Featuring an amalgamation of style and taste, the Cloudy Bay Designer Olive bar offers an inimitable, seasoned olive pairing to match all delightful wines within the Cloudy Bay range. In partnership with Jamie Miller from Mint Kitchen, the designers from moochi and COOP have fashioned a flavoring to encase the olives and complement the texture and hues in which Cloudy Bay wines are renowned for.

This unique tasting experience will be launching on Monday 27th February, corresponding with the presentation of both designers’ collections. Available until Friday 2nd of March, the Cloudy Bay Designer Olive Bar will be located amongst the action in Shed 10 on the Queens Wharf.

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About Cloudy Bay: Located in the Marlborough region of New Zealand, Cloudy Bay is blessed with a unique terroir where a cool, maritime South Pacific climate produces wines of great fruit intensity. They have long been known for our Sauvignon Blanc wines and also produce Notable Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and other whites – putting New Zealand on the international wine map for 25 years.

More about the collaborating designers: 

moochi: The brainchild of Kellie and Chris Taylor, moochi is a boutique New Zealand women’s fashion brand that launched in 2000. The name moochi was created to describe the clothes you want to wear, it is all about looking and feeling amazing – mooching in style.

COOP: Lauren Connelly and Alexandra Dunn are faces behind the label launched in 2011. Garments are both sexy and relaxed, exploring texture, shape, colour and print. Signature touches of leather and metal wrap up the young, streetwise vibe.

The Cloudy Bay Designer Olive Bar will definitely be a trendy attraction for festival-goers, so if you will be in attendance, be sure to visit.

Upon hearing that the Mary Katrantzou for Topshop collection had sold out within minutes, and having my best friend in London frantically call me five times (yes, five times) at some God-awful hour in the early morning about the highly coveted Mary Katrantzou balloon dress she held in her hand, I was definitely anticipating what Katrantzou would be offering this London Fashion Week.

Graduating from a Masters in Fashion Textiles at Central St. Martins in 2008 and presenting her first Fall RTW collection at London Fashion Week that same year, the Greek-born print enthusiast sure has come a long way. Famous for her striking motifs, Katrantzou’s Fall 2012 RTW collection comprised innovative prints on billowing brazen dresses, confident colour schemes, and her signature tulip-shaped skirts, leaving no surprise that this collection will, once again, be another sell-out.

Tiffany Low

Photo Courtesy: TheCutBlog; Vogue

Despite my best friend, who is currently in London, telling me that everybody there wears either black or charcoal, that has not seemed to be the case on the runways this week. Twin sisters, Daniela and Annette Felder, of label Felder Felder, showcased a bright and brilliant Fall 2012 RTW collection.

Opening with an autumn palette, with metallic golds, earthy tans, reds, and warm oranges, the range transpires into an assortment of skirts, pants, and dresses, all in a digitized print resembling a beautiful sunset.

I am lusting over the gold leather skirt, and don’t even get me started on the shoes.

Tiffany Low

Photo Courtesy: TheCutBlog; Elle

Vogue Paris‘ former Editor-in-Chief, Carine Roitfield, recently guest-edited the Spring issue of VMAN and wished to indulge readers, thereby adding a bonus pin-up-esque calendar, featuring none other than Victoria’s Secret Angels.

Captured by Willy Vanderperre, the datebook can be classified as Roitfield’s take on the Pirelli calendar, except that instead of being naked, the models all don pantyhose, both on their legs, customarily, and likewise, on their heads. It goes for somewhat of a similar effect of grabbing attention as does nudity, so why not?

Might I add that I’m pleased with having Karolina Kurkova on my month.

Tiffany Low

Photo Courtesy: TheCutBlog

If there’s ever been a Kiwi designer that’s put New Zealand fashion under the New York radar, it’s our very own Karen Walker, and we love her for it.

Held at Pier 59 Studios, the Fall 2012 RTW show comprised numerous signature looks, such as that of the ankle-grazing pant, the boyfriend blazer, exuberant prints, bold colours, and understated yet effective frills, alongside collars featuring delicate gold chains, gold sheen patterns, and baby-chicken-yellow woolen sweaters, to create the collection, ‘Sea Monsters‘, which Walker describes, in five words, as “Captain Nemo Meets Brian Jones.”

Still living local, Walker remains faithful to her roots, expressing home as an inspiration, “I guess what informs our work from where we live is the casual nature of life there. It’s not red carpet. It’s a totally different vibe from Paris or New York; there’s very much a casualness underlying it all. There’s still an awareness of aesthetics and a desire to look good, but it’s kind of always underpinned with a casual undertone. Even when it’s quite formal, it’s still a boot instead of a heel.”

Celebrating the fact that this season marked her 20th overseas solo show, Karen is still very modest and level-headed, which is, no doubt, extremely great, especially for someone that has made her mark in the world, coming from such a small industry in New Zealand. Make sure to check her out during New Zealand Fashion Festival, at the Viva Live seminar on Wednesday 29th February.

 Tiffany Low

Photo Courtesy: TheCutBlog

Although a very conservative collection, Rodarte Fall 2012 RTW presented just the right amount of cable knits, shearling, and leather to get anybody in the mood for snuggling on the couch by the fireplace.

