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Day: 18 February 2014

Cornerhouse Pick of the Week: The Invisible Woman

Written by George Bellamy on . Posted in Film.

With his second feature as director, Ralph Fiennes has comfortably established himself as a highly talented cinematic presence both in front of and behind the camera. Like his previous film, the adaptation of Shakespeare’s Coriolanus, Fiennes’ film making is as dramatically powerful as it is intellectually stimulating, elegantly moving through impressionistic devices in the cinematography, combined with powerful emotive performances which never seem to imply an egotistic desire behind the bravura of his style. Yet it would be a mistake to construct the success of The Invisible Woman as one attached around the figure of Fiennes, as Abi Morgan’s subtly complex screenplay, and Felicity Jones’ superb performance as the central Invisible Woman both serve the film’s haunting achievements in its portrayal of Nelly Turnan’s relationship with Charles Dickens.

The film’s structure concerns Felicity Jones’ Nelly Turnan coming to terms with her relationship with Dickens. Mimetic of the process of memory, the scenes flow over the process through which the young actress becomes a mistress of sorts to Ralph Fiennes’ already famous Charles Dickens. Whilst the story is interested with probing elements of the great writer’s life and work, the real interest is on the effects he had on others, of the distraught caused by the lack of love with his wife, and the tumultuous ramifications of a relationship on the verge of public scandal.

The recurrent evocation of turbulent waves support in an appositely Dickensian fashion the theme of repressed desires, and emotional experience coming to surface in memory – implicitly recreating the motifs and themes of Dickens’ own work. The style is in the realm of the writer’s thought, but is devoid of any resemblance of his sentimentality. From the perspective of the female side, the tensions of the love affair have high stakes in what it could mean for the future of a young woman (Turnan was eighteen when she first met the forty-five year old novelist), and the film exists in a constant state of anxiety of which Fiennes’ Dickens is never fully aware of.

The Invisible Woman is a film in which the acting is superb throughout. Yet, credit must be given to the editing and the screenplay – many scenes have their endings coming to an abrupt finish where conclusions do not have verbal evocation, nor are tied up with satisfactory statements. So much is said by the performances of charged gestures, and telling glances that there is barely a sentiment over-stated. The film is about collecting the fragments of experience, and the narrative encourages the audience to do so on their own. If Fiennes as a director can keep assembling such talent and skill around him, then he has an illustrious career as interesting director ahead of him which could rival his acting reputation.

The hero vs the metro

Written by Harriet Hill-Payne on . Posted in Fashion & Beauty.

Image: Flikr Creative Commons @PaulCashPhotography

It’s no secret that the 21st century man is one who likes to groom; the Guardian recently reported that the UK male skincare market is now worth a staggering £600 million, suggesting we are slowly but surely becoming as beauty savvy as our female counterparts.  Whilst a trip to the barbers and a dab of moisturiser may have once sufficed, the modern regime can now encompass everything from concealers, waxing (of all parts), and even the odd mani-pedi.

Now I for one am all for us gents looking after ourselves; I’m never without a decent face wash and moisturiser, and without my tweezers my eyebrow mid-section would be highly questionable.  But has male grooming gone too far? And what exactly do women prefer when it comes to their men; the rugged heterosexual, or the preened and polished metrosexual?

I never like to write an article without backing it up with the cold hard facts, and so I decided to carry out some in depth research into the matter. I selected two well-known faces that I felt most accurately represented each end of the hetro/metro spectrum; Hugh Jackman and Joey Essex.  Although one is arguably slightly more successful than the other, each certainly has his army of adoring fans. Clicking onto the most recent Hugh related article on the Mail-online, one comment (from Monica in Houston) reads ‘DAMN THAT MAN IS TOO FINE!! IT SHOULD BE A LAW THAT EVERY MAN HAS TO WORK OUT LIKE MR. JACKMAN’, whilst Joey has become a national treasure of sorts, appearing on Celebrity Juice at least 17 times, not once with a hair out of place.

