For those who take fashion blogging VERY seriously.

Refinery 29's guide on 'how to become a star style blogger'.

as a 20-something with a shopping habit, i must learn to keep everything lower case.

genuinely very hilarious!

http://www.refinery29.com/how-to-become-a-star-style-blogger.php

Beaus and Arrows

I feel I must bring to your attention a band called I am Arrows.

For those of you who aren't familiar, I am Arrows were formed in 2009 by Andy Burrows, former Razorlight drummer and one time member of We are Scientists. For those of you who are familiar, I am Arrows are made up of Winchester's finest exports, including one of my oldest friends, Ben Burrows (yup, Andy's younger brother.) The brotherly theme continues with Ben and Adam Chetwood on lead guitar and drums, and another Winchester local Nick Hill (on guitar) completes the quintet.

2010 has seen I am Arrows supporting Muse on their sellout tour and their debut album, Sun Comes up Again has met critical acclaim and secured a place in the top 40 UK Album Chart. Their first single Green Grass was hugely successful, earning Radio 2's Record Of The Week.

I guess you could describe them as 'indie rock', but I'd rather not use that phrase. I am Arrows have a feel good, light sound which to me is reminiscent of 70's rock. These boys are all multi talented melodic masterminds - Ben is the only person I know who could make banging a ruler on a desk sound tuneful (brightening up dull maths classes!)

Naturally, my gorgeous friend Sarah and I spent our school days as groupies for the school band (of which Ben was the lead singer.) And last month, we decided to revisit these days with a trip to the Watershed in Wimbledon to show I am Arrows some good old fashioned home county support.

The gig was a lot of fun and the band spent a lot of time hanging out and chatting to their fans. I thoroughly recommend going to see them before they get any bigger. I love the early days of intimate gigs and after parties...

Of course, this wouldn't be a fashion blog if I didn't include photos of what we  actually wore to the gig, so, enjoy!

Hurricane, which becomes the bands next single, is released on November 22nd. In the meantime, visit their website for a little listen:

http://www.iamarrows.com/home

This Charming Magpie

A behind the scenes shot of my little brother modelling for Vintage brand, Charming Magpies.

Swedish-inspired buys

Colour Block Pocket Tee, £35 Topshop

Leather Look Trousers, £14.99 H&M

Suedette Wedge Boots, £24.99

Marc by Marc Jacobs Leather Buckle Braclet, £80

Swedie Pie

Rodebjers S/S2011

House of Dagmar A/W 2010

Cheap Monday S/S2011

 Loyal blog readers, I'm sorry it's been a while.

I’ve been subjected to many-an-internet problem over the last 4 weeks, and as much as I’d like to, I just can’t blog at work. I’d just end up mixing far too many French influences and I’ve decided that French fashion is just too obvious for what this blog is all about. It’s not that I don’t appreciate it, I’d just much rather look at other influences, and to be quite honest, there's time for simple, serious fashion (a la Paris) when we're older. But for now, I think we should be making the most of fashion experimentation.

For example, I've been spending a lot of time studying the Swedes. Prompted by the amazing 'Let the right one in' by Tomas Alfredson, I started looking into Swedish cultural influences - fashion, film, art and design.

So on the subject of Fashion, of course we're all familiar with Cheap Monday, Acne, H&M. But there's much more to the Swedish fashion scene than this. Having looked around, I believe that their style is cool, clean, chic, contemporary and creative (five adjectives I love almost as much as I love alliteration!)

This is what Cia Jansen, fashion editor as Swedish Elle has to say about her native country's fashion scene:

"We Swedes have essentially a very practical approach to clothes, even if we’re very fashion and trend-conscious. When we dress up, we don’t dress up too much. There’s not such a difference between how we dress at work, in our time off, and at parties. Even when our clothing is decorative, it has a practical function. I think that the Swedish approach fits very well with the modern lifestyle embraced by people all over the world. Perhaps we’re ahead of our time up here.

One positive trend is that Swedes themselves have started to buy Swedish design and that pieces by Swedish designers are now available at more places all over the country, including the big department stores. In Stockholm many designers have their own stores, where you can see their entire collections, like Rodebjer, Whyred, Nakkna, Fifth Avenue Shoe Repair, Carin Wester, Anna Holtblad, the jewelry designers David & Martin and many others. Of course Acne is the flagship − they have proven that it’s possible to build a brand on the international market, based on a jeans collection. Cheap Monday is another phenomenon, with its Weekday stores. And you can’t forget larger, established brands like Filippa K, Tiger and J. Lindeberg, and of course H&M, which is everywhere.
In general I think the Swedish fashion scene is good, exciting and creative, with lots of interesting concepts and shops. And you get a lot of fashion for your money. Remember, both IKEA and H&M come from Sweden. Swedes are used to being able to buy contemporary, chic design that doesn’t cost a fortune.”

  xxxx

 

Carin Wester A/W2010

Filippa K A/W 2010