Melody Makers and Style Shakers

I’ve been meaning to do a post for a while that looks at the styles of some of my favourite singers but it’s been hard to choose who to focus on.

The three I’ve decided to feature are all very different and in a way, appeal to different parts of my personality. We base our listening choices on our moods and this has been very true when it comes to these singers.

The Past

Imelda May – Vintage Crooner

I love Imelda for many reasons:

1) Awakening my ears and soul to rockabilly

2) Her Irish charm – she comes across so humble and down-to-earth and COOL. Check her out at the 2010 Grammy’s…(love the accent!)

 

Style: Pin-up girl, figure-hugging pencil dresses in stripes, metallics, leopard print and polka dot. Her hair is always worn in the signature quiff with a blonde streak. Oh and let’s not forget the hoop earrings….

The Present

Ellie Goulding – Sweet Songstress

Ellie has such a hauntingly beautiful voice and her lyrics are very real. Her style is simple and she hasn’t had to create an off-the-wall image to sell her music. I absolutely loved her first album and am looking forward to her future offerings.

I absolutely love the lyrics in ‘The Writer’, it’s a very true description of when you like someone and you’re not sure how they feel.

One of the reasons why I really respect Ellie is last year I went to see her at Union Chapel and her PA broke down. Absolute disaster? Not for Ellie, she stayed calm, asked the audience if they could still hear her without the mic and continued on with her set until the power came back.

Love this one too…

 

Style: Ellie’s quite athletic which means her dress is usually quite casual. Another reason why she’s so darn cool is as a big fan of running, she invites fans to join her on her morning runs when she’s on tour around the world. She’s very naturally pretty and her style is casual, classic with a bit of a rock n’ roll edge. To sum it up it’s very normal, most of her outfits could come from your wardrobe. Which means sometimes she does get it wrong but her fans adore her, so no-one really minds!

 

The Future

Janelle Monáe – Fierce and Fantastic

Janelle Monáe is just one of the coolest women on the music scene. Signed by Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs and produced in part by Big Boi of Outkast, Janelle’s album ‘The ArchAndroid’ is unlike anything you’ve heard before. It’s based in an alternate universe, Metropolis,  where a population of androids are fighting for their freedom. It’s almost like a film soundtrack and will really awaken your imagination.

The Tightrope…

At Body and Soul festival in Ireland…

 

Style: Janelle has championed the female tuxedo and it is hard to find a picture of her where she is not in a two-piece. Her androgynous style is distinct and not easily replicated.

 

I hope you enjoyed my choices. Let me know who are your favourite female singers and who you think has great style.

My dress and bag above are vintage. The dress will be available in the coming months on Miss Patina.  Accessories are borrowed and the shoes are Dorothy Perkins.

Sarah xx

Every so often, someone special comes along…

(Blue top: Topshop, necklace: Topshop, skirt: H&M, boots: H&M, bag: River Island, bracelet: Topshop)

This week there is a big buzz on everyone’s lips about Miss Lana Del Rey for a number of reasons.

Lots of people witnessed her haunting performance on Jools Holland last week (October 11th) and it touched something within them. It’s like Lana belongs in an era gone by – a modern-day Nancy Sinatra perhaps – she has an unnerving but intriguing presence. Her unwavering gaze into the camera and her pouting lips spouting beautiful lyrics was something very special. Appearing on the show with just a piano accompaniment and some melancholic violins, her mature voice resounded with an understanding of the pains of love which would seem to stretch beyond her youth. However, we all believed it and there has been an increased amount of discussion around her ever since.

This is not an entirely positive discussion however as many people are lashing out at the recent discovery that Lana Del Rey has not just miraculously appeared on the music scene from obscurity. It has been found that Lana used to perform under the name Lizzy Grant and is in fact backed by a major music label. Purists feel deceived by a held belief that she was just an unknown musician with a YouTube channel discovered by music lovers and bloggers online.

