Topshop Secret Store (London, UK)

Anyone who's been to Topshop's London flagship on Oxford Street (and possibly NYC's equivalent), will know that it can be a scary scary place. Unless you go first thing in the morning or shortly before closing time, it's always packed - primarily with young teens and eager tourists. Despite my courage when it comes to tackling crowds (using public transport in rush hour, braving mosh pits/front rows in rock concerts & festivals or fighting my way through designer sample sales), my tolerance when it comes to the bustle within the fluorescent-lit, windowless space is surprisingly low. So when I was told that Topshop had launched a special pop-up 'Secret Store' - which was hidden away from the rest of the retail area and that promised to evoke the charms of a treasure trove - I was both skeptical and intrigued.

'Wild At Heart' Florist by Meadham Kirchhoff & the hidden entrance to the Secret Store.

More from the floral display (left) and the flowers leading the way to the store (right).

The small potted plants and flowers included cute adornments, such as the eyes (top). Left image via Topshop.

To make matters more challenging, I decided to visit on Saturday, since I happened to be in the area. Thankfully the store was less busy than expected, and following the floral footprints to the lower level, I was lead to the beautiful 'Secret Store' entrance that doubled as a florist. This gorgeous 'Wild At Heart' floral arrangement was curated by Meadham Kirchhoff, who had also taken it upon themselves to hand paint flower pots and choose the most adorable decor to add to certain plants. Everything was for sale and made a great souvenir if the pieces in the actual store were a little too pricey for your liking.

Overview of the Secret Store interiors (image via Topshop).

Topshop Boutique items in a wooden trunk.

Meadham Kirchhoff stacked rings and bracelets in a heart-shaped box.

Tearing myself away from the flora, I finally found myself inside the Secret Store, which was like stepping into a completely different world. Antique furniture was carefully placed around the small area, which held limited-edition one-off pieces from some of London's and New York's most renowned designers in collaboration with Topshop. On display were also sought-after items from the 'Unique' archives and the 'Boutique' range, as well as carefully selected trinkets.

Emma Cook lingerie.

Michael van der Ham velvet wedges displayed in a cabinet.

Nasir Mazhar hair accessories (left) and Pamela Love jewelry (right).

Some of the special designer goodies I spotted included the stacks of rings and bangles by Meadham Kirchhoff, which came in an embroidered heart-shaped box. Pamela Love's current collaboration pieces could be found in a cabinet nearby, while funky wedges by Michael van der Ham were displayed on plush velvet cushions. Some garments, such as Tom Scott's cropped tops hung from the walls like works of art. Others either had their own wardrobe space or were placed along the racks on the far side of the shop. The cozy changing room with the fringed lamp, gilded mirror and retro wallpaper was a nice touch as well and added to the vintage boutique vibe.

Topshop Boutique items among vintage decor and flowers.

The lovely changing room (left), Tom Scott tops (top) and more Pamela Love jewelry (right).

More trinkets including furry hats (left) and nail polish (right).

Aside from the fashion treasures within the store and the vibrant flowers in front of it, the best thing about the Secret Store was the enchanting atmosphere and the fact that you could actually escape from the chaos beyond its walls. The pop-up space will shut this week, so I urge you to go before it disappears. It's open exclusively in the Oxford Street branch and in NYC's Broadway flagship, but if you can't make it to either - don't worry: most items can be found in the online version of the Secret Store here.

Nasir Mazhar hair clips (left), Topshop Boutique crochet top (right).

Another view of the Secret Store (left), various gowns (top), Maria Francesca Pepe tank & jewelry and Ann-Sofie Back crochet top (right).

