Guilt-free shopping - yes please

F@*k the charity muggers, environmental charity Earthwatch has joined forces with eco retailer MyGreenerFamily.com to raise funds for work in climate change, meaning that you can donate by shopping for ethically-made clothing - much more appealing than being guilt-tripped by a student.

The initiative will see 10% of sales from the company’s UK and US sites donated to Earthwatch, with customers able to track how their donations are benefiting the environment via regular updates on the charity’s climate change research projects. The first feature will focus on the Earthwatch Tidal Forests of Kenya project, where it says that the planting of mangrove forests is helping to turn the tide against climate change and coastal erosion.

John Surie, from MyGreenerFamily.com said: "By teaming up with Earthwatch, we're breaking the high street mould, which is stuck in a helter skelter of sales and promotions. Our consumers are already green conscious, so we believe a real investment in protecting the planet gives a better return than the offer of permanent discount."

These cute t-shirts, the result of a collaboration between top fashion designers and the Environmental Justice Foundation, are made with organic cotton and are my favourite pieces on the site. They're also reduced from £39.99 to £24.99. Sweet.

A bird in the cush...

Charity shop find of the month, these three bird print velvet cushion covers were just £1.69 - that's in total! They're from Mind, which often stocks M&S seconds and samples so this may be were they were originally destined for - to be sold on at a significantly higher price. Unfortunately these feathery friends can't fly away from the cat, so I'm keeping the old black covers to give the birds a break from time to time. Long black cat hairs do not a low-maintenance home make.


P.S. Apologies for the terrible pun, consider me punished...

Pixie for Lipsy launch day

Yesterday Pixie Lott officially launched her debut fashion range for Lipsy and I went to cover the in-store event at Bluewater and the party at Movida for the Lipsy blog.

The full reports are on the blog (links above) but here are my two favourite shots from the day. The first shows Pixie patiently posing for the photographers' scrum and the second her freinds and family going wild as she nears the end of her set. She sung a medley of The Strokes, The Killers and Ce Ce Penistone songs as well as her hits 'Cry Me Out' and 'Mama Do' and really does have an incredibly strong and soulful voice.



Pixie's range is made up of two collections - Festival and Party - and includes some lovely white sun dresses, denim pieces and a very wearable maxi dress.



Click on images to enlarge.

Behind the lens - Lucie Evans

Photographer Lucie Evans talks about her favourite image:

This was a collaboration between myself and three of my close friends. We'd wanted to do a photo-shoot together for years and the magic happened on the remains of a demolished chemical waste plant in October 2009.

The catalyst for the concept was artist Miss Pybis's Japanese-influenced illustations. Prop-maker Kevin Thornton made the prosthetic tumors and boils and applied the make up and Kirsty Conroy styled the shoot.

The theme is based on two Geisha's that have survived a nuclear explosion and are existing within the beauty of their traditional costume. The characters are our interpretation of the Geisha, but through our vision of a post apocalyptic world where cosmetic beauty is juxtaposed with grotesque facial deformities and a derelict radio active landscape.

Links:
www.lucieevans.com
www.myspace.com/misspybis
www.flickr.com/photos/thorntonprops

How to dress, by Lands' End and Boden

Knowing how to dress to suit your shape and age does wonders for your self-confidence. But I can't be alone in my terror of Gok 'scissor-hands' Wan and Trinny and Suzanna's matronly barking. Refreshingly, two catalogue-turned-online retailers have each taken a unique approach to accessible style advice, without a crazed 'fashionista' in sight.

Earlier this month the American arm of Lands' End published results of a survey of more than 1,000 women, in which 83% confessed to having worn the wrong size swimwear. Over half (54%) said that they had bought bottoms too big hoping for more coverage and 34% a suit too small because the style wasn't available in their size, going some way to explaining the high number who had experienced "saggy bottoms" (65%), "cleavage overflow" (58%) and a "muffin top" (54%).

Seven out of 10 of those surveyed believed that the biggest mistake women made when buying swimwear was choosing the wrong style for their shape. To address this, the retailer has categorised its own swimwear offering with a handy body shape key. Items marked with an inverted triangle will, apparently, "balance or minimise the bust", rectangle will "create curves", triangle "balance hips and thighs", circle "define waist" and star will "suit all figures".

