Let's hear it for the boys

It seems that these days you can put 'boyfriend' in front of anything and you have a whole new trend to play with. Fun times!

Boyfriend tee
Pioneered by Alexander Wang, you can either pay luxe prices or just upsize to a Large from American Apparel and bung in a couple of shoulder pads (or not). Wear with a short skirt, opaque tights and lace-up shoe-boots


Boyfriend jacket
These have been knocking about for a few seasons thanks to Stella McCartney and her cool tailored blazers. How to wear now? Over the shoulders as seen at the Celine pre-collections and on Alexa Chung at London Fashion Week

Boyfriend jeans
No explanation required but we love this look with a tucked-in blouse and high-heeled ankle-boots


Boyfriend shoes
Brogues are really hitting their stride now and strike the right boy-girl note with mini-dresses and woolly tights or skinny cropped-at-the-ankle jeans and a polka-dot sweater.


Boyfriend scarf
No, not his nasty acrylic football scarf but one of those silky polka-dot or paisley scarves with fringing to wear over a denim jacket or chunky sweater-dress. We like Tootals scarves - find vintage ones on Vintage-revived.com


Boyfriend watch
A nice chunky watch - new or vintage - worn baggy with a three-quarter-sleeve blouse or shrunken schoolboy jacket.

[PICS:
Tee: Alexander Wang
Alexa Chung: Fashion Confidential
Jeans: The Sartorialist.com

Brogues: ASOS
Scarf: Vintage-revived.com
Watch: ASOS]

Cute stuff: Little red shoes

M & S sent us a picture of these, ahem, heartbreaking shoes. A little bit Wizard of Oz, a little bit Moschino, a little bit Vivienne Westwood for Melissa. Just add a short velvet dress and glittery ankle socks.

We've Been Crystallized

Sorry we've been M.I.A. We weren't gone far, just got sucked into the vortex also known as the Swarovski-Crystallized website. Specifically, we're obsessed with its Personal Stylist tool. We've been experimenting with the jewels it suggested for us, based on our hair, eyes, skin colouring and taste in clothes. Not only does it give you a selection based on your choices but you can customise them as well. Such fun! You see why we were gone so long, no? Now imagine if Swarovski made make-up palettes...

We love...

...the arty farty style of Dior's new Love Dior compact but is it just too pretty to use? Oh the dilemma! Get a closer look when it launches on October 22nd exclusively at Selfridges' new Dior counter.

Trend alert: The 'now' nail

The classic nude 'squoval' nail is over - over we tell you! In its place come three trends to take you through autumn and beyond. Hot right now is the jade nail initiated by Chanel. Rumour has it that ten shades were mixed and Karl picked the one that was a closest match to a Chanel green tweed suit. Well who wouldn't? Why not match yours to your favourite bigger-than-a-china-cup cocktail ring?


The next big thing going on in nails is the Return Of The Talon. Yep, long, witchy claws are de riguer, just ask John Galliano who showed purple talons at his AW09 Dior show. We actually prefer Cassie's bubblegum pink tips but hey, there's room for both.



Finally, don't fret if you still hanker after a neutral nail. The grey nail is the new nude, as seen at Matthew Williamson and Tuleh. Barry M has one that gives good coverage at an affordable price.

Shooting from the hip - what's the etiquette?

We spent a good chunk of London Fashion Week people-watching and taking photos for some of the trend-prediction consultancy work we do. Let's face it, if you're at LFW and not taking pictures, something's up! But here's the question, what's the etiquette when photographing street style? One friend thinks it's rude to take a photo of someone's bag/shoe/dress without requesting a shot of their face too. Her strategy is to ask to take a picture of them and then once that's out of the way she asks if she can also 'get a quick shot of your insert-item-here'. Well we don't do that. We ask outright if we can take a photo of said item and don't bother pretending to be interested in the rest of the ensemble. Who's right?

We also routinely shoot from the hip, taking candid snaps as and when they present themselves. Shoes are the easiest, especially at parties where fantasy footwear is at its most evident and you can easily grab a snap without anyone noticing. But at LFW, we tried this on a lady wearing an eyecatching pair of loafer-wedges. Ooh, hybrid trend alert! We quickly aimed the camera and took fire but - damn - shoe lady saw us and deliberately walked off. What a spoilsport. We were hacked off because the way we see it, if you're at LFW, you're gonna get snapped, it's par for the course, right?

What does everyone else think?