SKINT // ISSUE ONE SUMMER 2014

SKINTSKINTStudent Fashion In Scotland.

ISSUE 1 // Summer 2014

||CONTENTS||4 Topshop Glasgow Relaunch

5 Aberdeen Street Style Snaps

6 & 7 Glasgows Greatest thrift locations

8 & 9 Interview with Angel Pixie Love

10 Forget E-commerce , Re-commerce!

11 - 16 Skint’s Scottish Style Shoot

Featuring APL & Acid Reflux Clothing

17 & 18 Skint’s Style Survival Guide

19 & 20 Interview With Acid Reflux clothing

21 Tehcnology on the Fashion Industry

22 acknowledgements and credits.

Abbeylauren

Editor in Chief

LETTER FROM

THE EDITORFashion is becoming increasingly more expenisve, I mean not even in Primarkcan you pick up an outfit for under twenty quid anymore, And to make thingsworse as the prices get higher the quality seems to get worse and worse. Gone are the days I could wear a T-shirt without my bra glaring through the shoddy material. They really don’t make things like they used to anymore.

This issue of Skint is dedicated to you, the student fashionista with empty pockets. We’ve packed it full of how to’s and guides on the best ways to shop more finanically efficently that will save the enviornment and raise some money for a good cause on the way. Inbetween all that we have a review of the new Topshop store Refurbishment in Glasgow city center and interviews and features highlighting the best of Scottish streetwear brands which can be easily incorparated into your wardrobe at a fraction of the cost of most highstreet brands (and no, It isn’t tartan).I hope you enjoy this issue as much as we did putting it togeather.

AbbeyLauren,|Editor|in|Chief.

Topshop Buchanan Street has recently underwent a fashion fabulous refurbishment. The store that was once home to both Topshop and Topman has now been taken over solely by the girls. Here at Skint we got special acess to the launch night, So Scottish fashion blogger Scott Emery went along to investigate .

Upon entering the store you can immediately notice the difference, the brighter lights, a more spacious feel and a fresh paint job accompanied by a theatre of mannequins all styled up to this seasons hottest trends. The store now holds its own make-up section on the lower level stocking almost every colour of nail polish known to man. On the same floor there’s a massive section dedicated to the accessories that accompany our every day outfits from flower crowns fit for a forest queen down to those pretty pastel socks available in almost every cute colour possible. The new store fulfills your every fashion need.

You’re suddenly lost amongst the flower garden trend with a flower crown in hand and come out fighting at the other end in the sports luxe section, Of course with many a key piece tackled and picked up on the way.

The top floor is a pastel palace sporting a range of gingham co-ords, floral belly tops, daisy crop tops and everything else you expect from this seasons trends. The back section is still home to the footwear department, think jelly shoes, floral wedges and of course those killer heels that you know deep down can’t walk in, but you buy them anyway.

The store re-opened with it’s new look on the 10th of April, but it wasn’t only Topshop Buchanan that underwent a new look, it’s sister store Argyle Street had it’s own new lookthat was unvieled to the public a week later on the 17th of April.

Topshop celebrated this exciting refurbishment by hitting the streets of Glasgow to give away seven thousand gift cards to the public, with a cheeky little balance to use in store. The new store has had rave reviews and gives a whole new feel to the Topshop shopping experience. It’s no longer just a store but is now an exhibiton of luxury highstreet fashion and the most up to date current trends.

I suggest you get yourself along – It’s a must see.

[TOPSHOP|REFURB]Topshop is a staple of the Great British high street. Tried

and true, it provides that little bit of luxury that other high-street stores lack, but a slightly higher cost.

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ABERDEEN|STREET|STYLEHere at SKINT we love seeing how people interpret style within their everyday lives. So, we sent Fashion management student Adebusola Fashade off onto the

streets of Aberdeen searching for the best dressed Scots to snap! Here’s our favourite styles!

Claire, 32.We love Claire’s tartan cape, and at £3 from Ebay It’s an absolute bargin!

David, 17We’re loving Davids parka, So timless and stylish.

Ray, 21.We’re totally loving the statement Levi’s Backpack paired with those Jordans!

Katie, 20.Katie has taken on the current monochrome trend in full force with this outfit. And we love that Primark Cardiagn!

