NYFW - A/W '13

We're only just to say seeing the back of winter and (sort of) gearing up for Spring/Summer, when Fashion Week kicks off, showcasing the trends for A/W. These shows are usually my favourite as there's a lot of black, leather, dark colours, layering and some amazing outerwear that I fall in love with and weep over because I don't own it. Moving on...

Here's a few of my favourites from New York Fashion Week for A/W 13:

Katie Gallagher

One of my favourite designers that I've discovered in the past year is Katie Gallagher. I'm completely in love with her designs and this season is no exception. It's totally black on black on black (that's it, I'm sold) with only the slightest hint of deep navy, there's laser-cut details that look like twisted and gnarled tree branches that create an extra witchy vibe and can we just talk about that jacket with the hood for a second? Y'know the one piece of outerwear I was talking about just now? Yeah. That's the one.

Prabal Gurung

I also fall in love with shoes a lot while looking through the FW shows. These shoe/boot/leg armour beauties from Prabal Gurung are just screaming out to me. The collection had a military feel, with a lot of khaki green and fitted jackets while the leather skirts, jackets and harnesses added a slight fetishistic edge. Also, peplum keeps cropping up again which isn't something I'm a fan of, but it's probably going to be sticking around for a while.

Rodarte

Oversized pieces with a lot of layering and draping doesn't really sound that appealing in theory, but Rodarte actually make it look quite nice. I'm always a fan of sheer pieces, here the shirt sleeves adding a subtle flash of skin, the pattern of the dresses with shades of dark blue and grey add a grungy feel while the peach toned blouse and floaty skirts create that feminine balance. Once again, it's the shoes. Those white creepers? Please and thanks. 

The Blonds

Now this, this is it. I'd heard of The Blonds but never knew too much about them (they've created all kinds of crazy, diamond encrusted corsets for the likes of Katy Perry and Rhianna), but I saw some photos of their A/W collection online and knew this is right up my street.

I'm calling it horror-movie chic. The references are so obvious they're printed onto the dresses. A 'Psycho' print mini-dress and Jack Nicholson's "Heeeeere's Johnny!" face on the bodice of another? Here, just take all of my money goddamnit. Heavily embellished corsets, a dress made from belts, fur, sequins, feathers.. I just died. Everything about this collection is over the top, weird, crazy and stunning and I'm completely in love with the clear rain coat that looks like it has fake blood inside of it. They even took the theme right through to the smallest detail with jewelled, dripping blood and 'Psycho' inspired nail art. Someone get a DIY tutorial up, stat!

The Blonds

(photos: style.com and The Blonds facebook)

Which collection[s] from NYFW have you seen that you've fallen in love with?

UNIF Das Boot - Unboxing/First Impressions

 Oh sweet lord have mercy on my soul. 

Ever since I bought a pair of Hellraisers last summer, I've grown more and more obsessed with UNIF and their amazing pieces, especially the Hellbounds. Unfortunately, everywhere was sold out of my size in the colour I wanted (black - obviously),  and I'd kind of given up hope of ever getting a pair. Until the Das Boot came along and I fell in love. 

Gorgeous black leather, with an exposed zip fastening on the front with all the party in the back in the form of the chunky gradient plastic heel. Oh. My. God. I don't think I've ever been so excited to own a pair of shoes in my life! And much like the Hellbounds, these shoes are monsters. With a 3 inch platform and a 6 inch heel, these babies make me taller than I probably need to be. But y'know what, fuck it. Who says tall[er] girls can't wear amazing shoes like this?

I ordered these from dollskill (the same place I bought my Hellraisers) on a Wednesday evening and they were shipped the next day, despite me being an international customer. Honestly, I think it's great that they send orders out so quickly, regardless of your location. I received them Monday morning (Feb 11th), which is a great delivery turn-around, and I've been clomping around my room in them ever since (except to take photos of them, naturally.)

The box they came in has some damage/tears/scuff marks to the corners, but that's down to them being shipped from the US to the UK and it has affected the shoes at all. As usual, the shoes come in their own separate dust jackets, with tissue paper inside to maintain their shape and a foam layer to stop the shoes rubbing against each other in the box. Just like my Hellraisers, I plan on storing them just like this to keep them looking their best. (My Hellraisers are still in almost-perfect condition, in case anyone's wondering!) 

So far, they feel pretty comfortable. The only issue is the zip feels a little tight while zipping them up, especially on my left foot, and once they're on but after wearing them for a while, that feeling goes away. (I'm not sure if it's just my feet, but it's something to bare in mind I suppose).
These shoes are real leather, so I'm expecting them to stretch a little over time. Even just walking around the house I feel quite steady on my feet and not like I'm going to trip over, I'm still a little weary of stairs, though they are manageable, however I'm not sure how long it'll be before I dare venture into the outside world in these. I'm also planning to use these in a photography project for uni, which is what I'm kind of using as an excuse for buying such an expensive piece, but honestly I just really, really wanted these shoes.

