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by The Backseat Stylers | March 21st, 2013 
Who run the world? Queen Bey, obviously. As if a world tour wasn’t enough to keep her busy, news comes today that Beyoncé has teamed up with H&M for a summer collection. Everyone’s favourite hair-flipping diva is featured in the fast fashion retailer’s new campaign, modelling swimsuits and beachwear inspired by her own style and that she personally gave input on.
Ann-Sofie Johansson, H&M’s Head of Design, said: “There’s the perfect bodycon dress, as well as a flowing sun dress that makes a real statement. And of course there are the bikinis, especially the fringed bikini. What makes these pieces even more special is that Beyoncé herself had input into the design, and they are full of her own personal style.”
The campaign was shot by Inez and Vinoodh in the Bahamas back in January. ”I’ve always liked H&M’s focus on fun affordable fashion” Beyoncé said. “I really loved the concept we collaborated on to explore the different emotions of women represented by the four elements – fire, water, earth and wind. It was a beautiful shoot on a tropical island. It felt more like making a video than a commercial.”
In addition to the print advertisements, a TV commercial featuring a new Beyoncé song, Standing On The Sun, will also be launching. How excited are you, my fellow Beyoncé fans?
xx, S
Image courtesy of H&M
by The Backseat Stylers | March 19th, 2013 
H&M is back with another Conscious Collection this spring – this time the offerings are eco-friendly, pocketbook friendly and red carpet-friendly. Conscious Exclusive features party-ready apparel and accessories for both the ladies and the gents that are made from more sustainable materials, and it’s hitting stores in just a few short weeks.
From glam floor-length gowns and cocktail dresses to a box clutch and heels to match, the chic line-up is made entirely of more sustainable materials like organic cotton, recycled polyester, recycled polyamide and Tencel. We’re drawn to the menswear-inspired pieces for the women, including the three-piece suit and the jumpsuit with the cutaway back, as well as a romantic ivory embroidered mullet dress.
The collection launches in around 140 stores around the world on April 4. Check out the gallery below for the complete collection – which pieces will be making your shopping list?
   
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by The Backseat Stylers | March 12th, 2013 
H&M Group‘s highly anticipated new label, & Other Stories, launched on Friday with the opening of its first bricks-and-mortar store in London and online shop in select European countries. So what’s the story on this new chain?
& Other Stories is a fashion brand offering women a wide range of shoes, bags, accessories, beauty and ready-to-wear to create their personal style, or story. Their creative ateliers in Paris and Stockholm design diversified fashion collections with great attention to detail and quality at an affordable price.
We’re rather envious of our friends across the pond, because & Other Stories’ wares look right up our alley. The new brand is higher end than its sister company, H&M, and its offerings less trend-focused. The very first collection, for Spring 2013, features unique takes on classic silhouettes, and has a decidedly minimalist lean. Check out the gallery below for highlights from the inaugural lookbook.
It might take some time for & Other Stories to expand to North America, but here’s a great way to tide us over in the meantime: H&M online shopping. What say you, shopping gods?
 
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by The Backseat Stylers | November 9th, 2012 
At the H&M Spring 2013 preview this week, a bohemian style for the 21st century translated into sporty and relaxed shapes embellished with tassels (one can never have too many), fringes, and embossed details.
The fresh sun-bleached and neutral tones of the collection are highlighted in the gray denim jacket with quilted shoulders and gorgeous brocade print blouse and matching shorts, while vibrant reds and oranges embolden the tassel skirt with embellished waist and the statement brocade jacket. There are so many great pieces in this spring collection, but the standouts for me are the black embossed leather jacket and the studded white denim vest. Can’t you just imagine these on the lead singer of a band who gets asked to play at fashion shows in New York or Paris?
The accessories in the collection are just as stellar. I’m loving the tassel handbags, the metal toecap cowboy ankle boots, and the pineapple earrings. It is an undeniable fact that pineapples make better sartorial motifs than any other fruit (bananas are a close second). If you agree, you’ll be happy to know that there is also a cute bracelet with pineapple charms and a shirt with the fruit printed on it. Tassels, pineapples, brocade…it’s not even winter yet, but I’m ready for spring.
   