Boden has also gone the extra mile to give its customers the best chance of getting it 'right', offering editorial examples of how to wear Boden in your 20s, 30s, 40s and 50s. These photo-shoots use real Boden staff, making the styling even more accessible. Although I'm not sure what you're supposed to wear if you're 60 plus...

In an industry dominated by fast-fashion and disposable trends, these two retailers are sticking to their guns, helping their mature customers invest in clothes that they will wear, and wear, and wear.... Lands' End even honour a 'send it back for any reason' pledge, with Facebook fans saying that the company has replaced swimwear that had gone see-through and a skirt that had been ruined by chewing gum on a church pew. Now that's what I call customer service.

Brighton Frocks - Brighton Fashion Week

Brighton Fashion Week, or 'Brighton Frocks', will return for its sixth year in June, transforming some of the city's top venues into catwalks and fashion emporiums.

The week's catwalk shows, running from 9 till 13 June, will include couture and graduate collections, and Jez Eaton's Trashion Show will premiere the recycled designs that have received such great reviews across Europe. The week will also feature an exhibition for up-and-coming designers, fashion installations, free workshops and talks, competitions and shopping discounts, as well as a fair few champagne parties.

Venue details have yet to be announced but the Corn Exchange, the Clarence Suite at the Brighton Hilton Metropole Hotel and St Michael's Church have all be rumoured as possible locations.

In the run-up to the event, scouts will be trawling the streets of Brighton for models to appear in the catwalk shows. And from small beginnings come great things: Two of the girls chosen to appear in last year's show have since been signed by Storm modelling agency.

Kelly Knox, winner of BBC3's 'Britain’s Missing Top Model', in which eight disabled women battled it out to win a contract with a top modelling agency, will also take to the catwalk in the Couture Show.

Organiser of Brighton Frocks, Liz Bishop said: "Brighton Fashion Week 2010 will be bigger, better and brighter, attracting designers and visitors from all over the UK and beyond. Brighton is the perfect place to stage such an event as it’s vibrant, edgy and not afraid to be a bit different, and the week will definitely reflect this.

"Every year the event has grown and grown, and this year we’re hoping to attract big name sponsors who can ensure that we can keep staging the innovative catwalk shows and fashion-related events that we are renowned for."

Image credit: Jez Eaton

Behind the lens - Louise Haywood-Schiefer

In the first of a new series in which photographers explain the stories behind their favourite shots, Louise Haywood-Schiefer tells of a band under pressure.

I took this image of Diagonal frontman Alex Crispin two years ago at Toe-Rag recording studios, where the band were recording their first album.

The studio was amazing; all kitted out with vintage amps and tiny artefacts left as evidence of all the great artists who had recorded there.

I'd been asked to document them during the recording, but couldn’t help spending a great portion of the day photographing the interior and collecting shots of the wonderful memorabilia and instruments, dotted around the place.

After focusing my attention back to the band, I realised the recording wasn’t going so great at this point. It was getting late, and they only had one more day to finish the album.

I took this shot of Alex as they were going for another break to try and clear their heads. I like that his expression conveys how tired and under pressure they all were, and because I was only using the ambient light, it turned into a really moody shot.

Festival capsule wardrobe - H&M Fashion Against Aids

I'm not going to a festival this summer - too much mud for me - but if I were, this is what I'd pack. It's all from the fantastic H&M Fashion Against Aids collection which launches 20 May. Some 25% of sales from the range will be donated to youth HIV/AIDS awareness projects, which makes this near guilt-free shopping!

The prices are in the usual reasonable H&M range, meaning that I could - in theory - buy all of these pieces. But if I had to reign in my greed and choose three essential items, it'd have to be the maxi dress, tribal sandals and Art Deco chair.

Brightonians, the range will be available in the Churchill Square branch - although we'll only know nearer the time which exact items will be stocked.Image credit:H&M Fashion Against Aids collection

City beach chic

I'm not a great fan of 'urban clothing' - its often just not pretty enough - but after writing about Misticon's clever marketing tie-in with the Outnet Sale Fail last week I've been perusing their online offering with some glee.

