PopSugar

"Wee"kend Getaway: Manchester, VT

LilSugar — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 14:00:00 -0800

With the state of the economy up in the air, families throughout the country are putting their vacation plans on hold until things begin to stabilize. Rather than plan a week-long trip to an exotic locale, many are planning extended weekend getaways to locations within driving distance of home. With this in mind, we are beginning a series called "Wee"kend Getaways, highlighting vacation spots that offer a little something for everyone in your family. First stop is Manchester, VT, located in the southwest corner of the state. First incorporated in 1761, the town offers outdoor activities during each season of the year.

View Slideshow ›

Guess Which President's Son Lived Here?

CasaSugar — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 12:00:00 -0800

The only child to survive into adulthood of one of America's most prominent presidents built this Georgian Revival Summer home on 500 acres of land in Manchester, VT, at the turn of the 20th century. It was home to only his descendants until 1975, when it was purchased by a historical society; today, it lives on as a museum, preserving the family legacy. Can you tell me the name of his father, the former president?

Fab Field Day: Shopping in Manchester

FabSugarUK — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 02:00:47 -0700

As well as attending Manchester in Fashion this weekend I have had a few spare hours to check out what shopping the city has to offer. I couldn't resist popping in to Selfridges and Harvey Nichols to check out what designer good were in offer (I'm particularly a fan of the handbags on the ground floor at Harvey Nichols) and I stepped in to the Arndale to check out Topshop. But other than the standard High Street stores I wanted to report back on the independent stores in Manchester which is why I headed to the Northern Quarter.

There you will find a great selection of reasonably priced vintage stores offering funky paisley print dresses, reworked vintage fabrics and retro handbags. Junk (2 Dale St, M1 1JW) offers pieces by upcoming designers and by their own brands (Junk Boutique, Jumble and Label of Love). They're all retro styles offering pieces for men and women.

To find out more about shopping in Manchester read more.

Next we checked out Oxfam Originals (51 Oldham St, M1 1JR) where I found a gorgeous Guatemalan belt and a funky bright yellow Christian LaCroix blazer. The items in this store are carefully selected offering genuine vintage items from 1950s onwards. These items are more carefully chosen than a standard Oxfam shop.

From there we headed to Pop Boutique (34-36 Oldham St, M1 1JN) which is always a fail-safe vintage store selling mens and womens clothes alongside classic homewares including a bamboo bar! There were funky pea coats, pretty Summer dresses and patent quilted handbags.

Retro Rehab (91 Oldham St, M4 1LW) is a great store for dedicated vintage fans. Here you will find genuine vintage dresses, blouses and accessories. These are not quite as mainstream pieces but instead classic items.

Next I decided to move away from vintage and headed down Deansgate to The General Store (7 Barton Arcade, M3 2BB). Started by the same people as All Saints this store offers designer style pieces for both men and women. I found it to be slightly hit and miss but fell completely in love with a nude colour dress.

Finally I walked up King Street where there is a choice of high-end High Street stores such as Jaeger, All Saints and Whistles alongside designer boutiques like Mulberry.

I think that Manchester is a great city to shop in and would strongly recommend it. A lot of money has been pumped in to the city in recent years and it's really paid off. There is a wide variety of shops and the items on offer and the people of Manchester has a very creative sense of style.

Manchester In Fashion 2008

FabSugarUK — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 06:00:10 -0700

This weekend I'm on the move to check out the fashion on offer in the capital of the North, Manchester. Having been to Manchester before I'm already aware how good the shopping is here. There's a Selfridges, Harvey Nichols and a big Louis Vuitton store but this weekend I wanted to find out what else is on offer. Much like London Fashion Weekend, Manchester in Fashion offers the best of the city's fashion at a discounted rate.

The launch took place last night as the champagne flowed at Urbis (which the taxi driver accurately described as "looking like concorde"). As well as stalls there is a catwalk show presenting a pick of the best items available to buy now from stores such as House of Fraser, Selfridges and Warehouse.

To find out more about the show including celebrity appearances read more.

I caught the first presentation last night which was divided in to the key Autumn trends; Tartan, Folk Boho, Androgynous, Gothic and Directional. Designer pieces by Prada, JC de Castelbajac, D&G and Jonathan Saunders were included in the show.

The launch show closed with Vicky Binns (from Coronation Street) guest modeling in a burlesque inspired dress. Carley Stenson (Steph from Hollyoaks) was also there performing with in a glittery top with her girlband Diamond.

The event continues until Sunday so if you're in the area I would definitely recommend checking it out. You have to pay to get in with tickets ranging from £5. There will also be hair and beauty demonstrations in amongst the stalls offering treatments such as manicures and blow dries.

View 3 Photos ›

Source

UK Sample Sale Round Up

FabSugarUK — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 22:00:59 -0700

There are several major sample sales taking place in London at the moment and I wouldn't want you to miss out! Firstly there is a Hermes Sample Sale currently on until 28th June with up to 50% off certain pieces. It's open 10am - 6pm at The Music Rooms 26 South Molton Lane, Mayfair, London, W1K 5LF.

Also, a slightly more affordable sale is taking place in North London. The French Connection and Nicole Farhi Sample Sale is open on 27th June from 9:30am – 4:30pm, 28th: 10am – 5pm, and Sunday 29th: 10am – 4pm. It's taking place at Centro One, 39 Camden Street, London, NW1 0DW with an entrance fee of £1.

