Happy New Year!!

(Balmain Fall 2011-perfect party dress)

Have an amazing NYE tonight everyone! I hope that we can all look back at the good (and bad) from 2011 and see how it has helped us to grow and that 2012 brings us all health and happiness.

Be safe and bring on the new year!

x

Style Spotlight - Eva Longoria

The Hermes kills me - I WANT.

I want to start up a new weekly feature - Style Spotlight. I collect photos of various celebrities wearing outfits I like for one reason or another on my laptop for style referencing, and thought every week I should do a breakdown of a particular celeb who I think is really hitting the style marks and put up some of my fave outfits of theirs and why I like them etc etc.

So for the first post of this kind I present, Ms Eva Longoria. The thing I love about Eva is that she works it on and off the red carpet. She undoubtedly has great Oscar and Golden Globe hits, but I'm more intrigued by street style and how celebrities dress day-to-day. I know a lot of them have stylists but I'm not gonna go into who pulled the look together, just the celebrty who wears it.

Eva Longoria, to me, knows how to dress for her body type. She is very petite and so is not that tall, but you would never tell as her perfectly fitted skinny jeans, hitting at just the right point on the ankle (not too high and not too low) paired with platform peep-toes for the majority, make her legs look so long. I love how she never goes OTT with accessories either. Apart from a statement bag and perhaps a pair of sunnies for the day, she lets a chic and crispy shirt do the talking, for a more polished take on laid-back celebrity LA style. She also wears a lot of flowy, loose blouses with her skinnies too which complement the tighter fit of the jeans, creating a balanced proportion. Of cousre it never hurts to work hard and have a killer body underneath either, for sure makes your clothes look better! ;)

Finally, I love Eva's hair, it has natural volume and so even if she just has it down with no whistles and bells, it still looks sleek.

Kudos to Eva! ;)

Hope you guys liked the post, I look forward to posting another one of this kind next week. Have a great weekend people!

Decadence

Reem Acra gown

The Mughal period has always inspired me

Naeem Khan resort 2011

Stills from Beyonce's 'Run The World' video

Following the holidays, the most sumptuous time of year, I felt a little inspiration was called for. I do not believe in toning down the style stakes after Christmas - what with January gloom, and return to normal routines I believe it is the time of the year when most us easily slip into style slumps.And let's not forget that New Year's is still to come!

So I chose to take inspiration from beautiful and decadent gowns from Naeem Khan and Reem Acra - two of my most adored creators of fashion - along with the glory of the Mughal empire and its oppulence of style, and the glamourous ethnicity of Beyonce's outfit from her music video for 'Run The World'.

It doesn't take much to translate this style note into a more casual vibe for everyday wear. An ethnic necklace with gold tones, feathers or metal fringing can spice up a simple t-shirt and jeans combo. Or a lovely bright printed scarf for that matter. Sequin detail on the collar of a shirt, or a sparkly bracelet poking out from beneath a cosy jumper creates equal impact.

Although, sometimes decadence is just about that extra ten minutes in bed, or a double caramel drizzle in your Starbucks, but as for style - a little sparkle, goes a long way...

Current Crushes

I've decided to post, every week, a few of the things that I'm currently loving, either clothes, accessories, make-up, jewellery, certain magazines etc etc.

So here it goes for this week...

These patent nude heels from Zara (they do the best shoes on the high street) are so useful, they literally go with everything!

I got this Karen Millen coat a few weeks ago. I'd been in search for the perfect coat for ages, and this one finally made the cut. I feel so much dressier with it on, and I love the trim. <3

 These Chanel earings were given to me by my aunty, so not only are they beautiful, but they have a lot of sentimental value.

 This MAC mineralise powder is gorgeous. I use it all the time, but especially in winter to give my skin that extra boost of glowiness it needs in the dreary weather.

This was my first ever red lipstick buy and I've been crazy for it ever since. It's YSL's Rouge Pur Couture range in the shade '01'. So classic and impactful without even trying too hard.

Christmas Dinner 2011

Fairy lights are a simple way to add a glow of festivity around your home.

A sparkly camel - but of course.

I love a good floating candle.

The table before the feast!

The decoration for the centre of the table. I wanted something with impact but that wouldn't be too tall - I always feel table decorations that are too tall obstruct your view and aren't conducive to good dinner conversation across the table! So I went with some freshly cut red berry plant (not sure of its actual name) with some clementines in a crystal vase.

I don't celebrate Christmas in a religious sense, but it's a family tradition to get together on Christmas Day just to enjoy a beautiful meal together and to spend some quality time.

Of course, to me it's all about the table and the decorations so I am officially in charge of those every year! I wanted to put up some pictures of my holiday decorations from this past weekend to share with you all. Hope you like them!

Happy Holidays

My last post before the holiday weekend really kicks in! A few photos of some beautiful, sparkly accessories - perfect for all this season's festivities, or just to cheer you up and brighten your day. The fashion world sure knows a thing or two about a pick-me-up via shoes and handbags!

Wishing everyone a wonderful and beautiful holiday season, wherever you are, whatever you believe in and whatever you celebrate.

Peace and Love

x

Jennifer Lopez in Haute Hippie

Just a quick post of one my favourite singers, Ms. Jennifer Lopez, wearing an adorable Haute Hippie skirt (one of the labels available from Singer.22 that I blogged about earlier).

This was one of my top J.Lo outifits from 2011. I love the glamourous sparkle, and the toned down colour of the blouse to prevent any overly dramatic wardrobe effects. Perfectly topped off with Louboutins. A +

Haute Hippe Website - http://hautehippiestore.com/

Christmas & New Year's Make-Up Inspiration

This time of year is always the busiest for stores and shoppers alike, because people are not only giving gifts, but making sure they look great whilst giving them.

Clothers are of course the first part of an outfit or look we often think of, but as with accessories, if the make-up and hair is not right, the whole thing can be a disaster.

Now of course it will all depend upon the rest of the items you're planning on wearing for that Christmas party or New Year's Eve bash, but I wanted to post some of my favourite make-up and hair looks from the Fall RTW and couture collections - both Chanel, of course.

I am a huge advocate of the dramatic eye. I feel it adds dimension to the face, and is sensual without you having to cut five inches off your hem. The silvery/grey smokey eyes at Chanel RTW and the much darker and more theatrical version for the couture show were both to-die-for.

Paired with a neutral lip, preferably matte to balance out the shimmer in the eyeshadow, and a chic, loose chignon you're good to go.

Happy Holidays everyone!

Singer.22 Lovin'

One of my favourite websites to browse for cool clothes is singer22.com. They have such an eclectic mix of labels, for clothes and accessories which really evoque that easy going, California sensibility - at least to me anyway. Not every label is evocative of that vibe but a large proportion of them do maintain a certain 'I just threw this one' vibe. Some of my top labels on the website, where you can actually buy the items too, are Wildfox, Alice + Olivia, One Teaspoon, Haute Hippie and Tolani.

The Tolani scarves are a particular favourite, and I've posted some pics from the Singer.22 website, of some of favourite celebrities sporting their chic scarves, as well as a beautiful maxi donned by Stephanie Pratt - who else misses The Hills?!

Also, I wanted to post some pics of their One Tespoon pieces. This is exactly the beachy, loose but trendy California vibe I was talking about.

The loose and light shawl-eque cover ups are so delicate and effortlessly glamourous, with an tough edge when paired with short shorts and killer jewellery. LOVE

Here are links to the Singer.22, Tolani, and One Teaspoon websites

http://www.singer22.com/

http://www.tolanicollection.com/

http://www.oneteaspoon.com.au/