Party Girls and TuTu's...

So yesterday I hosted a birthday party for Ella Bella. She was 2 and totally unaware that people were there to celebrate with her and give her gifts and make a fuss of her….so why did I bother putting myself through it??

I baked a cake. Very nice even if I do say so, I cooked for close on 30 people, my husband did help with the cooking so I can't claim full ownership of that part , I even cleaned my house to the immaculate state that it so rarely is, and for what? Was the party really for Ella or was it to make me feel better that as a working mother I can host a child’s party, not get stressed about the mess (which there was a lot of ) and be prepared for the chaos that ultimately will ensue.

If I’m honest I think I really did do it for Ella and Seth. They had a fabulous time with all their friends and family…there were a few bust ups over toys but surely it would have been odd were that not the case…especially when Seth and his friend Lily took Ella’s new beauty set and did each others hair and were determined not to part with the hair dryer and lipstick for anything!! Nothing for  concern  unlike  the day when Ella and I were both wearing dresses and Seth asked to why he wasn't wearing one!!!

As the birthday girl, Ella exceeded herself by looking cuter than ever in the most fabulous tutu which I picked up at a market when we in Australia and as she flooted and scooted her way through the day I was left asking myself as I wiped the fresh cream from my new silk blouse which is now fit only for the rag box will I do it again for Seth’s birthday?

Answer…..Ask me again in April!!…

Now though I’m back into work mode trying to get flights sorted and appointments made for the buying season which will be upon us in no time….the only decisions there are which shows do I go to this year? I would love, love, love to do the New York show but can I really justify it? …. I’ll let you know later in the week when decisions have been made and flights have been booked!

　

Summer in Winter....

Today I’m in the middle of two distinct seasons. On the one hand I am picking out and wrapping Christmas gifts on behalf of the husbands of those lovely ladies who shop in my store and on the other I am preparing for deliveries on my spring summer stock whose imminent arrival is getting me excited and stressed. Excited because I think I have absolutely excelled myself ( even if I do say so ) and cant wait for some of my new labels to arrive…Olivia Rubin being the one I am most excited about, and stressed because where am I going to put it?? It’s not even winter yet!

The winter has hardly arrived and Christmas is just around the corner and next week I am expecting my first spring delivery….Fantastic!!!

Now, as I’ve said before I am most definitely a winter girl. With my blue fluorescent skin its really my only option, and am so looking forward to getting back to freezing conditions. I have shearling coats and on trend capes, sheepskin boots and chunky knits which as yet haven’t really been appropriate for the mild weather. Of course I’ve been wearing them and feeling like I was about to spontaneously combust…if it means no false tan I’m all for as many layers as possible! So as other people have continued to wear one layer I’ve been living in a constant state of anticipation for the arrival of snow and wearing 3 layers- at least!

So what is the outlook. Is winter ever going to arrive?

Arrive it will, sooner or later, and when it does I’ll be totally prepared….I even have a sleigh for the kids… and yes perhaps I was a little ahead of myself there but they were all sold out last year and I wasn’t going to miss out again…just like the coats and boots, there was no way I wasn’t going to be prepared …after all, outerwear has been the must have item of the season!

So next week when you arrive into my store, alongside the chunky knits and sheepskin boots will be a sunny little section dedicated to spring/summer 2012 and if last year’s anything to go by it will have sold out before the end of December!! Fashion can be so fickle!!

Some colours don't suit you mummy....

I suppose in many ways I deserved it but I still cant believe she did it! A brand new Mac lipstick and Ella ( my 2yr old ) decided that the colour just was no good for mummy and that it suited her much better instead….every single bit of the lipstick over very part of her face!    Multiple layers…it took me 4 facecloths and 2 towels to get her clean as she refused to use the cloth again when she saw it covered in lipstick "dirty mummy"  she said!!    So, that was Saturday. On Sunday I caught her perched on the table like a pixie painting her toes..(literally) with a relatively new and thankfully soft pink varnish. Painting her toes so well she had stuck them all together and was moving onto her brothers hands when I caught her!

Now, I do not as a rule leave make-up lying around for her to get at but she decided to have a look in mummy’s new Owen Barry handbag…it could have been the animal print which enticed her, one way or another I have very little make-up in my make-up bag at work today and I have to count myself lucky she painted herself and not my new bag I suppose.
At least her colour choices matched her outfit!

So, after an eventful weekend at home I came in this morning in Christmas mode and have my Christmas window done and not looking too bad with a fabulous Inwear shearling coat centre stage.…..Only 33 days to go until the big day and I now have a new lipstick on my wish list to Santa! 
　

....Sharp, modern stylish and flawless....i wonder is it hard to be that perfect?

It just wouldn’t be a Monday morning if I didn’t have something to say about X Factor…not that I am the greatest fan of the show a but what a Fash-off this week!!    I LOVED Kelly Rowland’s “hats off” to the man suit!    LOVED LOVED LOVED.    She looked sharp, modern, stylish and flawless…I wonder is it hard to be that perfect?    Stella Mc Cartney.. Job well done. There’s another item onto my endless wish list.!! And endless it is definitely getting!

Tulisa as usual was also gorgeous but sometimes a dabble into the unexpected is worth the gamble. Back in a dress on Sunday night for Kelly and its pretty obvious that if she put a bin bag on she’d still look hot!

So back onto wish lists and how  I have discovered what it is to be a working mother in the run up to Christmas.  Seth keeps dropping new things into his Christmas wish list and at only 3 and a half doesn’t get that the Santa list is done and dusted… I have already missed 3 items which he’s requested…not just requested once but for 2 weeks now if anyone asks what he’s getting for Christmas a Golden Robot has been the answer! Where do I even look for a golden robot and if I don’t get it…will a red one do?? Help anyone?

