Backstage at Marchesa - LFW

Hey everyone!!

So as promised, today I am going to post some backstage pictures of the exclusive Marchesa fashion show of the 13th of September!

If you haven't read my previous post where I describe my experience working for this amazing International brand, I suggest you quickly go take a look! (link here).

When we first got to the venue, the gorgeous Banqueting Hall in London (you can check it out here), everything was a little blurry... there were soooooo many people working backstage, the hair and makeup crew was already there and so were some of the photographers; it was full of personnel for the buffet and some of the guests allowed backstage were starting to arrive.

(That would be me, proudly showing my Marchesa backstage AAA pass!)

When the moving vans arrived at the venue with all the collection, shoes, accessories, emergency kits and all the possible props necessary (and not), we started unpacking and placing everything in its right place - organisational skills are key whether you work backstage or in the studio.

Marchesa - rock' n' roll gypsy.

Hey guys!!

As promised, today I wanted to talk to you about my experience as an intern for Marchesa during London Fashion Week.

As you guys can imagine, it has been an amazing opportunity to be able to work with such a big name of the fashion industry; I have learnt so much in such a short time, and have enjoyed myself a lot, even though it's been really hard work - as can be expected.

The 'atelier' we working in the days before the catwalk show was the Chancery Suite in Rosewood Hotel in London (if interested, you can check this amazing hotel out here).

It was a gorgeous setting for a studio, even though at times the space in the suite was not enough - there were at lot of people working on the collection and a lot of industrial machinery took up a lot of space too.

We worked on many of the dresses seen on the catwalk show (if you haven't seen it yet, you can check out the collection here), mostly hand sewing and doing embroidery work on the delicate fabrics.

Final Menswear Lineup - Refined Freedom.

Hey guys!

So I just came back from Paris last Sunday…it was amazing!! I have so much to tell you and most of all - as it always works better for me - show you through pictures I've taken during my journey. The trip to Paris lasted just three days and two nights, but it was magical and I'll write a whole post about because it definitely deserves its own space in this blog. In the meantime, take a look at my final Menswear Collection for the Tailoring Project I'e talked so much about here.

I'm posting the tailoring project material slowly because it was quite a long one and we had many different assessment components so to show you guys better and explain everything properly I'm just posting bits of everything :)

I made this lineup drawing the figures and clothes by hand, then scanned it in my computer and, after scanning all the fabrics I wanted to use, I added them to the lineup and made a few adjustments on Illustrator.

Hope you'll enjoy and let me know what you think about it - or if you have any question in particular!

Don't forget to leave a comment and tell me your opinion about this :)

x, Val.

Scheherazade Collection ▸ ▹ Jumpsuit.

Hey guys!!

So today I wanted to show you my second outfit for the project I've talked to you about in my last post - if you've missed it, click on the link here :)

My second outfit is a one piece, and it's a jumpsuit!

Let me know what you guys think with a comment in the section below!

Enjoy :)

Scheherazade Collection ▸ ▹ Ensemble.

Hey everyone!!

So today I wanted to show you guys another creation of mine: a skirt and a top for my Thinking it Cutting it (TICI) project. So in the brief we were given a Postmodern designer (if you're wondering what exactly Postmodernism is click here) to research in depth, and then we had to create amongst others a 10 pieces collection and make 'in real life' two outfits. My fashion designer was Riccardo Tisci for Givenchy, which I totally ADORE! I was incredibly lucky to have him, first of all because he's an amazing designer and secondly because my aesthetic is very close to his own.

Anyway I will stop boring you guys now…so here are the pictures of my first outfit!! Enjoy :)

So what do you guys think? Let me know with a comment!

x, Val.

Tailoring Project - Refined Freedom.

Hi everyone!
I really need to apologize cause I haven't been updating my blog in a very long time :(
Let's just say that my life got really busy all of a sudden and I wasn't expecting it! Second year of uni turned out to be more challenging than I thought: I've had two main project, Made to Measure and Thinking it Cutting it, and a minor two days 'challenge' Ready Steady Cut; in the meantime I've had a part-time internship with the japanese designer Satoshi Date (you can check his website here) from early October to the end of November, and I just finished my full-time internship with the British fashion designer Ada Zanditon (check her out here).
Finally I'm having some spare time to pay my full attention to this blog, and I wanted to show you guys some of the things I've done/made in uni during the past months :)

In this post I'm gonna show you guys the coat I've made for my tailoring project, Made to Measure. We had to start during the summer with a very detailed research of tailoring (if interested in knowing more check out my post about a tailored jacket autopsy). We then continued the research after being properly briefed and had to design a full 16 outfit collection for both Menswear and Womenswear. The project lasted 9 weeks and the main goal was to create contemporary tailoring designs, while learning and perfecting the techniques related to the craft of tailoring, creating a jacket/coat from scratch.

So after this looooooong introduction, here is the result!

