Spring/Summer 2010 Trends: Prints!

A trend that I am really looking forward to wearing this spring is a bold print. The back of my wardrobe is full of a million different prints (pictured below) so I'm really glad the designers gave the look a bit of a fresh take this season. Personally I've always loved wearing clashing prints for a more fun, messy, punk feel. I also like juxtaposing really simple head-to-toe colour-blocking with a bold statement piece that can speak for itself. My wardrobe is largely colourless so it's always fun to mix things up every now and then with a nice bold print, simple or otherwise.


This season's shows saw a wide variety of gorgeous prints to cater for all tastes. Alexander McQueen showed wild, futuristic animal prints, but largely it was graphic prints that took centre stage. Continuing to deliver great graphics were both Peter Pilotto (one of my favourite designers, pictures below) and Matthew Williamson, with Gucci getting in on the action too.

Peter Pilotto continued to deliver amazing grown-up dresses with a twist. Aside from the lovely prints, I really love the draping and the thigh-high cuts. However when it came to graphics it was standout newcomer Holly Fulton who really impressed with her New York-inspired collection which embodied more of an edgy, cool feel with a bit of fun about it. This is really something I'd love to be wearing right now. I also love the cute little shoes!

I'm also dying to get my hands on these psychedelic stripes from Proenza Schouler.



For me though, it was florals that really stole the show. Stella McCartney showed some pretty ruffled numbers but it was the more bold prints that caught my eye, particularly these clashing looks from Dolce & Gabbana. I LOVE EVERYTHING; I love the short shorts, the socks with heels, the clashing prints, the belted waist, the masculine cut of the jacket, the simple black accessories, even the styling of the models (I'll definitely be trying my hand at messy up-dos and bright lipstick this season). I'm never usually a huge Dolce & Gabbana fan but this season they really caught my eye and for me they got it just right. This is exactly the kind of thing I hope to be wearing in Spring/Summer 2010.


Always a winner in my book; Erdem also showed some exciting florals this spring. I thought it a particularly fun touch that the wedged heels were also floral. I'm a big advocate for floral shorts and playsuits this season (I have 3) - or anything I can wear on a night out that has pockets really - so this was a look that really caught my eye too.

I'm really excited by this trend and am already thinking up outfits! It's unlikely that the high street will be able to mimic the beautiful graphic prints of the catwalk well enough for me to want to wear them so I think I'll be sticking to my florals for now for this season. I love juxtaposition in an outfit and I think florals will be a lovely feminine touch to my already fairly androgynous look (I pretty much live in my boyfriend's clothes). I'll probably mix in a pair of masculine shoes like brogues or loafers or my Comptoir des Cotonniers limited edition grey Dr.Marten's or my new brown suede Church's chelsea boots, with bare legs or sheers. I'd also add my leather waistcoat or my velvet boyfriend blazer to harden up the look and avoid it being too 'pretty'.

Playsuit, Urban Outfitters. Cardigan, Topshop. Boots, Comptoir des Cotonniers for Dr.Marten's. Sheer tights, H&M.

Sheer tee, American Apparel. Velvet blazer, Topshop. Shorts, Topshop. Boots, Church's.

More soon.

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All catwalk photos from Style.com

Spring/Summer 2010 Trends: Sorbet Colours?

If you've read any fashion magazines recently you will have no doubt noticed one of the growing trends for spring/summer 2010: sorbet colours. Although pretty pastels for spring don't really feel like a new one, it was really a refreshing change from the doom and gloom of winter trends to see them on catwalks all around the world. I'm still debating whether I'll be buying into it but I can't argue that designers did give us many gorgeous examples, a few of my favourites included:

Burberry Prorsum

I've been a huge fan of Burberry Prorsum and Christopher Bailey for a while now so to see them leading the way with a very sorbet-heavy collection really gave me a wake-up call to this trend. I love the draping, I love the thigh-high cuts, I love the big chunky heels with socks (a trend I really love, I'm so happy it's been seen so frequently throughout fashion weeks around the world this season) and the top-heavy jackets; it really is just an all-round great collection, however I'm not 100% sold on this 'pretty' look. The colours feel a bit too 'wishy-washy' for my liking, there's nothing bold there, nothing strong. I think I like the design more than I like the chosen colours here.

I'm so glad that Burberry have decided to relaunch trench coats in a big way this season, not just with classics but also mixing it up and giving more of a contemporary feel with some unusual colours and gorgeous detailing. I'm already desperately hunting on ebay and in charity shops for a classic Burberry trench that doesn't cost the Earth (the more classic trenches on Burberry's online store are upwards of 1000pounds). If you, like me, are a fan of this classic coat's comeback then be sure to check out the recently launched Burberry website http://www.artofthetrench.com/ which offers photography from a variety of sources chosen by Burberry (most notably one of my favourites, photographer Scott Schuman of The Sartorialist) of people wearing the coat in question.

