Spotlight ON: Bianca Warren

As we wait for the sunny summers to come by, South Africa is basking in the hot beaches and preparing for their Autumn Winter 2013 wardrobes. Couple of months back we saw the A/W2013 collection by the South African Fashion designers and today I wanted to bring to light one such designer whose work reflects amazing talent along with a promising future for the South African fashion industry.

Bianca Warren, a Durban based designer showed her A/W2013 collection in tune with the current trends, there was a lot of fluff and ruffles along with beautiful lace dresses, sunny shades of orange mixed with indigo blues and turquoise. Also seen were gold, brocade and shades of pink.

The collection has a vintage feel to it with 60's inspired dresses, high waisted shorts and mermaid style gowns. All in all, a very wearable and fun line apt for everyday wear with some beautiful evening dresses finishing up the line.

All the pictures taken from the official website of Bianca Warren.
Visit: www.biancawarren.com for more info and to contact the designer.

Sun, Sand and Foschini

As the whole world is curling under their blankets and celebrating the holiday cheer with hot chocolate and egg nog, South Africa on the other hand is embracing the summer sun in all it's glory!

With the temperatures rising each day, the new Foschini catalogue for SS 12/13 is out and they are doing it in style with structured silhouettes, flowing chiffons, bold accessories, crazy colors and a lot of florals!

Fashion and style can never be too hot or too cold, so even though the climate is chilling out here, let's feast our eyes on a bit of summer sun.

Catalogue via FOSCHINI.CO.ZA
Download it here: http://www.techsysweb2.co.za/Sites/foschini_e-mag/#&panel1-1

All pictures via the foschini summer 2012/13catalogue

Pick of the DaY

Spring fever with Australia's FOREVER NEW

While browsing through sites and looking for new brands and eye catching collections (as I often do) I came across the ICE CREAM PARLOUR collection by the Australian brand 'Forever New'. And since spring is just round the corner for South African and Australian fashionistas, there is a refreshing feel to this collection. A long time back I had featured a few sets for spring based on the colors from my favourite ice cream flavors and this particular collection reminds me of the same, with a more soft, almost dream-like feel to the whole range.
All the images taken are from the Forever New site here: www.forevernew.com.au

My favorites by far are the polka dots strapless dress with mustard yellow/ sunny yellow necklace and the crochet/ net powder blue dress. The milky hues and the soft pastels are such a delight and with all the essential must haves of this summer (read: peplums, pleats and vintage inspirations) this collection sure has me drooling all over it. Also to be found are fun color blocked and pastel toned accessories to match the outfits.

I am also loving the colorful belts and the cute little phone cases they have got in the accessories category. Also not to be missed will be the lovely shoes and the precious little charm bracelets, earrings and necklaces.

Okay frankly, I hadn't heard of this brand before and I only new Forever 21, but I am very glad that I found them just in time to squeeze into some ice cream-ed frock while licking a real one in my hand. xx

P.S. saw the brand initially on ifashion website, then googled for it. check it out here: http://www.ifashion.co.za/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4648:forever-spring&catid=7&Itemid=116

All pics from http://www.forevernew.com.au/Collections/Ice-Cream-Parlour.aspx?cl1015

afro chic (SS2011-2012)

SPRING SUMMER 2011-2012

African designers such as Michelle Ludek, Tart, Habits, Gavin Rajah, Abigail Betz, Nucleus, Carducci and many more take to the runway and show the world that South Africa can produce high fashion and compete on the international level.

Cape town fashion week overview:

Trends as seen in the cape town fashion week....

colors: rich wine tones of purple and cherry pinks with some blues. Also to be seen was a lot of shimmer in shades of grey, gold and ever popular metallics. A well balanced mix of designers choose to go with the currently prevailing international trend of neons (a sure hit with the South African market, If past trends and street style is compared).

The most prevailing colors remained to be orange in rich neon and candy tones, shades of grey from ash to charcoal to metallics, and the blues moving towards the purple family. All these were well balanced (or sometimes not!)With neutrals, nudes and soft candy colors of yellow- to -pink to browns.

ALTHOUGH, I HAVE TO SAY, MY CURRENT FAVOURITE AND a color seen well in resort and SS2012 (GREEN in shades of APPLE and MINT GREEN) was bleakly present.

Silhouettes: The major womenswear trend to be seen was (again, as per the international circle, and something that will sell like hot cakes in SA) Maxi dresses. But the shift dresses did make an entry, in some shows and were exciting in terms of fabrics and prints. Some beautiful skirts (wraps, paneled and swing skirts) to be seen with blouses and tops along the way.

In terms of cuts, a lot of bias cut dresses and skirts, also beautifully fitted bodices showed some new cuts and treatments of the princess and empire seams. The broad obi belt and thick waist belts have always been South Africa’s favorite.

Fabrics: ranging from the silks and chiffons, to the jacquards and brocades, there was a vast spectrum in terms of fabrics. Also to be seen were linens, some lace and sequined fabrics along with the ever present animal prints.

PRINTS: A lot of florals, huge amount of paisley patterns and the ever so famous animal prints. Also to be seen, a good amount of color blocking and monochromatic tones.

In a Nutshell: Prevailing trends to look out for will be: maxi dresses, pedal pushers, skirts, orange, neutrals with neon hits (accents), all shades grey, monochromatic tones in black and white/ or greys, empire seams and high waists, floral outbursts and paisleys, also look out for feathers, sheers and metallics. If shopping for your man, try going towards pastels and always make sure you have one outfit in pure dove white!!

images curtesy: google, ifashion, designers-random

Pilanesberg National Park
This easter weekend...I had awesome fun at the Pilanesburg nature reserve...went on a jungle safari in my car...and spotted such beautiful mammals...its a joy to see them so up close....reminds us of how gigantic the world is...and how many wonderful things there are to explore...

Pilanesberg Game Reserve is in the Bojanala Region of the North West Province, adjacent to Sun City. Set in the crater of a long extinct volcano, the Park ranks among the largest of the parks in South Africa (it is in fact the fourth largest park) and covers an area of 55 000 hectare.

The beauty of Pilanesberg is reflected in a large central lake, the Mankwe Dam.

Over time, wind and water have carved a spectacular landscape with rocky outcrops, open grasslands, wooded valleys and thickets.
Pilanesberg National Park accommodates virtually every mammal of southern Africa.

Here are a few pictures I took on my way...

scarecrow beauty

saw the most beautiful display of scarecrows...in stellenbosch (capetown, South Africa) at the strawberry farms.

Who would say these beautiful pieces of art are just scarecrows...its an amazing display worth visiting once...if you are in cape town or stellenbosch...definitely the world's most beautiful scarecrows!!!

sheshweshwe

South Africa is famous for its locally made fabric, sheshweshwe or also known as shweshwe. Its a colorful pattern usually made up of dots going around in circles or other geometric shapes, most common being circles and diamonds. The most common colors are shades of brown. blue and red. Further dyed, it can give extraordinary color combinations.

These days shweshwe fabric is being used by many local designers for making contemporary clothing and accessories. Most commonly seen in tunics and handbags, also a lot of belts and ties. Living here in SA for the past 2 yrs, I have felt this fabric is a very promising area of the SA culture, one that hasnt yet quite been explored to its full potential. It can very easily turn into a huge fashion trend if taken seriously...

some designs using sheshweshwe fabric