I’ll be the first to admit that it’s been another quiet month here on Rarely Wears Lipstick. When running a blog alongside a full time job, life sometimes gets in the way of writing, but this isn’t always a bad thing as I’m often filling my spare time with interesting fashion-related things. So… apart from attending several events (including a wedding) and going on a short holiday, what have I been up to this month?
- I was part of the organising committee for an academic conference on fashion and the way it intersects with many aspects of our lives.
- I presented research that I carried out with Amanda Leon-Joyce on underwear, identity and trans/non-binary gender.
- I chatted with Karolina Laskowska about vintage lingerie on Facebook Live. We were convinced it was just a 10 minute video, but it turns out we were talking for almost half an hour!
However, despite all this excitement, I did find time to compose July’s Lust List from the collections of this year’s LCF BA (Hons) Fashion Contour graduates whose work I saw earlier this month at their east London catwalk event. You can see more of their gorgeous work over on the Collective205 Instagram. Here are my top five…
1) ELLE YELTRAB by Rochelle Bartley
I was really drawn to Rochelle’s simple and highly wearable collection of monochrome sportswear for the urban woman, with its interesting fabrics and eye-catching branded elastic (see left). The full lookbook is coming soon, so follow her Instagram and keep an eye out for the ELLE YELTRAB brand launch
2) Katie Bickford-Sawkings
I first discovered Katie’s work via a post on the LCF Blog. Her unusual and surprisingly delicate graduate collection uses laser cut denim appliquéd onto sheer fabrics to create delicate close fitting garments. Katie says: “Denim is such a versatile fabric so I wanted to have a go at creating delicate underwear that still had the same classic feeling of a pair of jeans.”
3) ‘Victory Intimates’ by Louise Strudwick
I was already aware of Louise’s work, as she was one of the winners of the most recent Playful Promises design competition, but I was immediately struck by the concept behind her graduate collection (pictured top) as the range is designed to include options for trans women. For that, she got a mention in my research presentation!
4) ‘Undone’ by Rupali Pal
I could chat to Rupali for ages about her choice of fabrics and her dedication to sustainability. The pleated raw silks and textured weaves (see right) are very structural and unusual in underwear, creating striking pieces that are made to be treasured.
5) ‘Wanderlux’ by Hannah Jobbins-Hone
The gorgeous ocean colours and delicate gilded lace of Hannah’s Bali-inspired collection perfectly showcase her dedication to technical pattern cutting. If she wasn’t so good, I’m sure these beautiful fabrics would have been extremely unforgiving!
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