The brand was founded by pro snowboarder and model Charlotte Dutton and describes itself as and "urban lifestyle brand inspired by the mountains and beaches of London". Indeed the limited edition (no more than 100 items are produced in each style) vest tops, tunics, sun dresses and hoodies are fit for the city as well as the beach - I expect Misticon is a big hit with the Cornish surfing crowds.

As well as its own range, Misticon.com recently began stocking other items from the cream of British street wear designers and there are some great original pieces on offer. My favourites, and the ones I can actually see myself wearing, are Bantum's 'At It Like Rabbits' vest dress (£34.99) and Marmalade Ho's off-the-shoulder slouchy 'Bang Bang Bunny' dress (£39.99).

The site also stocks one of my favourite quirky jewellery brands Rock N Retro and I'm loving their flamingo cameo necklace at the minute - Florida kitsch at it's best.

So in summary, Misticon = one to check out even if you've never been on a surf or skate board in your life.'Bang Bang Bunny' dress
'At It Like Rabbits' vest dress

The bar is now open

Irish and I have been looking for a ridiculous Seventies' bar for a while now having ummed and ahhed about one on Gumtree last year, eventually conceding that we didn't have the money or space. Last week, however, I found the next best thing in a charity shop around the corner from us for just £35. The Schreiber bureau/side-board has a fab drop-down table just perfect for preparing the odd tipple and inner units begging to be filled with kitsch nonsense. I'm well aware that many people will think that the 'bar' is the ugliest thing in the world, but I love it.

Brighton's Handmade Co-operative shop

In last month's interview, jewellery designer Misha Brigemohane told me that Brighton Handmade Co-operative were setting up shop on St James's Street.

As of today, said shop is open for business and is full of wonderful unique crafts, from pins to pants, at very reasonable prices. Items range from just 50p to £50 - suck on that Cath Kidston!

The Co-operative was founded when Kirsten Stride started running craft fairs at the Komedia once a month, attracting 22 designers selling their wares. The artists now all rent space in the former sweet-shop, owned by a friend of Kristen's, volunteer their time as shopkeepers and take away 100% profit from the sale of their goods. A 'lovely' concept, as a sign in the window points out.

My favourite items in the shop are the vintage material cushions, retro-patterened underwear and a gorgeous black lace and white pleated skirt dress - only £35! Next pay day, it will be mine.

The shop is the perfect place to pick up a little something different for a gift, or just a treat for yourself and there are some fab homewares with which to make your place unique.

Visit the co-op's blog here and pop in for a peak if you're up that way - I have a feeling I'm going to be making many more trips to Kemp Town in my lunch-breaks...








There are a couple of stalls and wall space still available to rent in the shop. E-mail handmade.co@hotmail.com if you're interested.

Misticon – the unlikely winner of the Outnet £1 Sale

Urban clothing company Misticon capitalised on the frustration of thousands of fashion fans who failed to buy anything in The Outnet’s £1 birthday event on Friday by responding with their own no-barrier-entry sale.

Designer discount site The Outnet celebrated it’s first birthday by holding a £1 sale for those who had RSVPd to the event, keeping the start time a secret. However, when the sale opened at 7.24am, The Outnet said that it “did not anticipate the speed in which shoppers would come to the site” and thousands of fashionistas were left disappointed as the server crashed during several stages of transaction.

‘#outnetfail’ soon became a popular Twitter trending topic and a clever marketing tactic quickly turned into somewhat of a PR disaster.
Seeing the response, and feeling personally frustrated with the site, Misticon decided to put one of their own items up for £1 to attract attention from the quickly-formed ‘Outnet Outrage’ community, and found the response so positive that they added four more styles.

“I originally put that one item up thinking it might stoke up the odd order with our regular customer who would feel a bit better - we know it's not the same as that yummy McQueen dress - but after seeing all the hits and having a Guardian journalist write about us I pushed the boat out and for one day only thought ‘why the hell not’”, explained Misticon’s marketing manager Hannah Newman.

“We reduced five styles in total - no duds, all stuff that's been in the press and sold well - and soon had orders flooding in from across the globe.”

The campaign, which Mistion promoted via Twitter, Facebook and which was picked up by guardian.co.uk in an article comment, resulted in the highest earning day in the history of the company.

