The Golden Globes: Best Dressed

Yellow made a big appearance at The Golden Globes- I love how Leslie Mann kept a simple silhouette with this Yellow dress by Kaufman Franco, but added a fun pop of emerald green in her accessories.

I love the simplicity of this Versace gown, and the colour perfectly compliments Amy’s skin tone!

Joanne Froggatt wore a gorgeous gown by Marchesa- I love the pretty and delicate flora detailing.

Here, Kate Beckinsale wears Elie Saab- one of my all time favourite designers! With the perfect amount of glamour and simplicity, this is definitely a dress I would probably gravitate to if I was ever invited to such a huge event (I’ll keep dreaming until then..)

I love florals- and this is as floral as it gets! With floral applique layering and romantic purple tones, Lupita has done it again in the fashion stakes, this time wearing Giambattista Valli.

Reese Witherspoon wowed in a simple, but glamorous dress by Calvin Klein.

Catwalk Inspired Dresses: Phase Eight

     

From head to toe lace, appliqué detail and heavy embellishment, we see an array of classic, intricately detailed gowns hitting runways across the globe every season. Such creations, by the likes of Alberta Ferretti, D&G and Elie Saab, to name but a few, have managed to inspire fashion around the world, regardless of the fact that they are not necessarily ground breaking, but rather breathtakingly beautiful instead.

It is, however, difficult to find such intricately detailed dresses on the high street, because, let’s face it, it will probably always remain a dream for most of us to own any of the dresses we see gracing the runways.

But, it seems we needn’t worry any more, because over the last few months I have taken a shine to British brand ‘Phase Eight’. Every time I pass their designs I note their likeness to high end designers in excitement, from Dolce & Gabbana’s Rose print to whimsical florals at Alberta Ferretti, let alone their signature ‘tapework’ and lace detail that stands them a part from most High Street brands for their high quality occasion wear and a brilliant attention to detail.

Below are a few of my favourite pieces from their collection, which can be found online here or here, though I would recommend visiting them in store (or at Debenhams) to see the full effects of such gorgeous detailing.

This dress reminds me a lot of the ethereal feel at the AW Alberta Ferretti show

The classic red, lace gown, reminiscent of one stunning dress showcased during the AW14/15 Tadashi Shoji show.

  Shimmering Tapework embroidery is a signature style at Phase Eight.

Whimsical florals, reminiscent of the designs at Alberta Ferretti.

Couture AW14/15: Elie Saab

I don’t think there will ever be an Elie Saab collection that I won’t be entirely captivated by, whether it be Couture or Ready-to-Wear. Every single show is full of beautiful, intricate detailing, and it is refreshing to see that the designer focuses on what he does best every season, rather than being too trend focussed.

  

Their AW14/15 Couture show may be arguably everything you’d expect from Elie Saab, but it nevertheless impresses me every single time. The show was obviously full of fairytale inspired gowns that consisted of light, sheer materials, silk and tulle, the majority of which was beautifully encrusted with pearls and crystals and somewhat inspired by the mystery of the ocean (seen in the lace black gowns and pearl encrusted deep blue dresses) and even an enchanted forest (in one instance a moss green was offset against colourful crystals and pearls). Whilst keeping to his usual pretty, romantic roots the designer used a rainbow of colours in his tone-on-tone approach to his underlays and embellishments to create a soft, natural and feminine collection.

And of course, the latest show cannot be spoken about without the mention of the beautiful finale wedding gown, although so many of the white, silver and cream gowns displayed were enough for any bride-to-be- or any woman for that matter- to swoon over!

  

 You can view the full pictures from the show here or watch it in full here !

 

What did I miss: A Paris fashion week catch up

So, I was lucky enough to get away to Dublin at the beginning of March, but this obviously meant I had less time (and less wifi access) to blog about the goings on at Paris Fashion Week! So, what did I miss?

1. Kenzo grew up.

Gone were the statement sweatshirts and logo emblazoned attire-although they kept their youthful edge via bold prints and bright colours, this season Kenzo brought us a tougher edge in the form of oversized shapes and strong tailoring.

   

2. Phoebe Philo gave us even more coats to lust after.

I’m still not over that pink coat, but the the most recent show from Celine gave us even more coats to desire, and this time we saw so much assortment I’m not even sure I can pick a favorite. The question is which one will bring me most inspiration for next AW? Will it be the camel coat? The double breasted button up? Or maybe the more boyish, oversized kind?

      

3. Chloe remained pretty, as ever.

With nudes, soft pastel hues and the odd pop of bright colour towards the end of the collection, the pallete at the most recent Chloe show did wonders to produce a whimsical, feminine collection. With simple shapes and feminine lines (and gold hardware thrown in for good measure, of course) the Chloe collection was what I imagine every Chloe collection to be -ultra feminine, flirtatious and youthful. We saw beautifully draped blush pink coats, silky, layered slip dresses, chunky knits, and, not forgetting, the appearance of soft culotte pants that seemed to look amazing with absolutely everything. I’ll just take one of everything, please..

                  

4. I will always love Elie Saab.

Always giving us beautiful, elegant collections, I just can’t get enough of the amazing gowns (and everything else, actually) that the designers behind this collection manage to produce. The colours this season (think warming berry tones, blush pink and teal), bold floral print, embroidered detail and glamorous furs all made for a rich and luxurious collection!

 

5. Grocery shopping- Chanel style

I’m sure we all know about this- Karl Lagerfeld turning the Grand Palais into one big Chanel supermarket. We saw sugary sweet tweed suits, metallic jeans, lace up flat boots and some amazing arm candy- but although I loved some of the looks on show, not all of it was that inspiring, even with the super cool supermarket layout.