That snowing look x

I wasn't quite ready for the flurry of snow which delicately floated on down over Bristol on Friday. This seasonal smattering, along with two Christmas markets, mulled wine, digging out my much loved Cath Kidston wellies and a sudden urge to get all my Xmas shopping done in one week, must mean that winter, the season to be jolly, is well and truly upon us!

On a quest for some kind of geeky pressie for my brother in law Tim, I became quite taken with the idea of binary watches and managed to find a pretty cool, understated one which, I reckon will definitely suit his mathsy keener ways! But now, I really want one for myself and absolutely adore these Nooka watches which I remember seeing at Urban Outfitters a couple of years ago. Only thing is, it would probably take me half an hour to figure out the blimmin time!

 

From left, Zub 20 ZENH $150, ZOTV $285

xxx

Fairytale fashion and the Peter Pan collar x

I have always loved the cute, vintage, preppy appeal of the Peter Pan collar and with the emergence of a veritable feast of this particular design detail popping up all over the high street this winter, the dream destination of Neverland is never far away! After scouring the shops, I have popped these beauties on my Christmas wish list.

Leopard trim dress £35 Topshop, Lace dress £45 Miss Selfridge

These darling dresses add a sexy twist to the nostalgic prim and proper Peter Pan collar. With the addition of animal print and aluring lace, they give a cheeky wink to the trend.

Button Front Blouse £265 Milly at Net-A-Porter, Lace Collar Blouse £30 Next

I love the sheen of the silk on this Milly blouse and the bold contrast between the black and white which add a touch of sophisticated fun to this nostalgic look. As tops, either of these would look amazing teamed with super skinny Jeans or tucked into leather shorts for daring, contemporary chic.

Red open back dress £38 ASOS, Camel Coat £345 BABBU at Skirt

The optimisim of the futuristic look and it's connotations with swinging sixties fashion surface year upon year and owe themseves pefectly to the Peter Pan collar. These simple silhouettes breathe life into the past yet again.

Maybe its the inner child in me, the reluctance to ever grow up, but the Peter Pan collar makes me feel cuddly and soft and the likes of Alexa Chung, Agyness Deyn and Nicole Richie all seem to agree. xxx

Clip-clippity-clop on the stair, oh yeah! x

This season i'm decided, I want to make like a little mouse with clogs on! When I was browsing the pages of the Zara website the other day, my eye kept getting caught by the genius way that they had teamed their sandal clogs with scrunched up socks! So cute, so easy to wear, so fabulous! The 'Sock Sandal' trend has actually been clomping around for a while now, with the likes of Burberry, Marni, Margeret Howell and Muiccia Prada all pushing the unlikely trend on the 'SS10 catwalks. So now, I'm on the hunt for the perfect pair to see me through the Winter months. It is truely a hard mission but a pretty enjoyable one, so here goes, a boot (it is nippy afterall) and a sandal ...

The inspiration

Margaret Howell and Burberry

The finds

Vamp sandal £39.99 Zara, Clog boot £55 Next

Now, all that's left to do is decide which one, 'how lucky I am'! xxx

Clothes Swapsie x

When a recent invite to a clothes swapping evening arrived on my lap(top) I squealed with delight! What an absolutely fab idea! Always thinking of thrifty ways to inject freshness into my wardbrobe, this seemed like the perfect opportunity. So I scampered along to my room and selected some fineries to pack into my new I heart TruffleShuffle bag (which I love) ready for the said evening. I think that for an event such as this, it is necessary to pick things which you have to sigh a little at the thought of losing, otherwise why would anyone else want them. Or, maybe garments which you have loved to the extreme and simply moved on, yet they are in fine fettle and worthy of many more years of fun outings. So here are a few of my picks, I really hope someone likes them!

