Hi everyone!

So you may have noticed that there has been a complete lack of posts within the last month or so, I'm so sorry about that! I'll also be taking a short hiatus from today (29th Oct) until 18th Nov as I have my final high school exams.

I promise as soon as I finish my exams, I'll be blogging obsessively non-stop! So check back during mid-November, I have some really great and exciting posts planned for Sassy & Hip!

Have a great day and thank you so much for reading my blog!

Adeline xxxx

Christopher Bailey's reign over Burberry

Source: Getty / Antonio de Moraes Barros Filho

Christopher Bailey's latest appointment as both Chief Executive officer and Chief Creative director of Burberry has caused a lot of controversy. As the decision was announced, it was reported that Burberry's stocks fell more than 7%. So why is there so much angst surrounding this decision?

Designers/creative directors/Chief Creative Officers have very limited power when it comes to management in the financial and administrative sense. I remember that I once heard Tom Ford say in an interview that when he first was appointed creative director of Gucci, one of the terms in his contract was that he would not be allowed to become the public face behind the brand. In fact, it was stated in his contract that he was not even allowed to make a public appearance at his shows for Gucci. Ford completely disregarded this clause in his contract and successfully transformed Gucci, a once struggling luxury brand, into what it is known as now. Between 1995 and 1996 sales at Gucci increased by 90%. During that period, in October 1995, Gucci went public with an IPO offering $22 per share. Although the label of Creative director implies limited power in regards to administration and management of Finance, Gucci allowed Ford the power to buy shares in other fashion companies (within reason). This enormous power instilled by Gucci into Ford, a rather risky move, proved to be extremely beneficial towards Gucci in the long term. 

With a success story such as Tom Ford at Gucci, coupled with Christopher Bailey's already successful venture at Burberry. It is implied that Bailey should be able to further Burberry as a luxury retail brand into the 21st century. But, how realistic is this?

While Christopher Bailey has been instrumental in building Burberry from a small English brand known for their trench coats into an internationally recognised and highly coveted luxury retail brand, he has only been involved with the visual and creative aspect of this development. To be blunt, Bailey has not been involved with the commercial, financial and administrative aspect of the brand, in short, overseeing and managing the whole company. Until this day, Bailey has merely been involved with introducing new innovative concepts to the brand of Burberry, he has not been involved with the implementation of those concepts.

Furthermore, the two roles of Chief Executive Officer and Chief Creative Officer, have up until now, been viewed as two separate roles by Burberry for a reason. Bailey currently presents 6 collections a year; Resort, Spring  Menswear, Spring RTW, Pre-Fall, Fall and finally Fall Menswear and as Chief Creative Officer, it is no doubt that he also oversees, Burberry's other two lines; Brit and London. It will simply been too much for Bailey to take up the role of Chief Executive Officer, alongside his already demanding duties of Chief Creative Officer.

Perhaps Bailey will prove himself in a role which many doubt he will succeed in. What ever the outcome, Bailey doesn't seem too confident about his new role as Chief Executive Officer in this video-

Céline Spring/Summer 2014

Season after season Pheobe Philo has presented boxy-shapes, structured garments with fittingly appropriate palettes. During her time at Céline she has heavily re-invigorated the brand, taking it from a not-so-exciting monogrammed french luxury house, to being one of most coveted brands worldwide with a strong focus on both accessories and apparel. This season, Philo presented a collection which truly once again changed the way people think about Céline.

In this collection, there is still very much the essence of the Céline woman from seasons past, however, this season she was much bolder and daring than ever before. The collection was more lighthearted and the garments carried much more fluidity rather than the stiff-structured garments of seasons past. Yet structural silhouettes still very much appeared in this collection, however they were juxtaposed by a carefully selected print on a garment, which made the fabric carry a more fluent presence and personality. It was a tale of the old and the new. Often looks from the show would have a stiffened top half through the use of a t-shirt or coat, which would then be juxtaposed with the eloquence of a chiffon insert or skirt. This not only allows for movement to be carried throughout the whole look, from head to toe, but also is true of the chameleonic nature of the collection.

The latest offering by Phoebe Philo in Céline's Spring 2014 collection, described a tale of morality. Taking lessons from the past and applying them to the future.

Images from style.com. View the full collection here.

Chanel Spring/Summer 2014

Fashion and art was the focus of the the latest collection by Karl Lagerfeld at Chanel. There's always been a debate over whether fashion is art, personally, I believe that while fashion maintains some of the characteristics of art, I don't believe that fashion is entirely true when given the label of art. Lagerfeld very much played on this debate through this latest collection, as guests sat in the Grand Palais, they very much had to examine the difference between the faux art gallery and the garments presented. It challenged the viewers to not only form an opinion on this debate as they sat they were confronted by Lagerfeld visually. Ironically all of the artworks in the gallery were of course fake and created to be used in conjunction with the show. This choice by Lagerfeld is significant as he could have commissioned artists to capture the essence and heritage of the brand of Chanel through it's iconic No. 5 perfume, logo and Camellia flower among others. However, he chose not to. This decision insinuated his stance on the debate, perhaps fashion is the ironic or imitative sister of art.

The collection - as with all Chanel collections by Lagerfeld - centred around the heritage and history of the brand. Chanel, after all, is a house which praises and values it's heritage. Every collection seems to be a re-collection of the nostalgic years of Coco Chanel and of her achievements rather than focusing on the future of Chanel's role as a brand in the luxury retail industry. Depending on how Lagerfeld executes a show and collection, this usually falls into two categories, tiresome or invigorated. While it is of course respectful and desirable to acknowledge the origins of a brand, does Lagerfeld really need to do this with every single collection?

Dispensability really should be the focus of Lagerfeld's collections. Look at the collection in look-by-look and you'll notice that Lagerfeld has a habit of presenting 3 or 4 looks which feature the same materials, prints, colours or design. While some were scattered throughout the show, the pattern becomes increasingly apparent if you view the collection on a look-by-look basis and not in it's respective order. The collection totalled a number of 89 looks - unnecessary.

From tweed, to jersey, to lace and chiffon, Lagerfeld included them all in Chanel's Spring collection. The use of this huge variety of textiles whilst does show Lagerfeld's capacity to design with different textiles, seemed boisterous and unruly. While the colours used in this collection sprawled over continents, I'm not sure if Lagerfeld's goal is to design an entire wardrobe for a woman or just play with different textures and colours.

I've read everywhere that this collection focused on the 'modern' and 'contemporary', but with an unlikely assortment of colours, textiles and a total of 89 looks, Chanel's Spring 2014 collection proved to be once again a regression into Lagerfeld's fear of digressing from the heritage and authority of Chanel.

Images from style.com. View the full collection here.