How to get the Hayley Williams Look

This week apart from being overloaded with my University work, I've found the time to still keep up to date with the latest and upcoming trends at the moment. As most of you all know my music means a lot to me and every now and then I like to see what my favourite bands and singers are wearing.

One band which has always been a guilty pleasure of mine is the American Pop Punk band Paramore and yesterday I finally got round to watching their latest music video 'Still into You'. Although the song is a complete contrast to their old stuff, I feel a change is what they needed to keep current. Hayley Williams (lead singer) also shocked me with her new incredible look, something I couldn't pull off myself sadly but with her it worked perfectly. When trying to piece together the look for this post, I realised that most of the clothing worn in the video is both affordable and from high street brands, with a favourite of popular of Hayley's being Topshop! I have had varied opinions on the paint drip tights, however I'm hoping this look catches on, as I would love to give them ago myself. Bright pastels and neons I feel are also just what we need to brighten up this spring. Although I haven't been able to find every item of clothing from the video, I hope you like my version of the outfit! Below I've listed where you can get most of the items from (just click on the item for the link).

For the 'Still into You' video Click Here.

1. Dweeb Crop Top - Topshop - £10

2. Wide Hinge Detail Belt - Topshop - £20

3. Lilac Scuba Skater Skirt - Nasty Gal - £24.72

4. Pastel Moto Jacket - UNIF - £110.81

5. Pro Long Eye Shadow - Mac - £16.50

6. Multitone Bubblegum Melting Tights - URB - £35.85

7. Baby Pink Lip Paint - Barry M - £4.49

8. Dr Marten 1460 Boot - Dr Martens - £100

Total Outfit Cost - £322.37

Design and Buying Internship as Debenhams

I have had the busiest month of my life, but it has all been worth it and I've had the most amazing news along the way. As most of you will know I am taking a year out from University to gain some work experience in the Fashion Industry and prepare me for the future career I have forever dreamed about. I am amazed and extremely grateful with the job offers I have received and although some have meant more to me than others I strongly believe in reliability. I have just completed my first placement as a Buying and Design intern at Debenhams for Red Herring. It was incredible and I feel that I have learnt and done so much  in such a short amount of time. Everyone I worked with was extremely lovely and I managed to bump into famous faces in the hallway such as John Rocha! On top of all of this the team I worked in were incredible and have said that I am welcome to come back anytime in the future! 

While working there I learnt that every brand in Debenhams, before starting the collection will look at all the key A/W trends, colours, fabrics and items taken straight from the Catwalk, they will then not only take ideas from this but compare against what other high street brands are doing and how they can compete. The buyers also have a big role in this as they need to know what type of samples to look at, some buyers will look at the high street, while others will go abroad to fashion capitals to see what's on the high street there, the main favourite being New York. The samples are then sorted through by the buyers to see what is either missing from the high street or what is a key trend to follow, this information is then sent to the designers to adapt and take inspiration from. The designers then create mood boards, do further research into trends for that season, and will design the collection keeping in mind their brand and target customer. However once this is complete the buyers have the final say in whether they want to change the colour, fabric, fit and anything they see is missing or wrong about the garment before it is sent to a supplier where it will be made. Once sent back the buyer will hold a fitting where a model will try the garment on, and the team will assess what needs to be changed, the garment will then  be sent back repeatedly until it is perfect. 

Once the collection has been sent out to stores, the buyers will check up on what is selling well and what isn't and review this on a regular basis to see what to improve on next time and what items could possibly be brought back again. The individual brands will also compare price points to other high street brands with simular styles to see whether they are too low or high, impacting on whether the customer shops there or not. All of this fascinated me as I never knew how much work went on into a collection. I could talk about what I have done and learned for hours but hope this post has interested you as much as it has with me and over the next few days be expecting more blogs on the key trends I've found! 

