St Kevin's Arcade, K Road

Karangahape Road is one of the most eclectic streets in Auckland - on the one hand, dark and seedy, on the other, intriguing and vibrant. I'm always drawn there, knowing the unexpected is always around the corner.

Today I popped in to rummage through some of the op-shops K Road has to offer. The vintage fabric of Nicole's dress caught my eye. This photo has a very 70's glow, that required no mood lighting on my behalf! The warm tones of the backdrop and the retro print go impeccably well with her long straight centre parted hair. Beautiful dress on a beautiful girl.

And excuse me if I've already said this before... but shoes definitely maketh or breaketh an outfit. In this case the shoes make the outfit. Love the buckle.

NZ Fashion Update

Alrightie, so I've been a wee bit naughty over the past few months and haven't made any updates. I don't want you to confuse my lack of posts with a lack of good street fashion in New Zealand. Far from it. The truth is I've been busy relocating to Auckland, finding a home and getting a job.

Now, enough about me, and more about what's happening in New Zealand. While trends in NZ street fashion are not too dissimilar to those of Europe and Asia there is a subtle difference. Kiwis seem to have an obsession with being unique, one of a kind individuals and often use clothes to prove it.

One prime example is this design student from Auckland University who I spotted on K Road.

Trousers are his own unique design and while they're 'out there' in terms of being a bold statement, they incorporate a high level of design and are quite simply beautiful.  Sunglasses are by Karen Walker (love love KW eyewear) who happens to be one of my fav NZ designers. 

It's all in the clear lens glasses, vintage of course!

Clear lens glasses are the ultimate statement piece of the 'now'. It's almost like a secret club exists where every indy kid received a memo to trade sunglasses for clear lens glasses. This is a great look for those who really actually need to wear prescription lenses but I'm sure there's many a frame out there filled with mere plastic.

These Japanese girls look uber cute with tortoise shell frames and clear lens glasses:

Vavavoom in Harajuku

I captured this girl on a street corner in Harajuku, Tokyo. I was only one of many bloggers out and about that day.  The streets were actually lined with fashion bloggers - their cameras and release forms in hand, scouting the streets for photo ops. While I was style spotting in London, I'd come across the odd blogger but it really was a rarity... however, here in Harajuku there were almost more bloggers than passer-bys. Crazy.

Look beyond the legs, if you can, and you will see an outfit that is actually really really cool. This girl has nailed a look that will appeal to girls and guys alike. The seventies inspired fur trim, the horn rimmed glasses that take you back to the sixties when  television's greatest star was a puppet from the Thunder Birds and the suede shoes coupled with socks, all display an edge that cares more about trend than sex appeal.

Socks seem to be an essential for wearing boots in Tokyo this winter - it goes really well with the nerdy glasses. Not always the most flattering look if you have short legs but there's a range of ways to rock socks, from over the knee socks layered over top of sheer stockings to shin high socks with ankle boots - it's definitely a quick cheap way to update your wardrobe.

Introducing London Stylist: Vonnie Williams

The talented Miles Langley has turned his hand to HD video and to no surprise is creating some really fine work. This is a great little video clip featuring one of London's influential fashion stylists. It was shot on a Canon 550D - amazing the level of quality you can get on a DSLR these days. Props to Canon for making HD video so accessible. Great ambience and mood can be created when combining video content with great music. I like.

Vonnie Williams is a London based Personal Stylist that rocks up to every event, no matter how big or small with the most amazing outfits. I'm always inspired by here unassuming yet beautifully bold sense of fashion. Vonnie is definitely not a victim of trends and knows how to combine fashion pieces together, both vintage and contemporary, to create a unique outfit that works.

Check out the video below, Miles Langley Vs Vonnie Williams:  


Miles Langley Vs Vonnie Williams from Miles Langley on Vimeo.

Hello Harajuku

Harajuku has to be one of the most infamous fashion spots in the world; Gwen Stefani heralds the style in her lyrics, and Lady Gaga has taken inspiration from this hot spot when creating her costumes (you can't call them real outfits, her every public appearance is masked by dramatic costumes). These pop celebrities aren't singing about nothing - it really truly is an inspirational place - quirky, vibrant and bold. 

Amidst the crazy outfits you find genuine design and style that does influence Japanese fashion houses like Comme des Garcons, Kenzo and Issey Miyake. One up and coming Japanese designer that I absolutely adore right now is Junya Watanabe. Whether fashion comes from the bottom up or the top down is impossible to say - but either way I see a resemblance between the knitted threads and patterned woollen knits that are big in Junya Watanabe's latest designs and what we're currently seeing in the streets of Harajuku. 

The outfit above is beautifully woven together in so many ways, from the gorgeous knits to the pairing together of exotic fabrics. 

This is a totally original look that I haven't seen anywhere in Europe. I can't quite put my finger on the key influencer but it has a taste of indigenous South America, native American Indian dress and my grandma's shawl. While the boots and satchel are totally present in London fashion, the rest of the outfit is unlike anything I've seen before.  If you visit Harajuku you will find Tokyo fashion, like Japanese culture in general, draws on the past while remaining utterly faithful to the future by pushing the limits.

Woollen knits with eclectic patterns are predominant right now in both Tokyo street fashion and Junya Matanabe's collection:

Melbourne Fashion Update

The two main threads that seem to be lingering on the Melbourne streets in recent months are what I have dubbed the ‘Irony’ and ‘Apathy’ schools of thought. Both looks are both fairly easy to spot, and both have the danger of being easily misinterpreted.

Apathy can be a hard one to achieve. Go too far and you run the risk of looking like you don’t know rather than don't care. Trademark features this season have been oversized fisherman sweaters and cardigans, men’s anoraks, hair is long and unkempt, fringes and colours are half-grown out, and makeup is fairly non-existent (except for the occasional slash of lipstick). This look can be amazing on the right person – usually someone who looks pretty or interesting enough to not need any assistance, and being the size of a 12-year old is always a plus! Case in point: a friend of mine who pulls this look off exceptionally well arrived at my house the other day swimming in a giant men’s anorak, little twig legs in skinny jeans poking out the bottom, and a beanie pulled over mousey hair. If I wore this I would look like a hobo, on her – amazing.

The ‘ironic’ look can also cause some confusion. It is very reliant on context to be recognized. Often I am caught out with the ‘I don’t know if that’s really ugly or really cool?!’ conundrum, and its not till you take the environment into consideration (eg. Hip-indy bandroom vs fast asleep on park bench) that it becomes apparent whether a mohair-koala cardigan over leopard print tights is an ‘ironic nod to the 90s’, or really someone who just hasn’t moved on. The other day a friend of mine was telling me about how hard she finds it to relate to her colleagues, and gave me an example of a woman she works with who ‘... wears scrunchies in her hair! I mean, when I do it its ironic... but when she does it, its just tacky!’. It seems ridiculous, but what is fashion if not fickle?

Hazel Squair, Melbourne Correspondent.

The fisherman look: from Shoreditch to Northcote
It seems that the 'apathy' look is pervading street fashion in both the northern and southern hemispheres. This handsome English lad has nailed the look of apathy, and as Hazel said, it takes the right kind of person (in other words only the naturally good looking) to pull if off. From the torn hem line on his denim shirt to the scuffed lace-up boots and what appears to be an old fisherman's woollen sweatshirt, he looks like he just don't give a damn. But his well nicely coiffured hair would indicate otherwise. I took this shot in London but by the sounds of Hazel's report, this could've easily been captured in the streets of Melbourne (apart from the elegant backdrop that is none other than the beautiful Somerset House).