“We've built our database, engaged new customers and help turn some people’s days from bad to good,” said Hannah.

Crystal Palace - a day with the dinosaurs

Last Saturday, on the first properly warm day of spring, I took a trip up to Crystal Palace to visit a friend. I knew nothing about the area, apart from the fact that they had a football team, and it was very apparent that I was travelling in the opposite direction to the vast majority of people changing at Three Bridges.

In fact, on seeing my ticket, the train conductor (is that what they're called or is the term archaic?) exclaimed "you're going to Crystal Palace! We don't get many people from your parts going up there." This made me a little worried as to why not - "what's wrong with it? I asked. But, as I found soon found out for myself, absolutely nothing: It's a lovely area and all the better for being kept somewhat of a secret from the hordes of tourists the summer is likely to bring to London's greener localities.

Being self-contained, the south-London area felt a little like a village - and a pretty cool village at that: One with a fair few vintage flea markets, charity shops, nice cafes and beer-garden boasting pubs and a view over the South Bank.

And then there are the 'royal grounds'. While only the foundations of the Crystal Palace now remain, after numerous fires gutted the glass and iron structure, in the 1800s the building played host to the seminal Great Exhibition of the industrial revolution I learnt so much about in Economics lectures. The grounds of the palace now form a vast public park complete with an interesting steel stage structure, pond, children's play areas, waterfalls and impressive dinosaur sculptures.

The beasts, unveiled in 1854, were the first dinosaur sculptures in the world, pre-dating the publication of Charles Darwin's Origin of Species by six years. Because of the limited knowledge scientists had of the creatures at the time, the models are now known to be somewhat inaccurate but nonetheless, good guess work guys!

According to my friend, rent-prices in CP are pretty reasonable by London standards but the creation of a tube-line, to be built in time for the Olympics, is likely to push them up and increase travel into the area.

But, until the mentalness of 2012 is upon us, I'm going to make the most of my lovely London discovery and am already planning a picnic in the park with Irish nearer the summer.

Click on images to enlarge.

Dress date

Speed dating with the week’s dress date

How would you describe yourself?

I’d say I was a mix between Grace Kelly chic and brazen Eighties-prom beauty.

Who is your style hero?

Grace Kelly – I’ve loved seeing her style re-incarnated trough Mad Men’s Betty Draper over the past couple of years. I can’t wait to take a trip to the V & A to see her wardrobe exhibited from 17 April.

What do you consider your best features?

My light, summer material and the bow detail on my back: It’s cute, pretty and a little bit different – sums me up really.

What would you change about yourself if you could?

My silver bow belt: I love bow details but I think this makes me look a little tacky.

What would be your perfect date?

I love garden parties, but if it was one on one then it’d have to be a picnic, complete with wicker hamper, champagne, strawberries and delicate finger food that we could feed each other.

Where are you spending most of your time at the minute?

I’m getting ready for summer at a beautiful River Island location.

“I just want to be wonderful”

Laura Nixon spends much of her working life performing for men, wearing corsets and posing in the nude. It’s not your average nine-to-five. But then it’s not your average woman who transforms herself into a Fifties’ sex bomb at the age of 16.

After seeing a Marilyn Monroe impersonator at one of her favourite Brighton jazz clubs, Laura began to study the way she performed, her make-up and her costumes, and soon came to realise that she could do it all herself. She now gets paid more than she is willing to divulge to appear as the blonde icon at corporate events.

“No one ever told me I looked like Marilyn and it took months for me to learn how to imitate her,” Laura says. “But once I had everything perfect I took to the stage.

“When I had her down I signed up with every London lookalike agent and started getting work straight away. Never in a million years did I think that I would be a Marilyn Monroe lookalike for a living but I had nothing to lose and just threw myself into it.”

While Laura spends most of her life as the bubbly blonde, she admits that Marilyn wasn’t a particular idol of hers: “I always thought she was great and very beautiful, but I still find it strange that I am a lookalike of her. I think she continues to appeal to people because of her unique mixture of innocence and smoking hot sexiness.

“Also, in the Forties and Fifties women looked like women, and men looked like men.”

