In the latest chapter of A Model Moment with Sophia Aerts, we meet Charlotte Richman, 21. Originally from Dorset, she moved to Brighton at 18 to do an art course and after one year moved to London to pursue modeling.

On London

My favourite place in London is Love Walk around Camberwell, where I often go to the Love Walk Café with my housemate. Sometimes we have Malibu on the rocks at an inappropriate hour in the morning and walk all the way to Herne Hill market, eat burgers and sit in Brockwell Park smoking and laughing at passersby.

I also love the Grant Museum of Zoology, which is full of weird and wonderful things, such as taxidermy and jars filled with bugs.

On style

My style completely changes week to week. Sometimes I’m very tomboy and punky and kind of scruffy, at other times I love to look 60s with shift dresses and jackets and heavy eye makeup with little shoes.

The last thing I bought was some blue and white big striped jeans from Mango in Istanbul. They remind me of a shirt my mum used to were when I was little. Designer-wise, I love Paul Smith.

You’ll aways find milk and diet pepsi in my fridge for tea and hungover mornings, plus ham and halloumi.

I absolutely hate it when people say ‘emotional roller coaster’.

fmlondon.net

Make up by Gillian Campbell using Jurlique Skincare and Bobbi Brown Cosmetics

Hair by Ditte Lund Lassen using Bumble and Bumble.

Tags: A Model Moment, Fashion, london

Sneakers and running shoes have been an unexpected trend that has spread like wildfire in both the fashion circles and on the high street, and it seems that many consider them to be well and truly here to stay. Well, that’s what lifestyle retailer Pam Pam thinks, at any rate.

Last week, they launched the first women’s only sneaker store in the UK, 1,500 sq foot space located in Bethnal Green, featuring 10 footwear brands including adidas, Reebok and New Balance. Not limited to just footwear, the store will be home to accessories and clothing from a wide variety of expertly curated, well known and independent labels, including the Australian brand Vanishing Elephant, Bethnals and Penfield.

The store’s founders, Bethany Heggarty and Rio Holland, hope to enrich women’s lives; aside from their tightly edited selection of clothing and accessories, they will be providing different opportunities, such as yoga classes, workshops, music sessions and cultural events.

Trainers, clothing, yoga and female empowerment – a fashion and lifestyle concept that’s not just for kicks.

Pam Pam, 129 Bethnal Green, London E2 7DG

pampamlondon.com

Tags: Fashion, Feminism, lifestyle, Pam Pam, Trainers

Strangely moving and beautifully composed, Savage Beauty is the most fitting homecoming for fashion’s rare bird.

Just as complex as the man himself and just as deeply layered, the V&A’s retrospective of the late great Lee Alexander McQueen is as powerful as it is poignant. At the time of writing 70,000 advance tickets had already sold for Savage Beauty. So far, that’s 3,000 more than the V&A had sold during the same period for David Bowie Is… It says something when a fashion designer can outsell a rock icon.

This amplified version of the original exhibition staged at The Met in 2011 has been fittingly expanded to begin at the beginning, with McQueen’s hometown and the raw, scratchy, seedy energy of London. You can trace a line through McQueen’s growth as a designer from his Central St Martins MA collection, inspired by backstreet debauchery, through to the exquisite aristocratic and ornithological references that chime with his complex relationship with Isabella Blow. Brutally beautiful rather than conventionally so, McQueen effectively reprogrammed femininity.

Almost twenty years of transformative and transgressive design are here and the iconic garments come thick and fast, from the goose feather coat dipped in gold to the bumster trousers and the crocodile head epaulettes. Animalistic and erotic, the pieces feel real and three-dimensional in ways that many fashion garments fall short in this kind of setting. Layered thick with references, implied and explicit, they transcend ready to wear. There are over 240 garments showcased over the ten rooms, including 70 additional pieces that particularly resonate with the London homecoming. Exhibition designers Sam Gainsbury and Joseph Bennett have taken a thematic route through McQueen’s archive, creating theatrical spaces that are powerfully evocative of his most recognisable influences.

