Friday 10 October 2014

Couture in the Cathedral


Held between 6th-11th October, Truro Trend, Truro’s annual fashion week, returned to the city. The weeklong event organised by Totally Truro is a showcase for and a celebration of the latest fashions to be gracing Truro’s high-street this season. The event organiser, Charla Symons of Totally Truro said, “Truro is the shopping destination of choice for many, so we have created this annual fashion week to celebrate this”, further adding “it is an opportunity for retailers and businesses alike to give something back to their loyal customers, and to also attract new ones through special events and promotions.” I, for one, am totally championing this event; it was great to see so many people in Cornwall with a passion for fashion. The highlight of the week was the fashion show held at Truro Cathedral on the evening of Wednesday 8th October. After thorough planning Truro Cathedral was transformed into a runway venue which wouldn’t be out of place at London Fashion Week. The evening showcased both menswear and womenswear by Benetton, Country Casuals, Austin Reed, Viyella, Henri Lloyd, East, Jaeger, Marks and Spencer, Plum, Moss and The Vor Store.

It wasn’t just about the clothes, oh no! Hair and makeup also played a massive part in creating a cohesive and visually rich show. Hair was styled by Number 8 Hair Salon, and with approximately thirty models to coiffure it was no mean feat. Stylists had cans of hairspray on hand to combat any windswept locks (trust us to put on a fashion show on the windiest day of the week). Whilst Number 8 had control of the hair there were still thirty faces un-made-up. Well, cue the Bodyshop babes. These ladies were armed with tools and products to transform the models into superstars. Every model was primed with two of Bodyshop’s bestselling products - Instablur Primer and their famous BB Cream (both products are great - I tried them myself and I love them!) before individual eye and lip colours were selected to match both the outfits and personalities of each model.


Above - Hair was straightened, curled, plaited, pinned and sprayed by the girls at Number 8 Hairdressing Truro.
Above - a before and after shot of one of the hairdos created for the show.
         
Above - all thirty of the models had looks created by the girl in Bodyshop. Even I did some of the girls make up looks :D
Above - an action shot and finished look.

Above - one of the finished looks for the Benetton Collection.

The models themselves came from all walks of life; mothers, fathers, friends of the business owners, businessmen and women to name but a few and many had had no previous modelling experience. They were however given basic catwalk training and choreography prior to the event by Juliet Matthews from Impact Model Agency based in Truro.

With hair firmly styled and final touch ups to make up complete it was time to get into the clothes whilst the 400 strong audience collected their goody bags (full of treats and offers from participating retailers) and took to their seats before the eight o’clock start.

BBC Radio Cornwall presenter Daphne Skinnard was our gracious compère for the evening whilst the fifty strong Rock Choir provided entertainment before and during the show. Split into two halves the night showcased both casual and formal looks from all brands reaching out to a diverse market both young and old. The range of looks on show was varied, spanning the timeless styles of Marks and Spencer, Jaeger and Viyella, to modern twists on classic suiting and casual wear from Moss Bros, Austin Reed and Henri Lloyd to the high end and fashion forward collections from The Vor Store and The United Colours of Benetton. Every single one of the models looked fabulous on the stage and shone in their own unique way. To put it succinctly, there was something for everyone.

From start to finish the Cathedral was full of smiling faces, laughter and appreciation of the fashion on display. It really was a brilliant atmosphere to be immersed in. Congratulation should be given organisers and businesses involved for creating such a brilliant event - I can only imagine Truro Trend getting bigger and better in coming years and that is really very exciting. To sum up, in the words of the fashion show’s signature tune, “Rather Be” (Clean Bandit feat. Jessie Glynn) “there’s no place I’d rather be” than Truro Trend!

Till next time
R x

Hair - http://www.number8hairdressing.com/ or find them on Facebook at Number 8 Hairdressing
Make Up - http://www.thebodyshop.co.uk/
All photographs - Roland Bray @ that's so roland


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