Rihanna's Collection for River Island

The collaboration between River Island and Rihanna has been long awaited and finally it is here. I bring to you a sneak peak of the clothes that will be hitting the high street shop's floors.

So what is the overall impression?  I am not that impressed.  We (the British public) have been emulating aspects of Rih Rih’s style for a while now: She brought the GEEK tops to the front of main stream fashion, she (consciously or subconsciously) encouraged young girls to wear shorts that refuse to coverthe arse and she endorsed the flat cap trend that has been sweeping the nation.  These were the clothes I was expecting to see within this collaboration. I was wrong.

Rihanna’s style is edgy.  She has gained fashion points from the alternative way she wears designer’s clothes (usually a bit risqué). Her programme, Styled to Rock featuring Henry Holland, her stylist Lysa Cooper and Nicole Roberts, also affirmed her knowledge and influence on fashion.  What I find odd about this collection is that I think it looks cheap. Not that I personally know Rihanna, but this collection looks as if she has said to a group of designers, ‘these are my favourite outfits I have worn, base my collection on these outfits.’

The side knot on a lot of the t-shirts, in my opinion, is what brings the collection down.  The knot is thin and a design feature that takes from the fact that a knot in a shirt is Rihanna’s quirky way to wear a standard shirt.  The fishnet skirt… do I have to finish that sentence? - Trashy. As for the croquet, fishnet top- yes we know she is from Barbados. The reality that River Island stores are predominantly based in the UK, with the average size being 14 is not a good omen for summer.

The fact that this collection has been so highly anticipated also spurs on my bad review. My email subscription to Vogue.com has been hyping this collaboration up for months; as has the Twitter accounts I follow.  I was expecting more.

These views are my own, and I am sorry if I have caused any offence if you are a die-hard fan of Rihanna (I know you are out there).