Damart: Reinventing the Thermolactyl Experience

I have just completed a garment technology project based on reinventing thermal wear. The brief was to design one or more item of lesuire/loungewear which could be worn as both outer and underwear. The project goes towards one of my modules at University, however was also set as a competition by the well established brand Damart, with the intention of widening their audience and welcoming a younger target market to their brand. The images above are taken from Damart's newest look book and certainly show the change in their image with styling becoming more younger and sexier.

For this project I wanted to combine leisurewear with activewear, creating an item of clothing which will have more than one purpose and function. I have chosen a light teal colour thermal fabric for the garment however for the binding detail I have reversed the fabric to contrast in a dark teal. For the panelling to fit into both categories of lesuire and activewear I coverstitched the pannel outlines, giving the garment a more sporty look. Below are images showing part of the making process I went through, however will be putting my design up at a later date.

I am extremely happy to say I have made it to the final stage of the competition. On the 7th of May I will have an interview and present my work to Damart for the chance a to win! Meanwhile during the easter break my work will be professionally styled and photographed. I couldn't be more happy right now and winning would mean the world to me but either way I am so appreciative to get this far in the competition!  

The Dior Exhibition at Harrods

Today I visited the Dior exhibition on at Harrod's and took as many pictures as I could, as usual. I had been meaning to see the exhibition for a while, however due to it being reserved for so many events and private parties it was hard to find a time when it actually became available to the public. It was certainly worth the wait though, even if it did mean me getting lost in Harrod's a repeated amount of times.

 As soon as I entered the showroom I was greeted by dollhouse like windows, some closed, some with silhouetted figures and some with individual miniature rooms, displaying the perfume in an unusual yet artistic format. I then went from room to room fascinated by every single garment on display, taking me on a journey from the start of Dior's glamourous and historic career to current day. This included the well known perfumes, costumes used for the advertisements, the iconic handbag and miniature replicas of his Haute Couture pieces, alongside bigger ones worn by stars as big as Elizabeth Taylor, Audrey Hepburn and more. My favourite piece by far however was the Audrey Hepburn evening dress in white, embroidered with silver sequins, pictured on the bottom image to the left, which she wore for Harper's Bazaar in 1959, if only it were mine! 

I really didn't want to leave this exhibition and I recommend visiting if you're down in London anytime soon as it won't be here forever, just make sure if you've never been to Harrod's before to not get lost like me!

Yohji Yammamoto Design Project

In the next few weeks I will begin to blog more about my work and  start to give an inside into what I'm up to, including my time at University and my year out working in the Fashion Industry, so hopefully you'll be seeing more of me!

This project was to design a ten outfit collection for the fashion designer Yohji Yamamoto. To grasp a feel for the Yamamoto's style and customers, I visited the flagship store in London and interviewed some of his customers asking them questions about their personal interests, their age (personal I know but had to be done!) and why they liked the brand. From this it gave me a rough basis to work on for my mood and customer board. I then researched trends for A/W 13/14 and came across one called 'Sculptural' which instantly inspired me into what I wanted my collection to achieve and look like. I looked at architectural sculptures from unconventional buildings to contemporay interiors. I found that minimalistic styles such as repetition were used heavily in the images I looked at; changing the proportions and dimensions of the building/interior, while forming a pattern simultaneously and often intentionally. I wanted to incorporate these aspects into my designs, portraying this through my silhouette, structure and detailing - juxtaposing sharp shapes and lines against smooth curves.

 In this project I found it hard to find fabrics to achieve the structures I wanted but after long searches I luckily managed to find a store in London selling stiffened cotton, wool and satin, still having a designer feel and texture to them. My favourite part was creating my own illustrations, although without a figure template was very tricky! Overall I feel my final outcomes fit the brand and still keep in mind Yamamoto's design focus of minimalism with an unconventional twist. This was one of my favourite project's and I would be happy to design for a designer brand again. Would love to know what you guys think of my work and flat drawings.

