WHAT I WORE TO LONDON FASHION WEEK

I told myself I wasn't going to attend London Fashion Week this season. As a part-time blogger I have no real reason or entitlement to be there, I just happen to love the whole experience. But having given it some thought I realised I would be really sad to miss out on the whole event - I have attended 10 consecutive seasons now and am yet to feel jaded by fashion. So on Saturday I put on my finery and headed to the new venue - Brewer Street Car Park (more on the venue later…) - for the Jasper Conran show. Here's what I wore:

SOPHIA WEBSTER'S AW15 LFW PRESENTATION

The ultimate mermaid shoes, surely? But then, if there's any designer that can deliver the ultimate in her field, it's Sophia Webster.

As a footwear designer, Webster's talent lies in seducing the shopper with nostalgia, inviting her customer to reconnect with their inner tweenagers.  I thought my days of coveting mermaid sequins, rainbow colour and butterfly motifs were decades behind me - turns out - when combined with grown-up razor sharp heel, I'm fully game.  You only needed to look down at Webster's presentation to discover the most sartorially sombre of fashion editors modelling the label's frivolously fun, hyper-real designs at their feet. 

EDELINE LEE - SS15 LFW PRESENTATION

The Edeline Lee girl for AW14 was a sneaker-sporting, cobalt-clad, urban girl. In contrast, SS15 saw a romantic, feminine turn for the London-based Korean Canadian designer, who presented a collection inspired by the renovation of her Victorian home in East London.  

A sense of theatre defines Lee's LFW presentations, and this season's set up - a custom built marquee on the Somerset House terrace - was particularly impressive. Inside the space, models were posed inside individual 'rooms', each themed by a colour card from the Little Greene collection and decorated with colour co-ordinated curios from fine china teapots to ceramic pineapples and romantic canopies of powder-pink roses.  

TOGA SS15 - A+ FOR ACCESSORIES

Showing at LFW for second time this season, in the grandiose setting of the St Pancras Rennaissance Hotel, Japanese label TOGA presented an exquisite art-inspired collection for SS15 with the dreamiest accessories offering. 

Inspired by the  abstract artist Serge Poliakoff, and the themes of 'Fragment, Reflection, Floating'; particular attention had been paid to the fabulous jewels, shoes and totes in the spring/summer collection. Geometric, mismatched mirrored earrings featured in several looks, cleverly reflecting light against the skin to a flattering effect. 

Colourful, painterly prints were seen throughout the presentation, alongside patchwork pieces that carried the same modernist feel. Sporty details added an urban edge - mesh fabrics on footwear and inner drawstring ties contrasting against the sleek designs of leather tote bags. Footwear was chunky and colourful with block heels and flatforms adding wearability. 

It was a real treat to discover TOGA at LFW this season, thanks to The Wolves for the invite x

REPORTING FROM TODD LYNN AW14 FOR DEBENHAMS

One of my London Fashion Week AW14 highlights was reporting from the Todd Lynn London catwalk on behalf of Debenhams. Shown in notoriously naughty Soho nightclub,  The Box, to an intimate crowd of around 40, a ticket to view Lynn's 'Poison Against Time' AW14 proved as hot as the double-shot, extra-hot soya lattes fuelling the fashion crowd round town. As well as attending the catwalk, I also put my questions to Todd Lynn about his AW collection, from his inspirations to how he celebrated post-catwalk! Prior to the show, Debenhams kindly invited me to pick Todd Lynn/EDITION outfit to wear at the show, continue reading to see my show look

LFF ATTENDS: TOPSHOP UNIQUE SS14 SHOW

Attending the Topshop Unique SS14 show last September was one of the highlights in my career as a fashion blogger. When I opened the bespoke Topshop envelope to reveal my invite (a futuristic metal credit card), I had to pinch myself. And then slap myself. And then pinch myself again. This crazed reaction turned out to be entirely justified because y’know, when you find yourself sat opposite Kate Moss, Phillip Green and Anna Wintour watching Cara Delvingne and Jourdan Dunn walk the catwalk, that’s a pretty big deal for a baby blogger like LFF! 

LFW SS14 BORA AKSU SHOW: IN LFF TEN

Bora Aksu was given the privilege of opening London Fashion Week SS14 with the 9am scheduling in the Somerset House show space. Normally, super early show times can lead to empty seats (fashion bodies aren’t  know for being early risers…) but the Bora Aksu show was packed – indicative of the dedicated following the London-based Turkish designer has inspired.

