(PRODUCT) DITTO

Today is special for many reasons: one, it's Saturday, and that means it's the weekend -- yay! Two, it's the first day of advent -- yay! And three, it's World AIDS Day.

"What on earth has charity got to do with fashion?" I hear you cry. Well, shrug off your fur gown, tell the paps to put aside their cameras, give the cabana boy a rest from mixing your margaritas for a moment, and I'll tell you.

Gap supports (Product) RED, and, in conjunction with World AIDS day, they have created a special, ultra-fashionable collection. It's curated by Katie Grand, Editor-In-Chief of POP Magazine, and consists of special one-off (and cheap!) versions of iconic products. So you know the Mulberry 'Roxanne' bag you've been coveting? Gap (Product) RED have it for eighty-five quid.

There are also pieces by: Stephen Jones, Pierre Hardy, Giles Deacon, House of Holland, ck Calvin Klein, and Proenza Schouler, and 50% of profits from sales of each piece from this collection will help fund anti-retroviral drugs for women and children affected by AIDS and HIV in Africa.

The stand-out piece is, of course, a grey T-shirt featuring a montage of images from the POP magazine photoshoot with TFFF favourite, Beth Ditto, photographed by Steven Klein. A mere £19.50!


Gap (PRODUCT) RED Collection curated by Katie Grand is only available from Gap's flagship London and Paris stores, or Dover Street Market in London, and Colette in Paris, from today. Enquiries: 00 44 (0)20 7408 4500. Happy shopping!

Gap + Fashion Fund

Another day, another capsule collection. It seems that after the success of the limited edition H&M collections every designer on earth is rushing out to do a collaboration with an affordable store. Proenza paired up with Target, Sophia Kokosalaki worked with La Redoute and now designers from the CFDA's Fashion Fund have joined forces with the Gap to breathe fresh life into the classic white button down. The designers; Rodarte, Thakoon & Doo-Ri are each relatively new but their names will be familiar to fashion forward young ladies.


The White Shirt ala Rodarte & Doo-Ri

While I love idea of affordable, accessible design brought forth in these designer collaborations one thing that has always irked me is the sizing. Target's collections feature interesting pieces, often duplicates of runway favorites but the clothes are only offered in juniors sizes which limits the options for anyone over a size 12. As TFFF's very own Olivia can attest the very same thing is going with the UK designer capsule collections. Now while Gap's new collection will only be available up to a size 16, I am simply pleased that there will be some larger sizes offered. For a company that generally keeps all its larger sizes exclusive to its website (a practice I find fascist) this is a small step in the right direction. Sizing aside I am still intrigued by the offerings presented as these are all designers whose work I enjoy.

I'm especially interested to see what the sisters Mulleavy of Rodarte will do as they're both curvaceous girls and of all the shirts shown in the previews thiers is the one I'm most drawn to. An elegant sleeveless top is always going to come in handy no matter what and this one in particular looks simple and useful. Their intricate couture inspired style has piqued my interest from their very first collection but I do wonder what, if anything at all the Mulleavy sisters think about Gap's sizing practices. Whenever I see a designer who is plus sized themselves but doesn't offer plus sized clothing as part of their own line I can't help but scratch my head. Perhaps this is a grander topic worthy of its own post but I have always wondered about that dichotomy.

Gap's Fashion Fund Collection Launches April 17th at 100 select Gap locations.