JEWELLERY - Get The Gossip Girl Look

I'm loving this necklace that has been featured on Blair in an episode of Gossip Girl. It's the St Petersburg Necklace available to buy online for the, not so cheap, sum of $360. Seriously, where do these little rich kids get all their money... I'd like some please. Then I could get me a gorgeous, tulle-covered, jet beaded necklace just like this. Available to buy online.

CELEBRITY - Lady Gaga Wears Orschel-Read

Who would have guessed that the debut collection I went to see at London Fashion Week would attract the attention of Lady Gaga. Trousers from innovative designer Orschel-Read have just been spotted on the fashion icon, who wore his amazing garment for her recent appearance on popular television show ‘Wetten, Dass…?’ (see the video above).

Central St Martin’s graduate Orschel-Read presented his debut collection for Spring/Summer 2010 at On|Off last September to great success. The collection merges couture liberty fabrics with wearable silhouettes and accessible tailoring, marrying innovative leather work, contemporary pagan influences and organic materials. And yes, it's a menswear collection but we all know that's a minor detail that wouldn't stop someone like Gaga.

VIDEO - CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund Finalists

Get up close and personal with the 2009 CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund finalists in an exclusive video, now live on VOGUE.com. The finalists speak candidly about how fashion has shaped their lives, what it means to be a Fashion Fund finalist and what they would do if they won. The winner will be announced in NYC on November 16.

“Growing up in Orange County, we couldn’t afford the cool shoes,” says finalist, George Esquivel of Esquivel Shoes. “We always had the fakes, or not even shoes... it was just hand me downs from cousins or something like that... and I just kind of fell into shoes.”

“If I won, I would call my mom,” says finalist Wayne Lee of Wayne. “She has never really felt that this is what I should do and it would be very good news to let her know that hey, I got there, and this is where I’m gonna go.”

Visit Vogue.com to watch this video and others.

ACCESSORIES - Win a Bag With Kinder Bueno

A new social group of young, fashion-conscious women is emerging from the economic downturn – the accessorista, women who accessorise and recycle their wardrobes with every season.

Recent Kinder Bueno research has revealed that women have become a lot more money conscious when buying for the new season. They are still shopping and buying into current trends, but in a different way – buying smaller treats, accessorising and bargain hunting rather than purchasing whole new outfits for their wardrobes.

Knowing how much girls love their accessories, Kinder Bueno is offering you for 100 days the chance to win your very own must-have designer bag in a daily prize draw. Running until December 2009, participants simply need to log onto www.bueno-designerbag.com to enter the free prize draw and win a little bit of what you fancy!

In a UK survey of 2,000 women, Kinder Bueno also found that:

• Shoes are the most common treat, closely followed by jewellery, handbags and hair accessories.

• Nearly 60% of women polled revealed that they tend to treat themselves when they need a positive boost.

• And this spending is doing wonders for self esteem and positivity too - when asked “how does buying a little bit of what you fancy make you feel” – 60% said it boosted their confidence, enhanced their well being and mood and felt good because they had only spent a small amount of money, yet had a whole new outfit.

• On the whole, accessorista’s are saving £127* – enough to put towards a new Hermes scarf, Jimmy Choo leather clutch or Miu Miu ballet pumps.

SHOES - Blue Inc Zebra Print Pumps

Zebra Print Pumps - Blue Inc - £14.99

Unless you've been living under a rock you've probably heard about the Jimmy Choo collaboration with H&M. Personally I'm not that excited. H&M have already announced a wristband queuing system for shoppers and let's all be honest as to why... they have probably only bought a limited amount of stock, just like with the Matthew Williamson collection. If you bring a designer to the high street to make it more accessible for the masses, I don't think you should limit stock so most people never get a look in.

