graduate Fashion Week 2011 5th- 8th June 

www.gfw.org.uk

Public Admission Day is Sunday 5th June. Tickets cost around  £5.00 and can be purchased at the door.
Earls Court 2 Exhibition Centre, Warwick Road, Hammersmith, London SW5 9TA 

Reading Vintage Fair Once Again...

As always I headed on down the Reading vintage Fashion Fair (on the last Sunday of every month)... suffice to say I unfortunately had a little camera problems... unfortunately leading to the lack of photos this time to share. My battery depleted completely on me and my back up camera, I had sort of forgot to put the memory card back in... oops! and my phone well of course like all iphones the battery on that also lasted all of 5 seconds.  

So due to my photography technicality issues I am afraid I am unable to bring as many images to you at this time... However please  do have a look at what I managed to take through all the difficulties. 

All the usual stall holders were there such as Ali from Frock&Roll, Victoriah & Nat from Out-of-Time-vintage,  Georgina of Georgina's Vintage,  and the lovely Debbie... However there were also some great new stall additions to the fair with even more vintage wonders to lust after. 

With exciting news and more events to come in the following months by Vintagenie including a vintage village at South Hill Park for the Park Life festival on 9th July but also a pop-up vintage fair at Forbury Gardens, Reading on 16th/17th July for the Outside:Inside Festival. I will be sure to keep you informed of all the details and will hopefully be working alongside Vintagenie to bring you exclusive news and pics. 

Don't forget to visit the next Reading Vintage Fair on 26th June... this time I will ensure my cameras are all fully operational... see you there!    

www.thereadingvintagefair.com

My only purchase this time round was some beautiful cupcakes from the ever glorious White Rabbit Bakery... no word of a lie, the best cupcakes I have even had, truly delicious! 

Oh and again I must give props to my lovely friend Kate who lovingly made this beautiful shopper for me for a leaving present from work. Sadly my time at What Katie Did has recently come to an end, It was an enjoyable few years and I will miss the WKD team! But how can I be sad with such a lovely gift!

P.S be sure to follow my crafty friend Kate Zak on twitter!

The end of an era: The end of my student years!

So a triumphant 3 years is now dawning it's end... the end of an era, the end of my student years: the trials. tribulations, endless Red Bull fueled nights, the tears, the joy and laughter!....

Finally got there the end of my degree.... could not imagine when I enrolled as a naive wannabe fashion student in 2008 that this time would come round so fast, but here we all are the year of 2011 FPI (Fashion Promotion &Imaging) now putting up our Final Major Projects final exhibition display. I also recently received the exciting news that my work has selected to be showcased at Graduate Fashion Week and entered into one it's prestigious marketing competitions... eeek how exciting! 

As I am sure many of you are aware as I have been harking on about my project for the last 9 months or so, my FMP focus was on the wide scope of Vintage,  please see my overall final major project below:   

Creative Vintage Solutions: &7 

&7 is a creative solutions agency specialising in Marketing & PR for Vintage brands. Realising this gap in the market for a vintage specific PR agency for my FMP I developed my company &7.

&7 provides creative solutions for vintage brands, solving any press and marketing dilemmas. It is often tough to market a Vintage or Retro aesthetic brand within contemporary society. &7 bridges the gap between nostalgia & modernity, supplying clients with a unique stance in a versatile society.

Please see www.and7london.com for more details.

My exhibition display below:

A huge Thank You to Adrienne Henry Millinery in Reading for the loan of this beautiful period typewriter.

LaLo's come to town!!

LaLo London is a new handbag range which just launched today...

LaLo London Chocolate brown laptop/clutch/shoulder bag

Each bag is lovingly created reflecting the designers architectural background,  they are all structured and beautifully constructed. Handmade to perfection, each bag has an individual twist, such as the 'Teresa' bag... which is completely multifunctional and can transform from a large shopper, into a low slung tote and even into a trusty oversized clutch, ideal for what ever the occasion... The versatility of the range embodies the essence of LaLo London.

LaLo London 'Teresa' bag

All of  the bags are made from the softest luxurious leather cowhide and lambs skins.... which means they essentially just get better with age. Leather goods are such timeless and practical items, there is no better fashion accessory that looks good the more it is worn in. Signature solid brass hardware embellishment and gorgeous striped lining are bang on trend, yet these are classic items that will see you through season to season.  

LaLo London Chocolate brown laptop/clutch/shoulder bag

Check out LaLo London full range and the online shop, http://etsy.me/iFCf68 . All bags are currently reduced by 20% introductory offer... but for one month only.... so be quick to get your hands on one of these must have accessories!

1950's Vintage Styling Sesh @ Frock&Roll

Last Saturday morning,  I was one of the lucky attendees of  Reading vintage boutique Frock&Roll's first ever free styling workshop.  The Look for the session was the 50's; rolled hair and the ultimate red vintage lips.  It was lovely being able to watch first hand the looks coming together and picking up some great tips, as well as generally have a good ol'chit chat and a laugh. 

Frock&Roll are planning to do a few more workshops in the very near future... So I will be sure to keep you posted.  Please contact  aliredfern@hotmail.com for more details. 

Make-Up & Hair by: Jo Stringer jo_stringer@hotmail.co.uk  

Wedding Fever with a touch of Reading Street style...

Royal Wedding fever swept Reading Vintage Fair too last weekend, in amidst the big build up to the big day. Vintage Wedding assembles galore ... 

I do hope Kate does indeed opt for a Vintage Wedding gown...  

Vintage Floral prints are a real treat: 

The stallholders embraced the summer sun in their floral print dresses and tops L>R:  Ali from Frock&Roll, Victoriah & Nat from Out-of-Time-vintage,  Georgina of Georgina's Vintage,  and the lovely Debbie. 

Stylish individuals from french Parisian chic left, lovely ladies on her travels from France and Elegant Mother & daughter centre.

Accessories envy with this beautiful girls wide brimmed hat and the ladies woven clutch, ease summer looks that look incredibly effortless yet full score on the style meter.

Some Vintage shoppers chilling out to the sounds of acoustic music.