Ross, 17.We love how simple this look is, and totally ready for summer with the Raybans at the ready!

Ashleigh, 24.This sophisticated look is pulled off so well by Ashleigh! We’re loving the fur collar!

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QUEEN OF THE CHARITY SHOPSJust like the city itself, Glasgow’s thrifting scene is the perfect mix of new and old, with stores offering everything from beautiful vintage Singer sowing machines, to new, pristine designer gems at a frac-tion of the retail price. Whether you live for retro finds or prefer your clothes straight from the rack,

there’s something for everyone in this great thrifting city.

The £10 Thrift Store, Great Western Road, West EndLocated on the very end of Great Western Road just before the Botanic Gardens, this is a shop chock-a-block full of second-hand gems for boys and girls. You’d be forgiven for thinking you’d walked into a time machine when you see the Victorian plastering and beamed ceiling, rails of suede-fringed and leather biker jackets along with the fabulous neon signage and fun colour co-ordinated rails! The ‘We Love to Boogie’ section that is individually priced has some of the best quality vintage dresses, jackets and knitwear we've ever seen in all our years of thrifting mixed with brand new tees and even some old designer pieces! There’s also a cabinet full of beautiful costume jewellery and sterling silver pieces that would make the perfect gift for your favourite vintage-lover or even a cheeky treat for yourself! There's something for everyone in this treasure trove.

Bargain Belters:A chunky cable knit cardigan and a huge leather varsity football jock jacket.

Barnardo’s, Wilson Street, City centreThis lovely little shop is tucked away just up the road from Marks and Spencer’s on Argyle Street. The manager works hard to keep up the store’s reputation as more of a second hand boutique than a charity shop. With its clever décor, all kinds of great finds in stock and a sizeable not-so-secret vintage closet located in the back, it’s filled floor to ceiling with stunning clothes, books, accessories and treasures to excite any retro fanatic. Barnardo’s is a wondrous time machine full of charm and is the perfect shopping destination if you’re a fan of thrift stores. This wonderful retreat through the ages is the perfect stop for anyone looking for a fancy new get-up or some beautiful relics to decorate or spice up their home with some one of pieces.

Bargain Belters: A trio of huge brown leather suit-cases for £2 each, a practically new Dorothy Per-kins beaded shirt, a pair of brown suede flats from Zara and a pair of the prettiestvintage sunglasses we’ve ever seen all for under £30!

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Cancer Research UK, Queen Street, City CentreThe baby of the list, this store opened just a few months ago but the well-sized shop with neatly stocked rails as well as the super friendly staff have already led to a loyal following. It’s always busy with fellow thrifters looking to bag one of their glorious bargains. On the rails we found Topshop dresses, DKNY jackets, Jasper Conran evening gowns, Topman T-shirts and expensive looking kilts at a steal of a price. We even spotted some brand new looking bags by well known high street names. But it’s not just clothes that keep this adorable charity shop in business, there are shelves as far as the eye can see of shoes, books and lovely little trinkets for the home. For all ages from 18 to 80, this Cancer Research UK is an ideal thrifting destination.

Bargin Belters: A gold sequin top from Papaaya, two Topman t-shirts, a floral Topshop skater dress for, and you’ll never believe this, just under £20!!

BY RHIANON CUNNINGHAM

Relics, Dowanside Lane, West EndHidden away in a white building down a cobbled lane off of Byres road across from Hillhead Subway station, Relics is a bit tricky to find but totally worth the search.Technically more of an antiques store than a thrift shop, it’s like they cleared out the attic of every eccentric pensioner in the world with everything they found in this tiny wee shop. We’ve found some absolute belters here; furniture,vintage handbags, jewellery, endless pretty china sets, some old traveling trunks as well as old and modern camera lenses and other equipment. Stuck for gift ideas? Want something to make your house feel a little more like home? Totally desperate to find a vintage toothpick? Then this is the place for you. The people that run Relics add just as much magic to the experience as the strange layout (if you can call ‘stuff balanced on other stuff’ a layout). If you smile sweetly enough for them, they’ll deliver your bigger vintage finds to a local address free of charge, not to mention the cat, who walks around on top of countless antiques yet never seems to break anything. Which is talent at a new level.

Bargin Belters: Some beautifully cut cut , genuine crystal bowls for just a quid each and a stunning orange leather satchel bag for a tenner!

