Apparently grey socks are everywhere...

Yes, it's true, according to Company Magazine's 'High Street Edit'. Grey socks turned up on the A/W catwalks, so we are now at liberty to wear them. Unfortunately the current economic climate chez Bossa dictates that I pass on Burberry and hit the schoolwear shops, but surely that's half the fun?

I'd heard about The Edit, but it was the fact that InStyle was wrapped up as a bumper issue with Marie Claire that made me buy it, as a sort of ineffectual protest.

And I loved it. 

Looking cooler than most fashion mags, with its matte pages and illustrations by Tommy Pang, it had the obligatory beauty news and street style, but also had some great original features. Highlights for me were 'Off the Rails' where girls on the street were asked to put together their own look, and 'I Can't Wear That!', which demonstrated ways to wear some of the trickier trends, such as jersey harem pants (and as a bonus, the underwear-as-outerwear section shown below also showed you how to wear gold sequin cycling shorts. Thank heaven for that, eh, girls?!!)

I liked the 'In Fashion On Budget' section, in which fashion interns not only modelled some some very beautiful - and reasonably-priced - clothes from the high street shops, but also gave an interesting lesson on styling. Socks for the knees, anyone?

I might even consider fake tan if it means I can wear this nude playsuit from Asos Black...

The shoes section featured at least 100 pairs (if I counted them I wouldn't admit it), and the 9-5 workwear was low-budget yet creative; I'm sure I'd do wonders for the image of librarians everywhere if I strode between the shelves in that tan leather pencil skirt. I love features that show 'multiple ways to wear one item', and was intrigued by 'My Week in Dungarees', but would've liked more pictures if only as proof that there are seven ways to wear such an ugly garment. Throw in features on fashion blogging, personal styling tips, new designers, and a high street edit by shop stylists themselves, and you end up with a relevant and satisfying magazine. It was also refreshing to see affordable clothes worn by real women, a refreshing antidote to the aspirational glamour of Vogue, or the thinly-veiled misogyny of Heat. 

Roll on Autumn/Winter, I say.