Summer’s Covergirl Cara enjoys an Aussie summer outdoor.
Summer 2009/2010
- A Word from the Editor - Dawson Ko.
- 90 Days of Summer - Stephanie Lau.
- Looking HOT when hot - Dawson Ko.
- Fashionable Days Gallery.
- Summer Collections 2009/2010 - What's Hot and What's Not - Nicole Barron.
- A Reformed Fashion Victim - Emma Fraser.
- I Wear, Therefore I Am - Tina Nguyen.
- ipod & i - Dawson Ko.
- Fashionable Nights Gallery.
- Fashion for a Cause - Katie Preston Toepfer
- Emergency Shoe Update: From a "Girly-Girl's" Point of View - Maree Jordanoski.
- End Credits.
Sheena and the Uniform Project Team celebrating the last day of the eBay drive and the commencement of U.P's 6 month anniversary festivities ... The Uniform Project Movie.
Fashion For a Cause
Our new fashion writer Katie Preston Toepfer will continue Fashionable Eye's year long theme of sustainable fashion!
It’s often hard for one to imagine high end fashion designers using their creativity for charity rather than couture. Not that they shouldn’t, it just goes against every stereotype our culture has constructed. The fact is today we have a vast amount of designers who are doing their bit for the causes they believe in.
Collette Dinnigan, Sass & Bide and Easton Pearson are just a few of the leading Australian designers who have recently collaborated with the National Breast Cancer Foundation. Jimmy Choo have launched their PEP Collection this month with 25% of net sales from the collection being donated to Elton John’s Aids Foundation with all funds going to the Simelela Rape Centre in Cape Town.
But what about the idea of wearing the same designer dress for a year, day in day out and asking
people to sponsor you to raise money for children in India? The Uniform Project is the brainchild of
New York creative director Sheena Matheiken and design consultant, Eliza Starbuck. The basic
idea behind the project is for Matheiken to wear the same dress designed by Starbuck (there are
seven duplicates of the one design) every day for a year and receive sponsorship. The money raised
will go to the Akanksha Foundation, a 20-year-old charity which is dedicated to helping children
living in slums in India have access to an education. Every day Sheena re-works her look with odd
bod accessories and random pieces of clothing she buys or is donated. She then uploads an image
of her outfit for the day and donates $1 to the fund. Designers and artists can contact the project
and donate accessories and pieces of clothing to accompany the uniform and as a result get a bit of
a plug on the site although the majority of the accessories used are second hand as Sheena explains
“trying to not over-consume is very important.”
Eliza Starbuck, partner in the Uniform Project is a New York based design consultant who shares the same views as Matheiken on sustainable fashion and social responsibility. Together the pair are attempting to raise as much money as possible for the Akanksha Foundation urging people to go to their website, comment on Sheena’s outfits and donate. Sheena explained the reasoning behind using fashion as a way of raising money for the cause. “Fashion is such a visual and subjective medium, it offered an intrinsic draw. I consider style very much a part of self-expression and I wanted to take the daily act of dressing up, a routine everyone relates to and make it part of something bigger, something more consequential.”
Sheena wears with her uniform dress a thrifted yellow tank and leather mini, vintage tricorne hat and suede belt from eBay. Purple tights from Sockdreams and yellow cutout pumps from eBay seller, Mel's Shoppe Vintage.
Since May this year a total of US$30,000 has been raised for the Akanksha Foundation. This will keep about 40 kids in school. There is 7.5 million children in India which do not attend school. 80% of those will drop out by grade 10. The founders of the Akanksha Fund started by recruiting children from the slums in Mumbai, then Bombay, taking them to their local centres that are provided at no cost and run by two paid teachers and several volunteers. Today there are 60 of these centres which care for 60 children each. These are located in Pune and Mumbai. Sarah Roberts, President of the Akanksha Fund in America is passionate about education and everyone’s right to access it. “We all believe that the wealth of a country is in its population of educated citizens who produce and participate....we want to make sure that everyone is included.”
Sheena Matheiken grew up in the southern state of Kerala, India which is known for its highest
literacy rate in the country. It was in high school as part of an outreach program that Sheena was
taken to visit a slum in the area. “My memories were of children who were incredibly resilient,
enterprising and brimming with life despite their unfortunate circumstances.” It was this encounter
that would later encourage The Uniform Project to come to fruition. It’s good to see creative
minds lending a hand and finding new ways of fund raising for important cause like education for
disadvantaged children. Sheena explained it best, “As the age old saying goes, give a person a fish
and they eat for a night, teach them how to fish and they can eat for a lifetime.” And what better
way to raise money and get the attention of the western world than through fashion?
