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Cate Blanchett Is Dressed for Seduction as Carol

carolThere are some films where the fashion feels like a full-on character in it’s own right. Sex and The City, Great Gatsby, Atonement, they’re some of the biggies which all have fashion in them creating this other pull, this other thing which holds your gaze and stands up as a major part of the viewing experience. Carol, the new film directed by Todd Haynes, starring Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara is a film set to join those ranks. A subtle but enthralling love story -based on the book ‘The Price of Salt’ by Patricia Highsmith- Carol, is set in New York city in 1952 and follows the sincere romance between two women. The costumes, designed by Sandy Powell, are EXSQUISTE! Blanchett as Carol is pretty much effervescent, with her high glamour, elegance and sophistication, compared to the more discreetly and casually dressed Therese, played by Mara. Carol is the impeccable type of woman you would see in a magazine while Therese is the working class girl on the street. This styling plays a huge part in Carol’s seduction of Therese, her look, her poise and presence are an aspiration, she is transfixing, and that, well, it’s massively down to her fashion. With her simple elongated silhouette, the smooth tones and perfectly placed accessories, the costume here screams of neatness and constraint, much like the character herself; poised and possibly a little suppressed. To get the look as perfect as it is designer Powell used a lot of era specific underwear to exaggerate Blanchett’s shape; padding on the hips and the classic 50’s pointed bras! With authentic vintage bags and shoes made by Ferragamo to be exact copies of old shoes, the clothing here is just as alluring as the women and the story. Absolutely sublime.

Carol-3carol-movie-poster-cate-blanchett-rooney-mara-5Carol is in UK theatres from 27th November 2015

 

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My Tips For Getting A Designer Look For Less

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It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas…well, maybe not just yet. But there is one thing that’s already feeling like Christmas, and that is my bank account. As much as I love buying presents for other people, it means there’s little money left to spend on myself. And that just won’t do. I’d like to say that I’m a girl who dresses head to toe in designer labels. But I’m not quite rich enough for that. But, obviously I do like to take inspiration from the latest trends, so I’ve picked up plenty of tips on how to get the look for less. So here’s how I do it, even in times of less than plenty…

-Check Magazines and Blogs – I have been known to read a fashion magazine or two. And I’ll be the first to admit that they can be helpful when you want cheaper versions of your favourite pieces. Lots of magazines have a section where they recommend a high street brand that has an almost exact copy of a designer piece. Sometimes it’s somewhere super cheap like Primark. Or it might be a little more expensive, like Monsoon or my current FAVE; Zara. But, of course, not everyone reads print magazines anymore. Blogs and other sites are just as useful when you’re trying to follow a trend for less.

-Look for Discounts – Up to 70% off, on sale, cheapest item free: these words are all like music to my ears. Who doesn’t love a bargain, especially when you manage to snag a designer piece? And there’s never any shortage of discounts for me to get my teeth into, from January sales to stores closing down. They’re all good – except maybe the mess that is the newly introduced Black Friday. I’ll stay away from that one. There are other ways you can save money with a discount too, you just gotta spend some time looking online for vouchers, but it can be totally worth it if you know you’re gonna buy something. Lots of shops offer one-off rewards for signing up for their newsletter, buying a store card or making a purchase. There’s loads of way to get discounts, you just have to work a little to find them!

-Use the Right Search Terms – If there’s one thing this generation knows how to do better than any other, it’s use Google. I’ve found that searching for the right thing when I want a designer look is essential. Usually, that means finding out if what you want has a name. And it very often does. Of course it does, because everyone’s wearing it. Those winter boots with the rubber bottom and leather top? Duck boots. Heels with an elasticated top? Glove shoes. You’ll find it easier to find cheaper versions of what you’re looking for if you know what terms to use.

-Buy Vintage – You know that vintage is my thing. One of the reasons it’s so great is because trends tend to come back around. Half of the things that are in fashion now were in twenty, thirty or, fifty, sixty years ago. Go rooting around your nearest vintage shop and you’ll find lots of items that look like they could have been made today.

You don’t have to break the bank to get a designer look. It’s really is easy to get it for less when you’re running low on fashion funds. Hurrah!

 

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Meeting Manolo Blahnik; My High Heel Hero

 

blondieanchors_manoloblahnik-copyIt’s true. Some girls don’t wear high heels very often. Some girls prefer to have flat and comfortable feet. Can you believe it? I am not that girl, I mean, heck yeah I run around in my tatty Converse on an average day but, I’m a girl who likes her heels, and walking around a city all day with height is something I am known to do. Call me cray-cray, but I’ll suffer a little if it means I can get my sass on and feel like I’m strutting. I like that feeling. The strut. Not the ache and rub. But I’ll endure. I enjoy wearing heels, I genuinely do.

