Shoe Box Thursday

Here we are for another round of shoe box Thursday and the progression in my obsession with beautiful shoes!!!
An amazing designer Michael Lewis is bringing out some of the most awesome shoes in fantastic geometric designs with unique design detailing.
He began his footwear career in Paris, a designer mecca for inspiration and culture, this was just 15 years after graduating from our own arts college Central St Martins!!
He started off with Jean-Charles De Castelbajac, a funky clothing designer and went on to work with a hero of design Marc Jacobs with Louis Vuitton.
After working with the likes of Gucci and Burberry, most recently he has been a creative consultant for Kurt Geiger; one of my personal faves!!
Now living in London he carries on consulting with major British brands, but take a look for yourself at some of this mans stunning designs.....






For more of the same loveliness take a look at the website,
www.michaellewislondon.com

Hens In The City

Planning a hennight has become a major part of the wedding planning process. Gone are the days when dinner and dancing was enough, now its all bigger, louder and drunker!!!

So planning a tasteful yet fun Hennight is essential to any bride's rosta, and if she is lucky enough she has a planner or maid of honour to do this for her. My bride opted for a spa weekend, with dinner and dancing and wanted a tasteful yet girlie and fun theme. She loves to dress up, has a passion for shoes and designers, along with a taste for cocktails.
So I thought the perfect theme would be Sex In The City,

all the hens glammed up to the nines, in there very best party shoes, with Manhattans at the ready (which they will learn to mix at their cocktail mixing lessons & yes they can drink what they make!!)
Take a look at the mood board I put together for her below,




Cambridge is a lovely town with beautiful architecture and some lovely hotels, and this was a central location, which was a little different to the usual london night out.
The girls will be spending the weekend soaking up the nightlife and enjoying the spa during the day, and a cocktail making lesson to start the weekend off.
It's important the hen night reflects the bride's personality, and all her very best friends are there to help her see out her last single days. It is also the hen's job to at least try and make sure the bride remembers her special night the day after!!!

Mad Monday

I thought this might brighten every one's day, the craziest fashion trends from the catwalk. They are wacky and strange so sit back and take a break for 5 min's and revel in Mad Monday.
Some of these designers really do take things to the edge, so which of these trends would you wear on a first date or a night out with the girls!!???!!
Here is the count down to the maddest trend of the day...
10

9

8


7

6

5

4

3

2

1


I have to say that beards and whiskers are about the weirdest fashion style I have seen to date. Possibly not a trend I will be following, not only as it would be neigh impossible,, but women have enough hair to upkeep without adding to it!!!!
What will they think of next?

Colour me beautiful???

For hundreds of years the stereotypical bride has been donned in white, vast amounts of virginal white everywhere!!!!
But in this day and age where virginal brides are quite often a sentiment of the past, do we still proceed with angelic white trimmed brides gliding down the aisle?
There are so many other options out there, designers around the world now create their masterpieces in every colour of the rainbow!!!
So should we then paint our dream brides in a different colour, any colour you like.
Allow the bride to wear her true colours i.e. not a virginal angelic maiden, but a beautiful women in love.
What colour would you wear?
Something to make your eyes pop, or maybe just your fave colour that makes you feel good, I like the idea of siren red to get the grooms pulse racing.
Toi Couture

Dita Von Tesse

Edgardo Bonilla

Ian Stuart

Unknown designer

Vera Wang

Whatever the colour, I love the idea of vibrant wedding dresses strutting their stuff down the runway, sorry, I mean aisle of course!!!!