From Peterborough to Portugal

Laura’s first gig was for car maker Chrysler in Peterborough six years ago - “I sat on the bonnet of a sports car for three hours and had my photo taken my hundreds of people” – and since then her work has taken her to the more exotic locations of Seattle, Bulgaria and Portugal, although the majority of her work is in London.

“I travel by train to wherever I am performing, get a cab to my hotel, change into Marilyn and then get picked up and taken to the event,” she explains.

“I do a 30-minute cabaret performance singing all of her songs and always end up surrounded by the big shots: Men bend over backwards just to make Marilyn smile at them.”

However, some have been known to get a little too excited by ‘Marilyn’: “I got offered £3,000 to have sex with a business man in my hotel room,” says Laura. “I gave him a kiss on the cheek and took £50.”

Although finding it difficult to pick out a favourite gig, Laura plumps for the time she sung live on Bulgarian TV - “I stayed in the penthouse suit in the Hilton and got driven everywhere in a limo” - and says that the most interesting person she’s met through her work was another lookalike: “The Frank Sinatra I met was amazing.”

Model image
As well as making a living through Marilyn, Laura also works as herself, modelling for fashion shoots and nude art, yet says that her alter-ego also plays a part in this.

“I was very awkward with myself as a child but Marilyn helped me realise my own unique beauty and I feel very comfortable naked,” she explains.

“I love my body and I’m very proud of my nude photos because I know one day I won’t look like that anymore. When I’m naked, I feel like a woman.

Laura recently died her peroxide blonde hair red to match the electric guitar she was using for a shoot, realising a childhood dream of “being a red-haired rock star.”

It remains to be seen how long her locks will stay this colour, after all Marilyn never strayed from her trademark blonde, and Laura is keen to keep making a living “doing what she loves”. But the recent change of image makes it clear that Marilyn doesn’t own Laura. Rather it’s Laura that calls the shots in this relationship.

To find out more about Laura and to hire Marilyn for events, visit www.lauranixon.co.uk
IMAGES: 1 & 2 Ridge Photography 3 & 4 Sam Eddison

Clothes Show London 2010

After living it up at London Fashion Weekend in February I've my eyes open for similar events and managed to bag myself a press pass to Clothes Show London at Earls Court in June. Billed as a "spectacular fashion showcase", the event features a 45-minute show at a 2,500-seat Fashion Theatre, a host of 'celeb and expert' appearances and shopping at hundreds of pop-up boutiques.

Also advertised, the Style Stage will host hair and beauty demonstrations, spring/summer presentations and autumn/winter trend reports, several eating and drinking outlets will provide refreshments for the fashion-hungry masses and a Carnaby Street area will celebrate 50 years of the famous London Street.

As the place to be seen in the Sixties and Seventies, the latter appeals to my fashion leanings, especially as I haven't been able to make it to the exhibition on the history of the fashion hub that's been running in a pop-up museum on the street since February.

So apart from the latter, the event sounds pretty much like London Fashion Weekend. However, I was told by a friend who last year went to the Clothes Show Live in Birmingham that the focus was less high-fashion and more teenage high-street. "Expect a good sprinkling of Hollyoaks faces", she said, adding that the show bags were pretty poor.

I'm hoping that the calibre of fashion, celebs and shopping in the capital will be a little higher than that described from her "disappointing" experience and am pretty optimistic that it will be.

Has anyone been to Clothes Show London? If so, I'd be keen to hear of your experiences...

A Bank Holiday hangover cure

After what had been a rather drunken Bank Holiday weekend – gigs, old friends, falling over – Irish and I thought it was about time we extracted our backsides from the sofa and away from the constant repeats of American Idol. So we headed off for a wholesome trip at the grandly named Hove Lagoon.

The Lagoon, in reality a small sailing lake between Brighton’s West Pier and Shoreham’s industrial works, is the preserve of young middle-class families. The dress code reads: Cath Kidston bag slung over the handles of a top-of-the-range pushchair: Small child with bike, scooter or similar erratically-ridden mini-vehicle: Overly-excitable dog optional.

Until recently I couldn’t imagine anything scarier or less-me than being a mother, but I’ve slowly been coming round to the idea of having children…one day. Perhaps because I’ve finally met a man who I think would be an excellent dad. But I’m still prone to veer from one way of thinking to the other, and did about twenty times during the trip to ‘this could be your future’ lagoon.

