The Carven Spring 2012 collection, shown as part of Paris fashion week, is really lovely. The evening wear looks are fresh and unexpected, the chunky shoes (though reminiscent of a lot of the flatforms around this season) give the looks an intriguing masculine edge, and the bold cut-out detailing gives the collection a sense of vitality as well as continuity and coherence.
The collection features some super-short silhouettes, which obviously look gorgeous on the models. Equally obvious, however, is the fact that my purple-white sausage legs would look infinitely less desirable in this abbreviated variety of skirt. Ditto the unmade-up faces. There are some elements of the show which do really tap into my current style preoccupations, however, and which I therefore both covet and wish to approximate in some kind of budget version.
I'm very keen on the golden / mustard tone which punctuated the second third of the collection. It's not a colour I would usually experiment with, but Carven made it look so sumptuous that I might just have to give it a go. I think that the palette in general is pretty delicious (not to mention the prints!); it manages to retain a real sense of femininity whilst also seeming bold, strong, and modern.
I also love the way that shirt collars can be seen peeping out from the necklines of dresses. I have tried this kind of look before, but always in a more winter-y way - white shirts buttoned to the neck beneath grey woollen dresses or pinafore-type numbers. Here, however, not only do the colours help to make the outfits more season-appropriate, but a number of the collars themselves are autonomous. That is, one need not wear a shirt in order to get the collar effect, but can just wear the collar separately - shirtless collars rather than collarless shirts! I think that's a genius idea for when the weather turns hotter and nobody wants to layer up.
In short, I really like the whole collection. Well done to Guillaume Henry. I want to finish off with an outfit that manages to encapsulate all of my favourite elements, and which I will have filed away in my noggin as style inspiration come spring. I love the colours (the mustard with the blue lace against the baby pink, combined with the acid bright shoes), I love the buttoned up collar, and I love the very neon librarian feel about the whole look!
Showing posts with label shoes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label shoes. Show all posts
Saturday, 1 October 2011
Colour, Collars, Carven
Labels:
brights,
Carven,
colour,
Paris Fashion Week,
pattern,
print,
shoes,
Spring 2012,
style inspiration
Tuesday, 27 September 2011
Super-Bright Loafers: The Ultimate Neon Librarian Shoe?
As much as I love my little brown loafers, I am very much into all the super-bright footwear that's around at the moment. I came across a particularly gorgeous neon pink pair in Topshop at the weekend (see below), but colourful flats are cropping up all over the place right now.
- Pink Tassel Brogues by Topshop, £30
- Leather Tassel Loafers by Asos, £50
- Bow Loafer Flats by Schuh, £65
- Suede Loafers by Topshop, £28
- Coral Canvas Loafer by Office, £30
I think what I like best about these shoes is the juxtaposition between their neat, scholastic shape and their jolly festive colour schemes. There is a real sense of a joyful disjunction between function and frivolity here, and I love it. I'm sure all five pairs would prove a valuable edition to my wardrobe; coupled with some contrasting coloured tights, they would fit in perfectly with my current 'Revenge of the Neon Nerd' look.
Indeed, I did come perilously close to buying that pink Topshop pair - £30 is so cheap for something so beautiful! - but I was already buying a coat, a spotted dress, and some austere black wedge-heeled boots, and the shopper's guilt would have been too much. Plus, I already have a perfectly functional pair of non-garish loafers and some purple lace-up brogues; all of my sartorial bases are pretty much covered without the addition of these lovelies. Nonetheless, should anybody out there be looking to get me a PhD viva present, I can assure you that the neon pink pair in a size 6 would go down a storm!
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