If you live outside of London we don't want you to feel left out! So here's a Temperley London sale in Manchester in just under a month. It will take place at
Room B2B Three, The Urbis Gallery, Cathedral Gardens, Manchester, M4 3BG on Friday 25th July from 10am to 7pm and 26th July 10am to 5pm.
Source

Fab Flash: Matthew Williamson Launch Party in Manchester

FabSugarUK — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 03:00:48 -0700

Matthew Williamson returned to his hometown last night for the Manchester launch of his exhibition celebrating 10 years in the fashion industry. The event was not short of celebrity support with stars from Hollyoaks and Emmerdale glamming it up for the evening. Matthew's Mother, whom he regularly sites as an inspiration, was also at the event.

At a recent talk with Matthew at the Design Museum in London (where the exhibition has already been shown) he referred to his Mother as his 'muse'. He also explained the difficulty of making it in the industry and maintaining a label.
He was first discovered by Jade Jagger who loved his bohemian designs. He explained, "London is the most exciting place to be, and the most likely city to get noticed but the press becomes jaded and they don't support talent when it gets to a certain level." It is at this point when Matthew moved to New York to make the label more established. Now ten years after launching his label he continues to thrive and is the creative director of Pucci. See below for images from the party.

View 7 Photos ›

Source and Source

Manchester in Fashion Weekend: Hair Trends

BellaSugarUK — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 09:00:00 -0700

While my partner in crime was busy with fashion, at Manchester Fashion Weekend, I managed to sneak backstage to get the lowdown on some of the fantastic hair looks. Joshua Robinson from Headmasters was the hair maestro behind the modern messy styles and he shared his inspiration for the shows.

For the best looks from the shows and Sean's pick of the products to re-create these styles, simply read more:

How do the hair styles work with the 5 quite different looks?
To be honest, we thought we were going to have to change the looks a couple of times but we found that hair up has worked with every single one of them.
What's your overall theme?
The theme this season is shabby chic. Basically it’s very Gucci, very Prada. Makeup wise it’s been all about smoky eyes and nude lips and we’ve basically tried to make the hair compliment that.
There's a lot of up dos, how have you made these modern?
We've been incorporating fish tails into the up dos to keep the look textured, which is the new way of plaiting. It looks as if the models have gone clubbing the night before and woken up with messy hair. Basically what we’re doing today is letting people watch the show and then they’re coming down stairs and we’re showing them how to recreate the looks they’ve just seen.
Any tips for re-creating this look at home?
Start off with volumiser from technique from L’Oreal. For the catwalk we sprayed about four times more than you'd usually use to make it really messy. Just start on dry hair and keep overloading it with product. Dry it in and overload it again so you start to get a very dirty texture.
Does this work best on day-old, slightly dirty hair?
Yes but you can create that look with products. Once the hair is full of product, just comb through slightly, obviously not taking too much of the kink and messiness out. Try and scrunch the hair at the same time as combing to keep the volume in. The hair should look quite tatty and disheveled.

View 4 Photos ›

Graduate Fashion Week: Manchester School of Art

FabSugarUK — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 10:00:41 -0700

The third day of Graduate Fashion Week got underway with a show from Manchester School of Art. The style of this Northern city is very individual with a vintage twist, so I had high expectations for these young designers. A big shot of colour came with Ashley Farrall's printed designs. Here colour blocking was used in funky shapes on jersey fabric for an individual style.

For further images, just read more.

Sarah Burton added a lot of movement to her pieces which were fringed with tassels. She had tiny satin hot pants, button back knits and minidresses in midnight blue that wouldn't look out of place on Sienna Miller.

A very commercially viable collection came from Rebecca Carr who created a ladylike line with a cherry blossom print. Her designs included swing coats, and paper bag trousers with every look including a rosette. I am now lusting after her printed culottes!

Nia Jones also used a print on her designs of a Da Vinci style drawing with a twist. Using red and pink it was printed on to white and red with the piece de resistance being a Union Jack skirt. Holly Russell closed the show with her magpie topped creations. The looks had hair-fringed shoulders and some pieces used a gorgeous blue shade.

View 22 Photos ›

Photos by Kirsten Borst

Coleen Leads the WAGs to Watch Crowd Surfing Beyonce

PopSugarUK — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:52:47 -0800

New mum Coleen Rooney left baby Kai at home for a night out with Wayne at Beyonce's concert in Manchester yesterday. Coleen only left hospital after giving birth two weeks ago, so it's great to see she's ready to enjoy the odd evening out. She was joined by fellow WAG Alex Curran at the concert, who wore a big furry jacket and was accompanied by hubby Steven Gerrard and their daughters. Beyonce has been enjoying her stay in the UK, partying with Rihanna and those JLS boys during her time in London earlier in the week. She got carried away by the crowd quite literally during her performance at the O2 in London on Monday, when she jumped of the stage and went crowd surfing: check out video footage of her daring feat after the jump! It certainly impressed sister Solange, who tweeted her appreciation.

To watch the video of Beyonce crowd surfing and see more pictures, read more.

View 10 Photos ›

Lily Wigs Out and Takes Another Tumble on Stage

PopSugarUK — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 01:34:28 -0800

Lily Allen performed barefoot last night at Manchester Apollo after tripping on stage in her high heels. The accident follows hot on the heels of Lily's tumble down the stairs during the Children in Need concert last week. Having stuck with her own hair and a monochrome outfit at her gig in Sheffield the night before, Lily wore a red Preen bandage dress and a two-tone wig for her concert in Manchester yesterday. Let's hope the rest of her tour goes without a hitch.

View 5 Photos ›