An Evening With Fabi Shoes

Last night I went along to preview the Fabi shoe collection for SS13. The evening showcased fashion and food from Italy's Le Marche region and we were treated to delicious wines served alongside truffle scented canapés by 2 Michelin starred chef, Mauro Uliassi. It was a lively party that took over the entire restaurant at Kensington's 'Locanda Ottomezzo' which was due to finish at 21.30 but was set to go on into the night. Fabi's shoes delivered a good dose of classic Italian bling that sparkled in the intimate and candle lit venue. Check out our video of the event and a review on fashionfiltered.com.  

Strictly Sexy Halloween

"In the regular world, Halloween is when children dress up in costumes and beg for candy. In Girl World, Halloween is the one night a year when a girl can dress like a total slut and no other girls can say anything about it." Cady, Mean Girls.

I love this quote from the teen flick hit movie 'Mean Girls' starring Lindsay Lohan, it does ring true in 'girl world'. With Halloween just a few days away I bet 90% of you will be heading to some sort of spooky party this weekend. Don't get caught out in an old sheet or naff witches hat from Tesco, keep it classy and sexy with these treats (tricks are for hookers).

1. Yves Saint Laurent Rouge Pur Lipstick in Black Tulip £23.50 from John Lewis  2. CHANEL LE VERNIS Nail Colour in Black Satin £18.00 from Selfridges  3. All Saints Hero thigh high boots £275.00  4. Lulu Guinness Perspex Lips Clutch in Black £245.00  5. Topshop Spike Leather Collar £18.50  6. Topshop Pu Strapless Corset £30.00  7. American Apparel Black Disco Pants £74.00  8. Fleet Ilya Black Leather Fox Mask £295.00  9. Lanvin Long Leather Gloves £675 from NET-A-PORTER  10. Reiss Theodora Corseted Leather Dress £295.00  11. Carvela (Kurt Geiger) Annie Ankle Strap Shoes £55.00. Images from the websites.

Short Film: Allium B AW12 Dresses

This weekend I headed up to Hampstead Heath with Thomas Walter of Tucker Productions to shoot a short film showcasing my favourite 4 dresses from the Allium B AW12 Collection. If you are not familiar with the brand they specialise in effortless and easy to wear day to evening dresses. The AW12 collection is inspired by vintage designs reworked into modern and elegant dresses that are practical for everyday wear. Allium B make dresses for women, not teenagers so it was great to use mother of two, Jane Chilvers as our model for the day. Check out the film on fashionfiltered.com here.

Clara Dress £95.00 from Allium B. Image from the website.

Specific Autumn Chelsea Boots

A friend has been on a quest for specific Chelsea boots for autumn, after pacing London's Oxford Street and surfing online fashion retailers she gave up the search an enlisted me to scope out a suitable pair that must be; dark red or dark brown, flat, patent where possible and under £400.00. Sounds like an easy task right? I can empathise with her frustration, but, seek and ye shall find and 6 pairs I did find. At least one of these pairs should keep her tootsies happy, all perfect for skinny jeans and day dresses.

1. Sloane Chelsea Boots from Carvela/ Kurt Geiger £150.00.  2. Monmouth Glossed-Leather Chelsea Boots by Church's from NET-A-PORTER £315.00.  3. Bordeaux Gwendoline Flat Brogue Chelsea Boots by Burberry from My Wardrobe £395.00.  4. Lucinda Burgundy Chelsea Boots from Jones Bootmaker £100.00.  5. Paddington Stud Trim Chelsea Boot from Dune £90.00.  6. Padlock Ankle Boot by MCQ Alexander McQueen from Matches Fashion £385.00. Images from the websites.

Sarah Forsyth: Flagship Opening

Last night I headed over to the King's Road in Chelsea to check out the Sarah Forsyth Flagship Boutique opening, there was more snake than you could charm the pants off, plus plenty of white wine and vintage celebs. Head over to fashionfiltered.com to check out our video and a review.

 

Green People: Organic Skincare

As you will know from previous beauty posts, I am a massive supporter and user of organic, chemical free skincare, this market has greatly expanded and I find myself spoilt for choice. Each time skincare runs out I have the happy task of trying out something new, this time I decided to give Green People a whirl. I usually pop to local health store, Earth, in Kentish Town, Whole Foods or John Lewis for skincare but yesterday, during my Ocado shop on their iPad App, I stumbled across Green People whilst looking for soap (yes, I'm old school and use soap). Ocado are doing 20% off Green People products at the moment so it was the perfect incentive to purchase. None of their products are tested on animals, don't contain nasties (like parabens, synthetic fragrances and petrochemicals), are at least 80% organic and they donate 10% of their profits to charity. I tested their Fruit Scrub Exfoliator and the anti-ageing Vitamin Fix 24 Hour Moisturiser. After using a gentle cleanser I double pumped a good amount of exfoliator and massaged on to my skin, paying special attention to my oily and blackhead prone nose and chin. The ground Apricot Kernel did an effective job of sloughing off dead skin cells whilst the astringent Witch Hazel dried up any oiliness, my skin felt taught, refreshed and looked more radiant. Before trying out the moisturiser I kept to my usual ritual of swiping some rose water across my skin. The moisturiser was thicker than most and one pump gave a generous amount, after slathering on I felt it sat as a layer on my skin then slowly began to sink in (I would wait a good 5 minutes before applying foundation). Once absorbed my skin felt slightly taught and toned, soft and dewy to the touch with a slight reflective sheen.  A few hours after and it feels like its still doing the job and there are no signs of dry skin on my cheeks, which I usually get with other moisturisers, must be down to the avocado, olive extract, evening primrose and seaweed. I thoroughly recommended that you try this Award Winning brand. Fruit Scrub Exfoliator £11.95 and Vitamin Fix 24 Hour Cream £14.95 from greenpeople.co.uk.

