Florals Go Bold: Style.com

Check out Style.com's "Florals Go Bold" story.

RETAIL: More Florals

Blooming Flowers by claudiabrown

Items in this set:
Floral-print silk-blend dress, $1,290
Floral-print chiffon dress, $515
Monsoon Accessorize - Evening Dresses, 95 GBP
Petite Floral Knot Back Dress, $70
Chambray Rose Print 2 in 1 Dress at A|wear

RETAIL: Feeling Nautical

I just signed on Polyvore, a site that allows you to create layouts from items they feature on the sites, and there are tons of good ones! You can post your layouts on your Polyvore profile page, on your blog or facebook page. Here's a set I created based on a nautical theme.

Feeling Nautical by claudiabrown

Items in this set:

Dresses - Day - Button Nautical Dress - AX Paris - Fashion Dresses |..., 30 GBP
J.Crew Unisex Saint James® Meridien II nautical tee, $85
Nautical Striped Sweater Top, $16
Nautical Stripe Drawstring Tube - Women's Clothing and Apparel - Chic..., $44
Nautical Wrapped Skirt by See by Chloe, 140 GBP

AW10 | Stardust

photos Jenni Porkka, Philips Pavilion Le Corbusier

Quasars, metal, dark matter and Le Corbusier's Philips Pavilion are just a few of the inspirational sources for the A/W 10 collection by London based Swedish designer, Simon Ekrelius. Titled, Stardust, the collection features late 40s styling with sculpted curves and geometric silhouettes reminiscent of complex crystal shapes. Delicate fabrics of silk marocain and organza are printed with diamond-like forms in black and white creating a dazzling statement. Ekrelius describes the theme behind the collection as, "A woman beneath a firmament who looks at space with the suspension of disbelief of a child and sees the stars as shiny and shimmering mineral-like forms." We're sold.

Book featuring Pattern People

Pattern People has been featured in the book, Patterns, from Maomao Publications in Barcelona. The book is a huge compilation of contemporary pattern design edited by Macarena San Martin and featuring artists from around the world such as Catalina Estrada, Steven Harrington, Maira Fukimoto, Carolyn Gavin and lots more.

SP10 MARKETPLACE | Wallflowers

A perennial spring favorite, floral prints appear on a range of products this season from suitcases to shoes. With a vintage feel, these whimsical tea party prints work well with the sun bleached palette that is currently sweeping away the dark cobwebs of winter wear.

1. Lace Floral Jacket - H & M

2. Wiltshire Print Suitcase - Liberty

3. Bleached Rose Print Denim - Topshop

4. Floral Lace Up Shoes - Urban Outfitters

5. Meadow Print Hotpants - Topshop

Save the Date

The date for the next Printsource Show is arriving quickly. Come meet some great print studios and browse their new collections of vintage and original work.

AW10: Louise Armstrup

Louise Armstrup, background: Pattern People

Louise Armstrup's collection at Copenhagen fashion week featured apocalyptic imagery printed digitally on silk, reminding us of Christopher Kane's atomic explosion prints and some photographic landscape we were seeing on runways back in January. The digital revolution is really beginning to make a big difference in fashion and interiors. Here are some previous posts on the matter:
Acid Landscape
Maharem Digital Project

AW10 | Follow the Line

Theo van Doesburg Counter-Composition IV 1924
Marc by Marc Jacobs, Martina Austin Spetlova, Balenciaga

Stella McCartney, Gareth Pugh, Christian Cota
Mark Rothko Untitled 1969

It's the dawn of a new era for our linear friend. Moving away from the nautical theme, the stripe transformed itself on the runway appearing in many forms – from the broken line at Marc by Marc Jacobs to the traditional, bold, wide, horizontal stripe at Stella McCartney. In step with this fresh linear outlook, the Tate Modern hosts an exhibition on the work of Theo Van Doesburg, founder of the De Stijl movement.

AW10 | Ice Age

Chanel, Shao-Yen Chen, Matthew Harding

Louise Gray, Nathan Jenden, Louise Gray

Should we be taking a hint from designers and preparing for an arctic blast next winter? By the looks of it, global warming will be bringing on the return of the Ice Age. The runways were filled with voluminous furs - from Chanel's woolly mammoth full body creations to the candy colored coats of Louise Gray. Our picks include the tastefully sculptured pieces from St. Martins' Shao-Yen Chen and Matthew Harding which both flatter and fit the form.

McQueen's final collection

Alexander McQueen's last collection was about 80% done when he died his tragic death. His right hand woman and staff finished it, staying as true to his vision as possible. The collection takes its inspiration from Medieval religious iconography. The drapes, folds and lines are exquisite, sophisticated and ride a razor edge line between extravagant and restrained, spiritual and sexy, dark and ethereal. He will be missed, and I hope someone amazing is writing his biography right now.

Fall 10: Vintage Florals

Paul Smith Womens, Nicole Fahri, Kenzo, Cacharel
The vintage look never seems to go out of style. Current vintage print trends seem to be all about Victorian wallpaper, and Russian romance.

Mother of Pearl

Black Panther by Alice Dinneen 1934, Mother of Pearl SP10

Mother of Pearl SP10, artwork by Hisham Akira Bharoocha

If you haven't heard of the label, Mother of Pearl, take note. Created by Damien Hirst's other half, Maia Norman, the line took a brief hiatus but was reincarnated in 2007 with a fresh approach. Fusing the interests of Norman, who is an avid surfer and motorcross rider, the collections combine high performance fabrics with sophisticated cuts for the active woman. The spring collection, inspired by the tropical undergrowth of Bali, features an amazing, abstract insect print by Mat Collishaw, as well as a large monkey and parrot print by the artist, Walton Ford.

Available at Liberty

Fall 10: Holly Fulton

Rising star Holly Fulton showed these art deco tribal-folksy prints for Fall 10, similar to her skyscraper prints she showed at Fashion East for Spring 09.

Fall 10: Conversationals

Douglas Hannant, Marni, Versus, Marni

Jeremy Scott, Betsey Johnson x2, Paul Smith Women
Faces, people, animals, guns, horses and more stark geometric things (coming in the next post) are popping up in the collections of a wide range of designers. Christopher Kane uses photographs for his Versus line, as he did in his eponymous gorilla face dress for Spring 09. This time, he uses Bruce Weber's photography and photo hues become the collection's color story. Marni's abstracted simple shape faces are interesting, as is her use of chalky bright pastels.

AW10 | Marni

Marni, 70s wallpaper

70s wallpaper, Marni

Not one to shy away from bold patterns, Marni's fall collection features an array of seventies inspired prints in dusty shades of chocolate, raspberry, ox blood, ocher and powder blue. These designs are sure to make a bold statement come next autumn in the otherwise predominantly black palette typical of winter wear.