LFF LFW SS14 STREETSTYLE: PINK CLASH

For day 2 of London Fashion Week, I tried a little pink/red colour clash thing, inspired by this Jonathan Saunders look from his AW13 collection. My pink coat was trend premonition purchase in the Topshop AW13 sales - 40 quid and my best sale buy to date! The pillar box red shift dress is from the Next AW13 collection - they have so many fabulous pieces in store for fall, you really must pay a visit.  

LFW SS14 ASHISH SHOW - IN LFF TEN

Some brands you just have a natural affinity with, and for me one of those designers is Ashish. Like Paloma Faith, Delilah and Ellie Goulding, who all frow-ed at the SS14 show, I see myself as an Ashish girl - although the reality is - I'm just not cool enough to pull of head to toe sequins. I have been lucky enough to attend the catwalk several seasons in a row and I really appreciate the label's strong handwriting that rarely deviates to accommodate trends. Without fail Ashish Gupta's shows deliver humour, distressed denim and sequins in their thousands. The invite for the SS14 show was a festival wristband, a clever touch, creating the feeling of entering the best party at LFW. For the new season Gupta had received special permission from the ultimate in pop culture - Coca-Cola - to use the brand's logo, appearing on look after look in the show (festooned in sequins obviously). There were also multicultural references in the form of ethic jewelry, Cambodian crowns and Arabian inspired fashions. My personal show highlight were the faux-supermarket sequinned carrier bags that read 'Disco' and 'S&M' instead of well know chains (it doesn't take a genius to work out what these are a play on) - I actually laughed out loud when they appeared on the catwalk. Here's the show highlights in LFF 10: 

LFF OUTFITS: LONDON FASHION WEEK SS14 DAY 1

When I woke up and saw the miserable weather conditions for day 1 of London Fashion Week on Friday - the last thing I wanted to do was put on a pair of killer heels. Bad weather brings out the comfort dresser in me, so my Nike Air Vortex trainers proved to be a lifesaver. I teamed them with my leather skirt that I picked up from a charity shop in the summer and my new Topshop neoprene sweater - neoprene being an ideal fabric for aquatic weather conditions! My fab chain strap bag is courtesy of Dune at Debenhams. Debenhams sent me the bag to review and it proved to be the perfect choice for Fashion Week. It has lots of compartments inside which were perfect for storing my business card, phone, etc and expandable zip detail that enabled me to fit bulkier essentials inside - like my umbrella. Plus the metallic finish is luscious and picked up lots of compliments!

Pictures by Katie from Glass of Fashion blog

Shop the look:

EUDON CHOI SS14 SHOW - IN LFF TEN

The Eudon Choi show was held in the the historic 11-12 Carlton House yesterday - designed by John Nash, no less. The London-based Korean's show was packed to the rafters, unsurprising since Eudon Choi's pitch-perfect AW13 collection was the talk of LFW last season. The show achieved what I think to be quite hard feat - it was serenely beautiful - yet extremely wearable and commercial. The looks were ready to step off the runway and into wardrobes. As promised, I've edited my show pictures down to the LFF 10 show highlights, here's Eudon Choi SS14 at a glance:

LFF EVENTS: LONDON FASHION WEEK SS14

I'm excited to be covering London Fashion Week for the 4th season on La Fashion Folie and I'm planning to make it my best to date. This time around I aim to be more focused in my approach to coverage - I've got my hands on some great tickets for exciting shows - but I won't be posting reams and reams of photographs on here (you've got Style.com for that). Instead I'll be editing each collection I preview down to my top 10 looks/ pieces/ show moments - and I'm (rather unimaginatively) naming this feature 'LFF in 10'. See it as your manageable guide to fashion week- SS14 at a glance if you will. The new-season coverage can often be overwhelming, so hopefully this approach will make interpreting the upcoming trends less daunting (for me and you!). To kick-off my coverage here's a sneak peak of what you will find in my LFW bag - I'm going for practicality this season and carrying a cross-body number to leave my hands free to photograph all the action.

