Spring Silks

WEARING

Thursday, 4 May

Happy Saturday everyone! I recently rediscovered these silk joggers that are the perfect answer to spring dressing, they're a great alternative to jeans and tailored cigarette trousers and super comfy too! They work great with skates and heels for day-to-night dressing, so if you're looking for a Spring-trouser-alternative give them a go!

I'm wearing Silk Joggers by Topshop Boutique (similar here and here), boyfriend's sweater from Topman, Céline bag, shoes and bracelet and sunglasses.

WEARING

In A Twist

New in; Spring 2014 Céline Knot bracelet in Gold. The silver was also incredibly tempting! I loved the original thicker style from previous seasons but immediately fell in love when I saw this extra thin version! It also comes in a rose gold, in sizes small medium and large. 

Little insight... it's available online from Département Féminin and you can get 10% with your first order. I hope that helps the justification if you're thinking about it! Happy Saturday everyone!

DARIA WERBOWY, CÉLINE WINTER 2013

Four campaign's later and Canadian beauty Daria Werbowy is yet again the face of Céline; shot by Juergen Teller I think this is my favourite campaign yet. The mosaic patterns fit perfectly as a backdrop to the simplistic, modern cuts and patterns of the ready-to-wear collection. Have you spotted the new 'Tie' bag too? It looks like a cross between a Python/Luggage/Birkin don't you think?

FROM THE RESORT

An extremely belated post but it had to be done; Claire Waight-Keller does it again and now all I keep thinking about is how can I look like this every day of my life? Please? Beautiful, minimalist, feminine meets masculine, tailored-perfection, I can't cope. And whilst the Birkenstocks shown last season confused/baffled/excited us all, it looks like they are back again from crystallised and furry to gold-plated colour-popped soles. I am now off to search for an oversized drapey trench coat and a mosaic filled room.

Chloé Resort 2014 Collection

THE SWEATSHIRT THREE WAYS

You may have noticed my obsession with grey sweaters; lets discuss. a) They are unarguarbly comfortable and toasty. b) They tone down a look when any scary busy print of the trend variety is involved. c) You can pretty much wear it with anything, and take it from the day into the night, with little changing or accessorising involved.

I've picked this Topman 'NYC' sweater (see my previous post) as an example to show you how to team it with a number of pieces, but also to encourage you to raid your boyfriends wardrobe and see just how well certain pieces can work. I can confirm this originally did not go down too well; "No really please, that's my favourite sweatshirt", to eventually, "Ok it does look better on you". 

Success! Let's look further. See all the looks after the jump.

Look 1: Motif sweater and Ripped jeans sounds like it could be disastrously untidy, but add statement heels and it immediately makes it work-appropriate.
Wearing Zara Ripped Jeans (get similar here), Isabel Marant Heels, Proenza Schouler Bag.

Look 2: Sweater and Skort (an amusing new word invented by Zara that apparently is the answer to when shorts look like skirts). Break up wearing light colours together by adding black accessories; these cut out shoes are the answer to everything! I'd team them with Look 1 too.
Wearing Zara White Skort, Alexander Wang Liya Pumps, Celine Box Bag.

Look 3: The most realistic and weather-appropriate outfit for right now; jeans beanie and sneakers. Because lets face it, its freezing outside and this whole 'off-duty' everyday look will keep you toasty warm, guaranteed.
Wearing Topshop Grey Leigh Jeans, Isabel Marant Bekket Sneakers, Celine Luggage Tote, Cos Cashmere Beanie

Which look would you most likely wear the most? You can follow me at @thecovetcase for more pics too!

A MATTER OF ESPADRILLES

Back again for the summer are espadrilles, a type of shoe that has long confused me due to a syndrome commonly known as 'Blinded By The Label'. As I entered the shoe department of Harrods not long ago, the vermillion red ponyskin Celine espadrilles immediately caught my attention; as I ran over to pick them up, and consequently began convincing my boyfriend (and myself) that I needed them in my life, he immediately responded 'nice.. but they really are only espadrilles, as in rope and rubber.'