 

Image: Flikr Creative Commons @AnthonyStanley

Next up was gathering up a focus group, consisting of my 4 female housemates and a couple coursemates for good measure.  Despite Joey winning the accolade of not coming last on this year’s ‘I’m a Celebrity’, unsurprisingly Hugh came out on top, with some comments all but mimicking that of Monica’s.

So why is it then, so many of us men are taking influence from the sun-kissed, veneer sporting Essex, as opposed to the un-kept rugged Jackman?  We can’t deny our tans are getting deeper, our skin getting softer and our facial hair getting sharper, but is it time we put down the trimmer, and resisted the urge to look as good as good as all those models do in the Clarin’s ads?  I urge you to give it a go; if anything you’ll at least have the support of my focus group.

 

The 2014 Oscars and the ‘Victim Narrative’

Written by Sarah Murray on . Posted in Film.

Author and film critic Bret Easton Ellis has been talking recently on his online podcast series about ‘Victim Narratives.’ Ellis identifies a trend in modern cinema toward the ‘cult of victimization,’ and claims that this trend can be clearly recognized in the Best Picture nominations for the 2014 Oscars. The nominations include features that tell the story of African-American slavery, of individuals suffering from AIDS, and of Captain Phillips’s plight at the hands of Somali pirates. However, Ellis picks out Martin Scorsese’s The Wolf of Wall Street as an anomaly in this pattern.

The Wolf of Wall Street has sparked a number of debates and discussions, and provoked a varied range of critical opinions. Critics have noted that the film drops the ‘F-Bomb’ more than any other in cinematic history. Another key concern has been the ways in which the film glamorizes Wall Street culture, and the unrelenting greed and hedonism of the elite. However, what is arguably much more interesting is the critical focus on ‘Victimhood.’ In the end of The Wolf of Wall Street, Leonardo DiCaprio’s Jordan Belfort does not appear to have learnt anything after his release from prison, as he gives an enthusiastic talk on sales. Critics and audiences have expressed outrage that Belfort was not sufficiently punished or condemned by the film, and at the fact that the ‘victims’ of Belfort and Stratton Oakmont are not represented or sufficiently avenged.

Ellis claims that the so-called ‘victims’ of Belfort were just as dumb and greedy as he was. Blinded by their own greed, they failed to see through the smooth talk and the promise of money to see the lame scam that was Belfort’s company, Stratton Oakmont. On the theatrical poster for The Wolf of Wall Street, DiCaprio as Belfort invites us with a smile and open arms to the Belfort show, as chaos ensues in the background. We the audience watch this show, this unapologetic roller coaster ride of debauchery, transfixed for the three hours running time. The final shot of the movie is Belfort’s audience looking back at us, Belfort’s other audience. Our relationship to the film instantly changes. We are forced to recognize ourselves in the role of spectator, more enamoured than the blank faces that look back at us in that closing shot.

Ellis argues that ‘Victim Narratives’ are passive narratives, and that The Wolf of Wall Street deserves to win the Best Picture award for defying this tendency in modern cinema to hail the victims as the new heroes. I would completely disagree, and argue the opposite. Let me take Dallas Buyers Club and 12 Years a Slave as an example. The characters within these films are not passive. They are, in fact, incredibly active. Captivating in their refusal to be victimized, their ability to endure and remain hopeful no matter what grips us and leaves us feeling inspired. In Dallas Buyer’s Club, Matthew McConaughey’s Ron Woodruff stubbornly refuses to lie down and die, after he is diagnosed with HIV and given 30 days to live. When Woodruff finds that AZT, an antiviral thought to prolong the life of AIDS patients, actually causes his health to deteriorate further, he seeks alternative medications. Woodruff begins to sell them to others suffering from AIDS once he finds that they work. However, as they are not FDA approved, he faces fierce opposition from them. Woodruff is far from passive; his every move is a ‘fuck you’ to victimhood. Similarly, Chiwetel Ejiofor’s Solomon Northup, in 12 Years a Slave, refuses to give up hope that he will be freed and reunited with his family. His story is full of hope and endurance under the most unimaginable pain and suffering. His character is anything but passive.