Although I'm still not fully sold on sorbet colours as a trend, there were a few standout pieces from the collections that I do feel like I need that I suppose could be described as candy-coloured.

Always one for pretty feminine looks, Luella offered up this beautiful pale pink sixties-inspired number:


I can't talk about Spring 2010 and sorbet without touching on Christopher Kane's collection, although I can't say I'd want to look like I'm wearing a tablecloth no matter what label was sewn inside it. This one dress did stand out for me though as it mixed in one of my other favourite on-going trends of experimenting with underwear as outerwear and the connotations of sheer materials.



Also of note in my book are Calvin Klein, Tommy Hilfiger,Versace, Valentino, and one of my favourites Louise Goldin who all touched on candy colours for Spring. I just have to also mention this Dior dress because when I saw it my heart skipped a beat, it's just so perfectly romantic and again it touches on one of my favourite trends of experimenting with underwear as outerwear and the illusion sheer fabrics can create (plus blue is my favourite colour). I also can't get over the 1940's styling, without question my favourite time for hair and beauty. But let's face it, we're not all Lily Donaldson.


Candy colours were rife on catwalks across the globe but can the everyday woman pull them off with as much panache as the models? Seeing as I sadly didn't win the lottery this week, I've tried to find out what the high street brands have to offer me in place of high fashion labels.

Topshop Unique really surprised me this season, a far cry from the out-there shark prints and spaceship adorned zippers of last year, it really stepped up with some goregous wearable pieces. In particular I loved this pastel-print maxidress - I'm really feeling maxidresses for Spring for some reason (I'm 5ft4 though so I guess I'll be doing a lot of hemming). I really can't wait to get my hands on one. I love the laid-back styling and minimal make-up of the model juxtaposed with the pop of a bright pink lipstick; for me it's an all-round winner.

The colours of this dress kind of remind me of the relaunched Ray-Ban wayfarers from a couple years ago which are also a good, more cost-effective way of buying into this trend. I just can't decide between the turquoise or the pale pink, a fun twist on a classic.

Also for under one hundred pounds you can get yourself into a pair of Vivienne Westwood heels. I think this trend just won me over with these pale blue peep-toes. I already have the white pair of these Melissa jelly heels with the red heart on them and they are some of the most comfortable shoes I've ever worn so I'm really excited by these - in my favourite colour no less!


I'm not a big one for trends as they tend to come and go but I have seen some exciting things from this one. Perhaps I will be buying into it a little and incorporating it into my look, I mean who can argue with Vivienne Westwood? However I don't like changing everything up too much; classic will always be classic so why argue? A few modern twists here and there never go amiss just to keep things fresh and interesting of course but for the most part I'll be sticking to my tried and tested, largely colourless wardrobe. Which leads me on to one of my next discussions; nude tones are back in a big way and that really is a trend I can get on board with. More soon.

All catwalk photos from Style.com

Bonjour mes amis.

I am currently in the process of designing my own website which will hopefully be up and running soon. In the meantime I've decided to create this blog so that I can get writing and sharing my own love of fashion. I plan on discussing everything from high fashion to high street to music to models; hopefully you'll find something that interests you. I'll also be updating my own personal opinions and musings on everything in a seperate diary section for those that want to hear it - feel free to share your own opinions too, I'd love to hear them.

I love fashion but I a firm believer in the fact that style always comes first. You can buy fashion but you can't buy style. Although saying that I am really looking forward to seeing what all the designers have to offer up during fashion week. Don't get me wrong, I love high fashion as much as the next girl, I just think a healthy balance is in order. You need a coherent feel/look to get you through each season, something that flows. You need something that you can simply adapt slightly each season with a few key pieces without losing yourself completely and starting over from scratch on a whole new look & wardrobe every six months. I live my life by these rules and this blog will be no different. I'm only 20 years old but I like to think I've found what I like and what I'm comfortable in by now for the most part. I'll mainly be writing from an objective standpoint, but if you care to know what excites me from each new season please see the diary pieces.

I chose the name 'the sculpted heel' because I like to think of fashion as art and personally I cannot think of anything more beautiful than a sculpted, architectural heel. I should be updating this regularly (hopefully at least twice a day), but if that's just not quick enough for you please feel free to follow http://twitter.com/thesculptedheel for by-the-minute thoughts and updates.