A Cabinet of Curiosities exposes many of McQueen’s most memorable garments, including some he created for Givenchy. At the heart is the rotating dress from his Spring/ Summer 1999 No. 13 collection, in which Shalom Harlow was famously sprayed by robots. Soaring up to the ceiling are 120 other pieces, but emphasis is placed on highlighting the sculptural jewellery and headwear accessories created by long-time collaborators Philip Treacy and Stephen Webster. The association with McQueen seems to even elevate these two master craftsmen, standing on the shoulders of a giant. The exhibition ends with McQueen’s final collection, Plato’s Atlantis (Spring/Summer 2010), which in retrospect feels like the pinnacle of his fascination with anthropomorphic metamorphosis. And those armadillo shoes will define him – and the label –  long, long after his death.

The poignancy of his brief genius resonates through a re-staging of the Kate Moss hologram that closed the Widows of Culloden Autumn/Winter 2006 show; an ethereal wisp of cheekbones and organza floating mid-air finally drifts off into the distance and disappears into the black solar system. It’s a fitting metaphor for a designer whose star shone brighter than most, but who was ultimately consumed by his own personal tragedy.

Savage Beauty is at the V & A Museum until 2nd August 2015. 

vam.ac.uk

Tags: Alexander Mcqueen, Savage Beauty, V & A

Two major fashion retailers hailed the start of something new last week, with Selfridges unveiling its new ‘Agenda’ store concept and thecorner.com announcing plans to create a no gender area on the website in June.

Selfridges launched a three-storey Agender space designed by Faye Toogood, starting in the Beauty Hall. The space will be home to items specially selected by their buyers as suitable for both men and women, as well as exclusive offerings from 5 unisex labels: Bodymap, Underground, Nicopanda, Rad Hourani Haute Couture and Toogood. Other featured designers include Twin favourites Comme des Garçons, Ann Demeulemeester and cutting edge Hood By Air.

The launch was accompanied by the release of an Agender film, featuring original music by Devonte Heynes.

Creative director Linda Hewson, said that the campaign ‘challenges the future of shopping at Selfridges,” which sounds similar to thecorner.com’s support of a new approach to shopping that goes beyond the gender divide.

The luxury online boutique prides itself on being forward-thinking and will open a brand new section dedicated to gender-neutral clothing. From Rad Hourani to Yohji Yamamoto, their expertly curated selection will allow you to choose according to personal taste rather than being influenced by a male-female dichotomy.

selfridges.com

thecorner.com

Tags: androgynous, Selfridges, thecorner.com

In this short film, Larsson & Jennings take a look into the lives of fashion influencers Camille Charrière and Pernille Teisbaek during their busiest time of year, fashion month.

The video, which is the latest in their Time With series, gives us an insider’s perspective, showing us just how these best friends and bloggers schedule their time and fit in all the glamorous shows. We see the street style scene from the inside out, their opulent home away from home at The London EDITION and all their luxurious accessories and ensembles, ready to be shown to the world.

larssonandjennings.com

Tags: Camille Charrière, Larsson & Jennings, Pernille Teisbaek, The London EDITION

Those who like to maintain cutting-edge style at all times, including whilst sweating out last night’s cocktails on the treadmill, should take note of a brand new collaboration between NikeLab and Sacai.

Founder Chitose Abe has carefully mined the Nike archives, directly pulling designs from running, tennis and American football, before re-imagining them in keeping with Sacai’s feminine and modern image.

The 8-piece women’s collection will include the Tech Fleece crew, Tech Fleece hooded sweatshirt with zip, Windrunner jacket, Sport Skirt, Graphic tee, Tech Fleece dress, Tech Fleece crew top with back zip and Tech Fleece pant, plus a not-to-be-missed reworking of the iconic Air Max silhouette.

Both Nike and Sacai have fabric innovation and functionality at the core of their brands, so the collaboration comes as an extremely exciting development in the world of women’s sportswear – leaving you no excuses to not get to the gym.

NikeLab x Sacai launches in stores in New York, London, Paris, Milan, Hong Kong, and Shanghai as well as online on March 19th. 

nike.com/NikeLab

Tags: NikeLab, Sacai, sportswear

As fashion month comes to an end we take a final look at Paris, and in particular the A.P.C. presentation. Here, photographer Alex Brunet shows us what we can expect from the elegant yet hip brand come autumn.

apc.fr

Tags: A.P.C., Alex Brunet, AW15, PFW

Our backstage series continues in Paris, where Twin sent photographer Alex Brunet to capture the behind the scenes highlights of Humberto Leon and Carol Lim’s autumn/winter 2015 presentation for Kenzo.