Shoe Box Thursday

It's Thursday and today I have decided is officially shoe box Thursday (woke up with a need for beautiful shoes in my life, I think it’s a sickness)!
I am going to show you some stunning shoes by a wonderful designer I came across today. Aruna Seth, started out in her family run shoe company but now is famous in her own right. Her designs are astonishing, using swarovski crystals, delicate trims and luxurious materials. Throughout 2010 she has been splashed all over the media in the likes of Hello, OK & Tatler with the likes of Goldie Hawn, Pixie Lott and Princess Olga Romanov in her fan base. There are even waiting lists on some of her more popular designs. To purchase her elongating heels you need to go onto her website or you can browse through her various stockists world wide. But for a VIP touch you can even book a personal appointment at her London or Moscow showroom!!!
Just take a look at just a few of her designs below;

£675

£465

£455

Pending waiting list £499

The words, "I Want Them" keep ringing in my ears whenever I see these.
For more of the same take a look at her website, if you think your bank balance can take it!
http://www.arunaseth.com/
Happy Shoe Box Thursday!!!!!!!

Mid Week Blues....

Well it's that time in the middle of the week, when you’re neither nearing the end nor starting at the beginning. The weekend still feels far away yet I feel it has already been a very long week. Any one else feel like that sometimes?
So, enough with my moaning I thought I would cheer myself up and share it with you.
I am going on holiday soon, so I am very much looking forward to going away with Mr. Right and buying lots of new "holiday" clothes, which Mr.Right then says I don't need, oh how little he understands about me!!!!
And of course the all important relaxing by the pool in the sun!
However what with all my holiday prep & then designing hennight invitations for a client, my mind wandered to honeymoons, and the most magical holiday you could ever take.
My parents just got back from Barbados and I was there a few years ago, it really is such a stunning island. Laid back, carefree, with wonderful people, but more importantly amazing luxurious hotels!!!!
One of my favorites is the The House, it is literally “a house” set in the most idyllic setting. Guests have their very own member of staff to attend to there every whim, creating a truly pampered stay.
Barbados is such an amazing island with so much to do, last time I was there I was swimming with turtles (surprisingly scary and large, but awesome experience) and exploring the beaches on horseback.
Take a look at these pici's for a bit of mid week transportation to a better place than your desk!!!!!!

The House is also perfect for destination weddings, with an exclusive 32 suites for the wedding party!!
Follow the link for more info.....http://www.thehousebarbados.com/
Mid week occasionally gets me down & I often get a little bit of the mid week blues, however this little day dream has kept me entertained.
So I have decided to make this a weekly occurrence, Horrah!!!
Tune in this time next week for the next instalment on beautiful, luxurious getaway & daydreaming ideas.

WWW.PWRMANAGEMENT.CO.UK

Hey guys my new website is up and running, created by Mr. Right who I am eternally grateful to for sorting all my IT weakness' out!!!
follow the link and take a look.....
www.pwrmanagement.co.uk

Vintage tea party

I love all things vintage, whether it be some hand made lace gloves that have been passed down to me, or some 1930's shoes I have picked up in a charity shop.
There is something magical about an object that has lived through so many era's and survived it's travels through time in a beautiful condition, and stayed on trend!
One of my brides got engaged in America, Miami, and so she wanted to incorporate this into her wedding theme, just a slight American twang to remind her of that romantic moment.
So I proposed she has a wedding shower, although not a terribly English tradition, in America it is often done 1-2 months before the wedding.
The theme we chose was vintage, and I thought a tea party would be fun and unusual next to the normal trend of hen nights.
To help her get in the mood, and present the theme, I put together this vintage tea party inspiration board.
My fave idea is the egg cup candles. Even cuter than tea cup candles and sooo easy to make!!!
A hand made touch can round off a vintage feel, and in the meantime you learn new skills! Like jam jar tea light holders, home made cup cakes, or hand picked garden flowers in vintage feel cups or vases.
Casual, elegance is the key to this type of theme, I guess that's where the phrase shabby chic came from!!!

Brides left out in the cold..