For the collection, the Mulleavy sisters found the perfect balance in the use of textural fabrics, suitable colour combos, subtle frills, and glorious prints, all of which fit together appropriately, creating a beautiful assortment of pieces.

Tiffany Low

Photo Courtesy: TheCutBlog

Usually, I endeavour to comment on the positives of a collection, and it is very unlike me to criticize, for the reason that I understand that an abundance of hard work, time, and effort supports every collection. However, in the case of the Marc Jacobs Fall 2012 RTW collection, I’m speechless. With one ensemble, it seems as if whoever styled it suddenly remembered it was Valentine’s Day, and thereby threw in a rose.

As much as I admire Marc Jacobs, it is in my beliefs that only John Galliano can pull something as eccentrically outrageous as this, and get away with it.

What do you think?

Tiffany Low

Photo Courtesy: TheCutBlog

Once the Grammy Awards red carpet was the best for viewing everything that was original and dramatic about fashion. But recently (especially this year) the guests have become increasingly indistinguishable from each other and their ‘dramatic’ fashion choices have become a little bit contrived.

That said there were some gorgeous gowns on show thanks to some of the more …worthy guests:

Rihanna looked better than we may have ever seen her in this plunging-legsplitting-ballbreaking number. Even her hair, which is dangerously 80s, just works.

Jessie J, who usually goes for something slightly wilder, pulled off a chic/edgy/cool look in her disco ball gown. Also she is kind of awesome which helps (I just wish it were just slightly more fitted from waist to knee).

Of course Adele looked phenomenal. Her arrival look was classic Old-Hollywood glamour: Black, glittery and tailored to perfection.

And the lace cocktail dress she wore for her goose-bump inducing performance of Rolling in the Deep was amazing. Girl cleaned up that night. No question about it.

Now this really pains me to say because I have a HUGE dislike for Taylor Swift and her penchant for glittery gowns. I am not really sure why this is different but I just know that she looked really really good in it. Plus when I first glanced at it I thought it was Givenchy couture… it’s not but still I am drawn to it.

But then this happens:

And I hate her all over again.

Which segways nicely into the bad and unnecessary section:

Fergie could have looked so good in this. It’s Gaultier fresh of the spring runways for Christ sakes. If only she had played it like it was shown on the runway and stayed away from the horrible granny panties.

Katy Perry: Now this one was hard. One, because its Elie Saab who I love and want to design my wedding dress and Two, because everyone was going on and on about how pretty it was. Don’t get me wrong, the dress in itself is beautiful, I LOVE it. I just don’t love HER in it. I think it was a case of the dress wearing the girl; it just didn’t work.

That and it was slightly off putting the way it looks as if she shrink-wrapped her boobs in it.

To be fair I don’t even know who this woman is. Maybe this is her thing, or maybe she lost her arm in some tragic accident and decided that she would rather a massive badass terminator replacement instead of the usual prosthetic.

Or maybe she just woke up that morning and thought, you know what? What this relatively inoffensive dress really needs is a ginormous arm accessory made of machine guns. That will make them look. 

Robyn here looks like she just arrived from playing Tinkerbell in a futuristic version of peter pan. This isn’t a good thing.

And then there was the unnecessary:

I love Nikki. I love her outlandish style and her music.

However, this I do not love. 

Yes last year Lady Gaga arrived in an egg carried by an army of men in loin cloths and yes Nikki and Gaga have been matched in the war of costume for a while but this is just bad. Turning up dressed as some kind of scarlet high priestess with a hired-actor-pope on your arm and then proceeding to perform The Exorcist, a musical was just too much.

Was anyone offended? 

And that about rounds up the good the bad and the unnecessary at the 2012 Grammys. Lets hope next year will bring the return of the old school, and another epic performance from Adele.

LUCY KORN

Amongst a sea of dark colors throughout the collections shown this week, designers Justin Thornton and Thea Bregazzi decided to brighten things up a notch at the Preen Fall 2012 RTW fashion show. Presenting fun and flirty florals, the collection, being very wearable, featured high collars, alluring prints, and a refreshingly bold color palette.

Who says the Fall-Winter season has to be all about solemn colors only?

Tiffany Low

Photo Courtesy: TheCutBlog

On a trip to his hometown, Taiwan, with his father a year and a half ago, Jason Wu found himself asking, “What is Chinese?” – indeed, a very ironic question for a Chinese person to ask. Evidently, the designer found the answer to his question, along with the inspiration for his Fall 2012 RTW collection, which featured three diverse interpretations of China.

The initial third of Wu’s collection, inspired by ‘military China’, presented military green and ‘China red’ pieces such as Mao jackets and shirts, which featured broad shoulders and quilting. Next, opulent embroidered ensembles featured epaulets, mink, rich prints, and a dash of oxblood. Lastly, enthused by 1930s-‘40s Hollywood fashion, Wu succeeded his take in recreating some timeless, striking silhouettes.

“I realized I was ready to take on one of the biggest subjects I grew up with, how does a Chinese designer do ‘China’?” Wu explains,  ”I’ve lived in America, Canada, and Japan, but to come back to this means so much to me.” Evidently, it is very important to remember your roots, and fortunately for Wu, he’s been able to convey his new knowledge into his work.

Tiffany Low

Photo Courtesy: TheCutBlog