a little bird told me

 Arizona Muse in Dazed and Confused, via Fashion Gone Rogue

"It’s a little English countryside schoolgirl, mixed with some Hillary Clinton circa-mid-’80s." Chloe Sevigny on her hair.

"She does like people to speak proper English. I’ve fallen into a terrible habit: when people ask me how I am, I say, “I’m good.” Vivienne will often correct me, and say, “You can’t say that. You have to say you’re ‘well’.” PA Tizer Bailey on working for Dame Vivienne, via Cos.

"I hope I don't let you down and disappear next season and no one ever books me again and you're like 'Oh no, we have this whole issue on this random girl no one knows about!'" Arizona Muse on being the star model in this month's Dazed and Confused.

topshop blogging events

This Wednesday and Thursday I'll be tearing myself away from the comfort-hovel that is my desk and joining blogger supreme Susie Bubble at a couple of in-store Topshop blogging events at the Nottingham and Liverpool stores. To coincide with the launch of the latest 214 magazine (produced in-house by the Topshop team and always good for a satisfying leaf through) we'll be talking about our own blogs as well as answering any questions you might have (eg, how do I get started with my own blog, why is Chloe Sevigny so rad, Anna Dello Russo..what's up with her?) I also hear through the grapevine there'll be baked goods available so you if you're anything like me and excited at the prospect of combining your favourite activities (gorging on cake, looking at clothes, leafing through magazines and thinking about blogging) it'll be a pretty nice way to spend an hour of your evening.

Also, truth be told I'm a little bit nervous so if you're in the area and fancy popping in and saying hi that would be very, very cool. It's always good to have some shallow natter with lovers of blogs and fellow bloggers.

Here are the details for each day:

Wednesday 16th-Topshop Victoria Centre, Nottingham 6-7pm

Thursday 17th-Topshop Church Street, Liverpool 6-7pm

Hope to see some of you there!

calvin klein

Oh I wouldn't mind spending my days with my feet in these AW11 Calvin Klein heels. The fabrics (is that a ponyhair I see?..) would probably make it quite hard to resist doing lots of bending over and stroking them as if they were little pets. Or walking into people as you gain pleasure from watching your own feet traverse the pavement. But both would be small sacrifices in the big scheme of things, for such a pleasing pair of shoes.

home movies

Really love these home videos from the late 1950s. Jeff Altman has transferred them from the films from the films his Grandfather shot and matched them to perfectly apt accompanying songs. The Disneyland video is probably my favourite. Though I was never one of those children that went, this video really captures the magic I imagine you would feel visiting there when you were small and it's all the more magnified by the washed out candy coloured footage and rides which seem so clunky and innocent in comparison to the sort of high-tech theme parks we have now. The plinky-plonky music makes the whole thing really touching, evoking childhood memories of bygone eras. (via an open letter)

coming home

Last weekend I spent a much needed couple of days back home in Bristol. Getting to indulge in the sort of creature comforts I don't have at University (double bed, a deep bath, a clean kitchen) is one of my favourite parts of returning home as well as having a catch up with my parents. It's a funny stage to be at now that I've left home and I'm doing my own thing. When you move away your relationship with your parents changes but in quite a nice way. As I get older I realise that there isn't really an 'okay, I'm an adult now' moment. I'm 20 this year and I'm learning that I don't think people ever feel properly grown up. I'm still waiting to wake up one morning Big style and realise it's happened. But moving away sortof initiates a change in relations with the parents in that you start to interact with them as a fellow 'adult'. I remember my Mum saying that one of the saddest things about her Dad dying when she was 23 was that she felt she was only just starting to get to know him as a fellow adult and that the new stage in their standing as Father and Daughter felt really special because she wasn't just 'his child' any more, she was an adult in her own right and this added new dimensions to the way in which they interacted.

 

It's odd not automatically knowing the details of my Parents lives and having to ask questions like 'how's work?' when before I would know from the conversations over the table at dinnertime but I think we're all enjoying the new benefits (my Mum and Stepdad seem to be able to afford weekend breaks in Berlin and all kinds of treats now that my laptop charger isn't sucking costly electricity bills from the sockets and I'm no longer around to empty the fridge) and it makes going home to visit extra special. 