Topshop backless side pocket dress and Topshop beaded chiffon cami

Topshop swing top, Asos peg trousers and Cos dress

H&M dress, H&M skinnys and Topshop sequin panel tee

Gap check dress

The date is TBC, but I think this is a fab idea and a great excuse for bubbles, cupcakes and chit-chat on the side! xxx

New York, New York! x

One of my favorite cities in the whole wide world, New York is a source of constant inspiration. The last time I visited, the climate was arctic, but although my toes were numb and turning blue, the magical wonderland of a snow covered Central Park filled me with happy, excitable Christmassy feelings! Regular trips to Starbucks for some much needed calorific White Cafe Mochas (with cream and caramel drizzle!) sorted us out and kept us warm on the inside, ready for some Breakfast At Tiffany's style window shopping on 5th Avenue! Such fond memories of the city and the stylish ladies who pound the streets with their fiery red soled Louboutins always make me look forward to the Big Apple's fashion week offerings!

New York Naughtiness...

Vera Wang's collection consisted of the tonal greys and charcoals I love so much! With full bodied shorts and chiffons revealing cheeky black structed undergarments, tied together with fabricated belts for a modern , contemporary finish. This waistcoat and shorts ensemble, takes what should be a manly uniform and makes it beautiful and femine through the choice of fabrics, drape and layering. Rolled up shorts are key for SS'11.

The simple loose fitting dresses at Proenza Schouler were brought to funky glam life with the amazing statement necklaces, which I have already admitted to being a complete style overhauler! A daring piece of jewellery can bring any dress or outfit out of the doldrums!

Ruffles, ruffles, Ruffles, these made an appearance at quite a few of the NY shows and this fabulous knee length skirt on regal purple satin demostrates how to wear the trend in a fancy, classy way.

Another extravagant way to get out those ruffles as seen at the Jason Wu show.

Shorts again! I know, but they really are everywhere and these high waisted navy ones are truely delightful, teamed with a semi-sheer delicious raspberry top and corsage worn at the waist (must try this), a cutely whimsical look!

And so there ends my review of the SS11 catwalk shows, I now have a head bursting full of new outfit ideas and new ways of wearing the wardrobe I already have!

xxx

The Italians release their stallions x

I'm back on track and blogging all Italiano today! Cupping a steaming hot cappucinno in my hands and polishing off my leftover cold pizza (yummy, thanks Dominoes!), I reviewed the Milan shows which provided me with more than a few inticing tit-bits into the trends of Summer 2011. With floaty florals, sculptured tailoring, cheeky cut outs, slinky satins, luxurious lace and a hint of vintage corsetry, muted earthy tones of stone, grey, brown and putty were key. I love the combination of traditional Italian romance and bolshiness that Milan fashion week embodies so well!

Inspirational Italians...

Alberta Ferretti's earthy pastels, floral border prints, floaty chiffons and lace bring to the fore, thoughts of a past country life, where the hay bales are in abundance and the evening sunset casts a warm glow over the expanse of fields and hedgerows. I love the combination of this beige lace top and floaty floral skirt, accesorised with a burnt brown straw hat. Not out of place in Larkrise.

This little Armani ensemble is utterly gorgeous! The subtle drape of the dress, the cute short sleeved jacket (immaculately constructed!) and that devine statement necklace (always a fave for me), all in shades of putty and grey is made for me!

Antonio Marras may not be a name familiar with many but I absolutely adored this collection. Floral prints (yes more!), utility jackets and shorts, delicate cutwork and underwear as outerwear all featured. This outfit is totally wearable with clashing shades of stone, and peachy creams (with a subtle flash of skin).

If you feel boring a drab in suits and want to spice things up a bit with a cheeky squint of flesh, the 'cut-out' detailling seen at a few of the shows could provide you with the perfect answer. This Max Mara suit is a fab example, although I think I would have preferred the cropped trousers really skinny at the ankle!

Gucci, Gucci Gucci darlings!!! As spotted back in London and Paris, fringing and feathers are set to be all the rage! I love this (oh so Gucci) glamourous take on the trend, the tonal golds simply shimmer and shine with the feathered details fluttering like a million gleaming eyelashes! This is the way to wear the trend with maximum impact!

Next up, New York x