“There’s no such thing as bad weather, only inadequate clothing.” Ted Hughes. With weather
that’s less predictable than the line-ups, let the words of poet Ted Hughes be your mantra this summer. More than ever festival dressing is about preparation, preparation, preparation. The summer collections are a wealth of festival appropriate fare. Utility – safari or military inspired – as seen at Chloe, Sportmax and Loewe makes festival fashion sense. Adopt rain resistant ponchos, functional multi-pocketed skirts and combat jackets – great for stashing anti-bacterial hand-gel, sunscreen and compact. Don’t be tempted to go head-to-toe though, mix practical with pretty floral print dresses, or plain tees, to avoid looking too Tank Girl.
The abundance and versatility of shorts makes them a perennial festival staple. Wear with knee-high socks a la Wang, and a giant parka courtesy of Chloe, and you’re done. A great trend testing ground to spot what worked en-field, and what didn’t. Our verdict – floral, tribal and tie-dye prints – yes, lace body-con – no. Swimwear and combats – yes, underwear as outerwear – no.
LADIES, breathe a sigh of relief. After seasons of teetering on towering stilettos, battling with abstract wedges and navigating the perils of platforms, spring/summer brings an end to the balancing act. Welcome the new low heel.
We know, they haven’t always scored high on the lust front, but with Chloe, Stella McCartney, Marni and Missoni pioneering the new heel height you can expect to be impressed. Chloe’s take their shape from a pirate boot, with wide saddle leather buckled straps, while Marni’s bronze and black suede sandals make a great evening option, and Missoni’s boast a wooden sole (jump on the bandwagon; wooden soles are everywhere this season).
Warning: once tried, you’ll never want to wear heels again.
Karl Lagerfeld is the master of reinvention. From a portly fan-wielding designer for his own label he shrank to a snake-hipped figure (after which he authored and published The 3D Diet – about dropping 92 pounds in 13 months), and – although he still brandished a fan – he set about world domination as designer for Fendi as well as Chanel, plus a range for H& M.
He is a mini polymath: an intellectual who owns 7L – a bookshop in Paris – speaks several languages and has published books of his art photography too.
• Born in Hamburg in 1938, Karl Lagerfeld emigrated to Paris at the age of 14
• He has designed costumes for La Scala opera
• In 1955, at the age of 17, Lagerfeld worked at Pierre Balmain, after winning a competition. He then worked for Jean Patou, Krizia, Charles Jourdan and Valentino
• In 1967 he joined Fendi, then Chloe the following decade, then Chanel in 1983 – returning briefly to Chloe in 1993 to replace out-going designer Martine Sitbon
• In 1984 he also launched his own name Karl Lagerfeld label which, he said, would channel “intellectual sexiness”
It’s no wonder that he appears to be such a master of the fashion landscape. By 1997, Vogue crowned him the “unparalleled interpreter of the mood of the moment”. Humour in his designs never deserts him whether with quilted handbag earrings, to 2007’s quilted ankle bag.
In 2005 he sold his own name brands (Lagerfeld Gallery and Lagerfeld), to Tommy Hilfiger but maintained full design involvement
Fashion Profile
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Chales jourdan, Chanel, Chloé, Fendi, H&M, Jean patou, Karl lagerfeld, Krizia, Martin Sitbon, Pierre Balmain, Tommy Hilfiger, valentino
How much volume should I go for?
The look was best summed up by new Chloé designer Hanna MacGibbon’s breezy-glamorous fall 2009 show—the key silhouette was this: high-waisted, cuffed trousers, silky button-down blouses tucked into softly tailored paper-bag trousers, cuffed casually at the leg and cinched snugly at the waist with a knotted leather belt. And outerwear enjoyed a huge emphasis for fall—big blanket coats, capes, and suede jackets are all so fun and just luscious. Making things even easier to wear is the superneutral back-to-school color palette: heathery grays, warms shades of brown and beige, plus muted shots of hunter-green, rust, and deep eggplant. Fabrics were rich and plush: washed leather and suede, double-faced-wool, cashmere, rich velvet, and thick, slinky silk. The rule of thumb is, of course, balance. The most voluminous pieces should get tempered with some bare skin—pleated trousers with a bitty camisole, say—and every look, from jumpsuits to leather shorts, should get finished with a thin, simple belt, knotted casually at the waist, and high-heeled, casually feminine pumps or cuffed ankle boots .
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