Category Archives: Fashion & Style

HALLOWEEN COSTUMES FOR KIDS DON’T HAVE TO BE SPOOKY

31 October 2013

Halloween is great fun for kids but I’ve decided it doesn’t all have to be vampires, ghosts and witches. My personal favourite is any kind of SUPERHERO which works equally well for girls and boys. After all, as Kick-Ass showed us it is the innocent, cute looking little girls we’ve got to watch out for.

So, for a bit of fun I put a board together with my favourite shots of [some] superheroes and their dressed up companions, not exactly avoiding the clichés but all very cute and hopefully amusing.

PS: You can find some more cuteness and inspiration on my KID’S CORNER Pinterest board.

Enjoy and I hope you’re inspired!

Credits | I’d like to give credit to all the photographers and designers whose work is featured on this board. Sadly, most of the originators can’t be identified anymore so if you recognise your work here please email me and I’ll happily credit you and add your link.

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MEN’S STYLE AND FASHION TRENDS AW 2013

8 October 2013

Men have got it so easy, don’t they!? Suits for the office and jeans at the weekend. Sorted! Erm, not quite I think. There’s definitely a knack to dressing ‘well’ and picking combinations that are classic but interesting and different.

I’ve been collecting pins on men’s style and fashion trends on Pinterest and Tumblr for a while and feel it’s time to reveal my favourite picks. I’ve tried to keep the fashion autumnal as I want to bring you a new board every season and added a few lifestyle shots that will make any man weak at the knees… vintage Rolex, Porsche or Triumph anyone? Not to forget the manly beers around the campfire, hiking, biking and surfing. Plus a few of my favourite male icons like Ryan Gosling (DREAMY), Javier Bardem (MANLY) and Laird Hamilton (DUDE) to add a bit of glamour. Et voilà… there’s your men’s fashion and style mood board!

If you want specific trends, here’s what I’ve picked up for the coming season. Tweed is HUGE as are chunky knits, rugged boots with suits, beads and bracelets peaking out from a formal shirt, denim in the office, grandpa style bow ties, duffle coats, hiking boots and wild beards depending on what line of business you’re in. If you want to start somewhere wear layers and more layers. I love a shirt and tie with a waistcoat, suit jacket and coat, maybe even a handkerchief poking out. As you know Patrick Grant is a bit of a fashion icon for me and a good place to start if you want to dress formally with a bit of an edge. Check out his new range for Debenhams for some stylish but affordable gear.

Overall, there’s still a distinct 60ies Mad Men flavour around with bow ties and big black frame glasses newly interpreted for the 21st Century of course. Make of it what you like but don’t forget to layer up!

Enjoy and I hope you’re inspired!

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CARAMEL BABY AND CHILD – GROWING UP & FUNDRAISING

26 September 2013

I was proud to introduce you last week to luxury brand caramel baby and child and want to treat you with some more photos of their AW 2013 collection.

They are as old as the (21st) century and are now in their teenage years growing into a global lifestyle brand. They have recently opened a store in Singapore and plan to open more in key fashion cities around the world always retaining their personal feel which is of such importance for founder Eva Karayiannis.

Their vintage inspired pieces and innovative colour palette pushes the boundaries of traditional childrenswear and has attracted famous brand ambassadors like Victoria Beckham, Reese Whiterspoon, Maggie Gyllenhall, Jodie Kidd, Laura Bailey, Camilla Rutherford and Ayda & Robbie Williams. So far nothing new you might say.

However, I loved reading about their fundraising party in May for Natalia Vodianova’s Naked Heart Foundation which funds programmes supporting families bringing up children with special needs and building play parks and playgrounds around Russia.

From what I’ve read Natalia is genuinely passionate about the children in her home country and campaigns tirelessly. Her main yearly event being the Love Ball in Monte-Carlo, rasing a staggering 3.2 million Euros this year thanks to her A-list friends around the world. I’d love to meet her (who wouldn’t!?) and talk some more about her cause as she seems a totally down-to-earth supermodel (if that’s no oxymoron) who enjoys nothing more than being fed by her mum cooking the most delicious Russian dishes.

Her story is another inspirational one as she grew up in poverty helping her mother sell fruit on the street to make ends meet. Her father walked out when Natalia was still a toddler and she grew up with two half-sisters one of whom has cerebral palsy. She left Russia as a teenager forging her career in Paris and is now not only a mother of three but one of the hardest working and campaigning models around. I’ve got nothing but respect for her and am thrilled that caramel baby and child got involved in fund raising for her Naked Heart Foundation.

