Happy

I've interrupted my packing to do this (no mean feat when one is going home for the holidays! What to take........... No that's another  post.)

A couple of days ago I downloaded my first song, yes I've seen the look on your face and yes I have the technological age of a one year-old, I say one not two as a two year old would be far advanced to me! "Happy" was the song, by my crush at the moment the unbelievable talent that is Pharrell Williams. You don't know who he is? He of every great #1 in the charts this year, that's who. Anyhow lets get back to Happy. This has to be the best way to end a year! I defy anyone to not be smiling after hearing this over and over and over again (yes I only have 1 song on my play list!) But style watches and this is where he is really impressive see what he wears. There are no gold chains, no bikini clad girls, no bling. He, my dear friends, is how I would love to see men dress. He is style and class personified. Watch the video is all I can say. As this year closes what a better way to welcome in the new one, than HAPPY.

Judge Jury and Executioner

                           Judge Jury  and Executioner                                                                                                                           Bad Fashion !                                                                                                                        The Gala season has finally finished for this year and  we all had a good time ,  (some more than others! ) and we gave funds to much needed charities. Of course some of us made more of an effort in how we dressed whilst others just donned the same black dress.                                                                                           Now I know and you know, we all judge each other!"You look fabulous!!!!!   "What does she look like?",Didn't she wear that dress last year ?,  It's a bit tight ! or my absolute favorite 17/71 , 17 from the back 71 from the front!                                                                                                                                         Is anyone making an effort any more? yes some,but far too few for my liking.Rather have a go than fail and be boring .                                                                                                                                                   At one gala a group of women (lets call them Boring ,Boring and More Boring) voted one women best dressed, she was wearing a plane back dress. If in my mind that is the case then the pages of American Vogue ,How to Spend It,(FT) Grazia  and other style bibles should all shut up shop and go home. There is no hope.                                                                                                                                                           Next time the occasion dictates,try something new.Experiment, be Creative, be Brave .                         Friends I know you can.                                                                                                                                                             Enjoy good fashion                                        

Holiday Cheer

Yes, I know you've missed me. It's not as if I've been away except for one (not romantic) weekend. And I've missed you too. It's just that I've been very busy and not had much to tell you.

But now I'm back!

A week to go until Christmas. Pre sales, Sales, Super sales and New Collections. Unaccustomed as I am to shopping (I like to call it "wardrobe building") Loads around, what to buy. Cruise is a must. Better priced than Spring and exceptionally directional. Already been there and from that I'm building, but that's not to say I'm immune to the temptation of Pretty. Having already splurged on Spring and with a small budget left, I hear a little voice in my head (the same one who made me splurge!) saying "When will you wear it?, Well, will you wear it? How will you wear it?" And last but not least, "Does it mean new shoes?!!"

So far I've been very good. But the list in my head is growing and when it becomes too long for me to remember and is transferred to paper - well, that's when I'm in trouble. So dear friends, be clever. Check what you already have in your wardrobe before you buy the same thing you already have. That grey top - how many do we really need? Those trousers that looked amazing on the fashion pages, but in real life... If you're nineteen and weigh six stone.

As for me, how many times a day can you change shoes (and for some, the first sight of rain is an absolute no no).

Remember - smile, have fabulous hair and very Happy Holidays!

Manners in Fashion: Episode 2

Are new  clothes the curse of the nouveau rich?
Is it impolite to always wear new?     
How old are your clothes? To be more precise what is the oldest item of clothing still being worn?    
                                                                                                                                  
Mine, I should point out is a pair of white cotton jeans worn year after year (about 11 years) held together with white patches and a will of their own.Why not throw them out (I hear you say) and buy a new pair. I have, but the new ones, well they just don't seen right! The question I have to ask myself is why  throw out something which (although old)   seems very, right now. Iv'e just read an article in which it says ,Topshop, is on my wave length (or is it visa versa?) .They have produced a line using old, past seasons prints, fabric off cuts and unused material runs . So what is this? austerity or ultimate chic. Is it clever never to be seen in the same outfit twice, or is it just proof of more money than sense? I, like probably many of you watched Downton Abbey, and noticed that on many occasions the ladies of the house wore their evening gowns  time after time. Is there something reassuring about an item, even if altered (modernized) that one can call a friend?     
 
Now don't get me wrong I like new as much as the next person, but not for no reason. One of my very closest girl friends, who in my circle, would year on year, be voted No 1 Best Dressed, and who has a very extensive  wardrobe told me how, quite often she goes and plays in her dressing room, making new outfits (and she knows about fashion and style) from her existing clothes. In the order of  Fashion Manners, said friend is the most well mannered one could ever hope to meet.                                                                       
Well mannered and beautifully dressed. I read somewhere (I think it was in American Vogue) a woman (who constantly featured on the Best Dressed List) wife of a billionaire , was at a party dressed in a wonderful full length evening skirt and a cashmere jumper,which had a moth hole in it, (which she knew about). She had not thrown out the jumper but had worn it to a very public event.That to me dear friends is the height of Manners in Fashion. So next time you feel like throwing out last season .think again, don't be impolite, be well mannered and enjoy your clothes.     

 Happy Dressing.

Pre Fall

Pre Fall! Pre Fall!  Pre Fall!

Is that all the fashion editors can write about? Well dear friends the answer this year is yes! Due to the no show of spring (ok we had 2 days, and summer I'm no meteorologist but don't hold your breath) 
No one wants to see flimsy outfits we can't wear even if they are half price now! (sales, coming to a store near you, today!) 

So now the sleepy little town,that is Pre Fall has become the hottest news. Imagine, if you will, Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor (when they were married, first or second time) and they had decided to move to Wetherby, a small town in Yorkshire .What on earth am I on about I hear you ask, (stick with me, all will become clear). In the case of Wetherby, it would bring people to said place and others would follow in doing so, really putting Wetherby on the map. (I know it already is but now your taking notice of it). Exactly the same thing is happening with Pre Fall. 
To my mind, in England at this moment Pre Fall is fashions greatest invention. It has given us clothes that really can be worn all year round. Add a coat, leather biker jacket,  parka,or fur, in winter (next week)and take it off in summer (the next day!). As for the fabrics, you wont see many  chiffon's or cotton, but you can add your own. The colours I think are great, if you don't believe me, see for your self. 

So if you're in the mood for something new, remember autumn is literally just around the corner and a sales purchase in this country may never make on to your body (never mind out of the door), then Pre Fall is the way to go. 
Happy Shopping.

Manners in Fashion

Do you have fashion manners?
Do manners in fashion matter?
What are they?

In these cash strapped times, what makes you spend your money? The impulse purchase (which I do not advocate ever!!), or the considered item that will add to your wardrobe, a new lease of life and will be enjoyed for a very long time.

Now, having isolated said item, where will you buy it from? Me, I will always buy from a place where I am valued, where my purchase is appreciated, and of course the designer I like. This is where manners matter. (Well they always do, but more so now.) I just bought a pair of Raf Simons for Dior Couture pink and black high heeled slingbacks that I have been drooling over for weeks, now those of you that don't know me, shoes are my big weakness (they update any look quicker than you can say espadrilles) and the new black and pink, not so ridiculously priced but (well all I can say is that they're not the first pair this year...!) and I received this morning a lovely email from said shop in Knightsbridge (Harrods) thanking me for visiting them and hoping I enjoyed the experience, well I did.
Their mirrors always make me look wonderful, I have my new shoes, they work a treat with all my outfits so everyone wins.
But that's not so true for some fashion houses who fail to go that extra mile for the customer and then fail to make the sale.
So dear reader, manners matter. See you in my pink and black shoes.