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|ANGEL|PIXIE|LOVE|

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SKINT TALKS SCOTTISH FASHION & PIRATES WITH OUR

FAVOURITE SCOTTISH BRANDS Founded by Lynette Gray a few years ago this Edinburgh based brand is easily recogniseable and welll known for there “I Love Your..” statement tees. Their designs are all uplifting and creative and almost feel impowering to wear. Their stocklist is diverse and features everything from slogan T’s to hand drawn designs. We caught up with the creative brain behind Angel Pixie Love for a chat and to find out more on what really makes the brand.

What does “ AngelPixieLove” Mean to you, & does it reflect your personal style and tastes?

Angelpixielove is a name I call my ‘Alter Ego’ the name came first... the business followed. I’ve always been massively into fashion & to have my own brand was a dream of mine. My style is quirky, everything in my collection I wear, it’s totally my style, that’s the best bit about it.

If we asked you five years ago where you would be today, would owning a clothing label be something you would have predicted?

5 years ago I didn’t have the belief that my dreams could come true, I was floating about life with no direction.... I gave birth to my Son Elias in March 2009, He has just turned 5, he has taught me that anything is possible.

Who or what inspires and influences your brand and how do your influences effect your designs?I’m inspired by individualism, tattoos, graffiti, mu-rals, pirates, females and colour, these influences effect my designs by making them look quirky and appealing.

Do you feel running a clothing label in Scot-land and out of the fashion capital makes success harder and have you faced any trou-bles through this?I don’t, because we are an online business we can reach out all over the world, we ship world wide and with social media at our finger tips we are planning to reach as many people and places as possible.

Do you think there has been a change in the was consumers shop looking now also to independent labels for new more unknown styles? Do you think this will effect up and coming trends?I definitely think people are shopping with inde-pendent brands more to get something a little different from the high street. I think to shop both can really complement peoples style, online shop-ping is so much fun and I feel that is taking over from high street shops.

If you could collaborate with one brand, No matter how big or small, who would it be?This answer would change on a weekly basis for me, but at the minute I’m digging Alice Vandy, she makes the most amazing spandex items, so fun and colourful!

Finally, what can we expect to see next in your designs?We have a tattoo artist who is designing for us now! Expect amazing artwork on tees & hoodies. Our kids range will also launch this summer!

Stock available at :http://www.angelpixielove.com/

Instagram @AngelPixieLove

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FORGET|E-COMMERCE...|RE-COMMERCE!|While vintage and second hand stores can provide a haven from the high street, trailing through the treasure trove can be excruciatingly time consuming. Quality can be, at best, inconsistent and, at worst, mediocre. Prices are rising as independ-ent stores struggle to compete with increasingly low fast fashion high street prices.

It’s been creeping up on us for some time. And now it’s positively undeniable. They just don’t make ‘em like they used to!

It’s no secret that our current cycle of buying, wearing and discarding products on an almost weekly basis is entirely unsustainable long term. We are now also all too aware of the true price of cheap garments - low wages, unsanitary working environments, intolerable labour demands and poor safety conditions to name but a few.

Re-commerce may just provide the alternative, sustainable and time efficient style fix we are crying out for. Providing a platform for buying, selling and swapping pre-loved items, sites such as Vinted and StyleSwap allow users to upload pics, arrange transactions and leave feedback on their experiences. Many sites are free to use and charge only a small fee for selling (some don’t even charge this). Some sites even provide shipping services to eliminate the inconvenience of calculating costs when buying/selling.

Although buying this way does carry some risk, general feedback is that these sites are merely online communities of like-minded people, passionate about fashion, style and alternative methods of consumption. All in all, re-commerce sites provide the perfect contemporary shopping experience - a sustainable, ethical and cutting edge, independent marketplace.

SKINT’s Top 3 Re-Commerce PicksVinted – www.vinted.com

With its own handy mobile app and easy method of calculating shipping costs, Vinted allows quick and easy uploading, access and hassle free transaction of pre loved items! Users can buy, sell and swap items or merely exchange musings on fashion, style and creativity.

SwapStyle - www.swapstyle.com

The original fashion re-commerce site, SwapStyle offers the added benefit of creating access to pre loved garments on an international basis! This platform also features a unique rating system in the form of e-tokens – the more e-tokens a user receives via feedback, the higher their credibility.

