Emma Stone - In Vogue

Forget ripped denim and peplums, Emma Stone is officially the new Black. 

In the space of a mere month, the 23 year old Spider-Man actress has covered THREE editions of Vogue and quite frankly, I could do with a few more.

Emma Stone covered July’s US Vogue, and August’s Teen Vogue and British Vogue (the latter, naturally, being my favourite where Emma wears a veritable feast of Autumn/Winter’12 trends and is interviewed by the gorgeous Alexa Chung.)

Emma Stone has long been my ‘one to watch’ on the red carpet and I loved seeing her stunning, highly anticipated, premiere choices whilst promoting the new Spider-Man film, which she stars in alongside her real-life British-beau, Andrew Garfield.

Above: Wow. Emma Stone wearing Chanel and spikey Louboutin's at the LA premiere. 

Above: Day Time Demure 
​L-R: Dolce & Gabanna in Spain, Andrew Gn in Berlin, Emilio Pucci in Moscow.

Above: Gothic Nights
L-R: An Ellie Saab jumpsuit in London, Gucci in Paris, Bottega Veneta in Rome.

Gorgeous, talented and dating Spider-Man. This girl rocks.

The Amazing Spider-Man is at cinemas now. 

Trend: Olive Green

If there is one person’s wardrobe I covet, it would be Olivia Palermo's. The ex-Hills star and renowned fashionista always looks enviably glossy, elegantly accessorized and perfectly put together.

Recently Olivia has been wearing a lot of olive green – recycling her olive green jeans and olive green parka in numerous ways.  Last week she was seen (left) in New York looking like an olive green dream, from top to bottom.

Olive green combines really well with most colours, but Olivia prefers to wear her jeans/parka with white or black, accessorized with ballet flats or heels (usually leopard print - girl after my own heart!) and whopper sunglasses.

I think olive green is the perfect multi-seasonal neutral and a great way to ease your way into the London 'sunshine' (... a gal can dream!)

Luckily for us, Olivia's Olive Green look is really accessible on our highstreets:

I would recommend Topshop for their Moto Leigh Jeans (RRP. £38.00) and their Army Shirt Jacket (RRP. £48.00) or the skinny jeans by Victoria Beckham for a super flattering fit.

The Opulence of 'Anna Karenina'

And just when I thought 'The Great Gatsby' was the period drama fashion dream of the year (see the trailer and pictures here) I saw this trailer for Joe Wright’s 'Anna Kerenina.'  Wow. 
Keira Knightley plays Anna, a striking aristocrat in late-19th-century high society Russia, wearing the most elegant and opulent of costumes - think rich velvets in jeweled tones, delicate lace, feathered headpieces, beautiful pearls...

Inspired by this upcoming movie’s beautiful costumes, Banana Republic is launching an Anna Karenina style capsule collection with the film’s twice-Academy Award-nominated costume designer, Jacqueline Durran.  Banana Republic’s creative director Simon Kneen promises “hats and coats with faux fur and piles of costume jewellery.”

Anna Karenina is released in the UK in September - Can't wait!

Debit Buy: ASOS Earrings

I do not have pierced ears (which has probably saved me a small fortune over the years given my magpie tendancies!) but if I did I would almost certainly be adorning my earlobes with these sparkly bug pendant earrings (left) and these colourful, Prada inspired floral gemstone beauties (below) from ASOS.  I would dress them down with jeans and a t'shirt. These really are too adorable.

Left: ASOS Premium Darling Bug Drop Earrings

RRP. £20.00

 

Below Left: ASOS Flower & Jewel Drop Earrings

RRP. £15.00

 

Below Right: ASOS Flower & Jewel Drop Earrings

RRP. £15.00

Jack Savoretti, 'Before The Storm' UK Tour

“London-born Jack Savoretti is the type of guy you can imagine flinging his guitar on his shoulder and hitching a ride to explore pastures new: a free spirit, with a sensitive soul worn on his sleeve."  Jameela Oberman.

