September 2009 Archives

You may never have heard of Don Fisher but at some point you will have stepped foot into one of his stores and probably bought into his idea of All-American casual chic.

Don, who has died at the age of 81, founded Gap in 1969 with his wife Doris after a frustrating experience trying to exchange a pair of jeans that did not fit. They decided on the name to describe the 'Generation Gap' of post-war babies and their parents.

The first store in San Francisco sold Levi 501s and records to 12-25-year-olds. Gap crossed the Pond in 1987 when the first British store opened in London. Today, the company and its subsidiaries run more than 3,000 shops in 25 countries, and turned over more than $14bn last year.

We're not sure what Naomi Watts was thinking when she decided to wear this, but it couldn't be 'I look really good in this'.

The hair and make up seem flawless while the lace top may be working one of this season's key trends but the - and there is no other word for this - pantaloons look like she raided MC Hammer's wardrobe circa 1990.

Maybe she just needs to invest in a full-length mirror...

Designer collaborations seem to be like buses... you wait ages for one and then three come along at once.
Hot on the heels of yesterday's annoucement that Sonia Rykiel and H&M were teaming up, comes news that Topshop have signed Mark Fast to produce a collection which will be launched in February next year.
In case London Fashion Week passed you by in a blur, Mark was the designer who ruffled a few feathers - including his own stylist, who walked out - by featuring three size 12-14 models on the catwalk. Which should mean his signature skin-tight knits will be wearable by all body types.

I used to think it was just me who spends hours browsing online stores and fillling my basket before ditching everything at the checkout.
But it seems I am far from the only one binning the Balenciaga and chucking the Choos at the last minute (yes net-a-porter is my favourite site for virtual shopping.
New research reveals that customers love to window shop but 87% abandon their baskets before whipping out their credit cards.

Almost nine out of ten shoppers ditch their buys at the checkout and take all the pleasure from the browsing. Customers effectively use online baskets as a 'wish list', according to the findings from marketing company Amaze and the University of Glasgow.
Saves the buyers remorse afterwards.
Shame I can't do the same when I am actually in a real store...

We love it when designers team up with the high street as it means those dreams of wonderful fashion become that little more attainable.
The latest in a long line of collaborations is Sonia Rykiel and H&M.
The flame-haired doyenne of the Paris fashion scene is due to launch two collections for the store - the first will be a lingerie line that will be launched in December. As well as being sold in H&M stores, it will also be available in major Sonia Rykiel boutiques worldwide.
The lingerie collection will be followed by a knitwear collection for women and girls next February.
With Jimmy Choo launching their collaboration with the store in November, H&M might just be our new favourite place to shop.

Ok so the Inside Soap Awards aren't exactly the Met Ball when it comes to high fashion and yes black sequins are really flattering.
But was there really any need for all of these ladies to turn up wearing what looks to be exactly the same dress?

I'm guessing it's from Topshop too...

Believe it or not these guys are not off to some sort of fancy dress they are actually Dean and Dan Caten of DSquared2.
If that's how they dress themselves for Milan fashion Week one shudders to think how they dressed the models!

How cute is this?

The former MAC store in Liverpool's Metquarter is currently under conversion to become the city's first Jo Malone boutique and we can't tell you how excited we are about the whole thing.
And what better way to disguise the shop in the mean time than by turning it into one of Jo Malone's gorgeous packages. Brilliant
Store opens next month by the way!!!

She was THE face of the 1960s, the girl who changed the way we looked at fashion and models.
She was a supermodel even before the term existed. And after more than four decades in the business Twiggy, who incredibly is now 60, is still going strong.

Go and meet her today, she will be in Liverpool signing copies of her book Twiggy: A Life In Photographs at the M & S store in Church Street, from 3pm.

We get it that shoes have been getting ever-more ridiculous over the past 18 months but Miucca Prada has gone too far with this pair.
Modelled on the runway at Milan fashion week it looks like a surgical shoe has crashed into a chandelier. And what is stylish about that?