GTWO-PR recently had the pleasure of attending the launch of Vivienne Westwood’s exhibition as it arrived for its final leg in Sheffield.

GTWO-PR, Manchester’s contemporary, fashion and lifestyle public relations agency. 

We had the pleasure of attending the launch of Matthew Williamson’s ’10 Years in Fashion’ exhibition sponsored by Coutts at Manchester’s Urbis.

The crowd was as glamorous as can be expected for such an event as they mingled with Matthew himself. Pear Martinis courtesy of Grey Goose were the the drink du jour and were the perfect compliment to the beautiful designs on display.

GTWO-PR stays fresh in the frame by constantly looking to the streets for new and emerging styles, trends and people that are generally are just COOL. Here are just a few examples of the individual looks we have seen this week on the streets of Manchester.

By Graham Gartside-Bernier

The Big Apple has bestowed some of its city style and panache on Vancouver, courtesy of a relatively new arrival in Gastown — the (212) boutique. New York has long been a leader in the world of fashion, and anyone who is anyone, or who wants to be anyone in the fashion industry, has to serve a rigorous apprenticeship in the city. Scott Walhovd and Anthony Castro, co-owners of (212), have done just that and are now spreading their experience in Vancouver.

Opened last summer and soon after recognized as one of the places to be seen and to get the best of fashion and style in the city, (212) takes its name from the primary area code of Manhattan, while its tagline — 212 in the 604 — cleverly and successfully combines the very premise of the boutique’s aim: bringing together fashion influenced by New York City trends, with incredible fabrication, to the Vancouver lifestyle.

“We found a niche here that was waiting to be filled,” says Castro, a native New Yorker who has worked for iconic American fashion houses Calvin Klein, Donna Karan and Perry Ellis. “[Gastown] has so much history and character, and it seems like it’s meant for the customer who wants to find something different in the city, something away from the everyday.”

Walhovd, a Vancouver native, spent years in New York working as a model for Calvin Klein, Tommy Hilfiger and Ralph Lauren. It is understandable that with all of their experience in differing aspects within the fashion industry, Walhovd and Castro are able to predict with accuracy what will appeal to Vancouver women. Their fashion know-how, thirst for success and eagerness to appeal to their clientele is accurately reflected in the collections available at (212).

An example of their recent success was their collection Fall in the Big City (2007), which was a showcase combining style and comfort “so that it’s not a chore for our customers to get dressed in the morning,” says Walhovd. The high–waisted jeans with tie belt were an immediate hit. The slouchy men’s pants were snapped up and the staple skinny jeans in grey or black became a “must have” in so many wardrobes. The stylish and versatile range on offer ensured that women could confidently wear the pieces and remain comfortable yet elegant and stylish.

Castro and Walhovd veer towards classic muted tones in their collections: monochrome black and white with grey, accent colours of rich purple, chocolate brown and old gold with their focus on shape and silhouettes. “We feel that Vancouver women like to dress in a more relaxed way, but still want diverse shapes that they can work back into their wardrobes,” says Castro.
The designers do admit to turning their backs on “inspirations” for their collections, but they look on each season as a continuation of their work in progress. “The line will constantly be an evolution of what we feel our customer wants, the direction she’s progressing,” says Castro. “We base our collections on the strong feelings derived more generally from colours, images, architecture, and people. We’re inspired by the New York lifestyle; the energy and vibration that comes out of the city alone is amazing. It’s a city where people can accomplish great things.”

The partners now travel between Vancouver and New York during the less busy weeks of the season, researching their collections and seeking out suitable designer labels to complement the (212) brand, including, for the spring, Winster, Odyn, Maria Bonita Extra, Nylon, Clione, and Lidi. Thus far, they are excited with the reaction to their venture and confidently predict being able to stock solely (212) very soon.

The spring collection features high-waisted shorts, jersey tops, boat neck mini dresses and the launch of the (212) knitwear collection that once again manages to combine New York style with the comfort that is demanded in Vancouver and will fix (212) firmly on the Canada fashion map.

(454 West Cordova, 604 685-2426, TwoOneTwo.net)

The New Breed of Ugg-ly Chav

How things have changed in Manchester in the two years since I was last here! Gone are the mandatory ‘Chav’ girl outfits I recall seeing in their droves sashaying along Market Street every Saturday. No more are the fake Burberry bags and micro skirts in evidence and the gaudy gold hoops from the discount jewelers and the hair in buns so tight the wearer could barely blink have disappeared! In their place a new uniform has evolved and one item in particular seems to be firmly established as the key to this new look.

“Uggs”, or look a likes, seem to have taken over the city and I am still not even sure what they are. Is it a slipper? Is it a boot? Is it the favoured footwear of the wife of Bigfoot? I’d really like to know who first thought these boots would be suitably worn away from the outback or the Rocky Mountains?

The new, Manchester chav girl is a genetically modified creation using a combination of cells from the four more attractive members of Girls Aloud. Coleen McLoughlin and Sienna Miller (circa 2005) seem to have taken this trend into their hearts and made it their own. With cheap variations on the original sand coloured offerings now available from supermarkets and high street accessory emporiums in every conceivable colour, but seemingly favored in pink and brown, the boot is now firmly entrenched in chav culture.

‘But I own a pair and I’m not a Chav’, I hear you cry. If your hair extensions are finely preened and glue free, you’ve broken out the discount gold and your juicy velour or your stonewashed jeans are tucked into your well trodden, shapeless wannabe Uggs, then you, my dear are the new breed of chav.

Along with their appalling fancy dress appearance, I am reliably informed that the offending Uggs are too hot to wear socks inside and therefore emit foul odors from feet made sweaty through long hours of trooping the pavements even on the balmiest of days. Usually the prized possessions are worn to the point of disintegration by said chavettes, ensuring that very soon they offer little support to the foot weary wearers, so are not even good for the feet as some proclaim.

So, isn’t it time that this unstylish and inelegant trend just died and went way and the offending items were buried as with other small furry creatures that depart this earth once they have seen out their days? If anybody is in any doubt about this then I leave you with a quote from Vanessa Williams in the TV series, ‘Ugly Betty’.

“She’s as out as Ugg Boots!” RIP UGGs!!