To make a donation and check out the fundraiser go to: www.theuniformproject.com
Katie Preston Toepfer
Musical dual ‘The Veronika’s’ wearing their Peeptoe shoes.
Emergency Shoe Update - From a "Girly Girl's" Point of View
Spending 5 minutes to read Maree Jordanoski's summer shoe article from the comfort of your own home will save you hours of walking around Westfields trying to learn what are the new trends. Maree has done all the leg work for you!
A brief overview of trends in shoes this summer in Australia.
Colour!
Statement colours have come to town with Summer! No Fluro’s are in sight (thank the lord!) however there are vibrant blues, hot pinks and bright oranges. Couple colour with more colour as although black is tempting to match things with, it tends to drain colour. Match bright blues with white and yellows to look fresh and exciting.
See attached photo for a fresh wedding idea with colour added. Currently Wittner (www.wittner.com.au) have a variety of colourful shoes including Sanction in Mariah Pink RRP $179.95.
Platform stilettos
Yes, the mini skirts are back with the warmer weather so ladies nationwide are doing everything possible to make those legs look as long as possible. They have got it right with this trend – platforms under the toe of a stiletto shoe will elongate your legs to make sure those pins look super hot. My tip for this trend is to take it slowly when shopping – If every pair of shoes you own has a platform, you may not be in luck next season as I don’t predict this will turn into a classic style. It’s more of a in-and-out fashion statement.
This style was particularly popular at the races (think Melbourne cup glamour) this year to create the illusion of super long legs with a mid length or short skirt.
Check out peep toe for some great platform stilettos. This brand is a favourite with Australian and international celebrities – see accompanying photo – The Veronica’s wearing Miss Steal a Diamond & Miss New York City. Both these shoes can be found at: www.peeptoe.com.au
Chunky on top
Reach down to your feet and touch the top. Now picture the most imaginative, bold, funky design that a shoe could put there…and that’s it! The style at the moment is chunky involving leather, studs and almost punk like designs to this unusual part of the shoe. Some things that I have seen recently include loose fitting suede ankle boots which are open toe (for summer of course) which really draws the eye onto the top of your foot. Another style is a little more gladiator with lots of straps, buckles or beads on top.
Check out this style at Wanted Show Co (www.wantedshoes.com.au). They have an interesting pair of
shoes called Kodie (by Tony Bianco) RRP $169.95 which will have your feet the feature of every outfit!
Victoria on her happiest day, wearing her bright blue shoes.
Flat open toed shoes
Yes – it’s summer and there are a number of awesome festivals around the city. The best way to keep cool is to let your tootsies breathe. So, there are a variety of open toes sandals that look uber-trendy which are also comfortable. They are available in a variety of styles so take the mental picture out of your head of the rubber thongs that your mother used to buy you from Target when you were a kid. Run your finger from the base of your ankle down to the middle of your big and second toe. This is where the first strap would come. This can come in a variety of different materials and styles including classic leather, funky metallic leather or anything shiny really (loving sequence and beads at the moment). Then straps can be anywhere else to keep it all in place – around the ankle, past the nobly little bone on the side of your ankle or simply across the top of your foot.
Another look is the Gladiator Sandal. For those who have not come across the term “gladiator” for shoes before – think of the style of shoes you would see a Roman Solider wear or something our very own Russell Crowe would wear in the movie Gladiator. Do beware with gladiator sandals as they do give the appearance of shorter legs as they cut off your legs at your ankle as opposed to allowing the eye to flow onto the foot seamlessly (creating the illusion of longer legs).
As always - make sure you keep those feet looking good for summer. Get out your beautiful Clarins
Foot Treatment Cream (available at Department Stores and leading pharmacies for RRP $40) and
pamper those feet of yours!! Also remember to keep your toe nails manicured. It doesn’t have to be
done professionally (you can keep them looking good at home for a couple of bucks). A few splashes
of a neutral nail colour (nude or light pink) will match all of your new statement shoes and go a long
way to keeping your nails looking good. If you are in a rush, make sure they are short and healthy
looking.
Until next time – Happy Summer :)
Maree Jordanoski