Natalie B Coleman; I Love Me

“I don’t like myself, I’m crazy about myself.”

- Mae West

Natalie B Coleman first studied her craft at Limerick School of Art and Design, cemented the theory with an MA in Central St. Martins, London, and laboured under the guidance of threeASFOUR and Joanna Hynes.

Since these impressive beginnings, Coleman has catapulted her creativity, with the establishment of the ‘Natalie B Coleman’ brand in 2010.

The Irish designer has awed and inspired the international fashion domain, with her line’s courage and innate ability to relate to her chic clientele.

After the success of last season’s ‘All the Jewellery I Never Got’ (of which some pieces are available online), the notification that Autumn / Winter 2012′s collection ‘I Love Me’ will be soon be exhibited, permits my fashionable heart to flutter.

The collection encapsulates many of this season’s biggest trends, and also allows the label’s dedicated fan-base to explore and re-define their personal style.

With promises of embellished knitwear, silk shirt dresses, studded handbags, the perfect ‘Girlfriend Blazer’ and a 1.5 carat ‘I Love Me’ knuckleduster, my fashionable appetite has most definitely been whet.

The collection is currently in the Capsule Showroom in New York and will later be moved to the Avenue de l’Opera in Paris.

If you do little else with your day, be sure to view the tempting trailer for this stunning collection!

The Blonds; ‘Dye Blond’ Autumn / Winter 2012

‘The Blonds’ was founded in 2005 by Phillipe and David Blond. Since those humbling beginnings, the designer-duo have been thrust into the spotlight for the intricately embellished creations.

Their designs are not for the faint-hearted, The Blonds imbue confidence, femininity and raw emotion in each piece.

Having previously been treated to collections inspired by ‘Playboy‘ and an examination of the boundaries of gender attire in ‘Ladies & Gentlemen’, this season’s promise of ‘Dye Blond’ had me on the edge of my seat.

In this collection, The Blonds woman embodied biker chic, with inspiration derived from the animated film ‘Heavy Metal’.

A bold palette of metallics, blood-red and gothic black were balanced by embellished neutrals and glittering gold on the catwalk. Although it is difficult to peel one’s eyes away from the radical designs on the runway, this season’s choice of hair is definitely worth mentioning. Philippe and David opted to style their models with platinum blonde ponytails of exaggerated length, each emerging from the models’ motorbike helmets.

It is without doubt that the brand’s most famous clientele, including Rihanna, Nicki Minaj and Lady Gaga, will be begging their stylists to lay claim to several pieces in this collection.

What To Do; Two-O-One-Two

Image: Comments Yard

Happy New Year!

This year will host a mélange of exhibitions, events and occasions which will tickle one’s fashionable taste-buds.

With the extraordinary success of the Met’s ‘Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty‘ exhibition, many other designers and icons have collated their collections and assembled their archives for display in 2012.

These include; Marc Jacobs, Yves Saint Laurent, Christian Louboutin and Elsa Schiaperelli/Miuccia Prada‘s summer collaboration.

With Awards season commencing in the coming week and Paris’ Spring Haute Couture parading down catwalks at the end of the month, it is fair to say that two-o-one-two will be a year to remember.

Which events and occasions are you most eagerly anticipating?

When?	What?	Where?
January 23rd – 26th	Paris Haute Couture Fashion Week: Spring 2012	Paris
February 9th – 16th	New York RTW Fashion Week: Autumn / Winter	New York
February 10th – April 17th	Exhibition: IMPACT: 50 Years of the CFDA	The Museum at FIT, New York
February 17th – 22nd	London RTW Fashion Week: Autumn / Winter	London
February 26th	84th Annual Academy Awards	Kodak Theatre, Los Angeles
February 28th – March 7th	Paris RTW Fashion Week: Autumn / Winter	Paris
March 9th – September 16th	Louis Vuitton Marc Jacobs – The Retrospective	Les Art Décoratifs, Paris
March 18th	Alternative Miss Ireland	Olympia Theatre, Dublin
March 25th -	Yves Saint Laurent – The Retrospective	Denver Art Museum, Denver, Colorado
March 28th – July 1st	Christian Louboutin – The Retrospective	Design Museum, London
April 5th	The South William Street VVIP Awards	Andrews Lane Theatre, Dublin
April	50 Years of James Bond Style	The Barbican, London
May 10th – August 19th	Elsa Schiaparelli and Miuccia Prada: On Fashion	The Costume Institute, MOMA, New York
May 19th – January 26th	Ballgowns: British Glamour Since 1950	Victoria and Albert Museum, London
July 27th	Olympics 2012 Opening Ceremony	London

Ready-to-Wear Spring 2012; Jason Wu

“I love to contrast elegant lines with great, bold colors.”

— Jason Wu

Jason Wu began his fashion career through creating clothing for dolls under the lines ‘Jason Wu Dolls’ and ‘Fashion Royalty’.

Wu’s first Ready-to-Wear collection launched in 2006, and has since attracted clients such as Ivana Trump, Michelle Obama and Diane Kruger.

Jason Wu's Inspiration Board

For New York Fashion Week, Jason Wu exhibited a collection which is a cocktail of alluring sporting attire agglomerated with ultra-effeminate silhouettes.

This season, Wu sought to display a tougher element of the brand. He acquired inspiration from graffiti artist Kaws, whom also assisted in the creation of the floral print, which linked the entire presentation.

“The inspiration came from pop art, actually. I was inspired by the artist Kaws. I loved the idea of something a little funny in this collection. I also wanted to infuse the pop art idea with a haute couture-inspired shape, which I did through playing with volume and using really beautiful fabrics.”

- Jason Wu

Jason Wu constructs a professional bond with the models he collaborates with for each collection. Thus, his catwalks are often frequented by the same models.

This season, Wu utilised the natural beauty and envious physiques of Kinga Razjack, Arizone Muse, Daphne Groenveld, Daria Strokous and Karlie Kloss to best represent his brand.

Models paraded down the catwalk with a modern feathered chignon and striking neo-orange pigmented lips.

The collection contained thirty-eight looks and began in a muted palette, presenting menswear-inspired attire with luxurious collar embellishments by Swarovski.

Fluidly, Wu transgressed across the muted palette and demonstrated his ability to design feminine gowns with intricate detail and embroidery in pearlised pales.

The gown’s elongated train conjured a movement of breathtaking ease with models almost flowing down the runway.

Although the showcase was the morning after Vogue’s Fashion Night Out, the designer attracted fashion lovers such as Lea Michele, Jaime King, Caroline Sieber and Harley Viera-Newton.

To conclude the presentation, Wu displayed a contrast between the collection’s opening and closing looks.

Jason Wu is unique within the designer realm in his talent to effortlessly balance soft textures with stark, flamboyant hues.

Once again, Jason Wu was hugely successful at New York Fashion Week. The collection accented the narrow feminine waistline and reflected upon the glamorous silhouettes of fashionable decades past. Without doubt, a peplum skirt will be one of the most ‘on trend’ pieces for next season.