A few days ago, maybe it was just a palpitation of the leaves, but I could have sworn I heard the summer quietly whispering that it finally got to UK, and it seemed like absolutely "every man and their dog" were outside playing.

I was not an exception to this overall heat euphoria and went with my friends to Camden and its surroundings. Camden is known for its avant garde fashion designers, cutting edge musicians, talented artists and craftsmen, exciting clubs and music venues but, above all, it is known for its markets.

The place is quite famous, but I was not sure whether it was my cup of tea... Well, visiting Camden now, after I spent over 3 years in UK, completely turned up side down my whole perception of this kind of places.

Read more »

One of the season’s highlights in the beginning of spring was undoubtedly the famous London Fashion Week. 68 top as well as young but promising catwalk designers fought for the right to have their say in fashion industry of 2009.

The event would lose its charm if all who wish could get there, so unfortunately not all of us (including me) got invited. I guess the organizers decided in favour of celebrities and completely ignored my persona – how dare they!!!- and I am sure I am not alone in this frustration.

Luckily, for people like me, who are really fascinated about fashion, new trends, and of course bargains this year was a brilliant opportunity to be one step closer to the fashion world.
All you had to do is book a ticket to London fashion Weekend at London’s Natural History Museum from 4th to 8th of March.

The ticket’s prices ranged from £10 to £75 depending on the service included, so I have decided to treat myself and my friend to a VIP Platinum Lounge ticket and never regretted about this.
We enjoyed exclusive lounge access, front row catwalk show tickets, complimentary drinks and snacks, plus exclusive VIP show bags. You could also get beauty advice and new season makeovers from Elizabeth Arden, see new hair trends from Toni & Guy and treat yourself to manicure and brow-shaping.

Most of the shops had nothing interesting to offer, moreover, had nothing to do with fashion, which was a bit sad. Strange shoes and last season sunglasses…. Hm... I don’t think so! Although, there was one shop I really liked, which sold leather corsets. I was really tempted to buy one to wear with my white blouse…

But the catwalk with Louise Roe as a presenter was real fun! The radical ideas were still centre stage, but it was the romanticism and sexy sophistication of beautiful nude summer dresses and butterfly sunglasses that moved some front-rowers to tears (including me.. but, maybe by that stage I’ve had too much champagne! ) Denim looked surprisingly chic in the opening "American Idol" collection; and colorful boho, creative spirit of hippie and wild tribal shows definitely made everybody present forget about the financial gloom.

Altogether, it was a great girls’ day out, celebration of spring, beauty and femininity and unforgettable shopping feast.

london fashion week

After quite a lazy morning today I've managed to pick myself up and go to that all important fashion industry event of the year - Pure London. The journey to Olympia exhibition centre wasn't too bad and I almost "woke up" on the steps to the Grand Hall. There were some pretty cool features there like the runway, masseuse services (no really, a nice touch after a long day) and "fashion cafe". The whole show was like a runway also, with all-white floors and red stripes of carpet laid out in a runway style in between the stands. All the exhibitors and the visitors where dressed up to the occasion, and you might just as well look at them to see the latest fashion.
It's always nice to be one of the first to see the latest season designs, and from designers themselves. As the theme of the show is ethical products and ethical trading, I've seen loads of cool handbags made of recycled car number plates, Swarovski crystals stuck on top of recycled metal nuts and an array of polished bolts to make the sides of a clutch. Pretty impressive!
All that aside, my main interest was, of course, jewellery. Spring and summer colours were dominant and the main palette was in deep-blue to turquoise and earthy brown to muted reddish and copper colours.
Metal frame bangles like this:

occupied a prominent place on many stands.
Jackie Brazil is a known brand for ethical resin jewellery which is made from the recycled plastics, fused together to create unique patterns in bracelets and necklaces. Resin jewellery seems to be quite trendy at the moment with almost every brand offering jewellery made out from resin. Here are the common designs of resin bracelets:

It's all exciting and fresh, and Avalaya team definitely has got a few surprises up their sleeves, so watch this space as they say, and be one of the first to get the latest fashion pieces for your collection!

Ok, it’s January sale already with everyone clearing out Autumn/Winter collections, and the designers have already come out with their spring line and it is about to hit the racks pretty soon. While you are getting ready to put together your spring wardrobe there are certain things that you need to look for. Some styles are definitely shaping out more clearly than others with some interesting trends showing up on catwalks and fashion shows.

The extravagant and feminine look is back again. Gone are the manly pants and boxy tops. The feminine look even extends to jeans which have got intricate patterns woven on top, together with multi-coloured crystals. Other baubles such as sequins will be on almost everything to some extent. This spring you will see these so called "surface details" on jackets, dresses, hats and many other garments as well. I've even seen the shoes adorned with details that add a little glimmer to your everyday look.
The other trend, which seems like one of the most popular ones, is metallics and other high shine fabrics. They made an impression during the fall and winter season and are set to continue to make an impact this spring. The clothes may be shorter and lighter but they will still be the same bright, shimmery appearance that really has dominated for some time.

As for the colours, you can’t go wrong with beige or earthy colours. Natural is making a huge comeback and you will see a lot of wonderful nude colour clothing come out for spring. What isn’t gone and will be coming again for spring are florals which are always popular during the springtime anyway. It is a fresh way to dress that allows you to feel and look inspired by spring. Jumpsuits are also coming back, although we've seen them appearing here and there, but they have definitely arrived this spring.
One of my favourite colours is also arriving this spring! You’ve probably seen it already, but if not, now you can't fail to notice it. It will be seen on absolutely everything from jackets to shoes and, of course, the jewellery. It’s hot and it's orange !

Fashion is a fickle thing and unless you watch every fashion show in the world you can't say for sure where it is heading to, or which state it is currently at.

If you are a fashion designer or otherwise work in fashion industry then you will be "in the know" more readily than the average Jane. If it's your work you will be following fashion as close as you can, as this is what you get paid for. Your understanding of what's hot will be mostly based on every fashion event that you've seen recently and therefore you will be much harder to "please". If you do not work for fashion industry directly, then you understanding of the latest fashion could as varied as rainbow colours.

I think that everyone understands fashion through their own "lens", which is their personality, and it could be said that there are as many fashions as there are personalities. You've got to be comfortable with what you wearing, and to be happy with your outfit means that you have to be happy with the fashion it represents. It is also true that you have to express yourself in the clothes that you wearing. So for everything to come together there is no other way but to make fashion yours. It's almost as if you just need to take only certain tips from the latest trends and incorporate them into your already existing style, adapt to your liking and show off to everyone else.

Fashion is about difference, it's about showing that we don't have to wear gray uniforms and that everyone has to be an individual and express themselves through their own fashion.