Style Diary

Just back from the UK! 17 days does fly. I did promise that I was not only going to cover local events but also give style advice and provide you with the latest on the international scene.So here it is-my Style Diary International Edition-U.K.

Mauritius does not have the ‘sales’ concept completely figured out yet. Hopefully once some international retail stores open up here it will happen. And by sales, I mean up to 70% off on everything. Dresses that have a retail value in Mauritius of about Rs 6000 reduced to Rs 1000, stuff like that.

Summer wasn’t exactly hot-21 degrees Celsius for two weeks until the day I left, where the temperature shot up-but that didn’t stop girls working the trends, the biggest I noticed was bright colour which continued to be a leading trend for fall. It’s a pretty big contrast to what I’m used to seeing from the general population of women here (art and fashion students excluded), who prefer pretty pastels and layering. A typical outfit would be tights+denim shorts+ballet flats/oxford shoes+top/tshirt with a jacket/cardigan and big scarf.

lookbook.nu
In London, I saw a pale blonde girl with a bright yellow shift with black tights and ballet flats. Londoners experiment with fashion, much more than Parisians, which is nice. Bright red was popular too.

Michael Kors

Shops had already started to stock their autumn/winter collections. They all had a fondness for burnt orange, the muddy colour palettes all overbearingly present on the runways...That make me look ill and washed out. If you have golden skin with yellow undertones, like me, avoid the muddy regalia.If there was a trend that I couldn’t work, this was it. The clothes had some folk or craft accents to them with a 70s twist-peasant blouses in brownish orange with small black flowers, for example.

BCBG Max Azria

 I loved Stella McCartney’s collection for Autumn/Winter 2011/2012 and wanted to see a younger adaptation of the dot trend. However I noticed that it was more geared towards women in their 40s and 50s which was a pity.

I’m enjoying all the upbeat colour, though.  As news breaks of another potential economic meltdown, designers will evoke the dark mood in dark clothing if the worst were to arise for 2013.

Lots of shops have jewellery lines-and there was just so much gold (fake of course)! At Freedom by Topshop and Dorothy Perkins there were just layers and layers of the yellow metal, that went the tribal route- feathers ,animals (there was an owl pendant that looked almost exactly like the one that Mr Price had in store a couple of months ago) and serpentine extravagance.

Outside London, there is an increasing shift towards sportswear inspired clothing. Fat Face, Super Dry and Animal have become massive. Very American.

The shoe most seen (apart from the ubiquitous ballet flat): Oxford Shoes or mannish shoes with a slight heel.

I’m in Terminal 5 writing this. I count on devoting an entire article on how to dress when travelling which will be out in November when the long Mauritian holiday begins. Anyway, if you find yourself here, eat at Gordon Ramsay’s Plane food-the best restaurant in the Terminal.

On Oxford Shoes in Mauritius:
Its not like I was going to buy a pair and never wear them here,right? So on the first day of university I wore them with a pair of jeans,hems pleated twice so as so sufficiently expose the ankle,a printed Tshirt and a blazer. Simple Rive Gauche.
I don't think the students had ever seen a pair of oxford shoes before.In any case, they looked at it with some sort of apprehension and amusement. There were comments. Of course,having lived here for the past 19 years I knew that there would be some kind of bad reaction to them given that people (not just Mauritians,all over the world) mock and fear what they don't understand or have seen before. But it doesn't matter. I am prepared to be a scapegoat for the sake of my blog ( here is the promise I give to you, reader): I solemnly swear that I will try the trends ( that looks ok on me ein-no point wearing something that looks crap for the sake of fashion) that are of the moment, no matter people's reactions here.


Style Local

During the past month, I have seen the incredible ascent of C Beach Club that is the place to be right now. I've never visited it but shall do so soon.  They aren’t stand offish either and are very easily contactable. The Club is currently working on a fashion show that will be held on the 27th of August, and as soon as I have the details I'll post them.

Emma Grigoryan has captured the breath of everyone with Balance. She went all out in capturing a haunting beauty whilst retaining the purity of the body. Nothing was vulgar or over-exposed. It was the soul that was expressed, the two sides of a woman, that are captured and retained in human flesh, struggling to get out. The elements involved in the photos are all perfect and evoke the whole mood-the rocks,sand,wedding dress,towel etc and there couldn't have been a better model for the shoot than Gwen Elle Chan. A must see!
http://thiternik-photo.blogspot.com/2011/07/balance.html

In addition the Events tab has new additions,including one concerning Emma Grigoryan.

Have you checked the Model section recently? You will find Jasmina Ruben there as our newest addition. To be featured in the Style Mauritius Model Section, you need to be one of the top models present in Mauritius with international experience. Jasmina is one of the most recognizable faces here. She is just so stunning, her face could be a marble sculpture-perfectly carved, with a woman's body. And she is probably the model presently in Mauritius with the most international experience.

Have a great week and amazing weekend
xoxo
Alex

Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/StyleMauritius
I would like to remind everyone that I post every Friday without exception.

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