Ladies fashion trends for Autumn & Winter 2013/14

A stylish yet dark, textured and vintage winter awaits!

So it has been a bizzles two weeks where I neglected my rendezvous blogging (for last week). I have also been blogging on my food adventures on my other blog that is on Food24 called Bouffilicious and have still been Zumba-ing & spinning up a storm at the gym - made some good friends at my classes. I wanted to do a post on Autumn & Winter 2013/14 trends as winter is in full swing here in the Sasburg but in all honesty I've been avoiding anything with 'winter' in it. It is really starting to get so cold here much colder than what I posted about a few weeks ago ... I did not realize it could get this cold in the Bushveld. However, the heater is in full use again, we set up our electric blankie and the fan has been packed away for a few months. I am not really feeling so fashionable, as I find it very hard to get out of bed and having to swop my cozy eskimo like jammies for proper public attire! We are eating now warm spicy oats in the morning as oppose to our yogurt and fruit.  Soups have become the dinner of choice and a little glass of Van Ryn's every so often in the evening keeps the bones and cheeks warm :)

Zuppa for two!

It is quite sad that I am blogging on a Saturday night and not out somewhere being young and reckless, but my Sweetheart is at the Metallica concert in Johannesburg with the boys, you know mosh pit and all those fun things ... if Vancoke Cartel was the opening band for the Jozi show then I would've so been there! And a girl can only dream to see Atoms for Peace or Radiohead in the RSA, will we ever experience Thom Yorke or John Frusciante on a local stage? I highly doubt it ... good news though. I actually won something for the first time - the winning letter in the Taste magazine and I got myself six bottles of NON-ALCOHOLIC bubbly! I'm not gonna lie, was slightly disappointed about the non-alcoholic part (taking all the fun away) but that's okay... because if I feel like some bubbly during the week I can have me a whole bottle (minus the hangover & judgement over having a whole bottle) and fool myself into thinking I'm been having the good stuff. Hoping there is not too much sugar in it, though :) Oh, and I am working on starting up my own business in the Triangle, which I am very excited about it.

Fair Isle in the berry tones

Here is my interpretation of the main trends and key items for Autumn & Winter 2013/14 for ladieswear only, based on what I've observed at the shops, being worn by the peeps here, magazines and online.

Burgundy ankle boots at Woolworths

The main themes for winter that stood out for me, are:
Regal (Heavy embellished, and statement pieces especially on the jewellery. Think gem stones and crosses)
Vintage  (The roaring 20's has made a come back influenced by the film The Great Gatsby and there is also a Victorian slant)
Grunge (but pretty)
Russian Princess (A Russian folk and bohemian gypsy like story)
Heritage (Of English countryside and forest inspiration)
Sporty
Military (This is still strong)

In burgundy with pointy shoes, they have studs at the back...not looking so hot right now without make up 

Key Colours:
Colour combination for the season has to be - Black and gold! Everyone is wearing it and it is in all the stores.
Burgundy, red, berry tones, teal, forest (bottle) green, fatigue, spicy colours (e.g. thatch, burnt orange, rust and warm browns), cobalt blue, violet purple, and metallics like gold, bronze, rose gold and gunmetal. Black, white, cream, chocolate and nudes are still key classic colours.

Finishes and trims:
Bejeweled, , encrusted, enamel, vintage, leather (patent/shiny), mother of pearl, pearls, studs, brocade, spikes, quilting, chunky chains, embellishment, lace, studs, buckles, textured, faux fur trims and embroidered.

Printed leggings at Woolworths

Prints:
Houndstooth, Russian rose florals (e.g. big bold florals), animal print (e.g. leopard), checks, fair isle,  tweed, and animal placement prints of wolves, tigers, owls and serpentine. Skulls are still popular for the grunge story and geometric prints for the sporty story. Colour blocking is still key.

Hoo hoo ...who's looking so hot right know in an owl jersey!?

Shoes:
The cuban heeled boot, ankle boots (in a variety of colours), the calf length boot, military inspired boot, toe cap detail on heels or flats, studs, pointy toe shoes, high top wedges (the wedge heel overall), metallic high tops or sneakers, and loafers.
Oh and bags - it still looks like the shopper, the bowler bag and the cross body bag. For glamour wear the box clutch is key.

