My portfolio

This portfolio includes my own work from my several blogs I have had. It is basicially one percent of what I have done for my blogs. I think this portfolio shows my strenght in writing and my knowledge about the fashion industry.

I have chosen to show you these pieces of work, because I think they show what talent I have in writing and because I think these are one of my strongest pieces I have. My portfolio is all about to show you the fashion journalism elements I have. I like to write reviews of the collections shown during the fashion weeks around the world, I am not so much into just writing a short text about a collection and then loading up a lot of pictures from that collection.

I get and take a lot of inspiration from various fashion journalists such as Suzy Menkes, Hilary Alexander and Hamish Bowles. Style.com, Iht.com and Telegraph.co.uk, Vogue.com and Vogue.co.uk are five websites I daily visit.

The "Alexander McQueen" and the "Menswear Is Taking Over The Cities" pieces is from my Swedish blog that I had before I started to write in English.

Best Regards

Daoud Benjamin

Luca Luca FW 2011

To be honest, I'm really new to small fashion labels. I cannot exactly about every fashion label around world, and to say the least in New York. A lot of brands are new to me, but I love making research about them, taking in more information about then and get to know them more, because that's what fashion is about. It's about to know your fashion history, to know the labels, to know the designers, etc. But you're not screwed if you don't know, just do some research and you're done.

I didn't know about Luca Luca until today, but I did some research and found that the designer behind Luca Luca is Luca Orlandi and what I saw today from his collection was amazing.

For FW 2011, he's doing color-blocking with colors such as orange, olive, red and a dark shadow of pink. He's also doing chiffon, and oh how I love chiffon dresses. I don't know why, but I'm in love with the flowiness of the material. It flows in a perfect way, but still its chic and beautiful. But Luca is not just for chiffon, he's doing other material as well, such as lace, lacquer and fur.

Even if he's doing color-blocking, there are a lot of grey and black in his collection, and I love that grey knee-lenght fur that came down the runway in the beginning. What I also loved was the pleating he had done on the knee-lenght flannel skirts in white and grey. He also did beautiful pattern in some of his dresses.

However, in some looks I can see Chanel, for one example is that silver jacket with a high collar that has this amazing embroidery on the collar, shoulders and in the front from top of the jacket down to the knees. It's an amazing piece, but Chanel, hey!?

Overall, it looked expensive (and that is the key word when it comes to Luca Luca), chic, beautiful and very feminine. One thing about me is that I love black and dark colors and when I see that they put colors on the runway for FW 2011, I really love it. It's like a light in the dark fall/winter-depression season.
- Daoud. B

For more pictures, visit Style.com

Luca Luca FW 2011 - NYFW

Richard Chai Love FW 2011

Richard Chai was this asian guy helping launching Marc by Marc Jacob. He made it to top 10 CFDA/Vogue Fashion fund Awards in 2008. Four seasons ago he launched his own line, Richard Chai Love collection.

He showed his FW 2011 collection (fourth Love collection) in New York this season. You could hardly miss the grey tone, the tweed coats and the flowiness of both the trousers and long skirts. He had a very feminine silhoutte overall, but still some pieces who came down the runway had a masculine touch on it. The models came down the runway with oversized jackets, trousers under the skirts (making it feel like we're going back in time) and coats/jackets on coats/jackets.

From wide pants, the collection did a 180° and turned into a collection with enormous tight maxi dresses and then again in some more comfortable and loose dresses with patterns in a shade of purple.

As I love New York and the style overthere, I can say that some of the pieces in this collection looked cheap, not well-executed and not so innovative and creative for that matter. As an established designer in New York, I think it was an ok collection, not his worst though.
- Daoud. B

For more pictures, visit Style.com

Richard Chai Love FW 2011 - NYFW

BCBG Max Azria FW 2011

Ok, so lets start with BCBG Max Azria who showed its collection during the first day of NYFW. BCBG Max Azria keeps designing in a minimalistic style for the FW 2011 collection. It's all about a clean silhouette, color-blocking and layering. Down the runway came these beautiful women in some clean silk and chiffon dresses in different colors. Max Azria designed for the California girl with a lot of flowiness put into the pieces so it could look both chic and effortless.

Not much of a FW collection I should say, but under the dresses were these thin white turtleneck bodysuits and these slim belts low on the hips making the proportion of the the pieces more natural since the dresses were in knee-lenght.