Lucy Jones of The Telegraph led a review of Lana Del Rey with the headline ‘Real or Fake? Lana del Rey, the internet sensation that will break your heart.’ It goes on to discuss the speculation around Miss Del Rey’s authenticity. But so what if she is backed by a major label? So what if it is all a bit of a PR stunt to let people think she is just a YouTube sensation? The fact is she now has a major platform to share this moving music with the world. Her voice and her presence are genuine as proved by her live performance on Jools Holland. Let the controversy lie I say and let the music speak for itself.

On a fashion related note – her look is incredible, I’m sure you will agree. She has the elfish beauty of Natalie Portman and the blonde bombshell sexuality of Bridgette Bardot.

Lana’s video for ‘Video Games’ is an homage to director David Lynch’s film, Mulholland Drive and is a pastiche of home videos again contributing to this haunting intrigue that can be associated with Lana. If you would like to find out more about her, you can read an interview by Rosie Swash at The Observer here. I will leave you with the video.

Enjoy,

Sarah xx

Fashion Journalism @ CSM + Urban Outfitters

On Thursday evening I began an evening course at Central St. Martins in Fashion Journalism. As you may know I’m applying for internships at the moment so I’m trying to build up as much knowledge and experience as possible at where better to get that knowledge than the school that counts Alexander McQueen, Matthew Wiliamson, Paul Smith, Zac Posen and Stella McCartney (to name but a very very small few) among its alumni?

The class is being taught by Hywel Davies who has written for Elle, Vogue, The Observer, Dazed and Confused, Nylon and Grafik to name but a few. Here is a link to his bio on SHOWstudio (http://showstudio.com/contributor/hywel_davies). There is a great mix of people in the class with many different nationalities and backgrounds – one girl travels the world as a model while another girl from Japan interned at Japanese Vogue. I am looking forward to learning a lot more about the industry.

This week’s outfit choice is this dress I bought at a store on Camden High St which is full of lace and very feminine ethereal pieces. The dress  looks like two separate pieces when in fact it’s an all-in-one.

The eagle necklace is from Topshop. I’ve put a leather look belt from H&M around the middle to make it look a little edgier. Over the dress, I’m wearing a leather jacket I got last weekend at Spitalfield’s Market in Liverpool Street. I was looking for a new leather jacket, particularly one with studs and am thrilled with this find. It’s great to buy pieces in markets that not many people will have.

Stud Inspiration Burberry Prorsum Spring Summer 2011 Biker Jacket

(Source: http://frillsandthrills.blogspot.com/2011/05/celeb-style-burberry-biker-jacket.html)

The shoes I am wearing are my Winter indulgence Kurt Geiger boots. I had been admiring these for ages before I gave in and purchased them. I am hoping these will last me for a few years if I only wear them occasionally.

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Urban Outfitters have some lovely stuff at the moment and I couldn’t help but make a few small purchases today. I haven’t committed to buying any winter coats or woolly jumpers just yet but it’s nice to pick up some accessories to add to what you already have.

It was on display in the store over this pink jumper and a blazer so I’ll be copying this look.

I also bought these earrings:

These are next on my ‘winter wish list’ so I’ll be saving for these:

Wide brimmed hat

Popcorn knitted scarf

Bow tie necklace

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I went to see ‘Drive’ this week with Carey Mulligan and Ryan Gosling (not actually physically with them!). The soundtrack was really good so I thought I’d share this song with you – enjoy!

Sarah xx

Upper East Side Kinda Girl

Can’t believe the luck we’ve been having with the weather – it’s so uplifting!! So great also to be getting some extra wear out of my summer clothes too seeing as the days of sunshine we had this year have been so limited!

This dress above is Topshop and I really have gotten loads of wear out of it – it’s so handy to just put on a dress and head out the door without too much thought.

This bag is from Dunnes Stores (an Irish department store) and it was a gift. I’m not too sure where I got the belt, I’m sure it was attached to a dress or something.

