I arrived on Wednesday night just after the start time of 7pm (fashionably late!) at the bustling Selfridges at the Trafford Centre. Selfridges is a fantastic luxury and heritage brand the event was to celerate Nadine Merabi’s collection launch at the venue – definitely cause for celebration! The venue was bustling and there was certainly a lot of attention around the press launch area itself, which was simply a roped off VIP area in the centre of Selfridge’s top floor women’s wear section; customers were stopping by to watch, a line of paparrazi were snapping pics and people were walking by to take photos.
The dress collection itself was absolutely stunning – words (and my pictures) cannot describe how sparkly the items were. I was impressed! Selfridges’ representatives were hosting the event and as well as giving out champagne, Merabi branded cupcakes and offering assitance, they were handing out the collection booklets for us to take a closer look. The dresses retail at around £250 but bespoke tailored dresses can also be made – Merabi stands out as a couture and highstreet designer! A nice detail I also noted was that the same Nemesis models that were in the booklet were modelling the dresses at the event itself.
The red carpet inspired dresses were absolutely stunning yet Nadine
Merabi admitted she doesn’t necessarily follow fashion trends. Of the
collection, Merabi also stated, “we do follow trends occasionally, but most
of the time I want my
designs to be timeless, not in fashion or out of fashion. Something that
you could wear it now or wear in five years’ time, and it would still
look great. With my clothes I want someone to be able to walk into the
room
wearing them and for people to say ‘Wow, she looks amazing’. To wear our
designs you’ve definitely got to be confident, you’ve got to want to
get noticed.”
I loved the emphasis on Manchester pride at the event. As a local girl herself, Merabi must be extremely proud of her dresses launched in the Trafford Centre Selfridges just two years after she apparently taught herself to sew. This year, Merabi was involved with London Fashion Week 2012 but when I asked her if she was showing her collection in Manchester Fashion Week 2013 she seemed even more excited at this. She also stated, “MFW approached me and I was thrilled to
take part. I love Manchester and it’s important to me to still be a part
of my community and do my bit for my local roots”.
I can’t say I blame her, I love Manchester fashion and a bit of good old Mancunion pride! This was topped off by the amount of local celebrities at the event, including stars from Coronation Street, Hollyoaks and Celebrity Big Brother. Below are just a few pictures that I took with some of the attendees (who were also kind enough to let me interview them for my Youtube, I told you to keep your eyes peeled!) but if you would like to see more pictures, check out the Daily Mail’s coverage here.
Chelsea of Mike and Chelsea In the Morning on Key 103, Manchester’s No.1 Hit Music Station was there in support of our local girl! She attended wither her Momma, too – n’aww, we love a bit of mother-daughter time! I asked her whether it was still important to look good even when on the radio and she agreed, stating that its too easy to become stuck in a rut.
I also interviewed Louise Cliffe, a model and Big Brother contestant, who was wearing one of Merabi’s dresses to the event. She revealed that she is currently working on her own clothing range and was taking inspiration from Merabi by Nadine for the more glam side of her own collection. She also said she “felt like a bond girl” in this beautiful gold number!
Page 3 model and Celebrity Big Brother 2012 contestant Rhian Sugden also supported the event. Rhian has been photographed many times in Merabi dresses, including several times on Celebrity Big Brother.
I wasn’t sure what to wear so I went for a smart-casual combination. I wore these faux-leather black leggings and my black faux-seude wedges paired with this beautiful gold detail shirt and studded blazer from MissPap. It turned out to be a good choice as although many of the celebrity clients and Merabi herself were dressed up to the 9s in her wonderful pieces, much of the other press were a lot more casual. Turned out to be the perfect combination!
I had a wonderful time at the event and I look forward to going to many more. Again, please watch out for my video coverage of the event on my Youtube and my website, as although I can’t wait to show you all, these things do take time to edit! Once again, I’d like to that MCFW’13 for the opportunity and Nadine Merabi for being so wonderfully welcoming on the night – congrats on your beautiful collection!
The space is perfect for practically anything you can think of- it's very ritzy but welcoming and comfortable at the same time. The staff is so helpful and super nice. event space Kansas City
Meet The Creator
Full time I'm an ambitious Head of Marketing and Communications in the luxury industry. Part time, I'm an enthusiastic British Fashion, Beauty and Lifestyle blogger and YouTuber from Manchester, UK. This blog has been my outlet for the past 7+ years, and as a longstanding, Award-winning blogger I take the most enjoyment from creating content I truly love and believe in. All authentic. Always.
What a lucky girl you are !
The space is perfect for practically anything you can think of- it's very ritzy but welcoming and comfortable at the same time. The staff is so helpful and super nice.
event space Kansas City