Sports Luxe: Love It Or Loathe It

Sportswear has always been a rather dominant movement within the fashion industry, especially during the 80s and 90s . However, now it's back and all over the forefront of the Spring/Summer and Fall/Winter 2016 runways. From Balenciaga's business-like cagoule paired with sartorial suit trousers and Versace's Après-ski look consisting of ski pants and clumpy clodhopper boots draped in chains, to Louis Vuitton's luxury body-skimming onesie. I think one can certainly say that the athletic look was out in full form.

Balenciaga's trans-seasonal cagoule

Donatella Versace's Après-ski looks

If I say tracksuit, what do we all think of? Yes, that's right, an iridescent two-piece mess worn by a mass of typically British teenagers brandished as "chavs". However, do we continue to think like that? On the most part, yes. Although, there is now a quite sizeable majority who are embracing leisure-wear not just for practicality and accessibility purposes but also because of the fact that influential fashion powerhouses like Gucci, Louis Vuitton and Chanel have all started embracing said trend, giving the nod to anyone daring enough to wear jade green sweats with floral adornments out in public.

The Gucci tracksuit

Susie Lau of StyleBubble

If we think back to 10 years ago, no one would have dared to step out of the door wearing Reeboks, cuffed trackies, an oversized hoodie and a seemingly solemn looking cap - unless you were a member of a suburban cult group that worshipped Vicky Pollard. However, nowadays this has become the norm. We would now actively encourage people to wear hoop earrings, sweatshirts and Adidas trainers as a means of softening our style sensibilities and making everyone look 'edgy' and 'cool'.

Jourdan Dunn in an Adidas mesh overlay

On the other hand, I still believe that there is a fine line between what the general consensus of our nation considers as formal and informal. I simply refuse to believe that such a thing called the 'formal' jogger exists. Nothing about a pair of sweatpants equates to classy, no matter the fabric choice, brand or whether it's styled correctly. It still remains an item of the greatest informality.
At this point in time I am yet to gravitate into the vicinity of sport luxe, with the one exception of my trusty white Stan Smith's (a wardrobe staple in my view). I am certain that over time with the right amount of creative development and confidence we will all be able to happily pull off a turquoise two-piece and wedged trainers with considerable ease.

Please Note: I do not own any of these images, courtesy of Vogue.co.uk & Getty

Golden Globes 2016 Red Carpet Critique

It has come to that time of the year where my blog becomes ridden with hearty awards season red carpet critiques that are adored by so many of you.
Clinquant corals, plush pinks, mercury metallics and virtuous vanillas all doused the red carpet at the 73rd annual Golden Globe's creating a subtle spring-like ambiance which was embraced by all.
Without further ado I present to you my best and worst dressed of the evening:


Firstly, we start by discussing the most popular trend of the night- we are finally saying goodbye to the 'thighbrow' and welcoming in the 'ab flash'. According to Jennifer Lawrence and Brie Larson, who both picked floor-skimming gowns with perfectly proportioned cut-outs which sat low on the hip.
Brie, who was awarded best actress for her portrayal of a woman held in captivity in 'Room' wore a custom gown designed by none other than Francisco Costa at Calvin Klein. We like this, don't we, my dear readership?! She's gone for the X neck-line which we are all currently hankering over for Spring/Summer 2016, alongside copious lines of gold beaded embellishments which delicately fade away revealing sheer biscuity undertones . 10/10

Jennifer Lawrence, on the other hand, looked severely sumptuous in this structured scarlet Christian Dior paired with a diamond choker. After Raf Simon's 3 years as creative director for Dior, it seems that the essence of classic 50s Dior still very much remains, however now there is a much needed new futuristic dimension (hence the elevated midriff and the cut-outs). 10/10

Kate Hudson also followed suit delivering an ambitious albeit equally mesmerizing look. She donned a blush pink jewel-toned Michael Kors triptych of a choker, bandeau and skirt all connected up into one piece. Without a doubt a very risqué piece, however I think she carries it very well indeed. 9.5/10

We have reached our Givenchy 'moment', as one now calls it. Screen siren Cate Blanchett wore a piece from Riccardo Tisci's Spring/Summer 2016 collection, rather the more retrospective assemblage. All the evening gowns Tisci creates are artistically stunning, the attention to detail is just out of this world. Mirroring my thesis, Cate wears one of the most ornate gowns produced by the house, consisting 1920's lace applique and pearl pink layered fringe. Definitely evoking subtle hints of Tisci's rather romantic yet fetishist aesthetic. Unequivocally 10/10 from me.

