Vivienne Westwood Anglomania Ruben Print

I stumbled across Vivienne Westwood-Anglomania-Friday-Dressin-Ruben-Print gowns after the decision to incorporate my love of Renaissance art and architecture into my latest of designs. This theme was not just a love of decision, as I designer I need to be aware of the trends for at least a full year ahead to ensure mine are saleable. With sea and Renaissance looking to be a big one for spring 2012, I am sure many other designers will have this theme in mind too. For me, mine is about reflection and preservation of this awesome period of creativity. With Rubens being one of the most influential grand master painters of the baroque period, these images are iconic.

stunning imagery from Jean Michel Berts

Linking my theme of renaissance architecture with sea reflections, this image stood out for me from part of the Ballroom Spy exhibition that saw Jean Michel’s ballroom photos exhibited with Jack Vettriano's sublime paintings

Adriatic Inspiration

After the most amazing boat journey along the Adriatic, taking in Venice, Montenegro, Slovinia and Croatia, these images will start the base of some of my design work

Giorgio Armani's breathtaking sequin embroidered satin gown.

Whilst this is not the intricately embellished style I envisage my designs will take, I can not help fall in love with this beautiful gown and, is it just me and my nautical mind but it when I look at the details, I envisage fishing nets, sea shells plus beautiful sea flowers and anemone in the embellishment? It is a truly sumptuous gown with the sun glistening off it like the iridescence of water. Whilst at present I consider my sea with period reflection theme to be quite un-adorned and simple, I cannot help but wonder whether some embellishment (that is in keeping with my surface pattern/surface view theme) may just now creep in.

The Mystery of Margate's Shell Temple

More info at http://www.shellgrotto.co.uk/

 The grotto has been the subject of much argument concerning its original function and date but the common theme is that a spade was lost into a void when a cap-stone was disturbed in 1835. In order to retrieve the tool a small boy named Joshua, the young son of James Newlove, was lowered through the narrow hole on a length of rope. The narrow hole opened up below to reveal the sealed shell grotto.


With my architectural and sea theme taking shape, I thought a visit to the grotto would be a fantastic location scouting/inspirational exercise as it has in the past provided a fascinating back drop for photo shoots and the strong architectural element may help with construction.