It's Called Fashion Brenda, Look It Up

A LFW rundown, dressing for early autumn, and why silver is the new gold.

Greetings fellow spendthrifts! 🖖🏾

I’m writing this at 11pm from my teenage bedroom, having failed to do the one thing I’d set aside my day for – packing up all my sh*t before the movers arrive first thing tomorrow to ferry all my worldly possessions from my parents’ house back into my flat. I loathe packing, even when it’s for a holiday, and I swore I wouldn’t leave it til the last minute the way I always do and yet… here we are. Hopefully by the time you read this I will have somehow gotten myself out of this pickle and be safely ensconced in my not-actually-new-but-feels-new-to-me flat. Onwards!

A quick LFW recap

I had a really fun Fashion Week this season. In general I have fairly… mixed feelings about fashion week, my participation in it, and how necessary that is (all subjects for a future newsletter), but it has to be said - I had a very chilled and fun week this time round, which isn’t always the case. I think a large part of that was probably down to the sunny weather – as with everything in the UK, weather can really make or break your day. I still shudder thinking back to a particularly wet and rainy fashion week a year or two ago, where schlepping from show to show was so utterly miserable I began questioning why on earth I was choosing to do it given I don’t need to write up the shows for publications or anything like that.

But! The mood this season felt really cheerful and unpretentious – and most importantly I really enjoyed all the shows I went to. I saw some gorgeous collections that made me feel super excited about dressing up next summer, and grateful that I’ve been given an advance preview and know what to save up my pennies for come spring ‘24. Here’s a visual recap of how my fashion week went:

• At the opening of the new Chanel exhibition at the V&A.

• Vogue World! I was very sweetly invited along by the supremely talented Marco Capaldo (founder and creative director of Hot Girl brand 16Arlington, and winner of the 2023 BFC/Vogue Designer Fashion Fund award), as one of his guests. Obviously I wore 16Arlington, specifically this black satin maxi skirt which has a daringly high slit right up the back. It’s very nearly sold out everywhere but MatchesFashion have the brown version in most sizes (and have just added it to their Sale so… move fast). I wore the skirt with a cream embellished long sleeve top that does actually seem to be sold out as far as I can see, but is available here in an equally gorgeous sage green if you fancy a splurge.

• Roksanda Ilinčić’s show was staged outdoors at the absolutely iconic Barbican, which also happens to be where I went to school for 7 years, so it was a real nostalgia hit for me. I spotted Anna Wintour sat front row (where else lol), wearing a (presumably Chloe?) horse print dress and sunglasses, of course.

• This grey leather dress paired with a glossy apple red handbag was my favourite look (and colour combination!) from the 16Arlington show - it’s giving Hitchcock heroine no? I felt pretty moved when Marco came out for his post-show bow – when we were chatting on our way to Vogue World a few days prior, I got a tiny insight into the sheer amount of hard work and attention to detail (not to mention ¡talentttt!) that goes into building a brand as successful as 16Arlington has become in such a short space of time. It was clear there’s a lot of affection for him within the industry too – he got the loudest post-show cheer I heard all week. This Elle interview with him is a good ‘straight from the horse’s mouth’ insight into the inspirations behind the latest collection, which to me felt like a real step up (from an already lofty position) – super elevated and incredibly sophisticated, with some really unusual textural details (latex! paillettes!) that I honestly wanted to get up and cop a feel of mid-show.

Papped pre-show by Dave Bennett. I’m proud of how empty the venue looks behind me. It’s proof that I somehow managed to arrive on time - early even - despite Uber constantly trying to block my blessings these days.

• What I wore: a Tibi bandeau top (I have it in brown but it’s also available in navy here), which was a recent gift from their founder (and a digital-turned-IRL friend) Amy Smilovic. Truthfully I didn’t expect to get any wear out of it this year, but thanks to a few weeks of unseasonably good weather I’ve actually managed to wear it a few times. I can already tell it’s going to become a warm weather wardrobe staple for me, as it’s the perfect length for a bandeau top, as they can be quite challenging to wear. It’s not too short and boob tube-y (if you wear it with high waisted bottoms you’re only exposing a small sliver of skin, and it’s long enough that even if you wear it with something low waisted as I’ve also done, it doesn’t look like you’re just randomly wearing a bikini top). I wore it with a mint green 16Arlington bag that has a totally unnecessary but extremely fun train (a friend has since pointed out it’s very ‘Carrie Bradshaw in that SATC episode where Berger makes her take her fringed Fendi bag on his dumb motorbike’); some old-ish Tory Burch trousers I also have the matching waistcoat for; and of course my trusty Amina Muaddi clear Holli PVC heels. I wear those shoes SO frequently because a) they’re relatively walkable/comfortable for a heel of that height, and b) the fact that they’re clear and non-coloured means they go with basically everything. I’ve actually been trying to find another pair of heels that achieves both those objectives so I can wear these a little more sparingly – suggestions are very welcome. And if you fancy copping a pair for yourself, I’d advise you to buy a half size up (also, Net A Porter have a few sizes going at 40% off).