Swishing - www.swishing.co.uk

A UK based community, Swishing offers perhaps the most innovative re-commerce platform of all. No money ever exchanges hands for items! Instead, users are awarded credits for the items they provide which can be used against any item available online. Credits can alternatively be purchased. Unlike other sites, Swishing offers the additional benefit of quality control. All items are third party quality checked before being made available online. This carries the added bonus of removing any risk to users, both financially and in terms of product quality.

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ereewq

scot style LOOKBOOK

featuring

Acid reflux ,

Angel Pixie Love ,

& KILLSTAR CLOTHING.Here at SKINT we put togeather a summer lookbook showcasing local

Scottish brands and their current collections. and how they can be

worn alongside populaur highstreet brands and vintage finds.

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LOOK ONE.

Tshirts - Left Mintotaur Right- I love your Face By APL

Shell Suit Jacket - MR Bens Vintage, Shirt - VINTAGE

Jeans & Shorts by River Island,

Cool and Casual, Just how we like it.

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LOOK TWO.

HATS - “Trasmit” Acid Tab Beanie By Acid Reflux

Tshirts - Both From Killstar Clothing.

PErfect for rushed morning and bad hair days!

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LOOK 3

T-shirt - I Love your face By APL

Jacket - MR BENS Vintage

Jeans by river island

This look just screams retro! Perfect for the current 90’s trend

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LOOK FOUR

LEFT HAMSA SWEAT BY KILLSTAR CLOTHING

Right Gnarfont Sweat By Acid Reflux

Shirt RANDOM VINTAGE

Jeans & Shorts By RIVER IISLAND

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LOok 5

T-Shirt By Acid Reflux

Leather Jacket - Vintage

We Love this Neon Tee PAIRED

With the Vintage leather -

Creates such a tough vibe.

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1. Keep your Eyes PeeledFirst and foremost know what you’re setting out for. Walk down the high-street, peer into shop windows, and rifle through the designer rails for inspiration, after all they can’t charge you for looking! Once you have a good idea of what styles appeal to you it’s time to go hunting.

2. Beggars can be Choosers Having limited funds shouldn’t mean you have to limit your taste. Be selective with what you buy, in this sense having an air-tight budget is an asset as it pushes you to pick only the best items. Although tempting, don’t buy anything simply because ‘it’s cheap’.Remember, a garment should seduce you, if you don’t love it in the shop you certainly won’t at home.

3. Investment is Key Classic pieces are the staples of your wardrobe, spend your money on items you can mix and match with the rest of your collection. A good rule of thumb when debating a purchase is – ‘You should be able wear the garment once for every pound it cost’.

4.Charity ChicDon’t be snobby! Here at SKINT we are recent converts to Charity shopping, a fantastic way of grabbing designer items at extremely low prices. In addition to the feel good factor of knowing you’re moneys going toward a good cause, these treasure troves are different every time you visit!

5. Golden Ticket!There are times being a student really does ‘pay off.’ Many retailers offer student discounts, don’t be timid - ask about these at every opportunity. www.myunidays.com offers hundreds of offers from French connection to Sony. Your student card is your own personal golden ticket!

6. Vintage FairsWhat better way of establishing your own unique wardrobe than buying vintage? The ‘Affordable vintage fair’ is becoming a regular at the Glasgow Briggat, With rails selling designer silk from £5 and refreshments from 50p and is a must visit for any one with more style than cash! Your friends faces will turn green with envy as they enquire about your new Max Mara shorts “Thanks they’re vintage.”

SKINT’s STYLE

SURVIVAL GUIDE

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7. Car ‘Bootiques’ Haggle! Not only do these make for a great day out with friends, at car boot sales the buyer can often set their own price, with a bit of careful chat of course. If you’re shrewd, and talk to the store holder you might even be able to knock money off on job lots. ‘Car Bootiques’ Provide masses of choice, There’s a lot to trawl through but you never know what you’ll find at these and can end up unearthing some real gems.

8.Swap ShopWe all have that one pesky garment at the back of our wardrobe that we adored for one weekend in 2010 but haven’t worn since. Why not trade with your friends? After all, one man’s trash is another man’s treasure!