His completely factual response brought me back to reality; It's extremely low-cost production material - Exhibit A: Primark Basic Canvas Espadrilles at approx. £5, proves to us truly how inexpensive it's wholesale value must be, vs. Exhibit B: Celine Ponyskin Espadrilles at approx £490, which makes my savings account and general conscience die inside. But people seem to love them regardless of the production cost vs. actual cost dilemma; Valentino's covetable style in lace seem to sell out consistently and are already in their second season of production, along with Chanel's logo stamped canvas style that have proven to be similarly as popular amongst bloggers (and i'm sure the Celine ponyskin style will be equally as popular as the weather improves).

Above are some of the most covetable espadrilles I have found so far for SS13, from Celine to Stella McCartney to Valentino. The best bank account friendly equivalent I have found thus far is the Zara Camouflage pair in the left column, also in ponyskin and under £40. What do you think? Are luxury espadrilles by a designer something you would invest in? Or are we really only blinded by the label in this instance?

Left Column: Chanel Navy Canvas Espadrilles (in store only), Celine Leopard Ponyskin Espadrilles (in store only), Valentino Black Lace Espadrilles, Zara Ponyskin Camouflage Espadrilles, Celine Vermillion Red Ponskin Espadrilles (in store only)

Right Column: Valentino Red Lace Espadrilles, Prism Leopard Canvas Espadrilles, Stella McCartney Neon Espadrilles, Christian Louboutin Striped Espadrilles, Prism Leather Espadrilles

LASER CUT

Amidst the excitement of watching all the AW13 shows online so far this last week (thank you, Style.com), I couldn't help but look back at my favourite SS13 shows (in the live breaks, of course) to see what had influenced my wish list picks for spring/summer. I remember being beyond overjoyed that Celine, Chloe and Isabel Marant had all provided us with muted, neutral colour themes that would make it easy to mix pieces from a winter wardrobe to a summer one. So here we go! More wish lists because making collages are fun and dissertations are not.. Beautiful simple dresses from Chloe mixed with the infamous Susanna boots (now with silver studs for this season for those of you who aren't so inclined to gold hardware). More statement bomber jackets from Marant following on from the covetable embroidered Western jacket of last season. I also couldn't resist the laser-cut pieces from Alaia, and do not fear! A huge range is available at The Outnet for all your purse-friendly-Alaia needs, making it all the more easier to justify, right? Also these laser cut leather shorts from Raoul are a perfect statement pair of shorts, I haven't seen anything else like them.

Other covetable pieces I couldn't resist include the great Olympia Le Tan's book clutch which has pretty much been snapped by every street style photographer and will continue to do so i'm sure! From novel clutches to novel jewellery I still cannot get over the awesomeness that is Delfina Delterez who has added a whole new meaning to the 'fine jewellery' category. In addition are these super thin stacking rings by Catbird NYC that are perfect for every day use, they also come as 'knuckle rings' that are trending in a big way! More on that in my next post though.

From Left to Right: Chloe Ruffle Sleeve Dress, Chloe Printed Silk Dress, Alaia Laser Cut Platforms, Olympia Le Tan Moby Dick Book Clutch, Vince Navy Silk Tee, Raoul Laser Cut Leather Shorts, Chloe Broderie White Skirt, Alaia Laser Cut Belt, Ear Cuff by Repossi, Stacking rings by Catbird NYC, Eye Double Ring by Delfina Delterez, Chloe Susanna Studded Boots, Black Cuff by Elin Kling x Marciano, Isabel Marant Glinkle Jacket, Chloe Camel Sport Pants.

NAVY LAYERS & THE TRAPEZE

Taking the term January Blue's far too literally here with a Cos navy crew neck sweater, Cos navy cashmere scarf (I had to remove the All Saints navy coat in order to prevent an absolute navy overload) with Whistles green printed silk trousers that were one of my only sale purchases and easily the best sale-buy ever (from £125 to £35! Get your Whistles sale goodness here) and Isabel Marant Bobby sneakers. Also finally sharing with you my latest bag-affair with Celine, the Tri-Colour Trapeze!

CÉLINE DETAILS, SS13

And just like that, I feel the urge to own a leather lunch bag and furry Birkenstocks.

If you hadn't guessed already, Céline is without a doubt my favourite brand. Not just because of the style, but because working and studying in PR has made me appreciate a hundred times more what Phoebe Philo has achieved for Céline's current image and representation. Each season I eagerly wait for Paris to see what she has created, and (although I don't normally post show reviews), I couldn't resist posting the SS13 show. 

