7 March, 2016

On Chanel and the rise of playful luxury

From designer stickers to cartoon character smartphone covers to kidult footwear, there’s no stopping the rise of playful luxury. And no-one is more in tune with this emerging product category than Chanel, whose LED trainers illuminated the SS16 catwalk. As the AW16 Chanel show kicks off, Bon has published my article on how the heritage house embraced the next generation of international big spenders, one kitsch accessory at a time. Read the article at Bon.se.
Bon Magazine Chanel playful luxury

WORDS: Navaz Batliwalla
IMAGES: Bon Magazine, Sabrina Shim

Disneyrollergirl 1 Comment Brands, Business of fashion, Designers, Magazines, Trends AW16, BON magazine, Chanel, Karl Lagerfeld, luxury, SS16, trends

26 February, 2016

LFW highlights: Margaret Howell AW16

1 Margaret Howell aw 2016

What’s new at Margaret Howell for AW16? Lots actually. Shirt collars are super-pointy, winter shorts are a thing, there’s a crepe-soled brogue, and orange is the colour – in raffish crumpled silk. I also love the floppy neck bows and the ankle-grazing trouser length. Can I add that I have one of those slim black leather belts and I wear it with everything. If you buy nothing else, buy a Margaret Howell belt! (more…)

Disneyrollergirl 0 Comments Brands, Design, Fashion shows, Shopping, Trends AW16, gentlewoman style, London Fashion Week, Margaret Howell, trends

25 February, 2016

Revisiting glove shoes

Glove hoes and denim

Two trends I definitely saw a lot of on the showgoers at London Fashon Week, were too-short, frayed-edge jeans and jolie laide ‘glove shoes’, most often worn together. Last summer, glove shoes were the polarising trend that only style innovators would go near (I wrote about them here), but this summer they’re on track to be a high street blogger favourite.

The block-heeled ballet pumps have filtered down to entry price points now (Topshop, Mango and Office have them), although the high end versions from Martiniano (one of the originators) are still the most refined looking. I prefer the slender shape to the wider squat ones, but there is a bit of variety out there, plus lots of colour options.

To go with, the most popular jeans worn at the shows were the Vetements ones, but Levi’s Wedgie jeans and Urban Outfitters Urban Renewal vintage Levi’s 501s (with customised raw hems) are a good, less spendy alternative. The crucial detail is to keep them hovering above the ankle, to counterbalance the frump factor of the shoe. Oh yes, there’s a strict science to this styling lark…

SHOP GLOVE SHOES BELOW…

Words: Navaz Batliwalla/Disneyrollergirl
Main image: We Wore What

Disneyrollergirl 1 Comment Brands, Design, News, Shopping, Trends Asos, brands, denim, design, high street, Martiniano, Maryam Nassir Zadeh, shoes, shopping, Topshop, trends

25 February, 2016

At London Fashion Week, I always want more colour*

Shrimps aw16

This week at London Fashion Week, I’ve been on the hunt for colour as part of an editorial collaboration with LFW partner Swatch. If you follow me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook or Snapchat, you’ll have seen the mentions popping up alongside a trio of new season Swatch watches and the #Ialwayswantmore hashtag.

Personally, my default colours are navy, grey and camel, plus denim of course (hey, blue is a colour). Red and pink get the occasional look in (more…)