Just add cocktails

As the rain pours and the chilly wind whistles along the Thames my increasing obsession with sunshine knows no sign of abating. Never have I craved the Spring or Summer so much. Daily I see something sparkly or cheery and then my grey skies above dampen my momentary joy. I cannot recall a time when my sunglasses did not feature in my bag. Once this month have I put them on and for two minutes.

With Reiss adding jewellery to their growing retail offering, it was the Corrine gold multi chain sovereign necklace that started me thinking of Miami. Imagine this necklace accompanied by a white dress, sunglasses, bare feet - one foot gently poised in the pool and then a waiter walks over to hand you a cocktail - ah bliss.

Colour not grey skies

This bright orange silk Limited Collection dress at £45 from M&S is just the ticket if you want louche, bright and at a reasonable price.

When the sun comes you'll be glad of it.

Spring Anyone?

Lest you've forgotten what flowers growing from the ground look like, I've appropriated/acquired this flash of spring colour from California via Enc of Observationmode. Thank you Enc, we've forgotten what spring looks like even down South.


Pity me I've got to inspire someone today to buy their Spring/Summer wardrobe and we'll be dressed like winter trolls. I think I might dance in the streets when this big freeze ends. But I'm making do with this wonderful image which gives me hope...

Wearable, right now!

Two things have stuck in my mind of late when it comes to fashion. One of which is an important or pertinent theme when it comes to personal fashion purchases. The theme mainly goes like this, only buy things you really love, and these fall mainly into the designer or non mainstream high street world. Plus never throw anything, designer, or an item you love, out. WendyB is the major proponent of the never get rid of your designer pieces and buy quality. Whilst Disneyrollergirl is of the, not buying things off the high street and making key quality piece purchases, ilk. Both of them have a wonderful sense of personal style and are living proof this theme is of much use. (Btw Disneyrollergirl love, love loved your black trench)

The other matter is the desirability of selling. The sad fact is that brand Alexander McQueen was in debt to the tune of probably 32 million euros, now this is not unusual in the world of luxury goods, it was years before Stella McCartney turned a profit. But with two parent companies fighting it out(LVMH and PPR) wearable collections are a big factor in sustaining a designer in the luxe market. Whilst LFW is all about the cool and not all about the big houses, it is ultimately about desire and being able to envisage wearing the garments.

Richard Nicoll is striking the right balance between fashion(able) and wear(ability). He either knows what women want to wear or what buyers want to buy. His show was reminiscent of Marc Jacobs in the simple colour palette and a reliance on cut and drape rather than the spectacle. His show is becoming something of reliable and desirable element in sustaining the worth of LFW on the fashion map.

Richard Nicoll images:style.com

Thought for the week - football focus

Not since the mullets (haircuts) of the 1970s has football faced such a crisis of identity. My short film Dress Up examined the rise of WAG culture due to the high level lifestyle certain wags lead. It also portrayed a footballer who does not fall into the stereotypical nightclub, bed hopping lifestyle.

Yet the world of football continues in the UK to polarise trends of behaviour and morality. If we segment the high profile people who are papped, blogged about and fill the column inches of newspapers and magazines they fall into fashion, football and music. Whilst America (and the UK to some extent) was paralysed by Tiger Woods news conference where he talked of atonement and transgression; we are facing a football melt down which potentially heralds the end of the WAG and will usher in the next level of football focus, homosexuality.

Ashley Cole has been dogged by rumours for years about being gay and now the papers are running a goal scoring tally of women he's allegedly transgressed with. While Cole is at home nursing a fractured ankle and potentially a broken marriage, his Chelsea team mates will be reading at leisure, in between training, the headlines on his liaisons.

One of those who might be reading the papers is fellow player Frank Lampard. Lamps as he is affectionately termed is in a different league and was one of the inspiration for my film's footballer character (Graham Le Saux, Thierry Henry and David James being a few others). He represents the potential for football to embrace dignity and move away from the lad culture those mullets embodied. It is a lads culture that has no room for sexual orientation other than the bedding of multiple wannabe wags.

images: The Daily Mail

The only fashionable faces of football have been the Beckhams. Courted by all in the fashion industry brand Beckham has provided an almost homo erotic vision with David Beckham's underwear ads for Giorgio Armani. Yet embracing aspects of femininity, the sarong wearing and the caring father are safely position within the union of marriage. With rugby players recently 'coming out' when will it be okay for football to stop lambasting being gay?

Best BAFTA frock

Wow, one of my favourite colour combinations red and pink and who better to pull off this lovely Lanvin number than French beauty and wonderful actress Audrey Tatou. She did tell E! channel that she was wearing Chanel perfume as she walked the BAFTA's red carpet.

image: The Guardian

Tonight it's the BAFTAs

Please don't let Avatar win - that's all I ask!

High Street Pick of the Week

What with New York Fashion Week and now London Fashion Week it is hard to remember that there is a high street out there attempting to sell us the now, not the future. However it is to the high street we need to turn to, so where and what does a smart woman buy - well I would say as little as possible given the current economy but then I'm on some no spend mission so ignore me.

A good idea would be to plan your Spring/Summer wardrobe with a clear theme to allow pieces to work hard. Have you usual favourites and necessary basics and then add pure fashion to inject va va voom to perk you up.

This week's selection is a bit of a halfway home but should work well with a skirt, dress, trousers or jeans. A blend of contemporary (digital print) channeling the old (tweed) this cardigan from Oasis will give you a good run until when the sunshines and you start to sweat...(sorry but bring on the summer, I want to feel hot!)

Multi Blue Tweed Print Cardi £50

'Dress Up' LCF screening

Last night was the screening of my short film at the London College of Fashion, followed by a panel discussion with Melanie Rickey of Grazia, Ella of Coco's Tea Party and Tamar Jeffers-McDonald author of Hollywood Catwalk and from the University of Kent.

It was a lively debate and a great turn out considering the skies decided to empty upon the streets of London. I have one blurry photo of me being interviewed and a couple more stills from the short.

When I've recovered (I've suddenly found myself exhausted!) I'll do a proper summation and post on my Fashion and Film blog

blurry photo of me being interviewed (I'm on the right)

Stills from Dress Up

Tonight, tonight

If someone was going to ask me what my favourite film was I'd be hard pressed to stop at 20 because I love so many films; but Wise and Robbins's 1961 version of the Broadway musical West Side Story is probably in the top 10. Adapted from Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet it won 10 Academy Awards, the only musical to do so and was remarkable for the huge falling outs whilst filming between Wise and Robbins.

Luckily I fell out with no one in the making of my short film and although we were a small team who won't be winning any awards for our effort I would like to thank them for their contribution to making my dream come true. Of course I am apprehensive of showing my film to a large audience and it feels slightly surreal or rather unreal.

On the eve of London Fashion Week and two years on from submitting my application form to the London College of Fashion it does feel like a fad fashion moment to be showing something.

Still from 'Dress Up'