Posts by Brigit Grant

HATS ON FOR THE SEASON

Brigit Grant — Thu, 23 May 2013 12:39:33 +0100

After the Queen and wonder horse Frankel, one name is synonymous with Royal Ascot — Audrey Hepburn. Though her association with the Berkshire track is entirely filmic, her appearance there as reformed flower girl Eliza Doolittle has never been surpassed and every woman dressing for Ladies’ Day hopes to capture something of the My Fair Lady “Hep factor” in their choice of headwear.

For her pass muster test in polite society, Eliza stepped out with Professor Henry Higgins in a hat designed by Sir Cecil Beaton which instantly made her the favourite as very few milliners have won multiple Academy Awards for costume design and even fewer females can carry off such a bountiful biretta. That magnificent bonnet for Eliza’s debut at the “smashing, positively dashing, Ascot opening day”, has an entire section dedicated to it in a new gorgeously glossy book, Hepburn in Hats, by June Marsh which is published in perfect time for the Great British Season on June 30.

Whether peering provocatively from beneath the wide saucer brim of her black chapeau du matin as Holly Golightly or radiating beauty in the Charade movie pillbox that started a craze, the images of the late Ms Hepburn in her signature accessory remind us of her deserved status as a global style icon. Creating a hat for Hepburn was to stake one’s claim in fashion history and with her as a muse, Hubert Givenchy set trends and cemented his reputation.

One can only imagine how excited Philip Treacy would have been to dress the Hep head and add her to the list of royals and celebrities already modelling his surreal toppers. Many of his couture creations appear in another new hat tome, Philip Treacy by Kevin Davies, which offers a behind-the-scenes portrait of the magical milliner responsible for 30 hats at Will and Kate’s wedding including Princess Beatrice’s notorious pretzel. Snack hat aside, Treacy is a craftsman who has designed crowns for such fashion queens as Madonna, Sarah Jessica Parker and Naomi Campbell (pictured below) for Ascot. He is also the first milliner to have his own show at Paris couture week.

As you flick through the pages of his bowlers, buckets and boaters, it’s worth noting that for 2013, Treacy has declared a fatal blow to the fascinator. “The fascinator is dead and I am delighted,” he says of the sequin and feather concoctions that sprout from the side of a head. “They have become so cheap to produce they are now no more than headbands with a feather stuck on with a glue gun. We’re seeing a return to proper hats.” Hepburn would have approved.

Audrey Hepburn in Hats
by June Marsh £19.95 (Reel Art Press) Philip Treacy: Head, Wear and Work
by Kevin Davies £39.95
(Phaidon)

Get the Great Gatsby Look

Brigit Grant — Thu, 23 May 2013 12:20:07 +0100

The rumble in the fashion world started months ago. A new version of The Great Gatsby was on its way to a cinema near you and every manufacturer, boutique, hair salon and bar was prepared to embrace Art Deco design and jump on Baz Luhrmann’s dazzling bandwagon.

I was lucky enough to spend several hours with the Australian director some years ago ahead of his staging of La Boheme in New York and got to see just how focused he is on every detail of his productions.
Notebooks filled with drawings; hundreds of period photographs and a definitive vision of how a film or show should look is what makes Baz an original. Now he has turned his talents to adapting F Scott Fitzgerald’s great American novel and the film opens today.

Regardless of critical reaction, there can be no denying that his interpretation will be a work of art, not least because of the costumes which have been designed by his long-time collaborator and wife, multiple Oscar-winner Catherine Martin. Together with design legend Miuccia Prada, it was Catherine’s job to adhere to Baz’s wishes and not make the film look “like a gangsters and molls 21st birthday party”.
Baz did not “want to see people swinging pearls and twirling feather boas” and so his ingenious missus had to find a fresh way to reflect the period by trawling through the archives.

“We tend to think of 20s fashion as being a beaded embroidered fringed shift, but in reality the silhouettes were incredibly varied and had all kinds of influences from folkloric to Arabic,” Catherine says. “Also just about every style of dress had been invented from bias cut to strapless with everything from feathered skirts, halter necks and V-necks in between.”

This is great news as it expands the choices for anyone wanting to emulate the look with the sort of Jewish figure that rarely suits a shift.
That’s not a problem for Carey Mulligan, who plays Daisy dressed in a lot of lace made by Solstice, a 19th century French company that still works with Chanel.

Carey also got to wear a lot of Tiffany diamonds and jewellery of the time. So if you don’t want to wear a frock for Jay Gatsby, you can opt instead for bangles, beads, watches, headbands and hats. Anything that taps into “Big Egg’”style, be it bespoke heels for as little as £109 from Shoes of Prey, or vintage underwear of the kind you might have partied in on the Gatsby estate. Hopefully I’ve covered all the Baz bases, but to quote Jay Gatsby, if it’s not here “you just ask for it, old sport”.

All About Jeff Banks

Brigit Grant — Fri, 17 May 2013 14:55:48 +0100

Brent Cross has never seen anything like it. Men who would ordinarily be shuffling through the centre in the wake of their born-to-shop spouses were suddenly parading like peacocks across the marble floor. Strutting and twirling in their own clothes for an appreciative crowd of onlookers, these Cara Delevigne wannabes were all vying for the title of “Best Dressed Man” at the instigation of a British fashion veteran — and he was loving it.

Jeff Banks has always known how to draw a crowd. Long before Gok Wan was able to accessorise, girlfriend, this Welsh-born designer was doing make-overs on the public as host of BBC’s The Clothes Show. With Banks at the helm, The Clothes Show was instrumental in the creation of the supermodel genre and the then young Christy Turlington, Linda Evangelista and Naomi Campbell appeared in numerous campaigns for Warehouse, the high street designer label Banks started in 1976.

