As my alarm went off for 4.30am and my cab arrived for 5 , I couldn't believe that a year had been since my first LFW and that this one year anniversary was going to be better than ever! First up for this season was a project I had spent the week working on! I was assisting Sarah Cobb on the styling of the first show of the season - Paul Costelloe. We had spent the days following the show at Paul's studio doing model castings and preparing every last detail for how the show would look. From deciding that the models should have burnt-candy floss pink wigs to me running around London over the course of 2 days in the hunt of the perfect pair of oatmeal tights only to have that idea scrapped and replaced with burgundy! Alas Friday morning came around and as Day One loomed I made my way to Somerset House in the dark hours of the early morning to prepare for the fashion circus that was about to roll on into London Town...
As time passed the models arrived and made their way into hair & make-up and before I knew it we were 45minutes pre-show and backstage was a flurry of hair & make-up artists running around adding finishing touches. Myself, Sarah & Paul's team trying each look onto every model switching outfit choices & the seamstress finishing off details on the garments till literally the 
very last minute. Amongst all the mayhem my morning started with a touch of celeb when Janice Dickinson entered the room , camera crew in tow! I saw Janice last season at Julien McDonald and remember thinking how funny and charicature like she is - a larger than life character to say the least! Suddenly her publicist came across to me asking for the Stylist as OK Television & Janice Dickinson would like to interview her, "Sure I'll just grab her" and as I dashed outside to steal Sarah away from her ciggie break she said "No , i'm not doing interviews you do it Deni..." , with those words I nervously shuffled my way backstage in front of the camera to then be interviewed by Janice Dickinson. "What's your name young man..." and with that question the next 2 minutes felt like a blur, bright lights in my eye a camera and microphone in my face and one of the most intimidating women in fashion was treating me like an absolute darling. "Honey you should come to L.A & be my stylist" she concluded & with that we exchanged a hug & kiss & posed for a quick pre-show snap (notice the lippy on my cheeks!
Before I could even register how surreal the situation was it was almost show time. Having spent the last season of LFW attending shows I had almost forgotten how amazing the rush & anticipation of being back stage was. Before I knew it the show had begun , music thumping we began dressing and undressing the girls (and boys) in and out of their outfits in time for the runway! As the last look hit the runway & Paul went out for his bow and overwhelming feeling of satisfaction & relief came over me and suddenly the 3 days of running around like a crazy man and working 15 hour days suddenly paid off - it was truly a great moment as he came backstage to roars of applause and cheer from his staff , models and the production crew! Post show Janice Dickinson came around backstage and gave me a big hug "You're great young man you're going to be a big star some day" ... what do you say to that, thank you was all I could come up with. Alas there's no rest for the wicked and as I left the tents at Somerset House I made my way by foot over to the Savoy Hotel for the next show of the day - Maria Grachvogel.
As I entered the beautiful ball room of the Savoy Hotel and took my 3rd row seat I was immediatley taken in by the beauty of my surroundings...and then the show begun. To describe the collection in one word , fluidity comes to mind. Maria's signature beautifully cut silk, draped itself down the runway in the form of dresses and amazing high waisted trousers often finished with interesting harem style draping. Digital prints made an impact as did fur & lace details completed finishing touches to what was an overall beautiful collection & great way to kick off LFW...
As the afternoon moved its way swiftly into early evening it was back to Somerset House and the main tent for the Aminaka Wilmont show where I was joined by fellow fashionista Melanie Tong Fashion Assistant at the Sunday Times Style - what never seems to suprise me is that the fashion world is almost a parallel universe in itself in which everyone know's everyone and they're all there for their one great love - FASHION! As the show kicked on it was becoming apparent that digital prints are back for another season in a big way , as almost every look that came down the runway featured an abstract digital print in hues of nude , blush and purple - toughened up with leather jackets and the return of the shearling aviator with a cascade front to die for! Altough the collection was by no means revolutionary it was extremley commercial! 