The Oxfam Curiosity Shop @ Selfridges (London, UK)

Have you ever wanted to own a red carpet dress as worn by Scarlett Johanssen? Do you adore Colin Firth to the point where you'd just like to snuggle up in his cashmere sweater? Well, fear not... all of the above and more is now possible thanks to Britain's largest charity pop-up store, which opened its doors on April 1 in Selfridges' Ultralounge. Organized by Annie Lennox, the ten day event is in its second year running and includes items donated by celebrities such as Lennox herself, both Colin Firth and his wife Livia, Scarlett Johanssen, Jude Law, Dido, Florence Welsh, Alexa Chung and Elle Macpherson to name a few, as well as donations from designers such as Stella McCartney or Vivienne Westwood. In addition, sought-after samples and vintage pieces, both high-end and more affordable have been pulled from over 700 Oxfam shops in the UK and will be made available in the pop-up store.

Some of the items up for grabs include Annie Lennox' s Alexander McQueen gown (left), Livia Firth's gown (center) and Carey Mulligan's Vionnet dress (right). The first two gowns are available online.

More stuff for sale, including Alexa Chung's Mulberry skirt suit (top left), Alison Goldfrapp's Miu Miu shoes (lower left), Vivienne Westwood dress (center), Vivienne Westwood bag (top right) and Elle Macpherson's Celine tote (lower right).

According to Oxfam: "All the money raised will go to fund Oxfam's women's projects across the world from Bangladesh and Sri Lanka to Democratic Republic of Congo, West Africa and South Africa. These projects protect support and empower vulnerable women: campaigning against violence, empowering them to fight HIV and AIDS and offering the poorest girls the chance of education. The projects funded by the shop include a women's tailoring project in Liberia which Laura Bailey recently visited with Oxfam. The money raised from last year's event has helped to transform the lives of countless women already." Last year, more than 30,000 customers visited the shop in just one week, raising an amazing £250,000 for Oxfam’s work.

A huge selection of vintage goods...

I spied cute purses and a pair of Marc Jacobs sandals.

If you're nowhere near London, don't worry: some of the most coveted pieces, including the gown Livia Firth wore to the BAFTA awards to support husband Colin, a stunning Alexander McQueen dress donated by Ms Lennox or a sequined number from Kate Moss are all available online here. There's no excuse not to visit Selfridges if you are in London though, especially considering the great cause. I dropped by the store yesterday and even though I'm usually overwhelmed by vintage shops, the spacious and colorful sales area was easy to browse and had a fantastic selection of both celebrity goods and regular (i.e. less pricier) vintage fair.

The gents had a great choice of ties (right), while the ladies could choose from a multitude of scarves and knits (left).

Loved the colorful displays, which showcased the Michael Kors heels (top right) nicely.

So many clothes, so little wardrobe space... sigh.

In addition to clothing, there was a wonderful selection of scarves, ties, bags, shoes and even trinkets such as an antique Singer sewing machine (already sold... bummer), music records, books and homeware items.

The Singer sewing machine (left) was already taken, but lots of scarves and bags were still available.

Sick of clothes? There's always the record collection or retro radios. I quite fancied the picnic set (right).

Tea for two... or more with the lovely porcelain set (left) and more for the music fans (right).

Of course the biggest draw will be the celebrity donations. Even though I didn't have the funds to buy any of them, I made a point of touching every single Colin Firth item (both he and his wife donated a lot), realized that Dido has excellent taste in clothes (her Hussein Chalayan and Vivienne Westwood coats were very cool and in great condition) and marveled at how varied Annie Lennox's style was (everything from black and simple to bright and printed).

Pre-loved Hussein Chalayan coat from Dido (top left), two dresses from Annie Lennox (lower left), Stella McCartney top (top center), Colin Firth's overcoat (lower center), Dido's Vivienne Westwood jacket (top right) and Annie Lennox' s Shanghai Tang dress (lower right).

The cutest area was undoubtedly the little corner that actually resembled a small vintage shop. It was stocked full of the more glamorous celebrity items, while ScarJo's Dolce & Gabbana dress and Colin Firth's leather jacket fronted the space. Inside, a video showed some of the celebrities describe the items they were donating, while the walls and shelves were adorned with more goodies than I could take in properly.

