FROW News #138: Victoria Beckham Wraps Up at Gap, Converse Finds a Kitten Heel & RAYE Takes the Mercury Prize 👀✨
Converse has found a way to combine trainers and kitten heels, which may complicate an already difficult footwear decision. Elsewhere, a familiar red is moving into the make-up bag, and MERIT has come back from a Paris museum with an idea for a fragrance. Inspiration clearly takes several forms.
There’s also a new reason to revisit the John Lewis rails, a major win for British music and theatre that won’t necessarily require you to speak the language. In Birmingham, a free exhibition is putting one of the city’s Surrealists in focus. Let’s get into it. ⬇️
Victoria Beckham Has Winter Layers in Mind at Gap 🧶
Victoria Beckham’s second collection with Gap is here, bringing knitwear and outerwear to the front of a 37-piece autumn/winter wardrobe. Charcoal, deep green, brown and dark red set the mood, with quilted satin sitting alongside denim and wool blends. There’s plenty to work with once the weather starts making your outfit decisions for you.
The £95 merino rollnecks are the quieter pieces, while a £140 quilted satin bomber brings a little sheen to the layers. Denim takes two directions, with high-rise straight jeans alongside lower-slung drawstring styles, depending on how relaxed you want to go. Wool-blend coats supply the longer layer without leaving the rest of the outfit to do all the work. The collection is available now through Gap UK, with selected pieces at its Covent Garden and Westfield White City stores in London.
Converse and Vaquera Can't Decide Between Trainers and Heels 👟
From the top, it looks ready for a skate park. From the side, the kitten heel has other plans. Converse and Vaquera’s new VX-1 Heel takes its cues from the padded CS Pro-1 skate shoe in the Converse archive, keeping the chunky upper before making a sharp change of direction underneath.
There’s a suede upper, a padded tongue and wide laces, so the skate references are still easy to spot. Singer Kim Petras models the shoes inside a miniature house, making them look positively oversized against the tiny furniture. The collaboration follows the brands’ previous designs, which put hidden wedges inside slouchy versions of the Chuck Taylor. The Converse x Vaquera VX-1 Heel launches on Tuesday 27th October, priced at £200.
RIXO’s John Lewis Collection Is Ready for a Closer Look 🌸
We promised an update on RIXO’s collaboration with John Lewis, and the collection has now arrived. There are 44 pieces to explore, including an exclusive print drawn from a textile design in the department store’s 1849 archive.
The print appears across dresses, a blouse, a skirt and a scarf, including the full-length Vesper dress with its cap sleeves and ruffled neckline. Beyond the florals, velvet, sequins and metallic finishes bring a dressier feel, alongside knitwear and jackets that can work their way into the everyday wardrobe.
The Delphina mini dress costs £235, the Luanne jacket £295 and the Kova bag £145, with scarves from £65. The collection is available online and in 30 full-line fashion stores.
Musto and Zara Tindall Are Prepared for the Weather 🌧️
Between Storm Austen and Storm Boelo following close behind, waterproofs are getting our attention this week. Musto’s Country collection is back, with Zara Tindall putting its outerwear to work. After nearly 20 years with the brand, she knows what she needs from an outdoor wardrobe: warmth, protection from the rain and clothes that can keep up with a day around the horses.
The women’s Burnham Waterproof Jacket costs £285, while the longer Suffolk Waterproof Coat, £300, adds insulation and fully taped seams for colder, wetter rides. Away from the waterproofs, the £130 Cove Deep Pile Fleece Jacket looks particularly inviting once the temperature drops. The collection includes jackets, fleeces, and accessories, available online and in Musto stores.
Lorna Luxe Has Her Next Pair of Jeans in Mind 👖
Lorna Luxe knows what she likes, and her community knows the feeling of seeing her wear something and wanting the details. The OG influencer’s first River Island edit is now online and in selected stores, bringing her familiar style to denim, satin shirts, tailoring and textured layers in UK sizes 6-22.
She’s shopped at River Island since her teens, so this partnership has a little history behind it. Four jean shapes anchor the edit, with Barrel, Sculpt Wide, Cigarette and 90s Straight each available in two washes. Mid-wash barrel jeans get a satin shirt and tux blazer, while black Sculpt Wide jeans are paired with a bouclé jacket with a PU collar.
