‘Sup fashion lovers! This post comes a few
weeks late but nevertheless it’s full of sartorial goodness, so go on, eat it
up!
While London has long dominated the fashion
landscape in the UK, Manchester is slowly starting to make its way down the
runway. Helping out in a huge way this year was the fact that Vogue (yes that
Vogue) hosted its annual Fashion Night Out on the humble streets of Manchester.
Excitement amongst local fashionistas had reached fever pitch in the weeks
before the big night out and while I’d always thought I’d pop along to see what
was on offer I never thought I’d be doing it VIP style!
My lovely friend and fellow blogger LilyKitten was offered a suite at the Radisson Blu Edwardian hotel for herself and some friends. Naturally I jumped at the chance for an afternoon of pampering – what gal could resist! While Lily was whisked away to take part in a styling session and interview with BBC (!!) I made myself at home in the Radisson’s plush suite, helping myself to some champagne while a MAC makeup artist transformed me into a Cara Delavigne look alike (well not quite but she still did a pretty good job!)
My lovely friend and fellow blogger LilyKitten was offered a suite at the Radisson Blu Edwardian hotel for herself and some friends. Naturally I jumped at the chance for an afternoon of pampering – what gal could resist! While Lily was whisked away to take part in a styling session and interview with BBC (!!) I made myself at home in the Radisson’s plush suite, helping myself to some champagne while a MAC makeup artist transformed me into a Cara Delavigne look alike (well not quite but she still did a pretty good job!)
MAC’d out and made up with our new looks we
headed off to Selfridges, one of the main locations for VFNO. The yellow store
certainly didn’t disappoint, I spied Henry Holland soon after we’d walked
through the front door closely followed by a smiling Daisy Lowe who glided past
so quickly I’d barely had a chance to fumble in my high street bag for my camera before she
was gone!
Celebrity sightings over we lined up next to one of the stylish snack carts, bedecked with festive umbrellas which were dotted amongst Hermes bags and McQueen scarves (bit risky if you ask me!) We had crepes for starters, washed down with some designer prosecco.
Celebrity sightings over we lined up next to one of the stylish snack carts, bedecked with festive umbrellas which were dotted amongst Hermes bags and McQueen scarves (bit risky if you ask me!) We had crepes for starters, washed down with some designer prosecco.
A wander through the rest of Selfridges revealed cotton candy machines, mini hotdogs, cup cakes and numerous cocktail bars on offer. Naturally, as a food lover (and because I hadn’t eaten all afternoon) my eyes were drawn to the nibbles but Selfridges also dished up temporary Matthew Williamson butterfly tattoos and Chanel manicures.
Eager to explore what else Vogue had up their Armani sleeves we wandered over to Harvey Nicholson. At first I was ready to dismiss HN as the poor sibling of Selfridges but a quick trip to the second floor revealed a sartorial wonderland, complete with mini huts housing designers who were customising the official VFNO t-shirts. Most popular of all the designers was Proudlock from Made in Chelsea who seemed to have given up customizing t-shirts and instead was patiently posing for photographs with the horde of girls outside his hut – nice work if you can get it. I’d had a run in with Proudlock before at London Fashion Week in February (you can read all about my experiences here) and had been so nervous about taking his photo I kept messing it up. He was very patient about it though and being a bit cheeky (must have been all that prosecco) I approached him (when there was a centimeter of space between him and the next girl) and asked if he remembered me messing up his picture at LFW. He said he did and asked if the picture I took that night had worked out. Giddy that he’d remembered me I said yes. The bf thinks he was lying but I’m having that one!
Eager to explore what else Vogue had up their Armani sleeves we wandered over to Harvey Nicholson. At first I was ready to dismiss HN as the poor sibling of Selfridges but a quick trip to the second floor revealed a sartorial wonderland, complete with mini huts housing designers who were customising the official VFNO t-shirts. Most popular of all the designers was Proudlock from Made in Chelsea who seemed to have given up customizing t-shirts and instead was patiently posing for photographs with the horde of girls outside his hut – nice work if you can get it. I’d had a run in with Proudlock before at London Fashion Week in February (you can read all about my experiences here) and had been so nervous about taking his photo I kept messing it up. He was very patient about it though and being a bit cheeky (must have been all that prosecco) I approached him (when there was a centimeter of space between him and the next girl) and asked if he remembered me messing up his picture at LFW. He said he did and asked if the picture I took that night had worked out. Giddy that he’d remembered me I said yes. The bf thinks he was lying but I’m having that one!
Already on a high, the evening’s delights
still had plenty to offer! I spied one of my favourite shoe designers Sophia
Webster in a hut customizing tees with one of her famed designs. Excited, I ran
to buy one of the VFNO t-shirts (hats off to Vogue marketing, those t-shirts
were flying off the shelves faster than a supermodel avoids a food table).
I felt like I was waiting to see Santa at the shopping mall I was so excited but after standing for almost 20 minutes Sophia quickly ducked out of her hut off to another event. I heard whispers that she would be back and so undeterred I wandered around Harvey Nichols biding my time like any good stalker. After almost an hour though and no sign of Sophia I reluctantly lined up to have my t-shirt customised by someone else. That is, until I saw Sophia standing in a crowd watching an interview. Emboldened by my encounter with Proudlock I approached her and asked if she would be coming back to customize t-shirts any time soon. She looked a bit deflated (I don’t blame her, 30 minutes in that hut would be the end of anyone) but said she’d do one for me. I was on cloud nine! I chatted with her and her boyfriend about my impending move to their hometown London and they absolutely couldn’t have been nicer. Excited beyond belief I left Harvey Nics absolutely buzzing, what a way to end the evening.
And, although impulse event t-shirts are usually a great idea on the night and are relegated to the pyjama draw for the rest of their lives I’ve been rocking my Sophia tee numerous times since VFNO. Well, it’s one of a kind dahling!
I felt like I was waiting to see Santa at the shopping mall I was so excited but after standing for almost 20 minutes Sophia quickly ducked out of her hut off to another event. I heard whispers that she would be back and so undeterred I wandered around Harvey Nichols biding my time like any good stalker. After almost an hour though and no sign of Sophia I reluctantly lined up to have my t-shirt customised by someone else. That is, until I saw Sophia standing in a crowd watching an interview. Emboldened by my encounter with Proudlock I approached her and asked if she would be coming back to customize t-shirts any time soon. She looked a bit deflated (I don’t blame her, 30 minutes in that hut would be the end of anyone) but said she’d do one for me. I was on cloud nine! I chatted with her and her boyfriend about my impending move to their hometown London and they absolutely couldn’t have been nicer. Excited beyond belief I left Harvey Nics absolutely buzzing, what a way to end the evening.
And, although impulse event t-shirts are usually a great idea on the night and are relegated to the pyjama draw for the rest of their lives I’ve been rocking my Sophia tee numerous times since VFNO. Well, it’s one of a kind dahling!
Sarah x
No comments:
Post a Comment