Backstage Pass

Duties included, coffee runs, taping up countless pairs of shoes and sandals with masking tape to ensure the soles were completely covered, an artform I assure you, running back and forth around the city picking up dresses and prizes from the very generous contributors for the event of the week The Respect Charity Fashion show, Mansion House Dublin. I was doing my bit and helping out Irish stylist Rosemary MacCabe for the day.

It was non stop from 10 am getting the 8 girls and 3 guys kitted out. First up was fittings and with over 8 outfits each, plus accessories, space was at a premium. Forget about personal space. The girls have to pop in and out of outfits at lighting pace, wriggingly in and out of slinky looks and then glide down the catwalk as if they’ve prepped all evening. They really carried the show & were seriously lovely to boot. Interestingly no fake tan in sight, it was au natural pale skin tones and I can attest to the fact many of the girls wore open toe tights to achieve a healthy leg glow plus it’s a canny trick to get in & out of your outfits on the double. But hats off to horse racing champion, Katie Walsh who put it up to the models turning her hand to the catwalk all in aid of charity.

Hats glorious hats from Project 51 and fab Irish designer Aisling Ahern these eye catching creations really gave the outfits the edge. Clashing and layering of accessories such as bags, Joanne Hynes collars and neon shoes lifted formal outfits from the norm and judging by the rapturous applause the crowd agreed. Job done.

The Build Up

Rosemary shows Naysha how to clip the pearls (which we had to do in about 30secs!)

More accessories layerd on by Rosemary

Fab shoes from Buffalo - only thing I’ve in common with a model is my shoe size!

What a job - how do you improve on perfection?

Scanning the Rails

Some of our treasure trove - Joanne Hynes collars

Cinderella will go to the ball - Buffalo Dublin

Naysha modelling the collar

Showtime

It’s a walk off

Milliner Aisling Aherne - fixing it

And that’s how we do it

Models from Absolute The Agency

Stunning MC on the night Pamela Flood

Festival Hosiery Inspiration

The middle of Ireland, 5th of May, warriors on horseback, May poles, willow mazes, story telling, healers, fortune tellers, a medieval village, Bressie and the Hothouse Flowers et al, was the Festival of the Fires, Mullingar Co. Westmeath, this weekend. Offically kicking off the start of Summer and season of festival fashion. A seriously chilled out, magical festival and a must for the music calandar.

Bressie & Niall Horan of One Direction

Festival Fashion

Sinead Quinn from Tipperary rocking knee high socks, stripes & this season’s must a cropped top.

Susan from Athlone in rustic tweed, brown denim and mustard cardi complimenting her yellow wellies.

Caitlin opted for layers; of chunky knit & patterned scarf picking up the star theme of her rockin sheer tights.

A star is born, Jonathan rocking his medieval look - tweed & beads.

Love the braces on the shorts, electric blue cardi, fur gilet & the extra touch of the pockets showing beneath the denim shorts. The emphasis is all on top with muted opaques to balance the look.

Just some of the amazing art dotted throughout the concert venue.

Spanx for What?

So you’ve got the dress but now you need the shapewear. But with over 200 Spanx products I’d thought I give you a helping hand. So what’s Spanx all about? First off it’s not a weight thing. Spanx allows the fabric to flow over the body and not cling in all the wrong places. It sucks you in and makes you walk tall. So addressing the dress….

Hope this guide helps you out!

Marianne xxx

My new brogues

Meeting a very stylish lady this morning so putting some thought into my outfit. So wearing my new brogues from schuh €70, a navy jersey dress bought in Barcelona years ago and ochre Jonathan Aston opaques. 

Which can you believe have sold out but fear not we’ve still got Pamela Mann mustard opaques.

Rihanna in Braces

Rihanna added some spark to what at first appeared to be a very demure outfit, white dress, black opaques and fab strappy heels with red soles as she stepped out for her first date in two years last night.

But it was the red soles which hinted at her foxier side. For what lay beneath was Pretty Polly Braced Tights.

So if you’re planning a hot date next weekend, get some of Ri Ri’s style, Pretty Polly Braced Opaques @legslove.ie and let us know how you get on!

Festival Fashion 2012 - Hippie Vibe

So the Summer festival season of 2012 kicked off in the US with Coachella this weekend.  Which gives us a head start for planning our own festival grab.. so what were the stars wearing? Well it seems they were on a bit of a Woodstock buzz….