My wish list on the other hand is much more achievable ( hubbi, hope you’re reading this! ) I don’t want much really but there is a fab pair of new Jimmy Choo cruise collection wedges,  and with us getting the fab new Olivia Rubin collection in store in the New Year I know they will look amazing with at least  2 of the dresses…. That’s pretty good value I think, 2 dresses only needing one pair of shoes! ( yes I know sometimes I am completely warped in what is acceptable and what’s not ) but life’s short and some style is even shorter so we have to grab the moment when we can!!

So Andrew darling…if you’re reading this.. You might want to pre-order the Choos now, page 6!

　

November Rain

Today I just want it to stop raining…its November and technically suede boots should be fine in November . Not in rainy Belfast it seems!!   I’m so disappointed because I opened Elle magazine and spied the fab emu hi top boots which I currently have in stock. Surely a big thumbs up by the fact that they were featured as a cosy winter warmer, but when is the weather ever going to get properly cold and not wet so that we can safely wear our sheepskin boots?? Admittedly if I wasn’t so lazy and sprayed them with protector it would stop them from getting wet stains, but who really remembers to do that??? Anyway, I sold a pair today…thank you Elle, and I promptly sent my customer to get a protector spray so that she can wear her fabulous boots regardless of weather.

I’m actually totally undecided by the whole weather scenario, I’m definitely a winter girl at heart. With my see through skin I was destined to only ever have a tan out of a bottle so the winter suits me perfectly. Cosy knits, boots and coats...love it!   However after a family holiday to Australia earlier this year ( yes we did take 2 toddlers under 3 on a trip round oz ) I just wanted to come home, pack my bags and move to the warmer climes.

But the question is, if we did move would I miss the crisp cold weather which we do occasionally get in between the rainy days or could I totally adapt my wardrobe to accommodate the sunshine??

At the minute, looking outside at rain drenched Belfast I actually think I’ll just stay were I am, …..what would I do with my boot and coat collection in Australia??

Goodbye MTV

As Belfast says Goodbye to The Mtv EMA’s we are left only with the memories of what a party Belfast can put on. It was an amazing privilege for Belfast to be host to such a prestigious event but for me the fashion on the night was what made me get comfy with the remote in one hand and a glass of something sparkly in the other, I had to try to spot some of the oufits I had provided  for the night...unfortunately that was as close to the action as I was getting!

I am a huge Gaga fan and I love everything about her but as much as I love her music I love her costumes more…she truly has a style all of her own and this is what helps makes her such an amazing artist, her originality and her style are portrayed in her music and in her as a person.

So not one to disappoint, Lady Gaga not only won 4 awards but her creative streak was on display from the outset.. anything less would have been a huge disappointment . Thankfully no meat made dresses last night, her costumes she said, were all made from paper by famous designer Paco Rabanne so environmentally friendly at least ! Her outfits varied from weird to weirder but in true Gaga style looked fantastic…not practical for a trip to the supermarket never mind a usual Sunday night out in Belfast but truly inspiring all the same.

As fab as she looked though I have to say, my fave of the night was our tiny little host Selena Gomez in her cream backless Marchesa dress at the start of the night…..absolutely stunning and I think if I win the lottery this week I might get one, or maybe two as it would be really hot in black too!

So, as Belfast partied the night away with the stars the rest of us had to be content watching from the comfort of our armchairs, the music and the fashion from the night will remain in our minds as  part of the best night Belfast has ever seen, but hopefully not the last….we know how to put on a party and if the MTV Ema’s want to return then we will welcome them with open arms…although next time.. I want a ticket!!

Life without text...

Like a zillion other people I have had a mobile phone for as long as I can remember…or maybe not quite as long as I can remember but certainly at least 10 years,  and like jeans you have to try a few until you find the perfect fit and for me it wsa the iphone.  Just in receipt of my newest update in August my phone and i we were getting on famously.  Until my beautiful son yesterday dropped it down the loo!!   As fab as it is when it works…it hasn’t taken much to stop it working as it was only in the loo for a fraction of a second!!!

I can’t phone people, I can’t text, and because I was off work yesterday I couldn’t even email or facebook people.  I felt like the world was moving on without me.

I am always telling my husband    I could survive without  it but,  apparently I cant!! My handbag feels empty without it and to top it off…I didn’t have it insured. 

So, the question from here is…do I buy another iphone?  Truthfully I don’t know…  I’d far rather have the beautiful emu leather jacket which hangs in my shop and winks at me every morning begging me to buy it and make it loved. But if I don’t buy the phone and go for the jacket instead. How do I keep in touch with people, my phone I use for email, talking, texting, social networking….when did our lives become so reliant on one tiny item?

To be honest I think I'll have to replace the phone and I’ll have to do it before the weekend, with the MTV EMA's on in Belfast this weekend I’m afraid I’ll miss something if I don’t have a phone….and despite the fact nobody felt the urge to give me tickets for the awards I am still so excited about them…I can't wait to see the style of the rich and famous right here on our doorstep, but equally I can’t wait to see wait the ladies and gents of Belfast will be wearing…will they do us proud?? I know a few people certainly will because I dressed them and they looked amazing and I’ve given them our special Cocorose folding pumps for the end of the night when they’ve had their toes crammed into their designer heels for far too long.

So, as much as it grieves me, I’m off to order my new phone…. Although I think I’ll just try on this leather jacket too… it would clash perfectly with any of the new Mary Katrantzou collection she has designed for Topshop which I have to get my hands on.  Thankfully though its not released until February so that gives me time to get over the shock of the price of a new phone!!!