SNAP Fashion

Jungle fever: H&M’s conscious collection

At last a Spring collection that’s totally wearable right now! H&M’s Conscious Collection landed this week and it’s incredible. Vanessa Paradis is the face of the new collection, which features jungle scenes with lemurs and toucans as well as plenty of lush foliage. The whole range is made from sustainable materials such as organic cotton, Tencel and recycled polyester.

The prints remind me of the tiger Rousseau painting in the National Gallery or Where the Wild Things Are – I think it’s the style of the illustrations and delicate line details.

The greens will look fabulous in summer with denim or in the case of the awesome dresses, just sandals. But while the weather’s not so great, why not team some of the floaty blouses with a smart blazer or leather look jeans – my personal plan.

Vanessa Paradis models the awesome trousers £24.99

I’ll be wearing this £9.99 top with shorts come some sunny weather

Love this £9.99 scarf

The detail

Where the Wild Things Are

Trending: Hats with ears

We’re crazy for animals at Snap Fashion so any excuse to wear ears in the name of fashion is seriously great news. Louis Vuitton’s rabbit ears of previous season? Love. This season’s thing with cat ears – see Poppy Delevingne for inspiration? Brilliant. And now there is a continuing trend for woolly hats with ears. Cute and cosy, what more could be ask for?

Last year the high street was awash with amazing animal hats with faces- there was a popular panda one with pom pom ears, while the Founder and CEO opted for a cute husky beanie instead. But this year it’s all about the ears and ears only!

We love this chunky wool hat by Felix. At first glance it looks sophisticated in a weekend way, but then you notice the ears and ergo develop a sense of humour too. I have long had my beady eye on an awesome leopard-print hat with tiny ears from H&M and there will be more to choose from shortly. Here are some of our favourites…

Miaow! Poppy Delevingne

Oysho Cat Beanie Hat £15.99 from ASOS

H&M leopard hat just £7.99

Eugenia Kim felix chunky knit wool beanie £117 from net-a-porter

Pics: Asos blog, Net-a-Porter, Topshop and H&M.

Trending: Neon jewels

Neon jewellery is my new kryptonite- especially is it comes in yellow or acid green. I’m been completely smitten with Tom Binns’ pieces for ages but now there are so many cheerful options across the high street that it seems rude not to indulge in some shiny neon fashion noms.

Wear with brights or pattern clashes for a full on ‘look at me, look at meeee!’ look. Or do as I do, a fashion moderate, and team with a snuggly grey jumper. It’s a cheap and chic way of updating your outfit.

Awesome Riri painted cuff £960 by Tom Binns from Net-a-Porter

H&M necklace £7.99

Tom Binns Riri painted Swarovski crystal and stone earrings £260

My fav: Multi coloured baguette stone drop earrings £12 from River Island

Fluro Peter Pan Necklace £30 from Topshop

Earrings from H&M £5.99

Pics: River Island, Topshop, H&M, Tom Binns at Net-a-Porter.

H&M goes luxe

I’m not sure about you, but whenever we hit one of H&M’s larger stores we seek out their luxurious limited edition pieces so this news is exciting.

H&M is launching a new luxe label called ‘& Other Stories’ in Spring *squee!* and unlike its sister, the minimalistic and stylish Cos, it will only stock women’s wear.

Apparently there will be”diversified fashion collections with great attention to detail and quality at an affordable price,” which sounds great and each season the collections will be inspired by fashion stories.

Here’s the best bit, we’re promised shoes, bags, accessories and even beauty products too (as well as clothes – obv), which should be interesting.

H&M issued a statement saying: “Today, a woman with a love for fashion creates her own style. She wears things that feel right to her and reflect her personality. & Other Stories is about bringing everything she can wear into one place, focusing on the whole look. We believe shoes, bags, jewellery, lingerie and beauty are key for styling and just as important as clothing.”

We can’t wait to see the first collection. Are you excited?

Mood board

Battle of collabs: Anna dello Russo vs JW Anderson

Did you go crazy in the JW Anderson x Topshop drop? We were up early to make sure we got the pieces we wanted online (they have just arrived – yay!) and there were queues at Topshop’s Oxford Circus store. But there’s another designer/high street collection around the corner too and they’re like chalk and cheese. We reckon you’ll be picking a team!

First up, JW Anderson for Topshop. You’ll have to indulge me here.  I’m crazy for all of Anderson’s designs from his whimsical prints, powerful paisley, effortlessly chic knitwear and grungy brilliance; made especially wonderful thanks to his sense of humour. If you regularly use our app/website and drop in on our blog (and I do hope you do,) you’ll know that team Snap Fashion is crazy for animals on clothing.

So we are gaga for the collection’s tortoise print separates, cute kitty trousers and I’m in ecstasy over the sporty separates- the perfect varsity-style jacket, quilted paisley tops, humorous jumpers and the little black skirts, which will make the work wardrobe that much cosier and easier this winter and will layer-up a treat. And then there’s the signature tartan and the duffel bag…which might play a part in enticing me back to the gym.

Here’s some of our top picks (trust me, it was like choosing a favourite child).

Batty for this collection

Paisley top £59

JWAndersonjacket £129

JW Anderson square print trousers £49.99

And now for something completely different. Anna dello Russo’s opulent collection lands in H&M on 4 October and is all about maximalism, gold, bright enamel, gold, turquoise, gold, baroque, more gold…got it? It’s one for glamour girls who like to stand out and love the Vogue Japan editor’s inimitable style. I love the chandelier earrings and statement emerald necklace (that I would wear with a shabby Breton tee) but am leaving the rest to the glossy possie…especially the glam suitcase!

