I'm still here

I know, it's been a while. A week's a long time in blog-land and so I feel like I should really be making more of an effort. I have plenty of blog posts in mind that will probably arrive on your screens over the next few weeks - e.g. the finishing of my shift dress after a workshop at The Make Lounge, more burlesque ponderings and if/how to come out to my parents - but very little time in which to actually write them. I am busily spending a lot of non-work time this week with loved ones and/or strutting my stuff with The Rebel Rebels but writing should be taking less of a back seat soon.

If you are stuck for things to read in the meantime, I suggest you hop on over to BitchBuzz and check out the excellent writing there. If I haven't completely bored you with my talk of underwear just yet, my review of the bra fitting service at Bravissimo went up today.

Unimaginative?

It's Valentine's Day today and, for reasons I won't go into here, I'm not a happy bunny. My black mood isn't related to the day itself though (other than the fact it's a Monday), but I can see why some people detest the commercial love-fest that is 14th February. The shops are full of over-priced tat, coloured red and emblazoned with hearts, that we're supposed to buy in order to show we care. Charlotte Stamper got it right with her blog post on why Valentine's Day sucks and, even though she also puts forward a case for the defence, I like her suggestion of picking up cheap chocolates tomorrow and spending the difference on a stiff drink. Tonight's evening of cocktails can't arrive soon enough for me!

So, in the words of meish.org, "Happy unimaginative, consumer-oriented and entirely arbitrary, manipulative and shallow interpretation of romance day".

History lesson

I was treated to a potted history of the London College of Fashion yesterday, some of which I thought I'd share with you. At the start of the 20th century, Barrett Street and Shoreditch trade schools in the east end of London were training 12-14-year-old girls in the art of dressmaking. It was pretty much like any other school at the time - strict and with an obligatory uniform - but with two thirds of their 30hrs per week being spent on trade subjects such as dress-making, embroidery, tailoring and haute couture techniques. English was taught with elocution lessons, to enable the working-class students to interact better with their (eventual) upper-class clients. Students would make their own clothes, progressing to dressing the teaching staff if they were good enough. Courses finished in March, just in time for the London season. From the 1920s, hairdressing, beauty therapy and menswear were also taught.

The late 1920s saw a drop in demand for highly decorative clothing and evening wear and so ready-to-wear affected the curriculum at the trade schools. The 1930s saw much more practical day wear being produced by students and, after the Second World War, men were recruited to the schools for the first time. In 1965 a new purpose-built building just off Oxford Street in central London was opened and, in 1967, the trade schools merged to become the London College of Fashion. The London Institute (which became the University of the Arts) was formed in 1986 to protect art and design education in London, and it is through this institution that LCF started its first degree courses in 1989. Cordwainers College joined forces with LCF in 2000 and has helped to further cement the idea that those involved in fashion are not involved in mere frippery. The fashion industry is full of designers, illustrators, photographers, costume makers, scientists, managers, journalists, leather workers, crafts people and stylists. They are a diverse group of people but have one thing in common - the ability to think quickly and be sure of what they're doing. It's a serious business, fashion.

Image via the London College of Fashion Archive on VADS.

What Katie Did: Valentine's Shopping Day

Yesterday I had the pleasure of popping along to the What Katie Did boutique's Valentine's Shopping Day. The email I received said that the event was "for men and couples", so the relationship anarchist in me felt an urge to suggest it to my primary partner and his other girlfriend* as a fun way to spend an afternoon and remind people that not everyone is or wants to follow our monogamous society's rules and be paired up. Of course, the fun of trying on lingerie and corsets (and perhaps getting a gift) did also cross my mind... plus, there was mention of gin and cupcakes. Not even the usual weekend public transport failures could prevent us from showing up at this, and so we drove from east to west for a spot of Sunday afternoon glamour.

As soon as the three of us entered the pretty shop, we were greeted by boutique manager, Vicky, and asked if we needed any help. Unlike some lingerie stores where you feel like you're being pressured into making a purchase, or made to feel like you're being so very awkward for being unsure what size you'll need, the What Katie Did experience is extremely warm and friendly. If you don't know what to try on first, they can suggest things, if you don't know what size corset you are, they can measure you. There's no need to be afraid of being a little bit indecisive, and definitely no need to think you'll be wasting their time, as everyone at WKD knows that their lingerie is different from the mainstream and therefore customers will need a bit more help than usual.

We disappeared into the fitting rooms with a selection of items that Vicky had helped us pick out, whilst our rather smug boyfriend relaxed on a chaise sipping a Hendrick's cocktail and waiting to offer his opinion. There was no need to get dressed to go and find more sizes either, as Vicky kept popping back to check we were OK and so was able to fetch more items for us to try when needed. Whilst I discovered that the Laurie corset I'd been drooling over online from months looked just as good on me as I'd hoped, my partner in crime found that the Swiss Dot lingerie set was not only a perfect fit for her but also the perfect colour. Now all she needed was some black seamed stockings!