Flick through his soft-back biography and you can see the diminutive designer in bell botttoms opening his Clobber boutiques in 1964 or hugging Vivienne Westwood in 87 when he helped her to establish her own fashion label.
“I got everyone to do everything for free for her first show at London Fashion Week, though it was touch and go. She was still sewing just seconds before the show was due to start,” he recalls. ‘I’ve just got to finish this last dress,’ she said, and sent her models out in Harris Tweed crowns.”
After dressing Annie Lennox, marrying Sandi Shaw and snapping Carla Bruni in a smock and woollen tights, it was time to focus on the fellas, which he has been doing with Debenhams since the sale of Warehouse in 87. And now this stand-alone store in Brent Cross.

“We only thought of doing this last December and if it hadn’t been for a delay on getting the fixtures made, I’d have been here sooner,” says Banks, who slips effortlessly into the stylist role for the benefit of inquisitive shoppers — and my husband Neil.
“I was in jeans when I arrived,” said James, a wide-eyed customer who exited in a suit plus new haircut courtesy of HOB.

“Should I be scared?” asked Neil sheepishly. “Not at all,” enthused Banks. “James is walking out of here a gentleman. Did you know that 70 per cent of men’s clothing is bought by women? And that’s the problem.
“Women always take over and presume to know everything. Gentlemen need the room to express themselves and I like to create that space.”

Once alone in “that space” with Neil, Banks went into bespoke tailor mode, proffering bunches of fabrics and linings, while explaining the benefits of using the wool from Australian sheep .
“They eat grass that is less coarse, so the wool has a thinner micron.” This might have made a another man’s eyes glaze over but my husband is in knitwear, so it was Merino from heaven.
According to Banks — and you might want to pass this on to your partner — a narrow lapel and a short jacket is very modern, window-pane check is bang on trend and long side vents in a jacket provide a bit of flash and flair.
“You have to know why you want a suit.Do you want something sharp and black for going to a concert? A mohair suit for weekends and racing? Or is it for work?”
As Neil considered his needs, Banks went off to judge the Best Dressed Man contest.
“Fashion has changed a lot,” he observed as the men lined-up before him.
“It’s a lot less cut and thrust. Everyone wants to be famous before doing their time and young designers do catwalk shows thinking they will become stars. Six months later they ‘re bankrupt. No, I’m not a fan of the way it is now but this is what I do.”
And judging from the gathering crowd’s response he is still doing it very well.

Win a makeover and new wardrobe

Brigit Grant — Fri, 17 May 2013 14:50:03 +0100

Do you think your man needs a makeover? Does your Dad need to dapper up his game? This is your chance to make that happen as Jeff Banks has kindly offered £250 spending money to a fella who needs a bit more fashion in his life. Whether it’s something casual for the weekend or a spanky suit for a big night out, the lucky winner can peruse the rails in the new Brent Cross store. And there’s more.

HOB Man(hobsalons.com) will also give the winner a cut, hot towel shave and luxury treatment at its gents grooming haven at Brent Cross. To win this great double prize in time for Father’s Day on June 16, just tell me why the old man needs a makeover in 100 words or less. And if you happen to be a male reading this, tell me why yourself. Just email me at bgrant@thejc.com or pop your thoughts on a postcard to me at the JC, 28 St Albans Lane, NW11 7QE by June 1. Good luck.

Review: I'm so excited

Brigit Grant — Mon, 06 May 2013 10:00:57 +0100

As a rule, film directors are rarely seen on the Graham Norton Show. The toocheses that grace his scarlet sofa are strictly A-list, front-of-camera types with Quentin Tarantino being one of the few auteurs to ever make the guest-list. Until last week. That was when smiling Spanish director Pedro Almodovar popped up to promote his film I’m So Excited — which host Norton certainly seemed to be, and with good reason. El Gran Pedro is a two-time Oscar and Palme d’Or winner responsible for such box office hits as Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown and All About My Mother, which, despite their monikers, are devoid of Jewish female content.

Stranded somewhere between a CBeebies programme and a top-shelf magazine, I’m So Excited is the lame English title for Almodovar’s Los Amantes Pasajeros (passenger lovers). The latter fits perfectly and here’s why. The film is about a group of business-class travellers circling the sky in a plane with failed landing gear.

Facing impending doom, they deal with their anxiety and over-sized libidos by drinking, taking mescaline, confessing secrets and having sex with each other — and someone in economy.

Yes, los amantes pasajeros certainly suits these colourful mile-high clubbers including Bruna, (Lola Dueñas), a virginal middle-aged psychic (“my powers scare men away”); Ricardo (Guillermo Toledo), a caddish heart-throb; Benito (Hugo Silva), a hit-man and Norma, a Heidi Fleiss-type madam who is played by Pedro’s long-time muse, the Argentinian-Jewish actress, Cecilia Roth. And then there’s the crew — a camp, tequila-swigging triumvirate of stereotypically gay stewards led by the fabulous Joserra (Javier Cámara).

To keep everyone entertained, they do an impromptu dance in the aisles to the Pointer Sisters’ I’m So Excited, a routine which is alone worth the ticket price. But in what marks a return to his comedies of the ’80s like Tie Me, Tie Me Down, Almodovar has pulled off his own very racy version of Airplane meets Carry on Cruising with a tapas twist for acquired tastes.
Naughty but delicious.

The Best Of Blooming Fashion

Brigit Grant — Thu, 02 May 2013 12:44:56 +0100

Just the sight of crocuses through a park railing is enough to ignite a communal sentiment of “Phew, we made it through the winter — time to store those balaclavas.”

“Don’t cast a clout till May is out,” says my mum, but with so much flirty floral fashion around, who wants to hide their blossoms under a cardi? Certainly not Gwyneth Paltrow, People magazine’s most beautiful woman in the world, who took to the red carpet in an Erdem flower power trouser suit as only the lean and lanky can do.
For us mere mortals, petal splattered tops and matching bottoms are for bedroom use only, unless of course you happen to be manning a stand at the Chelsea Flower Show (May 21-25) which is celebrating its centenary.

