Amongst all the doom and gloom of seasonal sickness and colds as well as grey weather and economic future clouded with doubt, the real heroes that I am looking towards are the fashion bloggers spotted on the streets amongst the frenzy of fashion weeks around many nations and the injection of bright palets and neon into their wardrobes. However I mus warn you that I have been deathly sick for the last two weeks or so, and I've also been cramming this entire afternoon in some feeble attempt to enjoy myself tomorrow and maybe hit the town and get a life for myself. Any life be it on the Internet or in a book is better than having my head in the books and trying to annottate several online video tutorials of Chemistry, Biology and Geosciences.
An admirable quality of neon is that you can match the same tones of colours easily, blend it in with neutral colours of be balls out bombastic and have tribal matterns mixed in a whirlwind of colour. There are many wonderful outfits of effortless street style that are making my mouth water and dream of wonderful possibilities- unfortunately there arent any neon pieces within my wardrobe to imitate suich emaculte styles and colours! For all the sheen materials of the trousers and pants, as well as the bright vinyl yellow belt with pink I think the solid gold watch slung loosely around the wrist is what really opened to the grace of neon- it's not something cheap and nasty only reserved for the lowliest of chain stores in an attempt to revive an 1980s favourite. It can also be integrated into an outfit in varying levels of intensioty provided you have the ability to envision an outfit in its entirety before pulling on your best stitches.
New Zealand clothing label Stolen Girlfriends Club has had me longing over a denim/ leather combination jacket for a while now and to see something of that ilk married with a pleated skirt in the perfect length and in amazing shade of coral really does have me salivating! I am a firm believer in mixing what's borderline punk and tough with feminine things such as the notorious use of creepers shoes from brands such as TUK and Underground in pretty pastel colours with girly frilly socks. This is like that analogical comparison but since the toughness and colourful, playful element is there but in the form of an entire outfit- it's even better.
Fisheye distortion lenses have been creeping back into the photography world as a new way to create surreal images and for that reason I was always puzzled why you would couple a high resolution camera with a lens that is usually better associated with dreamy, multiple exposure shots. The moment I laid eyes on this photograph my harsh attitude of high meapixel cameras and fisheye effects change- I love the way everyone else dressed in neutral and dark melts away from this single, isolated figure sporting a gorgeous three layer dip-dyed fur vest as well as a lace dress and colourful clutch. I really do want a fantastic fur jacket in some wild bombastic colour to show how fake it is but there is a reasonable chance that with a full schedule of university I will not have the opportunity to wear it and it may lie forgotten at the back of my wardrobe for a few years.
Crisp black and white is given a modern update with a swish blazer lapel lined in neon yellow as well as the use of a fascinator hat and flowing cape-like scarf. The hat reminds me a lot of newspaper boys of England especially with the clasping of what looks to be paper to the individuals bosom and the strong architectural motifs and stone pathed path lying ahead. I wish I could go to fashion weeks held during the day rather than the night time events in my own city- it makes going home to the Eastern Suburbs just that extra bit nerve-wracking I must say and the colours of an outfit won't look nearly as impressive in the dark. The atmosphere isn't quite the same to create wonderful and crisp street style photographs in a comparatively small region of the world for fashion at night.
As of late I've been scouring online sites such as Urban Outfitters and Asos which now carry some of the more expensive and wonderful brands for some of this trendy fluorescent/ neon clothing- there's a treasure trove which I didn't even know existed out there. I've been lusting after a select few pieces from House of Holland as well as the Australian brand Senso for some fantastic shoes- there's even a pair of similar pink neon pants I located from Camilla and Marc but with wider legs and in 3/4 length. I think I rather like the pairing of a dull snakeskin shirt in grey with the long pink pants with hems that skirt across the ground. A wonderful abundance of material is there to look at and admire but from a practical approach they could do with a good tailor.
I adore the neon lace dress and matching cardigan covered in small fine pinpoints of fuzz- it reminds me so much of animation suits used in Hollywood productions but with much more refinement and class. I have to say that although the kitschy plastic apple earrings may contain a stronger colour of yellow at their centre it really doesn't do much for the outfit and I think it would have looked better without them. I think a classic fashion blogger outfit typically is devoid of jewellery that isn't used as statement piece and isn't an intrinsic part of their life- this is something that I am slowly coming to turns with as I change my old habits in order to fit into this niche and firmly establish myself as a true fashion blogger.