Ellis is right in saying that the 2014 Best Picture nominations tend to tell the story of the victim, but I disagree entirely that this is a negative thing that brings the category down. There have been many fantastic releases this year, as the nominations show, precisely because they depict characters railing against oppression and victimization. Their activity, rather than accepting the state of passivity enforced upon them, will continue to inspire us.

Contrary Corner: Give ‘Spring Breakers’ a break

Written by Nikolas McNally on . Posted in Film.

‘Worst film ever’. ‘WTF James Franco wasn’t even hot’. These are just snippets of disgruntled Twitter estrogen from ‘Beliebers’ rabidly foaming at the fingertips after watching Spring Breakers. Promoted as a Project X-like celebration of American teen debauchery with the added novelty of Disney girls gone bad, the dejection from an audience with Drake as its favourite philosopher at first seems puzzling. However, under the helm of subversive art-house director Harmony Korine, Spring Breakers’ neon nihilism belies a biting underbelly absent from the standard ‘teen party’ flick.

Mostly abandoning a conventional focus on plot or characterization, the film bombards the senses with a psychedelic flurry of industrial noise, day-glo vibrancy and repeated dialogue and shots. The effect varies from grating to unnervingly visceral, though Spring Breakers gains its teeth upon the introduction of the arms-collecting, drug-dealing, grill-brandishing rapper Alien. Borne out of a dark-humoured, wildly unhinged James Franco performance, Alien perfectly captures the zeitgeist of ‘YOLO’ culture, bellowing maniacal monologues (‘Look at my shit!’..) that reflect the toxicity of materialism, excess and the American dream.

Such concepts might be too obviously deplorable for commentary on them to be considered ‘deep’, though the decision to push the film towards the very demographic it savages is a curiously scathing one. Here, miss-marketing seems to be a means to stealthily challenge viewers to reevaluate their ideas by holding up the mirror. Though despite critical praise, bile spat back from the teen audience suggests that Korine’s provocation may have fallen on deaf ears.

A less respectable case of miss-marketing surrounded Pan’s Labyrinth in 2006. English trailers dressed Guillermo del Toro’s dark fantasy up as a family-friendly gothic take on Narnia, airbrushing out the backdrop of bloodshed in fascist Spain which exercises a bleak reign of terror over the film’s tone. Children eagerly awaiting wacky hijinks in the House of Mouse were sucker-punched within the first 15 minutes by the brutal sight of Captain Vidal crushing a peasant’s nose in with a wine bottle, to say nothing of later torture scenes. Not to lapse into nauseating moral guardian territory, but such deceptive marketing ideally shouldn’t completely compromise basic audience sensitivity for financial success. Nevertheless, it paid off: Pan’s Labyrinth proved highly profitable alongside deserved critical acclaim.

Less successful was Spike Jonze’s Where The Wild Things Are. Pitched ambiguously between a surreal children’s film and an introspective film about childhood, the film only broke even by a hair, suffered considerable scorn from audiences not expecting its low-key, pensive melancholy, and quickly disappeared from public memory. An unfortunate danger of miss-marketing is now apparent: that it breeds unjustified backlash for films differing from viewers’ preconceptions rather than a genuine judgment of quality.

Review: Robocop

Written by Tom Bruce on . Posted in Film.

Paul Verhoeven, director of the 1987 RoboCop, is on record as calling this 21st century remake ‘completely idiotic’, and he’s not wrong either. RoboCop  is a corporate bastardisation of everything that the satire-centric original stood for, with little in the way of action or acting.