Alan Titchmarsh aside, fashion shoots are not only visible, but made in Chelsea, notably in the shape of stylish celebs in country garden couture. This year BrandAlley, the online specialists in affordable designer clothes, will be showcasing its wares in its own RHS garden, which will feature textiles, sculptures and water installation art pieces. Talking of art, the National Gallery has picked Van Gogh’s Sunflowers for its spring tee. When you consider that the real thing sold for $39.7million, it’s a bargain at £16.95.

Always on the lookout for new emerging talents, Comptoir des Cotonniers have collaborated with rising talent, Calla, a designer who has created a mini floral collection inspired by hydrangeas in muted green, blue, mauve and yellow.

Everywhere you look there’s another wearable bouquet, though if you’re going for separates avoid the Gwynnie combo and team it with something simple. Of course it goes without saying that where there are flowers there will be bees and Susannah Lovis’s antique bee brooches are beautiful. Yes,the price will sting, but remember you are buying an heirloom that will last long after those spring flowers have wilted and we’re all back in balaclavas.

Meet the fur fashion king with a nose for scent

Brigit Grant — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 14:49:19 +0100

I've always rather fancied the idea of living in a hotel. While others obsess about properties with multiple rooms, the notion of residing in just one has much more appeal. Room service, fresh towels, a Do Not Disturb sign on the door and a stream of new neighbours has to be the perfect domicile arrangement — particularly if that room is in Claridges.

The glorious five-star hotel on Brook Street is the “home away from home” for the style cognoscenti during London Fashion Week and Diane Von Furstenburg has even decorated 20 of its suites. Though I have only been there a handful of times they’ve all been memorable, as I met Tom Ford in the bar when he was still Gucci’s creative director and dodged Vogue’s Anna Wintour pacing the lobby in her trademark trench coat.
It was the Wintour moment that sprang to mind last week when I returned to the hotel to meet American designer Dennis Basso.

The celebrated fur fashion king, who dresses everyone from Upper East Side socialites to hip-hop artists, was in town to launch his first fragrance.Interestingly to me, he also dressed Meryl Streep for her Wintour-inspired role in The Devil Wears Prada. Spot a good fur on film and you can be certain it’s a Basso, be it the full-length white foxes draped over Catherine Zeta Jones and Renee Zellweger in Chicago or the sleek skin fur cape modelled by Charlize Theron in Snow White and The Huntsman.

Some day he will stage an exhibition of his pelts made for pictures, but right now it’s all about the fragrance. The eponymously-named scent which Basso says “comes in a bottle that looks like jewellery” is rather splendid and has top notes of bergamot, lemon and green apple, a heart of orange blossom and a base of cashmere wood.

“It was the right time to launch it,” adds Basso, who fittingly, is a big bear of a man with a deep roasted voice. “It took a whole year of testing, smelling, adding and taking away to make this happen and create a fragrance that lingers without being over-powering.” Among those currently doused in Dennis Basso is Joan Rivers, a close friend and big fur lover.

“I’ve spent many a Passover with Joan,” says DB, who goes on to say that without the American Jewish woman’s love of fashion, “I’d be standing on a street corner with a paper cup”.

He certainly has come a long way from selling pelts from the boot of a rented car. But with fur celebrity comes Peta protesters, though there is a faux range for those with a conscience or less cash. Basso also designs gowns that are so spectacular, I’m embarrassed to say I squealed when I saw them. Now available exclusively from Harrods, I have mentally circled the dresses I want, so in the unlikely event that I get rich, I’ll be able to order them over the phone from my room at Claridges. Until such time, a spritz od Dennis Basso will have to suffice.

Time to hear a fairy story

Brigit Grant — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 14:57:31 +0100

The bottom of the garden is not a place one usually goes to for fashion inspiration. Unless of course you happen to be a fairy — or want to dress like one — which is exactly what I did last week for my daughter’s sixth birthday.

Having mutually agreed on “fairy” as a theme, it was my job to transform the sitting room into a rarefied kingdom (too cold for the garden) and dress the star sprite in something suitably ethereal.
Secure in the knowledge that Miuccia Prada, Christian Lacroix and Valentino had all faced similar design dilemmas over the years with their fairy-inspired gowns for the catwalk, I faced the challenge head on and immediately ordered a costume from Angels (£14.99).

Well, it’s not as if I had a salon full of magical seamstresses to sew on the sparkles and feathers. And there was my own sylph-like attire to consider as I believe it’s a mother’s duty to maintain the dress code.
The great thing about spring (if anyone has now seen it) is the proliferation of floral/cute and occasionally diaphanous clothing for fairies — even those on an imp’s budget.

I went for a sage green net maxi-skirt splashed with pearls by Darling, who also make the skirt in a dusky pink which is lovely teamed with a Danilo Gabrieli top. With the addition of a Monsoon floral crown, I was not only ready for Madison’s party, but had a timeless outfit for any summer party, as well as Glastonbury where fairy fashion is de rigeur, though the get-up is not so celestial if one has to team it with wellingtons.
What one really needs with this outfit is a pair of heels from Irregular Choice.

The aptly-named Fairies In A Jar court shoes are designed by Danny Sullivan who had no formal training as a shoe designer, but clearly has the magic touch.

As the clock struck three our leaf-strewn sitting room was a sea of tiny wings and wands and Harriett Pena arrived with the Tinkerbelle cake (0208 449 5254) just in time for the arrival of Fairy Jem (07847 472015), our entertainer who not only knows how to pull that pixie-look together (skirt sprayed with flowers, May Queen crown and huge gossamer wings) but held everyone’s attention with her sprite stories, impressive magic and hilarious games.

Let’s just say by the time she left, it wasn’t only the children who believed in fairies and now the bottom of our garden has acquired a new sense of style.

