Fashion is all about the pink and feminine this week – from breast cancer to make-your-own-jewellery to a custom tutu line for children. Read on for your dose of fashion gossip…
It’s Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and no industry is more devoted to the cause than fashion.
Estee Lauder is a particular supporter – Evelyn Lauder herself died of ovarian cancer – and Liz Hurley, one of the brand’s ambassadors, painted the Empire State Building in pink lights this week.
But the campaign is spread all across the fashion world, from sales to special tees.
The most famous is Ralph Lauren’s Pink Pony campaign, one of the longest-running and most successful fundraising campaigns for cancer. The preppy American retailer’s pink polo shirts are one of its best sellers.
Origins skincare’s also getting in on the action, with special pink hand creams and stress-busting creams for the month.
And an entire nation-wide campaign in England has seen Topshop, Marks & Spencers, Laura Ashley and a bunch of other famous retailers put in their contributions to put pink on everybody’s lips.
Fashion Targets Breast Cancer Australia is our hometown equivalent, and last year they put out a black-and-white range from top retailers like Cue, Seafolly and Seduce to raise money.
We’re waiting on a new spectacular range this year – and we bet it will make its way into the season’s hottest parties and events.
So get that pink ribbon and get shopping for awareness!
Image: Liz Hurley.
First Valentino does the costumes for the New York City Ballet, and now Collette Dinnigan is getting in on the action.
Her collection, alas, isn’t for grown-ups. It’s for girls and boys just learning to go en pointe.
Dinnigan has teamed up with Target for a range of children’s tutus, and the results are charming.
Dinnigan said it was inspired by a collaboration with the Australian Ballet, who are celebrating their 50th anniversary this year. (We’re predicting a Vogue shoot, but that’s just us.)
The range is typical Collette – vintage-inspired, full of floaty femininity, and also practical for the young and inexperienced.
Dinnigan is currently pregnant with her second child – perhaps there are some newborn tutus in the range as well.
The range will be available from November 12 in Target. Will you be buying it for your little Anna Pavlova?
Image: Collette Dinnigan’s tutus.
The Alexander McQueen ready-to-wear show was one of the biggest of the season, and it’s the latest incarnation of a massive new trend.
Visible corsetry, petticoats and boning – the internal structure of a garment – seem very 1980s-90s in feel, but they’ve made a reappearance.
Sarah Burton at McQueen made them theatrical and romantic, with the spectres of corsets underneath beautiful gowns, all in shades of linen and cream.
Some of the structures – crinolines and under-bust corsets – were made of a material similar to amber. This is jewellery crossed with clothing, and Rescu. loves it.
So how do you incorporate it into your wardrobe without looking like Madonna in Gaultier?
Accessories are the name of the game. A corset-inspired waist-belt, to be worn on the outside of clothing, is a great way to get the deconstructed feel. Look for one that’s structured close to the body or ribcage, like a cage. Burberry’s leather versions are stunning.
If you’re brave, this is the season for the crop-top bustier. Look for one with visible lines and boning, emphasising the outline of the top. Pair with a loose white shirt.
If you want to make a McQueen-esque statement, arrange a loose, bright evening dress to reveal part of a corset. Make sure they have contrasting colours, that the light-coloured corset is worthy of being displayed, and that the arrangement looks purposeful. It’s no good if your dress seems to have fallen off.
Otherwise, go all Azaelia Banks and pair a tuxedo jacket and trousers with a bustier.
We don’t recommend the crinoline route – unless you’re very avant-garde – but otherwise keep it PG-13 and in light, romantic colours, and you’re on your way.
Image: McQueen.
Call it the recession’s rise in make-do-and-mend, but the internet is overflowing with tutorials about making your own jewellery. And they’re not teenage, haphazard looks, either. The range of tutorials, usually only requiring basic hardware-store stuff and some pliers, are high-fashion and high-impact. The major trend? DIY bracelets. The look this summer is thin, multilayered and colourful, with accessories like tassels, coins, leather arrows and tangled rope. Crocheted embroidery thread is popular, as is plaited rope – and beads are no longer just for children. The look is miniature and sleek, but the results are totally grown-up. For advanced DIYers, there’s polymer clay, which can be made into beads for necklaces, earrings and bracelets, strung, painted and baked. It comes in pastels rather than insane Play-doh colours, and is one of the major hits among indie jewellery sellers. So where are the best places to find a tutorial to suit you? Here are a few of our favourite sites: PS I Made This, Pippa, Refinery29, I Spy DIY, Make It & Fake It, and Pinterest. Be prepared to spend some time doing fiddly things with fabric, thread and needles – and to come out looking more expensive than you’d ever anticipated. Image: Make-your-own bracelets.