Suddenly day turned into night and I got my way back into a cab to go meet some fabulous friends for a pre-show drink. A vodka & lemonade after (and still no solid meal all day - just no time) and it was onto one of my favorite shows of LFW , FelderFelder known for their signature rock chic look the Felder sisters use studs & leather like no one else and I couldn't wait to see what they had prepared for us this season. After pushing and shoving for 45minutes my bestie Charlotte and I finally made our way into the venue and took our seats the music began to thump over the sound system and I was immediatley buzzing in my seat as I spotted Marina (from the Diamonds) and Jodie Kidd front row and then the first girl made her way out...
The show begun and amonst the art-school style craft feel and slight victorian silhouette the only thing that really drew my attention was the colour pallette (love a bit of green mixed in with steel grey) and some lovely tailored trousers , other than that the star studded front row including Nicola Roberts & Kimberz Walsh was more a topic of conversation than the show itself
A quick costume change later for Miss Whitmore and it was time for the show of the evening and my favorite way to end Day 1 of LFW - the PPQ show! Dressed in John Galliano (by me) the devine miss Whit' made her way into the tents to a flurry of flashing lights and an overwhelming amounts of "Laura , here , just a quick photo please" - this by far has been my favorite styling moment with my darling friend - has anyone ever looked this good in bodycon satin - amazing!
As I took my seat behind Laura and the celebrities flowed in - think Paloma Faith, Nicola Roberts, Jamie Winstone to name a few. As the lights went low the anticipation and buzz in the air was so prevalent it was as visible as fog , the crowd was ready for the PPQ party to conclude the first night of LFW with a bang! Nicki Minaj's voice blared over the speakers before Lil Kim's 'Lighter's Up' opened the show - one of my all time favorite hip hop tunes as the first look took centre stage I found myself singing and dancing along to the track with the guests surrounding me. The hip hop posse that we were , knew every last lyric and the fun collection of fun party dresses with a tailored edge whilst the gorgeous models heads were adorned with cute kitten ear hats - it was everything you expect from a PPQ show - a fucking fun time with sexy clothes!
as Laura and I made our way out the tent I stopped for a moment to realise that 6 months ago I met this girl to discuss working together and now she is one of my best friends! I feel truly lucky and blessed to be surrounded by such an amazing passionate young woman - it makes me smile!
As time passed the models arrived and made their way into hair & make-up and before I knew it we were 45minutes pre-show and backstage was a flurry of hair & make-up artists running around adding finishing touches. Myself, Sarah & Paul's team trying each look onto every model switching outfit choices & the seamstress finishing off details on the garments till literally the very last minute. Amongst all the mayhem my morning started with a touch of celeb when Janice Dickinson entered the room , camera crew in tow! I saw Janice last season at Julien McDonald and remember thinking how funny and charicature like she is - a larger than life character to say the least! Suddenly her publicist came across to me asking for the Stylist as OK Television & Janice Dickinson would like to interview her, "Sure I'll just grab her" and as I dashed outside to steal Sarah away from her ciggie break she said "No , i'm not doing interviews you do it Deni..." , with those words I nervously shuffled my way backstage in front of the camera to then be interviewed by Janice Dickinson. "What's your name young man..." and with that question the next 2 minutes felt like a blur, bright lights in my eye a camera and microphone in my face and one of the most intimidating women in fashion was treating me like an absolute darling. "Honey you should come to L.A & be my stylist" she concluded & with that we exchanged a hug & kiss & posed for a quick pre-show snap (notice the lippy on my cheeks! Before I could even register how surreal the situation was it was almost show time. Having spent the last season of LFW attending shows I had almost forgotten how amazing the rush & anticipation of being back stage was. Before I knew it the show had begun , music thumping we began dressing and undressing the girls (and boys) in and out of their outfits in time for the runway! As the last look hit the runway & Paul went out for his bow and overwhelming feeling of satisfaction & relief came over me and suddenly the 3 days