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2015 is definitely all about a 70s revival. Maxi dresses, flares, blousons and velvet on carefree, rock n'roll girls that look like they are a lovechild of Janis Joplin and Michelle Phillips. But if the thought of incorporating flares into your life is giving you the style equivalent of a Nag Champa incense headache, fear not. There are ways to wear your flares that are appropriate for work or the weekend.
This story also heralds my first collaboration with Coach, the iconic New York based accessories and ready to wear company that has recently been helmed by Stuart Vevers; the man who has in the past brought magic to labels such as Mulberry, Bottega Veneta and Loewe. Under Stuart's direction, Coach has grown into a super cool, youthful and playful brand with a kaleidoscopic use of color, print, cute cartoon characters as well as polished, lust worthy pieces. I am proud to announce I will be collaborating with Coach all this season - there are so many beautiful accessories I get to play with - I hope you fall in love with them as much as I have.
First up is the Swagger collection where Mr Vevers explores modern elegance and streetwise sophistication. It's all about delicate, jewelry like chains, hantags and amped up turnlocks. I wanted to pair my picks of the collection with the best of new season clothes and to show you just how easy it is to turn into Stevie Nicks without losing your 2015 modernity. All hail the flare!

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So you think flares are best kept for the weekend? You haven't seen the Ellery version yet. With their swishing, multi layered bottom, these pants are not just elegant but super fun to walk, dance or run after a cab in. An all black palette means business and gold hardware details add luxe bling - I paired this outfit with a Swagger bag in black crock because, well, crock print is everything

( Ellery pants, Christopher Esber top, Max Mara jacket, Coach bag, Hermes cuff, Cartier bracelet, Tom Ford sunglasses, Aquazurra shoes )

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Karen Walker has done some amazing flares this season and this pair is printastic as well as a great 70s shade of orange. Tan and brown accessories are de rigoeur this season to elevate any 70s look. Pair with a floaty white blouse for effortless cool ( Karen Walker pants, Isabel Marant top from Parlour X, vintage Gucci belt, Sunday Somewhere sunglasses, Kirsten Ash necklace, Prada shoes )

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Photographed by Nicole Cooper

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As summer slowly draws to the end and the rays of light get less hot , I always go through my wardrobe and do a major reshuffle. I store all the light summer things away and pull out cosy knits out of the boxes where they slept the summer away, then go through the leftovers of my wardrobe and take a critical look at what I need to buy so I can refresh my look for the upcoming season.

For my newest Witchery Edit , I am playing with the First Edition March collection and styling it with different pieces to show you how I will refresh my wardrobe. I love it’s predominantly neutral palette, graphic lines, focus on quality and modern silhouette that make it such an effortless way to add building blocks to one’s transeasonal wardrobe. Above, I am wearing a turtleneck poncho that is a great cover up on cold mornings. Turtlenecks are back in a big way for Autumn.

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White and cream is one of my favourite tonal combinations of all time. I paired this slinky white First Edition skirt with a beautiful, loose turtleneck knit, boyish loafers and a leopard bag for extra pop

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This dress combines black and cobalt for a perfect lesson in colourblocking and begs to be taken out on a date
Read the full story on Witchery's website here !

 

 

photographed by Alice Wesley-Smith

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Catching the last bit of summer holidays in the gorgeous Jarvis Bay National park was enough of a joy, but shooting these vibrant Shona Joy dresses on it's Murray's beach was absolutely hilarious. My photographer Kasia Werstak and I got there early in the morning (my call time was 6am ) and arrived to the peninsula realizing that a dark cloud hung over the pristine white sand like a coal rag. This was in no way the shoot we imagined and we started to despair. Here we stood, two shipwrecked girls with many bags , colourful dresses and sharp Louboutin stiletto heels on the far side of the beach getting strange looks from rare passersby. We wanted to shoot early and get out before it got hot, hence we didn't eat breakfast, but now hours passed and the sun played tantalizing peekaboo behind the clouds, never quite peering out enough to shoot 1 picture.

Luckily, around 10am, it finally broke through the heavy clouds and we found ourselves in visual paradise. Apart from a snake slithering behind my photographer's legs, curious dolphins ,even curiouser children and the fact we nearly became cannibals and ate each other, the rest of the shoot was a dream.

For this story the vision was that of a 1950s inspired movie star; immaculate even though she is marooned and disoriented , holding on to her heels, thinking all the while that she will be rescued swiftly and needs to maintain her pristine composure at all times. I wanted to create a disjointed composition between the sexiness and urban feel of the clothes and the amazing, tropical background we were blessed to have for the shoot.

Shona Joy's clothes are so full of joie de vivre with their exuberant prints and punchy primary colors whilst remaining sexy in an understated manner. I am happy to announce I will be doing the edit of Shona Joy collections for the next few seasons - there are many great clothes coming your way yet and I will attempt to create a fun character for them all. For now, enjoy this fun autumn collection - it is perfect to dance the last of summer in. Hope you like ! xTG

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Clothes by Shona Joy
Stilettos by Christian Louboutin
photographed by Kasia Werstak

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It has been a month since my last post - a long time to be engrossed in my daughter's school holiday activities,perpetual playdates, long afternoons on the beach and thick adventure books like the Northern Lights which I read to her in crazy voices and hushed tones so she sits at the edge of her seat and cannot go to sleep for racking her brain on what will happen next.

Anticipation is an amazing thing. I remember a study being done once on the fact that people who go on holidays actually get more joy anticipating the holiday that going on in. That may be the case, but I still get giddy waiting for next season's clothes and upon arrival, the endless combinations they provide.

This season, I'm coveting 70s fashions , now back in full force. They have always been one of my favourite style decades - a period compressed such a wide variety of ideas style-wise, that it seemed fashion took a radical turn every couple of years; from brightly coloured polyester, playful knits, paisley and the ever-present bellbottoms in the early years, to the mid-70s when denim reigned supreme and khaki and drill cotton were de rigour, down to the latter part of the decade where everything got looser and more folky.

From Chanel, Saint Laurent and Tom Ford, to Gucci, Sonia Rykel and Dries Van Noten everyone seems to have taken the retro route for the European spring/summer ’15 season - it's time once again to get out those flares, dust off your suede and prep that lamé.

For this story, I played with some groovy, transeasonal items coming our way for autumn that will work dressed up or down.

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This multi-tiered dress evokes languid Indian summers with its pretty pastel tones and lace cutouts. Pair with tan everything.(Zimmermann dress, Jerome Dreyfuss bag & Panama Hat co. hat.)

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Now is the time to swap your skinnies for flares - the new cuts and stretchier fabrics are suprisingly slimming and flattering.

(Frame denim jeans, Miu Miu sunglasses & Romance Was Born shirt)

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This khaki skirt in drill cotton works dressed up for work or dressed down with slides for weekends. Accessorise with a smattering of gold, aviator sunnies and did I mention this season there is never enough tan?

( Lover skirt, Jets bikni worn as top, Monica Vinader bracelet, Pink Lou Lou shell bracelet and Cartier love bracelet , Versace sunglasses & Karen Walker bag.)

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The new 70s suit sports a wider leg with a slim fitting jacket (Asos suit, vintage Chloe platforms, Karen Walker sunglasses & Elke Kramer earrings)

 

 

 

Photographed by Alice Wesley-Smith

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