The Pringle of Scotland Story

It's not very often that we have a fashion exhibition held in Edinburgh, so 'Fully Fashioned: The Pringle of Scotland Story' is a must-see! It is being held at The National Museum of Scotland, and I popped along for a blogger viewing.

The exhibition marks the 200th year anniversary of Pringle of Scotland, so there's a lot of fascinating history you can learn about. The luxury knitwear brand was founded in Hawick (Scottish Borders) and originally specialised in producing hosiery and undergarments. Over the past several decades it has transformed into an iconic heritage brand, with a huge following from Brigitte Bardot to the Queen! 

Did you know that former designers of Pringle of Scotland invented the argyle print and the twin-set? We also have them to thank for leading the way in fashion after World War 1 when women were able to ditch their corsets and wear more comfortable clothing. 

I could go on, but I don't want to spoil the exhibition for you! It runs until 16th August so if you're in Edinburgh before then you should make sure you visit it. Admission is free so what are you waiting for?

Digitally printed keyboard design twinset, 2010.

Loving this cashmere ski outfit from the sixties!

1930's chemise and 1940's pants, both produced on machines for manufacturing lace.

Love from Lou Lou

Cambridge Satchel Company Event

Dress - H&M

Necklace - Urban Outfitters

Bag - Primark

Shoes - River Island

As a slight satchel addict (I own eight!), I have always admired the design and quality from The Cambridge Satchel Company. Although I don't have one of their's in my collection, attending the pop-up store in Edinburgh did tempt me to save up for one. There was a much bigger range than I could have possibly imagined, with so many colours and sizes to choose from. My favourite is the black and pink combination which you can see to the right of me in the last photo.

At the event, I was lucky enough to chat with the store manager as well as the fabulous founder of the company, Julie Deane. They filled me in on a lot about the store and products. Did you know the shops in Edinburgh and Glasgow sell exclusive satchels featuring tartan and Harris Tweed? I also found out that there is an exciting collaboration in the pipeline, so I'm looking forward to that!

The store is offering an embossing service so you can personalise your bags and accessories. We were lucky enough to be gifted leather keyrings with our initials stamped into them.

If you don't know the amazing story of how The Cambridge Satchel Company came about, you will love finding out about it in this little video. Julie Deane is such an inspirational woman!

Love from Lou Lou

Godiva's Blogger Party

On Wednesday evening, I was lucky enough to attend a lovely blogger event held at Godiva boutique on Edinburgh's Grassmarket. In my opinion, it is the most beautiful and unique shop in my hometown. There has been so much thought put into the decor, plus they stock the most amazing hand-made clothing and jewellery. 

Upon arrival, we were treated to glasses of Pimms, brownies made by Lovecrumbs and truffles made by Mary's Milk Bar. They were absolute heaven for a chocolate addict like me! We then spent a while catching up with old blogger friends and making new ones too! I love that Edinburgh is starting to build up a blogging community since more events are being held in our city. It's so much fun being a part of it. 

The activities for the night included making camera straps out of pretty vintage scarfs, and adding little charms. My camera has never looked so stylish! Also, Scottish jewellery designers Luis and Poppy from Runaway Fox talked us through their fascinating collections. Their current jewellery collection is made from castings of human body parts and dead animals. To show us the process, they got three bloggers to cast their fingers which were then turned into necklaces.  It was amazing that you could even see the detail of their finger prints. Talk about a one-off piece of jewellery!

The Runaway Fox designers doing a fab demonstration

Crab pincer necklace, castings of hands and breasts, fox's nose ring, nipple ring and crow's foot necklace

My favourite jewellery in Godiva, by And Mary

It was such a great night thanks to Godiva, and the Scottish brands that contributed. To top it all off, we each received a Godiva canvas bag filled with treats from some of the boutique's designers. Mine included a necklace from Runaway Fox's 'Flora Fatale' collection, a wasp brooch by Karen Mabon and a set of cards illustrated by Genevieve Ryan. 

My 'Angels Trumpet Fatal Flower' necklace by Runaway Fox

For those of you living outside of Scotland, you can still shop the brilliant independent designer pieces on Godiva's website here.

Love from Lou Lou

ASOS High Summer Event

It's not very often that a high profile online brand such as ASOS decides to hold a press event in Edinburgh, so it was exciting to attend one in my hometown. It was held at the suitably stylish Hotel Missoni, where we were welcomed by the PR team before we started to browse the rails.

My friend Rebecca and I had a good long look at each sample from their High Summer collections and compiled a mental list of what we want to buy when the clothing is available in May and June. There were plenty of floral prints which I am always naturally drawn towards, and it was the techniques that gave them an edge. I adored the appliqué flowers on sheer fabric with another layer of floral emerging from underneath. Some of the premium pieces were so unique with such exquisite detailing that they looked more designer than high-street. Surely it is only a matter of time before we see ASOS join Whistles and Topshop on the catwalks of London Fashion Week. Until then, take a look at some of the pieces that make me long for summer more than ever!

Love from Lou Lou

Colour Lover

Around three months ago, I revealed a behind-the-scenes video of my shoot with The Studio Agency. Now I have the photographs back and I'm so pleased with the results. I wanted to dress models Urszula and Hannah in colourful and eye-catching clothing to enhance their modelling portfolios. I'd like to say thank you to Oliver Bonas for their beautiful tropical inspired pieces.

I hope you like my styling work, which will soon be part of my Fashion Stylist portfolio on The Studio Agency's website. I am also available on their books as a model, which you can have a peek at here. 

Sunglasses - Mad Elizabeth

Crop top - Monki

Dress worn as skirt - stylist's own

Top - Oliver Bonas

Necklace - Oliver Bonas

Trousers - Topshop

Bangle - stylist's own

Dress - ASOS

Wedges - Zara

 Dress - Oliver Bonas

Shoes - Topshop

Necklace - Zara

Bracelet - Topshop

Dress - Oliver Bonas

Top - stylist's own

Bracelet - stylist's own

Necklace - Oliver Bonas

Wedges - New Look  

The Team:
Photographer: Zsofia Molnar @ The Studio Agency
Model booker: Anji Locke @ The Studio Agency
Models: Urszula Prokop & Hannah Fairgrieve
Stylist: Louise Arnot
Make-up artist: Lou Mack

Let me know what you think! 

Love from Lou Lou

Fashion Fling Look no.6

Ray-Bans - c/o McArthurGlen

Leather  jacket - Topshop Boutique

Sequined top - Lashes of London

Jacquard trousers - Lashes of London

Boots - Topshop

Hat - Topshop

This is my final look for McArthurGlen's Fashion Fling challenge, styling my Ray-Bans for a night out. I would ideally wear this out for drinks in Hoxton while visiting London. 

Blue sequins and a jacquard pattern sounds like a bad case of clashing, but somehow they work with a leather jacket thrown over, and accessories that match the clothing colours. I was particularly pleased when I discovered how perfect my boots are with the trousers. It's like they were made for each other!

I'm so relieved my hat didn't get swept away into the harbour, although it did fly off my head after these pictures were taken!

I would just like to thank the McArthurGlen team for letting me be a part of this challenge as it's been so much fun. Also, thanks to Lianne MacKay for taking such fab photos. I hope you have all enjoyed checking out my entries and wish me luck for winning the style challenge!

Love from Lou Lou