Barbour and A.P.C. Have Something in Common 🧥
A well-worn waxed jacket and a favourite pair of jeans have something in common. The creases, fading and signs of use become part of their appeal. Barbour and French label A.P.C. have brought those two materials together in a collection that gives the familiar country jacket a little Parisian company.
The women’s range includes the long Sugarlump Bedale waxed jacket at £599, alongside Elisabeth straight-leg jeans at £259 and a denim mini skirt at £179. Tartan turns up on a quilted crossbody bag, while dark-sage clogs take the footwear somewhere other than the usual Wellington boot. You’ll find the collaboration online, with clothing and accessories across women’s, men’s and unisex styles.
Topshop Gives Talia Byre’s Stripes a Wider Audience 💚
London label Talia Byre has brought its distinctive green-and-ecru stripes to Topshop in a new 17-piece collection. They run through merino V-neck jumpers, a matching scarf and a cowl-back dress, giving you a few ways to wear the combination before deciding how committed you are to matching.
The shoes deserve a look too. Leather wedge boots sit alongside backless brogues, which leave the heel exposed while keeping things rather businesslike at the front. An off-white leather jacket and studded denim round out the collection, available now with prices from £30 to £260 and clothing in UK sizes 4-18.
G-STAR Gives Its Women’s Wardrobe More Shape 🪡
G-STAR is taking another look at its women’s wardrobe, with Belgian DJ and producer Charlotte de Witte stepping in as its new global face. Their partnership begins with Own the Arc, bringing the curved Arc jean back into focus and taking Charlotte to Paris’ Arc de Triomphe in a nod to its name. If your memory of the brand begins and ends with denim, the rest has a few introductions to make.
The renewed collection puts shaped jackets, dresses and tailoring alongside the jeans. An Hourglass Zip Dress and a high-collar leather jacket bring definition, while softer fabrics sit alongside the familiar raw-denim look. Cargo trousers, biker styles and a riding blazer keep the connection to the brand’s utilitarian roots. The womenswear collection is available, with Arc jeans starting at £130.
Merrell and Sweaty Betty Take the Walk Seriously 🥾
The walk sounded lovely when you arranged it. The muddy section is where your shoes begin to have an opinion. Merrell and Sweaty Betty’s fourth collaboration brings an autumn update to the women’s Moab Speed 2 GORE-TEX, with checked details across two colours, Bracken Green and Utility Brown.
Both styles cost £150 through Merrell. Beneath the colour choices, a waterproof GORE-TEX membrane helps keep water out, while the Vibram sole is designed for grip on uneven ground. Foam cushioning and a lightweight stability plate complete the construction, giving those longer walking plans some practical support.
Porsche’s Pepita Check Meets Sprayground’s Shark 🦈
Porsche’s collaboration with New York accessories brand Sprayground brings the check associated with Porsche interiors together with Sprayground’s shark-mouth designs and flashes of red across backpacks and travel bags.
First seen at London Fashion Week, the bags are now getting a wider release through Porsche dealerships, Porsche Design stores and Porsche’s online shop. UK options include a Pepita backpack at £148 and a Pepita duffle bag at £192. The latter comes with an adjustable, removable shoulder strap for carrying it beyond the car boot.
Virgin’s Signature Red Has Become a Wonderskin Lip Stain 💋
Virgin’s signature red is taking a turn in the make-up bag. The brand has teamed up with Wonderskin on Headliner, a limited-edition lip stain with a pink undertone that softens the classic red. It uses Wonderskin’s longwear formula, designed to keep the colour in place beyond the first drink.
Getting to the red involves going blue first. Apply the blue mask, leave it for 60 seconds, then wipe it away with a damp tissue or cotton pad to reveal the stain underneath. Repeat to build the intensity. It costs £18 and is available through Wonderskin and TikTok Shop.
The collaboration also supports Look Good Feel Better during Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Wonderskin will donate 5% of total net sales from the shade to the charity, which runs free skincare and make-up workshops helping people manage the effects of cancer treatment.
98 Beauty’s New Mask Has Had Its Victoria’s Secret Moment ✨
98 Beauty has launched The Mask, a hydrogel face mask designed to hydrate, brighten and leave skin looking smoother. It’s worn for 20 minutes on clean, dry skin, with the remaining essence patted in afterwards without rinsing.
