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Tuesday 31 March 2015

WIT andJ J.Crew in Paris part one: Jardin Tuleries


The first spot on Jenna's Paris map was the Jardin Tuleries - a perfect location during Paris Fashion week as many of the show happen in a marquee right by the Place de la Concorde garden entrance. It gets super busy in the day with lots of street style photographers surrounding fashion editors as they approach the shows, so Eva and I got up at the crack of dawn and cought a glimpse of the gardens when there was nobody around, it was so beautiful. On the way there we stopped by a historic cafe and fashion favourite hot spot, Angelina - they serve a memorable hot chocolate and divine macaroons that are almost too pretty to eat. We had to take a few snaps there too as it was so quintessentially Paris.
 

For my first outfit of this series, I chose to pair a simple white shirt (Pique bib shirt £88) with a statement skirt (Collection looped-sequin sweater-skirt £358) and a classic trench thrown over the shoulders (Collection bonded cotton trench coat £298).



Whenever I'm putting outfits together for Fashion Week I still like to feel like me - I don't like to dress up for the sake of it and unless I would wear that outfit in my "real" life, it does work for me. I felt completely comfortable in this ensemble and can see myself wearing each one of these four items with countless other things in my wardrobe, time and time again.


The white shirt is so versatile I ended up buying it - it's made of a really stiff, crisp cotton and has a bit of a tux feel to it with a bib front and long reversible cuffs. The skirt was just incredible - sadly it's currently sold out but I am in contact with J.Crew to see if we can get some back for WIT readers. It was just so gorgeous and sparkly it made me feel like a mermaid!
 

I love pointed pumps and recently my obsession with ankle ties is growing strong, so I had to pick this style with tassel detail (also surprisingly comfortable - Roxie ankle-tie pumps £285). The trench was a great final touch to the look - I often find that a trench gives your look a really smart and grown up edge to it, it sort of "grounds it": it's the kind of wear-with-everything, always-chic piece you'll still have in your closet 20 (or 30, or 50) years from now.

 
I wore my own Chloe Drew bag, minimal make up and just a bright red nail, and headed to the Chanel show moments later. Here are a few more shots from my (freezing) walk around the beautiful gardens. I hope you enjoyed it!






That's it from Paris this month, see you on the 28th of April for my second post from one of my favourite spots in Paris: St. Germain wearing a totally French outfit ;-)

Find the J.Crew Marais store at:
12 Rue Malher, Paris - +33 1 44 54 57 50
Shop the collection online on 


Photos Eva K. Salvi

Monday 30 March 2015

My trip to J.Crew in Paris


I've often asked myself why I love to wear J.Crew  so much and the not-so-groundbreaking conclusion is that it's a brand that I identify with: it suits all aspects of my lifestyle, from the working fashionista to the more practical, off-duty mum I become at the weekend.


In J.Crew I can shop for anything that tickles my fancy: a neon pink featherweight cashmere sweater, a pair of diamante and tassel earrings, an embroidered peasant blouse and even a bejewelled shirt - but also for key items that have become the underpinning of my wardrobe. Tippi sweaters in every colour of the rainbow and Vintage Cotton V-neck tees are just a couple of the key staples that I could not survive with in my closet. I wear them over and over again and I never tire to recommend them to my friends.


I also love J.Crew because it's a brand that inspires me - the "Looks we love" feature on the website never fails to give me new and fresh ideas on how to style new and existing items. Each season I wait with anticipation to see what Jenna Lyons and Tom Mora are going to show in the next collection: will it be sequins with denim? Yellow and beige? Track bottoms with heels? I often see the new collection and find myself coveting all sorts of things I didn't even know I needed - and why? Because J.Crew makes them wearable and most times more affordable than designer pieces.


I've also had the great pleasure of meeting the people behind the brand: from Jenna to Tom Mora (if you missed it read my interview with Jenna Lyons from The ICONS Update by clicking here), and I have gained a deeper understanding of the brand's philosophy. I love how they source their fabrics in the best factories around the world and how each item is so lovingly made.


So when the team in New York asked me to head to Paris and check out the new (and first) French store in the Marais, it was really a no brainer. My task: head to Jenna's favourite Parisian spots and photograph one outfit I loved in each location.  From the Tour Eiffel, to St. Germain and the iconic Jardin des Tuileries, follow me every last Tuesday of the month on a little journey through Paris as I play dressup in my favourite items.


We start this journey in the J.Crew Rue Malher store, where Eva K.Salvi followed me taking pictures of every single detail I loved - I hope you enjoy the tour and don't forget to log on tomorrow to see my first outfit at the Jardin des Tuileries, the same one I wore at the Chanel show.


 


 
 
  


 


 
 
 
 


 


Find the J.Crew Marais store at:
12 Rue Malher, Paris - +33 1 44 54 57 50
Shop the collection online on 

Photos Eva K. Salvi  

Friday 27 March 2015

WIT mama Friday: Batten disease


As someone who defined herself as a not "baby person" (and in many ways continues to do so), prior to having Greta I remember feeling secretly sceptical about other mother's descriptions of motherhood: about how it changes your life, about how you experience selfless love, and how becoming a mother connects you to other women on a whole new level.

And then you become a mother, and all of the above becomes so deeply true; and not only do you understand all of those feeling, but when another mother goes through something painful, like the illness or death of a child, you can feel that pain too. It doesn't matter if you've never met that mother before, or if she lives on the other side of the world. You are a mother too, and now you know how crippling it can be to fear that your child might fall ill, or even die.

