Oscar Night... the Good the BAD and the UGLY

If I am honest I found this years Oscar dresses a little underwhelming, It infuriates me that on the biggest night in Hollywood and with so many well paid stylists the other side of the pond that some of the Actresses still get it so wrong!

This year I have decided to discuss under 3 categories: Girl crush gorgeousness, When bad hair happens to Great Gowns and Sack the Stylist.  So here goes....

Girl Crush Gorgeousness:

Oh Gwen...
She looks fabulous in this Tom Ford dress and cape combo, the cut of the dress flatters her straight frame and the cape gives the look added glamour.  It may be simple but you have to admit it is very effective and a great matching of celeb to dress!

I am not usually a fan of Angelina, in fact I usually find her fashion Dull.  But this Atelier Versace dress has VA VA voom with its sexy slit and neckline, I also think the heavy velvet of the dress is giving Angelina more curves and making her look remarkably healthy as apposed to her usual emaciated look!  This dress gets my thumbs up.

Stacy Keibler looks like one of the OSCARS in this Marchesa gown, the draping and the fabric are stunning and it fit's her like a glove..  George may not have got an actual Oscar but his girlfriend got my vote for best dressed!

I know that a lot of people have been unsure of Louise Roe's dress choice, but I am in camp LOVE IT!!! This Black Halo dress is hugging her in all the right places and the colour is bang on trend, It would perhaps have worked better on a more mature lady but i pat her on the back for taking the risk.

LOVE LOVE LOVE this Zac Posen dress and blazer combo on Glenn Close...  no more word required!

When Bad Hair happens to Great Gowns:

Star of The Artist, Berenice Bejo was wearing a beautiful Elie Saab dress, but I felt that the dress was let down by her lack of make-up of groomed hair.  The paleness of this dress needed her flame red hair to act as a contrast but as it is this outfit falls into the Blah category! 

Next up was Giuliana Rancic, who spoilt the femininity of this  gorgeous Ton Ward gown  with her severe hairstyle. 

I think Kelly Osbourne is great and she usually gets it right with her dress choice and this Badgley Mischka dress is stunning on her.... BUT her hair I think looks shocking!

So on to the Sack the Stylist category:

Sandra Bullock what were you thinking..  This Marchesa dress makes her hips look big and her bust saggy...  Do I need to say anymore?

Penelope Cruz is usually uber Sexy, but this year I think she put on her mothers Giorgio Armani dress rather than her own...  This dress does not show off her fantastic figure and the colour of it against her skin tone adds to the granny effect!

Last year she was pregnant and looked super stylish and sexy this year she looks... average!  This Christian Dior dress does not excite or flatter and as such is really rather boring to look at!

Shailene Woodley said that she fell in love with this Valentino Haute Couture gown because it was 'simple and she could breath in it', I love her honesty but I think I would rather be in agony and looking hot than wearing this gown...  It makes her boobs look saggy and her waist look lumpy!  Who let her leave the house in this?

Erdemtastic..

Some more of my favourite looks from London Fashion Week AW12.

I always find Erdem's collections intriguing, I find myself coveting looks that I would never usually be inspired by.  Last season he had me feeling dreamy and girly and actually wanting to dress in floaty feminine water colour prints (a look that if you know me, is the polar opposite of my day to day style).  But this Autumn Winter collection was much more edgy and sexy with LATEX... yes I said latex being combined with lace and prints to take traditional fabrics and giving them a modern day woman twist..

This dress has such vibrancy that it was instantly a standout for me.  The choice of colour as a contrast to the lace and latex gave it sass and instant sexy-ness without revealing too much flesh!

This dress to me screamed KATE MIDDLETON.....  WEAR me!  It would look fab on her for any of her many formal events but  is also one of those dresses that us non royal women can covert for that perfect dinner out or wedding guest outfit!

This last look that I wanted to share with you is probably the best example of why I love Erdem and his use of prints.  Here a head to toe floral print looks, sleek, sexy and OH so wearable...  Looking at this outfit I want to be a size smaller with less of a bust so that I can rock this outfit for meetings with a blazer, or for casual with a cute cashmere jumper on top (with just the collar peeking out of the neckline).

Mulberry's show made me want to skip summer and snuggle up in their collection.

So the whirlwind that is London Fashion week is coming to a close and I thought I would share with you over the next few days some of the pieces and shows that I just can't get out of my head!

I am a massive fan of Mulberry and find myself coveting most of the collection time and time again and this season is no different.  The textures and layering looked effortlessly thrown together, although some of the layers are a little on the chancy side for a curvy girl like myself I still found myself drawn to the Aztec Zig Zags and Inuit style fur layering.  But the stand out pieces were the shocks of tangerine that lifted the chancy furs and flashes of metallic that took those cosy winter looks into something much more luxurious.

The contrast of textures in this look made it a real stand out...

The vibrancy of this dress just sings and when contrasted with the furs you can seeing it being a big feature in many an editorial spread...

This is the look that is most transferable to my lifestyle and one that I will be recreating with my current AW clothes as it looks so effortless.

Also keep your eyes peeled for the new Del Ray bag which is out in May.. It looks rather special...

valentines treat's for guys and gals

If you and your loved one like the alternative Valentines treats then check these out:

For him:
Ashley Marc Hovelle 'Big Love' T-shirt £35 a great brand and a fab way to introduce your guy to some super stylish T-shirt, his SS12 collection is really great.

For her:

Say it with flowers, a simple bunch or a single rose will do... But if your as talented as the lovely Joe Massie you could make her, her very own flower dress (made with 1725 flowers, all from ASDA's valentine floral collection)!!

I saw first hand the craft that went into this dress (when styling it for this ASDA shoot) so perhaps the night before may be leaving it a little late to get started.  But you can always buy a bunch and she will be just as happy!

Or if that romantic rose dress rang a few bells with you then check out this Rose printed dress:

This Ted Baker dress is £149, if you buy this girlfriend she will be leaping with JOY!!

Happy Valentines Day. x

Everyone loves the weekend, it's only Tuesday and i am missing the snow!

I loved the snow this weekend, because it was the perfect finish to a fabulous weekend!

The Boyf and I don't often get to spend quality time together because of work or social commitments (despite living together).  So this weekend with no birthdays, hen weekends, stag's or weddings in the diary we got to just hangout... which was great!

We ate sushi off my new charity shop sushi plates...

Attempted to make some pictures for the bedroom....  This was later taken to the skip as the boyf thought it was rubbish (personally I thought it was abstract and lovely, what are your thoughts?)

Became a domestic goddess in the kitchen making a quiche and Ottolenghi inspired vegetables...  (pastry from scratch!!  pat on the back for me).

Then came the snow and a romantic walk through St James' and Green Park..

We built our first snowman in St James' called Melissa!?!..

We decided Melissa was such a rubbish attempt that the boyf should kick it down so as not to embarrass ourselves.

But the perfectionist in me had to give the snowman building another attempt so we created Snowy and his dog Storm!

Storm's close-up (he really knows his angles)

Snowy, modelling the latest Philip Treacy and giving a nod to Brad Pitt with his walking stick...

I now can't wait for my girly weekend next weekend...  there will be a vintage hen do, cocktails and a champagne brunch whilst learning how to make couture fascinators!!!