Presents to make your Mother’s Day

Brigit Grant — Fri, 08 Mar 2013 11:00:07 +0000

Forgive the short notice, but it’s Mother’s Day on Sunday. With its Lent/Easter associations the date understandably doesn’t feature on the Jewish calendar, so that gets me off the hook. With everyone — except my mother. The notion that a 24-hour period entirely dedicated to thanking mums excludes Jewish mothers might work as a theological explanation, but I dare you to try explaining that to them.

In a weak attempt to do so, I Googled the word “mother” and the first one to pop up was the late Mother Teresa, the beatified Catholic devoted to helping others. A more specific search revealed that “a Jewish mother is devoted to helping others and she makes soup”, and who can argue with that? When I was 10 and better at planning, I prepared buttered crackers for Mother’s Day, a week early and kept them under my bed for that surprise breakfast. Though they were inedible, the thought was there and I didn’t have to do a last-minute panic shop for a gift.

For those who are acknowledging the day in some form and need something last minute, I’ve covered all the bases from the smelly stuff to the luncheon dress and everything is available to purchase all day on Sunday.

So forget the hurried petrol station bouquet and hit Fenwick or Liberty’s and invest in some permanent scent provided by Noble Isle’s Willow Song reed diffuser, which makes a house (currently mine) smell subtly of fresh flowers for weeks. At John Lewis there’s Dr Haushka’s Serenity gift set (drhauschka.co.uk) which is bath and hand cream scented with lavender, a flower regarded unfairly as old-fashioned. But in the right hands (ie Dr H’s) lavender is lovely and calming and every Jewish mother needs help with that.

At Debenhams and M&S there are clothes for bed that are not only perfect for mothering mother, but also give her something to wear on Pyjama Day for Comic Relief on March 15.

Better than lunch and far healthier, take mother and bubbe shopping on Sunday, for dresses to suit all shapes and ages at Ronen Chen in Temple Fortune and Marylebone, and then drop into Jessimara on the Finchley Road for something by Ingenue. Those who require an outfit for lunch should go to a branch of Phase Eight for something floral and fitting and drop into John Lewis for finishing touches by Azuni.

I love their Pompeii ring, though it’s my mum I’m meant to be thinking about and I know the Wilbur & Gussie bag with leopard clasp is more her thing. It’s also more than I would spend on a Mother’s Day gift, but then she has got a significant birthday this month. I also know that if I buy her the “granny shopper” at Debenhams, she is unlikely to be impressed.

More Fearne Cotton than Dot Cotton, the trolley my Nana once called a “pusher” has been given a makeover and even has a built-in cooling bag system. “Practical and fashionable”, I can hear myself telling the woman I once served mouldy crackers as a gift. I’ll let you know how it goes. Oh, and if you miss the official day, remember every day is Jewish mothers’ day, so she won’t mind when the present arrives.

Tights that are right

Brigit Grant — Thu, 31 Jan 2013 12:22:01 +0000

Hands up if you’ve bought a Prada blossom skirt yet? An iridescent Alberta Feretti dress to be worn with neon- trimmed trainers? Maybe a crop? No, me neither. It’s not that I’m not interested in the 2013 fashion trends, as nothing pleases me more than the thought of spring and fewer layers.

But that’s all it is right now — a thought — as we’re more likely to be struck by a snowball than a sunbeam over the coming months and some of us don’t generate enough body heat to strip off and try on.

As my father-in-law Stanley likes to say: “I don’t have the koyach to even look”, but I do look, and while I may not be adding to my stuffed closet, out of deference to the industry I write about, I continue to boost the sale of shoes, boots and tights.

I’ve always loved tights and though I’ve dallied with stockings, hold-ups and over-the-knee socks through the years, show me a pair of Wolford Individual 20 and the contest is over.

I use to buy the luxury Austrian hand-made hosiery in Franks in Golders Green and I’ll never understand why that shop closed. Aside from their expertise in hosiery, the older shop assistants were grande dames of lingerie and could spot a bra size at 20 paces, while hoisting a strap with the gusto of an Olympian weight-lifter.

With Franks gone, my love of Wolford continues, but I now buy tights at mytights.com where they do a range of brands that is hard to find at a department store.

You don’t need me to tell you how to buy tights, but it’s easy to forget how a Jonathan Aston pattern or an accent of colour by Charnos can give a quirky spin to a mundane suit or give shoes a personality.

Everyone wears black to everything these days, but teaming an LBD with Aristoc mock suspender fishnets gives edge to an also-ran outfit, and that is true of so many statement tights, even the coloured woolly kind (though avoid green unless you’re in Emu fancy dress).

Just think what a stir you would cause in tights by Turkish brand Penti (penti.com), which feature a man climbing up one of the back seams, though his visibility is dependent on skirt length.

When Henry Holland put the alphabet on his House of Holland tights I bought three pairs, as a sheer 15 denier is a risky wear. I’ll never forget the time I fell over in a pair of Teflon-like Wolford Individual 20 (£25) and cried. Not because I’d shredded my knees but because of the ladders. Levante, Andrea Bucci and Charnos are among the brands that do ladder-resistant tights, and Charnos even do a line with “Queen of Shops” Mary Portas using 3D elastene. As well as tights, Portas has developed a range of hosiery sleeves, or “armery” as she calls them, to help banish bingo wings.

I’m not sure I’m ready for armery, but Falke’s Perfect Skin colour tights interest me. I’d always stayed away from natural for fear of the sausage effect (don’t ask), but their shades have been carefully created with a dermatologist to ensure every woman can find their optimal colour tights to achieve the most natural effect for their skin colour.

A sort of even complexion for legs that won’t see much sun for a while yet, in spite of what the spring clothes arriving in the shops suggest.

