Just for you

Don't you hate it when you just have nothing to wear, when everything you try on either doesn't fit, isn't right for the occasion or isn't 'you'- well now look no further! One of my best kept and favourite secrets is now yours.

Take a look at Style Shake http://www.styleshake.com/user/

You design the dress, they make it and in 10 working days, a brand new dress designed exclusively by and for you arrives!

Theres a whole range of fabrics from wardrobe staples like cotton to linen (a summer essential) to silk and metallic silk in a range of colours from the ever classic black, forest green, electric blue, orchid and poppy red. Once you've chosen your fabric, next up is the fun part- designing the dress. You can chose the upper body (empire, yoke, hips, waist to name a few), neckline (the newly added off the shoulder and off the shoulder gathered is so now it hurts!), sleeves, waist, lower part of the dress, as well as add trimmings and detailing like pleats and embellishment.

My newest creation is this Bottega Veneta inspired dress with bandeau neckline with stone embellishment, a fitted box pleat detailed waist with a full flared knee length skirt, all in a very wearable, very understated black cotton- all for £99! What more could I want?

http://www.styleshake.com/user/Dress.aspx?name=Dress&ID=42211

And to make it even better they even do tops!

New In!

After being rudely awoken by an early morning phone call and without anything to do for a few hours I decided to hit the net and look at pretty things and as always Topshop was on my port of call (I don't often buy from there but every now and again they have some great pieces- just ignore the tween stuff!)

This sequin mini skirt is very Elle MacPherson (goddess of minis and flat sandals- she wears them even in Winter!) and would look fantastic with bronzed skin, flat sandals (something simply) and a basic white t-shirt





Because I adore all things ruffley, this dress is pure indulgence for me- its red, ruffly and just looks like fun to wear! It would look amazing with thick black tights and mary janes and a black trench coat






Speaking of coats, I love this waterfall frill front belted coat- the mustard colour is very on trend and adds interest to an otherwise neutral outfit, the full skirt is just adorable especially with dress and mary janes or t bar shoes for a retro vibe. the puff sleeves are gorgeous and the frill front makes it look very designer (but alot cheaper!)







And finally are these light grey t bar heels- the light grey colour is a fantastic year round shade and the ruffle front detailing is gorgeous and will add interest to any outfit (they'd look fabulous with a black tea dress and tights- let the shoes do the talking!)

Freemans

Now shopping through the traditional catalogues, previously huge in the 80s and 90s has fallen out of favour, but I still think there are great buys to be had from them with a little bit of elbow grease and looking past the tacky/over priced/OTT goods. With that in mind I've gone through Freemans catalogue (their sister catalogue Oli is currently very in vogue!) and here are my top picks:

These are both in my shopping basket- the charcoal belted shirt dress is a classic shape updated with puff sleeves and the colour is a fantastic alternative to black (I'll be wearing mine now with black tights and boots and gladiator sandals come summer!). These pleated city shorts are fantastic and the choice of mauve and black is just too much to bear (so I've ordered one of each!) These are a fantastic alternative to jeans (as I no longer own any, I'm looking for as many jeans alternatives as possible!), can be dressed up or down, rain or shine and for any occasion. I'm thinking thick tights, patent ballet pumps and pea coats now- flat sandals and tank tops in summer! You could also add a short belted trench in taupe or olive for a safari lead look!

Next up is this fantastic selection of dresses- the organza shift is a fantastic party dress and a twist on the classic shift, the satin jewelled dress is pure glamour and very Katherine Heigl red carpet, the purple cross fronted dress has sexy secretary written all over it and the japan print dress is a gorgeous shape with a fabulous print! The spotted tea dress with skinny belt is just retro gorgeousness and would look divine with mary janes and is a pure classic!

Finally are these wide leg navy trousers- they have a fantastic fit, a great flattering cut, a choice of colours and the navy worn wide legged is pure nautical and so now it hurts! I'll be wearing these instead of jeans with gladiator sandals and a boat neck tee in the summer and with stripey socks, mary janes and a belted cardi now!

These are just a few of the fab pieces on offer now (some are even in the sale even though their from the newly released catalogue!), with free delivery and returns- I'm very impressed!

Up next on my journey of the catalogues is Boden..........

More new thingys!

Well today turned into an impromptu shopping trip after visiting a friend (not that I need an excuse to shop although in my defense since putting on 1.5 stone, nothing fits so I have alot of clothes to replace and even more to put on ebay!).

I bought- as well as picking up an Estee Lauder advanced repair night duo set for £40 (such a bargain!), I also bought a striped nautical style blazer, nautical striped blue and white full skirted dress with collared bust, yellow and white striped full skirted dress with collared bust and cross over straps and a patent vinyl nautical style tote with red detailing and anchor print!

Only trouble is now I'm even more unsure of what to wear to the upcoming Christening (OUSA F&B forum readers will know all about my ongoing dilemma!)- do I stick with the black fit and flare dress with mary janes and pink tote bag, or go for the H&M fit and flare striped dress with mary janes (for a vintage dolly look!) or one of the new nautical dresses with a fitted black cardi and mary janes?

Topshop Hits

As with any self respecting fashionista, when recovering from a late night theres no better way to pick yourself up than online shopping! So with that in mind, I hopped on over to Topshop (to find the pearl & anchor necklace) and found some smashing little pieces for you and me! (see I like to share!)

Up first is this adorable zip front bow print dress- now I realise its a hard cut to carry off for most women and will therefore only suit a select few as the front zip falls directly over the stomach and the ruching detail will only highlight the stomach and hips but I thought it was super cute and worth a mention (plus I'd quite like to see a curvy girl in that to give it real sex appeal- sadly me and my straight up, straight down body cant do that so its up to the rest of you!)

Or why not go for this chiffon bow print blouse fo lady like glamour in a much more wearable style? The keyhole cut on the bust adds that hint of sexiness along with the sheer chiffon, while the collar and puff sleeves add some ladylike secretary appeal- the perfect way to walk that sexy/ladylike line and win!

Next is this Richard Nicoll dress- its just divine- the cut with the pleated skirt and frill neckline, the stripe detail, the fact its richard nicoll (he designs for Kylie and we have the same industrial sewing machine!) make it a clear cut winner! Also for anyone afraid of the length (it looks short on the monitor) just add a pair of skinny or straight cut jeans and you've got the perfect ensemble, your still perfectly on trend and saving your dignity (no one wants to be britney and show the world your vajayjay)

And because you can never have too many black dresses- check out this frill front black dress and pleat front tea dress for on trend, designer inpired pieces that you can wear from now right through summer (with sandals, oversized sun hat and bright shades of course!) and back into autumn as black dresses never go out of fashion, no matter what the magazines try and tell you!

And just because its grey and ruffled means I was bound to adore this racer back ruffle tank top- the charcoal grey is the perfect foil to summer brights (and looks amazing with every womens wardrobe staple, black), the ruffles add much needed volume to the bust for flat chested girls, while the racer back shows off your shoulders and arms in the summer. For now try throwing it over a tight fine knit scoop or round neck jumper and jeans or over a crisp white shirt and pencil skirt

As I told you a few posts back, dip dye, the new tie dye, is going to be huge this summer but to avoid looking like a gyspy throwback, try going for unusual shades such as greys, blacks and reds (and be able to wear it now and be ahead of the fashion pack) like this skirt. Its absolutely gorgeous, very different and would look fantastic now with thick tights and some mary janes and then again with flat gladiator sandals and a tank top in the summer

And for the finishing touch to any outfit try this Abalone shell ring- perfect to add a summer touch to your winter wardrobe and perfectly suited for gorgeous (fake) tanned skin in the summer!