2012

Regardless of whether you subscribe to the whole “new year, new you” philosophy, there is something about the arrival of January that makes you want to embark on a major life/wardrobe revamp. Spring is just around the corner (well, ish) and it’s time to to forget last years’ mistakes, be they sartorial, personal or professional, and make the new season our most stylish and successful yet. Generally speaking this positive outlook tends to go out of the window about the same time as our New Year’s resolutions, AKA January 3rd. After all, the combination of miserable weather, post-party season fatigue and lack of any holidays in the forseeable future makes hard not to succumb to the January blues. But don’t dispair, or at least if you do, dispair in style as the SS12 collections have started to arrive in stores and my God are they gorgeous. Ok, so most of us wont be donning slinky sundresses or breezy blouses anytime soon but there’s no reason why we can’t lift our spirits and update our wardrobe with a few of these new season treats…

1) Whistles Carrie Bold Stripe Sweater, £110, available at www.whistles.co.uk
2) Citizens of Humanity Antique Gold Jeans, £220, available at www.donnaida.com
3) Mulberry Strawberry Key Ring, £60, available at www.net-a-porter.com
4) Burberry Brit Cotton Jacket, £450, available at www.matchesfashion.com
5) J. Crew Bond Street Leather Tote, £325, available at www.net-a-porter.com
6) French Sole Harriet Shocking Pink Crocodile pumps, £101, available at www.frenchsole.com
7) Marc by Marc Jacobs Hot Dot Silk Blouse, £220, available at www.net-a-porter.com
8) Isabel Marant Lea Stretch Denim Skirt, £220, available at www.net-a-porter.com
9) Miu Miu Croc Effect Glossed Leather Wallet, £240, available at www.net-a-porter

Love Ella. X

Posted on January 6, 2012 by Ella Catliff in Shopping 3 Comments

La Petite Weekly Wish List

Cruise Control: Whistles Launches 2012 Resort Collection

Oh to be a millionaire. Instead of spending the next six weeks (minimum) wrapped up in well-worn winter woolies and scurrying around in the rain you could simply scoop up a selection of the resort collections and make for sunnier climbs. Unfortunately for those of us without a nine figure salary or an oil tycoon Daddy, there is no month more sartorially frustrating than January. Every fash mag is bursting with Spring/Summer delights which the combination of endless sale rails and sub-zero temperatures leave us unable test drive for at least another month. Yep, for those of us who can’t afford to snap up the Chanel Cruise collection and jet off to St Barths, the dismal post-Christmas/pre-Spring period is one with few redeeming features… or at least it was, until now.

Chanel Resort 2012

This season heralds the release of Whistles’ first full resort collection which has arrived not a second too soon. Featuring zesty brights, spring stripes and immaculate tailoring, this pre-Spring fare is a much more wearable, not to mention affordable, alternative to Karl Lagerfeld’s ultra glamourous offerings. So if the novelty of your Christmas jumper has long since worn off I’d highly recommend skipping the sales and investing in these between-season treats, guaranteed to put a spring in your step or at the very least, your wardrobe.

Whistles Resort 2012

Shop Whistles’ 2012 Resort Collection here

Love Ella. X

Posted on January 5, 2012 by Ella Catliff in Fashion Leave a comment

Burberry gets steamy for SS12…

Ok, Cara Delevigne is officially the luckiest girl in the world. Not only is she blessed with sickeningly good looks, world’s longest legs and a wardrobe bursting with Burberry, Cara also got to spend an afternoon canoodling (or at least, pretending to canoodle) with the gorgeous Eddie Redmayne. Having watched My Week With Marilyn almost purely for perving purposes (it’s also a really good film btw) I was beyond jealous when I saw these snaps. Partially for obvious Eddie-related reasons but most of all because I NEED that parka in my life!

Love Ella. X

Posted on January 4, 2012 by Ella Catliff in Fashion 3 Comments

Look Du Jour: Dot to Dot

What: Jumper: H&M, Jeans: Acne, Hat: Topshop, Boots: Massimo Dutti, Bag: Whistles, Ring: Galibardy

Ok, so this isn’t the most inspirational outfit with which to kick off 2012. But when the weather’s as grim as it was today the idea of slipping into something chic involving short hemlines and swathes of chiffon doesn’t exactly appeal. I spent the bank holiday at my parents’ house and by the time I’d flogged up to London avec wheeley bag and upset a lot of unsuspecting commuters in the process I couldn’t quite summon up the strength to come up with a more exciting ensemble so this will just have to do! It’s kind of like the sartorial equivalent of a steaming bowl of pesto pasta. The classic jeans n’ jumper combo certainly isn’t going to win any prizes for originality but you’d have to try pretty hard to get it wrong.

What’s your clothing comfort food?

Love Ella. X

Posted on January 3, 2012 by Ella Catliff in Look Du Jour 1 Comment

BREAKING NEWS!!! Fashion East Announces Line-Up for AW12

What do Holly Fulton, Gareth Pugh, Roksanda Ilincic, Meadham Kirchoff and Jonathan Saunders all have in common? Well aside from bags of talent and legions of loyal fans all of these hotter-than-hot designers began their sartorial career with a helping hand from fashion’s fairy godmother, Lulu Kennedy. Since it’s launch in 2000, Lulu has been running Fashion East, an ingenius initiative which nurtures London’s most exciting young designers through the turbulent early stages of their careers.

Each season the scheme provides a select few with the means to present their work to world on the London Fashion Week catwalk. The designers are chosen by a panel of industry experts including Grazia’s Kay Barron, Vogue’s Francesca Burns and Brix Smith-Start and provided with mentoring, PR and an opportunity to present their collections to top international buyers and journalists. Fashion East’s previous protégés have gone on to become some of the most in-demand designers around and each season the fashion world waits with baited breath to find out who could be the next big thing. Now the time for waiting is over as Lulu and Co have proudly announced that for the first time ever, Fashion East will be supporting the same line-up of designers that showed with them last season; James Long, Marques’Almeida and Maarten Van der Horst. Judging from what these emerging fashion stars delivered for SS12, we should be in for a treat.