With the release of his album, ‘Before The Storm,’ husky singer/songwriter Jack Savoretti has been touring the country, showcasing his new material with his band, The Dirty Romantics.  This album’s music is more confident and diverse – darker almost – than his previous releases, although Jack’s romantic, poetic lyrics are still ever present, ever wooing his audience.  

I personally love the Gypsy inspired song ‘Knock Knock’ and the beautiful, emotional duet Jack sings with the actress Sienna Miller, ‘Hate & Love.’

Throughout Jack’s UK tour he has been holding an amazing competition in support of unsigned, upcoming musicians, to find the best cover of his new single ‘Take Me Home.’  Jack chose his favourite YouTube submitted entry and invited the winner to open his show and perform alongside him at his Bush Hall gig in London last week, which I attended.

Right:  Backstage with Jack Savoretti after his gig.

Below:  I filmed the nervous and talented winner, Rebecca Clements, on stage performing 'Take Me Home' with Jack.

Below: Jack Savoretti and The Dirty Romantics perform ‘Black Rain’ at the Bush Hall.

Also, see Jack joined onstage at the Bush Hall here by enthusiastic superfan Adam, after he pleaded from the crowd for Jack to sing his favourite song ‘One Man Band.’


See Jack Savoretti playing live with The Dirty Romanticsat The Hard Rock Calling Festival in London (July 14th) and at The Wilderness Festival in Oxfordshire (August 11th)

www.jacksavoretti.com

Nora Ephron RIP

How would you like to be remembered?
  "As the greatest nightclub singer ever..."

This week Nora Ephron, the Hollywood screenwriter and director of some of the most well loved Rom Com's ever made, lost her battle with leukemia at the age of 71.

I've watched ‘When Harry Met Sally’ around 1000 times (it’s my father’s favourite film!) and I can easily find myself, on a rainy afternoon, immersed in the romance and humour of her other films (which include, ‘Sleepless In Seattle,’ ‘You’ve Got Mail’ and ‘Bewitched.’)  Among those to pay tribute to the writer, Billy Crystal said, "being her Harry to Meg's Sally will always have a special place in my heart, I was very lucky to get to say her words."

Meryl Streep, who was nominated for a Best Actress Oscar for her role as Julia Child in Ephron's 'Julie & Julia' was also one of the writer’s dearest friends.  Speaking to the New York Times, Streep remembered her friend's effervescent outlook on life, "Nora just looked at every situation and cocked her head and thought, 'Hmmmm, how can I make this more fun?'"

Below:  From 'When Harry Met Sally,' the most perfectly romantic scene of all time? 

In her 2010 book, ‘I Remember Nothing,’ Nora wrote a list of the things she would and wouldn’t miss... Simple and humourous, this now makes an extremely touching read...

What I Won't Miss


Dry skin

Bad dinners like the one we went to last night
E-mail
Technology in general
My closet
Washing my hair
Bras
Funerals
Illness everywhere
Polls that show that 32 percent of the American people believe in creationism
Polls
Fox TV
The collapse of the dollar
Bar mitzvahs
Mammograms
Dead flowers
The sound of the vacuum cleaner
Bills
E-mail. I know I already said it, but I want to emphasize it.
Small print
Panels on Women in Film
Taking off makeup every night


What I Will Miss


My kids

Nick
Spring
Fall
Waffles
The concept of waffles
Bacon
A walk in the park
The idea of a walk in the park
The park
Shakespeare in the Park
The bed
Reading in bed
Fireworks
Laughs
The view out the window
Twinkle lights
Butter
Dinner at home just the two of us
Dinner with friends
Dinner with friends in cities where none of us lives
Paris
Next year in Istanbul
Pride and Prejudice
The Christmas tree
Thanksgiving dinner
One for the table
The dogwood
Taking a bath
Coming over the bridge to Manhattan
Pie

Thank you for your stories Nora.

Debit Buy: Carvela Kute Sandals

I have seen these oh-so-cute  Carvela shoes being worn by one of my favourite fashion bloggers, the very romantic Parisian Alix Bancourt (of ‘The Cherry Blossom Girl’) and think they are the perfect summer footwear.  Worn with jeans/a dress, in the city/on the beach, they are pretty versatile regardless of which colour you choose. As Alix shows, pink nailpolish looks great with them.