How to get the Les Mis look and dress like Eponine

Brigit Grant — Thu, 10 Jan 2013 13:59:55 +0000

I couldn’t be more excited. Today the film version of the musical I love more than any other opens at cinemas nationwide. After 28 years on the stage, Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg’s Les Misérables has been turned into a motion picture starring Hugh Jackman as Victor Hugo’s protagonist Jean Valjean, and I’ve bought my tickets. For every night next week.

Musicals are my thing as my mother Carole raised us primarily on a diet of Rodgers and Hammerstein and Kander and Ebb, so we were word perfect on Carousel and Chicago long before we could read.
With that kind of training, learning Herbert Kretzmer’s lyrics for Les Misérables was a morceau de gâteau and the classic anthem One Day More still makes the hairs on my arm stand on end. To think that the show almost foundered when it first opened and critics dubbed it “The Glums”.

But what’s all this got to do with fashion? Well, quite a bit in my opinion. For one thing, it gives a dash of street cred to my ageing “24601” T-shirt. That’s Jean Valjean’s prison number and it currently adorns everything from vests to shopping totes at cafepress.com where they are hoping to attract fans.
I’ve always been a sucker for a movie slogan sweatshirt, but more interestingly I like to see how the high street interprets a big-screen hit.

For the translation of Les Mis from stage to screen, director Tom Hooper was most insistent that costume designer Paco Delgado showcased clothes, not costumes for the characters.
Drawing his inspiration from the artists Delacroix and Francisco de Goya, Delgado had to make clothes that reflected the styles worn throughout the story’s 33-year span, and tailors from England, Italy, France, and Spain were used to produce approximately 2,200 costumes, many of which were for the movie’s hordes of beggars.

‘’We had to make the costumes and then destroy them to make them look old, like they had been worn for 10 years,’’ says Delgado. ‘’We used chemical processes like bleaching and fading, then mechanical processes like sanding or making holes. We had to recreate very quickly what would happen to a garment over years.”
Now even I, who have dressed like Annie Hall, Daisy Buchanan and Morticia Adams, believe that the “beggar look” is not the way to go, but there are many looks that make The Glums worth emulating. With Inspector Javert, played by Russell Crowe, we get bang-on trend funnel neck coats, military jackets and boots.

Even Sacha Baron Cohen, who plays the Master of the House, has gone military and his jacket has its own backstory. “We decided that he probably stole it during one of the Napoleonic Wars and then pretended he had been an officer,’’ Delgado explains.

Of course it’s all about interpretation and though tragic Fantine (Anne Hathaway) isn’t a natural fashion icon, Delgado dressed her in cornflower blue and as her story unfolds, put her in clingy fabrics and airbrushed the sides of the costumes darker to make her look thinner.

The real wardrobe inspiration In Les Mis is provided by Cosette (Amanda Seyfried) with her embellished gowns and delicate hair accessories, and urban warrior Eponine (Samantha Barks) who wears slouchy suede boots, laced shirt and ragged hems. For Cosette-style clothing, I discovered 59 Strings (59strings.com), a bespoke boutique fashion company where Japanese designer Luna Sky is creating eveningwear worthy of the spotlight.
Meanwhile at Joe Browns (joebrowns.co.uk), a little known lifestyle company in Yorkshire, they have nailed the laid- back Eponine look with their boots, tunics and longline coats that will take you through the colder months and into spring.

So that’s you dressed Glum style. Now, after three: “At the end of the day, you’re another day older…”

Les Mis fashion

Brigit Grant — Thu, 10 Jan 2013 13:25:24 +0000

How to look lovely for longer - the products

Brigit Grant — Fri, 21 Dec 2012 12:00:00 +0000

The products that will take you from day to night.

How to look lovely for longer - make-up for day to night

Brigit Grant — Fri, 21 Dec 2012 12:00:00 +0000

When I worked in an office every day I was deeply envious of the women who didn’t. Not because their free time allowed them extended lunches and spontaneous shopping trips, but because they arrived at parties looking immaculate, while I turned up at the same soirees looking smudged and bedraggled.

Setting out from home allows one time in front of an appropriately lit mirror. Heading out from the office means battling the basins, dressing in a stall and sorting out one’s hair in the shadows of a fluorescent strip beam. No wonder I arrived looking like a cross between Bertha Rochester and Boy George.

But it’s not just working women who struggle to look the part to party. Hosting a dinner at home and maintaining a matte finish at the table can be just as tricky with all that kitchen steam and no hair and make-up artist lurking by the fridge.

So with the festive season in full throttle, social demands aplenty and a new year pending, I thought it was time to find a day-to-night look that travels well, requires the minimum amount of retouching and will look good in any light source — regardless of wattage.

When the “red lips and nude face” approach was suggested by celebrity make-up artist Kim Jacob (she has created cosmetic ranges for FCUK, Boots and Bayan SPA), I wasn’t sure.

Neutral and chic with claret lips isn’t really me or possibly even you, but Kim put up a convincing argument simply by producing a photo of Louise Rednapp modelling the look.

Louise and Kim launched the cosmetic range Wild about Beauty this summer and together they offer everything from an illuminating serum to a Nutrilash Nourishing Mascara as well as lots of anecdotes about their friendship and love of natural products.

With years of on- and behind-the-scenes camera experience, I’m sure you’ll find their tips are useful and I have put together a list of products (some from lesser known, but brilliant on-line brands) that you’ll need to pull off the timeless look for that next party.

Onesie more thing

Brigit Grant — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 15:54:50 +0000

I would like to apologise to my step-son Michael. About two years ago he walked into the kitchen wearing a bright green zip-up baby-gro. At least that is what it looked like and we all fell about laughing.

“Surely you’re not going out in that?” we chimed as he headed for the door in his romper made by the Norwegian company OnePiece. “Yes,” he said and clearly he was on to something, as now everyone from Brat Pitt to One Direction has one or more for work, rest and play.