Metallic bag c/o Dune at Debenhams 

1. My iPhone to share the latest happenings on LFF's social media channels.
2. Almonds for snacking - food is unsurprisingly scarce in the vicinity of Fashion Week!
3. My iPhone charger - when my iPhone dies, so do I (over-reaction?)
4. A pad and pen to jot down show notes.
5. My oyster card (in my super stylish Sarah Forsyth holder) - essential for getting across town to the different show venues.
6. Vaseline - you might be air-kissing, but you still need moisturised lips.
7. Show tickets - no ticket - no show!
8. Business cards - London Fashion Week is a great networking opportunity. 
9. Marc by Marc Jacobs shades - perhaps wishful thinking in this climate, but designer shades add much needed polish to my fashion week looks.

Be sure to follow all the action on my Instagram, Twitter and Facebook channels over the coming few days. Let's go! x

LFF ATTENDS: EDELINE LEE AW13 PRESENTATION

I have a London Fashion Week day 3 diary to come, but before I write that I am bursting to share my pictures from the Edeline Lee AW13 presentation on LFF. I had to return to work on the Tuesday of London Fashion Week, but with tickets for 4 on-schedule shows I was determined to fit in one last event. So during my lunchbreak I headed to the Elizabethan Middle Temple Hall for the Edeline Lee AW13 presentation. See the full report and pictures after the jump

LONDON FASHION AW13 DAY 2: THE LFF DIARIES

LFF's day two of London Fashion Week was more of a relaxed affair; continue reading after the jump for a sneak preview of the Mawi AW13 collection, The Carlotta Actis Barone Fashion Scout show and to hear about my trip to the The Apartment- a creative hub for fashion bloggers during London Fashion Week.

LONDON FASHION AW13 DAY 1: THE LFF DIARIES

Featuring the Zoe Jordan, Bora Aksu, Fyodor Golan and Jena Theo AW13 shows, an LFF outfit and Mark Francis from Made in Chelsea, continue reading after the jump to see LFF's day 1 at London Fashion Week.

Picture by Katie from Glass of Fashion.

JOIN LFF AT LONDON FASHION WEEK AW13

London Fashion Week kicks off today and I'm very excited to be taking LFF to the AW13 shows again.

If you would like a behind the scenes peak of what it's like to be an independent blogger at London Fashion Week (I'll show you both the glamorous and unglamorous truth), be sure to follow me on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for all the of-the-moment updates. I will also be sharing my daily photo blogs on here like last season, but as there isn't always time to post on the day, head to my social media accounts for the hour-by-hour updates. 

To give you a taster of what you can expect, here's a montage of my favourite Instagram pictures from September's fashion week.. and if you are attending the shows come up and say hi! It's always great to catch up with blogger friends at the shows, old and new.

AW13? Let's go!....LFF x

Top row L-R: 1. Vitamin water in the press lounge, an essential part of the LFW experience! 2. Yours truly on the Somerset House cobbles. 3. Crazy hot shoes in the Topshop Newgen showroom by Sophia Webster. Bottom row L-R: 1. The FROW at Sass & Bide 2. Erikson Beamon jewels in the LFW showrooms. 3. The MAC beauty bar in the press lounge.

THE LONDON FASHION WEEK SHOWROOMS: MAWI'S SS13 COLLECTION

During London Fashion Week one wing of Somerset House tranforms into a mega style showroom where fashion and costume jewellery brands showcase their new-season collections. My personal highlight of SS13's showroom action was delivered by my favourite British jewellery house, Mawi.

If you're unfamiliar with the brand, Mawi is the go-to jewellery designer for luxurious statement pieces with a contemporary edge. Think oversize jewels, spike details, chunky chains and you're on the right lines. For SS13 Mawi's contemporary costume jewellery has taken on a more feminine feel, with pastel hues, iridescent jewels and gem-set petal details adding a softer edge. These are statement pieces with a feminine flourish.

Another new and very, very, very  excitement development for the jewellery house is the introduction of an all-new clutch bag line. Taking the concept of a statement necklace and translating it on to the front of a glitter-encrusted clutch, these are probably the culprit for my impromptu drooling. Here's my pictures of the collection:

Iridescent-effect jewels added a pretty-finish to statement styles.

So.... I want this necklace.

The ultimate statement necklace!

Cocktail rings and statement earrings.

The new line of clutch bags.

Neon is still a key colourtrend for SS13 at Mawi.

Head to the Mawi website to see their current collection.