of running around like a crazy man and working 15 hour days suddenly paid off - it was truly a great moment as he came backstage to roars of applause and cheer from his staff , models and the production crew! Post show Janice Dickinson came around backstage and gave me a big hug "You're great young man you're going to be a big star some day" ... what do you say to that, thank you was all I could come up with. Alas there's no rest for the wicked and as I left the tents at Somerset House I made my way by foot over to the Savoy Hotel for the next show of the day - Maria Grachvogel.As I entered the beautiful ball room of the Savoy Hotel and took my 3rd row seat I was immediatley taken in by the beauty of my surroundings...and then the show begun. To describe the collection in one word , fluidity comes to mind. Maria's signature beautifully cut silk, draped itself down the runway in the form of dresses and amazing high waisted trousers often finished with interesting harem style draping. Digital prints made an impact as did fur & lace details completed finishing touches to what was an overall beautiful collection & great way to kick off LFW...A can of Diet Coke (ultimate LFW essential) and a cab ride later (a luxury I continued to allow myself all week) and it was off to the Jean Pierre Braganza show to see what this young talented designer had in store for London this season. As I took my seat next to follow fashionista Lucy Williams InStyle fashion assistant , we chatted Nicki Minaj & twitter before the show began! As the first look came down the runway - it was very apparent that the 80s were back in a big way. Shoulder Pads , oversized mannish style blazers and dramatic hair and make-up, the power woman we lusted for two seasons ago seemed to be creeping back onto fashion's forefront in a collection that consisted of a mostly grey black & red colour scheme, including sequins , transparency and stripes...
As the afternoon moved its way swiftly into early evening it was back to Somerset House and the main tent for the Aminaka Wilmont show where I was joined by fellow fashionista Melanie Tong Fashion Assistant at the Sunday Times Style - what never seems to suprise me is that the fashion world is almost a parallel universe in itself in which everyone know's everyone and they're all there for their one great love - FASHION! As the show kicked on it was becoming apparent that digital prints are back for another season in a big way , as almost every look that came down the runway featured an abstract digital print in hues of nude , blush and purple - toughened up with leather jackets and the return of the shearling aviator with a cascade front to die for! Altough the collection was by no means revolutionary it was extremley commercial! Suddenly day turned into night and I got my way back into a cab to go meet some fabulous friends for a pre-show drink. A vodka & lemonade after (and still no solid meal all day - just no time) and it was onto one of my favorite shows of LFW , FelderFelder known for their signature rock chic look the Felder sisters use studs & leather like no one else and I couldn't wait to see what they had prepared for us this season. After pushing and shoving for 45minutes my bestie Charlotte and I finally made our way into the venue and took our seats the music began to thump over the sound system and I was immediatley buzzing in my seat as I spotted Marina (from the Diamonds) and Jodie Kidd front row and then the first girl made her way out...Every look seemed better then the previous. Sequinned cropped leather jackets trimmed with what appeared to be faux-goat hair (or is it faux?) metallic silver trousers and studded cuffs as far as the eye could see the Felder sisters proved yet again that their rock sensibility was right on the money! I left the show feeling and inspired and ready for the night ahead! It was time for a quick costume change pre the evenings last two shows and I removed my striped jumper and replaced with a vintage silver metallic shirt & bow tie to tsjuz up my leather trousers for what promised to be a rock-star Friday night LFW opener! I soon made my way over to Tom's Bar at Somerset House to meet my darling clients and best friends Natalia & Laura for a pre show drink and then we made our way to the tents for the Bora Aksu show. As we entered I was blinded by paparazzi only to realise that , oh yeah my friend/client is kinda famous hehe and like a true proffessional Laura flashed her million dollar smile for the adoring lenses! Styled by moi - she rocked a Missoni body con dress complete with her signature leather jacket & new favorite Manolo Blahnik for TOUS necklace! Watching her amongst the paps made it seem so surreal!