Rooney Mara completely contrasted with her co-star Blanchett, sporting this rather drab shredded ruffled Alexander McQueen by Sarah Burton. This dress has no life inside it, I am sorry but I saw the SS16 McQueen collection and none of the dresses presented were as dead as the one I see before me. Sarah Burton was meant to be exploring some of McQueen's fundamental leitmotifs including; naturalism, romanticism and the seemingly integral historicism. I see the historicism in this gown, but in no way shape or form is there the brief nuance of romanticism, not even the dusky rose palette nor the torn tiers of lace. 6/10

 

Moving onto Alicia Vikander in this white pleated pinafore-style Louis Vuitton gown. Now I am aware that a lot of people were not one for this dress, but I personally am infatuated with it. She epitomizes that new Vuitton look of sheer edginess, modernity and femininity. Love.. 9.7/10

Why was Katy Perry there? And why did she turn up wearing that dress? It was truly embarrassing... Don't get me wrong, it was a perfectly pleasant  Prada evening gown, minus the fact that it was  about two sizes too small for her resulting in her inability to actually walk. I mean Katy, please, this is not 2009 anymore; flailing your assets around, left, right and centre won't do anyone good! This is just simply beyond my comprehension.. 3.5/10

 

Saoirse Ronan looked like an ethereal vision in a cream (Yves) Saint Laurent. Who knew Hedi Slimane of YSL could veer away from seventies rock 'n' roll and execute such a simple though still classic gown? 9/10

Before I begin, can we just take a moment and appreciate that J-Lo is 46 and looks like that!? Simply incredible, in my opinion. She wore a mustard Giambattista Valli with a caped back and plenty of ruching. She defines everything timeless about Hollywood at this moment in time. 9/10

Regina King showed us two things- 1) how to pay homage to Diana Ross and 2) how to successfully fail at it. I shall be frank, so please don't take offense. It looks like a mermaid has thrown up on her and then Batman arrived to save the day and she stole his cape then sprayed it white so she'd look more 'paired down'. Well good job with that love. 5/10

Next we have Kate Bosworth in this Dolce&Gabbana OTT sequined gown. (It seems she's joining with Regina King to start a Diana Ross tribute band). As we all know, I do not like Dolce&Gabbana and I never will. I automatically take offense to all of their clothing simply because it is so atrociously tacky, this included. I am blinded by the amount of sequins they have managed to pack onto that poor woman. Kudos to her for her beauty look though, a strong 9 for that. 4.7/10

Amber Heard in Gucci is admittedly one of my favourites of the night. The pink palette is soft but at the same time gives the garment the right amount of audacity, especially with the addition of the floral adornment. That pleated tulle totally works in her favour, perfectly sculpting her figure and most importantly completing that look of outright fantasy. 10/10

 I'm glad to see that the fashion bloggers are attending the Globes this year. However, saying this, I am not so glad to see Olivia Palermo in this Delpozo. I am a fan of Olivia Palermo and her style, so I understand that she wants to be a bit more edgy and alternative, nonetheless I feel that this dress drowns her petite frame and that is a shame. 6.8/10

Finally we have come to my best dressed of the night! Lady Gaga in custom Atelier Versace.. undoubtedly an embodiment of Marilyn. Can we just appreciate just how inconceivably elegant this gown is?! The black velvet adds this luxurious dimension which is so hard to attain and the accentuation of her figure is so perfectly proportioned. I simply could not critique this dress even if I tried, it is one of the most stunning things I've ever seen! 1000000/10

Please Note: I do not own any of these images, courtesy of British Vogue- Vogue.co.uk (Getty)

Racial Diversity On The Runway

What do we mean by 'diversity'? Owing to the fact that one of the most crucial movements in fashion is diversity, one would think it was a good sign that the current trend for Spring/Summer 2016 is 'diversity'. However this is not just diversity through model castings; this is diversity shown through shapes and silhouettes. With Olivier Rousteing at Balmain celebrating curves and the Paris Fashion Week Board officially banning super-skinny models, it seems like there has been rather a re-definition of the word. Perhaps this is a cunning diversion away from the serious issue of ethnic diversity that the industry fails to take responsibility for at present.

According to The Business of Fashion's Spring/Summer 2016 diversity report, an astonishing 79% of runway models used this season were white. Why not more models of colour?
Designers such as Victoria Beckham and Francisco Costa at Calvin Klein have been criticised season after season for casting an array of very angry super-skinny looking models, and even more surprisingly they are all white. Probably the most disparagement went to the house of Valentino. Despite producing a collection solely inspired by Africa, Valentino made use of entirely white models in cornrows and tribalized prints, showing an intense lack of respect towards the African communities and instead generalising their country to fit in with Valentino's now seemingly profane aesthetic.

Saying this, there are a minority of designers who are encouraging the influx of more diverse model selections. For example: Tom Ford, Riccardo Tisci and Christopher Bailey for Burberry. Supermodels such as Naomi Campbell, Iman and Jourdan Dunn have all been campaigning on the issue and thanks to them, in recent years, we have seen a fairly modest surge in racial diversity across the industry.

Jourdan Dunn and Naomi Campbell for Burberry

I believe that it is vital that the industry does not dismiss the austere nature of this problem. As much as we continue to encourage the use of other minorities throughout the industry, it still does not seem to conquer the face of discrimination from employers. In my opinion, I think that if we continue to voice our opinions perhaps the fashion industry will stop turning a blind-eye to the real problems and face the situation head-on.  

Picture Courtesy: www.Dazeddigital.com  & www.style.com