Printspiration

 

 

 

 

 Zara / Shallowww / Balenciaga / Balenciaga / Love Aesthetics / Jill Sander

 

So following on from everyone's favourite Clothsurgeon jacket in my previous post, I've been looking at some marble inspirations. All of us at TOUK are suckers for a good print and given as these are all monochrome, even better. Takeover originated back in 2010 from hand tie dyed tees, and whilst we've all seen enough of tie dye to last a lifetime, this feels like a classier and more sophisticated update of the print. We're currently working with digital print designer/ close friend Beth Barrie to create an original, marble inspired print to feature in future Takeover one off garms.

 

 

 

Clothsurgeon

 

 

 

( Source: Instagram @clothsurgeon )

 

Oh the things I would do to own a custom Clothsurgeon jacket...

 

There's a definite gap in the market for high end, bespoke streetwear and now Clothsurgen have it covered. Here's a few of my favourite pieces, all made from the finest of leathers and materials and all way out of my budget. I love the inky effect lambskin leather on the first jacket and the gold detail and python skin trims on Rick Ross' custom Givenchy jacket is spot on. You can check out the ready made collection as Selfridges London and Birmingham, these have just gotta be seen in the flesh.



Catwalking

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CAT footwear Colorado boots

Motel stripe mesh dress

Topshop boutique patent snake knit

Vintage bomber jacket

Asos gold chain headband

Nixon Monopoly gold watch

 

So Cat footwear got in touch and sent me a pair of their Colorado boot, which is making one hell of a comeback btw. Any shoe that can tempt me away from my standard choice of Nikes must be something special right? Pretty much a necessity in this British winter weather, I'll be wearing mine come rain or snow, for nights out and raves and then again next summer for festivals. My old Timberlands have long outstayed their welcome in my wardrobe  (I've had them since I was 13) and are definitely due an update so here we are.

 

All black everything just feels right with these boots (and all day, everyday) so I teamed them with a texture clash of patent, mesh, knit and whatever-this-jacket-is-made-from. The sweater is my most recent purchase which I found hidden away and alone in Topshop, it was impossible for me to leave without it. Not my fault it is practically made for me. I'd like to thank the Chinese calendar and the Year of the Snake for all of the beautiful snakeskin prints and fabrics that have popped up. It's been a good year for my kind of fashion. 

 

Anyway. Back to the Caterpillars. These are now available from Schuh and I recommend you go at least a size down from your usual...mine are a 4 and are still pretty big! Oh and check out this sneak peak from the SS14 collection. Need some patent Cats in my life.

 

 

 

Rough Draft

 

 

 

Michael Kors bag

Mango leather and suede bomber jacket

Asos mesh top

Asos check trousers

Nike Air Max 1 VT

Zara white embroidered sweater (favourite- so Balmain)

Motel stripe mesh sleeve dress (worn underneath sweater)

 

So my girl Sally has just set up a new business for her uni project; I introduce to you Rough Draft. Their new collection of quality, stylish notebooks fit in seamlessly with current fashion trends, from tartan to monochrome, they got it covered. Whilst out and about Manchester, we took a few iPhone snaps for promotion. The monochrome notebook is my personal favourite at it matches 90% of my wardrobe and is made from a beautiful quilted fabric. The collection is set to launch online this week

so #getthebook

 

 

Patent All Over

 

 

Markus Lupfer patent leather jacket

Simone Rocha patent leather skirt worn with Kenzo Eye Sweatshirt

Nike Air Max VT QS

Kickers black patent boot

 

Now as much as I love a bit of leather- it is long overdue an update! Patent leather and PVC has been popping up here, there and everywhere. This is one of my favourite trends and as long as you keep it classy and casual (and far away from the stripper pole) you cant go wrong.

The Simone Rocha skirt with the Kenzo sweatshirt is literally the best pairing I've seen this season. I'm really liking the look of bare legs in the winter as well but can't quite man up enough and sacrifice my warmth. On a less expensive note Topshop are really killing it for PVC at the moment, if you don't wanna invest in real leather. 

 

I'm also so tempted by these Kickers, the white are real nice too.

 

 

TOUK Worldwide

 

TOUK Egyptian sweater- www.toukcrew.co.uk (Coming soon!)

Leather look trousers- Primark

Gold stud collar shirt- Zara

Beanie- Carhartt

Quilted Oversize Alexa- Mulberry

Nixon Monopoly Watch

Nike Air Max 1 VT

 

The new Takeover tees and sweaters have arrived and will be released onto the website very soon. I thought I'd style up the Egyptian sweater with black leather trousers and tan/gold accessories. The watch is a recent present from Lukas. I had to get about 6 links taken out to fit my child size wrists but now it fits I love it. It's hard for me not to love something this big and gold.

 

These trainers are now my ultimate favourite shoes. They're so simple in black and sail but the detail is in the contrast of fabrics- suede, mesh and patent. I've been looking for some all black trainers with a white sole for so long, it really is the best combination. I've yet to see another person in them or a store with them in stock, so that makes me happy.

 



www.toukcrew.co.uk

And have I got news for you...

Takeover's brand new website is now live!

So head over to www.toukcrew.co.uk for our new online store featuring all our latest menswear, womenswear and accessories. On top of that we got a fresh blog so you can keep up to date with all the latest takeover news, photos and videos. Below are a few of my fav picks from the collection. Enjoy.

From the Streets

So I'm now in my last year of uni, studying International Fashion Marketing, which means one thing... dissertation time. I've been researching Social media marketing and the impact this is having on the Fashion industry including social networking sites, digital marketing and also blogging.

I've always been interested in the 'trickle up theory' in terms of fashion influences. Traditionally new trends/colours/shapes come from the key designers at the Fashion weeks, from here they are passed down to high street retailers which influence the current fashion trends of the mass population. Trickle up theory suggests the opposite- the innovators are the fashion forward people of the streets. With the rise of social media, blogging and street-style photoshoots, individuals are now able to influence the style of the masses and push out new trends which are often later imitated by fashion retailers and designers.

This is particularly evident in street wear, just look at the rise of sportswear and trainers in mainstream fashion. I believe that the popularity of Air Max for example (in womens fashion in particular) was not due to marketing directly from Nike, but from the early adopters and sneaker-heads out on the streets. A few months ago Net-A-Porter started selling premium leather Air Maxims on their site, which really does show how trainers have trickled up to high fashion's elite. Instagram, which has been big for street and skate wear right from the start, has had a massive impact on this because with Instagram everyone can be a fashion blogger right?

So anyway, during my research I came across an interesting article in The Guardian about London based trend forcaster Editd. What differentiates Editd from the big players in trend research like WGSN is their new technology that can analyse and compile data from the tweets and posts of the online fashion influential. Editd conducted research of social media throughout this years Fashion weeks for new trends for Spring Summer 14 and below are some of their findings...

• Gucci was the most talked about designer with 30% more tweets than any other fashion brand.
• Red was the most talked about colour, taking the spotlight away from black (although I'm yet to be convinced).
• 'Sport Luxe' was still the most talked about trend with 76% more tweets than any other.
• Street style and photos from off the catwalk are fast becoming as important as those on the catwalk.