Red Alert

Last Thursday, I ambled along to the Digital Socket Awards, a brilliant event organised by a number of Irish music bloggers. It was nice to put names and faces to a number of my favourite Irish bloggers and wonderful to see bloggers collaborating on a project that brings people together.

For this reason, it was a fitting setting for the launch of TRTE's new initiative, Red Radar. This new site is bringing together some of Ireland's most enthusiastic music and fashion bloggers under one URL. I'm delighted to have done a couple of pieces for the site, particularly considering some of my favourite online writers are involved, including Conor, Catherine, Angela and Louise.

Be sure to check out the site here and watch it grow over the next few weeks.

Freak In The Morning, Pretty Respectable-Looking In The Evening

Savvy fashion retailers American Apparel have come up with a nifty way to boost their October sales margins - by marketing some of their everyday stock as Hallowe'en costumes.

The company has introduced an online 'costume builder', which provides users with suggestions of costumes that can be constructed using American Apparel clothing and accessories. I think the idea behind it is that, once the 31st of October has come and passed, you'll still be able to make good use of the various bits and pieces.

You got to give 'em kudos for the idea because, even if to follow the suggestions would indicate a complete absence of imagination, some of the costumes aren't half bad:

Florence, Is That You?

I'm missing yet another Partie Monster this week, as it clashes with Eimear and I making our joint DJ debut (calm yourselves, it's just a 21st.) Pity really, 'cos this month's theme of Burton Monster is something worth getting excited about.

Presumably while researching costume ideas, my friend Dónal stumbled upon these great shots from the October issue of Harper's Bazaar. A fashion shoot inspired by Tim Burton's work is hardly an original idea, but it's pretty deftly executed, incorporating designs from Gucci, Jean Paul Gaultier and Ralph Lauren among others. Full collection of photographs and designer info here.







[Catwalk Images via Tom & Lorenzo]

What? More?!

No. WHITmore. Sheesh. Get it right.


Here's a couple more shots from Laura Whitmore's Impulse Collection for A|Wear. I'd certainly never claim to be a fashion expert but I think these outfits are pretty snazzy. Of course, it probably helps that the bequiffed clothes-horse is a stunner.




The collection will be officially launched on Wednesday, 19th of August.

Ladies, reckon you'll be making any purchases?

More, More, More. How Do You Like It?

Not content with her daily appearances on our tellyboxes, the lovely Laura Whitmore is now invading the highstreet.

The DCU alum has teamed up with A|Wear to bring us 'Laura Whitmore's Impulse collection'. Not sure exactly what Impulse body sprays have to do with clothing lines but ladies fashion is a very complex matter so there's probably a good reason.

Since being catapulted into the public eye a little over a year ago when she beat thousands of applicants to be selected as the new anchor of MTV News, Laura's gone from strength to strength. 

I remember there was a girl picked as presenter of MTV Select (back in the day when the horrible Richard Blackwood was allowed on television) through a competition called 'Is She MTV?'. The format of the show was very similar to 'Pick Me MTV', the programme that led to Laura landing her job but, within a few months, the new presenter seemed to vanish without a trace.

The fact that Laura has outlasted her original contract suggests she's got the talent and the savvy to survive in what seems like a fairly cut-throat industry.

Ms. Whitmore, in your military style ensemble, I salute you.

[Image via Claire Byrne at Stellar]

New In Town

After a considerable delay, American Apparel opened the doors of its first Irish outlet today and, curious to see what all the fuss was about, I decided to pay a visit to Grafton Street to check it out with Eimear and Su-Hu.

I'm not a Trendy Trevor by any stretch of the imagination, so all I really knew about American Apparel clothing was that they produce the type of clothing sported by characters in 'Gossip Girl' and that friends of mine got very excited about shopping there while abroad.

Having seen the wares on offer, I'm beginning to understand the appeal of American Apparel. The plain, block-colour clothing , which is essentially what my tatty wardrobe is made up of already, seem great for mixing and matching or if you're looking for something simple to team with more daring items of clothing (presumably purchased elsewhere).

