LFW AW14 | Holly Fulton

I literally sprinted past one bouncer and under the massive arm of another as they yelled "Right that's it, no one else", as due to bloody trains I was late AGAIN. But I wasn't going to miss this Holly Fulton AW14 show, no way, as it's been the only one I can make so far and possibly one of the few I'll get to due to shoots and workload at the moment (and random teenagers and Z listers nabbing all the tickets, GRRR).

So anyway I made it in and shuffled on the end of a back row without much time to sort my camera, hence very few shots except of behinds from yours truly below, have had to use the pros.  In fact I spent so much time fiddling with my iPhone in one hand and camera's aperture button in the other that before I knew it the show was over. What I did see flash past was Holly's trademark graphic prints and luxe fabrics in a beautiful colour palette of camel, nude, pale blue, red and black. Hurrah, colour for Winter!

What really stood out for me were the gorgeous printed coats in cool, mannish shapes and the beautiful, delicate feminine dresses in sheers and metallics.

Here are some of my favourite looks...

Photos Kim Weston Arnold/Indigitalimages.com/Chloe Wood

#LFW Street Style: What I'll be Wearing

London Fashion Week in T minus 3 days guys...

To those of us that work on High Street mags, it isn't the be all and end all, i.e. we won't be front row with Harry Styles and Pixie Geldof, but it is SUCH a buzz and so much fun to get the chance to go to the shows. I always look forward to the Topshop Unique show (see here for a review of their SS13 show where I met Cara and Jourdan backstage) as it's so exciting to see a High Street brand put on a MAJOR catwalk affair. Plus the celeb spotting, new model face scouting and general fashion high. Oh and the champers and canapes, can't forget those.

For a feature for Look magazine this week they wanted to see what we, the editors, would be wearing to the shows. Uh - oh, This means a picture. Of me. In the mag. I prefer to be the other side telling people what to do but thank God it was a pal and old colleague, the very talented Alicia Clarke, who took our pics.

I scrubbed up a bit more than I usually would (bit of a scruffbag sometimes, me) and got to borrow some lovely bits from my PR pals including including ASOS, Topshop, River Island, Marks & Spencer's and Schuh.

I mixed in my usual faves - stripe, denim, neon and neutrals. Here's a couple of my looks:

Coat and jeans, ASOS; heels and jumper, Topshop; bag, River Island; sunglasses (in hand), Miu Miu

Dress and bag, Marks & Spencer; coat, ASOS; shoes, Schuh

All pictures ©Alicia Clarke/Look Magazine

LFW: Rihanna for River Island

It was the hottest ticket in town last night and I was lucky enough to have one. Rih Rih for RI RI. The first glimpse of the superstar singer's collection for River Island.

The rumours had been flying around for weeks as to what was going to happen, who was going to perform, and whether Rihanna herself was actually even going to turn up.

You could definitely feel the buzz last night even from outside the venue. The queue at The Old Sorting Office on New Oxford Street snaked around the corner with impatient press, lurking paparazzi and dedicated fans. The celeb spots kicked off the minute you walked through the door. First sight - girl-of-the-moment Cara Delevingne loving every minute of posing for pics.

We drank endless champagne and cocktails along with the hundreds of other press, models, celebs and a definite "cool" guest list. (Oh, and the cast of Made in Chelsea.)

Luckily when the lights went down and everyone stopped looking at each other, the focus turned to the real star of the night - the show. A well-produced affair with a great visual alternative to a runway. The looks weren't too OTT, they were ultra-urban yet sexy, wearable, cool and perfect for the River Island customer.

It was a mainly monochrome palette with SS13's thigh-high splits in favour, loads of jersey dresses as well as sportier looks, with touches of tie dye and print.

A little surprised not to see a few curvier girls on the catwalk but hey, that's fashion for you.

The post show party saw the venue turn into a huge nightclub with fashion's cool kids (some, literally, kids) bumping and grinding the night away. Rih Rih seemed to be mainly hanging out in her Winnebago - no sighting bar a brief bow on stage post-show.

So the verdict? Well, the girl done good.

Look out for the capsule range in stores from early March.

All pictures © Chloe Wood

OMG LFW

It's London Fashion Week and it's all a bit mental in the fashion world.

After frantically emailing for tickets it turns out I'm so bloomin' busy I can hardly go to any of the shows. In fact, with two huge celebrity cover shoots during the time it's on, I struggle to manage one... but it's one AMAZING one!

A ticket for the Topshop Unique show is a hot one, so off I trotted with my close friend and fellow Fashion Editor, Saskia, on the sunny Sunday.

The showspace was like futuristic hub tucked away in Bedford Square, with a pop up marquee and bar (free bubbles!) and pretty nice loos, too, may I add.

Saskia and I

Saskia's accessories du jour - Topshop heels and Zara bag.

The buzz, the music, the celeb spotting... boy do I love that I get to do this as work. Oh and the clothes... the clothes! A cool yet ultra-feminine collection of sheers, tailoring, oversize shirts and panelled dresses, all in a simple colour pallette of mainly creams and white, with hits of black and the odd pop of colour.

Cara Delevingne struts her stuff (and hello Anna Dello Russo!)

Serious FROW action. Spot the celebs....

Delilah, Nicola Roberts, Olivia Palermo, Elle Fanning, Daisy Lowe, Pixie Geldof. They're all in here!

We managed to go backstage to meet the big man himself, Sir Philip Green, and witness the aftershow flurry of what seemed like a million make-up artists, hair stylists, models, journalists, film crews and PRs. En route we bumped into the absolutely gorgeous duo of Cara Delevingne and Jourdan Dunn who had just walked the show. 

Girls of the moment Cara and Jourdan 

Model boards backstage

And then, a bit like Christmas, it's all over. The fashion crowd have rushed off to the next show (not us, we had food and shopping plans) and the space is preparing for the next designer. Wow, months of planning and preparation and it's all over in minutes.

We lazed around in the hazy sunshine afterwards soaking up the atmosphere before heading off for an ultra fashionable trip to Mulberry, followed by afternoon tea at the Dean Street Townhouse. Well, it IS Fashion Week!

Watch the full Topshop Unique show - and even pre-order online - here.

Post-show sunshine

Show gift - Nail polish in Mannequin and lipstick in Rumour Has It. Thank you!

Sun goes down as they prepare for the next show, Mary Katrantzou.

Delicious post-show cakes at Dean Street Townhouse