Beginning with a news broadcast lampooning America’s ‘policing’ of the Middle-East, propaganda hype-man Pat Novak (Samuel L Jakcson) asserts that ‘corruption-free’ robots are the best line of defence against criminality, and demands that the senate replace human police officers with giant drones. Back in the US of A,  Officer Alex Murphy (Joel Kinnaman) is cruising the sterile streets of a hi –tech Detroit and trying to bring down mob man Antoine Vallon (Patrick Garrow), presumably because he has guns and sells pirated DVDs. Long story short, Murphy gets blown to literal pieces and pro-robot-rights Omnicorp CEO Raymond Sellars (Michael Keaton) decides to turn him into a 2.6 billion dollar android enforcer.

RoboCop takes far too long to become just that, and there are far too many stages to his development; at first he’s just Alex Murphy except with a metal body and a cool bike, but his past traumas affect his efficiency, so Omnicorp ‘switch off his emotion’, turning him into an impassionate killing machine. Eventually, Murphy is able to override his bot-brain by quantifying people’s expressions (i.e Fear: 70 per cent, Sadness: 65 per cent) to become some kind of po-faced humanitarian. Each incarnation is more inexplicable then the next, and throughout you are forced to endure face-palm inducing references to the original RoboCop, so wildly out of context it makes you wonder if director José Padilha even likes the film.

In two hours there are only four action scenes, three of which take place in identical warehouses and unfold like the opening missions of a game of Time Crisis, only difference being that when it’s game over you won’t want to put another pound in. 1987 RoboCop was gruesomely, hilariously, over the top with its use of violence, but even Dallas Buyers Club has more blood than this 2014 model – 12a, really? In order to justify RoboCop’s existence, the Detroit setting should have at least felt dangerous. As it is, the steely dystopia on screen isn’t even as bad the real-life Detroit today.

Rusty is the best way to describe most of the performances in RoboCop.  Samuel L. as Commie-hating news man Pat Novak is no substitute for the uproarious parody scenes interspersed throughout the 1987 classic, while Gary Oldman’s morally compromised Dr Norton is an incoherent mess and Michael Keaton just looks beaten. Joel Kinnaman’s portrayal of the corrugated copper lacks conviction, and Abbie Cornish (aka Mrs RoboCop) is side-lined into obscurity.

RoboCop  is a tin man of a movie, lacking not just a heart but a brain as well. Joyless to its cybernetic core, the end credits misery is compounded by the shameful use of  ‘I Fought the Law’, essentially yelling ‘You didn’t just watch crap!’. But it is crap. It very much is.

Top 5: Awkward sex scenes

Written by Lloyd Hammett on . Posted in Film.

5. American Pie (1999)

The beginning of awkward teenage sexual experiences starts here with the beautiful Nadia (Shannon Elizabeth) naked on Jim’s (Jason Biggs) bed and it’s time for him to become a man, live on a webcam. What happens? He does an extremely strange strip tease, gets into bed and gets way too excited way too soon, twice.

 

4. Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008)

The film is chock full of awkward brilliance from slamming on the wall fake orgasms to some extremely long unsuccessful oral. However, this barely compares to the little side story of the newly weds who just can’t consummate the marriage or just don’t know how, “God put our mouths on our head for a reason. No!”

 

3. Knocked Up (2007)

Judd Apatow has a keen eye for awkward sex it would seem with The 40 Year Old Virgin (2005) bursting with it. However, the film reaches new heights whilst Alison (Katherine Heigl) is pregnant, because Ben (Seth Rogen) cannot quite bring himself to continue the deed. Why not? This quote says it all; “all I see is our baby getting poked in the face by my penis.”

 

2. Superbad (2007)

The girl you like gets so drunk she flings herself at you, but you end up quoting health class, whilst she attempts some very strange dirty talk right before she throws up everywhere. Michael Cera is creepy and awkward looking enough without putting him into this sort of scenario.

 

1. Gigli (2003)

This is special on the list for one reason; it isn’t supposed to be awkward. Yet it is some of the most cringe worthy dialogue you’ll ever hear (“gobble gobble”), alongside the strangest music choice that makes it almost unbearably awkward to witness.