The hair was backslicked and in a small ponytail making the natural makeuped face to come out a little more. To keep the cold outside, don't worry, there were some camel coats a la Chloé in the collection.

My personal opinion in this case will be that it looked old but still modern. I personally hate the thin belts on the low hips, because it makes one look much older, but on the other hand I love earth colors and that was almost the whole color-palette Max Azria used in his collection for FW 2011. It looked comfortable but still fashion.
- Daoud.B

For more pictures, visit Style.com

BCBG Max Azria FW 2011 - NYFW

John Galliano Menswear FW 2011/2012

I love watching John Galliano's fashion shows because of the creativity he really puts into the clothes. He always tells a story (like many other fashion shows as well, but he somehow makes it better than others). It really don't depend if he's designing for men or females, it's always extremely, big and creative. I don't know if it's because of Galliano's craziness or something else, but I enjoy watching it and taking in every single detail he puts on.

Galliano's menswear really looks like a fall/winter collection. There is this Russian man with very warm clothing who is emigrating from Russia. He's taking all he owns with him in big trunks. He is wearing enourmous big fur hats, massive coats to survive the russian cold winter, with socks and boots. This man looks cheap and poor, but he is extremely concious about what he is wearing, he is the Russian dandy. Every detail is carefully organized, he is fashionable and has a strong personality.

During his emigration (he is emigrating to warmer countries) he becames more sofisticated and androgynous with his hair growing and cut like a maleversion of Anna Wintours bob (ofc little bit shorter) and with structured and unstructured coats. Not only does he wear slimfit pantsuits, but he also wears feminine scarfs in different colors. This man emigrates more and more to warmer latitudes where his clothing is becoming more and more naked. He now travels with tightly body stockings with a lot of layering such as leg warmers and leggings. You can see on his chest that even thought he's poorly dressed, he is sweating.

The last part of his emigration, he's is walking in the rich countries of the middle east, where he's turning into some bohemic man with a lot of gold, bright colors such as purple and orange and he's also wearing turbans in various colors. The winered velvet jacket with the wide belt is one of my favourite piece in his collection. This man has made an impressive migration. He began his emigration like a Russian man and ended up looking like Aladin.

Do I have to say that I admire John Galliano's piece of work - I don't think so. I love his design, his creative mind and he as a person. It's obviously that some of these pieces will not work in the daily life, but in the end, it's always about telling a story and be so creative you can be. It's called the art of clothes. Clothes expresses more than just material, shape and color. It expresses a person with a story to tell. That's why I love provocative and creative designer's such as Alexander McQueen, Gareth Pugh, John Galliano, etc etc. It's fashion baby, whether you like it or not.

John Galliano - FW 2011/2012 - Menswear PFW

Thierry Mugler Menswear FW 2011/2012 - By Nicola Formicetti

Something big happened last year with the brand Thierry Mugler. Lady Gagas private stylist and best friend, Nicola Formichetti, became the new Creative Director for the brand in September last year. Nicola, which is one of my favourite stylist (not only because he's LGs stylist and that I love and admire that beauty) because of his sense of style, his thinking, his possesion of avant-gardism etc.

Nicola Formichetti is not only CD for Thierry Mugler and LGs stylist, he has worked a lot for magazines and several brands such as Alexander McQueen. He is also Fashion Director for Vogue Hommes Japan. He's such a worker and he does it really good and artistic and that is one reason of many I admire that guy.

However, Nicola showed his first collection yesterday in Paris, during the first day of Paris Fashion Week FW 2011 Menswear.

Thierry Mugler has always been about something abnormal, strange but at the same time wearable. Almost avant-garde, and for those of you who has followed me, knows that I love when it's really creative, provocative and avant-garde.

Nicola has designed a very dark colored collection with some influences of orange, blue, white, khaki, beige and grey in it. He has used a lot of detailing such as the zippers on the jackets, the edge cutting on the tops making them seem like two pieces and creates an illusion of layering (and in case someone has forgotten, I'm all into layering, and especielly when it comes to black on black), the mixing of fabrics and material that creates different types of shapes and pattern on the coats and jackets.

Nicola's man is this young edgy man, not afraid of showing who he is to people on the street. He desses often in his own way, very alternative, but still sofisticated. He wants to make a statement and the same time show his personality through his clothes.

