The Edge of Fashion

So the Spring/Summer shows have been paraded and assessed and one thing is for sure, edges are the accessory of the season whether they are crocheted, lacy, streamlined, ruffled or frayed. The Poodle investigates the edge of fashion....

The tearaway trend is one that has really caught my eye; I’m in love with Prada’s raw edged haut couture. Freshly cut silk blouses and shorts are shot through with the creative chaos of creation, giving a new meaning to ready to wear. Subtle but savage with threads a trailing and jagged frayed lines, this is fashion barely born.

Take a look at this:

Sophisticated but sexy, chic but not too proper, Prada has captivated the imagination of the Poodle, and the best thing is that it is thoroughly re-creatable on a budget- I’m tempted to rip, snip, cut and tear into my wardrobe, trimming length and teasing threads loose to recreate the whimsical yet feral femininity of these 2010 collections. What a fabulous crunch friendly fashion. The Poodle approves.

With this tearaway trend ripping up the runway now is the time to hurl yourself into vintage shops, charity shops and get hunting for a silk camisole, a satin patterned shirt, some skimpy shorts, and take them home with you and let the scissors loose! It may be messy but without looking ‘too much’ as the French like to say sounding ever so Anglophone. I agree! Let fashion rip!


And if the frayed edge look isn’t for you, there is a multitude of other ways to wear your hem. Karl Lagerfeld and Dolce & Gabbana opted for crochet for a home spun chic that is more gorgeous than granny, Madonna looks fabulous in D&G’s crochet wrap dress in their ad campaign although the Poodle thinks they should have let her finish her pasta before taking the shot!

Who would have thought that Madge ate carbs?

Lace is still a big OUI from the fashion authorities and if anyone did it justice on the runway it was Chanel with their fragile lace layering in shades of pastel pink and sugar white.

Luckily RARE have this great lacy number for £80 which won’t break the bank but will give you a girly edge over the fashionista competition on your next night out!

Fuffles, ruffles, frou frous and flounce flirted with many a model at the Spring/Summer shows, but the designer who really got the ruffles right according to the Poodle’s exacting ruffle standards, was Lavin, who came up with this fabulous feminine but feisty dress:


Fortunately you can buy this Lavin inspired ‘One shouldered wired ruffle dress’ on Asos for £38.00. Bargain beautiful!



How do you like your edges? Let the Poodle know your thoughts!

The Secret Maths of Bad French Taste

Whereas Carrie Bradshaw fell in Dior, I the Paris Poodle had Dior fall on me! You may think this is the better way round – a luxurious shower of quilted handbags and Diorette rings falling into my outstretched hands! But no. Dior, in my case, was a 6ft Amazonian check out worker at Monoprix who happened to trip up onto me in the cheese aisle.

The glamour of it. I know. With her stock of chevre (goats cheese) flying partout (everywhere) and my jus d’orange splattering colourfully on the floor this was one Paris moment this Poodle is keen to forget –how I felt for Carrie Bradshaw. Yet, at least when she fell over, her vintage clutch fell open like a Pandora’s box of lipsticks and credit cards; when Dior fell, her goats cheese smeared onto my coat in the process. I’m sure Carrie would have felt worse for me. I detest goats cheese.

It’s clear from this humiliating incident that:

Carrie Bradshaw + Fall in Dior x Credit Cards = Amusing albeit embarrassing anecdote

But

(Dior ÷ Monoprix checkout girl) + Goats Cheese x Paris Poodle = Messy supermarket disaster with no happy ending

This mortifying episode got the Poodle pondering, how ironically, the French who are soooo renowned for their good taste, elegance and plain smug sophistication can simultaneously do things in exceedingly bad taste. Like call their someone Dior as a prenom. Or even Chanel – another common mistake – I believe I also saw a vendeuse (shop assistant) called Fanta?! No joke.

At the end of all this I do feel worst for Dior (and especially poor Fanta too). After all, having a name such as Dior can only make one feel depressed if your circumstances are anything less than riches, finesse and fortune. Whilst I imagine being called Fanta can only be a negative equation.

Fanta = Lifelong hatred of parents

Paris Hilton’s Chihuahua’s are all named after designers in true tongue in cheek Paris fashion.

Chihuahua x Celebrity owner Paris Hilton + Prada = Cute puppy dog

However, actually being a person named Dior, living in Paris, and working at a Supermarket? That’s just not a kitsch combination.

Aside from such unfortunate names..the Poodle has noted other bad Paris choices which were presumably chosen with tasteful intentions, but how very wrong they were...

For example:

This week alone, I have encountered 3 women wearing real fur. I honestly don’t know how they get around. If this were London they would all 3 of them be beaten to a pulp by the Knightsbridge Harrods protestors. However, it seems that fur, here in Paris, where it isn’t even that cold, and where there is an infinite choice of shops, that fur is still acceptable. I mean! Uniqlo has just opened a branch here for goodness sake – even their awful Parkas are more tasteful!

I have also found that the scrunchie (cue Carrie Bradshaw/Burger argument) is also still an acceptable hair accessory here. Provocatively placed around pony tails and half pony tails, proudly wrapped around buns and semi chignons, I have been flabbergasted to see the scrunchie in shades of sparkling pink, velvet black and 90’s inspired floral print. I even saw one scrunchie teamed with a fur coat – that was TOO much! Je ne sais pas pourquoi the French have failed to throw out their scrunchies but they continue to exist. As soon as I find the offending shops that continue to sell these I will make a formal complaint!