Bag disguises

As a kid I LOVED those boxes that were disguised as books – the ones where the pages are fake and split in the middle to reveal a hiding place for all your sweets. Well, now my adult self  has something similar to obsess over…. Olympia Le-Tan hangbags and minaudieres – BAGS disguised as BOOKS. It’s too good.

It gets better, not only are these little bags sneaky and clever, they’re also retro-looking and totally beautiful in their imitation of famous literary works.

Plus, Olympia Le-Tan seems like a fun and lighthearted brand, with a team that’s put a lot of time and love into making these little accessories – just look at this endearing digital short from their website.

Brand love: Minimarket

Oh YEAH man, just stumbled across Swedish label Minimarket. Sisters Sofie, Jennifer and Pernilla Elvestedt are the designers behind it and their A/W11 collection has a distinctive autumnal theme with lots of auburns and deep red hues. So beautiful…

As much as I love designers embracing brights for their A/W collections and steering clear of the conventional winter black, it’s also really nice when some reflect nature’s colours of the reason. I feel like Minimarket has done just that and done it really well. Looking at the pictures makes me wanna put my bobble hat and boots on and run outside to kick leaves!

….And if the clothes don’t impress? Juuuust take a minute to absorb these.

Anyone that manages to slip Dr Marten-style numbers into their collection has my vote automatically.

Also, they have a fairly strange yet somewhat entrancing campaign video. Sure, the horror movie-style sound effects might chill you to the bone, but it’s quite interesting to watch none-the-less:

Hungary for more…

Couldn’t resist the pun. So anyway, here we have the cover of the July issue of Hungarian Glamour, featuring Hungarian model Eniko Mihalik, and I love it! Ever so Eastern European and fairytale-like. She reminds me of a queen in a Brothers Grim fairytale. Those of you who’ve read my blog before may know that I do love fairytale-like models and folklore-inspired editorials.

You might remember Eniko’s  kitten-like face from H&M’s A/W 2009 campaign.

But I prefer her in the cover shoot, where there’s something more regal and mature about her.

The clothes that Eniko wears are by Hungarian designer, Renata Gyöngyösi, and check out those opulent sleeves! Without sounding too much like a camp fashion stereotype and gushing all over the place, I LOVE the use of studs and how they modernise and toughen everything up here – so it’s not entirely a carbon copy of an outfit from a BBC period drama.

Renata Gyöngyösi’s SS 11 collection at Budapest Fashion Week. Images via fashioninquisitive.com and pestiside.hu

What’s more, Renata seems to be one step ahead with her S/S 2011 collection, which kind of draws parallels with the A/W 11 royal and revolution trend seen in Vivienne Westwood and PPQ. So hopefully this means she won’t be one of those designers to fade into the distance.