Lazy Oaf AW12 - Totally Falling for their Skulls & Smileys

Any regular readers will know how much I adore Lazy Oaf and their fun, flirty fashion so, the Autumn/Winter 2012 collection has just arrived in stores and on their website www.lazyoaf.co.uk, here are the main pieces going on my wish list although I have major love for the bandana pieces which will be appearing on my Huffington Post blog soon.

Above: Lazy Oaf Skull Repeat Skater Dress, £65;  Below: Have a Nice Day Knitted Cardigan in Blue, £70;  Bottom: Colour Panel Bomber Jacket, £70

Gerald Darel Gives Great Animal Print

Gerald Darel is one of those brands I always walk past in department stores, dismissing it as something my mum would wear but there's one thing I do think they do really well and that's animal print.  

The new AW12 collection is a lot more youthful than anything I've seen from them before and has some great, tasteful animal prints like this snake print silk shirt (£155) and peplum leopard print top (£120).  There's the most wonderful cerulean leopard print dress in the window of their Sloane Square boutique too but nothing online yet.

Available in sizes 8-18 and from various department store concessions as well as their own stores, it's definitely worth a look.

McQ Does Twilight Style For Pre-Fall 2012 Collection

McQ by Alexander McQueen has moved so far away from its denim diffusion line roots; it's still youthful and more affordable than Alexander McQueen mainline (although more expensive than it used to be, though I guess that's to be expected when you start using eg. silks instead of denims) but the designs are nothing like the street wear we've seen from this label in the past. The only theme which seems to remain from McQ's early days is the occasional nod to rockabilly styling and silhouettes.

The McQ Pre-Fall 2012 collection has just gone on sale today and draws heavily on the British fashion house's signature gothic glamour, mixed with a hearty dose of Twilight style inspiration in some of the key pieces, like this wolf print Silk Satin Wolf Rockabilly Dress, £610, and the eerie, scratchy, smokey monochrome x-ray motif of the Black X-Ray Cap Sleeved Dress, £210 also pictured above.

Check the collection out online now at www.alexandermcqueen.co.uk/mcq/ - I'm all over the blood red safety pin knit dress (£275) and the black zip kilt (£300) is a modern classic.  Sarah Burton is totally smashing it with her McQ makeover right now - and just wait til you see the AW12 collection...

Charlotte Free Hair Envy & Jeremy Scott x Adidas Originals Hot New SS12 Drops

Jeremy Scott, Adidas, Charlotte Free, trainers with wings - these are a few of my favourite things and here they all are, together, topped off with some awesome star spangled banner hair. It's like my birthday list come to life.

NB. It's my birthday next week folks, so if anyone fancies having a whip round, I'll take any or all of the below. All available from www.adidas.com CHEERS! :)

Left: Adidas Originals by Jeremy Scott stars and stripes swimsuit, £65 

Below: Charlotte Free and her wicked stars and stripes sprayed hair, models the Jeremy Scott x Adidas Originals Jukebox dress, £280 (place your bets now as to how long it'll take for Katy Perry to be photographed in this - not long I'm guessing...)

Top left: Denim JS Wings, £140 (also available in kids' sizes, £72), 

Middle: Super fan tongue Jeremy Scott x Adidas Originals Instinct Hi's in yellow, 

Far right and bottom:  Adidas Originals x Jeremy Scott Wings 2.0 USA, £155 (£72 for kids' sizes)

Below: It's that hair again... Graphic Jeremy Scott x Adidas Originals dress, £85, worn with pink workboots also from the Spring/Summer 2012 Jeremy Scott for Adidas Originals collection.

DOLAN 'CONFETTI' DRESS - SPORTY SEQUINS

I gotta get me one of these!  Sporty AND sparkly - and comfy too!  This sequinned pull on Confetti dress by LA based brand Dolan is a wicked wardrobe staple and ties in well with the sports luxe trend that's so big for Spring / Summer.  Wear with wedge heeled trainers or fat tongued hi tops and a high pony. The dress drops at www.nylaboutique.com on Monday (23rd January) and will be £125.

GUYS & DOLLS, GET RETRO WITH BANANA REPUBLIC x MAD MEN

Grab yourself a whisky sour or a gimlet royale and get ready for Mad Men to hit the High Street!

The international TV smash's award-winning costume designer, Janie Bryant, has produced a Mad Men collaboration with Banana Republic, that's due in store in two weeks’ time. 

Bryant's highly acclaimed, trend shaping work dressing the show's small screen icons - Betty and Don Draper et al - has won her a host of accolades, including an Emmy.