The beauty brand has been making its way into some notable beauty kits. Hairstylist Coree Moreno used its haircare on Zendaya for Louis Vuitton’s Paris show earlier this month, while facialist Michaella Bolder chose the new mask to prepare Ashley Graham’s skin for this year’s Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show. The formula includes stabilised vitamin C for brightening, alongside the brand’s Firm Lift and Smooth Pep actives, aimed at firmness and the appearance of expression lines. The mask costs £14 individually or £62 for a box of five.
MERIT’s New Fragrance Started With an Afternoon at the Museum 🖼️
An afternoon at the Musée Picasso in Paris helped inspire MERIT’s second fragrance, New Wave. The team’s interest in how cubism and surrealism challenged established rules became a starting point for perfumers Dominique Ropion and Meabh McCurtin to rethink a classic amber scent.
The brand describes New Wave as the more outgoing companion to Retrospect. Pink pepper and angelica bring a spicy opening, followed by orange flower, ylang-ylang and a honey floral accord. Incense, resins and vanilla take it somewhere warmer as it settles on the skin, giving the brighter florals a smokier backdrop. New Wave L’Extrait de Parfum costs £79 for 30ml and is available through MERIT and Sephora.
Butter and Merlot Are Rochelle Humes’ New Brush Pairing 💛
Rochelle Humes is having a butter-yellow moment, and now the hairbrush is joining in. Her new KILLABRUSH collaboration comes in two colours, Butter and Merlot.
Both colours come in The Original Paddle for everyday detangling and The Vented Blow Styler for blow-drying. Beneath the colour choice is the brand’s antimicrobial technology, embedded throughout the bristles to help reduce bacterial build-up on the brush surface, with its claims based on laboratory testing. Each brush costs £29 and is available now through KILLABRUSH.
Anua’s New Vitamin C Duo Is a Sephora Exclusive 🍋
Anua has launched two new vitamin C products exclusively at Sephora, pairing a brightening serum with a facial mist that can be used over make-up. One fits into your skincare routine; the other can stay close for a midday spritz.
The Vita 10 Porestrix Brightening Serum (£27) combines vitamin C with ingredients including vitamin E, ferulic acid and niacinamide, targeting dullness and uneven-looking skin tone. The Vita C Glutathione Brightening Capsule Mist (from £14.50) brings oil capsules together with hydrating ingredients, including ten forms of hyaluronic acid, for a little extra dew during the day.
Therabody’s New Launches Go Beyond the Skincare Routine 🪄
Therabody has introduced a new skincare system and three separate beauty and wellness devices. The SkinSpa System (£179-£349) offers a choice of attachments, depending on the model. CryoCurrent pairs microcurrent with cold therapy, ThermLED combines LED light with heat and vibration, and PRO includes both. Neck & Chest LED (£349) extends the brand’s light treatments below the face, targeting the appearance of fine lines across the neck and chest.
The other two launches focus on massage. ThermFace Massage (£179) combines heat and percussion for facial and jaw tension, while the wearable ThermNeck & Upper Back (£299) brings massage and warming therapies to the neck, shoulders and upper back. The new range is available through Therabody and selected UK stockists.
Kevyn Aucoin Adds Three New Nudes to Celestial Lip Gloss 🤎
Beige, rose and brown can take a nude lip in quite different directions. Kevyn Aucoin’s three new Celestial Lip Gloss shades (£32 each) give each its own option. Nicole is a cool beige nude, Leudita a cool rose nude and Alex a cool brown nude, with the names continuing the founder’s tradition of celebrating team members.
The colour is sheer enough to wear alone or layer over a favourite lip liner. Vitamin E is included in the cushiony formula, which the brand says gives a fuller-looking finish without burning or stinging, while the pointed applicator helps with tracing the lip line. You’ll find the new shades at Cult Beauty.
The Cornish Seaweed Bath Co Gives Hard-Working Hands Some Care 🌊
The Cornish Seaweed Bath Co has launched Replenish Hand Cream to moisturise dry hands without a greasy finish. It’s designed to absorb quickly, so you can get back to whatever your hands were doing before they needed a little attention.
Cornish Fucus serratus seaweed is central to the formula, alongside ingredients including marshmallow, passionflower and grape to help keep skin moisturised. Lavender, clary sage and rose geranium give it an aromatic scent, with lime and sea fennel adding fresher notes. The hand cream comes in a 75ml aluminium tube and is available now.
Lush Is Bottling the Oils Behind Some Familiar Scents 🌿
Lush has launched its first essential oils collection, giving you a chance to get to know some of the ingredients behind your bathroom favourites. There’s lavender, used in Dream Cream, sandalwood from Sticky Dates and patchouli, which helps give Lord of Misrule its distinctive scent.
