Oh no I forgot! Xmas shopping last minute....

I remember in the past in my office days pre organic farming.. people used to get half day allowances for Xmas shopping actually i never did the shopping thing but I did always take the half days to meet up with friends and party!

Always used to just do a mad rush last minute so I guess not much has really changed since

then.... Here we go the mad rush luckily a couple of savvy shops have geared themselves for just that.........

My favourite colour and fun lovin girls have a pop up shop in Covent Garden Neal street till the end of the month... I love Lowie Shes got the whole range in technicolour from socks to mittens with or without fingers and berets and hats and little cute bow headbands as well as this rather fetching green red riding hood cape... Lupe loves it ...

Oh and down the same street the Natural shoe store has got a Sale shop.. where you can get Above+below bootees for £49 there is a rather sicko comforting thought of stamping around in my central line rare boots, I am going to get some for some seriously angry weekend commuters I know.... tooo.

Then Terra plana has a cool offer and they're giving out a Burt's Bees gift

(nice stocking filler guys) with every pair of sale shoes.. they still have some of those terribly high pink courts left.. they will work well in Summer too. So I guess I could just hang around Covent Garden but not even the vintage goodies of Elton John and David Furnish at the cellars this weekend is going to organise me!

So thankfully Julia Smith is doing a discount for friends and family at her shop at 4 Porchester Place London W2 2BS020 7402 4758 on the 22nd of December so expect me and the whole family and drinks...

and loads of trying on!!!

Oh and if you're anywhere near East Dulwich way the delightful duo of Andrea and Kim of 21thingsi love are doing a designer sample sale luxurious bamboo and organic cotton butterfly motif t-shirts limited edition print silk scarves dates - 11, 12, 13, 18, 19, 20 Dec E.D. Warehouse, 1 Zenoria St East Dulwich, London SE22 8HP Friday 10.30-5.30, Sat 10-6, Sun 11-5.

Great New Find.....

Imagine how cool a find today,brought to us by Sweetling.co.uk who are actually at the clothes show Birmingham all this week.

For all us girlies this is an amazing piece of kit, ideal for carrying the all essential monthly item in style! Not only that though, it can double up as a nifty carrier for make up, card & cash too! Beats throwing some shapes around the bag. Just pop this item made from offcuts into your pocket and you can finally free yourself onto the dancefloor!!!

Yeahhh!!!

FIND YOUR PERFECT WINTER COAT

I remember the days when buying a coat happened around September.
The idea was that you bought something terribly sensible that would last you a couple of years, if not forever.

It seems that things have changed. Firstly, the prices have dropped, so on the high street buying a coat is virtually on a par with getting a good party dress. Secondly, the idea of being sensible is no longer valid. In fact, the more outlandish and on trend the coat the better; you want to get noticed right?!

But this new state of affairs doesn’t actually fit in with my ethos at all (well apart from getting noticed that is).
The favourite coat in my wardrobe to date was picked up on a vintage stall at Spitalfield market London for £5. I saw it and realised it looked like an Izzy Lane (izzylane.com) brown and white hounds tooth coat (which at about £395 a coat was going to take just too long to save for). I grabbed it only to find out later it was a hand-woven tweed from Ireland. But these are one off miracle finds: right place, right time with a fiver in your pocket!
Buying a coat - The plan

Option one: Buy a coat which is going to last you, well, forever. My mum is an expert! She swears that your coats should be as expensive as you can afford. Look after it well by brushing it down after each wear, hang on a proper hanger with lavender pouch, get it altered when you change shape (most expensive coats have extra material on seams for that purpose) and then give to your children or grandchildren.
Option two: Buy a coat you can wear throughout the year. Make sure there isn’t too much weight in the material but wide enough to play the layering game.
Consider which colour works best for you - black/brown or maybe teal/raspberry.
The correct shape is vital, and there are lots to choose from: pea, princess, trench, wrap, the list goes on.

So with all the above taken into account and a bit more besides, this is my tried and tested capsule coat collection for .................

1. Wool Holmes Short Coat, (above) Stewart+Brown, £310, ascensiononline.com. Wear throughout the year great for layering.
Colour- bluey-plum. Material- boiled merino wool from ‘annually renewable free-range resources without petro-chemicals in their processing’. Cut -Dolman sleeves (can be rolled up) length hitting mid thigh (approach with caution if this is problem area). It has a nice self tie belt to draw in the waist and is single breasted, which is great for leaving open and wearing with chunky knitwear.
Verdict – a really great classic investment piece to wear throughout the year! A big thank you to the fantastic Abbi at Ascension who tried every coat in the boutique.
2.Elizabeth 1 knee length, Eloise Grey, £899, eloisegrey.com. Going to last you forever.
Colour – Brown. (can be made to order in other colours check fabric swatch.) Material – organic and ethical undyed tweeds from the Isle of Mull weavers lined with organic cotton or silk blend. Cut – Classic flared with pleat down the back. Raised ruched collar adds a little twist.
Verdict – I think one to keep for the grandchildren. Fantastic for the smaller bust and curvier bottom half.

3.Elizabeth 2 knee length, Eloise Grey, £880, eloisegrey.com. Also going to last you forever.
Colour – Silver grey (can be made to order in other colours check fabric swatch. Material – Ethical Silver diamond twill lined with black hemp silk lining. Classic cut.
Flared loden style with pleat down the back and large collar. Because of the pleat in the back it does go into a princess shape, great for curvier bottom halves.Verdict – classic work wear coat that skims the figure.