The quality of the fabric seems great and, perhaps most importantly, the garments fit really well. This should come as good news to guys exasperated by the high street stores that are hell-bent on convincing rotund, middle-aged men that they are 'medium'.

The down-side of the store is the prices. You're looking at forking out over €40 for a t-shirt with a funky print and the reality is that you could probably get a similar item for half the price in H&M. I'll probably probably be limited to window-shopping until I have some kind of income to speak of.

I'd also be curious to know what sort of turnaround they have in stock. Because the clothes are so plain, they're somehat immune to changing trends but, if the store are slow to update their lines, then shopping there means you're inevitably going to wind up dressed like half of Dublin.

Overall though, colour me impressed.

"Men’s fashion frightens me. I really find men who are fashionably dressed terribly unsexy. I think fashion is something for women.” – Marc Jacobs

In this age of political correctness, men and women are supposed to be treated as equals. However, in the same way that sport remains predominantly male-orientated, the focus of the fashion industry is still largely angled towards ladykind. Whereas Kate Moss, Gisele, Manolo Blahnik and Vivienne Westwood are essentially household names, most people will struggle to name even a handful of male models or designers of menswear.

And yet, in response to men taking more of an interest in personal grooming and styling in recent times, fashion houses and retailers are beginning to regard male fashion as a more important component of the industry. The emergence of ‘metrosexuals’ may appear to have happened quite suddenly but, in fact, there were trendy men long before the advent of ‘Nivea for Men’ moisturisers and manbags. Here, we pay tribute to those responsible for some of the key moments in the evolution of men’s fashion.

Charlie Chaplin:

Charlie Chaplin was a celebrated director, composer, musician and screenwriter but his legacy is most likely to be his memorable on-screen character, The Tramp. Considered an icon of the silent film era, The Tramp’s tight coat, oversized trousers and shoes, bowler hat, and bamboo cane are instantly recognisable. Louis Vuitton has cited Chaplin as the main inspiration behind his Spring/Summer ’09 men’s collection so be sure to get working on those toothbrush moustaches, boys.

James Dean:

Legendary actor James Dean epitomised the ‘live fast, die young’ motto, dying in a high-speed road collision, aged 24, after his just three credited film roles. Despite his brief time at the top of the Hollywood roster, Dean delivered one of the most enduring images of the 1950’s when attired in casual red bomber jacket, crisp white T-shirt, light-wash denim jeans and hardwearing boots for his role as Jim Stark in ‘Rebel Without a Cause’.

The Beatles:

The Fab Four’s contribution to popular culture was by no means limited to music. Their experimentation with bright colours, floral patterns, Indian and influences in the latter stages of their career were certainly influential but, in the style stakes, they will probably be best remembered for their fitted collarless suits, ankle-length boots and mop-top hairstyles.

David Bowie:

Enigmatic musician David Bowie has enjoyed a career spanning multiple decades. One of Bowie’s most memorable projects was an album he recorded as alter-ego, Ziggy Stardust. An androgynous rockstar from another planet possessed of unnaturally red hair, effeminate choice of dress and an ambiguous sexuality, the Stardust persona is regarded as a major exponent of the glam-rock style of the 1970’s.

David Beckham:

Victoria Beckham frequently graces the pages of fashion magazines but her husband, David Beckham, is arguably the biggest style icon. Regarded as the patron saint of metrosexuality, the footballer admits to sculpting his eyebrows, occasionally wears nail-varnish and owns a jewellery collection that would put most female fashionistas to shame. The mohawk hairstyle he sported during the 2002 World Cup prompted millions of copycat cuts but his infamous wearing of a sarong back in 1998 will surely be his fashion legacy.

The Klaxons:

Indie hipsters The Klaxons spearheaded the so-called ‘new rave’ explosion of 2007. Centred around recycled 80’s fashion, new rave style often incorporates fluorescent colours, glowsticks, skinny jeans and jagged hairstyles. The Klaxons’ fashion philosophy seems to be “the more ridiculous, the better” and practically any fashion faux pas they make can be justified by claiming they were simply being ironic.

A blog-tailored version of a feature published in DCU's The Look Magazine, December in 2008 (minus the sub-editor's grammatical gaffes.)