Posts with tag UK

We can admit it, deep down under that layer of snarky cynicism, we really do like some of American Apparel's collection -- minus the deep V-neck shirts they popularized last spring, of course. Still, it's hard to believe that anyone would crown the super hipstery designer, obsessed with t-shirts and latex, 'Label of the Year.' Sunday, the Guardian ran an article chronicling the rise of this year's king of UK retailers. Maybe we're just jaded with all of the sex scandals and soft porn advertising.

You know the economy is really bad when even royalty has to start cutting back. This year, the Queen of England is ushering in a new era of "Credit Crunch Couture," for a state banquet in Slovakia.

Rockoko Designer Jewellery is an British boutique in Leamington Spa, England, that features a number of great international designers--and a few British finds worth importing!

One example of a British designer you don't want to miss is Pebble. Kate Moss donned some Pebble jewelry for W Magazine's recent Hammam shoot. Watch the video of Kate's shoot here (NSFW!).

Um...hot. See our top picks from Pebble below, and don't forget to visit Rockoko!

Some people like to mix it up, get some high style points while still looking young and rebellious -- we get it. If that sounds like you, you may want to check out the product of team effort put forward by British soccer shoe company Gola and designer Christian Lacroix. The goal of this team was to bring a sense of couture to the usually sporty and utilitarian look of Gola footwear -- and to sell sneakers for $400. If you think they look kinda fugly, you're not alone.

While we applaud the adventurous spirit, we think these sneaks look like a pair of Golas had a lovechild with a BeDazzler. To us, the whole concept of 'couture sneakers' just seems a bit asinine. Either you go with the toned-down look of sneakers, or you for a more formal shoe. We make no bones about the fact that we love sneakers and think they can be very fashionable -- but they just can't do everything.

The couture sneakers trend kinda reminds us of the tuxedo t-shirt -- but in a bad way (if that's possible). These kicks kinda lack that sense of fashion irony.

[via Fashionista]

What's the longest catwalk you've ever seen? The Victoria's Secret catwalk seems pretty long to us, but that doesn't even come close to the world's longest catwalk, created by the House of Fraser on Monday for the launch of London Fashion Week.

Models started walking the catwalk on Monday in Land's End, and the models will walk a relay from there to John O'Groats -- a walk that will take a total of about 382 hours.

A variety of models, volunteers, and House of Fraser staff will walk a distance of 1193.6 miles, not stopping for night, nor rain, nor snow. They will pass some of the UK's most well-known points of interest, including Stone Henge, The Angel of the North, and Edinburgh Castle. Hope everyone's comfortable walking in heels!

Until recently most Americans knew Smart Cars in the limited context of European vacations. Nearly getting run over in Rome, admiring their ability to navigate medieval cobblestone roads in France. Perhaps a sighting or two in the wilds of Canada.

The cute, practical and energy efficient two seaters finally became available in the states this year, and their popularity in cities is soaring. The waiting list, while not as long as for the fabulous electric Tesla Roadster, it's still pretty long.

We're afraid that this video will make them even more popular, but not in a good way. Imagine the least eco-friendly thing you could do a car. Make it a monster truck, right? Outrageous waste of gas, pointless dirt circling, loud distressing noises to upset the local wildlife. What could be more fun?!

The video appears to be from somewhere in the UK. While the commentary is hard to make out, the accent sounds vaguely English, or perhaps Scottish, going by the "tartan" emblazoned across the sad little Smart Car body perched atop monstrous, ginormous tires.

Looks like we don't have to be quite so embarrassed by NASCAR now.

Been wondering whether or not you looked a little pudgy in your favorite striped shirt? Turns out, you do! At least, that's assuming the stripes are vertical.

A group of UK scientists decided to test the time-honored fashion adage that vertical stripes are slimming (while horizontal stripes are less flattering) -- and the results were truly bizarre. Apparently you can forget everything you thought you knew about dressing thin, because -- at least according to science -- the exact opposite is true.

The Psychology Department at the University of York showed study participants 200 sets of pictures, in which models wore dresses with both horizontal and vertical stripes. Researchers discovered that women wearing vertical stripes appeared to be a full six percent wider than their horizontally-clad counterparts.

But while you're hauling your vertically-striped shirts off to Goodwill this weekend, take heart -- it's not all bad news. This style standby has been proven false, but it turns out wearing black really does make you look more svelte. Phew!

Check out our gallery for more slimming tips.