More is more

This isn’t a collection for wallflowers

Animal bangles £25ish+

Battle of the high street hotties: Lana del Rey + Rihanna

Brace yourself for stellar adverts for our fav highsteet stores. Land Del Rey is the new face of H&M, while Rihanna is designing a hot clothing collection for River Island.

Lana will film a commercial for H&M and record a song called Blue Velvet especially for the campaign, which so far shoes her in a fluffy pink sweater. Apparently the collection will be super feminine with a focus on knitwear and tweed…two of AW12’s key looks. The brand’s creative director reportedly told WWD that ‘the mood is very LA noir’ … yay!

Meanwhile, after a lot of speculation, Rihanna is officially designing her own capsule collection for River Island…but you’ll have to wait until Spring to get your hands on it. This is possibly a good thing as we bet some of the outfits will be slightly revealing and edgy…not handy in winter with goose pimples.

Rihanna told the press: “I’ve been wanting to design my own collection for some time. River Island is the perfect partner for me to collaborate with and working with a British, family run business also really appealed to me. I find London really inspiring and River Island loves to have fun with clothes. I’m looking forward to working with them and creating something really special.”

Rihanna at the River island HQ earlier this year

Pics: The Daily Mail.

Richard Nicholl SS12 vs H&M

H&M’s boutique collection found in some of its flagship stores has some amazing sugary sweet pastel miniskirts in a variety of textures from the ultra tight and shiny to boxy with transparent panelling. Captured (really badly) you can see what an amazing selection of pieces perhaps a tiny bit similar to Richard Nicholl’s SS12 collection on sale and you can mix and match soooo well. Something for the girls that love to rock a pastel without all the frills.

I loved this collection- pastel but sporty

The amazing collection at H&M- there’s a brilliantly boxy mini skirt in blue (end of the rack) that is soooo Nicholl!

Making rubber chic!

Anna Dello Russo x H&M

Collaboration alert! *designer klaxon*

Decidedly OTT Vogue personality Anna Dello Russo is the next person to collaborate with H&M. The collection will feature “over-the-top” accessories that will hit selected stores in October.

“I am excited by this collaboration: this is the first time H&M have involved a Fashion Director in a special project. This is the sign of an important evolution in fashion, and I am both thrilled and humbled to be the one chosen to lead it,” she says.

Lashings of turquoise and gold feature heavily (if exclusively) from the pics we have seen so far and there are shoes, bags, glasses and obviously a heap of jewellery. The question is, are you excited? We’re not completely sold on this one (I am a Breton and sneakers girl and bling does not feature heavily in my wardrobe) but it is interesting that H&M has picked a super stylist instead of design to work with. Only time will tell if there are queues round the block for this collaboration.

Anna says: “As a stylist I know accessorization is essential. It is the personal touch to any outfit. With these pieces everybody can have fun, turning an ordinary day into a fantastic fashion day.” We reckon it might be a bit much for a supermarket shop though!

Top 5: H&M Glamour Collection

H&M’s Glamour Collection has hit the shops and it’s good! We love the fuchsia Angelina-gate skirt, punchy purple mini dress and zingy lime dress. But the floral dress and jacket are for me the stars of the collection and tap into Christopher Kane and Carven’s stunning floral trend-setting pieces.

Want. Neeeeed this floral fitted dress. Just £49.99

Alexa wears floral Carven (and a Bella Freud jumper)

Same dress with a jacket - £39.99

Christopher Kane's SS12 collection with some serious flower power

TIGHT purple mini dress! £39.99

Lush lime dress just £39.99. I love the backless detail

Perfect for your Angelina Jolie poses. Top and skirt both £19.99 yes, seriously!

P…p…p…pick up a peplum

The peplum has been strutting its stuff on the catwalk for a couple of seasons now so you might as well give in and give this high-street friendly trend a go as it will be big this autumn and winter too.

I was going to be a bit of a fashion geek and head to the British Museum to prove that this trend has been around forever, (well, as long as the Ancient Greeks who loved a tunic gathered in at the waist -yes, even the men) but I will spare you, other than to mention that back when Dickens was writing the peplum was a popular riding jacket. So a new fad this ain’t.

And the peplum is amazing for accentuating feminine curves and creating a defined waist…but they can be tricky little blighters. The good news is that there is a peplum for all body shapes – you just need to pick where to pep and be prepared to try on quite a few- some will look grim – this is the shop’s fault and not yours!

Jason Wu put his peplum on the hips, which can look amazing on athletic or column-shaped girls, but not so flattering on anyone with already-curvy hips or thighs! Girls with inverted-triangle shaped bodies can get away with adding extra material to their hips or picking a waited peplum that is rather dramatic. However, there are lots of structured peplum tops and dresses on the high street, where the peplum accentuates the waist, which is far more flattering on most body shapes.

One of my fav SS12 looks

We love H&M and Topshop’s super sporty neoprene tops and have found that peplums with little material streamline the shape without adding bulk to the figure – plus they tick the sports luxe SS12 trend box. The fitted peplum is generally more flattering than its flouncy next-of-kin and teamed with a pencil skirt will create an amazing hourglass shape – great if you are an Apple shape looking to define your wait (add a belt for extra effect) or a pear shape looking to balance your top half with your curvier hips…or in fact an hourglass looking to ramp up your curve-appeal!

Shell top with peplum £22 from ASOS. H&M is also good for sleek and sporty peplums

If you don’t fancy taking the peplum plunge, why not cheat a little with a skirt that flares out, like a relaxed fishtail shape? The peplum trend can add instant glamour and polish to your work wardrobe and isn’t as daunting as we first thought. Go on, give it a try?

Amazing peplum scuba pencil dress £48 from Topshop

Such a statement piece and a must-have for AW12 too. leather peplum top £59.99 from H&M