• My favourite look from the Emilia Wickstead show, staged at the Royal Academy of Arts. I had a pre-show fitting at her UNBELIEVABLY beautiful flagship store a few days prior, and ended up wearing a green and pink houndstooth woollen dress, matching blazer and black silk moire shoes from her AW23 collection to attend the show. The lovely portrait below was captured post-show by Edd Horder :)

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Early autumn dressing

Now this is always a bit tricky. For starters, I’m not even sure that autumn actually exists in the UK, if we’re keeping it a buck. It feels like we get one week of delicious pumpkin spice and cinnamon scented weather – crisp, cold mornings and clear blue skies - before plunging straight into 6 months of sideways rain and the sun packing it in at 2pm (I’m convinced the sun in the UK has Seasonal Affective Disorder).

Anyway. For that brief period of time that we’ve deluded ourselves into calling ‘autumn’ in this country, it can be tricky to dress so that you’re generally warm, but don’t end up sweating like a… (what’s something that sweats a lot? The usual ending to that phrase is ‘pig’ but Google says pigs don’t actually sweat. A ham? Hams can sweat I guess? And technically that’s a type of– oh god I’ve gone off on a tangent, sorry sorry back to the clothes). Basically I’ve decided that the best possible item you can wear at this time of year, and one that also feels like it’s got good fashun credentials is… drum roll please… the humble polo knit.

Hear me out: polo knits are thin enough and light enough that you don’t end up overheating every time you get on the tube, and as Madame Miuccia demonstrated at Prada last year (and now Signor de Sarno – check out Gucci’s recent SS24 collezione 👀) they’re actually chic as hell. You can wear them from autumn through to early spring, and they’re a good bridge between the summer months and the point in the year where you have to bring out the big guns knitwear-wise.

A brown Prada polo knit, and a grey polo on the Gucci SS24 catwalk just last week.

My recommendation is to buy one in a colour other than black/grey/navy/brown so that it feels like more of A Look, as opposed to just a top you’ve put on. For whatever reason I’m leaning towards a nice pale blue, or perhaps a tomato red. Something patterned also works - and you’re looking for a slim fit rather than anything too oversized or boxy, so you can wear them with wide leg/boyfriend jeans or loose fit trousers.

So without further ado, here are a selection of polo knits to consider adding to your wardrobe this autumn.

Let’s start with this red Ambush polo top - although I generally think the polo knit vibe is better when they’re long sleeved, I’m making an exception for short sleeves here because this one is sufficiently interesting. More red, this time from Uniqlo - this is technically a cardigan not a top, but it does have that all important slim fit, and obviously the polo neckline too. I’d wear it buttoned all the way to the top, with one or maybe two buttons undone at the bottom, and because I’m borderline obsessive about my wardrobe I’d probably switch out those black buttons for an oatmeal colour.

This arsenic green COS polo knit feels very Talented Mr Ripley IMO, no bad thing thing (unless you happen to be Jude Law). Annoyingly my preferred colourway of this & Other Stories polo – the striped version – is almost entirely sold out (fingers crossed for a restock!), but the red and green versions are also good.

This taupe cashmere Joseph knit just looks expensive, ya know? Like, it’s giving The Row - but at a fraction of the price, given that it’s currently 45% off at Net A Porter (so just under £200). And I think this cream and fuchsia Anthropologie polo cardigan is just quite sweet, and would look excellent worn with a smart pair of navy trousers.

This ribbed Bottega polo knit is the exact pale blue I had in my mind’s eye when dreaming up my ideal polo knit, and is another item worthy of an exemption to the short sleeve rule. It is hella expensive though, as Bottega tends to be - but Courrèges have a much less expensive version in a very similar colour (general availability seems to be low, but there are a few more sizes here).

Another fantasy splurge is this Gucci number, which is just the most delicious shade of red. Santa baby, etc etc. Courrèges have once again come to the rescue with their less expensive (notice how I’m not saying cheap though) short-sleeved version, available here and here.