As usual a large stack of mail was waiting for me, this time with a big parcel containing these workwear boots I'd ordered from eBay a couple of months ago. They're a perfect replacement for the pair that fell apart when I was traveling America and had to guiltily leave in Brooklyn. Getting to look through the shell of your wardrobe is also a novelty as you can remind yourself of the garments you'd forgotten about. I found this old Clinique lippie in 'Just Raisin' hanging out with the dusty tumbleweeds on my desk, which along with the boots I've been wearing lots this week. I was sent off at the end of the weekend with a quarter loaf of bread from our local bakery all tightly wrapped in foil and various jams to add to my store cupboard here and though I was sort of sad to leave, there was something bizarrely homely about returning to Manchester, towering stacks of dirty crockery and all.

annie wilshaw

I don't go a bundle on the usual fare of 'fashion reality tv' mainly because I feel it's all a bit of a con (The City? The Hills? Quite clear to the everybody and their Uncle that the Teen Vogue sandwich boy probably played a bigger part in the production of the magazine than Lauren or Whitney..) and even when I can look past this often there is nothing likable about the characters to keep my interest. Channel 4's newbie The Model Agency however is different. I will gladly dedicate hours of my time to watch this show and rather than coming away feeling a little bit dirty and repulsed by how horrible some people in the world are (as with the others) I feel like I've gained genuine insight into life at Premier model agency. The close knit nature of the team is really touching, and though there are clear tensions between the editorial and commercial sides of the agency and occasional silliness, everybody seems likable and driven. Of course the show has been edited to follow a rough narrative but it never feels shamefully overdramatised. Premier founder Carole's dirty laugh and Senior booker Paul's naughty anecdotes provide constant entertainment without being malicious and are inducive of moments of realisation that you've been grinning at the screen and laughing along as if you're part of the team.

Despite a few blips in the first episode when she came across as a bit of an attention seeker within the team, Director of New Faces Annie Wilshaw has grown on me. And I can't stop thinking about the Giles dinosaur bag from a couple of seasons back after seeing her tote is around New York in episode 2, very casually worn with a black top, ankle grazing slacks and sandals. As far as lazy afternoons watching trashy TV and consuming copious bowls of cereal goes, The Model Agency is a delicious accompaniment and refreshingly guilt free.

betty

Betty Jackson's show is still one of my Fashion Week standouts. Dressing head to toe doesn't seem quite so terrifying a thought, in fact it starts to seem sort of a good idea once you've clicked through 40 something all beige/ all red/ all black combinations on style.com. I often have moments in the morning, just as I'm about to sprint out of the door when I realise that alas, two of my coats must be discounted as outerwear options as they exactly match the shade of my mossy green cord trousers. Dressing in head to toe green just does't seem practical when it involves disappearing everytime I walk past large patches of pavement side shrubbery. Still, Jackson is persuading me. With her focus on mixed textures (see fleecey belted coats, fuzzy skirts, ribbed rollneck dresses, silky slacks..) head to toe colour blocking emphasises the greatness of each item instead of detracting from the overall look. Also noteworthy is the hair and make up-while the latter is almost non-existent I like that the flowered manes achieve a fantastic look without being too overly girly.

I'm already plotting my Winter 2011 wishlist and fleecy and fuzzy are appealing bywords. Maybe it's just their cosy hot water bottle cover associations-a tempting prospect in the depths of winter.

fisherman's friend

I ordered this yellow Fisherman's coat from eBay last week. Upon opening the package this evening I guffawed to myself for a bit as it comes with a matching pair of trousers and the texture is best described as that of a rubber glove. Sort of resisting the urge to glue cotton wool to my chin and traipse through my halls dressed head to toe in this gear as a homage to Fishermans Friends..

Still I like the coat even if it is a little on the large side. And I'm sure the trousers will come to use for all of those water based activities I fill my weekends with. Wading and rowing and standing in downpours?

some things

Peace of Mind's Topshop daisy trousers. which miraculously look longer than the slightly unflattering cropped flares on the website../ Susie Bick in that Bella Freud 'Je T'aime Jane..' knit from the 2009 collection/ Snakeskin heels from Weekday. When put together the pinks, disney references and naff fabrics, all come over a bit tacky overload. Wasn't at all the intention, separate appreciation recommended.

bill cunningham

Really want to see this Bill Cunningham documentary. I highly trust anyone who sleeps on a little bed between filing cabinets in their studio. It's also good to know that Anna Wintour suffers from street style anxieties and that getting ignored by Bill Cunningham is 'death'.