The One and Only Coco

Now we all know that there are a whole heap of fashion blogs out there which cover anything from fashion shows to the latest trends and what celebrities are wearing. However not all of them possess the passion and knowledge that you will find in Coco's Tea Party. Set up 2006, the blog looks at the parallels between fashion and celebrities and the popular hit and miss feature scrutinises the wardrobes of the rich and famous. I caught up with Coco to find out the real deal about Coco's Tea Party.

What made you start blogging?

I don't really remember why I started and to be honest I never planned to. I was just bored one day, and I get through magazines so quickly I thought it would be something constructive to do while waiting for the new issues to come out. But over time I really got into it and now it is much more than just filling time.

Describe the concept behind Coco's Tea Party.

Well my ideas change all the time. When I first started Coco's Tea Party was probably 80% celebrity fashion and it's probably more 50/50 between celebrity and designer now.

You always have an interesting image on the header, how do you go about choosing it?

Well since I came up with the 'We'd rather go naked' quote I always choose images of naked celebrities. It is slightly odd when googling to look for a new one. The first naked star I had was Chloe Sevigny and I loved that header. I changed it to Lindsay Lohan once and there was outrage, so that one only last about 24 hours - it will never be her again. At the moment it is Madonna and I don't think I'll change it for a while.

How do you think bloggers have made an impact on the media?

I think the speed you can get a story out and the fact it is free to read has probably impacted it the most. I often see stories in weekly magazines (which I won't name) where they claim to have just discovered something and it has normally been on some one's blog weeks before. I think it's nice to have the option to read both blogs and magazines - I wouldn't pick one over the other, they each have their strong points.

What do you do when you are not working on your blog?

If I'm not working on my blog I am probably doing work for my degree in Fashion Journalism. I don't think a day goes by where I don't write about fashion at some point. But outside of writing at the moment I am seriously obsessed with watching Brothers & Sisters, I could do that all day.

Describe a typical day.

The first thing I do when I wake up is go online. I don't think I have a 'typical' day as such but there will normally be blogging involved. Haha.

Name your top fashion icons.

This is hard; I love Diane Kruger, Nicole Richie, Mary-Kate Olsen, Carine Roitfeld and Chloe Sevigny. There are so many women. I love Rachel Zoe's look too, the 1970s is one of my favourite decades for fashion so I love how she references it so strongly in her style. I always go back to Ashley Olsen and Sarah Jessica Parker when I need inspiration though.

Name five blogs that you read religiously.

Fashionista, Fashionologie, Just Jared, Lainey Gossip and Discotheque Confusion as me and Stevie started blogging around the same time and I always love to see what she's doing.

How do you see Coco's Tea Party evolving over the next two years?

I don't really have a plan with Coco's Tea Party, and I never had which odd for me as I'm so OCD. It's the only thing that I've ever just let float along. I would like some magazines to give the blog a mention, which I know isn't really that important but it would be quite flattering, especially as I've been writing for almost three years now.

Oh Elle!

Think back to when you were at school and there was a boy who you knew for ages but never took notice of because he was just there. Then one day you looked up and he had gone from being just some boy in your class to this drop dead gorgeous guy. You just shook your head and went - wow - when and where did that happen? Well that is what has happened with UK Elle magazine. In the 70s and 80s UK Elle was the very poor relation to Brit Vogue; not as heavy, not as glam and not as glossy. Then in the 90s and the heyday of maverick, Glenda Bailey, UK Marie Claire started kicking ass and put Elle even further in the shade. Now it seems that has all changed because Elle is right up there making waves. Since Lorraine Candy come to the helm in 2004 she has shaken the magazine to the core by bringing in the popular and much respected Chloe Sevigny as a style advisor and snapping up photographer, Mary McCartney. She also commissioned a new design that would shape the magazine into a style and fashion bible.

The April issue of Elle features the Elle Style Awards with pictures from the event, there is a black and white pictorial of the winners as well as profiles. Donning the cover is Hollywood's sweetheart a la Jennifer Aniston. We are also treated to an interview with Burberry's creative director, Christopher Bailey which is conducted by his close pal and original Pop Idol, Will Young. With wonderful images and great layouts the overall look is extremely fresh. Normally when I buy a glossy I have only found one or two articles that are worth reading but with Elle there have been at least four or five stories that I could sink my teeth into. The next issue in May looks to be a real scorcher with pop kitten Kylie on the cover looking all 60s. So with Brit Vogue getting all generic on us and Marie Claire now getting a touch bland it looks like Elle is here to save the day for glossy magazines.