The show begun and amonst the art-school style craft feel and slight victorian silhouette the only thing that really drew my attention was the colour pallette (love a bit of green mixed in with steel grey) and some lovely tailored trousers , other than that the star studded front row including Nicola Roberts & Kimberz Walsh was more a topic of conversation than the show itselfA quick costume change later for Miss Whitmore and it was time for the show of the evening and my favorite way to end Day 1 of LFW - the PPQ show! Dressed in John Galliano (by me) the devine miss Whit' made her way into the tents to a flurry of flashing lights and an overwhelming amounts of "Laura , here , just a quick photo please" - this by far has been my favorite styling moment with my darling friend - has anyone ever looked this good in bodycon satin - amazing!As I took my seat behind Laura and the celebrities flowed in - think Paloma Faith, Nicola Roberts, Jamie Winstone to name a few. As the lights went low the anticipation and buzz in the air was so prevalent it was as visible as fog , the crowd was ready for the PPQ party to conclude the first night of LFW with a bang! Nicki Minaj's voice blared over the speakers before Lil Kim's 'Lighter's Up' opened the show - one of my all time favorite hip hop tunes as the first look took centre stage I found myself singing and dancing along to the track with the guests surrounding me. The hip hop posse that we were , knew every last lyric and the fun collection of fun party dresses with a tailored edge whilst the gorgeous models heads were adorned with cute kitten ear hats - it was everything you expect from a PPQ show - a fucking fun time with sexy clothes! as Laura and I made our way out the tent I stopped for a moment to realise that 6 months ago I met this girl to discuss working together and now she is one of my best friends! I feel truly lucky and blessed to be surrounded by such an amazing passionate young woman - it makes me smile!...now as they say, after the show its the after party and so we went , myself and my fabulous friends from the Cosmopolitan fashion team to the new SKY BAR at the Millbank Towers , not yet opened to general public we were the first crop of London to see the elite new hot spot! We froze for 45 minutes in the cold but once in the Belvedere flowed and the talents of the amazing
Clare Maguire took to the stage. Soon to be joined by Miss Whitmore we danced along to Rihanna in a mixed crowd of designers, models, fashionistas and celebrities till the wee hours of the morning and at 2.30 I made my way home to a kebab and some much needed shut eye after exactly 22 hours of non stop action! The rest of my LFW adventures coming soon xoxo Deni
Clare Maguire took to the stage. Soon to be joined by Miss Whitmore we danced along to Rihanna in a mixed crowd of designers, models, fashionistas and celebrities till the wee hours of the morning and at 2.30 I made my way home to a kebab and some much needed shut eye after exactly 22 hours of non stop action! The rest of my LFW adventures coming soon xoxo Deni
dawn in last night's fabulous outfit - I had my concept! With 2 visits to Beyond Retro and a case of Vintage clothes later I had my clothes and with the help of a friend I soon had a model, photographer & hair-make-up artist - before I knew it the day of the shoot had arrived! In order to tell the story I wanted to shoot on location just around the corner from where I live at the 'Chapel Markets' in Angel. The idea was a girl walking home after a night out , stopping along the streets , popping into an off-license to pick up a bottle of champagne to continue her bender on home, ducking into a Laundromat just because, stopping into the local Jamaican Take-Away and playing at the gamble machines. The clothes were all so vibrant that I wanted them to be shot amongst real life scenarios to contrast the drama of each look. Each look became more fun to shot than the previous , the model - Kimberley Marren , was a true proffessional , so much fun to work with & braved the freezing cold weather in some next-to-nothing looks. 
The photographer Georgina Bolton-King & make-up artist Chanel Sellears both shared my vision & Jade Alexander proved to be the best assistant going the extra mile , even running out to buy socks for the model due to how cold it was! Bless. The shoot turned out amazing, we took some behind the scenes pics while Georgina worked her expertise behind the lense...
