Love Love Love

Or not, as the case may be...

I've always been a bit indifferent towards Love magazine; sometimes it's really great and then other times it's just really dull. This cover makes me especially unhappy because it has all the makings of a great cover but just completely misses the mark. 

Photographed by Mert and Marcus and featuring the beautiful Kate Moss, this cover for the Androgyny Issue of Love should have been something wonderful. Instead I can't help thinking that the dodgy text and even dodgier hair make Kate less than extraordinary. The styling (aside from the quiff/mullet) is average but the photography is great, what happened?!

To compensate for what I think is a poor Kate cover, I've put together some of her better ones from over the years:

The W cover is a particular favourite of mine - she makes a perm look hot! What is your favourite Kate cover and what do you think of the Love cover?

photos from fashiongonerogue.com and coverjunkie.com

Tis The Season To Be Jolly

Ok so Christmas is just a stone's throw around the corner (19 days, to be precise) and if you're anything like me you won't have even thought about it until now; don't get me wrong, I love giving people presents, but finding great gifts is one of the most traumatic things in the world. This year however, things are going to be different because being in London, I'm surrounded by amazing boutiques and gift shops - all selling perfect Christmas presents waiting to be bought.

Here is a small selection of some of the things that have caught my eye so far, how cute are the Stella McCartney Days of the Week knicker Set?!

Days of the Week knickers by Stella McCartney and playing cards by Lanvin @ Matches. Silver bag by Topshop. i-D Covers book and cat plate by Donna Wilson @ Magma. Red Fisheye camera by lomography.com. Moustache brooche by Tatty Devine. Pom-pom mittens by ASOS. Crossbone ring by galibardy.co.uk. Christmas Cookie candle by Yankee Candle.

All of these beauties would make great stocking fillers or secret-santa pressies as they're all within a reasonable price range. It also helps that I'd be more than happy to receive any one of these for Christmas so if anyone is stuck...well, you get the idea.

What will you be asking for this Christmas and what are the best and worst presents you've ever received?

photos from individual web pages

Dazed by Ashley Smith

I was worried that Ashley Smith would become another of those 'flash-in-the-pan' models who hang around for one season then fall off the fashion radar quicker than you can say Chanel. Clearly I had nothing to worry about...

From left to right: Giles Deacon, Balenciaga, Chanel SS11 Shows

I wrote about Ashley back in May because her editorial for i-D blew me away and when I said Lara Stone had better watch her back, I meant it. She's already walked for the big boys and is scoring covers all over the show but it's her editorial in the October issue of Dazed and Confused that's caught my eye this time.

I've gone off Dazed in recent months but this issue is definitely worth a buy - as well as the lovely Ashley, they've well and truly re-vamped Daniel Radcliffe, with pretty impressive results. Love him or hate him, you can't ignore the fact that this is one of their most powerful cover for quite some time.

Will you be buying the latest Dazed? Having now proved that she can ace editorials and the runway, what do you think of the boob-alicious Miss Smith? I can't wait to see what she does next.

Photos from thefashionspot.com

Spotlight: Kate Moss

There was a time where I was sick of hearing about Kate Moss - Glastonbury this, Jamie Hince that, skinny this, fat-friend that - and I'm so glad that the media obsession finally gave way. If it hadn't I probably wouldn't love her as much as I do, because she is, after all, a super (and a British one at that).

These behind the scenes photo's from ShowStudio cements Mossy's super status as well as blowing all those pre-teen models out the water - I'm so glad age is just a number...

Shot by Nick Knight for an upcoming issue of i-D (also featuring Naomi - amazing or what) and styled by the glorious Edward Enninful, the photos look pretty intense. I love this look on Kate and actually don't think it would've worked so beautifully on a taller model - sorry six-footers!

