Lulafication

When Leith Clark, editor in chief of Lula, did that Topshop 'Mirror Mirror' project, one of the comments that was typed out on the mirror,coach shoulder bags, probably much to the delight of the girl having her style analysed was "You're a Lula girl!"  I participated in the same project and sadly had no such grand declaration to offer up (my comments were long winded and probably not very useful....). 

I remember that particular comment from Clark because it encapsulated what the magazine, which is still relatively young,Coach Wallets, has done in terms of projecting a certain aesthetic about itself and has thus won the hearts of many a girl who could ally themselves with one publication and very proudly call themselves a 'Lula girl'.... I'm not sure whether the same can be said for other publications. 

It's all very fascinating to me as someone who glances at the peripheries of the world of Lula and is categorically NOT a Lula girl, not because I don't read the magazine but because inherently I'm too shambolic a mess to be Lula-ified and, as a sage commentor pointed out, my wardrobe frequently explodes on me (I quite like the term 'wardrobe explosion').  I can't quite commit myself to the level of whimsy that Lula dishes out so consistently in their issues and whilst I'm a dreamer, I also have too many pragmatic doubts to stay put in a dreamer's land.  Ack, we're getting into dodgy short story territory here.  Suffice to say, Lula's world is one that has tapped into a particular style zeitgeist, connecting to both full-time and part-time dreamers (that would be me...) and their imagery has certainly created a style genre or even tribe in some cases.

It therefore makes complete sense that Lula should have its first pop-up shop which has now arrived in Harvey Nichols to celebrate Lula's 5th birthday.  I remember how much I enjoyed the Pop/Selfridges collaboration and in a similar vein, Harvey Nicholas has asked Clark to especially commission and curate products going into the specially designed space by Fiona Leahy.  The usual suspect are there... Charles Anastase, Erdem, Lover,monster beats solo hd headphones, Moschino, Sonia Rykiel and Miu Miu with either limited designs that were created especially for the project or revived archive pieces such as the Miu Miu glitter shoes.

A revived Charles Anastase x Longchamp bag...

I got lucky and bagged the Pop/Selfridges Miu Miu collab shoes ons ale but I'm thinking there'll be no such luck with these Tabitha Simmons shoes at a cost of £685!!!

Paper heart... much prefer the physical entity to the film of the same name...

Yer' bestsellers... the more accessibly priced sweatshirt/tee memento...
I just can't bear to describe things as 'rad' though...

Mash it all up together (actually, do Lula girls 'mash'?) with some added balloons, lollies and ice cream bicycles outside Harvey Nicks promoting the pop-up shop (I didn't stay long enough to catch that sweet sight...) and you have yourself a place for Lula girls all over to swoon.  Lazy half-hearted Lula-ites such as myself was honing in on the girlification of two Rodarte dresses made especially for the shop - in a green lame and green/grey marble print.  No patchworking, fringing or taped-up straps here but a well executed example of simplification.

Lo and behold, as I was there taking pictures, the perfect specimen of a Lula girl popped up.  Kristina here who works for Vivienne Westwood came by to check out the store looking splendid in Westwood, Luella and style that instantly reduces me down into the distinctly UN-Lula pile.

I'm ok with being a lousy part-timer though.  Just hand me the Erdem and I'll slip away back to my shambolic N7 hole, as a slow undoing of the dress' pristine primness...