The look of SS11

I did intend to write this post much sooner, but due to dongle issues in Lincolnshire (too tiresome to got into detail!) it's been delayed a little.

I love looking at the new season catwalk shows, I get caught up in the momentum of it all, thinking I'll just watch one more, which turns into two, then four, then five follow in quick succession. It's addictive, but as a Winter clothes lover, I don't usually get a huge adrenalin rush from the Spring/Summer shows. However this season I was nicely surprised by my reaction to some of them.

So here's a selection of some of my favourite looks that'll be filtering through next Summer.

All images courtesy of style.com.

Simplicity...

I'm normally instantly drawn to vibrant, strong colours & prints but seeing these soft & muted colour palettes of the SS11 catwalks felt like a breath of fresh air. Everything looks so pure & fluid, exactly the right tonic to welcome in the Spring.

I love the combination of chalky pastels, in particular the perfect balance of soft coral & blue hued greys at Elie Saab. The simplicity of the shapes at BCBG & Chloe are totally refreshing.

Colour & quirkiness...

Of course I found enough vibrant colour to satisfy my need. I love the continuation from the AW10 collections of a look consisting completely of tones of red. This works to great effect with feminine frills at DKNY & with what I can only describe as simplistic drama at Lanvin.

I also love the confident colour blocking at Gucci & Issa & the perfectly clashing English rose & gingham prints at D&G.

I've purposefully not mentioned the Chanel collection as I think it warrants a post all of its own...

For the love of Sonia...

I've recently spent time looking through style.com checking out the latest looks from the SS11 catwalk shows. I must admit that I still get pangs of excitement seeing what's coming next down the runway. At least now I don't need to examine every look in detail & formulate a plan of what to incorporate into our next ranges (for those of you who don't already know, I was a womenswear designer for 10 years). Instead I can just peruse at my leisure.

I happened to follow a link on twitter to theSonia Rykiel show in Paris. As a lover of colour & print she's long been a favourite of mine & I wasn't disappointed. Before I share my thoughts on her latest show, I want to post a few pics of her new home collection, all of which is on my lust list!

I love the depth of colour, the combination of a floral print with stripes, in fact I love everything about this covetable range!

Now back to the catwalk...

The Sonia Rykiel show provides a light hearted quirkiness & always makes me smile, which must be a good thing...

These are some of my favourite looks from the show. I love the beautifully balanced cinnamon, coral, black & white colour blocking, the perfectly clashing red & fuchsia stripe combination, the teal & green blocking...And I especially love the oversized striped bag. I'm a bag addict, I admit it!

The vaguely Asian hats are a new take on the perennial Sonia Rykiel hat obsession, which I like. They're given a twist with the chunky beaded cord & tassels, an accessory which pops up elsewhere for SS11, but more on that later...

Loft finds...

You know that we live in a tiny house. Well, I like collecting things. These two facts are not what you'd call a match made in heaven.

'Things' is a very broad term & in my case encompasses, amongst other items, clothes, shoes, vintage ceramics, art prints & photographs. So over a couple of weekends where loft sorting (hallelujah for actually having a loft) was the name of the game, I stumbled across a few bits & pieces that I'd actually forgotten I had (don't you just love it when that happens).

So here they are...

I love anything Art Deco & this pink Deco tea set just makes me smile. It now has pride of place on a chest in our bedroom. I know, not necessarily the most suitable room choice, but as I mentioned space is limited!

I love quirky prints & this is my little collection paying homage to Clarice Cliff. The teapot was a charity shop find, the beaker & jug were both Ebay purchases. These are all now in our kitchen & I get pleasure every day from looking at them.

I had to restrain myself of course. Still in the loft is my much loved Alfred Meakin midnight star coffee set, Deco wooden photo frame, retro floral serving tray...the list could go on.

I'm heading back to Lincolnshire next week, where I have a garage, wardrobe & probably many other areas full of cherished furniture & interiors paraphernalia. I'm sure I will do as I always do when I go home & that's gaze into the garage wondering when I'll be able to put these lovely things on show.