The shoes are from Primark – they have little flowers on the ankles – they are really pretty but like stilts to walk in.

The bracelet I have on in the top photo is from The Ivory Closet in Limerick, Ireland. I’m not sure what the brand is.

Anyway I feel like I am channeling an Upper East Side New York girl kind of look – it’s quite preppy and polished.

Thinking Leighton Meester’s character in Gossip Girl…Blair Waldorf. Here’s a little ‘inspiration’.

Also rocking the Upper East side NY look but in a much edgier way is my biggest style crush…Olivia Palermo. I love everything she wears … always sophisticated, nothing too over the top but she pushes the boat out with colour clashes and unusual accessories.

Let’s have a look at some recent outfits from the fashion weeks….*sigh*….

Miss Palermo is actually launching her own website – http://www.oliviapalermo.com – next week which is a style blog for all her fashion followers. It will feature a number of posts written by Olivia each week and also a monthly Editor’s letter. Most of the content however will be contributed by writers she has known since her days at Elle magazine. It will focus on upcoming designers, fashion d.i.y and reports from fashion events around the world.

In an interview with American site, FabSugar, Olivia had this to say about her style,ound the world.

“My personal style is classic … eclectic in a way, I love accessories and playing [with] color … and menswear. I love, love menswear. I have a little bit of tomboy in me.”

She sites Grace Kelly and Audrey Hepburn among her style icons. Olivia plans to launch her own fashion label in the future.

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On another note…I wanted to share this outfit with you that Kirsten Dunst wore to the premiere of Melancholia in London this week. This dress is something I would never buy (I’m sure I couldn’t afford it!) however this is stunning and elegant. It’s by Honor and is part of their Spring Summer 2012 collection. I love her hair and make-up, it’s so natural looking.

Until next time 🙂

Sarah xx

Making Music

I had three gigs last week – pheeeeew! Wednesday night the Big Girls Blues Band were in Dover St., Friday night in Jazz After Dark in Soho and on Saturday we were in the Old Explorer in Oxford Circus.

Here is the outfit I preferred from the three nights…

I love this shirt. I’ve been looking for a sophisticated black shirt for a while and this one is really smart but still sexy because it is sheer. The collars, sleeves and panel down the front are leather look. It’s from New Look.

The necklace is from Topshop and the bag is vintage.

The burgundy shorts are from Awear and came with the belt and the shoes are New Look.

As much as I loved these tights in a previous post – they ripped during the gig 😦 so I had to pull of a Taylor Momsen ‘holes in tights are normal’ look. Big fail. If anyone knows where you can get good quality sheer tights, do leave a comment please 🙂

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On the subject of music…I just want to share some songs with you that I’m repeating on my iPod. I tend to download a lot of music by female singers so going with that theme, here are a few good choices…

Janelle Monáe – ‘Locked Inside’ from The ArchAndroid.  This album is really good and sounds like nothing else I’ve heard in recent years. The album is based around Janelle’s alter-ego, Cindi Mayweather who is an android living in the world, Metropolis. The songs are like a soundtrack to Cindi’s life in Metropolis and is almost theatrical in places as songs are based around the struggles of the androids. Sounds strange but it makes the album really interesting.

Joni Mitchell – ‘Urge for Going’ from Joni Mitchell Hits. This song is so peaceful and relaxing but also a little sad… who makes music like this these days?

Live performance video

Jessie J – ‘Big White Room’ from Who You Are. Jessie’s voice is so amazing and clear. This song is very powerful and you really have to be in the right frame of mind to listen to it, it’s quite emotional.

Feist – ‘My Moon My Man’ from The Reminder. Did you know it is Feist who wrote ‘Limit to Your Love’ released by James Blake this year? Easy listening…

If you’ve been listening to any good music lately – do post a comment and let me know.

That’s all!

Sarah xx