Paris Fashion Week SS15 - Couture

Another round of couture shows from the top designers shows once again why they are at the top. Chanel provided a variety of pastels and floral prints that screamed 1950's royal garden party. There were midi-length pleats and jewel covered mini-dresses that gave the show a 60's hit. The Chanel show was a personal favourite due to the way in which the outfits showed sophistication whilst still being modern and unique. 

Versace took a completely different look at SS15 with a seductive and sexy selection of evening gowns that made every women in the audience incomprehensibly jealous. Jourdan Dunn looked incredible in a beautiful cutaway black gown, as you can see below. 

 

However, Versace's Haute Couture show also provided the audience with an array of summery pink pastel co-ords. Two of which you can see below. 

Dior put on a great show with a wide selection of gowns, suits, jumpsuits and skirts that went down a hit, according to social media responses. The Dior show took the audience on a journey through the decades with some especially pleasing A-line skirts and over-indulgent beading. My personal favourite was the fully embellished mini-dress as seen below. Again there was a definite presence of pastel pinks and pretty floral lace, but in particular there was a growing presence of beading, from intricate lace designs to a full on covering. I will definitely be keeping my eye out for some pastel beading over the next few months. A baby pink A-line beaded skirt would go perfectly with a white cashmere turtleneck...keep on dreaming Amy. 

a couple new additions to the wardrobe

The White Pepper - Round Toe Walker Boot

I've been looking for a while for some comfy boots that make an outfit that little bit better.  I stumbled across these online and am so happy I did. The White Pepper is a East-London fashion retailer that compiles new street style and vintage inspired items that makes a cute collection of quirky individual looks that our hard not to love. Though more pricey then the high street brands like H&M and Topshop, the quality and uniqueness of the clothes make it all worth while. 

Hot!Mess - Metallic Skirt 

Although Hot!Mess wouldn't be my first choice of retailer due to it's pretty outgoing urban designs, I thought I'd add a bit of metallic to my wardrobe. Paired with a black turtle neck and black boyfriend coat this skirt looks great! 

the importance of travel to me

The importance of travel and culture has been instilled in me since I was young. My family moved to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, when I was 1 and my mum and dad always highlighted the importance in appreciating your surroundings, no matter where you are. I'm in no means saying travel makes you cultured, many people travel the world without experiencing the truth in the societies they visit, and many people never leave their country and still have the understandings of those who did. However, for me, travel at a young age only fuelled my desire to keep on experiencing new things as I grew up. 

Living in Malaysia in the 90's enabled our family to travel extensively around Indonesia and experience it without the huge amount of tourists that are there today. Experiencing them at a young age meant I don't remember everything, I remember the thousands of fruit bats flying over the beach in Boracay as the sun set and the smell of the busy humid air in Hong Kong city centre. However, because I don't remember everything I experienced it makes me want to go back myself and explore again. 

As the years passed by holidays came and went, but the excitement for them stayed the same. I am very grateful for the things I have experienced and only have my parents to thank. I have been to hundreds of places, but there are millions of new places to discover and that thought only drives my curiosity. My opinion is just one of 8 billion, but I believe travel is extremely important. It allows individuals to understand the world community, we can experience new cultures, new people, new food, new sights and new experiences that people would not otherwise experience. 

I realise not everyone has the money to travel, and many that do use it as a distinguishing feature of their character, that makes them see themselves as above others. We've all the heard 'this one time in Thailand...' and the whole gap year fiasco. However, it is undeniable that everyone who has travelled, whether it is to the other side of the world or the neighbouring town, have experienced something new. It is that persons choice in which way they take that new experience, but that experience will always be with them. 

Exams are finished and I've got about 10 days of pure nothingness. So today I went for a wonder around the parts of Manchester that I haven't really seen before. As a second year student in my second semester I was encouraged by friends to widen my cultural view of the city and go to The Central Library and John Rylands Library. I recently got a new 51mm lens for my Nikon FE camera and I thought I'd test it out. The Central Library was amazing, and it's modern renovation was a complete contrast to the old gothic interior of John Rylands. Not only were both library's full of a huge variety of books from every corner of the world, they were both filled with an honourable historical atmosphere that would make them a pleasure to study in. As my dissertation for second year looms ahead the idea of working in such a beautiful environment makes it seem a little better. The Central Library also provided a wide selection of DVD's and CD's for a great price of £1.50 per week to rent. 

Here are a few snaps of the libraries and a few things in between. 

lomography prints from france, santorini and morzine

St.Pauls by the Thames

Digital photo from A-Level Photography, multiple layers built up to create this out of focus architectural shot. 

KATE BOY - review

On the 6th of November I saw the up and coming electro pop trio 'Kate Boy'. I had been following them on SoundCloud and Facebook for a few months after hearing their song 'In Your Eyes' at the beginning of summer. So when I saw tickets for sell at Soup Kitchen in Manchester I had to go and see, and I am very glad I did. 

I'm trying to stay away from this post being completely complementary of them...but it's really hard not too. 

I got to Soup Kitchen...and there was no one else there. I thought I  had got the wrong day but nope I was right where I needed to be, and so were Kate Boy's support act. The venue was completely dead to put it nicely, I was there with around 10 others, but I was by no means deterred. The support band were actually really impressive, though I now cannot remember their names. 

Not long after, two boys and a girl walked on stage. All dressed in b&w camouflage parkers with their hoods up. The first song 'In Your Eyes' was a great start to a great show. The lead singer, Kate Akhurst, who looks remarkably like Jessica Alba, was full of energy and despite the small crowd, they played as if the room was full. Which I greatly respect. Though Hampus Nordgren Hemlin and Markus Dextegen were fantastic, nothing compared to performance of the lead singer. The performance was dynamic, entertaining and most importantly impressive! The girl can actually sing! The empowering lyrics and music is topped by the lead singers ability to almost shout the lyrics whilst still retaining control and sounding good. 

I was standing at the front of the crowd, about 2 metres away from the band for the whole show. Although I would have felt awkward with such a small audience, Kate Boy managed to come across confident and  seemed constantly engaged with the crowd, which made everyone else relaxed, and soon, with a few intrigued passers by joining the venue, everyone was dancing and smiling. 

The definite highlight was seeing the band drumming electronically in perfect harmony time and time again. The instrumental parts of the songs really showed each members talent. They all work on writing and producing their songs, and rightly so. The trio is undeniably talented and their electronic twang of drumming and keyboards is like a fresh modern electro mix of Icona Pop and CHVRCHES. 

The band played everything from their 'Northern Lights' EP plus a few extras. I was truly impressed by their performances, particularly 'Self Control'. The reason I enjoyed this live show so much more than anyone else this year was because of their potential.  The band still have a relatively small following, with only 20,000 likes on FB and 4000 follows on SoundCloud, however, this only added to their likability. The band all seemed genuinely sincere, as this was clear through their shock that people actually knew all the words to their songs. Kate Boy are definitely a band to watch in 2015, their pure talent alone should take them far, but their unique sound and European electro pop twist really makes them a band that I would want to see time and time again.