When I recieved the brief - a spring summer trend story shot on 5 models in group sequences my head started spinning. 5 models , 10 trends - makes 50 looks. Including Shoes, Jewellery, Accessories - i'm talking bags, hosiery, scarves, gloves, sunglasses, hats - you name it we need it - it was shaping up to be a mammoth task for myself and the 1st assistant Faye. Mammoth , maybe , exciting , DEFINITELY! The trends varied from Animal Print and Block Colours to Leather & Stripes. Before I could say '...we need to call in the new green striped Prada wedges' it was Friday morning and time for the shoot. I woke up anxious and excited, not only was I assisting on shoot for one of the most elite style publications , it was also my first time assisting Sarah on a shoot and I was determined to make a good impression and soak up as much wisdom from her expertise as I could. I arrived at Sarah's at 8.30am to collect all the cases of couture to be shot for the day. A toal of 3 large suitcases and 6 large bags full of fashion goodness. As I got into the car the driver made his way to the studio and I made a quick emergency phone call to my mum for a pre-shoot prep talk. "Don't be nervous Deni you'll do great" - with those words we pulled up to the entrance and it was time to get started. The studio was huge , the biggest i've seen so far , the models were in hair & make-up and photography & crew snacking on bagels & fruit provided for breakfast. I started to unpack the cases seperating the clothes into trends. Boxes of looks hot off the runway were being sent to the studio all morning and when a box of Balmain arrived I almost squealed (my favorite brand of the moment) - out of the box I retrieved an amazing black leather baseball style jacket , silver sleeves, white panels on the shoulder , a metallic B badge on one chest and a big Balmain written across the back shoulders. 
"Oh my god Denis that is so you , I think you need to try it on" , "I know right (says I as I slip into it thinking , thank god i'm sample size) ah its amazing" , "That is so cool on you" - and suddenly I stop and think , 'What , me and Sarah Cobb are having a RZOE/Brad moment' and I smile on the inside and get back to work. The first story is colour blocking and as we overload colour onto our super tall , super thin , extremley high-fashion models, I stand back in awe of Sarah's vision. To say she is an amazing stylist would be an understatement. Immediatley I felt inspired & before I knew it the girls were in front of the photographer ready for the first shot!
Following colour we went to neutral and soft hair and caramel tones were before me. What I loved about this story is that with such a simple trend as neutrals your challenged to still make it interesting and inspiring and make girls want to wear tan , nude & taupe tones in their own way. 
Up next was my favorite category , a Biker-Leather style story , one of my favorite trends and a style that always inspires me. What I most enjoyed about this story was that the collaboration of ideas between Sarah and myself was really flowing , apart from the fact that she's extremley down to earth and so easy to work with yet extremley hard working - she was genuinely interested in my opinion and took my point of view seriously. As the girls stood before us leather clad with biker chic feirceness they posed and played it up for the camera's like the proffessionals they are. Its so amazing how a GREAT model stands out amongst the merely good & these girls were great - working off eachother , with each click of the camera a different look a new angle , being a model is not as easy people think yet these girls made it seem so effortless and chic!
As we walked back to the studio I continued a really interesting conversation with Amalie and it suddenly hit me that here was a seventeen year old girl being thrusted into a world of fashion , money , drugs , sex - when most girls are preparing for their Debutante Ball in high school. "You kind of forget how young you are in this world , age doesnt really exist" - she said to me and I felt a combination of excitement and sadness for her. As we returned back into the warm studio it was time to change into the next look before we headed back into the cold. The next story was romantic-lace and truly a beautiful fashion moment. The following day I had lugged around a box almost the same size of me , containing one amazing Giambattista Valli tulle ball-gown style skirt. The pain it gave my arms & shoulders seemed suddenly so worth it once on the model paired with a Chanel vest. In a second all the pain I endured lugging that box around , was forgotten, I imagined that's what having a baby must feel like for mothers - hours of pain but as soon as the glowing result arrives you forget it - it was my little fashion baby come to life! As the girls stood in a line it almost put a tear in my eye - they looked angelic , beautiful and ethereal. 
However the photographer felt it wasnt giving off the right look , the soft feminine feel of the lace needed to be juxtaposed with something harsh & more gritty , so we took to the streets & the side lane by the studio proved the perfect location , for the poor girls however it meant freezing yet again with next to nothing on underneath their sheen lace outfits - bundled up they stood 
there but once the coats came on and the camera started working I felt like time stood still , the girls looked amazing and as they stood there ready for each shot I couldnt get over just how incredible this was all going to look! 