Fight for this shoe

The excitement of re-discovering a once lost and forgotten pair of shoes can sometimes feel like opening a present on Christmas morning. You can imagine how I squealed with delight when my good friend re-acquainted me with these once worn strappy shoes boots last week. I originally bought these shoes (from Office) as part of an outfit for a music themed dress up 30th birthday party, the shenanigans were held in a hay bale filled poly tunnel on her parents farm in Woburn. I decided to go as Cheryl Cole when she appeared on The X-Factor singing her 2009 hit 'Fight for this love'. Despite being on a farm, and the party going on till gone 3am, I refused to break character and soldiered on in my heels till pain took over and I swapped for UGGs, I put the shoes down and never picked them up... Since then they have been weathered by 2 years of rain, ice and snow in the poly tunnel and still seem fine, just a bit dusty! To celebrate getting them back I wore  them this weekend and was pleased at the amount of compliments they received. I did naughtily wear them without washing so ended up with pretty brown feet. Today I've been busy resurrecting them to former glory with a good clean and a lick of much needed shoe polish - a make over in black. I look forward to getting good use out of them. Pictures of me below as 'Cheryl' and with 'Amy Winehouse'. Picture of Cheryl Cole on The X-Factor in 2009 from superstarmagazine.com.

Sunday Shopping: Vintage Fashion Fair London

With this weekend set to be sunny, even if a little chilly, make sure you get out out and about and pop along to Primrose Hill's Vintage Fashion Fair on Sunday 14th October. The fair specialises in vintage clothing, hats, handbags, gloves, shoes, jewellery and textiles from 1800s  to the 1980s at affordable prices. Despite being well established and in its 4th year the Vintage Fashion Fair remains small and friendly with a total of 25 stalls.

Organiser and owner of Vintage Fashion London, Marilyn Tye, aims to address the heavy demand for pre-loved treasures and introduce novices to vintage, "High Street fashion can look more interesting and quirky by adding one or more vintage pieces and then your look is all your own! Its very okay to mix vintage with new!"

Be sure to get there early before all the best pieces get snapped up! Open from 11.00 to 17.00.  Admission £3.00. Cecil Sharp House, 2 Regents Park Road, London NW1 7AY. If you can't make it this Sunday the next scheduled dates are the 11th November and 2nd December - in time for christmas shopping (eeek!) Image from the website.

Launch: 59 Strings Online Boutique

Last night I popped along to the launch of online boutique, 59 Strings, at The Arch Hotel London. The room was buzzing with chatter over the cool soulful tunes spun by the DJ whilst really good, zesty wine flowed. 59 Strings is a revolutionary e-boutique that focusses on unique investment fashion pieces that go beyond trends. So what makes 59 Strings stand out from the likes of e-tailer giants NET-A-PORTER and My Wardrobe? Their USP, '3 Ways Of Buying', is a selective buying strategy that puts the customer at the heart and in control of purchasing. You can 'Pre-Order' by reserving pieces at discounted prices, if enough pieces are ordered the item goes into production (a great way of only supplying for carefully calculated demand). You can select 'Made-To-Order' and customise your purchase, giving you the power to influence design and create a one off and personalised piece. If you are a little impatient and need it now the 'Ready-To-Ship' option lets you select pieces from the website, delivered in 2-10 days. 59 Strings showcases the best of artisan European designers, 95% of their products are designed and made in Europe. Many of the designers were at the launch to talk through their work which was insightful and fascinating. My date for the evening, actress Claude Hoadley, jumped at the chance to try on this bold 24k gold tiger skin cuff by British designer Dominique Lucas. I snapped my favourite pieces before Claude and I headed off to private members club Home House on Portman Square for a wild end to what started out as a civilsed and elegant evening!

 

Dominique Lucas jewellery (above)

Maisha Lizard Clutch (above)

Dresses by Katya Katya Shehurina (above)

Gold plated cuffs by Fabel (above)

 Bags by Amelia Powers (above)

Necklaces by Assya (above)

Necklace by Claire English (above)

Blow your payday budget on... Zara shoes

Zara have outdone themselves once again with another awesome shoe collection for AW12. I could stare at myself in the red fringed ankle boots in the mirror all day and not get bored. Check out the rest of the collection online, you will really struggle to pick a pair, well, at these prices you can get two pairs. Buy and wear NOW before they sell out or get killed by popularity (although the risk will be totally worth it). Anti-clockwise from bottom: Cowboy ankle boot with heel and fringes £119.00. Basic ankle boot £59.99. Wedge court shoe £69.99. Ankle boot with metal toe £79.99. Combined heel court shoe £49.99. Tiger wedge £79.99. Images from zara.com.