The full range spans 19 oils, with eight available in all UK stores and the wider selection in Lush Spa shops, Perfume Libraries and online. Lavender (£11), Patchouli (£14) and Sandalwood (£30) sit alongside less familiar names such as Fragonia (£16), a sweet, herbal oil that’s new to the brand. You can browse the collection by scent and find suggestions for combinations to try in a diffuser. Each oil comes with guidance on suitable use and dilution, worth checking before experimenting with your own blends.
RAYE Takes the Mercury Prize With THIS MUSIC MAY CONTAIN HOPE. 🎤
RAYE has won this year’s Mercury Prize, collecting the award in Newcastle this week for her album THIS MUSIC MAY CONTAIN HOPE. She followed her acceptance with a performance of I Hate The Way I Look Today, taking a song about self-image onto one of British music’s biggest stages.
The judges praised the ambition of the album’s four-part structure, which moves through jazz, soul, R&B and classical influences while following a young woman’s experiences of life and love. If you’ve been listening to individual tracks, there’s more to explore across the album as a whole. You can find more about her win and the other shortlisted albums through the Mercury Prize.
Sarah J. Maas Has More Trouble Waiting in Prythian 📚
A Court of Splintered Harmony is the new novel from Sarah J. Maas, arriving on Tuesday 27th October. It’s the sixth book in her fantasy romance series A Court of Thorns and Roses, set in the Fae world of Prythian.
This time, the Night Court is dealing with betrayals and fractured loyalties while Koschei the Deathless gathers allies beyond its borders. With the human lands under threat, repairing those relationships is becoming rather urgent. The story follows on from the earlier books, so newcomers will want to start at the beginning. The hardback is available to pre-order through Bloomsbury, with an ebook edition also available.
Voila! Brings Theatre in 60 Languages to London 🎭
Voila! Theatre Festival returns to eight London venues from 2nd-22nd November, bringing together 101 shows and events involving 450 artists. You won’t need to speak all 60 languages to find something to watch. More than half the programme combines English with another language, while many other productions use subtitles or surtitles.
There’s plenty of curiosity in the stories themselves. Much Crazy About Nothing imagines a world where you can hire someone to end your relationship for you, while The Gummy Bears’ Great War turns real sweets and a tabletop into an existential tragicomedy. Dance, live music and family shows also feature, with migrant and multilingual artists central to the festival. Venues include The Cockpit, The Playground Theatre, The Space and Upstairs at the Gatehouse. Browse the programme for performance dates, ticket prices and the language arrangements for each show.
Brighton Illustration Festival Makes Room for Your Creative Side 🎨
Brighton Illustration Festival brings more than 130 exhibitors to the city on Saturday 31st October and Sunday 1st November. Alongside prints, books, zines, comics and ceramics to browse, there’s a programme of talks and workshops for anyone tempted to do a little making themselves.
Lazy Oaf founder Gemma Shiel will look back on 25 years of the brand, while Hamish Steele discusses taking a webcomic to Netflix. Nick Sharratt joins the family programme, and practical sessions include making paper masks, printing portraits with stamps and stitching little fabric gnomes. That last one could become quite the afternoon. The festival takes place at The Wing at The Brighton Centre and nearby Wagner Hall, with talks and workshops included in admission. Both venues have step-free access. Check the programme and tickets for session times before planning your visit.
Emmy Bridgwater’s Birmingham Story Comes Into View at MAC 🖌️
Birmingham-born artist Emmy Bridgwater is the focus of a new free exhibition at MAC, bringing together paintings, drawings, collage and poetry from more than six decades of her work. Emmy Bridgwater and Birmingham Surrealists opens on Saturday 24th October and runs until 10th January 2027.
Her work appears alongside fellow Birmingham Surrealists including Conroy Maddox and John Melville, showing the creative connections within the city. Contemporary artists Laura Footes and Paloma Proudfoot also contribute, opening up a conversation about women’s place within surrealism across different generations. You’ll find the exhibition in the First Floor Gallery at MAC in Cannon Hill Park. Opening hours are 11am-5pm, Tuesday to Sunday, plus school and bank holidays, with donations welcome.
That's us for this week. We'll be back next week with more fashion, beauty and culture worth knowing about, and a few more things to add to the diary.
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