 Image by Paul Astley published on http://fashiondesignrochester.com/made-to-measure/

 Image by Paul Astley published on http://fashiondesignrochester.com/made-to-measure/

So my collection - and final coat - were based on Scandinavian Design and the idea of the link between men and nature - key element of the scandinavian minimalist design. Apart from using some traditional tailoring techniques, I've used the felting technique - which you can notice on the shoulder area, front and back, using some white wool fivers to represent the snow.

So, what do you guys think of my final coat?? 

Let me know with a comment in the section below! :)

x, Val.

Fashion & co: London.

Hi everyone! I apologise for my absence but I've had LOADS of things to do since I've moved back to the Uk on the 18th and I've been sorting my new house and room out :)
Thank god now everything's done and I've started university again so I can also come back to my blog.
Being very close to London I'm always very interested in what's going on there; I love London, it's one of my favourite cities and it's not only a cultural melting-pot, but a "fashion melting-pot" (if that makes any sense) as well! It's such a diverse and fascinating city, and the people who live there are as part of its charm as the buildings and streets.
Right now there are some really nice exhibitions going on, all worth checking out.

• "Club to Catwalk: London fashion in the 1980's" at the V&A Museum - this exhibition is going to be open until the 16th of February 2014 (Ticket price: £5) and I will go see it on Saturday, 28th September, and hopefully I'll be able to tell you guys how it was and show you some pictures if it will possible to take any. In the meantime if you're interested, you can check the website out here.

• "The glamour of Belville Sassoon" at the Fashion + Textile Museum - this exhibition will be open until the 11th of January 2014 (Ticket price: £8 adults; £5.50 students). You can check out what this exhibition is about here.

• "Miles Aldrige: I only want you to love me" at Somerset House - hurry up, this exhibition will be open until the 29th of September (Ticket price: £6 adults; £4.50 students). You can find more info about this exhibition here.

• "Isabella Blow: fashion galore!" at Somerset House - this exhibition will be open to the public until the 2nd of March 2014 (Ticket price: £12.50 adults; £10 students). you can find more info here.

• "Pearls" at the V&A Museum - this exhibition will end on the 19th January 2014 (Ticket price: £11 adults; £6 students). You can check it out here.

• "Fashion Rules" in Kensington Palace - this exhibition will be open until Summer 2015 (Ticket price - including tour of the palace: £15 adults; £12.40 students). There will be dresses from the collections of HM The Queen, Princess Margaret and Diana, Princess of Wales. You can check it out here.

So have you seen any of those exhibitions?? If yes which one(s) and did you like it/them?

x, Val.

Mary Katrantzou S/S 2014: fab as always.

Mary Katrantzou is stunning as usual. Her collection was amazing; the prints were so expressive - as they always are - and the designs were very interesting. The silhouettes were quite varied, from some fitted dresses or ensembles to looses fits (pictures below).

The prints this time were pretty different from the last collections' - and btw I totally loved her Resort 2014 collection, there were some amazing sweaters and trousers (you can check it out here) and her Fall 2013 collection, with the amazing prints showing fairytale landscapes and views (check it out here). The prints in this new S/S 2014 collection were more definite, they were pretty direct and vivid, different from the dreamy landscapes of the Fall designs, and the cuts were again different from those of her Resort collection.

So here's a big THANK YOU to the great Mary for presenting such a beautiful collection, executed with great verve and polish.

1. Here's the first "type" of print: dresses and ensembles are like big canvases showing the English shoe for excellence: the Oxford shoe.

2. The second print seen on the runway is a a close up of trainers shoes, very colourful and I would say appropriated since one of the newest and hottest trends is "sport-chic".

3. The third and last print seen at the show is a very vivid, colourful and alluring floral print, presented by the Greek designer in different colours and versions. I think this one if my favourite print from her collection, and also the designs are amazing (I love the third picture showing the light blue dress with the purplish flowers and the last picture).

So do you guys like this S/S 2014 collection??

x, Val.

3.1 Phillip Lim: back on Earth.

I can't contain myself: this NYFW has provided us with such great pleasures I couldn't not write about it.
3.1 Phillip Lim has shown a collection which was beyond great: I loved the "geology" concept behind the whole S/S 2014 collection, I love the clean cuts and the mix between architectural and kinda-flowy silhouettes, the colour palette was divine (I need to admit I have a thing for all-white and I truly believe it will be next S/S most popular trend), the fabrics worked amazingly with the silhouettes and colours. Everything was just exactly the way it should have been: the styling was minimalistic yet very direct and effective, and I could see both a working woman and a teenager wearing the pieces.

Those are my favourites from Phillip Lim's S/S 2014 collection.

 

  I'm in love with the black sweater/jacket piece and the embroidered pattern on the organza fabric. Genius!

I love the white top and the details going over the shoulder and down the sleeves, and I also love the fit of the trousers. I find this look very flattering and, overall, it's in my top 5.

 Again the organza embroidered sweater, paired with some tailored trousers and a mustard leather jacket which, amazingly, does not contrast with the other colours, but actually brings them together!

 Totally adore this white sweater with transparent panels and the pattern on top of it.