How cute is this shop-in-shop? And more from Colin in the form of a leather jacket. Scarlett donated this lovely Dolce & Gabbana dress (boy is she tiny...).

Inside the shop... more celebrity gowns and memorabilia. The embellished dress (lower right) is by Stella McCartney.

Shelves filled with accessories (right), while a screen featured video clips (top left) and yet another Annie Lennox find: the iconic wet-look trench.

I might actually have to go back to browse a second time and if you're in London, you'll have the chance to peruse the selection yourself - until April 10. As mentioned before, all others can still check out the online auction. I've provided a small selection of what's currently available below...

From the online auction (starting left): Livia Firth's gown as pictured at the top of the post, Kate Moss' dress, Stella McCartney boots from Beverly Knight, Colin Firth's coat and a beautiful Alexander McQueen gown by Annie Lennox (as pictured at the top of the post).

More auction items (from left): Ashish dress by VV Brown, Termperly kaftan dress, vintage Chanel suit, Emma Thompson's Jaeger dress, Jude Law's Oscar tuxedo, Jane Shepherdson's Camilla Skovgaard heels.

Selfridges Auction Homepage
The Oxfam Curiosity Shop Homepage

The World of Manolo @ Liberty (London, UK)

Leave it to Liberty, my favorite London department store, to come up with something special for last week's Fashion's Night Out. Last year they gave us the wonderful Hermès collaboration and this time around, the same space (located where the scarf room is usually housed), was transformed into a Manolo Blahnik pop-up store... though the man himself dislikes that term. The joint venture included Blahnik's own Liberty print designs, which adorned a few limited edition stilettos and a pair of flats. In addition, Liberty created a few more prints based on Blahnik's illustrations - all of which could be found on various other items including notebooks, ties, scarves, totes and even cushions.

Some of the exclusive Manolo Blahnik shoes featuring Liberty prints (images: Liberty).

Three of the new Liberty prints based on Blahnik's illustrations. The actual fabric is for sale as well (images: Liberty).

Though I'm generally not what one would call a Manolo aficionado - many of his shoes are a tad too dainty for my liking - I've always been quite fond of his sketches. And since I rarely need an excuse to visit Liberty, I took the opportunity the check out 'The World of Manolo' in the process. According to the designer, who currently resides in the UK “it’s the first time I’ve done anything like it and I’m a bit terrified, but I’m doing it because I love this building and I’ve been using Liberty prints forever” adding that “I have known about Liberty since I was a young boy. My mother used to order Tana Lawn fabric and make us outfits. The store is so beautiful and its history is so rich. “

View of the retail space (left), the Liberty zebra sporting an exclusive scarf and one of the Manolo for Liberty shoes (right).

The small space on the ground floor had been transformed into what resembled an English garden, with the walls painted in light green and paper cut-outs of leaves and other foliage in the same shade forming archways along the room. The shoes themselves were perched on stands near the walls, like exotic birds. It's the first time any of Blahnik's pieces have been made available outside his UK flagship and while all the exclusive Liberty shoes were prominently displayed, many of the FW10 creations were featured as well, including the coveted Mary Jane heels, the furry Arctic boots or the more classic Serderarby pumps.

Scarves in shelves (left and lower right) and FW10 boots on display (top right).

Cute accessories included cushions, cards and totes. And the famous blue shoe reinvented as a flat for FW10 (lower left. Top right image: Disneyrollergirl).

While plenty of shoppers were going crazy with the shoes, leaving bored boyfriends and husbands behind on the comfortable patchwork couches, most girls (including yours truly) were drawn towards the table near the cash desk which displayed the scarves, scented candles, lavender pouches, wrapping paper, greeting cards, ties, notebooks and umbrellas to name a few - all featuring the adorable illustrated shoe prints. Prices started as low as £5.95 for the handkerchiefs, while items such as the cushions and silk scarves would set you back a little more. All accessories however are definitely a cheaper alternative to the footwear. Come Christmas time, Blahnik will also be curating Liberty's store windows with an emphasis on an 'old-fashioned English feel'.