The toe cap on the the pointy shoe

Key fashion pieces:
The coat (in a bright colour or military style and double breasted), capes, layering pieces (like tops or sweaters), chunky knits and sweaters, the sweater dress, sleeveless shift dress, peplum styled dresses and skirts, printed pants & leggings, leggings with leather insets, and skinny jeans.
Also tops and dresses with detachable fabric sequin/pearl collars are looking hot and popular. Slogan shirts are still every where and in demand.

Felt floppy hat, chunky knit scarf & stack bangles

Accessories & jewellery:
It is a watch season and for the ladies the watches are oversized and bling-ier than ever ... they have charms, floral motives on the face, diamanté, tort, leather, gold chain or laquer straps. I really like Marc Jacobs' range the most, even though I am just a plain old Casio Baby G fan, I love my baby yup yup!
It is also a hat season again with the following as key hat must-haves: The riding cap, the cloche all the way, the felt floppy & fedora hat, the leather cap and the beanie! The hats have from lurex to bow trims. Another accessory for the hair is the wide aliceband covered in fabric with trims and also the embellished clip.
Outfits are finished off with printed scarves, chunky knit scarves and plain colour pashmina's in the season's colours.
This season you must get yourself some leather gloves, at once!
To wear on your arms - Bold and encrusted cuffs, stack-able metal bracelets (plain & design) and charm bracelets. The ears are not going bare as statement clear crystal stone chandeliers are to be worn. For around the neck go with statement necklaces, collars, chokers, pendants, and gold chunky chains. If you don't wear gloves, keep those fingers fashionable with an encrusted ring (go animale, especially a feline diamanté encrusted ring), or cocktail ring.
Brooches are back, so go check either mom's or grandma's jewellery box. I have gotten some from granny...
Don't forget about the legs! Over the knee socks with welt detail (at top of sock/cuff) or bow trims, and cable knit tights. Higher denier (decitex count) tights in solid colours are popular and also in your geometric or floral designs.

Michael Kors watches

Textured top with pearl collar at Truworths

Statement necklace at Foschini

I watched a few Michelle Phan videos last week, I really enjoy her videos ... though her latest videos are mostly on new spring/summer looks in soft pastels or brights, I am embracing the winter with dark, rich and spicy colours. I got very excited about make up for winter (as I do after one of her episodes) and I tried smokey, smudged eyes with some burgundy eye shadow. As burgundy is so hot right now! I enjoy BioNike make up products as there are no chemicals in them, helps for my sensitive skin and is super moisturizing and off course it's Italian! You cannot go wrong with Italian brands like Mazzer, Simonelli and BioNike! I got the burgundy eye shadow colour 'marrone bronzato' (nr. 08) and I am loving it! Also, with the cold comes the redness and dryness - skin horrorooorific! As my skin is super sensitive and dry, I used my whole Clarins Hydra Quench product on my face in about 3 weeks! But we got to keep hydrated and moisturized especially in winter.

Burgundy eye shadow BioNike

So here are the make up and hair trends for the season.

Bang baby bangs!

Make up & hair: 
The messy hair up-do is hot (thank goodness for me, mine updo's are always cra-cra :), braids, bangs (or known as the fringe) and the sleek ponytail. Hair colours that are huge is the ombré effect (brown & blonde), bright reds, and grey, yes grey, it's cool to age sooner...

Braided winter hair style

On the make up - copper eyeshadows are key, plum or red lips, the 60's cateye (so eyeliner is your best friend) and matt nude nails. Oh and the smokey, smudged and grungy look for the eyes are hot with just nude or pink lips.

Smokey and smudgy eyes

Copper eye shadow

I love the cateye and the 60's dramatic eyes!

Plum and red on lips & nude on nails

And that's me, I hope you find this quick trend overview, interesting and useful. It seems that most of the trends for 2013 will carry onto 2014, which means a lot of saving on your wardrobe costs! But I will always try to find an excuse to get something special...you know just to update!


Have a sizzling hot week :)

Bouf
xxx