Katy Perry: chiffon dress with undies on show

Fergie wearing a fringed waistcoat, white dress & that’s her scrummy hubbie

Ms. Hilton in a tent of a maxi skirt and jewelled bikini

Emma Roberts sported this season’s must have pyjama pants & cropped top

Vanessa Hudgens sporting sheer hold ups & must have floppy hat

Them Bones them bones need …

Saw this pic on TokyoFashion.com and immediatly started to sing that TV ad tune, them bones, them bones need calcium…. anyway I digress. I seriously wish we in Ireland would start to adopt the quirky looks of the Japanese ladies - just look at the personality in this fab look.

Cropped black leather jacket over a light gray hoodie over an X-Men graphic t-shirt, a black miniskirt, skeleton tights, and black platform heels. Accessories include a beaded bracelet, a silver necklace and earrings, and a large Louis Vuitton leather handbag.

No time like the present, ladies and gents, get your pair of limited edition Henry Holland Muticoloured bone tights from Legslove.ie to put a modern twist on goth dressing.

Break out the Summer Dresses

I’ve been asked so many times whether our sales plummet in the good weather. A legitimate question but as you know in Ireland it’s only the rare one or two weeks when you can have bare legs without coming out in a rash of goose pimples. 

What we see for example in weeks such as this is an increase in sales of coloured opaques at lower denier.Where people pick out the dominant colour in print and match with a coloured opaque. 

Or lace tights and sheers which give coverage but also allow the skin to breath.

Or pair denim cut offs with mock suspenders.

Or how about this fab look which I snapped this evening on my way out of town….  Caoimhe Paul, from Cork, with her super cool Rockabilly look. Caoimhe’s look today was inspired by the good weather. Jacket, dress and cardi are from various seasons and stores found in her wardrobe this morning! And Caoimhe’s sunkissed legs was achieved with sheer tights & cute white ankle socks.

VIP Style Awards - What’s with all the white dresses?

What was with all the white dresses last night? I know it’s defo on trend for S/S 2012 but I think the ladies should have pulled straws. It was almost like a bridal event. Lots of Angelina inspired thigh high slits also on show.

Model Aoife Coogan won best dressed on the night

Xpose presenter Glenda Gilson

Karen Koster (last nights presenter) & her Xpose co-host Lisa Cannon - what’s with Karen’s foot in this pic, does she know her ankle is broken?

Love this dress on former Miss World Rosanna Davison reminds me of the dress Amy Huberman wore to the IFTAs earlier this year.

Model Roz Purcell does an Angelina

Model Sarah Kavanagh

Do you get my drift with the white dresses? thank god for this pop of colour from TV presenter Maura Derrane from Littlewoods

Winner of most Stylish Women of the Year was Sharon Corr of The Corrs & most recently of The Voice.  Don’t think this ensemble cut the mustard on the night though - that grey jersey top just looks like something you’d pull on to go to the gym. Love the skirt but those shoes? I don’t know maybe its a quirky thing.

Latest Hosiery Collaboration

So we’ve had the quirky Henry Holland designing for Pretty Polly. Breathing youth and street cred into hosiery with his bold prints, fringing and sexy mock stockings.

Then there’s Mary Portas, of Mary Queen of Shops fame, designing with Charnos. Her leading look being the Armery. Part armour and part hosiery, the new product was created after a survey found that 75 percent of women hated their wobbly arms more than any other part of their body, and 80 percent were so self-conscious about them that they had resorted to deliberately covering up with cardigans and shawls.

And now there’s uber cool Canadian knit-wear designer Mark Fast. Jonathan Aston and Mark have just today, March 15th announced their new collaboration, Fast at Jonathan Aston.  The debut collection is the result of a year long collaboration between Mark and the Jonathan Aston team. The creative and original skill Mark has in understanding knitting techniques, together with his eye for detail and wearability, combine with Jonathan Aston’s knowledge of the hosiery market and production - for a collection of distinction.

Mark Fast says “Working with Jonathan Aston has been a great adventure of experimenting with new technologies to create sexy hosiery for a broad audience. I am excited to see how women will style these pieces”. Have a look at this clip of Mark’s A/W collection for a sneak peak at what we can expect from his hosiery. We @legslove.ie just can’t wait for A/W 2012.

http://youtu.be/Slk35Z_S8Yo