9. Do It YourselfYou don’t have to be the next Gok Wan to customize your clothing for less. Get surfing the web for DIY tips, I mean you spend half of your life online! you’ll be surprised at what you can create with very little effort! Dying clothing is easy and can cost next to nothing, there are even kits to pour directly into your washing machine to bring your fashions into this seasons trending colours.

10. End of the lineMost high-street shops have end of season sales, branches attempt to shift the last of their stock to make room for new clothing lines. Take advantage of these. Remember those shoes you were drooling over in the shop window last month? Well now they’re on sale, and for a fraction of the price.

Staying on trend whilst on a shoe string

budget needn’t be a struggle - All you need

is the right plan of action. To prove this,

Here at SKINT we have put together our ten

tricks of the trade to guide you through

creating your dream wardrobe for next to

nothing!

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|ACID|REFLUX|CLOTHING|

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ACID REFLUX CLOTHING TALKS DREAM COLABORATIONS & SKATEBOARDING

Acid Reflux came to light in 2013, Their simplistic yet striking designs paired with their catchy name and bright prints made them an instant brand to watch in Glasgow. Owned by Ewan Grant and de-signed by the insane Stephen Hill We’re expecting big things from Acid Relfux.

What does “ Acid Reflux” Mean to you? And what do you think your brand conveys?

E.G - Sick clothing. It’s a fun, relaxed brand. We create clothes that we’d like to wear too.S.H- Acid Reflux is something close to my heart, in so much as it’s the feeling I often get when I eat something delicious a little bit too fast. I felt like taking something with a negative connotation and applying it to a cool clothing label could work out well and I think with the acid wash tees and the graphic’s we’ve gone for so far it strikes a chord as far as cool names for things go.

If we asked five years ago where you would be today, would you have told us you’d be working in fashion?

E.G - Definitely not! I’ve always been into fashion but I come from a punk rock background where fashion is/ or should be the least important thing. The D.I.Y ethic has played a part in why I’m running this clothing company though. We felt that we had some good ideas to put out there so we’ve gone and done it ourselves!

S.H - 100% no. I never dreamed I would be running a clothing company. I’ve been involved in designs for other companies and seen the rise and fall of some of the bigger names, . It’s a saturated market and you re-ally have to carve your niche to be seen, I think Ewan’s enthusiasm and positive feedback filled me with enough confidence to want to give it a go though. People seem to be liking our stuff, so I guess it was a good choice. I collect band and skateboarding t-shirts so I’ve been interested in that kind of fashion for a long time.

Who or what inspires and influences your brand and how do your influences effect your designs?

E.G - Skateboarding and music. I’ve always loved the designs from bands such as Toy Machine and I’ve re-cently been really into the simplicity of some of the HUF clothes S.H - Ewan and I both come from a DIY Punk back-ground, so we are definitely influenced by music, both aesthetically and ethically. As a designer I’m inspired by a lot of things, from punk flyers, to elaborate fantasy art and comics.

Do you feel running a clothing label out of the fashion capitalmakes success harder?

S.H- We’ve been reasonably successful, We haven’t set our goals too high, we’re just looking to break even and move onto the next piece, Which is pretty much the same ethic as the DIY music scene we come from, where I run a label and Ewan releases his music. This makes it pretty much irrelevant where you’re based, with the internet and so much connectivity available at your fingertips it’s easy to get your brand in front of a global market. I think Glasgow has a very stylish culture, and with Buchanan Street as the busiest and most expensive shopping street in Europe, maybe we’re better off up here than we would be in London!

Do you feel there has been a change in the was consumers shop looking now also to independ-ent labels for new more unknown styles? Do you think this will effect up and coming trends?

S.H - I’ve noticed there is a very ‘anything goes’ atti-tude to fashion trends these days. With the internet it’s so easy to find and buy clothes of a multitude of differ-ent styles it’s tricky for the high street to stay relevant. We’ve gone through a very clear period where there were trends for certain decades coming back into fash-ion, from 60’s, 70’s, 80’s and now we’re at the tail end of the 90’s revival. It’s all blended into one now, without a clear style defining the 2000s and beyond we’re going to need to either keep referring back to these decades or find ourselves a new style altogether.

If you could collaborate with one brand, No mat-ter how big or small, who would it be?

