Alexa Chung, 2009

Elle Style Awards after-party, February 2009.


Brit Awards, February 2009.


Shockwaves NME Awards, February 2009.


"Bronson" screening, March 2009.


LV Ready-to-Wear A/W 2009 show at Paris Fashion Week, March 2009.


Pearl Lowe's store opening, April 2009.


Mulberry book party, May 2009.


Filming "It's On With Alexa Chung", June 2009.


Chanel Beauty Ambassadors Dinner, July 2009.


Filming "It's On With Alexa Chung", August 2009.


"Inglourious Basterds" screening, August 2009.


"The September Issue" screening, August 2009.


"I Heart Ronson" line launch, August 2009.


"Miu Miu Celebrates Fashion's Night Out", September 2009.


Topshop Unique show at London Fashion Week, September 2009.


Armani Exchange & Elle "Tee" Party, November 2009.


Arriving at Heathrow airport, December 2009.

(Images courtesy of retna.com, zimbio.com, popsugar.com, garancedore.fr, thecelebritycity.com, mtv.com, vmagazine.com, celebutopia.net, wireimage.com, gettyimages.com, topshop.com, vogue.co.uk and mrpaparazzi.com)

Time machine, when will you exist?

And the journey to the 1960s continues...

What's inspiring right now: 1960s fashion, checks under trench coat, Leith Clark, little girls' dresses, shoes from my sister for my birthday.

(Images courtesy of imagebam.com and film_stills)

The swinging sixties

The 1960s England at its perfectly mod peak.

(Image courtesy of chrisstubbs.com)

Hmm...

This is a bit tacky, but I was watching The Mummy Returns a few nights ago and I suddenly got the idea for my first womenswear collection. I was definitely thinking of the character Evie O'Connell and I kind of just started looking into the 1920s-1930s safari genre and how the women explorers dressed back then when they travelled to Africa and the South American jungles.

I gave the collection the title "The Lady's First Safari", just because it still has that feminine feel in the sheer blouses and the long skirt, but blended with the functional, almost-masculine vibe of the chino pants and riding boots. I guess there's nothing else to this collection other than it pays homage to the independent women of the olden days.




On another note, I was really impressed with the November issue of the Australian Vogue that I've decided I'm going to subscribe to it next year. Just had my birthday two weeks ago and now I'm already thinking about Christmas present for myself. Yes, go on, you can call me a self-indulgent dork.

A European tale

Thinking of the long winter in Europe...

Add a little bit of the swinging 60s with its exaggerated shapes found in the return of the bell bottoms and big hair ala Anne Bancroft in The Graduate. Mix in dark, monochrome colours of black and grey just like the Parisian chic modelled by the ethereal Charlotte Gainsborough, but not without the much-needed dash of colours like bright turquoise and raspberry beret (kudos to Pixie). Don't forget to master the art of layers - take many, many hints from Jamie Hince and Alison Mosshart from The Kills and clash textures and patterns like you don't care about fashion. Finish with trusty old leather jacket and last winter's shoe booties, because these hard times call for the new-found habit of recycling.

(Images courtesy of thefashionspot.com, mirrors.co.uk and belstaff.com)

Inspiration: Anglo-mania

From what I see, a large part of fashion has been about rebelling against the rules - mismatched textures and prints, clashing colours and recently, experimenting with architectural structuring. So it's no wonder that the fashion pack is increasingly turning to the origin of rebel, the UK. The punks in the 70s were probably the first taste of pure Englishness, going against the conservatives with statement studs, leather and mohawks. But rebellion in the UK doesn't just mean punks. There were many examples where the British went against what was hip and created their own trend.

I'm drawing inspiration from the boys of the 90s Britpop scene - Noel Gallagher of Oasis with his Union Jack guitar; Graham Coxon of Blur with his large-framed glasses and Doc Martens; Jarvis Cocker of Pulp with his blazer jackets. While the world went crazy for Nirvana's brand of grunge, the Brits hit back with their own style of rock music. And then you start to suspect that perhaps the nautical colour pallette of red, navy and white could well come from the colours of the Union Jack; the increasing amount of women rocking fiery red hair could most probably be inspired by Dame Vivienne Westwood's mane; and those glasses...well, I'd like to think that Mr Coxon owned them way before today's scene kids even developed their eyes in their mothers' wombs.

But however it is, the UK continues to set the (fashion) bar themselves, instead of letting others do it for them. These days, the British are putting together trends from what the rest of the world has to offer - think bohemian prints complemented with preppy, tailored suits or clashing neon colours with textured pieces (thank you, Agyness!).

It's all just my personal opinion, though. But I think the English pride is back. And I love it.

(Images courtesy of americanapparel.net, net-a-porter.com, topshop.com, ninewest.com.au, olsen-files.com, sendmedeadflowers.com, panicmanual.com, flickr.com, contactmusic.com, celebutopia.net, tpgnews.com and elleuk.com)