Fashion Fallows: Catwalk

Wednesday, 27 March 2013

Manchester Fashion Week and Vauxhall Search for New Talent

A little addition to my last post, I have some more exciting news on next months event!

Manchester Fashion Week organisers have managed to nab Vauxhall to host the first ever New Talent competition right here in the North West!

Vauxhall have been the driving force behind emerging new talent for a number of years hosting their Fashion Scout competition at London Fashion Week, however, that is all set to change as they set their sights on the North of the country, leaving Fashion Scout behind and joining Manchester Fashion Week to search for fresh and raw new talent!

Hosting the largest independent catwalk showcase Manchester has ever seen, Vauxhall are looking for the talent of tomorrow, in the city that has turned out talent such as Vivienne Westwood, Henry Holland and most recently Nadine Merabi, who featured at last years MCRFW event.

Nadine Merabi, featured at last years MCRFW event

The judging panel will be made up of influential industry insiders including Carol Kane, joint CEO of MCRFW headline sponsors boohoo.com; Martine Alexander, celebrity stylist; and Jo Davies, founder of Black White Denim Boutique in Wilmslow. Six of the finalists will be given a platform by MCRFW to showcase their collection to Manchester's fashion elite, as well as providing a full show production crew including fellow sponsors and beauty brands Redken, Lancome and models from PHA!

How to enter: Are you located in the North West and have a brand set up within the last three years? Whatever your price point or target consumer, enter the Vauxhall New Talent for independents and you could be the next big thing to grace our catwalks.

Email VauxhallNT@mcrfashionweek.com with a link to your website and examples of your work by the 5th April.

The 6 lucky candidates will get the chance to showcase their collection free of charge at Manchester Fashion Week 2013 on the 25^th April 2013. From the final 6, one lucky winner will be picked on the night by the MCRFW judges and announced the winner.

Prizes include:

· Media and Advertising in Style-Etc Magazine worth £2,400 for the year.
· 40 hours of consultancy time with boohoo.com to receive managerial advice on your business.
· You will also have your MCRFW show showcased on Fashion TV along with packaging from experts Duo UK who will develop a personal range for the winner’s brand and donate all must have packaging items for your brands set up.
· Finally the winner will receive legal advice from intellectual property lawyers Kuits and front page website exposure of your collection on mcrfashionweek.com for the next three months

Check out mcrfashionweek.com/newtalent for full terms and conditions and more information on the event.

The addition of Vauxhall to the Manchester Fashion Week event has helped establish Manchester firmly as the Fashion Capital of the North. It is really exciting to see more big names and opportunities shift to the North of the country and I am really excited to be a part of it! This is a fantastic opportunity for any fresh business or budding designer to make their mark, I am looking forward to seeing the show!

The Vauxhall new talent show will feature on Thursday the 25th of April. If you also want to attend the show, tickets are on sale for the event at mcrfashionweek.com or click here for the direct link.

Best of Luck to those that enter!!

Kate xxx

Manchester Fashion Week

● MCRFW was established in 2012 to:

● To create a must-visit event for fashion festival that offers an affordable and aspirational platform for fashion designers and retailers to reach buyers

● Build a legacy which ensures MFW drives investments in the city’s economy, as well as the UK fashion industry

● Support the development of fashion talent in Manchester and within the UK

○ www .mcrfashionweek .com /

○ www .facebook .com /Manchester -Fashion -Week

○ @MCRFashionWeek

○ www .youtube .com /mcrfw

Wednesday, 27 February 2013

H&M A/W 2013 Live Stream

Tonight, I actually found the time to sit down and catch my first show streamed live from an actual fashion week catwalk! Albeit I had to multitask and work on my Uni project at the same time but I suppose multitasking is something us girls do well! Of course, I have been following New York, London and Milan's fashion weeks (what kind of fashion student would I be if I hadn't?!) but there was something really exciting about watching the show live as it happened. It reminded me of when I was little and my mum would have her friends around for a clothes party or a girls night, when I should have been in bed but I would sneak in and sit between them on the couch and even though I shouldn't have been there, no one would tell me to go so I wouldn't, and I felt like I was getting a sneaky peak at something I shouldn't! Well that is how I would describe a live stream, a window into a world that I want to be in but not quite there yet.

The show was of course H&M's fashion week debut in Paris at the Musee Rodin. This was the Swedish brands first time taking to the Fashion week catwalk since 2005, and the best part? The majority of the items featured in the show will be retailing at normal H&M prices some for as little as £9.99! Of course some items, the more statement pieces and expensive materials may carry a slightly heftier price tag- something I am sure devoted H&M lovers will not mind, me being one! What is really interesting is how accessible fashion is becoming now- H&M is just the latest high street brand that has taken to the catwalk during fashion week, following on from Rihanna for River Island and of course leading the way Topshop who have been featuring at London Fashion Week with their Topshop Unique collection.

High street and designer have definitely been integrating with each other for a number of years now, thanks to designer collaborations, something which H&M excels at with previous collaborations including Marc Jacobs, Stella McCartney and Anna Dello Russo. This is just another sign that fashion IS affordable!

In regards to the actual show, it looks like monochrome is set to stay, being the main colour scheme featured in the collection. Faux-fur jackets and jumpers were also key along with some tassle detail on dresses, pants and skirts. Knee high boots are clearly the footwear of the season being featured heavily in the show, and I would recommend investing in this as they are both stylish and practical for the A/W 2013 season.

I also noted Cara Delevigne, model of the moment and currently every girls girl-crush, heading down the catwalk in yet another show! You have got to admire this girl for her work-ethic alone, she has literally been popping up everywhere! Watching on from the FROW was actress and Cara Delevigne's fellow Love Magazine cover star Chloe Moretz, who had been invited along by the Swedish brand as a VIP guest- straight from shooting for Vogue, no less! Moretz is certainly becoming a regular on the Fashion scene and will definitely be one to watch when it comes to the style stakes as she gets older!

What stuck out to me, and being completely honest, worried me slightly- is that nothing was surprising in the show. In fact, my first thought at the monochrome colour scheme was, "seen it" as it is already literally everywhere you look on the high street. This is of course great that the fashion we are watching is accessible to us straight away and we know what it is we need for next season and don't have to wait around for it, but at the same time, how long until we're all bored? If everyone is wearing monochrome now, do we all still really want to be wearing it come Autumn/Winter? It begs the question as to whether the fashion industry, already a fast-paced dynamic environment, is going to speed up even more as the instant access to something that previously was a little more difficult to see becomes more wide spread?

Only time will tell, as for now I am going to enjoy being ahead of the trend!