Side note:

 This is only a 'first impressions' post and by no means an extensive 'worn-them-for-weeks' review. I was really excited to get these and it's probably going to take a while to get used to walking around in them. Although I'm not used to wearing heels that often, let alone platforms this high, I can say that my feet aren't aching after just wearing them around the house. So if you wear heels a lot, you can probably venture a guess as to how comfortable they would be for you.

I also bought the UNIF Abbey skirt which was on sale on dollskill. It's a beautiful, floaty, hi-lo skirt with a black floral print and feels very gypsy-esque which will be perfect for spring/summer. I haven't photographed it in full because this post is aaaall about the shoes. 

Click here to read my review of the UNIF Hellraisers!

Beauty Haul aka "Treat 'yo self!" #1

It's just been one of those days/weeks, y'know? 

Soap & Glory 'Thick & Fast' mascara - I got a sample of this with an issue of Elle last year and I loved it! The brush is really big and it isn't too 'wet', which I'm a fan of, so it doesn't leave massive clumps on my eyelashes.

Urban Decay '24/7 Glide-On Lip Pencil' in 'Ozone' - this past week I've started wearing lipstick more often and since I usually wear quite bright colours, rather than getting lip pencils to match each lipstick I own, I opted for this. 'Ozone' is a white/clear lip pencil that will go with any shade of lipstick. It's easy and smooth to apply and has a really good staying power.  

Sleek 'True Colour' lipstick in 'Mystic'

Revlon 'PhotoReady' cream blush in 'Pinched'

Maybelline '24HR Colour Tattoo' in 'On And On Bronze' (apparently this one is the same as 'Bad To The Bronze', it just has a different name in the UK?)

Rimmel 'Apocalips Lip Lacquer' in 'Stellar'

These are all new products to me, but I've heard a lot about them through some of my favourite beauty bloggers/vloggers, especially the Colour Tattoo shadow, so I thought "why the hell not?" and finally decided to take the plunge and try them out myself. 

L-R: 'Pinched', 'On And On Bronze', 'Stellar', 'Mystic'

(you can tell how cold I was from the goosebumps on my arm! haha!)

I've decided this year is the year of trying out crazy new lipsticks and look how amazing Mystic is! Cannot wait to wear this. I've already tried out the Apocalips and it's a bright neon orange/pink shade. It's kinda looks like wearing highlighter pen on your lips, but I love it! I'm so tempted to pick up another of these in the red shade. Hmm...   

I wanted to try out some new skincare items because, lately I've been getting a lot of redness around my chin and forehead. So I went into The Body Shop and picked up a few things from the Tea Tree range: 'Blackhead Exfoliating Wash', 'Pore Minimiser' and 'Blemish Gel'. Hopefully these will do a good job of clearing my skin up. And because I spent over £18 on skincare, I got a free Body Butter, which is an amazing deal since the body butters are £13 on their own. 

Speaking of body butters, I also got the Soap & Glory 'Sugar Crush' Body Buttercream. This smells like heaven! Urgh! I got the body wash and scrub for Christmas and I've been absolutely in love with this scent. I just want to be surrounded by it 24/7. It smells really sweet, like limes and Cola Bottles, so if this sounds like your thing, definitely check it out. 

I got another shampoo bar from Lush, my choice being 'Squeaky Green'. I tend to have problems with my scalp/dandruff which I've still not found a permanent solution for, but this does help. These shampoo bars last a really long time, I got one at the end of August last year and I only just finished it last month. Amazing value for money! Also, shout-out the woman who served me today in Lush. She was really lovely and complimented my nails and had crazy-bright pink hair. Sigh, now I'm pining for my fuchsia locks..

Finally, I got a couple of things from HMV from their Blue Cross sale that's going on.

30 Seconds To Mars 'A Beautiful Lie' - if you know anything about me, it's that this band are my everything. Such a weird reason for buying this but okay. I already have the CD/DVD version of this album but I wanted the regular as I have the regular and deluxe versions of This Is War. So, in a way I'm "completing my collection." I don't know, don't even ask. 

Surely I'm not the only one who does this? Like, there's something so satisfying about having a bands full discography in your cd collection and not just on iTunes. Am I right?

'The Runaways' & 'Almost Famous' box set - two great films for £6? Yes please. I watched both of these a while ago, probably back in the summer, and really enjoyed them, so why not? 

Also, big news. I've moved into the future and got an iPhone. I'm still getting the hang of typing with these stupid long talons of mine (who needs false nails?). But I've joined instagram, so you can follow if you'd like to see how un-exciting my life is (no, but really). 

MORE SERIOUS/EVEN BETTER NEWS

As part of our second year project we're going to be putting on a fashion show! We're going to be showing the garments that we designed and made last semester and we'll be organising everything from scratch, picking a venue, theme, models, etc. It's kind of daunting but really, really exciting at the same time. I'll be sure to post more details as and when they happen, so keep an eye out!

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna go do the whole shower/hair/face/nails thing and try out some of these products!