Dublin Fashion Festival

I'm a bit tardy in posting this but hopefully this shall reach you all in time for tomorrow. If you haven't already made it down to Dublin's Dawson Street to check out the Fashion Festival HQ - get your skates on folks! There's just one more day of fashion shows, make-up demonstrations and general sartorial shenanigans afoot. I had the pleasure of giving a talk on wardrobe editing this afternoon to a lovely audience and also got to watch Sonya Lennon in action as she hosted one of the many catwalk presentations. For further information, log onto www.dff.ie or check out Dublin Fashion Festival on Facebook and @DublinFashion for regular Twitter updates. Oh, rumour has it there's some DFF cocktail action happening in town as we speak. (Cue: hasty exit.)

Studying my notes this morning before my talk.

Sonya Lennon hosting one of the many DFF catwalk shows.

Jude Nabney and Theo in 'Heritage'.

Priestess NYC - Extreme Regime!

Heading to NYC for Fashion Week? Be sure to check out my friend Cody Ross' S/S12 collection for Priestess NYC. Exhibiting at Extreme Regime - an avant-garde in-your-face mash-up of art and fashion. Now how many hyphenates was that? CLICK HERE for details or see below to RSVP.

Image Magazine - Runway Diaries

Many thanks to Image magazine for the Runway Diaries write-up in the September issue! x

Barry and Shelley O'Bama do Dublin

Courtesy of the Brown Thomas display windows. Love it!

Summer Shoe Masterclass - Sat, 14 May

With the mercury rising and our boots relegated to the back of the closet, there's finally a bit more wiggle room in the shoe department. With said choice however comes an attendant option paralysis. Espadrilles, wedges, clog-sandals; oh my! Tip-toe around the semantic minefield if you will but there's a brave new world of footwear on the seasonal horizon and a shiny spanking new lexicon. (Flatforms anyone?) If you'd like to a steer on new trends for your tootsies, join me at Brown Thomas' Shoe Rooms this Saturday (May 14th) for a series of summer shoe workshops.

Summer Shoes SS/11 Style Platforms with Annmarie O'Connor
Saturday, 14th May @Brown Thomas: 12pm, 1pm, 2pm, 3pm. 4pm.

Karl Lagerfeld for Diet Coke

I love Paris. Fact. So whenever the opp to take a sneaky mid-week trip arrives, I'm there with Gallic stripes on. Most fortuitously, I had the privilege of attending the launch of Karl Lagerfeld's limited edition bottles for Diet Coke this week atop  the Georges Pompidou Centre where I got to hang with the Kaiser himself. O.K. So we weren't quite swapping notes about Mantilla fans but from my position behind the barrier and a distrubingly beautiful body guard (see pic), I did see that he had a Diet Coke butler at the ready (as one does) and that Lily Cole had to remove her shoes so as not to tower over him in photos. But I digress. The three new 'Love it Light' Diet Coke bottles which sport polka dots and chevrons stripes against Mr. L's ponytailed silhouette will be sold in prism-shaped collector's boxes from June in Ireland. Until then, feel free to check out the party shots and our press gang's whistlestop jaunt around the Marais and Les Halles.

Karl's lifesize bottles

Lunch in the Marais District

Have Brothel Creepers - Will Travel!

Karl with model Lily Cole (with her shoes off!)

Karl's Model Bodyguard - Swoon!!!!!

Another gratuitous shot.

Snazzy Corset Shop

Dinner at Chez Janou

Even the cafe in Colette is honouring Karl.

Jeremy Scott for Swatch - Paris Launch

This week I was invited as a guest of Swatch Ireland to attend the Jeremy Scott Swatch launch in Colette boutique. As collaborations go this is on the money with three styles of avant-garde army candy inspired by pop culture excess: Lighting Flash, Winged Swatch and Swatch Opulence.  Scott's trademark wings also make a cameo fittingly reflecting 'how time flies' says the Missouri native. It was fitting that the soiree took place in Paris which Scott refers to as 'mon deuxième pays'.  After a few glasses of champagne and some Jeremy Scott / Swatch inspired hors d'oeuvres (no pics - I ate them all!), the party relocated to L'Arc restaurant including international Swatch members, journalists from i-D to The  Daily Telegraph and Scott's personal friend Leigh Lezark.. Well worth the 5am cab ride to Charles de Gaulle the following morning!

Jeremy Scott / Swatch watches are available in Ireland from Swatch, Grafton Street (01 672 9455), Weir & Sons (01 677 9678) and other stockists nationwide. www.swatch.com.

Colette Window

The Goods

The man himself

The fans

Signed watch

L'Arc de triomphe at night

Crowds outside Colette

Jeremy and I

Branding

View from my hotel room

L'Arc restaurant

Ms. Bardot at L'Arc

The t-shirt says it all!

Joanne Hynes / Helen Steele AW/11 collection - The Footage

Video footage of Joanne Hynes / Helen Steele AW/11 collection -  'Les Guerriers'

compliments of Arkle Sparkle

Joanne Hynes / Helen Steele AW/11 - Les Guerriers

The Joanne Hynes / Helen Steele collaborative label launched this season at London Fashion Week with its inaugural AW/11 collection entitled 'Les Guerriers'.  Drawing inspiration from the West of Ireland, pirate queen Grainne Ni Mhuiel (Grace O’Malley) and Steele's frenetic paintings, the result is a celebration of bravery; celebrating the empowerment of art fashion. It's been an enormous honour to style this collection and to interpret the vision of two inspiring and fearless women. Enjoy the show shots below - all by photographer Brian O'Sullivan.