I loved the trousers with the leather details on and the oversized jackets. I also liked the shoes, but I was not so quite into the screaming orange suit that came down the runway. I HATED the plastic blue coat(?) raincoat(?) whatever. I thought it was just to much, but that's what Thierry Mugler is all about sometimes.

This collection was raw, edgy and very dark. Nicola created a beautiful first collection, but now comes the RTW for women, so I hope we'll see some damn strong pieces on the catwalk of Thierry Mugler in Paris, during PFW in the early of March.

Something interesting about the final walkthrough was the Gaga soundtrack that was playing. It's not just a remix, it's a remix of her new song "Born This Way"!!! She sang in german what I could understand and I was speechless. It was adoreable, but not surprising (because of the collaboration Gaga-Formichetti).

Thierry Mugler Menswear FW 2011/2012 - By Nicola Formichetti

Chanel Pre-Fall 2011

Karl is always Karl - he's going bigger than big, he's going history and he's going details. This Pre-Fall 2011 collection is inspired by the Byzantine world and André le Nôtre's Versailles gardens.

When the Pre-Fall collections, one by one is shown, Chanel is the one you always look forward to. It's true inspiration and it's like you are in heaven. Karl did not just great this time; he created a beautiful collection with a lot of detailing. I truly love this collection. It’s something unique, but still not avant-garde, costumey or just tacky.

Sure, there is a lot of going on, on the pieces, but still it’s cut beautifully and the detailing is impeccable. The craftsmanship in this collection is adorable. Like always when it comes to Karl. But of course, who else deserved Coco’s place if not Karl?

Opening his show with coats in black and navy blue with details in gold gives us that this collection is more than fall/winter, it’s about a strong woman. The color pallet is strong with navy blue and green, and then there is dark red, gold, black, white, the shapes are dominated by a masculine touch and then the hair is big and the make-up is light with an orange line over the eyes to mark the eyes a little bit.

Chanel is quite expensive, and personally I think that this collection looks more expensive than ever. It looks like the models are wearing clothes you can’t afford even if you are Bill Gates and for me that is a big sign of a successful collection

My favourite piece in this collection is the long black transparent coat with golden embroidery that Freja Beha Erichsen is wearing and the piece that close the shows.

I look forward of seeing Karl’s Fall/Winter 2011-2012 collection big time this season!

Marc Jacob SS 2011

(Source: Vogue.com)

I wish that I someday meet Marcie and tell him how good and creative he is. I wish that I someday sit front-row at his shows while breathing in all creativity he puts in the collection. I wish that I someday can (this will probably never happen) critize his collection.

In a book, called Fashion-ology: An Introduction to Fashion Studies by Yuniya Kawamura, that I'm reading right now, I read that "now is nostalgia" and that quotation hit me when I saw Marcies SS 2011 collection. We're almost back in the seventies with a lot of colors - something who's very odd when it comes to Marcie.

As you can see, Marc is influenced by the seventies fashion and trends, with long dresses, hats, big sunglasses, big hair, and heavy make-up, cool prints and big fabric flowers as accessories. What I really love is that there is a that he has created a collection with all kind of clothes, there is dresses, jumpsuits, trenchcoats, coats, hats, pants, jackets, shorts, bikini, shortdresses, tops, skirts etc, and I love that. There are plenty of things to choose from the collection.

He has used a lot chiffong in this collection, alomst every single dress in that collection is made of chffong. But it's not odd to use chiffong on dresses when you want them to move perfectly.

His jumpsuits in this collection are to die for. It's pure love and my favorite one is the draped on with two pockets in pink. It's crazineess how beautiful it really is, and the fit is flawless!

But I most admit to you guys that my absolute favorite creation from this collection is the big pink trenchcoat with big flounces on the top of it that the model Hannah Holman is wearing. That's art for me, and I can sit and stare on it without getting bored. I can sit and analyze it until there's nothing to analyze anymore.

Marc Jacob SS 2011

Menswear Is Taking Over The Cities

Ännu några dagar av Fashionweek Menswear har gått. Just nu har modeveckan kommit till Paris (den 23e Juni) och pågår för fullt ända fram tills den 27e juli. Det blir alltså en hel vecka med manligt mode i Paris. Paris är ju känd för modets huvudstad och just så är det. Några av de allra största namnen visar i Paris nämligen. Här kommer en bildbomb på en del designers som visade under både Milan Fashion Week och Paris Fashion Week: