The sales have come early this year which is great news for men who want to get their hands on a few of this season’s key pieces.
Sticking with neutral shades get a whole smart-casual outfit out of sales which will take you very nicely from the British summer into autumn.
Timberland fitted chinos, was £65, now £45, House of Fraser; J by Jasper Conran Portafina shoes, was £65 , now £52, Craghoppers grey shirt, was £30 now £15, both Debenhams; Half windsor scarf, was £42.00 , £now 33.50, French Connection.
A light reflecting hydrating foundation that perfectly combines mineral and plant active ingredients to create a natural looking complexion. The unique blend of active skin care ingredients continuously hydrates and protects. Your skin, only better.
Review:
I’ve never been big on foundation for the day. I’m more of a tinted moisturiser with a little concealer, maybe some powder for the day kind of girl with foundation as the base for more full on evening make up. But I’ve been looking to change that for a while since, well, it seems the right thing to do toward the latter end of my twenties. While tinted moisturiser won’t cut I don’t want to look too made up.
I’ve always liked Clarins skincare products but have to admit they weren’t massively on my radar for make up so I have to say I was very pleasantly surprised when I tried this foundation. It feels light and needs only a pea-sized blob to cover the entire face. It’s mineral which feels better on the skin and it blends perfectly.
So the ultimate test: I wore it to lunch with friends keeping the rest of my make up light. Not one of them commented on how great my foundation was. All of them commented on how great my skin looked. I pretended it was plenty of water and good diet.
Final verdictAn excellent foundation for natural-looking but very effective coverage. A little goes a long way and it lasts all day, is a very good base for concealer and blush and feels like a second skin. A real beauty investment.
Missoni led the way for this season with their tribal-inspired prints on the Spring/Summer catwalk at Milan Fashion Week. From details on shoes to statment jewellery to full on head to toe prints, the tribal look is a big look for the summer.
Heels £85.00, flats £55.00, both Office. Tribal scarf print Maxi dress, Warehouse, £85.00;Etched bangle, £9.99, Warehouse; Republic; House of Harlow ring, £65, House of Fraser.
It would be a bit of an understatement to say the Middletons are getting rather a lot of attention at the moment. From how they got their summer glow to the secret of Kate Middleton’s bouncy hair to the exercises Pippa Middleton does to get her posterior so pert, everywhere you look Middleton mania is rife.
But since Pippa’s star turn as maid of honour at the wedding of the year the sister dubbed ’Her Royal Hotness’ has also become a bit of a style icon. While some query her fashionista status we have to profess that we think both the Middletons with their simple, understated and elegant but accessible sartorial choices are a breath of fresh air.
They have their favourite designers – both are very fond of Issa dresses - but rarely will you see the ladies kitted out in head-to-toe designer gear, with both Kate and Pippa prefering to fly the flag for the high street.
The day after the wedding, Pippa wore a blue blazer from Zara (pictured left) which sold out in days and it’s Zara, French Connection and Reiss that feature again and again in the Middleton wardrobes.
Unlike plenty of others in the public eye, Pippa Middleton tends to wear the things she likes more than once. By day she’s rarely seen without her Modalu bag, a bag which the brand have now renamed the ‘Pippa’ while the gorgeous sparkly Jimmy Choo clutch she wore with her green dress for the Royal Wedding reception also made an appearance during a recent night out to the Kensignton Roof Gardens.
We’ve picked out two of Pippa’s daytime and evening looks featuring the items she bought so you too can steal her style.
Pippa pairs her French Connection Talia’s tail dress (£57 and still available in store!) with her £149 Modalu bag and a pair of mid height court wedges. The Maddox shoe in dusk pink is from LK Bennett (£165).
For the evening, Pippa Middleton was recently spotted in this pink silk ruffled dress (£110, French Connection at House of Fraser) and a classic black blazer - we love this one from Reiss (£179) - and the famous Zeta clutch by Jimmy Choo (£265).
What do you think? Is she a style icon in your book or not?
A bright coloured satchel is this summer’s hottest accessory. The ‘Stella’ from Pied a Terre at House of Fraser in canary yellow and the Zara ‘Mummy and Me’ bag are two of my favourites. The ‘Stella’ comes in at £115 while the ’Mummy and Me’ – so called because there’s a baby version (I know, altogether now: ‘Aaaaaw!’) – comes in £49.99.The ’Stella’ has proven such a hit that every unit produced was snapped up within 72 hours when it went on sale at the beginning of April. But, before you think I’m telling you about a bag that’s not available in stores anymore just to be annoying, think again. The bag will be back on sale tomorrow morning at House of Fraser but with only 500 available nationwide, be quick or it’ll be gone for good!