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by The Backseat Stylers | October 26th, 2012 
World Mastercard Fashion Week (WMCFW) is currently in full swing and there’s no more fashionable a city in Canada right now than Toronto. Whether it’s models strutting their stuff on the catwalk, editors and VIPs sitting front row, or bloggers getting a sneak peek backstage, everywhere we turn it’s a fabulous feast for the eyes.
Being surrounded by many of the most sartorially gifted industry insiders for 5 days in a row is both inspiring and dangerous; our fall/winter wish lists have grown rapidly while we’ve people-watched over the course of the week, not so stealthily ogling the sea of chic ensembles around us. Unable to resist the urge to shop, we snuck a trip to Toronto Eaton Centre (TEC) in between runway shows. Armed with the top street style trends we’ve spotted at the fashion week tents just down the street, we scoured the 3-floor fashion mecca for pieces that would help us – and you! – get the looks.
We loved freelance fashion writer Bianca Teixeira’s cobalt blue, double-breasted pea coat, which she donned over a similarly-hued frock for a monochromatic look on opening night of WMCFW. Want a vibrant pop of colour in your fall/winter outerwear rotation too? Stop by Toronto Eaton Centre for a teal lapelless option at H&M ($129), an oxblood wool biker coat with leather sleeves at Zara ($269) or a raspberry wool blazer with contrast piping at Juicy Couture ($361). These are sure to cheer you up on a rainy fall day.
Whether it’s zebra, cheetah, or snake, the animal print trend is going nowhere fast. While it was a wonderfully loud leopard print coat that caught our eye, you can start small with a scarf like Massimo Dutti’s woollen green snakeskin foulard ($59.50) or a handbag like Banana Republic’s ‘Jamie’ box clutch ($150). For those of you who are ready to fully embrace animal print, a dress is surely the way to go. Who needs a LBD when you can rock Ann Taylor’s zebra knit jacquard sheath dress ($98) or Juicy Couture’s ponte knit green python dress ($218) instead?
We’ve spotted everything from crisp white cotton button-downs to colourfully-printed silk blouses so far this week, and one of our favourites has been the studded collar shirt we saw on Jenn Campbell, FLARE Magazine’s Senior Digital Editor. TEC has tons of collared shirts to choose from and whittling the list down to just 3 was a tough task, but J. Crew’s silk boy shirt in heart throb ($158), Club Monaco’s ‘Patricia’ silk shirt with contrast leather piping ($149.50) and Mendocino’s graphic print blouse by Clover Canyon ($312, arriving in November) are our top picks.
When it comes to statement necklaces, blogger Nelia Belkova is the queen; we’ve seen her sporting one fabulous piece after another every day this fashion week. Go big or go home, her accessories philosophy seems to be, and it’s ours too. Hang a conversation starter like H&M’s insect necklace ($14.95), BCBG Max Azria’s rocker statement necklace ($178), or the Lulu Frost for J. Crew crystal petal necklace ($220) around your neck to take your fashion week outfit to the next level with some help from TEC.
It’s the last day of WMCFW today, and U.S. retailer EXPRESS, which is launching a new store at Toronto Eaton Centre next month, is set to close the week. We’ll be live-tweeting tonight’s 9pm show, so be sure to follow @backseatstylers and @toeatoncentre on Twitter for updates straight from the runway.
See you at the tents one final time this season – and then at Toronto Eaton Centre! After all those fashion shows this week, you’ll want to do some serious shopping at TEC’s newest boutiques: Canada’s first unisex J.Crew, North America’s first Massimo Dutti, and Canada’s first Ann Taylor. We know we will.
xx, T & S
Sponsored by Cadillac Fairview
by The Backseat Stylers | October 24th, 2012 
You’ve seen the lookbook, you’ve seen the ad campaign, and you’ve been working on whittling down your wish list for months already. Now, finally, the complete 104-piece Maison Martin Margiela for H&M collection has been revealed. Check out the gallery below for the complete women’s apparel, shoes and accessories offerings. Looks like that wish list is only getting longer.
Want a peek at the men’s collection? Click on over to Flare.com, gentleman. Margiela x H&M drops in around 230 H&M stores worldwide and online at hm.com on November 15, 2012. You know we’re all chomping at the bit for that same whimsical glove clutch, that same gorgeous red dress, and those same fierce Plexiglass boots. Well guess what? It’s on.
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by The Backseat Stylers | October 16th, 2012 
The official Maison Martin Margiela for H&M lookbook has been released!
Rejoice, MMM fans, because the collection doesn’t disappoint. Far from it, in fact. The 104-piece line-up of women’s and men’s apparel, footwear and accessories is a reissue of iconic designs from the Margiela archives, but at pocketbook-friendly H&M price points. It can’t get much better than that, am I right?
Each piece will be accompanied by a tag indicating the collection to which the original runway design belonged, in case you’re a little rusty on your Margiela history. So far, I’ve got my eye on the fitted, high-neck blazer, the oversized turtleneck sweater, and perhaps even a pair of knee-high boots for good measure. What’s on your wish list?
Margiela for H&M will launch in around 230 H&M stores worldwide and online at hm.com on November 15, 2012 – one short month away! I’ll most definitely be joining the line outside our local H&M for this collaboration, and I suspect I’ll see you all there as well. In the meantime, check out the ad campaign, in case you missed it last week. And stay tuned for more details!
  