Above:  Pink Kute by Carvela RRP. £55.00, Gold Kute by Carvela RRP. £55.00, 
Light Blue by Carvela (now in the sale) £55.00 £39.00

Available at Kurt Geiger

Alexa Chung - The New Face of Maje A'W'12

Alexa Chung, my favourite fashionista, has been announced as the face of chic French fashion label Maje’s A/W’12 campaign.  Maje is well known for it’s romantic, bohemian collections and since opening in 2004 their collections have been worn by all the coolest of French belles, including Vanessa Paradis and Marion Cotillard.  With Maje stores popping up all around London, this label has become a fashion favourite here also.

Above:  Photographer Gien Luchford took these beautiful, dreamy black and white images of Alexa Chung at Paris' Porte des Lilas metro station.  The campaign pictures show an incredible likeness to the 1960’s British-born beauty, Jane Birkin.

Left: A young Jane Birkin and a recent photograph of Alexa coincidentally (?) wearing a Bella Freud, 'Je t'aime Jane' jumper.

Maje released a statement last week saying, "between dream and reality, evoking a cinema-like aesthetic, Alexa embodies a modern heroine with style and charm. Elegant yet edgy, her attitude reflects a personality that is both glamorous and rock’n’roll."  

Alexa also revealed, "I am thrilled to be the face of Maje for their autumn/winter 2012-13 campaign, it's a brand I love and wear, so to be asked was a huge compliment."  

I wonder if there will be an Alexa/Maje collection revealed next?  Fingers X.

Above:  Beautiful cult-actress, singer, fashion muse and activist Jane Birkin in the 1960's
(also pictured, Jane with her great love, Serge Gainsbourg.)

Below:  Now 65 years old, Jane Birkin remains as stylish as ever – and still with her namesake Hermès Birkin bag faithfully by her side!

My Marie Claire Trend Shoot: Cropped Tops

Each month Marie Claire magazine chooses a trend for one girl to model in six different ways.

I was approached by suuuper glamorous Tanya Semikoz, Marie Claire’s Executive Fashion Editor, a couple of months ago to model an upcoming seasonal trend… She didn’t mention however, that the upcoming seasonal trend was to be cropped tops... EEK! Every girl's worst nightmare, surely?! 

Stomach crunching my way to the The Shop Studio, an awesome North London photographic studio owned by photographer Sam Robinson, I was more than a little nervous about what outfits (or lack of them!) awaited me.  All my fears were put aside after Holly Welch, Marie Claire’s Junior Fashion Editor, waved her brilliant styling wand at me and I was suitably dolled up by the makeup artist extraodinaire,  Pamela Cochrane.

Above and Below:  Behind the scenes of the shoot with make up artist Pamela Cochrane and photographers Sam Robinson and Olly Burn.

These photographs show how cropped tops can be incorporated into your wardrobe easily and more demurely than I initially assumed.  I'm now rather inspired to wear a high waisted skirt with a cropped top this summer, showing only a small amount of my upper midriff.  All the shoes I wore were great and I ran straight off to buy the neon nude heels from Aldo (available here in the sale RRP. £75.00 £34.99) and the green/blue heels from Zara (available here in pink/red RRP. £29.00) which I also bought in black. Oops.

Thank you to Sam Robinson, Olly Burn, Holly Welch, Pamela Cochrane and everyone at The Shop Studio for making this a really fun day!

And a big Thank You to Tanya Semikoz.

Left: The July'12 edition of Marie Claire is available at now.

Mulberry's A/W'12 Campaign

Where the Wild Things REALLY are...

Despite not really having had a summer yet, I am already loving the sneak preview of Mulberry’s A/W’12 ad campaign.  The fairytale themed shoot shows model Lindsey Wixson in a forest amongst a whole host of furry giant Wild Things and an enviable wardrobe of gorgeous Mulberry.   Photographed by Tim Walker, the adverts show the brand’s new Del Rey, Maisie and Alexa bags. Fantastical!