Lady in red

Written by Nikki Patel on . Posted in Fashion & Beauty.

The red lip and sexy eye combo is a look that will never date. But with this look, you definitely score yourself a rather hot one…

Step 1:

After priming and applying your foundation, using a soft, wide eye shadow brush, pat a matte brown shadow all over the lids as a base, bringing it up to just ender the brown bone. Next, define your eyes by brushing a richer brown into your eye creases.

Step 2

Now to bring your eyes to life. Using a shimmery highlighter and fine brush (here I have used Mac pigment in Naked) highlight the inner corners of your eyes. Using the same pigment and brush, gently line your lids to add a bit of glamour and really reflect the light. Create a rich shadow under your eyes using your original brown shade and a soft brush before lining your water line with a dark brown/burgundy liner. Finish it all off with a lick of liquid eyeliner and your favourite mascara. I recommend ‘They’re Real’ by Benefit.

Image: Writer’s own

Step 3

Now for the lips. Grab a lip liner in a deep red shade and after lining the outer lip shape, fill in the entire area as you would with lipstick. This acts as a failsafe lip primer to ensure that your lip colour stays put for the entire evening. Gently dab your lipstick of choice all over your lips, preferably with a lip brush. Here I have used Dior in 5th Ave which has purple tones but Mac Viva Glam, Revlon Matte in Forbidden Red and Mac Diva are all beautiful rich lip colours which would suit this look.

Image: Writer’s own

Step 4

Set your makeup with a matte finishing powder (Bobbi Brown is my go-to) ,dress to impress and you’re good to go. Happy dating lovebirds!

What is sexy?

Written by Natalie Clark on . Posted in Fashion & Beauty.

Elle magazine seems to have got themselves into a bit of a pickle. February’s fourth annual Women in TV Issue featured some of the small-screen’s most talked about actresses: Zooey Deschanel , Allison Williams, and Amy Poehler all looked fabulous, yet Mindy Kaling’s cover caused quite a stir. The Mindy Project star’s shot is undeniably beautiful, but the unmistakable differences between the covers’ styles have sparked an intense backlash. Mindy’s cover is shot in black and white and a close up, whilst the other women’s covers feature full body shots in colour. Instantly, with each of these covers sitting side by side on a newsstand, you can’t help but notice a painstakingly obvious disparity.

People were outraged that Elle would attempt to hide Kaling’s body and ethnicity, yet it was Mindy herself who tweeted, ‘”I love my @Ellemagazine cover. It made me feel glamorous & cool. And if anyone wants to see more of my body, go on thirteen dates with me.” Elle’s Editor-in-Chief Roberta Myers shot back with a response, declaring that the notion of trying to hide Kaling’s shape and ethnicity goes against what Elle believes in, and that the choice in cover was because she looked, ‘powerful, beautiful, potent, and sexy in the best sense of the word.’ Which she does, without a doubt. And if Mindy herself loved it, why should the rest of the world kick up such a fuss?

Instagram: pbandj_eromy

If Kaling’s cover had solely been published, this big furore would have been a smidgen of its current size, if not non-existent. But with being able to compare it to the other actresses, is Elle subconsciously telling us what is and isn’t considered sexy? Or is the public’s preconceived idea of what is sexy the reason why in defending Kaling they actually offended her?

So what is considered sexy? Obviously, the general idea of what ‘sexy’ is has evolved over the years. From women’s body shapes to men’s facial hair, transforming cultures and changing times have been accompanied by the evolving notions of ‘sexy’. In a society where, whether we like it or not, celebrity culture guides what is considered sexy, hot and beautiful, the general definition in the dictionary would probably be next to a picture of Mila Kunis. We have our Megan Foxes, our Blake Livelys and our Beyonces prescribing this ideal of what’s hot and whats not. But then we have women like P!NK, Nigella Lawson and Meryl Streep, who don’t typically fit the size zero, young, hot mould, yet are still considered some of the world’s sexiest women.

