Henry Holland At The V&A

shirt: Lemonade
bag: zara
leggings: french connection
lipstick: rimmel london (kate moss edition)


so i went to Londons V&A museum once again, but this time to see one of my favourite men in fashion. Henry Holland.
he was joined by Lucy Yeomans, editor of vogue.com (uk) 
know for his frivolity with his designs and clothes, he has a very interesting story. 
Holland started of in the industry doing a degree in fashion journalism, he soon decided it wasnt what he wanted to do so tried to change course, but this was not possible.
Holland worked at Bliss magazine and also Smash Hit magazine for two years.
well know for his slogan tees, it turns out that the first ones made (including Buy This Colleen) were published in 'Heat' magazine but only sold 6. then designer and friend Gareth Pugh requested a top (Giles Deacon) and wore it to one of his catwalk shows. this caught on and Deacon requested a Pugh top and wore it to his show. these t-shirts were then spotted by Katie Grand (US Vogue) and Holland was then welcomed into the fashion industry. 
Agnes Deyn, a good friend of Hollands, has also modeled a lot of his collections and featured in his more recent motion pictures.
to Holland, Katie Hillier was a big inspiration, and his clothes appeal to a young market as he is inspired also by fun and enjoying what you do, as he enjoys his job. 
with collaborations with poeple such as Levis and Debenhams, he also explains how relentless the industry is and where he didnt train in fashion, it is hard to feel as if you are welcomed in to the fashion world. having never written a business plan until very recently, Holland feels that setting expectations can only set you up for disappointment, and he constructive criticism is the most useful type. 
Holland likes to give a personality and humour behind his clothes but still shows a significant maturity in his newer work, as his personal style also becomes more refined. he creates designs for real live and uses people, family, film and music to find other inspiration from all around.
one of his personal favourite looks he has ever created was the Wedding dress from A/W 08 that was worn by Deyn. 
its funny to think a designer this big still cant sew very well (he admitted!)
lemonade
p.s that photo of him, he is signing my notebook!

Style Icon: Anna Dello Russo

D&G gold star sequin dress

'Evening wear in the daytime'

Marc Jacobs 80's inspired coat worn in NY two seasons ago

Gareth Pugh head piece with white Emilio Pucci dress

Gareth Pugh head piece worn with a white wig

Worth Couture military coat

Lanvin catwalk show, Russo strutted with a pooch at her side

We sat in the second row right behind the press! 

Amazing YSL coat she wore

Greeting bloggers and press after the talk

Myself and friend Bianca of Unpolished Sapphire

"If you really trust your passion, it's not difficult to do it."

- Anna Dello Russo

So on the 17th of February I took the train up to London's V&A Museum to see an interview/talk with one of fashions most iconic women.

She spoke about how she loved the 'cool' style that we have in Britain and how effortless and easy it it. But despite this adoration, her personal style has always and will always be the opposite. 'Overdone' and maximalist looks are this icons trademark and she believes nothing goes better with an outfit than lashings of accessories, out-of-this-world hats and amazing hair do's, and is very inspired by the style of Versace in the 90's. By creating a look head to toe, Russo isn't afraid to take risks in any way shape or form.

Russo likes to set an example for the younger generation of fashionistas and believes that the new sensation of the 'blogging' world has revolutionized the fashion industry, changing it forever and making it more accessible for everyone to be a part of. 

Russo's personal favorite designers are the bold and daring Mary Katrantzou and the classic Dolce & Gabbana, and sticks by the Italian fashion produce for the rich colours, quality of fabric and attention to beautiful embellishment. Another staple Russo trait is wearing evening wear in the daytime and she stands by the fact that fashion is ageless and feels a responsibility to support fashion. By collecting clothes since she was a teen, Russo now admits she owns over 4000 pairs of shoes and keeps the majority of her clothes in an archive directly next to her house. She never wears flat shoes and never wears jeans unless for example walking the dog! 

Fascinated by bold, brave and eccentric design, she believes 'fashion fopas' are all part of the process, unless of course it breaks her 'never wear the same thing twice' rule! Russo found keeping up with fashion is hard but crucial to not becoming 'old fashioned' as things move along so fast in the industry. She admitted to finding blogging hard but now loves it and style.com is hers and a lot of other fashionistas favorite site. Russo also states how experimentation is key, and that sometimes you have to break the rules to avant-garde!

She also revealed that 'opulent' is a new upcoming trend as an exclusive secret but i think you deserve to be in on it too!

I had an amazing time at the talk and she is such an inspirational woman!

Check out her website/blog at www.annadellorusso.com!

Also check out my facebook page for more images from the evening

Lemonade