February 22, 2018

Dragons, Snakes & Wall to Wall Kitsch- Gucci’s Autumn Winter 2018 Ready to Wear Collection

February 22, 2018/ Claire Spence

Severed heads, dragons and snakes on the catwalk along with Alessandro Michele’s gloriously quirkily campy and kitsch designs for Gucci as they showcased their Autumn / Winter 2018 Ready to Wear Collection in Milan this week.

I love it as there’s a real 70s and 80s feel to a lot of the tailoring. There are designs that remind me of air hostess uniforms of yesteryears, and power suits of the 1980s’.

You can check out every single look, and there are close to a hundred, on the Vogue website.

I can never afford even the Ready to Wear Collection, but I do keep my eyes peeled for accessories that are ‘heavily inspired by’ Gucci designs like this arm band.

Bees are out, but tigers and snakes seem to still be in, as well as dragons, so those are the beasts to be looking out for when you are searching for bags, jewellery, shoes etc. if you want a Gucci look but not the price tag. Add some red and green and you’re all set!

September 14, 2016

Unicorn Armour Purses, Fake Fur & a 3ft Flamingo- My Top 13 Picks from the New Ards' TK Maxx

September 14, 2016/ Claire Spence

TK Maxx open their first new NI store in 11 years tomorrow morning, 9am, bright and early, in Ards Shopping Centre.

The store is in the previous Tesco location, with a huge major refit having taken place in the past few months as part of a wave of new retailers arriving at the centre.

Smix & I went along for a nosy this evening, and here are my 13 top kitsch picks spotted in store, counted down.

13. The Entire Halloween Department.

Halloween only started to get big here about ten years ago. We always had parties, but now the UK is swaying towards the full on, decorate the whole house, celebrate all of October, type Halloween season. I remember 8 years ago when I was just married and had a house to decorate, travelling to the big Boucher Road TK Maxx to buy their imported Halloween Homeware. Candles, ornaments, prints, cushions- of course many of the pieces were used all year round as back then I was a little more rock and roll than I am now. So skull print everything wasn't just for Halloween!

Top choices from this year's selection of home wares? The light up signs and skulls for sure. Those Halloween print tea towels I wouldn't be afraid of using all year round either.

12. The Stationary.

Lots of notebooks, crafting items, and down in the second pic, very cute storage pouches.

11. Retro Bins.

We are living in a time where even a bin can be retro! I love the blue especially.

10. A Rainbow of Blankets.

You would have a hard time choosing. They have autumnal oranges & russet tones. Beautiful teal throws and peacock blue blankets.

9. Tiny Little Cat Shoesies.

These little felt slippers make me jealous I'm not a five year old girl. Cosy for winter or even as part of a show stopping Halloween outfit.

8. Macarons.

So many flavours. I think these were £2.49 because I remember thinking they were prices really reasonably when I picked them up. They even had my favourite- pistachio.

7. Kitschy Cute Bags.

I think the accessories have to be my favourite part of TK Maxx. It's where you'll most readily find something designer that you can buy without it being the same price as that month's mortgage payment.

I thought this was a school bag, but I imagine I might get a phone call from the office if I sent in a bag with 'nice junk' on it. Doesn't stop us big kids having it for the gym or university though.

6. Moroccan Tea Glasses.

I literally haven't seen these for sale anywhere else. They had several different designs too. I think I would feel like royalty having a cuppa in these, although I might ruin it with my tea preference for lots of sugar and milk. How uncouth!

5. Kooky Phone Cases.

They've a good selection of Skinny Dip London cases. I discovered Skinny Dip on our last trip wandering round Soho trying to find Yo Sushi. Everything is neon, glittery, furry, sparkly, in other words- every single darn thing I love.

4. Designer Scarves.

A designer scarf is a great accessory if, like me, you can't afford designer clothes. You could be wearing a Primark outfit but adding a fancy scarf can make you look a lil' bit more expensive.

The new TK Maxx has your full on designer name print scarves where there's no doubt about who made it, but also more subtle but well known lines like Love Moschino's Olive Oyl prints. Both these scarves were under £50.

3. Unicorn Armour Purses.

If unicorns needed armour I bet it would look like these purses. So shiny. I want.

2. Mega Kitsch Fake Fur Scarves.

These scarves would make any old coat look crazily cool, and they were only £9.99 each.

1. A Three Foot Flamingo.

My top pick from the new store. A lifesize flamingo. I think I know what to ask Santa for this year now.