Firstly, I love the use of less obvious colour choices for summer; monochrome, greys and navy, contrasting with the subtle amount of bright colours and nudes used in the accessories. I normally hate dressing for summer, the last few seasons it's been about scary neon prints and bright colours (which I can't do) so thank you Céline for providing us with another option. Moreover, the use of wafer-thin leather and draped silks kept the brand true to it's minimalistic look, but with a softer approach from the more structured materials we've seen Céline use previously.

Now for the accessories; the furry Birkenstocks. So many mixed reviews on these; not a practical option for sure (fur on the soles of your feet in the summer, maybe not) but I think they are kind of amazing. Even the fur heels, although insanely impractical and crazy, made the collection just that bit cooler (the yellow heels strangely remind me of sesame street.. in a good way, though).

The clutches were my favourite piece, I love how they look like leather lunch paper bags, even in the satin version too.
Oh and I really want to find a leather scrunchie-style wristband, immediately.

All images courtesy of Style.com

#FNO

It's that time of year again! September is my favourite month of the year, (not just because it might be my birthday, but that helps.) but for fashion week which is fast approaching, and Vogue's Fashion Night Out in just two days time! Hurrah! For me, key places to check out this year have to be Liberty's with Jonathan Saunders and Roksanda Illincic making appearances and lots of in-store activities, and of course Bruton Street/New Bond Street for all the standalone designer stores.

Covent Garden is a must as well with the pop up Chanel beauty store! (Tip! Don't forget to look out for the pink Chanel London Cabs which will be offering free manicures in the new AW12 shades)

For the best information on where to go this Thursday in London, visit the FNO Facebook page which is regularly updating what will be happening.

What i'm wearing to #FNO? Check back later this week to see! 

#FNO Wishlist! Left to Right:

Proenza Schouler PS1 Clutch in Cobalt/Neon, Acne Rakel angora jumper in White available at Selfridges, Charlotte Olympia Carina Shoes available at Matches Fashion,

Isabel Marant Betty Sneakers available at Net-A-Porter, Celine Silver Shoulder Bag, Acne Rakel angora jumper in Grey available at Matches Fashion.

STRIPES & KHAKI

Super relaxed day, I chose an easy outfit of stripes and jeans. I have a new found love for green! Especially khaki, which is a great autumnal colour to add to my very monochromatic wardrobe. Using my new beauty; Proenza Schouler PS1 which I chose in grey after huge deliberation (It was a miracle I didn't pick black) but with so many compartments and zips it is the perfect every day bag. And so, after a lovely dinner and catch up with my good friend Ellen (you can follow her blog here) I must return to the tv for more olympic fun. Night everyone!

I was wearing: Whistles Stripe Top, Topshop Khaki Leigh Jeans, Celine Sunglasses, 

Proenza Schouler PS1 Bag, Converse Sneakers

PYJAMAS PLEASE

Pyjamas! Headed into central today (after finally getting over the flu -cabin fever!) to enjoy one day off out before we're back to work tomorrow. Love this co-ordinating set from Zara; comfy day wear for the summer months; and even more so for an English summer where long-sleeves and layering is usually the norm. Hope you all had a great long weekend, only two days until it's Friday again. Woo!

 Trousers, Blouse and Shoes, all Zara. Bag and Sunglasses by Céline.

INTO THE BLUE

Some of my favourite pieces this week; I snagged this Sandro jumper at the Harvey Nichols secret sale a little while ago, i love this kind of weave! It's not too thick and I am preparing myself for London to stop having this crazy heatwave and resort back to its usual cold rainy days (only bitter as I have had the flu this past week and missed all the amazing weather we've had). 

I hope you all have a lovely long Jubilee weekend!

Knit by Sandro at Harvey Nichols, Grey Tom's @ Schuh, Sunglasses by Céline, Prada purse

FRIDAY FEELING

It's Friday! Bought these super ripped boyfriend jeans from Zara yesterday, after obsessing over the Acne ones from SS12. Watch out for a post! Rounding off the week with some random Instagram snaps of home/work/clothes..  Enjoy x