This super chic range comprises both women’s and menswear, from classy, classic little Fifties frocks and fancies for the broads to cocktail king lounge suits and a full on tux for the Joes.

The high-end American High Street fashion chain’s Mad Men collection showcases affordable, vintage-looking finery without any hints of dress up - or nasty smells.

For those of you based in the US, you can already get your hot little hands on the apparel and accessories right now - a fortnight early - thanks to the members-only premium sale site, Gilt.

The looks in these images, courtesy of Gilt, give you an idea of some of the treats we can look forward to with accessories such as shoes, bags, tie pins, money clips, fedoras and, of course, neck scarves to add the perfect retro flourish.

I am totally after the leopard print cardis and the slinky black dress – so Joan Harris – which look gorrrrgeous.  Although the little Betty-esque lace number caught my eye initially, in close up it looks rather like the same material used in the lace prom dresses Rodarte did for Target a while back, both of which I bought, which is disappointingly cheap and stretchy-nylon-y.  Let’s hope Banana Republic didn’t make the same mistake.

Preview pieces available online now until Wednesday at Gilt.com with the full mens and womenswear collection to follow online and instore at Banana Republic shortly.

In the meantime, if you need a little Mad Men hit, I highly recommend getting the boxsets on Blu Ray so you can fully appreciate Janie Bryant’s magnificent vintage fashion masterclasses in even greater detail, or download Rjd2's “A Beautiful Mine’, which that unmistakable theme tune is excerpted from, in full from iTunes.

FASHION GEOMETRY - IT'S HIP TO BE SQUARE

Join the square set with some of the most eye-catching, kaleidoscopic designs around right now...

Converse x Marimekko All Star Hi's, £65 from Size?

Josh Goot for Asos silk shift dress, £80

Missoni Manila Square garden cushion, £135 available at Selfridges

Stella McCartney knitted geometric dress, £550 available from Selfridges

Don't let the fact that Cher Lloyd has been spotted in this recently put you off...

...this fantastic Lazy Oaf Aztec necklace, £30

Herve Leger geometric bandage dress, reduced to £732 in the Net-A-Porter sale

TopShop red printed leggings, £20

Check out Kate Moross's etail store for loads of great graphic T's (above, £15), sweatshirts...

...watches, like this one she designed for Firetrap (£100)  and prints etc. 

Etro silk blouse, £265 at Net-A-Porter

FRENCH CONNECTION CREATES A FIERCE FROCK FOR ALL YOU BEDROOM BEYONCES

French Connection's new collection includes the perfect gold sequinned wrap front party dress which is practically made for hitching up over a pair of giant black pants/spanx, sticking a thick black belt on and recreating Beyonce's glittering Glastonbury appearance in the privacy of your own home.  (NB. it's a lot more golden and less cold looking than it appears in the rather disappointing FrenchConnection.com image above)

You know you want to.

Golden Samantha Sequin dress, £160 from French Connection and stockists now.

WEAR TO START: SHOPPING THE LONG SLEEVED 60'S SHIFT LOOK

Reader Query:  
"I have £250 to spend on a dress, and I want quite a 60’s looking one, maybe a mini dress but with long sleeves, could you suggest anyone/anywhere?"
Amy, London.

Sarah Says...

So Florence (& the Machine)! Love it!  The mod trend is still emerging with A-line shifts, Peter Pan collars and pailettes all firmly featured in major Autumn/Winter 2011/12 collections from the likes of fashion titans Versace, Prada, Yves Saint Laurent, Bottega Veneta and Alberta Ferretti. (pictured below).

If you can hang on a few more weeks then you'll have a lot more choice as these catwalk designs filter down to a more affordable level. However, although Spring/Summer 11 generally has more of a 70's vibe, if you want to get in early and snap up something now, there are a few first wave 60's style, long sleeved mini dresses and tunics that are currently in the sales you can make your budget go even further. Here's a round up of a few of my favs for up to £260...

Tibi Twiggy dress, £260 from £372 at My-Wardrobe.com

DKNY shift, £221 from £442 at My-Wardrobe.com

Coast, Rapunzal shift, £115

Day, Birger et Mikkelsen, £129 from £229 at Matches

Moschino Cheap & Chic, £240 from £400 at Net-A-Porter

Diane by Diane Von Furstenberg, Vintage Collection silk shift, £132 from £265  Matches  

Pleated shift, available in cream, grey and coral for £18, or black for £40 from ASOS

Lastly, a slightly more 70's version but still super cute and can be styled more 60's - Winter Kate silk shift £195 from ASOS

Catwalk images courtesy of Style.com