You can sum up Haute Couture in one word: extravagance. Unless you flew into Paris on a private jet, were accompanied by a dog the same size as a guinea pig, and were sat on the front row nestled between Anna Wintour and Charlotte Casiraghi, then the message was clear to all in attendance… you can’t afford the splendour before you. In settings such as the gardens of the Musée Rodin (where Dior’s collection was shown), those who could afford the upwards-of-5-figure price tags (not that there were any – how vulgar) sighed with joy and satisfaction that the garments floating down the runway with impossible grace could very well be theirs. For everyone else, notes were taken on how to incorporate those trends into everyday wear. It was opulent, it was dazzling and it was well-heeled. In both senses of the word. Recession? Pah! What recession?

If money was no object, which dress or collection would you take home?

{images via etsy, pinterest & tinypic}
This weekend I am taking a train to visit old friends, new babies, shops full of needless home trinkets (that I may buy nonetheless), and watching romcoms whilst gossiping late into the night… I can’t wait. What are you up to this weekend?

Fashion magazines and websites are currently filled with the key trends for Spring/Summer 2011 and I love how colour features so prominently. For the last seventeen years Pantone has surveyed designers and experts at New York Fashion Week to bring us their predictions of the colour trends for the upcoming season. The Spring 2011 report is appropriately called Spring 2011 – An Exotic Journey, citing far flung destinations like Africa, India, Peru and Turkey as inspiration:

‘Exotic’ is certainly a fitting description… they’re colours straight out of a sun-bleached tropical island. With the ever-present grey skies outside I took great delight in hunting out items in this stunningly diverse assortment of shades, whatever your budget. Which colour/s will you be wearing this Spring?

1. New Look bow shoulder dress – £26.99
2. Topshop paper bag waist shorts – £36
3. Jil Sander gauze scarf – £90
4. Pringle 1815 cotton skirt – £50
5. New Look gathered gypsy top – £7.99
6. Vicenza three row bracelet – £6
7. Miss Selfridge patent flower ballerina – £22
8. See by Chloé bow-front silk-blend skirt – £78.75
9. D&G rubber strap watch – £99
10. Kiki de Montparnasse backless jersey tank – £95
11. Paul & Joe cotton-blend jacket – £154
12. Christian Louboutin Futura leather ankle boots – £695
13. Halston ruffle-tier silk-chiffon dress – £591
14. Isharya gypsy 18-karat gold-plated earrings – £310
15. Versus silk-satin and chiffon mini dress – £676
16. Sonia by Sonia Rykiel cotton jacket – £395
17. Leaves of Grass silk-georgette blouse – £565
18. Versace knitted sweater – £330
19. Victoria Beckham Denim skinny jeans – £200
20. Diane von Furstenberg silk-satin wrap dress – £340

What do we know about Ben Fogle? He’s terribly well-spoken, has floppy blonde hair, met his wife Marina whilst walking his black labrador, Inca, and isn’t content unless he’s pushing his body and mind to its limits on various treks, challenges and expeditions. I know the feeling (ahem). So it was fascinating to learn a little bit more about the intrepid adventurer by taking a glimpse inside the West London home he shares with his wife and son, Ludo, in this month’s LivingEtc.

What strikes me is how incredibly homely and welcoming it is, especially the kitchen-diner which is flooded with light thanks to a glass extention that the pair added in. It’s not surprising that according to Fogle it’s thoughts of home that keep him going when in some far-flung destination: “Imagining myself walking into the house, coming through to the kitchen, seeing Marina and Ludo, has become one of my key coping mechanisms in a tough environment.” Evidence of his adventures – included vibrant maps and a polar sledge – pop up in each room, and patchwork textiles, retro prints and Union Jack cushions give their dwelling a warm and cosy vibe. If I were Fogle, I’d never want to leave…

{images via LivingEtc}

{Smeg fridge / Tea Revives You poster / Newgate clock / large gold letters / Squint sofa}

As featured in British Vogue magazine, February 2011

{words & images via Vogue}
on US citizenship rumours: “Oh God, what’s David said now? That’s the first I’ve heard. I’m proud to be English. But LA is definitely home. Lionel Richie asked me the other day how I felt about raising kids there – I’m always bumping into him at the airport, it’s weird – and I said, I feel great. But at the moment they’re little, so I can wrap them up in cotton wool. Ask me again when they’re teenagers.”
on other people’s opinions of her: “I’m a positive person. It’s never nice when people write hurtful things and much as I say I don’t see it, I’m not stupid. But I’ve seen both sides of fame and I realise that it’s brought me a lot of opportunities. I suppose if I really cared what people say I’d have topped myself years ago.”
on the image she projects: “I always look at my miserable stupid face and think why didn’t I just smile… because I’m quite a happy, smiley person. But when I see the paparazzi, I freeze. Maybe that’s my safety wall after all the years of crap. Still, at least the bag looks fabulous.”
on her design skills: “I suppose if people think the clothes are too good for me to have designed them, that’s a backhanded compliment. Look, I don’t draw, but nor do lots of designers. I tie things around me. I experiment with ideas and I try to work out a way to make everything flattering and a woman feel beautiful. Oprah Winfrey recently asked me to make her a dress. I must be doing something right.”
on her husband: “The other morning I looked across at David just after he’d woken up and thought, you look really crap. THANK GOD, because this is a man who always looked perfect.”