Image: Flick Creative Commons

Is it outrageous that Lively’s slender frame and P!NK’s athletic build can both be described using the same word, even though Lively’s Hollywood body is considered the norm? I believe that everyone has their own opinion on what they find sexy. I personally think that Megan Fox’s sexy is actually way too intimidating, verging on scary. On the other hand, Christina Hendricks is my kind of woman. Some of you may think Kim Kardashian is the epitome of sexiness, yet some of you may have been offended by that and will probably stop reading. Sexy is, to state a cliché, in the eye of the beholder. So when it comes to the Elle covers, of course they are all sexy. I mean, they would be sexier without all the airbrushing, but that’s a topic for another issue…

Bra-vo!

Written by Skye Scott on . Posted in Fashion & Beauty.

Think delicate satin, lace, tulle and contouring. These aspects of the lingerie department have now become acceptable to wear as clothing. The trend originated when stage performers such as Madonna and Lady Gaga started to wear corsets and body suits. Then underwear and more daring designs started to be worn on the red carpet.  It is thought that the trend is to blame for the large increase in sales for nipple stickers and boob tape. This season is no different. Many of us have it in our wardrobes already and we quite happy to add to it for the summer season.

 

The Lace Slip

You may think this is something your grannie would wear under her favourite ankle skimming floral skirt, but think again. The lace slip in silk or satin has been on the catwalks this season and last season. They are available in dark, midnight hues or colourful florals for summer days.

It was popularised when Victoria Beckham wore a Louis Vuitton one out at Wimbledon. Since then, all our high street favourites have caught on. This one from ASOS has the ultimate sex appeal. It is made from a silky fabric with a peek-a-boo lace plunging neckline. It has the perfect balance of lingerie and subtle sexiness. In black, it also nods to one of this summer seasons colour trends.

 

 

Topshop £28

The Cami

The cami has been a big trend and we bet there aren’t many wardrobes without one now. In silk and lace with skinny straps that emulate bra straps they have a subtle nod to our underwear. This season, make sure that your wearing a satin or silk version for a light and sexy feel. They are perfect paired with jeans for a smart casual occasion. Look out for camisoles with little features to make them a bit different from the usual vest. This one from Topshop has a racerback with super skinny straps to flatter the body. And choose a colour for your skin tone like this rosy shade. There are plenty of floral and polka dot varieties around for summer as well.

 

 

H&M £24.99

The Bralet  

The bralet can vary from literally just a bra, to a corset type, to a slinky lace number. It is perhaps the most daring and definitely the most revealing key item for the underwear as outerwear trend. But worn with high waisted skirts or jeans or even layered over long sleeved tees it can become instantly wearable. This H&M version has a ruffled edging for a little more coverage. With the skinny straps, triangle bra shape and little hook and eye fastenings it gives the shape and support of a bra. The colour is perfect for spring; wear it layered over a striped tee for daytime or with high waisted disco pants for night.

“They should avoid dressing like sluts.”

Written by Anna Sopel on . Posted in Fashion & Beauty.

What does it mean to dress like a slut? Back in the day, being a slut meant being a bit slovenly and messy, but today the word has taken on a whole different meaning. The English Oxford dictionary informs me that being a slut means “a woman who has many casual sexual partners”, and that dressing slutty is a manifestation of this. Have you ever gone out in a pair of denim hot pants and a crop top, or a tight dress revealing your cleavage? The chances are, you’ve dressed up for a night out in a ‘slutty’ manner, I know for sure that I have. If dressing ‘slutty’ merely means dressing in a provocative and sexually attractive manner, then I’m sure the majority of women for most of human history and across different cultures have done this at some point. So what is the motivation for a woman to dress in this ‘slutty’ way? Because she can and it feels good? Absolutely. To catch someone’s eye? Most likely. To impress her friends or a man? Probably. To be sexually harassed? Nope, never.