Some of the team at Westfield HQ have been trying to avoid wedding fever others others have embraced it. I, one of avoiders, scoffed at the masks, mugs and tea towels that had been appearing in shops and in the office over the recent weeks.
But over the weekend as the bunting began to fill the streets, the sun shone and I walked past a window filled with a giant picture of Wills and Kate smiling at everyone, it finally got to me and I bought my first piece of Royal Wedding memorabilia.
While there are plenty of questionable items of memorabilia out there, there are also plenty of stylish ways to celebrate a piece of British history.
This commemorative blend from Twinings is available at Waitrose and once finished the tin makes a lovely keepsake. And with tea, one must have biscuits and one sees no reason why not to have them in this rather pretty tin from Marks and Spencer.
If you want a proper piece of history then buy a proper piece of commemorative memorabilia from Royal Worcester, available at Debenhams. Your great great grandchildren will thank you for it.
The Union Jack has had its fashion day – think 90s Ginger Spice – but it’s having a little comeback of sorts. One of the nicest takes on it comes from Ted Baker. The scarf, £85, and the purse, £99.00, offer a subtle nod to British heritage without being overbearing and will last past the whole wedding hype.
We all loved Sophie Ellis Bextor’s summery look at the launch of Naomi Campbell’s pop up shop at The Village this week. The singer-turned-DJ teamed a simple white dress with a statement necklace from Mawi and these amazing shoes from Kurt Geiger taking her look from day to night in an instant thanks to some clever use of accessories.
British heritage brand Biba’s first ever bridal collection have launched in House of Fraser and the dresses are beautiful. Each with their own distinct twist but with the essence of the vintage luxury brand in tact the dresses come in an very affordable £575 – £725.
The seven limited edition dresses range from a classic halterneck to a modern one-shoulder number to a whimsical boho number. Only 100 have been made in each style so make sure you snap these beauties up quickly.
Chloe one-shoulder beaded maxi bridal gown, £695
Biba Alexa bell sleeve maxi bridal gown, £695
Biba Lily sheer and beaded knee length wedding dress, £595
In a nutshell: With just the men’s to go it was the last day for women before they packed up and headed off to Milan for more Autumn/Winter 2011 delights. The shows confirmed this year’s London Fashion Week as one of the best yet with some serious prints from the catwalks of Mary Katrantzou, beautifully tailored dresses from Marios Schwab with touches of colour in the form of leather gloves plus layered nudes on nudes and blues on blues with flashes of bright colour from Aquascutum.
Spotted: Popstars gathered at Ashish including M.I.A., Paloma Faith and Marina Diamonds sporting similar minnie-mouse inspired headgear.
Tweeted:@IamMademoiselle Fave London shows: Marios, Jonathan Saunders, Peter Pilotto, Aquascutum, Mary Katrantzou, GILES. Off to Milan now, will be Tweeting!
@Grazia_Live So pleased designers at #LFW have taken note of the recent weather conditions this country is having. Some GREAT outerwear, Aquascutum
The LFW Dictionary: So (adverb) Use before dates to establish an object’s relevance to the present e.g.That’s so now, so 1977, so yesterday
What it claims to do:
This shimmer powder from new premium brand New Cid glides smoothly over skin to add radiance and shimmer.
Review:
I’ve never been a huge fan of shimmers, finding that often they make me look a little too, well, shimmery. But I don’t like to dismiss things till I’ve tried them and this one had pretty looking packaging so I gave it a go. I can now officially say that I’m a shimmer convert. What I love about this particular compact is that it doesn’t make you sparkle like a 12 year old with their first make up kit and it doesn’t make you look too ‘shiny’. What it does add is a subtle, healthy-looking irradescent glow that complements your usual powder and blush. It’s extremely light so you can dust on lightly for a touch of the aforementioned radiance or layer up for a more noticeable affect. It also doubles up as a highlighter for eyes and lasts for ages so well worth the price tag.
Final verdict An excellent multi-functional product from what is turning out to be a really strong brand. If you’re looking to add one special item to your make up bag, make it this one.