kenzo.com

Tags: Alex Brunet, AW15, Kenzo, PFW

In the last video of Moda Operandi’s Fashion Firsts series, we look to AndréLeon Talley and the firsts that would go on to shape his momentous career.

modaoperandi.com

Tags: AndréLeon Talley, Moda Operandi

Next in our photography series we meet Xiaomeng Huang. Xioameng is just 25, and hails from Beijing. Signed to Viva London, the young model travels a lot and finds herself in different cities constantly. London is still new to her, but something drew her to Covent Garden, and more specifically Seven Dials. Previously walking for designers such as Louis Vuitton, Moschino Cheap & Chic, Temperley, Thomas Tait, Hussein Chalayan and Marc Jacobs, Xiaomeng is set to have a long and burgeoning career.

Here, photographer Sophia Aerts captures Xiaomeng just as she is; a model in London town.

On London

My favourite place in London is Covent Garden. I really like the colourful shops, coffeehouses and all the young people. A friend recommended the area to me, and I fell in love with it. I also like Oxford Street and London’s vintage shops.

On style

In terms of style, I’m quite casual and easy-going. I’m always smiling, which I think is better than any fashion accessory. The last thing I bought was a wrap from Uterque, but I love anything by Phoebe Philo or from Yves Saint Laurent. I love to paint – I would never be able to give it up. My other indulgences are facemasks and chocolate.

viva-paris.com

Hair & Make-up by Michelle Dacillo

Tags: A Model Moment, Sophia Aerts, Viva London, Xiaomeng Huang

Diane von Furstenberg is a fashion industry icon. Here, in an exclusive video series by Moda Operandi, we learn about her Fashion Firsts, those moments that would go on to shape her career.

modaoperandi.com

Tags: Diane von Furstenberg, Moda Operandi

Dior & I follows Raf Simons as he started his role as Creative Director at one of the most infamous fashion houses. Filmmaker Frédéric Tcheng captures those first moments working for the brand and continues up until his first haute couture collection was presented to the world.

This soon to be released documentary gives you insider access into the mind of a designer, but also shows how everything from the ateliers to communications find a way to work together and create something as magical as a couture fashion show.

Dior & I is released on March 27th 

diorandimovie.com

Tags: Dior, Raf Simons

All this week we are posting exclusive Fashion Firsts videos from luxury online retailer Moda Operandi. Second on our list is American designer Zac Posen. Still to come are AndréLeon Talley, Diane von Furstenberg, and Carlyne Cerf de Dudzeele.

modaoperandi.com

Tags: Moda Operandi, Zac Posen

It’s highly likely that every wardrobe contains a much loved, battered pair of Converse, if not two.  This week, the iconic brand continues to cement itself at the cutting edge of cool with the launch of Made by You in London.

The campaign celebrates how each pair of Converse starts off as a blank canvas, before each stain, each tear and scuff, becomes a self-portrait of its owner. Fans across the world have offered their Chuck Taylors for sneaker portraits, and the resulting exhibition showcases the diversity of the wearers and their stories.

Converse have curated a selection of the sneaker portraits by international icons including Patti Smith, Jefferson Hack, Andy Warhol and Glenn O’Brien, as well as British representatives from various fields including Agi & Sam, Sibling, Sean Frank, Sam Taylor and Shay Ola. Each person has also shared their Six Word Story, a snapshot of their Chucks experience and life attitude.

Chuck fans in the UK now also have their own chance to celebrate their stories and their sneakers, as London-based artist Damilola Odusote will create an original Made by you art installation in Shoreditch.

The resulting exhibition features thousands of polaroids of Londoners wearing their Chucks and sharing their Six Word Stories, assembled into a structure of London’s iconic outline. 
Supported by students from Central Saint Martins, Damilola will construct the installation by hand within a gallery space on London’s Shoreditch high street.

3 – 10 Shoreditch High Street, London E1 6PG

converse.co.uk

Tags: Art, Converse, Shoreditch High Street

First up in Moda Operandi’s exclusive video series, Fashion Firsts, is Naomi Campbell. Watch her divulge her career beginnings in the video above. Industry icons Zac Posen, André Leon Talley, Diane von Furstenberg, and Carlyne Cerf de Dudzeele’s videos are still to come. Watch them on Twin all this week.

modaoperandi.com

Tags: Moda Operandi, Naomi Campbell

As the fashion pack decamps to Paris for the next round of Autumn / Winter 15 womenswear shows, Twin revisits London Fashion Week – the off-guard moments, the new stars of design and the risk-takers who made us sit up and take notice.