Being dressed sluttily, sexily, provocatively, whatever you want to call it, has for too long been used as an excuse for the disgusting, but all to frequent occurrence of men sexually harassing women. One of the most famous examples of this was when a Canadian police officer, Constable Michael Sanguinetti suggested that in order for women to remain safe “they should avoid dressing like sluts”. This kick started a global campaign called SlutWalk in which participants protest against explaining rape by referring to any aspect of a women’s appearance. According to SlutWalk Manchester “We are tired of being oppressed by slut-shaming; of being judged by our sexuality and feeling unsafe as a result. Being in charge of our sexual lives should not mean that we are opening ourselves to an expectation of violence, regardless if we participate in sex for pleasure or work, or if we choose not to have sex at all”.

 

Unfortunately sexual harassment is an all too common part of daily life, and statistics would suggest it is something you, your friend, your sister, or your mother may have experienced. This doesn’t always mean rape, it may be someone pinching your bum in a club, a man shouting at you in the street to ‘get your tits out’ or a guy commenting on a facebook photo that ‘she’d get it’. I don’t care if a woman is dressed in tiny bum-revealing hot pants and a crop top, she isn’t asking for it. I don’t care if a woman is dressed in a skin-tight, boob and bum accentuating dress, she isn’t asking for it. I don’t care if a woman goes out dressed in a skimpy bra and a thong, she is NEVER asking for it (although she may be asking for pneumonia).

The University of Manchester has recognised this is a problem and as a result has launched the We Get It campaign. This campaign seeks to spread awareness for the fact that sexual harassment happens on campus in everyday situations. The campaign urges people to take a pledge that they will stand up against and report sexual harassment whenever they see it. The campaign has also launched the must-have accessory for this Spring, a We Get It wrist band which every person who takes the pledge will receive. Sign the pledge at wegetit.nationbuilder.com and get yours!

Spring trend report from High End to High Street

Written by Anna Sopel on . Posted in Fashion & Beauty.

It’s hard to believe stepping out in Manchester on a freezing, gloomy day in January that Spring is around the corner. Yes, there is a light at the end of the interminable tunnel that is January and February. This bright spring light has already been shone on the catwalks of New York, London, Paris and Milan and now, in Manchester these Spring trends are upon us (even though the weather may not be). 50 shades of pink are displayed boldly in each shop window, complimented by the reflective sparkle of sequin embellishments; the High Street is brimming with the sparkle of Spring.

So lets go back to where it all started. Back in September A-listers, bloggers, editors and it girls made a fashion pilgrimage to one (or all) of the 4 major cities to witness the artistic creations of some of the worlds top designers. These designers showed their vision for fashion in Spring/Summer 2014. As you would expect for the coming summer months this vision included bold florals and pretty pastels, as paraded up and down the catwalk most notably by Stella McCartney and Mary Kantrantzou. The classic white shirt made an appearance in multiple shows as well, mainly as an oversized belted look at both Donna Karan and Tods. But there were also bolder pieces, Dolce & Gabbana showed off their typical feast of opulent over embellished garms, while Balmain and Nina Ricci presented us with lots of ruffles. If you fancy yourself as a bit more of a fashion daredevil then ditch the skinny jeans and allow your legs to breath in a pair of wide legged trousers, as seen at Michael Kors and Paul Smith.

But what does this mean for those of us who don’t have a few grand going spare to splash out on these trends? Well you can always rely on the likes of Zara, Topshop and H&M to have some near perfect copies. Aside from the obvious pastel hues and sparkely treats you can expect to find, keep your eyes peeled for gingham, anything with fringing and something sheer for your perfect Spring uniform. So while the bank balance is still looking relatively healthy (thank you very much Student loan company) go and stock up on some of the high street spring offerings, and I promise you the sunshine will be on its way. *

*Please note: this is an empty promise and chances of sunshine are highly unlikely in Manchester. But lets be optimistic for the sake of this article.