As I said bye to the team and got on the train to make my way to work (yes , interning doesnt pay the rent folks so i've been working a night job also doing more or less 13hour days Monday to Friday) something came over me as I sat looking out the window. Somewhere in the daily grind of working in Fashion sometimes I forget to stop and appreciate what I'm experiencing. I suddenly thought back to the young boy who saved his money each month to buy all his favorite fashion magazines and obsess over every fashion shoot just praying that one day he would be a part of that world - and now he was. What I experienced on shoot last Friday was so amazing that as I sat there reflecting on my day I was overwhelmed with emotion , tears started building up in my eyes. Happy tears, tears that said 'Deni you are so lucky to be doing this you're dreams are coming true' and for a moment I reminded myself that I was exactly where i'm meant to be. In an amazing city making my dreams come true - even if it means I've had to run around London carrying boxes and suitcases weighing down my scrawny arms with designer clothes - it will all be worth it one day - now more than ever I am more determined to make those dreams a reality xoxo Deni
So when I was told by her 1st Assistant that LGA sent over my CV and whether i'd be interested in assisting Sarah , I sprung out of bed and called her immediately and with the question "Can you start tomorrow..." my life turned into Fashion overdrive! My first day with Camp Cobb involved running around London visiting various Fashion PR's , 'pulling' clothes for a shoot for Italian Fashion Magazine FLAIR , I had 2 days and a brief of 'Long , Fluid , Layering' to work off and suddenly I was brainstorming which labels we should pull from. After 2 long days of running around we finally had enough clothes , shoes & accessories to send Sarah off to shoot on location in South Africa and a sense of accomplishment overcame me - until of course it was time to prep for the next shoot. In the mean time , the 1st Assistant (Faye) flat mate was the Fashion Co-Ordinator at uber-cool mens style magazine SEVENTH MAN and when she called Faye asking for an assistant on a trend story they were working on , I was put forward and before I knew it I went from the world of women's straight over to menswear.
As I arrived to 7TH MAN HQ I was given the brief - Sports Luxe - and was told that I would be doing all the press appointments on my own as the team was busy co-ordinating the shoot. To be given that sort of trust on the first day was daunting to say the least but made me want to prove myself even more. With my first appointment at The Communication Store one of London's leading Fashion PR Agency's I pulled some great Versace, Missoni & Christopher Kane and as I made my way to the next appointment it suddenly hit me that I was running around this amazing city they call London, surrounded by my favorite thing in the world - Fashion and again I reminded myself how lucky I was to be apart of this - slowly making my dream come true. At day's end I returned to HQ to show the team some of the looks I pulled. The Fashion Editor was thrilled and the team really impressed with my choices and I left feeling slightly elevated on the cloud 9 I call Fashion! While prepping for the Sports Luxe shoot the team told me they were shooting a trend story on the weekend and asked if I'd like to assist - I jumped at the offer and was ready to work on my first mens-fashion shoot. When Sunday morning rolled around , after a night out on the dance-floor's of Soho , with only 3 hours sleep I stepped into my cab (I decided to treat myself the luxury) and arrived *Marc Jacobs shades to cover last night's hangover* at the studio's for 9am...eek! Determined, however, to make a good impression & work my ass off - the minute I was organising the rails the clothes spoke to me and my hangover was cured!
The story of the shoot was Floral Print , a typically feminine aspect of fashion however the challenge was to make it cool and masculine yet embracing a softer vibe. Styling women is fun , its almost too fun at times because you can simply go to town and play dress ups - the difference with menswear is you need to keep it 'male-appropriate' however it needs to be fashion forward and inspiring and spending the day on shoot made me realise how interesting a challenge it is and I really enjoyed it. Working with the fashion director was a dream , an incredible stylist he was really open to my opinion and ideas and it felt more collaborative then simply assisting. The