So when the V&A announced ‘An Evening with Manolo Blahnik’ I hot-footed it down to that place pronto, to meet in person, the ‘Holy Man of Heels’! After my gorgeous evening here with Cindy Crawford, I know these V&A events are ace; relaxed and informal and a great insight into iconic people. Packed in the small lecture theatre on a Friday night, the audience was, again, mostly women but we were all united, all adorers of this man’s magical SHOES! Swoooon.

Blahnik is a cute guy, a 72 year old Spanish man who gestures so much with his hands that the microphone he was holding was only intermittently near his mouth, so there was a genuine humour to the chat. He was talking with Italian Editor of W Magazine, Gianluca Longo. Watching the two men speak together with moving microphones, neither in their mother tongue was unintentionally and endearingly comical. Blahnik is a funny guy, he reminded me of my German Grandmother with his sweet humour; ‘After the war it was hard, we couldn’t get copies of Vogue’ he said as the room giggled, he too found the funny in his comment.

Blahnik chatted about his inspirations – many from historical references – Italian classicism, museums, ‘I love what the beauty in them tells me’, and old silent movies. His work is exceptionally well-known because of movies and TV. Sex and The city is the biggie which made us all fall even harder in love with his work. His shoes are iconic in status and I adore them. I love them differently to how I love my other favorites; Louboutin’s. Blahnik’s shoes feel more feminine,more theatrical, more enchanting and magical. But I love Louboutin’s equally for their unashamed sexuality and sharpness. I want to own shoes from both designers. OBVS.

Asked why he became a Shoe Designer, he seemed to feel he always had a natural obsession with shoes. He remembers his Mother going out in heels. I guess we all see our Mother’s shoes from close-up when we are young and it triggers a fascination. I personally remember drawing a smiley face into a hole in my Mum’s tights when she was standing doing the washing up. What we look at when we are young goes towards defining what appeals throughout our lives, I guess. Seeing women wear high heels from a youngsters viewpoint, from a low down angle, it would make sense to grow up loving women’s shoes.

‘My idea of fun was watching women in heels, they become something else in them’ Yes. Yes we do. And in yours Manolo, it’s even more wonderful.

 

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I Dare You To Pick One Decade

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If you haven’t seen this super cute video yet then, firstly; ‘duh? Where ya been Gurl?’ and secondly, let me be the one to show it to you, it’s totally fun! A short, sharp, shot of fashion history in a two minute vid, kinda like playing dress up dolls without any actual effort. Ace. This sweet treat shows the key look of each decade from the 1920’s to the now and although the looks are kinda cliche, the people at mode.com have got it pretty spot on in showcasing the most coveted trends from each era. So many looks to love, the question is, which decade’s look would you go for if you could only choose one? If you like, HAD to choose one era and stick to it for evermore? Ummm, I’ll take the 30’s. And a bit of the 70’s. And some of the 80’s. And a bit of the 20’s. And some 50’s. And a touch of 60’s. Eeesh. #toomuchtolove

 

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Prim Is Back In Town!

nfwWhoop! For you lucky, lovely people of Norwich, it’s that time again, time for fashion frolics all week long, it’s NORWICH FASHION WEEK! Hurrah, and this time, Prim is back on the scene! Since closing the shop and going online, we miss your pretty faces and so we’re very happy to be a part of The Vintage Show on Sunday 8th March at The Puppet Theatre! Tickets sell FAST for this wonderful show, so book yours now otherwise you may miss out and, then we shall all have sad faces! The event is always a really popular night and so much so that this year they have gone ALL OUT and are giving you TWO shows to make sure you get to see it; one at 2pm and one at 7.30pm, and, tickets are just £10, ooosh, what a heap of fun you get for a tenner! This beautiful event is brilliantly sponsored by Wex Photographic, who ran a very cool Facebook competition for fashion fans to win a photography workshop with photographer Paul Bayfield; and those lucky winners will be at the catwalk side snapping away! Sponsorship doesn’t get much cooler than that!

So, this week I shall be selecting what gorgeous dresses to showcase in the fashion show, with my list of all the very stunning gals who will be modelling! It’s always fun to choose a selection, deciding how all the dresses will sit together as a group whilst also trying to show off as many different styles, textures and prints as possible! Here’s some snapshot sneak peeks as I prepare for the show, will these dresses be included in my selection? The only way to find out is to COME ALONG and see us, we’re excited to see you!

Check out our Facebook page for your chance to WIN TWO TICKETS to the evening show! See you there!

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