I thought it was 2012’s coolest piece of clothing until I saw Louis Walsh wearing one, but that hasn’t stopped me from wearing it to walk the dog. Oh, and to do the school-run, and to watch TV… let’s just say, onesie on, it never comes off.

Valentino, maestro of red-hot couture

Brigit Grant — Thu, 13 Dec 2012 16:43:54 +0000

The email was polite and succinct. “Dear Brigit, we’ve managed to get you five minutes with Valentino at midday on Wednesday. Look forward to seeing you then. Kind regards…”

Now ordinarily, being allocated such a frugal amount of time with an interviewee would be laughable, but this was different. To spend 300 seconds (it sounds longer) in the company of the undisputed master of Italian couture is a feather in the fedora of any fashion scribe, and the last time I was this excited about a work itinerary was when I received the following email from Disney: “Date: Feb 8, 2012. Location: Mayfair Hotel, London. Time: 4.30pm. Interviews with Kermit and Miss Piggy”.

Not that I would dare to compare the quizzing of two felt puppets to an audience with the prophetic designer who has dressed everyone from Jackie Onassis to Lady Gaga, but hopefully you know what I mean .

The reason for Signor Valentino Garavani agreeing to meet with the fash-pack was to promote the 50th anniversary exhibition celebrating his life and work at Somerset House in London, and if you like beautiful clothes, I urge you to see it.

“Beauty and elegance is all I thought of when I design,” says the nut-brown octogenarian who opened the House of Valentino in Rome in 1959 to create spectacular gowns without ever using a single sewing-machine. “Everything is handmade by le ragazze,” he says, referring to the gifted seamstresses he employed.

Many of those hand-crafted designs — 140 in total — worn by style icons such as the aforementioned Jackie O, as well as Grace Kelly, Audrey Hepburn and Madonna, are on display as part of the exhibition and one can only marvel at the ebb and flow of each gown.

Standing close to the black and white tulle dress worn by Julia Roberts for the Oscars in 1992, it’s easy to understand why Chanel designer Karl Lagerfeld once whispered to Valentino: “Compared to us, the rest are making rags”. But unlike lofty Lagerfeld, Valentino never collaborated with H&M to create a high-street range. Not that il maestro is entirely dismissive of cheap clothing. “The high-street is very clever at what they do, but they copy.”

Retiring four years ago, with a send-off that saw him turn Rome into a fashion runway bathed in red light, the couturier has now turned his hand to designing for the ballet, so a collection for Top Shop is not on the cards. So where does that leave a Valentino votarist on a budget? For starters there’s the pop-up Valentino exhibition shop at Somerset House where they are selling limited-edition tote bags at £350, along with bespoke silk scarves, moleskin notebooks for jaunty journalists and a range of sunglasses from the Valentino Eyewear Collection from £150.

For those who want to make an investment in Valentino without alerting the bank and before the brand is watered down by the conglomerate that now owns it, a visit to www.theoutnet.com may prove fruitful. Browsing there, I spotted a Valentino £1,670 bubblegum pink shoulder bag for £751.50 and a £1,677 silk crepe red dress for £749.25. The latter was tempting, if only because red is the designer’s signature colour.

As he puts it: “In the middle of a group of women dressed in black, a woman in red is a vision.” Apart from shoes and scarves, I have steered away from red as a rule, but Valentino insists his rossi is a red with a tiny bit of orange added and works for brunettes, blondes and even redheads.

As my bank manager is fittingly on red alert in spite of the festive season, I decided to look for a Valentino tribute dress I could afford, such as the ’60s-inspired silk chiffon Gwyneth dress at Silk and Sawdust, the Fifties Duchesse by London-based designer Suzannah (unknown by me until now) and The Pretty Dress Company’s flatteringly fitted lace effort which is available at Van Mildert in Glasgow and Gateshead. Turns out rossi lookalikes are available everywhere once you start searching, which is what the maestro meant when he said, “they do copy”, before revealing that Berluti makes his shoes, Caraceni makes his suits and he doesn’t travel anywhere without his six pugs. It’s amazing what you can learn in five minutes.

‘Valentino: Master of Couture’ is at Somerset House, London WC2 until March 3 2013. www.somersethouse.org.uk

Fashion and Beauty Editor's cheeky Chanucah gift ideas

Brigit Grant — Thu, 29 Nov 2012 15:05:02 +0000

I don’t need a reason to shop, but Chanukah is as good as any, and with many of us now buying gifts online, I thought you should have a head start at the Post Office with a few ideas that have a fashion feel. Oh, and as the mother of a five-year-old girl, I make no apology for the selection, but grown-ups will enjoy them too.
Take The Dumpling Dolls (pictured).

Freshly-baked and dressed in bespoke clothing, and patent shoes, I was hooked from the moment I heard they were created from Mrs Dumpling’s tears. You can read their sad tale on the enchanting website which is the work (as are the dolls) of Scott and Gill Harris. “I considered calling them kneidel dolls, but wasn’t sure everyone would get it,” said Scott aka Mr Dumpling. For £25 you can choose a doll with your dress sense at www.mrsdumpling. com or call the bakery direct on 0781 3313266.

For a beauty gift with a Chanucah slant, nail decals (no. 6) featuring everything from stick-on dreidels to Stars of David are a novelty. Rabbi Yael Buechler came up with her “Torah meets nail art” as a fun way to get the girls at her New York school to study Midrash. Order now for $11.99 at www.midrashmanicures.com if you want them in time for the festival.

If you don’t want to risk international post, the Nail Art Party Pack (no. 4, £9.99), which has a gem wheel with over 500 nail art embellishments, is near at hand at River Island (www.riverisland.com). And then there are the cat (£45) and mouse (£36) brooches at www.tattydevine.com.
So cute, but as a scribe I’d prefer her speech mark earrings(£24).

I’ve lots more ideas, but no room, so look out for them next week, and see the JC Chanucah gift supplement on November 30.