In a move that's sure to make anti-fur activists giddy, Britain's Ministry of Defence is currently searching for synthetic material to outfit those stonefaced iconic guards at Buckingham Palace. Today, the MoD is meeting with Peta representatives to find a reasonable substitute for those funky black bearskin hats. Yes, they're really made of Canadian black bear fur, and what's more -- it takes an entire bear to make just one hat. So, the MoD's switch to synthetic isn't purely symbolic.

Government officials have pondered the idea of finding a substitute before, but apparently they haven't like any of their options. Now Peta's bringing out the big guns. They've got anti-fur designers Vivienne Westwood and Stella McCartney working on the case.

Since these guards are one of the foremost icons of British military tradition, the standards are set understandably high. In other words, cheap rugs aren't going to cut it. If you're an aspiring headgear designer, the Telegraph is accepting submissions for an alternative helmet design.

[via Fashionista]

Despite the fact that men prefer size 10, the idea that skinny models = tons of women with body image issues has been a hot topic for crusading do-gooders for decades. But with all the outrage over the supposedly sickly-looking models, nobody's ever been able to put a stop to the anorexic reign of size zeros. Even now, the UK's best chance at banning "unhealthy" models in the looks like it's wilting away.

The British government has been eyeing new regulations that would require catwalk models to pay for a £500 ($933) health exam and certificate before they could do any work on the runway. While we think that seems kinda steep, it actually gathered a lot of support. Now, without similar bans in major fashion cities like New York or Milan, London is worried about all kinds of negative fallout -- especially at London Fashion Week.

Other, less-severe measures are being put in place to protect the health of British models, like promoting a drug and alcohol free backstage environment. Why alcohol-free?

[via Jezebel]

We love all of the amazing independent designers out there. In order to find out more about just what makes all of these creative types tick, we present to you an ongoing segment called Indie Designer Interviews.

Today's interview is with Kate Garey, a designer, artist and crafter based in the UK. If you like quirky and cute, silly and girly, you'll love Kate's handmade purses, wallets and cosmetics cases.

We love all of the amazing independent designers out there. In order to find out more about just what makes all of these creative types tick, we present to you an ongoing segment called Indie Designer Interviews.

If you love cute, girly, Japanese street fashion inspired trends, you're going to love today's featured designer, Stephanie McCann of Sugarpop Clothing. This UK-based label is stocked full of adorable duds sure to thrill your inner child.

It's something you might expect to hear from a guy who spent the last night out bar hopping, but not from the geniuses that brought us the push-up bra. As the story goes, Wonderbra's modeling scouts interviewed the next smokin' hot supermodel of the future, but when she left they realized that they hadn't got her name or phone number. Now Wonderbra is apparently having to resort to a nationwide womanhunt for their missing model with the great rack.

For months, Wonderbra UK had been advertising an audition where they would select a model for the next year's billboard ads and breast cancer PSAs. When they narrowed it down to the lucky winner, from the more than 1,000 contestants, judges realized that someone had royally screwed things up. Apparently, the winning model's contact info had never been properly recorded. They think her name is "Kate or Katie," she's "5 ft 9 inches tall, and she's never done any modeling before." Good job guys.

[via Jezebel]

As Kyle recently pointed out, Brits somehow rule when it comes to pulling off the ol' headgear. Perhaps it's centuries of tradition, or the fact that they don't limit their choices to ball caps -- probably a combination of both. Still, whatever the reason, it seems that citizens in Yorkshire might soon have to fight for their right to wear hats (in bars).

Yes, as stupid as it sounds, Yorkshire police are asking barkeeps to make their customers remove their hats in order to make sure that security cameras can get a good look at them. Apparently, the local cops just want to make sure that they can identify the perpetrators if any funny business goes down. To us here at Styledash, that sounds like a hard pill to swallow. You give up your hats and then what's next? Jackets? Boots? We believe the right to wear a hat, however tasteful or hideous, shall not be infringed.

[via HauteConcept]

Gola brand shoes have been popular in the United Kingdom for over one hundred years. Yes, 100 years. Anything that can stay in style that long has got to have something going for it.

It is believed that the name is Gola is an anagram of 'goal,' which led to their first ad campaign "Gola means Goals" which you may have noticed sitting totally stolen in homage atop this post (followed by some lame attempt at a football tie-in, but what do we know, we call it soccer).

Uh, oh. It seems as though the American athletic stars may have to tap into their competitive spirit even before the last torch is lit this summer in Beijing.

As was mentioned earlier, Ralph Lauren has been chosen to outfit the group of chiseled-bodied women and men representing the good 'ole US of A in two months.

Also, in celebration of the worldly contest, Anna Wintour proudly featured a number of summer Olympians in Vogue's April issue.