The accessories table from afar (left) featuring more tempting items, such as the ties and more scarves (lower right image: Disneyrollergirl).

Fur boots, lavender pouches, wrapping paper, cards and more pretty shoes (far right images: Disneyrollergirl).

Those lucky enough to have made it to Liberty's FNO event, where the pop-up-store was first unveiled, had a chance to meet Blahnik in person, who was on hand to sign just about anything. If you're in town next month, you're in luck, since he'll be back in-store (on October 23) to sign copies of his new book 'Manolo's New Shoes'. Even if you don't make it to any event, 'the World of Manolo' will be open for the next three months, so there's still plenty of time to get your hands on one of the cute items or exclusive shoes. And if you're not heading to London anytime soon, fear not - the majority of these pieces are now available from Liberty's online store here.

I couldn't get enough of those accessories... and you can even inhale a Manolo scent thanks to the exclusive candles (lower right image: Disneyrollergirl).

A selection of the accessories such as the scarves (top left, lower center), umbrella, bow tie, lavender pouch, mini cake and even a chocolate shoe (lower right). All images taken from Liberty's online store.

Address: Great Marlborough Street, London W1B 5AH
Opening Hrs: Mon-Sat: 10:00-21:00, Sun: 12:00-18:00
Liberty Homepage & Online Shop

Rodarte @ Colette (Paris, France)

I just realized that this post is probably more in line with Halloween than my last, but for those who are still relishing all that is spooky and a little macabre, this should hopefully keep you happy until next year's festivities. And who better to host something a little different than Colette - one of those stores I have a bit of a love-hate relationship with. Like most designer concept stores, I've always found this one to be a little pretentious and while the displays are interesting enough, I've often perceived the in-store layout to be a bit messy and overly artsy in the way they try to display clothing. What Colette is good at though, is getting well established designers, artists, authors and anyone else remotely interesting or famous to collaborate with them, resulting in unique pop-up stores and/or exhibitions. In the past, I've featured their Barbie anniversary, as well as The Selby exhibition. This time around, they've decided to work with the Mulleavy sisters by celebrating their 10th collection, which involves an exhibit curated by the designers showcasing "artists who reveal the nostalgic qualities apparent in pop culture". In addition, the corner below the gallery features exclusive Rodarte items, their recent Opening Ceremony collaboration, a selection from the FW09 collection, as well as a whole range of other pieces designed by friends of Rodarte.

Overview of the pop-up store (left) and the exhibition (right).

The area reserved for Colette's monthly special guest can usually be found towards the back of the first floor. The annoying thing about a store that has the power to host various collaborations and other events, is that things tend to go a little overboard. Around the same time the Rodarte tribute was going on, Colette was also paying an homage to Natasha Poly, so snapshots of hers could be found strewn all over the same floor as well, along with special Natasha products, such as dolls and books. Meanwhile some of Rodarte's inspirational shots (prints from Autumn de Wilde and David Sherry) could already be found near the stairs and it took me a few minutes to realize this even belonged to the Rodarte collaboration.

From top left: Rodarte Living Dead Dolls, city postcards with eyes by Patrick Li, Rodarte limited edition doll, a paper party hat.

Some of Rodarte's favorite movies and CDs, as well as an inspiration wall.

Nevertheless, once you get to the two storey space dedicated to the California designers, there's no mistaking you've come to the right place to catch a glimpse of Rodarte's inspiration and creative process. The special shop features everything from DVDs of epic horror movies and favorite CDs or books to special edition postcards by Patrick Li or jewelry by Mark Walsh & Leslie Chin. Some of the more interesting items included the Rodarte doll or if you prefer something a little scarier, you can also pick out one of the special Living Dead Dolls on display.

Overview of one of the store walls covered in zombie-like prints (top, image: Colette). Pillowcases by Miranda July (left) and Opening Ceremony totes (right).