1205

Back to Winter basics was the theme for designer and NewGen recipient Paula Gerbase this season, as her signature androgynous vision continued with structured tailoring, loose fit trousers and knitwear taking the form of longer-length dresses, high polo necks and a sleeveless knit tunic. Utility detailing worked against the neutral colour palette of chalky whites, navy and grey, as the Barbican’s glass roofed conservatory provided a leafy sanctuary and tropical oasis of calm during a hectic fashion week – a setting which blended perfectly with this effortlessly understated collection.

1205.eu

Charlie May

Turning her presentation into a live lookbook shoot – complete with photographer Yuvali Thesis and illustrator Clym Evernden capturing the moment – Charlie May invited the audience behind the scenes into her world of clean-cut modernism. Set in Mayfair’s art-deco inspired Beaumont Hotel, the collection presented an oversize silhouette as generous shapes framed the body in a mix of shearling, leather and rich wools – the emphasis was on tactile textures, quality cuts and winter seen through a fresh minimalist focus.

charlie-may.co.uk

Helen Lawrence

Experimenting with the concept of deconstruction of textural fabrics, the designer drew inspiration from the tape-wrapped sculptures of British artist Phyllida Barlow.

Creating a collection which included oversize silhouettes in lambswool and elastomeric yarn, raw unfinished holes were left in the garments, paired with heavy leather boots by Kult Domini, evoking a woolly 90s grunge aesthetic.

Set against a landscape of meteor-like rocks, her vision transformed Chelsea College of Arts into a post-apocalyptic playground, with the odd pop of gold bleeding through the romantic darkness.

helen-lawrence.co.uk

Christopher Raeburn 

We are sailing was a key reference for Raeburn’s nautical-inspired collection, Immerse, which continued the theme from his AW15 Menswear show, offering a bold exploration of the textures, shapes and colours associated with a life on the seas. A merino wool cape, puffer jacket, pea coat and duffel coat all reinvented the sailor aesthetic, in muted blues and life-jacket orange.

His shark print motif was in full effect across knitwear and jumpsuits while fur detailing and long ponchos injected a casually luxe elegance into his signature mix of modern technical outerwear. Shark-shaped bags and mittens gave things a playful twist. Aye aye captain.

christopherraeburn.co.uk

Joseph 

The basement of a Soho car park complete with silver foil blankets for warmth, provided the setting for Joseph’s take on desconstructed femininity – and the blanket association didn’t stop there. Across an almost nude colour palette, heavy knits and blanket fabrics seamlessly blended with silk, fur and cashmere to evoke an organic cozy familiarity, as hard oversize masculine cuts played against the softness, unravelling a seductive femininity – inspiration drawn from the work of sculptor Robert Morris.

In a collection which included threadbare knits with drop-stitching, fur tunics and blanket dresses, all worn with velcro strap sandals and thick woolly ankle socks, it evoked the feeling of coming in from the cold, with added comfort.

joseph-fashion.com

Sibling  

Do you wanna be in their gang? Yes please. The Sibling trio continued to put the fun into reworked classics, with an energetic collection which fused a myriad of textural styles, including signature cobwebbed knits, fuzzy furs, lyrically-splashed polished latex and a reinvented tweed two-piece in knitted lurex.

Drawing inspiration from the vibrant hues of the late Danish furniture and interiors designer Verner Panton, 80s neon pinks and sherbet oranges called for attention across colour-block knits, slinky knit dresses and skinny scarves, as detailing from beaded brooches and badges evoked those Saturday trips to Camden Market as a teenager, the one with only DIY on your mind. Slim and sexy silhouettes injected glamour into a collection which celebrated being too cool for school, complete with punk-edged mohawks.