Cute, giggling child – yes, I’d like one of those please. Screaming, tantruming child – nah, you’re alright thanks. By the time we got to the lagoon, I’d decided that I could plump for a dog.

VBites

The café at the lagoon was re-opened by Heather Mills as vegan eatery VBites last July, and whatever you think of her – in my case not too much – is a great success. For its target audience it’s bang on the money, serving healthy and affordable food with a conveyer-belt full of ‘scrummy’ cakes – ooo, naughty!

The décor is fresh and comfortable with plenty of seating at the bar, tables and benches and the turn-over is high. This is a fast-food café in the pure sense of the term and despite our reservations about the slightly robotic 'smile-fixed-into-place but head-in-the-clouds' waitress, we didn’t have to drool over our neighbours' fajitas for too long before our own grub turned up.

Irish’s smoky vegan hot dog with homemade salsa and guacamole was delicious and surprisingly ‘meaty’, my falafel pitta with mixed leaves was also suitably filling, albeit a little dry, and baked oven chips helped fill the remaining hole.

On our way back we stopped off for an ice-cream at Marocco’s Italian sea-front café – along with everyone else in Brighton and Hove – and even managed to avoid the lure of a late afternoon pint. How middle class are we…

One to watch: Shoe designer Gemma Jayne Hanley

At just 26, twenty years after she designed her first pair of shoes, Gemma Jayne Hanley's architectural designs have already been picked for exclusive London boutiques, snapped up in high-street chains and strutted down the catwalk at top designer shows. With all angles covered, she's well on her way to fashion-world domination.

When did your interest in shoe design start?

I have always wanted to design; it is how I naturally think I am constantly evolving and creating things. Shoes became the focus at around 12 when I discovered how amazing they could make you feel, when my grandmother bought me my first expensive ‘grown up’ heels.

How old were you when you designed your first pair of shoes?

About six, they were for my Barbie and fabulous: Does that count?

How did you get into shoe design as a career?

Shoe design was a natural progression for me as design has always been my strength and fashion my love. After focusing on Art, Product Design and Maths at A level, I continued on to an Art Foundation course. On which I was allowed the time to build up a knowledge base and portfolio which lead me to enroll on a BA at the footwear specialist college Cordwainers in London.
How much training and experience was required to get you to where you are today?

My BA was a four-year sandwich course, with one year in industry and I did three years post BA work experience.

Describe an average day when you're working on a collection.

Every day is different depending on which stage of the collection you are at. Today we are focusing on next season’s mood, so research, research, research. Last week I was in Italy picking the leathers. Next week I might be at the factory sorting the sample and in-between drawing the collection.

What inspires your shoe design?

Life - buildings, music, pop cultural, history.

What materials do you use to make your shoes?

This depends on the season but timeless favorites of mine are wood, natural looking materials juxtaposed harder more modern materials

Who have you designed shoes for?

I have designed for a range people, including Henry Holland, New Look and boutiques in East London.

What are you ambitions?

Career wise; to build 'Gemma Jayne Hanley' as a successful brand as well as consultant for other brands. Life wise; to live a long happy life full of laughter and adventures.

To you plan to branch out to design clothing or accessories in the future?

I am obsessed with clothing but do not have the knowledge to design it, although I would like to direct looks. I would love to designs accessories as well; I hope 'Gemma Jayne Hanley' will be an accessories/shoes company. Bags, small leather good, sunnies the lot.

Whose shoe design do you admire?

Pierre Hardy – I love modern architectural shoes.

What type of shoes do you wear on a daily basis?

Depends on the day, I am a fan of the flats but then you can never fake the confidence the heel gives you.

How many pairs of shoes do you own?

Too many – I am refuse to count.

Where do you go shoe shopping?

Anywhere and everywhere: I have £1 shoes from flee market and I have £500 shoes for Harvey Nicholas.

Do you have any tips for people who find it difficult and uncomfortable to wear high heels?

Wear them for an hour a night each night before you wear them out and about.

What tips would you offer budding shoe and fashion designers?

Watch, draw and learn.

Gemma Jayne Hanley is a Footwear Designer at Shubiz.