The Prada Summer/Spring 2011 held many wondrous treasures and there was nothing more impractical but coveted to me then their range of real fur striped stoles made of fox furs and then dyed a verity of imaginative colours. Similarly, I've also been lusting after a good pair of leather or pleather pants or shorts in order top layer and unleash a combination of good outfits on the world but haven't been able to find my size in the world of online vintage reselling. That doesn't mean that I can't admire someone else's success and the wonderful outfit of bright pink blazer and matching nails with this gorgeous striped fox fur stole. If there is one piece from the fashion world that I wish more cheap nasty labels would imitate, it would be Prada / Miu Miu and although they are different brands they are essentially a part of the same family and both create equally amazing and extravagant clothes. More of that energy in terms of design and colour really would make the world a brighter and better place.
Although I have become whole-heartedly accustomed to having dark brown hair and matching eyes with a tint of tan in my skin tone, I can't help but think how lucky some people are to be able to wear yellow and especially the fluorescent shades. As if it wasn't hard enough to properly pull off garden variety yellow but to have such a cool and laid-back approach to the vibrant shade is enough to turn me metaphorically green with envy. Yellow is a colour commonly associated with cheer and happiness- seeing exuberant fashion bloggers dressed in Winter with such style and trend really does make me glad that I developed a sense of style and fashion (sharing bus rides with unfortunately dressed university students makes me feel sad).
It may sound very ironic to any well-to-do photographer but since the release of the new iPad with greater capability for capturing images and a developed lens, I'm keen to sell more of my valuable treasures around the home in order to finally catch up with the technological age. Apps such as instagram and hipstamatic have intrigued me before and while using the tablet as a camera may be clumsy at first particularly when trying to set up self-portrait shots, with the use of a secondary camera I may be able to finally create the dreamy outfit style posts of my dreams with sepia tone seeping in at the edges. Fluorescent satchels in wonderful colours such as green, orange and yellow would be perfect to house such precious pieces of technological advancement.
Amongst stone patched paths in fashion-forward cities, fashion bloggers and personalities have been crowding around and posing in front of high powered cameras for outfit posts around the globe. I desperately wanted to become a part of that culture but trying to get an uninterested boyfriend to take outfit photographs is like trying to get blood out of stone. It seems that I'll need to network more intensely with other fashion bloggers in order to cluster together in town squares wearing gorgeous clothes and injecting small bursts of colour into my outfit. While the pink jumper dressed up with white shirt and a tie should be my main focus, the burgundy satchel with silver coloured hardware is to die for.
Fluorescent shades that immediately spring to my mind at first thought are green, yellow and orange; I had not previously considered red and blue to have their own place in the neon spectrum but this outfit has really opened my eyes to the scrumptious shades that lay ahead in the fashion world. The matching of the two-tone clutch and the floaty material of the dress is absolutely stunning, almost makes me wish I had time to lolly gag about the shops and work a proper part-time job in order to be exposed to all this glorious fashion.
I'm torn at the moment from deciding between wonderfully eclectic pieces such as Aztec print shirts and bags and classic basic fisherman jumpers in preparation for the cruel and gruelling Winter- I wish I just had more money to buy many things and rotate my wardrobe frequently. The only logical assumptions that I can jump to at this stage are that doing a science degree is costing me a lot of time I could otherwise spend working a part-time job although I am a full-time student and also while I may be making a lot of money in the future, the only source of income I can think of at the moment is the wealth of junk lying about in my room. I hope everyone else is able to afford lovely neon coloured accessories and garments in a more economically sound way then I can at the moment!
Alternative magazines for fashion and style such as Oyster, Frankie, and Yen have been some of my favourites but I have only ever admired them from afar. A little while ago I went on a spree and bought several copies of Russh in bulk but they've been sitting around on my book shelf largely unread and on occasion I flick through the pictures. While I am content to look at online extracts of some of their brighter and bolder editorial spread, I can't help but wish I had a steady and reliable source of income to pay for magazine subscriptions and scour eBay for editions long since past. What I like most about these images from the 55th edition of Yen is the wild prints and clashes combined with chunky heeled shoes- it's so modern and on trend.
I mainly look to vintage clothing these days to find unusual structures such as long and flowing skirts with novel prints of animals on them and bright 1950s colours- I've currently got my eye on a lovely pink framed pair of sunglasses from Opening Ceremony but I really should sell my old Ray Bans before I make any moves on the eyewear front. With enough expertise as far as the sewing machine is concerned, a similarly patterned skirt could be fashioned in a patchwork style to match or clash as you see fit- something I hope to get around to by enrolling in a short course once the load of my university study finally lightens up.
As well as importantly delivering images of the current trends of the season so masses via media, magazines should also be creative enough to set their own trends and make pastel rimmed glasses cool when worn with sequin embellished jumpers and long dangly earrings. Art deco pieces with chandelier draping chains are my favourite accessories inspired from the 1920s and with the use of cheaper materials and more stunning materials I'm more fond of the new and reinvented pieces as opposed to the traditional antiques. If only I had places to wear such extravagant pieces, then my life would have a sense of fulfillment about it...