The signature slogan sweater made its entrance too, paying homage to the show’s soundtrack by Blondie – Call Me it said, and if you saw one of Sibling’s girls hanging out at a party… you would definitely try to get her number.

siblinglondon.com

Ashley Williams 

From behind a key-hole underneath a neon sign that read “Ashley’s”, out stepped Georgia May Jagger and Alice Dellal along with a gang of cool cultish skater girls, transporting you back to the future, as 80s and 90s references signified a collection which celebrated subverting conventional dress codes. Taking inspiration from riot-grrl founder Kathleen Hanna, actress Chloe Sevigny and the 1985 Beastie Boys track, Girls, out came leather corsets (think vice and all things nice), heavy metal tees, neon pink cropped jumpers, fur bucket hats, vampish PVC dresses, leggings with knee holes, mini dresses decorated in patches, cartoon face print dresses and knit jumpers and skirts featuring graphics by Fergus Purcell.

This was in no way a bubblegum sweet collection, it was hard and fast for girls with a bold attitude who aren’t afraid to express themselves, defined by bratty slogans like “Improve Your Image. Be Seen With Me.” Now that’s confidence for you.

ashleywilliamslondon.com

Ashish

Who knew that stripper chic could be so covetable, as a troupe of sassy girls stomped out clad in a powerful and provocative collection which drew inspiration from Jane Fonda’s character Bree Daniels, in the cult 70s movie Klute.

Signature sequin embellishment took on a new form across pumped-up camouflage parkas, mini skirts and jumpers with fur trims, while stonewashed denim was roughed up for the streets, cut into dresses, jackets and lace-up jeans decorated with stud detailing. Boudoir-ready nighties with lace trimming sent the temperature soaring, along with lipstick-red latex boots and a patchwork fur slogan jumper which simply read, “Sex” – watching this collection, you couldn’t help but have it on your mind.

ashish.co.uk

Topshop Unique

There’s a new cocktail in town and it’s called ‘Topshop Unique’, as the fashion powerhouse blended one part outdoorsy daytime English heritage with one part slinky night owl, serving up a decadent mix of sexed-up kilts, vinyl miniskirts, dandelion print dresses with thigh-high slits, marabou trimmed dresses, embellished velvet frocks, Aran knits, retro roll necks and faux fur-lined duffel coats.

Mixing the conventional with the unconventional, this was a gilded happy hour full of posh girls from the countryside who come to the city to party (yah yah), kicking off their red square-toed velvet shoes at the end of the night. We’ll cheers to that.

topshop.com

Tags: 1205, ashish, Ashley Williams, AW15, Charlie May, Christopher Raeburn, Helen Lawrence, Joseph, LFW, Sibling, Topshop

In a funny and candid video series, Moda Operandi speaks to industry icons Naomi Campbell, Zac Posen, André Leon Talley, Diane von Furstenberg, and Carlyne Cerf de Dudzeele, as they detail the pivotal moments that launched their careers.

Moda Operandi is the first online luxury retailer to make shopping straight from the runway possible. In this video series Fashion Firsts, produced by Moda Operandi Media Manager Bettina Santo Domingo, we hear about other firsts such as walking Marc Jacobs’ first show at NYFW and meeting Diana Vreeland. We discover why these moments hold such weight and why they remain meaningful today.

Lauren Santo Domingo, Co-Founder of Moda Operandi describes how “nothing in fashion is ever as thrilling, nerve-racking, exciting, or scary as your very first time”.

Moda Operandi is calling us all to join in the conversation, asking everyone to share their own fashion first by posting an image or video on Instagram with the hashtag #ModaFirst.

All next week we will be revealing a different Fashion Firsts each day. 

modaoperandi.com

Tags: André Leon Talley, Carlyne Cerf de Dudzeele, Diane von Furstenberg, Moda Operandi, Naomi Campbell, Zac Posen

Design duo Marques’Almedia’s catwalk presentations are always a highlight on our London Fashion Week schedule, and this season was no different. Twin photographer Sophia Aerts captured the show and all its glorious details.

marquesalmeida.com

Tags: AW15, LFW, Marques Almeida, Sophia Aerts

Our London Fashion Week series continues with Thomas Tait. As the first LVMH Young Fashion Designer Prize winner, there was much speculation as to what he would create for AW15. Sophia Aerts went backstage to find out.

thomastait.com

Tags: AW15, LFW, Sophia Aerts, Thomas Tait

Next up in our backstage series is Michael van der Ham. Twin sent Sophia Aerts to capture the stunning autumn/winter 2015 designs about to walk the catwalk in the grand salon of the Tate Britain.

michaelvanderham.com

Tags: AW15, LFW, Michael van der Ham, Sophia Aerts