Jessica's Blog

For young designers who like to experiment, London Fashion Week is basically an anything-goes playground — and I mean that in a good way. Last season, Meadham Kirchhoff's carnivalesque show featured life-size valentines, Henry Holland had so-called "HOH harlots" partying in a car park, and Toga introduced a rockabilly band and models in cages. London-based designers aren't terribly concerned with keeping things safe and salable — part of the attitude that has contributed to the city's reputation as a hothouse for fashion talent — and that is certainly refreshing after the commercialism of New York.

The city draws talent from all over the world: think of Mary Katrantzou, who hails from Greece; Ashish Gupta, from India; the duo behind Ostwald Helgason, who are from Iceland and Germany; Eudon Choi, of South Korea; and David Koma, who grew up in Georgia and Russia. There's a reason they all elected to settle in the Big Smoke, and it's not the weather. Central Saint Martins is one of the best fashion schools in the world, and attracts plenty of A+ talent. The British tradition of eccentricity energizes designers to try new, sometimes wacky, things. The British Fashion Council and Topshop both provide amazing opportunities for young labels — the BFC has partnered with Farfetch in the past, and Topshop has recruited Gupta, Katrantzou, and scores of others for collabs. But the focus has historically been either at the very high end, where it's tough for those experimental types to actually break out commercially, or on the low end — in the form of ephemeral high-street collaborations that provide an injection of cash and notoriety but are a temporary fix. Some lucky young'uns have scored jobs with major luxury houses, like J.W. Anderson at Loewe and Koma at Mugler. But most aren't so fortunate, and fashion is a tough business anywhere, even in the seemingly paradisal city.

red homecoming dresses

A new partnership between the BFC and eBay aims to change that. As part of a yearly program, London designers will receive mentorship with an eye toward conquering the contemporary market — and produce clothes that are more affordable than runway collections, but well above fast-fashion prices. The program aims to help give young talent a leg up when it comes to the oft-neglected question of selling their clothes. According to The Guardian, the participating designers — Alexis Barrell, Prism's Anna Laub (above, center), Zoe Jordan (left), Paper London, and Georgia Harding (right) — will create designs at the contemporary price point to be sold at Somerset House, London Fashion Week's headquarters, in September. The BFC’s Sophie McElligott told the paper, "We recognized that a lot of designers can’t afford to start their business by creating high-end artisanal pieces, or by putting on fashion shows, which are very expensive. There is nothing wrong with that system, but it’s not for everyone.”

While this will be a small-scale program, it has interesting implications for the future of British fashion, where art, not commerce, tends to rule the day. Contemporary labels like Maje andSandro, from France, and Tibi in the States have lately been excelling at pulling in hyperfashionable customers, though their price points fall well between the H&M and runway extremes. Britain has a flourishing high street — maybe the best in the world, but a paucity of contemporary labels, with the exception of a few homegrown labels like Whistles and Reiss. These brands either don't show at fashion weeks, or favor low-key presentations, allowing them to put more funds toward their businesses. McElligott makes a good point that the runway-and-prestige route isn't the right one for all designers, and some might be better served by directing their talents to the contemporary space. While no one wants to choke off the creativity flowing out of London right now, the industry there is maturing, and with that comes the quest for commercial viability — which happens to come more readily off the runway.

Also Read: http://www.graziadress.com/cute-homecoming-dresses

Cat Deeley puts on a leggy display in relaxed white dress and khaki jacket as she leaves salon

She wowed at the weekend in a stunning monochrome maxi at the Fox Summer TCA party in West Hollywood.

However Cat Deeley managed to look as chic as ever in a much more dressed down ensemble as she left a salon while flashing her toned pins on Tuesday.

The TV presenter kept her large tortoiseshell shades on as she walked out into the sunshine while sporting a daring, slicked back 'do.

The So You Think You Can Dance host meanwhile showed off her fashion credentials, teaming a loose-fit white dress with a khaki jacket.

red homecoming dresses

The heavy coat, complete with numerous pockets, was contrasted against the pale and floaty number underneath, which was nipped in at the waist.

The Birmingham-born beauty ditched the heels in favour of tan, flat sandals while carrying a large, matching handbag on her shoulder.

She tweeted earlier in the day to say: 'I'm not in a world of trouble...The drugs are definitely helping... But Pain Town is not a nice place to be!'

Her outing came just two days after she graced the red carpet in an eye-catching halterneck dress at the FOX bash held at the popular SOHO House.

Displaying plenty of skin as she posed up a storm, Cat's stylish choice of gown featured a plunging neckline and a daring scooped back.

The sexy attire showcased her sun kissed glow and trim waist line which she extenuated with a trademark tea-cup pose.

Cat again wore her hair pulled back off her face to enhance her natural beauty and highlight her powerful red pout, pearly white grin and circular earrings.

Also Read: white homecoming dresses

As an early present to celebrate the time last year when we were glued to our TVs, deep in Royal Babywatch, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have released a new portrait of Prince George. And he's frolicking.

The photo, taken at London's Natural History Museum's "Sensational Butterflies" exhibit earlier this month, shows George tottering around in Petit Bateau overalls, a navy polo shirt, and his go-to Early Days Alex pre-walker shoes. He also sports expertly—and adorably—combed hair for the occasion, which makes sense, of course, considering his mother is the queen of the perfect, photo-ready 'do.

With this first birthday portrait, George is following a royal trend of sorts: For official photos, wearing overalls seems to be a thing. And a very cute thing. Prince William and Prince Harry both have photos of themselves as toddlers walking in dungarees. We like to imagine that the hallway leading to the kitchen at Buckingham Palace is lined with pictures of royal babies in overalls. And we want to go to there.

homecoming dress

As for the celebration in store for Prince George's big day, tomorrow? Us Weekly reports that in addition to the butterfly outing (which we would have given an arm and a leg and a lifetime supply of the world's best chocolate biscuits to witness), the royals will be throwing the little prince a mini birthday bash, with most of the family gathering for a tea party. As for gifts, "George will be getting clothes and wooden toys from mum and dad for his birthday," a source told the magazine. "William and Kate don’t want to go overboard. He has been given so many gifts over the months and there’s only so much space to store them!"

Does anyone have the number of a local wooden toy store? We'd love to send our favorite royal prince an understated birthday trinket!

Also read: http://www.graziadress.com/black-homecoming-dresses