Tuesday, 28 June 2016

Bill Cunningham's New York


Last week, the fashion industry lost one of it's true icons of fashion photography, Bill Cunningham. Cunningham is an inspiration to me and I'm sure, many others, who find themselves beginning a career in the fashion industry. His humble attitude and value for fashion as an art form, make him a charming role model for the attitude to take towards a career and life in all its aspects, for that matter.

Bill Cunningham began his career at The New York Times over 40 years ago, after previously being a miliner. He became best known for his column 'On The Street', through which he documented rapidly changing fashions by photographing the outfits of New Yorkers from all walks of life. 

Always a fixture at fashion shows, galas and other industry events, Cunningham became a celebrity in his own right, made easily recognisable in a crowd by his signature bright blue French worker's jacket, unassuming khaki pants and of course his bicycle. 

Cunningham was revolutionary in his casual approach to chronicling changing trends and players, making fashion more accessible and democratic along the way. In many ways, Cunningham paved the way for the heavily mediated fashion industry of today and is considered the original street-style photographer. 

"We all get dressed for Bill"
- Anna Wintour

Today, I stumbled across some of Cunningham's rare earlier black-and-white street photography, here are some of my most favourite pieces to share with you, I love how candid but glamorous these images are...









#BREXIT- What Does it Actually Mean for The UK Fashion Industry?


Thursday 23rd June brought the news that the United Kingdom had chosen to leave the EU. A seismic decision that will affect not only our generation but many generations to come. With our economy an government in turmoil as plans are beginning to be devised for our future as a nation, what does brexit really mean for the fashion industry here in the UK?

So what do we already know?
  1. The Fashion Industry contributes an estimated £38 billion to the UK economy.
  2. The newly weak pound and uncertainty about tariffs could mean major challenges for UK-based businesses, which often source fabrics and other materials from other parts of Europe.
  3. The majority of the industry voted #BREMAIN. The British Fashion Council surveyed it's members and found that the majority (90%) wanted to remain in the EU.
  4. #BREXIT is predicted to affect the prices of items coming in and out of Britain.
  5. It will have a major and immediate effect on luxury businesses- stocks for fashion houses such as Burberry, Mulberry and Jimmy Choo dropped sharply on Friday morning.
  6. Travelling in and out of the UK for business and events like Fashion Weeks for example, could also be met with new barriers, depending on the agreements reached in the coming years.
So overall, this decision sadly doesn't pose much benefits for the UK fashion industry as it currently stands. Hopefully the future will bring new prospects but at the moment I feel the overall mood of the nation regarding this decision is one of regret.

#REGREXIT


Monday, 27 June 2016

Petra Collins- Bringing a Fresh Perspective on Womanhood

Hello all! I think I've fallen in love. Just recently, I've been more than a little obsessed with Canadian photographer Petra Collins' work. Collins' is fairly new on the fashion photography scene but is definitely making her presence felt. There's so much to love...

  • Collins' uses beautiful pastel-tinged hues, warm, glowing lighting to portray her subjects in a raw but beautiful manner. Her images have a warm, dream-like, summertime feel that the viewer cannot help but get lost in.
  • Her portrayal of women and feminist issues is very honest and empowering through this. Be it photographing the world's famous women, i.e. Bella Hadid in her underwear, her work doesn't feel sexualised, but sexual in a beautifully natural and realistic way. This portrayal of women can only have an empowering effect on the viewer- which is a great thing.
  • Overall, Collins' is bringing a fresh perspective on feminism and female issues that is so very inspiring to me and many others I suspect. I look forward to seeing more of her work in the future!
Some of my favourite work...

Bella Hadid for Vogue





Amandla Stenberg for Nylon

Rowan Blanchard for Wonderland






This Week I'm Posting...

Hello and a happy Monday to all of you! Today I wanted to share with you some quick visual inspiration from my Tumblr blog to give you all an idea of what I'm can't stop posting this week. I've loved Tumblr for years and can't thank it enough for the inspiration it provides me on the daily- I never feel out of touch!

Follow me on Tumblr: ladreamcatcher.tumblr.com

This Week I'm Posting...

Damaris Goddrie

hooped earrings and male models

80's style printed shirts

Korean male models

shirts and more shirts

slogan tees

white tees tucked in

brash minimalistic slogan tees

pastel hues

warm lighting



Sunday, 26 June 2016

Entering the Fashion Blogosphere

Hello all! Happy June to you and welcome to my new fashion and style blog! fleurstyleblog is a new venture for me, exploring my loves, hates and thoughts on the fashion industry of today. Come along on the adventure with me!