It seems to me that the bridal boutiques and websites are full of beautiful wedding dresses, they are stunning and unique, and plentiful!!!!
I don't think I have ever heard of a bride muttering how there just aren't enough dress options out there, however nearly all the dresses are styled without sleeves, or very little of them. Now I realise that nothing about a bridal dress is practical,a practical wedding dress would be a weird concoction of higher hems, no trains, breathing room, not in white (as we all no it attracts dirt like a magnet)!!! and possibly a lot less hand stitching, embroidery, bling, antique lace etc.
What I want to point out is that if you have a wedding in the cold, which lets face it, in the UK could be any stage of the year!!! you are literally left out in the cold,without a huge amount of choice.
So i assume there are allot of cold brides out there, rubbing the goose pimples off there arms, and praying they don't catch a cold for the honeymoon.
I'm sure there are positive sides to this, such as if your feet are numb, they wont hurt when your in rarely worn shoes all day, but I cant think of any more than that.
Now I am searching for something for a March bride and the pickings are slim, especially if you want to try it on, god forbid!
However with a little searching I found a few on the magical world wide web.
Now if you want just a touch of arm coverage perhaps the below option would be something to consider.


This is by Davids Bridal, $29
However wraps are easy to come by, so how about something with sleeves?


This is by The bridal wear company, £69.99
More of a statement with the lovely frill detailing, but it isn't going to keep you warm now is it.
Not like this item below, this would definitely keep you warm!!!


This is by Honey suckle furs £360
Although I do think this takes warming up a little too far, and ruins the lines of your dress, and of course even the visibility of your dress under a full length cloak!!! Not to mention the hood versus hair situation!
Perhaps what I'm looking for is this beautiful design below,


This is by Davids Bridal again for $129
However as lovely as this is, and it would suit a vintage wedding perfectly, it still wont keep the draft from my bride. Merely hide the goose pimples from the naked eye and the all important photographer.
This would not however keep her from sneezing her way through the honeymoon, should she catch cold!
Below is a beautiful option and by a lovely designer who creates the most stunning dresses,


This is by Sophia Tolli $88
The elegant lines and the sweet collar detail makes this bolero stand out, the longer sleeve will keep the chill out, and still allow the dress centre stage to the show.
Something like this i think is a perfect addition to an English bridal outfit, easily taken off, no distortion to the dress, and shields the bride from a little of the cold.
Of course if you are having an inside wedding none of this will matter to you, but when you have beautiful grounds for photo opportunities, or are travelling form A to B, it might be worth thinking about.
Of course the ideal situation would be for global warming to hurry up and turn the UK into a Mediterranean paradise, I'm sure we wont reeeeally miss the icebergs? right?

For those who are not a size zero....

For those of us who are not a size zero, sometimes it can be very difficult to flick through the glossy magazines looking at tiny, tiny girls wearing the high fashion we dream of.
Somehow it always looks better on the thin, and as soon as we try on the same outfit, it certainly doesn’t look how we imagined.
It is a huge problem in the fashion world and designers have walked out when they have been asked to use “plus” size models.
The word “plus” size annoys me, is a size 12-14 a “plus” size?

When Prada used Lara Stone as there new model she was, (shock, horror, and gasp) a size 8! they were given critical acclaim for stepping away from the zero ethics. Really! For a size 8!
I then fell across an article that went out in the January issue of V magazine 2010.
Plus size models posing in a sexy and alluring photo shoot, in fashion labels such as Prada and Gucci!!!
It was a joy to see these beautiful women and I do mean women rather than girls, strutting their stuff in a glossy mag.
Women out there, who need more room for their thighs than skinny jeans the size of bamboo poles allow, rejoice! Revel in your curvaceous body!
For these images prove there are confidant and stunning curvy women, staring out of the magazine covers at us for a change.

I do love fashion and all the glossy mags, and I love to pour over the stunning shoots that promote the size zero problem. I also know that I am naive to wish for a more size aware fashion industry.
But sometimes it is nice to dream.........
Follow this link for more of the photo shoot, http://models.com/v-magazine/v-size-2.html
Follow this link for an article with the daily mail on the topic http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1240720/Curves-ahead-The-plus-size-models-prove-fashion-finally-ready-embrace-larger-women.html

Wish I had found this when the issue was released in Jan!!!!