If you’d like to support the Naked Heart Foundation you can find out more on their website or skip straight to

DONATE

Go on… you’re only going to spend your money on skinny lattes otherwise. 😉

Enjoy and I hope you’re inspired!

More information & photography | caramel baby and child
Support the Naked Heart Foundation

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CARAMEL BABY AND CHILD – A PERSONAL STORY

20 September 2013

As far as inspirational stories go Eva Karayiannis’s is right up there. Born in Cyprus and raised in Athens Eva trained as a lawyer but started exploring ideas and designs around her kitchen table, sourcing artisan knitwear and garments from independent craftsmen and opening her first caramel baby and child shop in 1999 in London’s chic Chelsea. She says:

I wanted to find a modern, distinctive style, which could be individual – yet at the same time luxurious and understated.

I love the fact that caramel often references the charm of vintage pieces and pushes the boundaries of the archetypal childrenswear colour palette, creating a playful rhythm of layering colours and textures. Eva is passionate about exquisite quality and design and aims to use as many British materials and artisan techniques as possible, including Scottish cashmere, Fairisle knitting techniques, traditional tweeds and the use of both Liberty and original prints which are designed in-house and produced in the UK.

Opening a new store almost every two years and distributing through over 100 independent retailers caramel has now grown into a global lifestyle brand and has recently opened up a store in Singapore.

With their distinctive and unconventional styling caramel baby and child clothing is immediately recognisable and Eva believes that the customer can sense that it’s still a very personal company.

I must say I love the concept as well as the product and have decided to make this a two-part feature. Today you’ll get a peek at caramel’s baby clothes and next week you can drool over the children’s wear range for AW 2013.

Enjoy and I hope you’re inspired!

More information & photography | caramel baby and child

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JUICY CONCEPT: SUCKING LEMONS FOR THE FIRST TIME

17 September 2013

Sucking lemons! Could there be a more apt concept for Stylejuicer!? I’m chuffed to bits to share Toronto photographer duo April Maciborka and David Wile’s ’pucker’ series with you today.

A simple and genius idea that provoked quite strong reactions in me. Not only did the childrens faces make me laugh out loud but I couldn’t help imagining the experience myself and started salivating and sucking my cheeks! I guess that’s what you’d call a Pavlovian response.

Finding this project online is exactely what Stylejuicer is all about: sharing cool (and juicy) ideas and bringing a smile and a dash of inspiration into your lives.

Apart from the fab photos I wanted to find out a bit more about the concept and how it all came together, so here’s what April told me.

HOW DID YOU COME UP WITH THE IDEA?

Dave and I wanted to shoot a creative [project] involving babies. We brainstormed the idea of photographing babies reactions to tasting or experiencing something for the first time, when our friend suggested lemons. It was such a great idea because everyone can relate to the experience of tasting something sour. We imagined that freezing that moment in time would be hilarious and it was!

DO YOU HAVE SMALL KIDS YOURSELVES?

No, we dont. Dave has 2 nephews and 1 neice that we hang out with a lot. I have done a lot of volunteer work abroad at baby orphanages so combined we have had a lot of child experience.

IN THE BUSINESS THEY SAY NEVER WORK WITH SMALL CHILDREN OR ANIMALS…

Lol. Somehow we chose to work with babies and animals in our series ‘splash’. I guess we are suckers for what is considered difficult.

WHO ARE THE LITTLE MODELS?

All of the babies are our friends kids or friends of friends kids. We advertised on Facebook and started a selection process. We offered a free family portrait in return for having your child be photographed as they taste lemon for the first time. Parents were exstatic for a free photoshoot and thought it would be hilarious to see their babies reaction!

HOW LONG DID IT THE SHOOT TAKE?

The shoot was completed over 2 weekends. Kids take a lot of patience to photograph and TIME. You need to allow time for them to get used to their new environment and be comfortable there. They also needed to be comfortable with us. For the most part we were strange faces to these babies. After easing them into the environment we would photograph them with their family and then break and then put them on a seperate set for the lemon. Out of about 20 kids, only 1 would not try the lemon. She hated the texture of the lemon in her fingers. Most babies love to eat so the idea of picking up a slice and munching on it was so alluring for them.