This cream Cefinn knit feels really premium. I think it’ll look ace worn with cream trousers or a really classic blue jean. And I looooove the 1970s vibe of this (discounted) Margiela knit - although this colour combo is basically the colour scheme I’ve just painted my flat in, so I may be slightly biased there. 

I think this gradient striped Diane von Furstenburg number available on The Outnet might actually be my favourite of the lot, and will almost certainly make its way into my wardrobe soon. Again it has a Seventies vibe to it I really like. And I’d never heard of House of Bruar before but their mustard yellow polo knit is nice and autumnal, and also very affordable (although note that it’s described as cashmere-like and is in fact 100% acrylic. Do with that information what you will).

Okay. I think that’s enough polo knits. Time to talk about what to wear them with, because man cannot live on polo knits alone.

Autumn picks

Luxury leather goods brand Métier has been on my radar for a good while now, but for whatever reason I've never felt truly excited by their bags - until now. I’ve fallen extremely hard for two of their handbags: the Roma Shoulder bag, which falls just on the right side of ludicrously capacious; and the Stowaway crossbody.

I’d buy the Roma in a lovely light brown suede as I never buy suede boots anymore (too impractical - it rains too much in the UK for suede boots to be a sensible purchase!!), so this feels like a nice way of still incorporating a suede texture into an outfit. And the Stowaway’s glossy red calfskin colourway is actually sickening. Devastating. I am having sleepless nights thinking about it. Put one of these on your Christmas list, or send a link to your sugar daddy and hope for the best.

Because human beings are nothing if not a mass of contradictions, I am strongly considering these tan suede Proenza lug sole boots (on sale for 60% off in a few sizes here), or potentially this excellent and much cheaper pair from Bobbies (available in various sizes here and here) that look very similar.

I do think you could actually get away with wearing these during winter as their chunky sole lifts the suede upper quite far off the ground, so they wouldn’t absorb much water that way – plus I reckon their vague workman-y vibes mean that a bit of wear and tear probably won’t look too bad. That said, I’d still avoid wearing them out in heavy rain, and be sure to spray the hell out of them with a suede protector first. I think they’ve got a nice preppy vibe to them - that ‘back to school’ energy without being too literal about it. Think Nora Ephron as opposed to John Hughes.

Speaking of prep, I absolutely adore the styling of every single outfit in this Gigi Hadid x Net A Porter video (I actually had no idea she had a fashion brand tbh..)

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I’m equally enamoured of how she’s been styled in this SSENSE shoot – it’s giving preppy Carolyn Bessette Kennedy energy without being super literal like Sporty & Rich’s (a brand I truly loathe) frankly embarrassing latest campaign.

Maybe it’s the Nigerian in me, but on the whole I’ve always gravitated towards gold jewellery over silver. Lately though I’ve found myself more and more appreciative of the chicness of a great piece of silver (or white gold if you've got it like that) jewellery. I think the first item that turned my head was this beautiful sterling silver herringbone bracelet from NYC-based brand Nomia (don’t worry they ship internationally) I spotted a while back. There’s something so simple, elegant, but also just undeniably cool about it, and it was an immediate ‘add to wishlist’ for me.

On the right are Tiffany’s Elsa Peretti bone cuffs, which are obviously a design classic anyway, and I plan to add one (or two – a girl has to match!) to my jewellery collection some day. Not today, because I currently have no furniture and therefore no business spending £1,500 on a cuff, but someday. (This newsletter is already getting way too long so I won’t go into an overview of Elsa Peretti’s design background and the origins of her collaboration with Tiffany’s but I very much encourage you to Google and read up on her – her designs are cool as f*ck.)

These silver and gold mismatched Tory Burch sandals are a bit o’ me! One of my favourite, and most-complimented, pair of shoes I own is a mixed metal silver and gold pair of Mary Jane heels I bought from Tory Burch about four years ago. I actually love them so much I brought them with me and then wore them when I was photographed for a feature in The Gentlewoman magazine in 2020, despite there being a plethora of shoes already on set. Tory Burch’s design team have obviously taken the “if it ain’t broke…” approach and honestly, amen to that.

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I don’t think the Patos shoes are available to buy in the UK yet but they are available on their US website, which makes me think they’ll be dropping internationally at some point in the coming weeks or months. I’ll be keeping my eyes peeled, and my credit card ready. I plan to wear them with a glossy black pedicure (I am unfortunately having to take an extended break from gel manicures as my fingernails are looking mashup due to too many back-to-back shellacs over the summer, but I think black nail polish is a great colour to pair with silver bracelets or rings too).