The Rodarte x Opening Ceremony pieces were worth looking at as well... this included lunchboxes, a Kurt Cobain t-shirt, notebooks and a whole range of eco-friendly bags. If you prefer something along the lines of shoes, there's always Kirkwood's thigh-high boot or for something a little more low key, Repetto has created a limited edition Rodarte ballerina.

Top: Overview of the area featuring the Rodarte FW09 collection. Repetto x Rodarte ballerinas (lower left) and a Rodarte FW09 cardigan (right).

Of course Rodarte's own FW09 range was heavily featured as well. From what I could tell, a few dresses, cardigans and skirts were piled up on a shelf and hung from a rack at the far end of the room. Because of the steep pricing, no one was really buying these, but it was still interesting to browse considering Rodarte isn't that easily available in Europe. For slightly more affordable items, the Mulleavys also created several special edition collections such as the 'I love/hate Rodarte' sweaters and tees or a range of quirky necklaces.

Some very cool jewelry by Mark Walsh & Leslie Chin (left) and necklaces by Rodarte (right).

The only thing more expensive than the FW09 pieces were the porcelain sets from KPM, some of which came with a porcelain gun to match the saucers and tea cups. If these had been cheaper, I'm sure they would have made a great gift for your conservative aunt or grandmother, but alas, I doubt most people have that kind of money to spend on a crazy gift item.

Overview of the book section (left). Fancy a gun with your tea? KSM porcelain set (right).

The walls of this section were covered in de Wilde and Sherry prints that partially inspired Rodarte's current season collections, but for more art, you need to head up the stairs to the gallery area. Alexandre de Betak created a mini installation that featured the Rodarte runway shows, while works from various other artists such as Karen Kilimnik, Ari Marcopoulos or Kim Gordon (of Sonic Youth fame) hung from the nearby walls.

Alexandre de Betak installation in a glass bubble (left). 'Love' neon sign by Alexandra Gant (top right) and a beautiful glittery piece by Karen Kilimnik (lower right).

Overview of part of the exhibition (top, image: Colette). Notebooks and photographs by Dave Armstrong (lower left). 'Mom as Medusa' by Helliott Hundley (right).

There were also two big piles of poster-sized typed letters on the floor. I have no idea what they were supposed to be, but reading through them, I had the impression they were written by an over-eager fan or borderline stalker (these letters weren't directed at the Mulleavys but a girl living in Paris). This might explain why a few feet away I sighted the somewhat dangerous looking 'Evil Bat' - the coolest self-defence weapon I've ever seen.

From top left: 'Zombie Arrow' by Autumn de Wilde, 'Bats' by Annakim Violette, strange stalker letters you could take with you as a souvenir, various prints by Dave Sherry, works by Kim Gordon and Ari Marcopoulos.

Left: 'No Title' by Raymond Pettibon. Right: The incredibly studded 'Evil Bat' by Marc Kroop.

I tend to skip some of Colette's collaborations, but this was definitely one of the better ones and a must if you're a fan or admirer of Rodarte. The designers are pretty open when it comes to sharing their inspirations (take a look at their homepage for more), but seeing their clothes hang side-by-side with zombie-like artworks and porcelain guns does put a different twist on things and also gives a little insight into their slightly quirky sense of humor. This exhibition is on until November 7, so if you're in town, I'd go and check it out. If you're not in Paris, don't despair: you can still buy all these special Rodarte items and some of the prints via Colette's online store.

A selection of more special Rodarte items from Colette's onilne store. From top left; Rodarte FW09 knit dress, Opening Ceremony lunchbox, Miranda July pillowcase, Rodarte x Colette buttons, Rodarte x Colette sweater, Rodarte necklace (individual images: Colette).

Address: 213 rue Saint-Honoré, 75001 Paris
Opening Hrs: Mon-Sat: 11:00-19:00
Colette Homepage & Online Shop