Cosy, Casual + Glam

It's been a while since I've written a blog about the latest Designer vs High-Street items - so staying true to my readers, here it is. Let's call it, a mini fashion purchase-off!

Credit cards at the ready... Whether you want to splash some cash or, want to splash even more cash, I have created three looks that we all need to be wearing this month.

For a cosy look...

£25 - New Look £55 - TBA - ASOS.com



£35 - Dorothy Perkin £164 - Current Elliott



£98 - EMU £186 - UGG



£7.39 - ae.com £130 - Fendi

For a casual look...

£40 - Topshop £739 - Stella McCartney - net-a-porter.com



£18 - Peacocks £192 - calypso-celle.com



£48 - ASOS.com £374 - luisaviaroma.com


Tights - £43 - thoutnet.com

For a glamorous look...

£14 - ASOS.com £551 - Oscar de la Renta - net-a-porter.com



£99 - Topshop £148- DVF - matchesfashion.com



£80 - Topshop - £464 - YSL - farfetch.com



Tights - £4 - ae.com



Whether you are a designer diva or a happy high-street shopper - be sure to stay stylish!

xoxo

A Woman's Knitted Treat

Today's blog is inspired by my outfit and selling techniques.

Having packed a thin pleated dress and lace over top to wear for work today, I decided this morning that this would just not suffice given the fact that was minus something ridiculous outside. I rummaged through the bf's wardrobe in the hope to find something warm I could layer my outfit with until I got to work and thankfully I managed to get my manicured hands on a gorgeous chunky knit cardi (of which I plan on 'borrowing' for a while but haven't quite told him that yet).

Later this afternoon, as a client shopped away, I lent a hand to her stylist helping to pick out some basic vest tops and long sleeve tees. This particular client was all about layers and had a real laid back cool look. Teaming her UGGs with straight legged jeans and chunky jumpers, I decided that she would definitely benefit from the men's knitwear. Off we went to the ground floor where she tried on a McQueen knitted jumper and a John Varvatos cardi, both of which she happily purchased.

Ladies take note, often the men's knitwear looks ten times better on us - so - get them to purchase so we can borrow!

Here are my top five must-haves ...

Alexander McQueen - from £595 to £348
matchesfashion.com



GAP - £55
ASOS.com



John Varvatos - £468
matchesfashion.com



ASOS - from £30 to £18
ASOS.com



Topman - £90
topman.com



Whose feeling snug and trendy?!

xoxo

Snow Show

One of my tweets the other day read as follows... 'This snow is so 2009' I have a little confession - it is SO not! Am I the only 25 year old in North West London that still gets so excited at seeing the world covered in white?! OK, so it's a slight nuisance; public transport gets cancelled, one can't drive anywhere, the pavements are icy and on a whole, the snow seems to cause quite a bit of chaos - however, going back to basics i.e. sturdy boots, lots of layers, warm coat, gloves, hat and scarf - I reckon there would a lot more happy snow-loving people!

The following day, I sent a tweet saying, 'Velvet-esque bodycon dress and fur coat - time to show the snow whose boss!' Ladies, take note - it may be cold but the glamour must always stay hot.

Layers are key, that way when you get to your destination, you can peel back the bulk and be left with a very chic outfit.

Don't let the snow defeat you, wrap up warm and stay fabulous!

xoxo

Stars In Their Stores

Hi peeps, apologies for the lack of blogs recently - as you may or may not know I have been working a full week at Matches over the past month and what with late night personal shopping, socialising and sleeping - I have been a little neglectful of la blog. However, time to change that and get back on track... So for an added treat (you heard it here first) I have got some major goss for you all...

Over the past couple of weeks we have had a few celebs in store. I've checked them out and kept my eyes peeled on what they had been browsing and ultimately buying.

First up - Sharlene Spiteri (for those of you that don't know - she is the lead singer of Texas). She took to the shop floor hand in hand with her very adorable little girl, who was sporting an ever-so-trendy woolly hat, shaped like a panda(see pic above). Sharlene looked cool yet casual in some tight jeans, winter boots and jacket. She had a little browse of our new spring/summer collection, paying particular attention to Heidi Klein's swimwear and Stella McCartney's beach bags.

Next to take to the Matches store was no other than Miss Whinehouse herself (that's Amy for those that were wondering). Amongst many of her purchases were a pair of McQueen embellished rhinestone peep-toes, a Preen dress and a Sophia Koksalakia leather jacket.

We also had a quick visit from Emma Thompson (one of my most memorable scenes from a movie is when she cries in Love Actually - gets me each time!) She scanned the new seasons collection and picked up a couple of fab bold printed DVF dresses.

Last, but no means least (ladies - brace yourselves) was no other than Clive Owen. Having had a walk round the men's wear, sampling some Lanvin suits and Form cashmere jumpers, Mr Owen left the store with a trail of screaming girls behind him (well, we actually waited until he had stepped out the door to scream!)

