It’s one thing to find fashion inspiration via the latest vintage-inspired Elie Saab runway dress adorned with a sea of shimmering beads and a train that most of us would trip over. It’s entirely another thing to actually buy and wear that dress to your next work function.

Dress from Elie Saab

The divide between what makes fashion fabulous and what makes fashion functional has always created an assortment of problems for the everyday woman, and generally what we see in the biggest fashion houses cannot be replicated for our everyday pleasure (as nice as that sounds). This leaves the rest of us yearning for a fashion voice for the nation of working women, whether they be mothers, lawyers, doctors, servers, pilots, engineers or other. These real and very important people in society need some style inspiration that doesn’t cost an arm and a leg and that can stand a few tugs and pulls from a toddler, a spilt glass of wine and, perhaps, a two-mile walk home at 2 in the morning when all the cabs are all mysteriously missing.

Enter the wonderful digital age and the media-savvy marketing team at Warehouse. They get it. They really do. From their wide range of looks to suit every occasion, to their completely connected website and social media savvy, they are increasingly making fashion about the most important person you. Red gowns are endless with this designer.

Elie-Saab-Haute-Couture-Fall-2013

Style Me If You Can

One glance at their latest campaign, “Style Me If You Can,” and you’ll see that they realize the influence of social media on style, whether it’s in the form of a teenager’s completely in-vogue Pinterest board or a Fashion Magazine’s stacked Instagram page. That is, they realise that in the new age of fashion, you don’t have to be a millionaire, musician, model or movie star to have the latest looks. No, you simply need to have a natural style prowess, access to the Internet, and a handy camera to document it all. Yes, that’s right; many of today’s best trendsetters are simply people like you and me who can spot a good look when they see it. Now, all we need to do is work it into our vintage style!

Using this concept, the company’s AW13 campaign focuses on looks created by their customers and fans. Their website features a mood board with hundreds of stylish outfits custom moulded by real people who love fashion. These outfits are categorised by occasion and location, and contributors can put together anything from casual clothing for “Walking the Dog” to formal wear for “Cocktails.”

All posts are credited with the users’ names, and the dazzling array of mixed and matched wardrobes is truly awe-inspiring. To top it off, the winning looks will appear in Warehouse’s film and print campaigns for the coming season and will be worn by stunning models in places that people actually frequent in London. The film will have nine chapters, to be released every 90 minutes on a special day, and it will be viewable through Warehouses website, social media and mobile phones. The winners also get the chance to win a trip for 2 to New York, Paris or Milan to boot.

It’s a move for Warehouse that is tres avant-garde in two ways. One, the fashion is cutting edge (as always), and two, the way this fashion is found, presented and shared is advanced too. It, in essence, takes the best aspects of our digital age and aligns them with the company’s iconic style. So, if you are one of those women who’ve been seeking a voice for the style that is fabulous and functional (and vintage, of course!), then look no further than Warehouse’s latest campaign – it’s a stunner.