Hitchin Fashion Week: Vive la Vintage

 

Hitchin... Normally a modest Market town, it has suddenly exploded with a modern, upcoming fashionable vibe that turns heads. After watching the fashion weeks hosted by fashion capitals, Hitchin was feeling inspired to showcase the latest autumn winter collections from its eclectic mix of vintage, designer and costume boutiques that are scattered around the town. 

Carrie, the gorgeous owner of my favourite vintage treasure trove; Flo's place, asked me to model for her catwalk show! 

My outfit was bang on trend with the fetishist glam that has subtly laced its way into the jewel toned array of clothes this season. I was rocking a lipstick red leather red dress with huge shoulder pads that was the perfect pencil silhouette for the new longer hemmed fashions easing into our (previously pelmet based mini skirted) wardrobes! Paired with a pair of black, gold studded leather boots from Racoon and Me Vintage, a Peacock feather pinned into my backcombed tresses (Carrie style from SATC) and 3 glasses of fizz (essential before strutting down a catwalk in front of the town) my outfit was complete .

As a quirky twist to the otherwise women’s wear collection, Carrie worked the bohemian outcast with the 'redcorn' jacket: pretty sure his hair was longer than most of the girls', and to the envy of us other models, he definitely scored the most wolf whistles!

Other outfits included 
leather and lace biker girl, androgynous tweed, the 1920's flapper and a heritage checked ensemble. 

Photos credited to Kevin at The Orange Bean, Sharon Cooper Photography and Lucid dream Photography.

All the models from Flo's Place:

Never one to shy away from roaring trends, the pony skin bag I was modelling has been added to my autumn winter wish list- I cannot get enough of these fierce animal prints!
Roberto ‘king of animal print’ Cavalli was certainly loving it:

Have a great week,
Claira xo

Welcome to the House Of Fun

MADNESS; what absolute legends. Following Reading Festival ‘11, I am fixated with these retro, cane swinging, loud singing, back bending men who truly brought FUN to the stage. After narrowly avoiding being crushed to a pulp in the hysterical crowd, a lovely man (who was about 6ft5 – well he seemed that tall to me! Perhaps because I wasn’t wearing heels.. .) hoisted me up onto his shoulders and the stage came to life! I could finally see – I was very tempted to crowd surf but the security guards were definitely conforming to their tough guy, scary man stereotypes so I stayed put! Basically the point to this story is that MADNESS’ lyrics hit me as the perfect title for this post. Let me explain why. . .

My most favourite photographer ever, Sharon Cooper  http://www.sharoncooper.co.uk/texted me to say she was picking me up for a shoot at the Stevenage Old Town Charter Fair! First; excitement, second; what on earth do I wear??? We all know about this maaassive, inevitable question that is automatically programmed in any girl’s nervous system as soon as the word ‘event’ and ‘camera’ are mentioned!

After much deliberation, I followed topshop.com’s (my fashion fairy godmother) feature on the rise of eclectic style and so sequins, leather and wild vintage prints seemed the perfect fairground attire.

As I’m not completely accustomed to the whole public modelling thing, for me, shooting at first was slightly embarrassing to say the least! I was self conscious and felt that I couldn’t completely relax but then after we freaked ourselves out in the Haunted House and played on the ten penny arcade games (we so nearly won a fiver!!) I couldn’t stop laughing, feeling like a kid in a sweetshop!

As usual, Sharon was fun, creative, inspiring and wonderful to work with! I did feel kind of bad though, as I dragged her on to the waltzing tea cups . . . it wasn’t until she came off looking green that I realised she didn’t take to spinning at an insane pace very well!

Blouse and clutch - Flo's Place Vintage

Sequinned top - Mum's wardrobe!

Black leather pants and ring - Topshop

Earrings - French Connection

Shoes - Zara

So .. the famous leather pants manifest themselves. After sitting in my wardrobe since New Year’s, I have been, again, too inhibited to wear them but they were perfect for the funfair shoot. Following Kate Moss’ iconic biker chick style, the leather trousers have zoomed back into the fashion scene, creating vast envy over her amazing Isabel Marant cropped leather biker skinnies – I dream.

Mum’s sequinned top was a real find and paid homage to Miss Sui’s bedazzling collection of sequinned beauties.

In fact, this outfit is quite inspired by Anna Sui’s Spring/Summer collection of eclectic prints that are mashed together yet still manage to retain the soft ladylike feel of the forties, perhaps through the floaty, romantic fabrics on which her fabulous designs are displayed. 

Anna Sui’s Summer 2012 collection – all this blogging about fashion week has infected me – I’ve joined the hype!

My Sui piece is definitely this fabulous vintage shirt I bagged at the gorgeous Flo’s Place http://www.flosplace.co.uk/contact.html, a vintage haven, crammed full of retro wonders. And the best part. .. The blouse was 100% FREE! Another factor contributing to my love of thrifting.. . The insanely low prices!

The waltzing tea cups. . .

The helter skelter. . .

Me! A lovely fairground owner let me in his booth for a quick snap 

The haunted house. . .

Farewell to the Fairground!

Claire xo

P.S: We discovered that Candy floss + hair are like oil and water . . . .they don’t mix!!