We were lucky enough to be treated to an early Valentine's gift each, and so all three of us walked out of the boutique wearing our best smug faces, but some people prefer to buy surprise gifts and WKD has that covered too. They know that buying lingerie as a gift can be quite a stressful experience, so had enlisted the help of What Katie Did co-founder Richard Thomas to assist anyone buying something as a surprise yesterday. It is a lovely gesture, but I do hope anyone who tries that approach for Valentine's Day ensures they have their sweetheart's measurements to hand when they enter the store, wherever they're buying from! Sadly the knowledge that it's the thought that counts doesn't always help overcome a feeling of sadness when your gift doesn't fit, preventing you from wearing it straight away. Still, surprise or not, I would highly recommend What Katie Did for their products, customer service and overall shopping experience. If you want to feel like a pin-up on any occasion, this is definitely the place to visit.

Image via What Katie Did.

*I hate the phrase 'other girlfriend', but not quite as much as secondary partner. She's not second best, just more recent!

Agent Provocateur: Back on track?

Last time I blogged about Agent Provocateur's incredibly un-sexy choice of models, I assumed that Nicola Hunn, who replied to the complaint I sent in, was merely humoring me with a standard response. Well, I don't know if she really was listening to me of if lots of other people shared their disappointment with the brand's recent direction, but it seems as though they have finally realised they just weren't sultry enough any more. Today I found out that the new face of Agent Provocateur for 2011 is French actress and singer Josephine de la Baume and, wow... what a choice! The Telegraph reckons she 'sizzles' in the photos and, corny though that word is, I really have to agree with them. Just look at the eye contact between her and the viewer! This is a woman who appears to be a sexual being rather than simply a clothes horse, which is exactly what you need when you're selling sexy lingerie. Different brands have different appeal, but AP is all about sex and glamour. This isn't everyday underwear, this is I-want-you underwear, so sticking it on a vacant disinterested looking catwalk model was never going to work. If they have the designs to back up this foxy new look, 2011 could be a really great year for Agent Provocateur.

Image by Johan Renck for Agent Provocateur.

Sex, not smut

Over a year ago, I applied to be a writer for BitchBuzz. I sent off links to samples of some of my work, explained why I wanted to write for the site and why I thought I would be good at it. The editor, Cate, had also asked what section I would like to write for and so I had a careful look to see what was already there in order to work out how I could best fit in. Discovering that the sex section was looking rather bare and unloved, I decided to make that my primary focus in the hope that Cate would be more likely to say yes. After all, it's not like I knew nothing about the subject matter, right?

A few months in to my new schedule as a contributor and I started worrying that I would soon run out of ideas on what to write about, so I began following more links on Twitter and reading more sex-related blogs to expand my horizons. It was then that I discovered Dr Petra Boynton's blog and realised that I could use this opportunity to educate myself as well as my readers, exploring new topics regarding sexual health as well as technique and relationships. Sex and sexuality is a fascinating area and what I write about need not be titillating or too 'preachy' if I approach it in the right way. OK, so my articles are quite short and aren't really going to set the world alight, but BitchBuzz is a great site and I'm sure that through it I am reaching a far wider range of people than I do with this blog.

Despite the fact that I'm finding it easier to decide what to write about these days, one thing I have found rather useful is the topics that my friends suggest to me for my articles. So, if you have a subject that's related to sex and/or relationships that you would be interested in reading a short article about, please let me know. I'd love to find out what interests you all.

Love is a Drug?

Tonight I'm off to the Institute of Psychiatry to attend one of the Maudsley Debates on a rather fascinating topic. The 'Love is a Drug' debate asks, "Is female sexual dysfunction disorder a work of fiction dreamt up by ‘Big Pharma’ or an under-recognised and under-treated condition that has been side-lined by clinicians for too long?" You'd think that a medical topic such as this could be proved or disproved with evidence without the need for debate, but lack of sexual desire is not as easy to pinpoint in women as it is in men. Desire is a complex emotional thing and is not exactly what drugs like Viagra set out to fix but, whereas there is a physical reaction that can be prompted in men which will enable intercourse to become far more likely, there is no equivalent for women. So, why try to fix it with pills? I am clearly over-simplifying here and there is much I don't know on the subject, so I am looking forward to hearing what tonight's expert panel have to say on the matter. The blurb says:

Debate around the condition has not abated - it has become a flashpoint for arguments relating to ‘medicalisation’, inappropriate prescribing and the trustworthiness of published medical evidence and research methodologies. It has also been the subject of argument within feminist literature and the wider history of sexual health and functioning.

The debate will address whether female sexual dysfunction is simply ‘drug marketing merging with medical science in a fascinating way’ or actually a condition with a ‘need for the assessment and treatment of women along the lines of men being assessed and treated for erectile dysfunction’.

I doubt I can be entirely impartial in this though as two of my top (intellectual) Twitter crushes are speaking for the side of 'myth' - Dr Petra Boynton and Dr Ben Goldacre. Having written about female sexual dysfunction already for BitchBuzz, I have already come to some of my own conclusions but it will be interesting to hear the other side of the argument too.

In other news... last week's BitchBuzz column from me on women who have relationships with younger men seems to have generated rather a lot of interest. There are quite a few comments on the article itself plus I have received many tweets, Facebook comments and even a text message about it. Who knew that age differences were such a big talking point?