The King of Vintage Couture

Brigit Grant — Thu, 29 Nov 2012 14:34:47 +0000

There are times When I really love this job. Not because I have a head-start on the season’s trends and first dibs on face creams, but because of the fascinating people I meet. People such as Cameron Silver.

No, I hadn’t heard of him either, at least not until his book, Decades: A Century of Fashion, landed on my desk with a resounding thump. A3 in size and weighing approximately 2 lbs, Decades is the macher of coffee-table books, and though you may need a trolley to get it home, the reward for your effort lies within the 250 pages of stunning fashion images — many of which have not been seen before.

The book does not claim to be a definitive history of fashion. “It is my own history,” says the Los Angeles-born author, and he is really proud of it. But what is so special about Cameron Silver that Bloomsbury have agreed to publish this mighty tome of first-person fashion essays?

Quite a bit as it turns out and most of it is fascinating because he is such an eloquent storyteller. Dapper and refined with a smooth accent, the 43-year-old Silver is the sort of world traveller one hopes to sit next to on a long-haul flight. Midway across the Atlantic he would tell you about his theatre degree, then his career as a singer of 1930s German cabaret songs that allowed him to indulge his passion for scouring second-hand stores for vintage clothing between gigs.

“I snapped up YSL suits from the ’70s, Pucci ties from the ’60s, but wherever I went I found more interesting women’s clothes than men’s — and though I certainly wasn’t interested in wearing them, I found myself compelled to buy every single truly wonderful thing I came across.”

Though Silver cut a music album, it was the thrift shop splurges that paid off and resulted, in 1997, in him opening Decades, his incredibly glamorous vintage boutique on Melrose Avenue in LA. Today it is regarded as the home of historic couture for A-listers, celeb stylists and a number of princesses — “not all of whom are Jewish,” he jokes.

“My store actually got its big break when Nicole Kidman chose a Loris Azzaro couture gown to wear to the premiere of Moulin Rouge and the pictures of her in the dress appeared all over the world. After that, Grace Coddington [Vogue’s creative director] dedicated eight pages to vintage, which was risky but it signalled the start of mixing old and new for 21st-century women.”

Silver’s challish for fashion can be attributed to his mother, Margot, who, “when being social in the eighties”,dressed in Mugler, Sonia Rykiel and Valentino.

“For my barmitzvah she had a dress modelled after something worn by Princess Diana,” says Silver, whose very presence at catwalk shows these days is a seal of approval for the exhibiting designer. “I don’t think Chanel cares if I’m there or not because it is such a big machine, but the LVMH group is into me and I’ve done some things with Marc Jacobs at Vuitton.” “Some things” for Silver can range from hosting an exclusive party in Singapore next Tuesday to narrating Andy Warhol.

Currently, it’s the film, Versailles ’73, that he’s promoting. “It’s about the battle for fashion eminence between the French and Americans. Haven’t you heard about it?” he asks.

I am loathed to admit that I haven’t, just as I hadn’t heard about the French fashion socialites Jacqueline de Ribes and the late Baron de Rede who introduced Yves Saint Laurent to Paris society. Apparently. But those are the names you get when you ask the font of fashion knowledge to pull together a guest list for an imaginary Friday night dinner.

“I’m afraid it would mostly be dead designers,” says Silver, adding Halston to the list. “I’d also like the Italian designer Elsa Schiaparelli to be there, but then I couldn’t invite Coco Chanel as they didn’t get along.”

As I said, he is a fashion expert and in recent years has noticed a real decline in the number of aspiring Jewish designers. “It was all about Donna Karan, Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein… but they are now the old guard,” he says.

“Alber Albaz at Lanvin is wonderful and I threw a dinner for him in LA, but there are not that many young ones. It’s also not the schmutter business it once was as it’s now all about conglomerates and there is so little manufacturing done in the US. There are lots of Jewish CEOs, but I fear the artistry has gone.”

Silver has plans to build his own conglomerate by revitalising old brands and investing in small designers who need cash. He will also have his own clothing line —“evening wear mainly as I’m not into basics. There’s a way I like a woman to dress,” he says.

In the New Year the US channel Bravo is launching a reality show built around Silver and his store and he is hopeful it will be good for business.

“When Decades first opened people came to buy. Now they want to borrow and where do I make money from that?” asks the man who once paid $4,000 for a Schiaparelli walking stick. “But it can work out as when I did Kristin Davis’s entire wardrobe for Sex and The City II — she bought all of it.

With “hold on to anything by Hermes” as his mantra, he says he doesn’t get emotional about the gowns he buys to sell at Decades, but during our time together he regaled me with stories about his finds.

“The incredible thing about vintage couture is that there is only one of something wonderful and I listen to every word my sellers tell me and sell their stories on with their dresses,” he says. “And that story continues, as new owners more often than not send pictures of themselves wearing whatever they bought.”

I’m not sure I have anything vintage of value to entice Cameron Silver to visit, but anyone this interesting will always be on my Friday night dinner wish-list.

It’s black again

Brigit Grant — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 15:02:25 +0000

As the only garment in your wardrobe that’s known by its initials, the little black dress holds a unique position in the world of fashion.

The navy blazer, plain white tee and camel coat are all contenders as closet staples, but until they are known only as the NB, PWT and CC, they can never compete with the LBD.

It was Coco Chanel who first apotheosised the black dress in the 1920s, lauding it as a blank canvas on which a woman’s personality could emanate unimpeded.

Since then it has been reinterpreted by each generation’s hottest designers and style icons, though most memorably by the late Audrey Hepburn. Apart from my own weddings (yes, I’ve had two), I can’t think of a grand event where I wasn’t in an LBD, and whenever I want to make the right impression at work this sartorial symbol of refinement is what I’ll wear.