Kate definitely deserves this weeks Spotlight because a) she hasn't been in it for a while and b) she's still got it! Tomorrow morning I'm heading off to a sunnier, warmer climate therefore posting will have to be put on hold for a week, sorry guys. In the meantime you should check out Naomi's shoot on Showstudio, it's not as powerful as Kate's but she's still fabulous, non?

photos from showstudio.com

Spotlight: Ashley Smith

Unless your first name is Abbey, Freja or Natalia, my model knowledge generally isn't too hot (I was in close proximity to Imogen Morris-Clarke, Ali Stephens and Hanne Gaby Odiele and was oblivious). But then every once in a while, a model will pop up on the runway or feature in a magazine and I'll be obsessed. Right now my obsession is Ashley Smith.

Ashley, for comparisons sake, is pretty much a younger, more gap-toothed Lara Stone. This editorial for the summer issue of i-D is so soft and yet so honest, I mean those boobs are just insane. For a 19 year-old she seems to have her head pretty screwed on (although naivety can be deceiving) - "I'm not a twig and I've got titties...I think boobs are making a comeback. Models have looked like 12 year old boys for some time now, I think the fashion industry is looking for a change," she says.

I first caught sight of Ashley in this amazing Russh beauty editorial back in November but didn't actually know who she was until a few days ago, she's like some incredible Lara/Georgia Jagger hybrid!

As well as perfecting the quirky, edgy look, she's also pretty neat on the commercial circuit - check out this gorgeous US Elle editorial.

I think she's one of those models that I call 'superhuman' but I'm gonna wait it out and see what she does next, I really hope she isn't a flash in the pan. What do you think of Ashley, should Lara Stone (newly hitched, aww) be worried?

photos from fashiongonerogue.com

Where dem bloggers at?

If you've been following me for a while you'd probably know that I like Rihanna and when I saw her in London the other night I wasn't disappointed.

Her outfits were pretty insane, like crotch-loving-PVC-clad-but-cool-not-whoreish insane (with a bit of Gareth Pugh added in for good measure). I'm not going to lie though, when I saw her on X-Factor last year, she didn't sound great live so I was pretty sceptical that it was going to be a duff gig; I was surprised at how good she was. Admittedly I'm not really into the whole giant venue scenario when it comes to seeing live-acts - I'd much rather be at a festival or at a smaller more intimate gig - but our standing spot was pretty good, non?

It kind of goes to show as well that having a great wardrobe is never a bad thing, I mean, until she started dressing good, who really paid her that much attention?

Its funny because in an interview she did with i-D, she kept saying how she hated her early image and that her record label wouldn't let her do her own thing - this makes me feel a bit better about those awful Pon de Replay years.

Good Girl Gone Bad was the turning point for me, Umbrella was literally the best song EVER at the time. She got a cute black bob and started dressing a bit better which kind of made me want to listen to her music - I also had my hair cut like hers, and then again when she chopped it all off completely, talk about Rihanna-tastic.

She hasn't really put a foot wrong since (forgetting the whole Chris Brown saga) and she's definitely one of my fave pop-babes - her videos just keep getting better and better.

Anyway, that's probably enough celebrity gushing for one day, who is/are your girl crushes? What with so many amazing women talents out there at the moment it's hard not to have a girl crush, in fact I think I've got several... 

As I mentioned before, I'd much rather go to a festival than be herded up with thousands of people in a hot-sweaty venue, so next week I'm going to dedicate a whole post to them. The season pretty much kicks off in June so if your headed to one soon, keep your eye out for my essentials page!

photos taken by me (do not use/copy without permission) and from google.com

Lily Lovely

I loved Lily Allen from the start, I even remember Chris Moyles saying he was "willing to give her a chance", following the release of her debut single back in 2008. She never really struck me as a fashion person, more of a chav in a dress; so I was pleasantly surprised when she started appearing in campaigns and photoshoots last year. The i-D photoshoot in the 'Spongebob' issue was so beautiful, this is even more so.

Here's to hoping she'll continue to grow stylistically throughout 2010 (Harpers Bazaar, January 2010 - shot by Alan Gelati).

Love the raffia horns and Philip Treacy top hat. What's your favourite January editorial?

photos from thefashionspot.com