If you want to know what’s really happening in London, then don’t listen to me… listen to these fabulous style-conscious bloggers. The rest of the fashion industry certainly are.
(Illustration by Heinz Hemken – PhotoXpress)
Gone are the days when the fashion elite sat in their ivory towers and dictated to the populas what was hot and what was not. No longer are the front rows of the Paris, Milan, London and New York fashion shows been reserved for celebrities and fashion royalty (aka Anna Wintour), but now you may see a geeky looking, spectacled chap, furiously typing away on his netbook as he posts his commentary in real-time onto his blog, keeping his millions of viewers up-to-date on the latest happenings.
Yip, the fashion world has been knocked down a pedestal or two, and they’ve been forced to wake up to the fact the that real people know what they like to wear and they can be trendsetters too. More importantly hundreds of other real people are logging on every day and zealously lapping up everything they say. Fashion designers and high-street labels have realised that if they want to get real people to buy their clothes, then they need to listen to what real people think
Tavi Gevinson is a 13-year-old with the fashion world at her feet. As the Style Rookie she is flown around the world by designers who are desperate to hear what she thinks about their collections and have her promote them on her blog. And then there’s Bryanboy, a Marc Jacobs fan in the Phillipines, who Jacobs himself thanked for his support by naming one of the bags in his autum/winter collection the “BB”. The Sartorialist, Scott Schuman, has been named by Time magazine as one of the most influential forces in design, and Susanna Lau, the creator of Style Bubble, is given a front-row seat at Chanel shows… and these were just normal people with an obsession for fashion and a good eye for style. And Britain has it’s own unique collection of fashion bloggers causes waves in the industry – here are my favourite:
Gala Gonzalez is a 23-year-old, Spanish gal living in London. She blogs regularly about what she’s wearing and what she’s getting up to in and around London. She’s also just launched her first line of clothing in collaboration with Spanish label Adolfo Dominquez, called The Music Collection – highly desirable it reflects her unique and quirky style. Her blog’s mission statement: “I’m not gonna tell you what to wear, I’m gonna show you how I wear it.”
Susie Lau is currently one of the fashion blogosphere’s biggest icon – having already won numerous blogging awards, Susie’s dedication to fashion has ensured that she is now a respected style commentator and she’s recently been recruited to work on the web version of Dazed and Confused.
Gemma Cartwright was one of the first to make a mark on the London fashion blogging scene and has become an authoritative voice in her own right… she started catwalkqueen.tv when she was still studying at The London College of Fashion in 2002, and is now also the editor of The Nod, website dedicated to the products and places that have been given ‘The Nod’ by celebrities, and Big Girls Browse, which is a fashion blog aimed at curvier women.
3. libertylondongirl.blogspot.com
Ok, so this blog isn’t about London Fashion, but it certainly has the UK vibe. Liberty London Girl is an anonymous Brit girl living in New York, who blogs about fashion and anything else that might tickle her fancy. Her unique and quirky sense of humour makes her blog totally original, and because she works at a fancy New York fashion glossy I think we can safely assume that she knows what she’s talking about… or so we hope.
Luisa Kos and her husband, Robert Cassidy, keep an eye on London’s street style, posting daily photographs of the interesting and stylish people they meet on the street. “We love London street style! We love vintage, we love high-street, we love London street fashion!”
Jackie Dixon loves creative people and she loves photographing what they wear. It’s a pretty good formula for success really – one would expect creative people to dress quirkily. And they certainly do, which makes this blog a great read. And Jackie has worked for Vogue, Elle and InStyle over her nine years in fashion, so this lady knows her stuff.
6. redcarpet-fashionawards.com
Catherine Kallon is a blogger obsessed with celebrities and designers… she knows exactly who wore what where, and when. After she spotted that Angelina Jolie was wearing her Max Azria dress backwards at the recent Screen Actor’s Guild Awards, her story sparked furious debate until Angelina’s stylist confirmed that she was in fact correct. Sometimes it’s nice to be right.
7. littlemissbeauty.blogspot.com
And because it’s not always about fashion, thank goodness we’ve also got Miss B, who is a freelance journalist obsessed with beauty.
8. www.disneyrollergirl.blogspot.com
Disney Roller Girl is another anonymous fashion blogger who seems to have charmed the industry – as a fashion journalist she gets invited to book launches, exhibitions, store openings, fashion shows… and her daily posts ensure that you don’t miss a thing.
9. Vlogger: Lauren Luke
This 27-year-old single mum became an overnight star when she started posting her make-up tips and how-to guides onto YouTube. Lauren’s videos have earned her a book deal, her own make-up range and a weekly beauty column in The Guardian Weekend magazine. The unassuming, honest and real way that she talks to her audience makes her immediately likable – it also doesn’t hurt that her tips for creating smokey eyes are spot on.
And in the news this week:
Jade Jagger Jewellery and Fashion Shop Opens
Jade Jagger has opened her very first stand-alone shop and stocked it full of pretty shiny things. It must be nice to be a member of rock royalty.
Sshh! Here’s this week’s London shopping secret:
If you’re looking for great vintage fashion then keep an eye on Vintage Fashion Fair. They organise regular fairs around London throughout the year where you can expect vintage clothing, hats, handbags, gloves, shoes, jewellery and textiles from 1800′s – 1980′s. You’re sure to find a rare gem or two.