E.G - I’d like to collaborate with HUF . I’m a big fan of the skateboarder, Dylan Rieder and he rides for them He has mad steeeez.S.H - Toy Machine. If Ed Templeton drew something for us I would die happy.

What has been your most exciting moment while running your brand? Biggest achievement to date?

E.G - I’m really happy to have our stuff in Minted on King Street. Great shop!SH - I agree with Ewan on this one, it’s cool that our friend George agreed to stock our clothing so early on. His shop is amazing, always full of one off pieces of high quality brands that don’t cost an absolute fortune.

What can we expect to see next in your designs? Whats in the works?

E.G - We’re having this discussion currently. 5 panel hats maybe, socks, pastel summer items..S.H - More weirdness, so stay open minded. We’re looking to branch out from tees, hats & sweaters into different garments and designs.

Acid Reflux is available at Minted @King Street or Online at http://www.acidrefluxclothing.co.uk/

Follow the guys on Instagram at @AcidRefluxClothing

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Fashion used to be limited. Unless you were handy with a needle and thread or had access to a large bank account It was hard to stray from the run of the mill. Clothes were only available from physical clothing stores, which are costly to run – leaving mostly only the larger, more established companies to choose from. This spread was restricted,with everyone eating from the same bowl it was substantially harder and significantly more expensive to be unique without forking out.

With the internet came online shopping. This new, virtual way of purchasing clothes was cheap for retailers to run making it marginally easier for smaller more individual brands to emerge and blossom and making international brands universally accessible. This sudden open door market made a miraculous impact on the fashion industry making one off, individual pieces cheap and easy to come by and no longer only for the wealthy. Suddenly the highstreet was not the only port of call for affordable fashion. Buget “DIY” sites like “Ebay” “Etsy” and the “Asos market” place are full to the brim of one offs, Retro and vintage styles and high end gems at second hand prices. Sites like theese make fashion affordable for once and bring down the exclusivity barrier sometimes associated with the fashion industry.

As smaller online brands emerged they also brought new content to the market and lower than ever prices due to the lack of company running costs. Many street wear brands emerged at this time firing out simplistic sometimes home printed catchy designs that were appealing to the mass public. Many of these companies have became great success stories and have used the new found online platform as a gateway to becoming popular enough to launch a physical store.

Our very own Glasgow brand “Abandon Ship Apparel” have been a prime example of this,starting as an unknown online fashion venture they have grown to a well known and ever expanding brand with stores in Glasgow and London.

The internet has been a breakthrough for fashion and has made being stylish cheaper and more varied. This is definitely a tool to take advantage of when on a tight budget.

Find out more about Glasgow brand “Abandon Ship Apparel and their sucess due to the internet online or visit them instore. http://www.abandonshipapparel.com/

The internet can easily be argued the most influential development in the 21st cen-tury, In all aspects of modern society. It has greatly impacted the way we live our everyday lives and this doesn't exclude the way we dress. Recent technological de-velopments have made fashion cheaper, quicker and more accessible than ever. Opening doors to an industry which was once reserved for those with lined pockets.

opening the door

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Aknowledgements Skint would like to thank everyone mentioned for their outstanding efforts and contributions to the magazine. Without their input the magazine would not be a fraction of what it is and their work is so highly appreciated.

WritersScott Emery

http://www.scottnothingtodowithyou.com/

Evangeline Allfreyhttp://rasberry-ice.tumblr.com/

Rhianon Cunningham

Erin Hodge

AbbeyLauren Duckett

Photography

James Lynchhttp://www.stratadesignsolutions.com/

Adebusola Fashadehttp://brokeblackbeautiful.blogspot.co.uk/

hdzimmermannhttps://www.flickr.com/photos/hdz/5623651313

John Clanturnhttps://www.flickr.com/photos/4506081507

all images rights are held by SKINT or used on a CC basis.

BrandsAngel Pixie Love

http://angelpixielove.com@angelpixielove

Acid Reflux Clothinghttp://acidrefluxclothing.co.uk

@AcidRefluxClothing

Killstar Clothingwww.killstar.com

MODELS

Shaun BellJade Mcsween

MUA Kitty Arthur

https://www.facebook.com/kittyarthurmua

TravelAlexander Hughes

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