If NEWGEN and Fashion forward are about getting your business lanched and thriving, the BFC Vogue Designer Fashion Fund is about taking your established business towards global hyper-growth.
As usual, it's a panel judging your applications - and those hoops are well worth jumping, because one winner will receive £200,000 without any expectation of shareholding. Even if you miss out on that, you'll stand a chance of getting access to mentors and other support to get things moving even further up.
Based in Ibiza and no doubt influenced by their surroundings, wearing their designs must feel like taking a year-round summer vacation. Ancient Greece mixes with modern romantics in their delicate floating layers - the result is as flirty as a surf instructor. Don't pretend you don't know what I'm talking about.
The designer of the best capsule collection in the judges' opinion will win 6 months' paid work for the prestigious fashion house, as well as a grand to keep you in cosy sweaters.
The deadline for entry is 11th December and all the details are on the BFC site - good luck!
We've been mightily impressed with newcomer Glass Magazine.
A stylish mix of fashion, art, music and design, it's setting cultural hearts a-flutter with its off- and online offering of coverage on the not-so-obvious but interesting.
Images from the graduate collection of 21-year old Belgian, Alexandra Verschueren.
A little while back Catwalk Genius headed to Shoreditch where the lovely Rebecca showed us around Felicities Designer Showroom.
Darkest Star’s intricate and beautiful bags, purses and scarves from The Study of an Orchid collection caught our eye. Especially this amazing shoulder piece...
Kumiko Watari’s quirky tees featuring great hand drawn prints…
Sadly we couldn’t make it to the Jacob Kimmie private viewing during London Fashion Week, but managed to take a peek at these stunning pieces at the showroom. Kimmie himself describes his work as ‘seriously sexy, jaw-droppingly luxurious directional neo-British style’, and we couldn’t agree more!
We loved Imogen Belfield’s stunning porcelain jewellery with gold, silver and gemstones.
We saw more show-stopping leather corsets from Harriet’s Muse…
And check out the artwork featured on the wall! Created by designers Cheryl and Craig themselves.
Heidi Mottram's eel skin designs that are both gorgeous and practical.
Catharina Eden’s new collection Jewelled Spine encompasses femininity and nostalgia, with chiffons, taffeta and satin, and a sprinkling of delicate prints from Rob Burton. The results are quite frankly, magical.
We got the chance to take a look at Lako Bukia’s beautiful Mushroom collection up close…
Last but not least, we checked out these striking pieces from new label e.g. Certainly one to keep an eye on!
Continuing the signature geometric prints, but with a growing sophistication and elegance, the collection represents a logical and delightful evolution for the acclaimed label.
"The tipping point is here." So say the founders of the EVER Manifesto, a project designed to 'showcase and celebrate how ethical principles can underpin luxury lifestyles.'
It's a laudable effort, with the backing of a Princess of Monaco, no less. Launched at Milan fashion week and distributed at Stella McCartney's Paris show, EVER is hoping to make sustainable fashionable.
Today, Techcrunch are reporting that he's gone a step further and now Public Enemy will fund their next album through their fans on Sellaband.
This'll be a great test of our own hypothesis that crowd-funding can work for creative businesses at any level of their career - not just those trying to establish themselves.
Okay LFW is officially over, but don't worry we've still got some SS10 goodness to share!
Last week we headed to The Camp (The City Arts & Music Project) in Shoreditch for Maaike Mekking's SS10 show. The Dutch-born designer's new ready-to-wear collection seeks inspiration from the great femme fatale characters of our favourite cult films. From sharp shirts and trousers, to stunning floorlength gowns, each look sent down the runway exuded feminine power and allure. A minimal palette of greys, black and white provide a backdrop for beautiful detailing- layers, pleats and cutout work. We also loved the intricate hand-drawn flower detailing that added a perfect feminine edge.
A celestial line-up of names have designed cards for a silent auction in aid of Shelter UK, including Alexander McQueen, Vivienne Westwood, David Bailey and Rankin.
On Sunday Catwalk Genius made a reutrn to Vauxhall Fashion Scout to take a look at the new SS10 collection from Harriet's Muse.
We were told to expect 'bold and naughty Victorian balloon prints; luxurious and tactile cloth' and we were not disappointed! Cheryl and Craig (the genius duo behind Harriet's Muse) have created stunning collection pieces in black, white, greys and creams. Trademark corsets were of course not forgotten this season, this time complemented with striking leather jackets, ballooning silhouettes and a delightful hot air balloon print. The sweet print and soft fabrics paired with corsets and leather is naughty but nice, and we love it.
London Fashion Week is well and truly upon us people!
On Saturday Catwalk Genius caught Alice Palmer's SS10 collection, What Happens in Vegas... at Vauxhall Fashion Scout. Palmer’s AW09 collection was influenced by the sculptural architecture of Tokyo, and this season, the inspiration stems from the extravagant hotels of Las Vegas.
Palmer sent down the runway her signature knits, this time tailored to the body, celebrating the female form. With structured tailoring and padded features, Palmer created a clear futuristic feel to her collection. This was complemented with beautiful Grecian draping that evoked the flamboyance of Las Vegas perfectly. As for colours, fine silk knits in a rich range of blues, purples and shimmering nudes were served up. This collection is sleek, feminine and absolute luxury.
The designers, shown above, are both called Nikki, which must make things easy in the office secret Santa draw.
Their first collection is named 'Jules' after the author of 'Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea', Jules Verne. As such, you can expect some pleasingly aquatic pieces such as these:
If you're in London on a Saturday from the one coming up until the 17th October, pop round and say hello to the ladies at Portobello market. For the rest of us, you can shop the line here.
Fresh from her acclaimed London Fashion Week show, Georgie W Couture now has a new Autumn/Winter range available on Catwalk Genius.
The range includes some fabulous faux-leather pieces, as well as these gorgeous elegant evening gowns:
You can shop the range, or buy a share in her next collection. Leading the funding charts and with rave reviews from fashion week, it looks like Georgie W Couture has a bright future ahead.
Win a pair of front row tickets for the Georgie W Couture London Fashion Week show!
Our highest-funded designer, Georgie W Couture, is known for her sassy and sophisticated collections.
Now, she's offering one lucky winner the chance to win two front row seats at the London Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2010 catwalk show "The Girl Can't Help It", taking place on Friday 18th September 2009.
You will be amongst fashion editors, buyers, celebrities, and top fashionistas in the industry having VIP treatment all the way. The winner will also be giving a VIP goody bag, a chance to meet the designer herself and a Limited Edition Georgie W Couture special gift.
To enter simply answer the following question:
Name one of Georgie W Couture's stockists.
Email your answer to info@freshstrawberry.co.uk with 'GWC COMPETITION' as the subject heading. Include the following information in your email:
We've been asked by the Fashion Rocks for the Childrens Trust event to put a call out for designers wishing to showcase, sell or donate their work for their charity event:
It also looks like a good night out for fashion fans for the £20 ticket price.
Apparently located at The Old Sorting Office in High Holborn, the Red Bull Fashion Factory is said to be a bespoke high-tech show space hosting catwalk shows from both established and emerging designers.
The internet is beingly uncharacteristically coy on this one, but events planned are rumoured to include a series of Q&A sessions with designers and artists, live runway feeds, backstage reporting and interactive showcases from emerging photographers and artists.