4. Illusion coat, Julia Smith, £325, juliasmithfashion.co.uk. Wear thoughout the year albeit in the evening in Summer!
Colour – Black. Material – Scottish wool with hand painted cotton lining from Ghana. Has a narrow envelope collar with concealed buttons. Verdict - fabulous classic coat, amazing with vintage dresses and seriously cool with jeans.
5. SJ coat, mid thigh, Julia Smith, £275, juliasmithfashion.co.uk. Wear thoughout the year . If you dare, wear on its own with a vintage 80s shimmery top and sparkly American Apparel tights.
Colour – Black, Material Recycled polyester mpb and hemp/silk. Cut extremely deep. Has a smoking collar and is single breasted with great cape like sleeves. Verdict – Looks fantastic worn with trousers with the belt tied. The only coat to wear if you’ve bought into the 80s shoulder power dressing.
6. Riding hood coat, mid thigh, Cecilia Hammarborg, £250, ceciliahammarborg.com. Wear throughout the year.
Colour – Turquoise teal but also in black and rose pink. Material- Melton narrow pinstripe made and sourced in London. Fitted cut made of medium weight wool. It has a lower neck line so is good for a curvier top. Although the lapels are wide, the notches on the collar draw your eye upwards. Can be worn military style with all buttons done so great for flatter angular top halves too. Fitted at the waist, it has a half belted back with pleats so great for curvaceous derriere. Verdict – a great piece to suit a lot of different figures.
check more on http://www.daisygreenmagazine.co.uk/fashion/features/find-your-perfect-winter-coat/

Rachel Simpson - we just discovered each other and its LURVE

Ethical, stylish & totally fabulous! 30 Nov 2009

We are very fortunate to know and work with some amazing people in the fashion industry and Lupe Castro, an ethical fashion stylist who found us via our friends at Fur Coat No Knickers is no exception. We lent her some shoes recently for a photoshoot and the results are amazing, have a look at some of the shots here on our blog. Because we love to be involved with companies and individuals with passions like ours, we caught up with Lupe for a quick chat...

Tell us a bit about your company, who you are, where you started out .

I am an experienced and passionate independent ethical fashion stylist, working with individuals, celebrities, the media and fashion industry to ensure stunning, individual looks coupled with the very cutting edge of ethical, traceable, sustainable fashion and style. I also do sourcing and styling for magazine and advertising shoots, catwalks and shows.

Whats your best seller.

Hmmm I guess what I love doing best and what gives me the biggest buzz is making the clothes that women wear, reflects the real personality they are.

What should the 21st century Fashionista be looking out for next season?

Lots of Gold and Coral Red, medium sized prints..

Which designer from your industry inspires you and why?

Crumb! hard question - I love so many. I am in awe of the way some just cut clothing to reveal the figures so beautifully.

Celebrity shoppers, anyone we know?

Recently for shoots I have styled Deborah Meadon and Miranda Richardson, I love and admire both so it was mind blowing!!!

What are you looking forward to for the rest of the year?

Styling Summer Rayne Oaks and seeing Rachels new collection!

Describe your personal style

Glamour to get you noticed

What is your biggest fashion faux pas?

Aha that would be telling - involves a fancy dress party that wasnt and a 1950s swim suit!

check out more of this luvvy piece at Rachel Simpson shoes

Julia Smith, hits the WEST END

Earlier on this week Julia Smith opened her fab shop

in Connaught Village together with the shoe designer Joanne Stoker. I didn't manage to get to the vernissage but I did pop in the next day which was even better, as I didn't have to fight through the hoards and got to try on mostly everything. Also managed to talk to Julia who is difficult to pin down as she is back and forth from Ghana quite a bit.

The Shop Julia explained is the result of winning a competition - run by the Church Commissioners in conjunction with London College of Fashion- to kick start their own retail fashion business with a rent and rates -free retail unit for six months in Connaught Village.

Not only is the shop filled with both girls lovely creations but there is also a studio in the offing for made to measure.. and a lovely selection of cosy knitwear knitted in the UK just for them.

Prices are amazing starting at £135 for the gorgeous organic jersey throw on for all occasions dress below... + its so so easy to get to just 5 minutes from Marble arch.

Julia Smith & Joanne Stoker - 4 Porchester Place W22AZ

Glam show last weekend at Earls Court

As it was Too near to miss thought I would pop into the Glam Show and see kat at EJF do her first live catwalk show ever.

The models boys and gals were amazing and wearing all of the designs as well as those gorgeous monkee jeans. teamed with some Hot Terra Plana, Beyond skin and B boheme shoes. Kat had organised a shortish video on the dreaded endosulfan(I think any longer and it would have been just to stomach churning I hate that pesticide), but just go shows what one Kat plus host of volunteers can do that she has just managed to get up in front of the Geneva Delegates at the fifth meeting of the Persistent Organic Pollutants Review Committee that have agreed that its sufficiently dangerous to humans and the environment that global action is warranted. About time ???Who says we can't change the world!!

Anyhow while I was milling around who should I bump into but just my fave rave Reem having , so I spent just a good 30 minutes trying everything on what an opportunity and I had thought she was in Japan well I ordered myself a great pair of sequin trousers!! Made note in diary she is at clothes show in December .... Yes!!!

Waiting for images will get them up soon!!!

Fashion week and all that Jazz+ethetica

Reporting from the centre of London and the new venue, yes not in fact Somerset House

but 180 the strand past Kings College and onto a block that is going to be demolished terribly

shortly... Although very modern airy and on several floors vast improvent on the nightmare

of the Natural History museum fashion week was split and it showed. Not everybody managed to get around to the two venues traditionally people come for 1 or 2 days..

The fact that the sign posts were not really correct + on two sites, one of which was cobbled and painful seemed like a recipe for disaster . Standing in front of the Somerset main entrance on the first day in the sun looking at a map of different colour blocks was certainly a challenge!

But Somerset House main was gorgeous there was loads of light spilling through windows and there was even a bar serving mojitos overlooking the river heaven it made people watching and buyer spying seriously Fun!