Fashioning February: Slave to Fashion - Part Two

This part looked at the huge influence celebrities have on our fashion choices from huge A list Hollywood stars right down to actors from daytime soaps. As we were in the midst of an era where we were obsessed with celebrities, TV presenter, June Sarpong tacked the issue as to who was more important, the celebrity or the brand and exposed the huge machine who were responsible for getting the star looking immaculate. June kicked off with the most iconic element of celebrity fashion - the red carpet. The red carpet is now a huge fashion opportunity for stars. Years ago it was about launching films but now no one is bothered about that, all they care about is being able to strut their stuff in a designer outfit which will raise their profile. However the red carpet is just as important for the designers who see it as a vehicle in promoting their line. PRs for big design employ a strategy called seeding where they grade celebrities in terms of their star rating and send them pieces from the label for free. A front cover on a newspaper or magazine is worth thousands of pounds in advertising and this can translate into sales, big sales.so no wonder the designers want in. However the situation can backfire ie the wrong celeb in a designer brand can ruin it hence Daniella Westbrook almost destroying the Burberry brand back in the 90s. Ultimately it is the magazines who decides who makes it onto their covers and over the years these publications have become more powerful with the introduction of with their best dressed list. Every decent magazine has one from Vogue to Glamour to Elle.

This takes us onto the WAGs (wives and girlfriends of famous footballers) who rapidly became style icons after the World Cup in 2006. As they had the girl next door image this made them more accessible to regular consumers. So if Colleen is seen looking dapper in a Gucci dress, this is more attainable to a young girl than seeing Jennifer Aniston in one. Victoria Beckham has been described as gold dust by a very famous designer because she whatever she wears sells like hotcakes. We then moved onto the glamorous world of celebrity styling where Cynthia Lawrence John, who works with The Sugababes filled us in on exactly what her job entailed. It involved gathering together the right pieces that suit her clients look for a photo shoot or album cover whether it was designer, second hand or hand made pieces. There is also a lot of back scratching here; the designer gets the perks of being associated to a group which means press coverage and the celebrity gets free clothes. But it does not stop there; more and more celebs have started their own design labels. Gwen Stefani, Jennifer Lopez, Victoria Beckham and of course the most anticipated celeb label was Kate Moss with Topshop.The programme then looks at what goes into making a celeb look their best on the red carpet. She popped into to see former singer and TV presenter, Louise Rednapp and her stylist, Karen Clarkson and watched them putting together a look for the GQ Awards. Louise and Karen discussed the efforts that go into making a celebrity look perfect for a high profile event like the Oscars and The Grammys. One thing becomes clear, that a full military operation is employed with make up, stylists, eye whiteners, hair dressers all onboard to make the celebrity look absolutely perfect.


Part three looks at the impact the UK High Street has had on the fashion industry and you can read it here.