Most of us do, but in spite of its year-round versatility, as a member of the fashion press I’m duty-bound to tell you that it’s “officially” LBD season.

The most obvious clue is the media obsession with LBD diets that promise to reduce the cling of fabric on your curves in time for all those parties.

Personally, I’ve always believed the purpose of a black dress was to enable one to nosh all night and still appear streamlined. But this is not the case, and if you want to look lithe in charcoal satin while consuming festive latkes, you have to shed the pounds first by following an LBD diet such as the one being promoted by Daybreak’s Lorraine Kelly dressed as Audrey Hepburn. Yes, only Givenchy could tell them apart.

Once you are svelte — or sveltish — the choice of LBDs is unlimited and depending on the style you go for, you can dress it up or down with accessories or a cover-up.

The Vestry have done a great day/night Bodycon dress and teamed with their skull-rhinestone-handle clutch, it’s a statement LBD. I also like Simply Be’s flared dress with a Peter Pan collar and sheer sleeves which has a vintage feel, and M&Co have done an equally appealing embroidered shift.

With so much fuss being made about the Kardashian Kollection at Dorothy Perkins, I had to show you Khloe, Kim and Kourtney’s take on the little black dress, which isn’t too bad, and there are others I liked, though the length of some suggest belt rather than dress. I can only assume the sisters were advised against using their initials for the clothing label as even girls who can’t spell can appreciate that KKK stitched to an LBD is a bit OTT.

Nicole Farhi's fashionable farewell

Brigit Grant — Thu, 15 Nov 2012 14:54:57 +0000

I’ve yet to consult a book of modern manners, but I bet flaunting designer labels in tough economic times is considered a social taboo.

I can’t be sure of course, but there’s bound to be a paragraph that deems parading in Prada as inappropriate during a recession, which is a great pity because there is no bigger fashion thrill than going designer.
Not that I’m an expert, what with my own wardrobe being a cornucopia of high street and “once upon a time” outfits that no longer fit.

But I do know the indescribable buzz that comes from stepping out in Louboutin boots (saved hard) or a Dolce & Gabbana dress (a present). There is nothing quite like it, which brings me neatly to my Nicole Farhi coat.
Purchased some years ago, my Nicole coat has retained the shape and feel of a brand-new garment and receives more compliments than anything I’ve ever owned.

But that’s Farhi for you. A designer who has always known how to create timeless, enchanting clothing and determine her own trends. It’s a gift, and one she has put to good use leading her brand for the past 30 years. But all that is coming to an end.

Sounds dramatic, doesn’t it? Which is appropriate for a woman who has been married to playwright Sir David Hare for 20 years. But as hard as it is to imagine the Jewish designer exiting fashion stage left, a company announcement in September declared she would be stepping aside for new creative director Joanna Sykes.

As the former design director at Aquascutum, Sykes is certainly a suitable successor and Farhi has described her as “the perfect appointment for the company”. That and the fact that the eponymous brand creator will continue as an ambassador and lead the homeware collection is all good, but it’s hard to think of Farhi no longer shaping a toile for the perfect dress.

That is, after all, what she does best (she is also an excellent sculptor), yet interestingly she is leaving with the belief that she never really arrived.

“Regardless of success, I don’t’ think a designer ever arrives,” she says in her lilting French accent. “There is always improvement to be made.”

Matter-of-fact about everything, including her own attire — “I always wear trousers and a white shirt or a sweater” — Farhi might never have become a designer if it hadn’t been for her fabulously flamboyant aunts.

“My mother only wore trousers and round-neck sweaters and never any make-up,” recalls Farhi, who grew up in Nice surrounded by a “large and colourful” Turkish Sephardi family who had survived the war in hiding.

“My aunts were very different, as they loved high heels and wore clothes made by couturieres in Paris. I never liked the way I was dressed as a kid, though I do remember a certain navy coat with a velvet collar made by French company, L’Empereur.

"But even as a teenager I had no interest in fashion and then one of my aunts took me to the fashion shows in Paris in the ’60s. First Balenciaga when I was 16. And then Yves Saint Laurent.”

Such is the potent lure of the designer label that Farhi, who wanted to study art locally, saw the opportunity to escape the restraints of orthodoxy at home and head for Paris to study fashion at Cours Bercot.

And the rest as they say is histoire, most of it well documented, as a designer at the forefront of British
fashion for so long cannot hide behind a pattern-cutting table. Thus over time we’ve read about her role as head designer at French Connection, her long relationship with its founder Stephen Marks, with whom she has an adult daughter and twin grandchildren, and the acquisition of her own company by a private equity group
in 2012.

Throughout all of this, Farhi has always kept her instantly recognisable head and held onto her client base with collections that cater to their needs. “You have to have continuity,” she says.“Magazines focus on the most extraordinary items, but it is the blazer in your collection that everybody still likes and wants to wear.

“Common sense should guide a woman in choosing her wardrobe, but it’s not really the clothes that give you style — that comes from within.”

Citing Yogi Yamamoto as her “number one designer forever”, Farhi, now 65, can still stir things up in the fickle fashion world and in March this year controversially condemned the practice of paying celebrities to attend catwalk shows.

“It is so unprofessional and I will never do it,” she said at the time, knowing she would face the fury of those who do. Her decision to highlight the issue as she semi-retires made the (voluntary) celebrity presence at her spring/summer 2013 collection at London Fashion Week all the more powerful, and in front of Vogue editor Anna Wintour, Farhi demonstrated her skill before taking a final bow.

“My design process hasn’t changed much over the years,” she says. “I choose a colour palette, develop fabric and yarns and then start drawing shapes.”

So much for the formula, but after all this time is there a signature piece that is particularly special to her? She pauses for a moment to think. “I’d say it’s a certain wrap coat with fake fur down the front which remained one of our best sellers for more than 15 years.” Of course, I know exactly the coat she means, and wearing my designer label just got that much more thrilling.