But what did I buy? Well from the beauty department I picked up a Sanctuary Spa candle for £2.99

All TK Maxx store are having huge beauty events right now, so there are lots of bargains to be had.

I couldn't resist these socks either. £3.99 for three pairs. Cats and pugs and sailors.

My major purchase I was talked into by my little shopping buddy.

This Little Moose satchel style handbag. RRP £50 but I got it for £29.99

Look how cute!

So get yourselves down in the morning to be some of the first to grab the best bargains. If you find anything particularly cool- tweet me so I can see! My username is @rudedoodle

January 22, 2016

Daring Double Denim Launches West Coast Cooler Belfast FASHIONWEEK

January 22, 2016/ Claire Spence

Yesterday the well-heeled of Belfast & beyond gathered for the launch of the schedule of Belfast Fashion Week, March 10th - 13th 2016.

We will see the return of nightly catwalk shows featuring collections from both the high street as well as from independently owned boutiques plus local designers’ work and the popular Sushi Saturday and Style Sunday events to round off the long weekend of fashion.

THURSDAY 10 March, ALL DAY ‘Cutting It’ Workshops & Seminars. An all-day event geared towards those seeking careers advice or inspiration/information on careers in the fashion, film & costume industry locally. For more information, contact BFW on 02890421509

THURSDAY 10 March, 8.00PM - DESIGNER BOUTIQUES AND LOCALDESIGNERS. Tickets priced at £20 or £30 for FROW available from 028 9024 6609 or via www.belfastfashionweek.com

FRIDAY 11 March, 8.00PM - HIGH STREET. Tickets priced at £20 or £30 for FROW available from 028 9024 6609 or via links on www.belfastfashionweek.com

SATURDAY 12 March, 2.00-4.00pm - SUSHI SATURDAY “The Director’s Cut” at ZEN. To book, call 02890421509price £30pp.

SATURDAY 12 March, 8.00pm –FASHION AWARDS. Tickets priced at £20 or £30 for FROW available from 028 9024 6609 or via links on www.belfastfashionweek.com

SUNDAY 18 OCTOBER, 2.00-5.00pm - STYLE SUNDAY in support of Action Cancer at Deane’s at Queen’s. To book call 02890381555

Fashion Week director, Cathy Martin (in the above video in gold sequins) usually enforces a 'no jeans rule' on fashion week catwalks, but she's bending her own rules this year for the 'daring in denim' trend. It's easy to do: wear as much denim as possible in one go! I loved the outfits for this look. Denim pinafores, huge flared trousers, and a sequin badge adorned jacket from Diamond Dolls in Banbridge.

Check out the sequins jeans on the model on the left, in mermaid colours of blue & green.

Former Miss NI absolutely rocking local designer Nor Lisa striped dress

The second highlighted trnd was pretty, girly ruffles. Lots of wedding guest wear, but I love the cheeky edge of the Topshop silk bomber jacket on the model far left.

The final look on the models combined acid brights and sequins, both going to be huge this spring. I love brights, especially wearing neon orange. See you at Fashion Week!

September 10, 2013

Avenue 32- Shop The World's Fashion Weeks From The Comfort of Your Own Home

September 10, 2013/ Claire Spence

Wintour would wince; you can shop high fashion whilst relaxing in your pyjamas. Avenue 32 is a high fashion, online department store, with dozens of celebrated designers showing their latest collections.

Roberta Benteler founded the site in 2011, and already it's made a name for itself as the place to click to for luxury fashion. Avenue 32 was voted the second best online fashion store by Vogue UK, high praise indeed.

The website isn't simply a shop either, each designer curates their own department. There are videos, behind-the-scenes features and an insight into the thought behind the various collections. They also make available their Little Black Book.

If you've been following New York Fashion Week, you can compliment your wardrobe with pieces chosen from Avenue 32 in the same vein as the collections seen on the run way, thanks to a current feature put together especially for the site.

If you already know your stuff, then you'll want to jump straight into the shopping, and visit a globe s worth of talented designers, without leaving home. Up and coming folks like Thakoon Addition, Pinky Laing, Carolina Bucci and Oliver Peoples have stores nestling side by side on the virtual shopping avenue.

I adore high fashion, as it often is more quirky than high street, and I dress as weirdly as my personality. Unfortunately, I do not have the budget for high fashion, but now and then I do invest in one pricier item. Having one or two good quality, designer pieces means you can look smart by pairing them with high street items. For example having a leather handbag, can set off any outfit. I enjoyed having a browse round Avenue 32 and choosing my favourite items to share with you.