Hey - last night I broke away from most of the fashion industry weasels and went to a real party, thrown by some of the coolest kids in London - the St. Valentine’s Day Masquerade party at the Vauxhall Fashion Scout. Yes, the Fashion Scout is technically one of the alternative venues for London Fashion Week - but it was clear from the moment I walked in the door that this was not going to be another boring industry party. The room was absolutely buzzing with attractive scenesters who were dressed to the nines - both male and female. You would have been hard pressed to find anyone wearing jeans or a t-shirt. The vibe was distinctly 1920’s - female DJs wearing flapper headbands playing the original 1929 version of “Just A Gigolo”, guys wearing ascots or bow-ties with spats over patent opera shoes, and with Louise Brooks bobs circa-Pandora’s Box thick on the ground. Ipso Facto played live in the middle of the room’s elevated runway and my mates Amber and Nisha - aka the Broken Hearts - turned the room into a real knees-up snogfest with their fun retro dance tunes. (How much do you love their vintage telephone handsets that they’ve had customized into DJ headphones?) I’ve seen some of these kids around town all week and many of them dress like this all the time - it was not simply a matter of having a dress-up party. (That’s why I love London street culture - every day is a dress-up party.) While there were hints of 40’s/50’s burlesque in the room, as well as a bit of fashion-goth, most of these kids are off on some silent film-era trip - much cooler than run-of-the-mill burlesque or goth, which are both a bit crap if you ask me. Quite a few kids told me they had made their outfit themselves or said they had bought it at Beyond Retro in the East End - the best vintage clothing store in London. The kids at this party were easily as inspiring as anything I saw on the runway this week. - x Eddie

Posted in street cred, parties and events