80's punk fashion still making an appearance...

Punk fashion and 80's trash bag dressing popped up a couple of seasons ago and I thought that like many a trend it would last approximately 5 minutes due to the difficulty of translating from catwalk to street. Seems I was wrong.

We all swore a few years ago that flouro, Ra Ra skirts and over sized tees were fashion statements that should remain in the collective memories of our wayward youth. But, like all era's in fashion, the 80's have been dragged from the "inspiration" closet, dusted off, revamped and relabelled as cool once more.

Agyness Dean in Henry Holland tee photo courtesy of UK Elle

Todays street fashion inspiration!

Love the knickerboxers and 80's cropped jacket combo. Memepunk wins my vote today from Wardrobe_remix :

Hair Apparent

About 18 months ago I had a bicycle accident that required surgery and has left a 5cm scar on my chin (Now very faint thanks to my brilliant doctor). Recently I needed to go for an independant review with another surgeon who asked me to provide closeup photos of my face before and after the accident.


This lead to a gigantic search through old photos and the inevitable trip down memory lane. But the most interesting things about fossicking through these photos was the unbelievable amount of hairstyles I have had over the past year. I have been everything from bardot style blond to Mai Farrow'esq pixie cut in rich dark brown. Recently I had a brief fling with Ronald McDonald red and am now sporting a glossy chocolate brown Louise Brooks style bob - although my husband said I looked a bit like Suri Cruise yesterday (how does he even know who Suri Cruise is?). The only thing I haven't experimented with is hair extensions, although if I am to believe husband and indeed do have the hair stye of a 2 year old I may just look into it.


Truth is though, I adore change. Well, changing my hair anyway...I love creating new looks and trying out different colours. I consider it part of my overall fashion addiction. Fashion changes and evolves constantly - why can't my hairstyles do the same - Plus, I get bored easily!


Reading an article in the latest issue of fashion magazine Russh (Hair Raising Stories pg, 90) today though, I am wondering whether my constant desire to change my do might actually be some way of dealing with a deep seated inner turmoil that I'm unaware of. Apparently, many woman dramatically change their hairstyles after massive life changing events occur in their lives - breakups/divorces, pregnancies, illnesses and the like.


Although I have definitely had the odd emotional hairdo makeover - in particular the breakup cut - I'm pretty sure my frequent hair affair has more to do with my creative streak/fashion fixation than any deep seated emotional issues.

Which reminds me....I must book in for my next appointment

From This....



To This...














then this
now this...

Chic Eco Warriors

Speaking of great blogs, this morning I have been over at Fashion Salad, a totally up to date guide of all things fashion including "news about models, textiles, designers, magazines, and more!". It's a great reference guide and very well written with excellent product reviews - unfortunately, it's U.S based so some of the info is not relevant and a few of the products reviewed aren't available over here in Australia - but hey, you can always order over the web!

A few days ago Fashion Salad did a review of a new book recently launched called " Green Chic: Saving the the Earth in Style by Christie Matheson. Green Chic "dispels the myth that going green and staying fashion forward don’t go hand in hand". The book offers dozens of author-tested, earth-friendly ideas to help save our precious planet.

I'm thrilled that there are now a plethora of books on this topic. The global fashion industry has been a contributor to environmental issues for a very long time now and books such as these help give perspective and highlight realistic ways that all of us can help make a difference - including the fashion obsessed!

Now, I can't seem to find a copy on my beloved Dymocks online store at present, but the ever resourceful Amazon came up with the goods! And at US$12.95 + shipping, it's a bargain!
Oh, and the book is printed on 100% recycled paper.
x

Fashion Blogs Galore

I love a great blog. I can waste hours trawling my fave fashion blogs (and stumbling across new ones in the process). Blogs are a great source of information, inspiration and motivation. In fact, I generally start my working day by hitting some of my top blogs before working on a new post of my own. If there is something interesting or fabulous that's really caught my eye then I'll blog on it to (often using a different angle or expanding on their info) and then link my post back to their blog - giving readers a new path to travel with more ideas, info and insights. It's one of the great things about the blogging community...endless information on related topics by people with a real passion and interest in the subject matter - it makes for some very good reading!

Today trawls includes:

Sassybella - Helen Lee's exceptional fashion online mag/blog talks Vogue covers: Kate Moss & Natalie Vordinova.

Gala Darling - Gala's blog is fashion, beauty and life's daily musings - she's eloquent and exceptional...and only Gala could pull off purple eyebrows and still look gorgeous!

Silk Charm - I went to a Women in Business seminar last year to hear Laurel speak about Internet marketing - she is a whiz! Always lots of interesting and useful business advice.

EVintage Society Vintage or Bust Such a useful site for all you vintage frock fashionista's. currently discussing vintage kiddies clothes - cute

Chic Closet Fashion lover with great style...I always pop in to see what she's wearing!

FaceHunter more street fashion style from London. Always great photo's!

Picture courtesy of Face Hunter

The wonderful world of Wardrobe Remix

I know I've mentioned this website in the past, but for anyone who loves to look at street style fashion, Wardrobe Remix from the Yahoo photo sharing site Flickr really is one of the best voyeur's views on the web. With around 7500 members and literally 100's of people posting their fab outfits everyday, it's a great source inspiration. The site is described as a "DIY street fashion community" and the rules state that there can be "no professional or model shots and photos must be full-body shots that show off an entire outfit". Also, no one is allowed to rate others clothing either so it has a nice, supportive kind of feel to it and a real community atmoshpere.

Best of all are the high number of extremely stylish young women who are wearing vintage and mixing it with high street brands with amazing results. They wear their charity shop finds like a badge of honour and know how to rock an eBay dress. It's refreshing to see so many consistently fab vintage outfits and that people take the time each day to dress with such care - Glamming up with their own individual style.
I love it!

My two fave photo's for today - courtesy Wardrobe Remix

twinsets and pearls for the girls

Donna Karen Spring 2008

It's good to be home!

The weather in Sydney has turned down a notch I see. Autumn has arrived. I always lament the end of summer as I don't have great circulation and my hands and feet go numb from about May until September when they begin to thaw out again.

I do, however, love a change of season in fashion terms. I'm always excited (regardless of the season) to see new season trends emerge and winter is no exception. In fact, winter tends to offer more diversity than summer as there is more layering involved and many more great accessories can be added - hat's, gloves, scarves...

The upside of my recent marathon of long haul flights has been the indulgent over consumption of fashion magazines (actually, that's par for the course even when grounded). Pouring over the recent European collections and what's going on in NewYork in French & US Vogue mags...I'm thrilled to see a retro love affair still going strong with no apparent end in sight. Looks like twinsets, capri pants, full skirts and a 1950's rockabilly revolution are on the agenda right through until next summer!

Personally, I've always been a cardi girl. A belted, brightly coloured cardi over a lace cami and worn with a full skirt has been a fall back uniform for me for many years. It's timeless.

Although the 50's have been a favourite with the fashion set for a while now (season's in fact) - Particularly the grunge take on it (thanks to the Amy Winehouse and Lilly Allen's of this world) - It looks like collared cashmere cardi's, button through dresses and big belts to make a waist look tiny are here to stay. Thank you God. So much more flattering than a mini skirt or skin tight jeans!

Rockabilly is a fave too but one I've not really mastered in the past (my jean phobia). Rockabilly fashion typically consists of cigarette pants or jeans (rolled up at the cuff) coupled with pastel colored bowling or "Daddy-O" style shirts. A baggy coat and brogues or wing tip shoes (preferably in black & white) complete the look. Cool bouffed hairstyles, bat winged eyeliner and ruby red lips are also a must!

Viva Japan!

I honestly (read: naively) thought that this holiday would see me being a (relaxed) tourist by day and then each evening, with pre-dinner cocktail in hand, I could blog about all the amazing things (fashion, food and people) that we have had the good fortune to stumble over each day in our travels (like the rambling, lost tourists that we are).

Well, that was just plain fantasy! Not the amazing finds of course, but the lounging around definitely. Being a tourist has in fact been a little exhausting - completely thrilling, but exhausting nonetheless - particularly here in Japan. Kyoto has seen us out of the hotel lobby by 10.30am and not back until early evening. And although I've definitely found time for the pre-dinner drink, I've been too exhausted to blog!

So, at the risk of looking like a tourism blog, I shall post some more holidays snaps...with the promise that come Thursday, upon my return to reality and indeed Sydney, I shall get back to my bedrock of (vintage) fashion.

Update!

After a few days of R&R in lovely Macau we are back on the main land in Hong Kong. The reason being, we have combined our honeymoon with business that my husband frequently has in HK. So while he is off teaching people how to be leaders, I'm shopping...it's the perfect arrangment (I'm sure he feels the same way...) - I get to stake out fashion and shop while he earns money for us!

Our real holiday together (the one where it won't be quite so easy for me to go nuts buying local fashion as I will be under constant surviellance) ,apart from the Macua excersion of course, starts in a couple of days when we head to Kyoto and then Tokyo. I've very excited about Japan as I've always been a fan of the crazy street styles and eclectic mix of colour and tends thrown together. For some reason, it doesn't seem to matter how ridiculous the outfit, those tiny doll-like Japanese girls always seem to look amazing.

A great website to check out exactly what I'm talking about is the Japanese street style web site Style Arena. It's "Quirk" central and inspirational for fashion left fielders with hundred's of shots from the Harajuka district, Shimbuya and Ginza to name a few.

Meanwhile, I have another three days here in HK so I think I'll head off to Whampoa now.

To a place called "Fashion World"...

Some Holiday Happy Snaps...

Hong Kong fashion is definitely a little quirky...yet there is something also quite conservative about it. I kind of expected to see alot more frills and Hello Kitty embellishments, yet the most outlandish thing I have come across so far is the coloured/footless tights and short combo and some seriously bleached and coiffed hairdo's.. Particularly on some of the boys...

My guess is that I will truly find my "crazy fashion" Babylon when I hit Japan later this week. Luckily, I did find - after a couple of days in no-mans land (and some rather depressing, enormous, overpriced shopping mall) where the local designer's spruik their wares.

Granville Road in Tsim Sha Tsui seems to be where all the cute little local fashion boutiques are and (thank you God) they are in fact not terribly expensive. I have managed to score some rather fabulous dresses (I will post pics later) at about $25.00AU a piece (on sale!). And joy! I have also found some local Vintage stores - although these seems to be more of an oasis for the secondhand Levi's jean lover that the vintage frocks that I covet so!

Anyway, I've posted a few snaps below of HK and a few of the island of Macau (near HK) where we are currently visiting:

Hong Kong island is an extraordinary site (literally)...the extent of the construction is crazy and quite surreal

Macua is also the gambling capital of China. It's like a mini Vegas

Vintage clothing stores are hard to find in HK...but I have a good nose!

The fashion is a little conservative but hey, if you've got good legs...

Self portraits abound...boredom on ferries and planes leads to lots of happy snaps

local fashionista's

O.K, not a great shot- but I love the pink legging and cargo shorts combo - Should come with a cautionary "don't try this at home" label I think...

Hong Kong Confusion!

Hong Kong is definitely a vibrant, bustling city and a shoppers paradise but I have discovered it is also an enormous labyrinth of look-alike shopping mall's, crazy motorists zooming along one ways streets, overcrowded walkways and skyscrapers blocking out any view of the skyline!

I know this sounds a little bit like I'm complaining...but I'm actually not. Yes, I like a quieter, prettier city with less pollution for sure, but I'm also thrilled by the neon brilliance that is Hong Kong. It's definitely a little smeller than I prefer - but then I'm spoiled by living in Sydney where we are all preoccupied with clean air and an outdoorsy life style.

No, I like Hong Kong for it's overcrowded streets where double-decker buses and trams abound, with people rushing about in all directions and a million taxi's honking their horns. Food vendors occupy every corner and then some, selling everything form weird and wonderful asian delacacies to spaghetti and beef burgers.

And, although I'm not a huge fan of shopping centre's, mall's and shiny high-end designer boutiques (Hey, I love vintage - what can I say?!), I'm still having a blast getting lost in the labyrinth that is downtown Hong Kong!

Oh, and the quirky street fashion is a bonus too!

A perfect day for a wedding

I'm in Hong Kong at the moment, lounging around in a lovely hotel right in the middle of vibrant Kowloon (I've spent the entire day shopping and eating - my two favorite past times!). My wireless connection is slightly dodgy but I thought I should post a wedding pic.

We had a perfect day and I managed to end up with the perfect dress thanks to my lovely and talented friend Tamara from "Venus in Furs" in Camperdown. If you are in need of a couture frock or just a cute party dress, she is genius!

The Botanical gardens was an amazing venue and the weather behaved itself admirably! Just a few drops later in the evening.

The only downside to the day was that it was all over too quickly!