On my birthday I had a long catch up chat on the phone with one of my best friends - she told me how that day she'd been photographing a mother and daughter for The Grace Tales. The mother, Peta, has a 5 year old daughter, Mia, who up to the age of two and half was a happy little girl, but was then diagnosed with a rare and fatal disease called Batten disease. Batten disease, or late infantile NCL, is a very rare degenerative disease, which is fatal and will rob Mia of her ability to walk, talk and see and will eventually take her life. Julie told me that on the day she asked Peta if she thought Mia was going to smile for a photograph - Peta said that they could try but it was hard to predict. 

The next day, as I was flicking through my Instagram account I stumbled on this shot on Julie's account and I can't really describe the sadness that I felt, and that I still feel today as I write this post. If you are a parent, you will feel that same heartbreak too.


Georgie Abay wrote a beautiful piece alongside Julie's photos on her website The Grace Tales- you can read it here. The one thing I wanted to invite all WIT mothers to do on this very special WIT mama Friday, is to join me on National Batten Disease Awareness Day on March 31 2015 to support Peta and Mia on the Bounce4Batten campaign. It’s easy – and fun too. Post a photo of your little ones (and yourself if you’re in the mood for jumping!) bouncing up and down to support the cause. With your photo, just include the hashtag #bounce4batten and follow @bounce4batten. 

There are so many tragedies happening around the world right now, my thoughts are also with the parents of all the children on the Barcellona flight that went down on Tuesday... if there's something we can do to help, in any of these sad events, we should at least try.

Love
mum Laura x

Thursday 26 March 2015

Are MiH jeans worth the cost? Afraid so.


Lately all I want to wear are my MiH Jeans flares, they kind of make any outfit feel a little bit more special despite the fact that I'm just wearing jeans. A friend of mine recently asked me where she could get a cheaper alternative and usually I always have some ideas, but in this case I had to be honest with her, the Marrakesh is the best flare out there and any other good ones (like Stella an Vivtoria Beckham) are not any cheaper. I know that £200+ is an investment, but as with most iconic pieces they make up the cost with plenty of wear.  


Wednesday 25 March 2015

C'mon spring!!!!

Equipment shirt, Whistles culottes, J.Crew shoes and bag
It's the end of March and I'm now officially over wearing layers - what's happening to Spring!??! I haven't been as brave as in the past and gone bare legs yet, all I can attempt to show off is a bit of ankle skin. Even to take this photo this morning I was freezing. I have a busy day of appointments today so I'm carrying flats in my bag and wearing a fool proof combo of Equipment shirt and leather culottes (I found a pair of similar ones from Topshop at a fraction of the price!). C'mon spring please arrive I have such fabulous things ready to be worn in my summer box I can't bare it anymore!!!

Tuesday 24 March 2015

Instagram account you must follow: Tash Sefton from Theyallhateus.com

HM shirt, Mother Denim jeans, Isabel Marant flats, J.Crew bag
I recently discovered a blog called Theyallhateus.com - the duo behind it, Elle Ferguson and Tash Sefton are two impossibly cool Australian ladies that wear little more than denim, shirts and lace up shoes, and they are hold the responsibility for my latest obsession with all of the above. If you don't follow them on Instagram, you might want to refrain from doing so as I've spent a small fortune since pouring their buys! We asked my dear friend and fashion photographer Julie Adams to visit Tash's home in Sydney and take a closer look at her wardrobe. 

Behind the scenes - Julie and Tash on the day of our shoot
It goes without saying Petro and I have been pouring over each photo ever since and we are so excited to bring you the full article today in The ICONS Update. To celebrate the issue, I'm wearing all of my Tash inspired buys at once ;-)

Go to this week's issue of The ICONS Update

Monday 23 March 2015

The perfect white shirt

J.Crew bib shirt Jospeh leggings, J.Crew Uptown tote bag and J.Crew shoes
For years I didn't even wear shirts, I have deceptively big breasts and buttoned-down styles never sat properly down the front. Then I discovered bib front shirts and slowly started wearing them again. I then discovered Equipment shirt and soon realised that a good quality shirt always sits in the right place, I was just going for the wrong styles. This J.Crew bib shirt is my latest crush and I have already worn with so many different things. I love the thick pique fabric which makes it look really smart, and the fact that it's got a long panel at the back, perfect with leather leggings to cover up your bum. I bought an American size 2 but you could up a size for a more boyfriend style fit. Don't be surprised if you see me wearing it again and again in the next few weeks: I love pairing everything from ripped trousers to a sequin skirt with a crisp white shirt.

J.Crew bib shirt £88

Thursday 19 March 2015

Paris flashback


I know I have yet to update you on my Paris fashion week outfits, whilst I was out there I worked with J.Crew on a  project that I can't wait to tell you about, but in the mean time here is one of my outfits entirely out of my "summer box" (I was going to save everything and surprise you but I just couldn't resist).  I took these photos in-between shows with my friend and photographer Eva K. Salvi outside one of my favourite Parisian spots: the Louvre. It was a bit of a magical moment and I had so much fun shooting it!

I can't wait to wear my Etoile dress this summer when it's not freezing, but for shows purposes this outfit actually worked fine. My Gianvito Rossi sandals are surprisingly comfortable, and by Chloe bag fit the look perfectly. I've also recently discovered the smart power of a white coat - who would have though that something so unpractical looking good be such a versatile buy. I've been wearing t constantly, with jeans and leather leggings and what I love the most about it is that  it it gives me an instant tan every time I wear it! 

Étoile Isabel Marant Dante oversized woven coat £385
Chloé Drew small textured-leather shoulder bag £1,060
Étoile Isabel Marant Cassy crochet-paneled cotton-blend voile mini dress £340

Gianvito Rossi Suede sandals £515
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