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by The Backseat Stylers | October 9th, 2012 
With the Anna Dello Russo at H&M accessories collaboration successfully purchased, we can now focus our collective attention on the upcoming Maison Martin Margiela x H&M capsule collection. And as if right on cue, feast your eyes on the ad campaign images, as well as scans from a feature in ELLE China‘s November 2012 issue, that have popped up.
Combine these photos with that image of a little red dress we posted back in August and the line-up is looking downright epic. Margiela x H&M will be available in around 230 H&M stores worldwide and online at hm.com on November 15, 2012. Why pretend otherwise: see you in line!
  
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by The Backseat Stylers | September 9th, 2012 
Enough with the sneak peeks; we’ve finally got our hands on the complete lookbook for the Anna Dello Russo for H&M accessories collection! Featuring almost 50 pieces of jewelry, bags, shoes, sunglasses and luggage, the collaboration is everything we love about ADR. Meaning: it’s completely outrageous and over-the-top.
“Accessories are like vitamins to fashion — as such, you should use them liberally,” advises Dello Russo. And now we can, at affordable price points. The ADR x H&M collection retails from US$24.95 for earrings to US$59.95 for a turquoise clutch to US$299 for over-the-knee leather boots.
Anna Dello Russo for H&M launches in about 140 H&M stores worldwide and online on October 4. We’re sure your calendars have been marked since the collection was first announced in May, and now you can finally make your wish list! I’m coveting a few of the bracelets and cuffs myself. Which pieces will you be lining up at your local H&M store for on October 4?
     
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by The Backseat Stylers | August 28th, 2012 
Yesterday we showed you a first look at Margiela for H&M, and today we’ve got even more H&M designer collaboration images for you! Thanks to the September issues of Vogue Russia and Vogue Spain, we get our first sneak peeks at Anna Dello Russo’s accessories collaboration with the fast fashion retailer since it was announced back in May.
Sure, ADR was spotted sporting some of her H&M pieces during Paris couture week, but these magazine pages are filled to the brim with the statement jewelry, sunglasses, clutches, shoes and even luggage that the Vogue Nippon Editor-at-Large and street style icon designed. They’re in high res too, so click away in order to see that ornate turquoise suitcase, those zebra bangles and those crocodile-adorned sunglasses up close and personal.
Let me guess, your ADR for H&M wish list just got that much longer, didn’t it? Not to worry – I’m right there with you! The collection will be available in around 140 H&M stores worldwide as well as online at hm.com on October 4.
    
xx, S
Images via TFS
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THE BACKSEAT STYLERS BY T & S
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