Felder Felder - Spring/Summer 2013

Can I just say how incredible is the Spring/Summer 2013 Felder Felder collection? The German twin sisters have really outdone themselves and although the collection is looking a lot more mature and sophisticated compared to previous ones, I would still feel privileged to own a piece from this collection in my wardrobe. 'Imperfect Beauty' was the concept behind this collection, which at first I was sceptical to see, however when looking at the pieces individually rather than as a whole I could begin to identify it. Broken down patterns of abstract or leopard print, alongside soft pastel tones (with the odd hint of various shades of blue) on fragile fabrics of chiffon and lace - it's safe to say that this collection is Felder Felder at their finest.

 Although this is not what I'm used to from the girls I still feel they have maintained their grunge, care-free style, but just toned this down, which I think will widen their customer base in the future. The images I have selected above are my favourite pieces from the glamourous collection and especially loved the blue abstract print used on a lot of the pieces and if anyone wants to treat me to one of these outfits, I would not complain, it is valentines day soon after all.

This is a must see collection and I hope you guys love it as much as I do. For further viewing click here.

Lunch with the Girls

So me and the girls have planned a lovely catch up over lunch this week and I thought I'd be prepared and plan my outfit in advance of the occasion, hope you guys like.

I know floral patterns are often associated with summer/spring, however I feel that the greyscale tone of the print can make this jacket work for this season also. I've been looking for a floral jacket everywhere recently, but they have always seemed to bright for me, so as soon as I saw this one I instantly fell in love. I matched the blazer up with a high neck crop top as I felt it would show the necklace off against a solid black background.

Normally I'm not a fan of crop tops personally as I'm quite self-conscious about my stomach area, but to combat this issue, I invested in my first pair of high-waisted jeans from Topshop's new 'Joni' range. I've worn jeans in the past but never felt comfortable in them and ended up not wearing them, living in only leggings and skirts. I can safely say however, these jeans are incredible as they hide my stomach area without restricting me and I would recommend strongly to people like me that aren't used to wearing jeans. Lastly I added a vintage leather clutch bag given to me from my mother, alongside some simple black wedges to complete the look. Below I've listed where you can get most of the items from and the price.

1. Floral Tailored Blazer - Marks and Spencer £55 £15

2. Skinny Polo Crop Top - Topshop - £10

3. Short Necklace - Dorothy Perkins - £15

4. Vintage Clutch - Stolen from the Mother

5. Black Joni Super High Waisted Jeans - Topshop - £36

6.  Usher Zip Wedges - New Look - £19.99

Total Clothing Cost - 95.99 

(not including student discount)

To find more looks that I love and keep up to date with my life check out my tumblr and instagram -

http://softlydrawn.tumblr.com/ & http://instagram.com/emma_threlfall/

Anne Sofie Madsen - Cherrilee

Sorry I've been away for so long but university work has been holding me captive, even in the holidays. These past few months have been hectic, since my last post I've moved into my new place in Leeds, bought so many clothes I can't close my wardrobe, invested in a new camera, which I can't keep my hands off and am currently mid-way through my second year at Leeds University! Although to make up I have a lot to blog about these next few weeks!

I thought this week I'd blog about Anne Sofie Madsen's Spring/Summer 2013 collection- 'Cherrilee' . I've wanted to write about her work as soon as she debuted just over a year ago at Copenhagen Fashion Week. Since then she has become one of my favourite designer's and an inspiration to me. Her work never ceases to amaze me, with each individual outfit she creates looking delicately formed and like pieces finely crafted artwork. Although the theme of her collections change each season she states her concept always stays the same, wanting to show 'the well-known through the un-known and to use traditional hand craft methods and couture techniques within ready-to-wear'.

In her 'Cherrilee' collection she again simular to her previous work, shows her extreme talent for creating beautiful hand-drawn illustrated prints, intricate skeleton like embossments and heavily embellished stand-out pieces. Her mix and contrast in fabrics is what I love most about this collection. While her  cool colour palette works perfect together with a somewhat warrior like theme. There's no surprise from looking at this collection that her internship with John Galliano and work experience with Alexander McQueen, has inspired a couture twist in her work. I'm hoping she will become more known this time next year and people will start to appreciate her work just as much as I do!