A couple more pairs of silver shoes I’m liking the look of at the moment - these pointed wedges with a slightly weird-but-cool sculptural heel by Reformation, and these pointed stiletto heel mules by Jeffrey Campbell via ASOS, which to my eye have a nice vintage feel to them.

There's nothing I love more than a pointed shoe, though my size UK41, wide-as-hell feet sure do hate me for it. I think they’d both look excellent with a pair of boyfriend cut jeans or wide leg trousers.

On the topic of shoes - ballet pumps are an item I thought I’d safely seen the back of nearly 15 years ago. I couldn’t quite spring for French Sole as a teenager so used to buy mine from professional dance shoe shop Freed of London in Covent Garden, probably because I’d read that Alexa Chung bought hers there or something like that (they used to cost £38 back in the day but have gone up a bit in price).

However, unless you’ve been hiding under a rock for the last year or so, you’ll have spotted that ballet pumps seem to be making a comeback, courtesy of these ubiquitous (and very literal) ballet pink satin Miu Miu ones. I was pretty resistant to this trend until I came across a pair of black leather Sophia pumps by Repetto last week, and felt myself strangely… drawn to them.

The black leather makes them a bit more sedate and a lot more versatile, although Repetto also makes this style in many more colourways and materials if you’re feeling a bit adventurous. I think they’d look cool with a pleated midi kilt skirt in grey or navy - something with a bit of a school uniform feel to it, for some serious bluestocking chic. Try the Tela version on the left (only one left though!) or the 8 By Yoox version on the right.

I’ve been getting a lot of wear out of these sage green cord trousers by Nomia that I bought when I was in New York over the summer (along with a bunch of other bank balance destroying stuff - it’s a seriously cool brand). Sage green seems to be my new colour obsession, for both clothes and interiors. Something about it just feels very fresh, and not at all played out (…yet).

The Nomia pair are sadly completely sold out now, but I think this dark blue Uniqlo pair - part of their latest collaboration with former Chloe and Givenchy creative director Claire Waight Keller - are also great. I suggest sizing up and wearing them low on the hips and slightly slouchy. For a dressier evening look, I like to wear my Nomia pair sort of tucked into/tied up by a pair of strappy silver sandals, like so:

One day I will talk about the pain I feel at having missed out on these Loewe silver bow heels. As in - I was literally in the process of checking out online, having located the last pair available in my size (on sale!!) when they just sort of… disappeared from my basket, because someone else had beat me to it :(

Interiors interlude

I felt incredibly smug about snapping up this red metal Zara Home desk lamp for about £16 during their sale a few months ago.

It feels pretty Bauhaus, and I think it’ll make a nice addition to my study, though it could potentially end up on one of my bedside tables too. It is sadly long sold out, but something about it made me feel like it was probably heavily “inspired” by a vintage design - and it turns out I was correct. I did some digging and it’s pretty much a direct rip of this vintage G&G lamp (which is technically a wall light but I think will work just as well on a desk).

There’s currently one going for less than £50 on Etsy at the moment, and if you search Etsy and eBay (or set up some alerts) I’m sure you'll get your hands on one in no time at all - I don't think they’re particularly rare. Also - how nice to be able to buy the original version of a high street knock off for once! I am keeping my Zara lamp though.

And finally, sticking with my current love of all things silver - or in this case stainless steel - I really like Danish brand Georg Jensen’s homeware line, which is surprisingly well priced. I saw a picture in a magazine somewhere and was expecting it to be far more expensive than it is (though their prices are definitely still firmly within “treat yo’self” territory). I feel like they’d make a good wedding or housewarming gift (to all my friends reading this - I swear that’s not a hint). I’ve got my eye on this elegant stainless steel pitcher and the matching carafe.

They also do a version of that pitcher in actual silver for a cool £29,000 (no that isn’t a typo), a price point that genuinely made me burst out laughing on the bus when I saw it. What can I say - I was very amused!

Okey doke - I think that’s enough from me. I’ll be back in your inboxes next month with an issue focusing on how and where to find luxury brands on the cheap, and a selection of some of my favourite discounted designer bargains. That newsletter (and subsequent issues, with occasional exceptions) will only be available to paid subscribers, so if you fancy reading it… you know what to do.

Thank you for reading - and happy shopping!