So - all in all it has been a star studded couple of weeks and I for one cannot get enough. What with Celebrity Big Brother starting and working at Matches - I think I might just be a wee bit star struck! HA.

Same time tomorrow

xoxo

Shopping, Sales + Resolutions!

I know I said I would try and reduce my impulse buying - so I just wanted to clarify what that exactly means...

Impulse buying = purchases I don't give too much thought to

So the following items below do not count, as I gave plenty (all the 5 minutes) of thought to whether or not I really needed them in my life (to which the answer was of course yes!)

The sales began and being the absolute shopper, I knew I had to live up to my name and take advantage. Here is what I managed to get my fashionable hands on...

Emma Cook for Topshop - from £110 to £55



Primark jacket - from £25 to £8



ASOS necklace - from £28 to £19.50



ASOS dress - from £32 to £18



Carvela - from £140 to £49



Missoni scarf - from £100 to £25



Topshop boutique - from £110 to £40



ASOS dress - from £28 to £18



Swarovski pendant - from £54 to £37



*PHEW* I am all shopped out (for this week that is!)

Hope you have all been bagging the bargains.

Same time tomorrow

xoxo

2010 begins...

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I hope everyone enjoyed all the festive celebrations; partied lots, drank a bit, ate a bit more and watched copious amounts of television!

I've no doubt the standard January resolutions have begun and I for one have made (and started) a few myself:

Healthy eating (with the occasional weekly treat)
Exercise, whether that be at the gym or evening walks
Reduce impulse buying
Try and seriously stick to point 3
Keep blog updated and interesting
Pursue with fashion career and business ideas
Make the most of life
Be realistic but totally positive!

Care to share your NYR (new year resolutions) ?

New Year - New Start ... Now where's my credit card?!

xoxo

Stuffing and Sales

Turkey - Check

Stuffing - Check
Roast potatoes - Check
Gravy - Check
Presents- Check
Champagne - Check
Mariah Carey's 'All I want for Xmas' - Check, Check
Sneezes - (unfortunately) Check
Movies x 6 - Check
Hours upon hours of TV viewing - Check
Lots of sleep - Check
Good times - CHECK!

The last few days have been a mixture of socialising, fun, food, friends, a nasty cold, lots of hot drinks and left over food!

Whether you have not stopped eating, seen a childhood pantomime, watched enough TV to last you until the end of 2010 or all three - I hope everyone has had a fab few days!

Now it's time to hit the treadmill, book that manicure and hunt the sale rails, as NYE is only four days away - woo!

Over the next few days, I will be pointing you in the right direction of all the best bargains to be found. I for one have already started with my sale searching and managed to pick up a pair of these gorgeous Emma Cook for Topshop wedges on Xmas eve in Selfridges. Reduced from £110 to £55 I couldn't believe my luck (however I had a voucher, so technically I paid nothing, even so, I would have been more than happy with £55). This is the first of many proud purchases I will be sharing with you.

Until tomorrow - love, love

xoxo

Santa's Coming

I always like to bring to you the weird yet wonderful creations that the stores possess and when I stumbled across these fabulous shoes, I just knew they had to feature in my blog.

Gian Marco Lorenzi has created this sky-high stiletto that even the heel experts might have trouble walking in. The wooden heel measures at an incredible 16cm and the wood effect sole is an added 6.5cm. They are chic, trendy and a bit like marmite.

At a whopping £734 it might have to be a season of heels and buses - but as long as I can get a taxi to the bus stop, I'm not complaining!

All I want for Christmas is ... A pair of shoes!

xoxo

Fabulous + Festive

Xmas is three days away and whether you celebrate or not - everyone deserves to buy themselves a little treat to wear over the festive period.

Sale or no sale - there are some fabulous frocks about and I have picked out my top three looks to go for...

Dress - £65 - Lipsy
Shoes - £105 - Carvela
Bag - £45 - ASOS.com

Dress - £248 - Issa

Shoes - £493 - YSL
Bag - £199 - Bottega Veneta

Dress 1,498 - Mathew Williamson
Shoes - £685 - YSL
Bag - £475 - DKNY

Whose feeling fabulous and festive?! Me, me, me!

xoxo

Wonderful Winter

IT.IS.FREEZING! I don't know about you but I've been adding an extra layer to my outfit every single morning. I love the snow, not so keen on the ice and absolutely have to ensure that the colder it gets, the more fabulous I look!

So, I have been scouring the shops (as I do best) and have found the look we all need to go for in order to keep warm and keep cool (in the trendy sense) !

A little knitted treat ...
New Look - £3 Missoni - £88

Structured and chic...
ASOS.com - £70 Bi Color - £42

Colourful and cute...
Peacocks - £10 Missoni - £355

Smart and sensible...
Pied A Terre - £195 Jill Sander - £580

Love for leather...
Oliver Bonas - £32 Dents - £59

Stay warm and stay fabulous!

xoxo