The reason I mention H&M is because you'll notice the use of zebra print in bags and shoes within the collection. Black and white is always a classy combination and as soon as I saw the zebra print I knew I needed to get something in that pattern. Their zebra pumps are £49.99 and they even have a note to say you should replace the soles before wearing. You what! They may be suede, but I don't want to spend money on repairing them before I start wearing them.

If standing in a queue is not your idea of a good time (it certainly isn't mine) grab yourself some cute zebra pumps from Blue Inc instead. A complete bargain at £14.99. I've partnered up with them to pick out some of my favourite bits and these flats were top of my list. I wore them last night with a sequin dress, leggings and a boyfriend blazer. So glad I didn't wear heels or I'd have been hobbling home from the festivities.

What do you think? It might have been overkill to wear them with my cheetah print scarf from South Africa, but I thought what the heck, let's go with the animal theme.

VIDEO - Stella McCartney's Gap range... for kids?

I just had to share this video from Grazia Daily... can the girls fit into the new GAPKids range by Stella McCartney? There's only one way to find out. The proportions might not be quite right, but there are a few surprises.

FASHION - H! by Henry Holland for Debenhams

Tonight was the press preview of Henry Holland's latest clothing range and this time it's on the high street. The H! by Henry Holland collection will be available at Debenhams from Spring/Summer 2010 and if you're curious as to what to expect then here's a sneak peak...

Prints...


Detail...

Accessories...

My Verdict

There was talk of inspiration from Clueless and I can definitely see that. There are some really covetable items, the brogues, the zip detail heels, the satchels and the ruffle bikinis all stood out. The jewellery was also really cute in a funky and fun yet wearable way. The clothing featured everything from edgy denim and leather look pieces (shorts and a zip up mini skirt) to tartan pyjama style separates, printed dresses, body suits and of course the occasional slogan T-shirt.

The whole range is perfect for colour-blocking and pattern mis-matching and I can see it on a lot of younger girls come summer. Some people may have wanted it to be more like his House of Holland designer range but I think it's great that this collection stands alone and would argue that there's loads of Henry's personality in there through the use of bold patterns and colours. It's also at a price that us mere mortals can afford which is always nice.

Henry Holland

You'll probably be wondering if Henry was holed up in a corner all night with his A-list friends? The answer is not at all. He's got to be the most approachable fashion designer, and all-round nice guy I've ever come across. Not only was he posing for photos, he was taking them on the funky disposable H! by Henry Holland cameras too. He's officially my new favourite and he seems as excited as everyone else about the new range - he said he can't wait for it to finally hit stores and to find out what everyone thinks.

On the menu...

Canapes included crab filled cones, asparagus baskets, stacks of beetroot, mini lemon meringue pies, and for drinks... pretty pink cocktails and white wine a plenty.

Keep your eyes peeled for more on Henry's new collection in February or head to the Debenhams blog for the latest news.

EVENT - Jacqueline Groag at FTM

Jacqueline Groag was probably the most influential textile designer in Britain in the post WWII era and the FTM is pleased to be showcasing a small selection of her work from 23 October until February 2010 and entrance is free.

Originally Czech, Groag studied textile and pattern design in Austria and during the late twenties and early thirties designed textiles for the Wiener Werkstatte in Vienna. However, she and her husband were forced to flee to London in 1939 by the political situation in Europe. This didn’t stop her work and throughout the forties she was the leading designer of textiles in Britain and much of the contemporary style of the textiles and wallpapers shown at the 1951 Festival of Britain were heavily indebted to her influential designs of the previous decade.

Her work and influence included large corporations and exclusive couturiers but was familiar to the general public through stores and companies such as John Lewis, Liberty of London, David Whitehead, Edinburgh Weavers, Sandersons, Warerite and Formica.

Jacqueline Groag died in London in 1986 at the age of 83 and this small but insightful display provides a glimpse into the work of someone who was incredibly influential in shaping post-war design and is accompanied by a book Jacqueline Groag, Textile & Pattern Design; Wiener Werkstatte to American Modern.

There will also be a booking signing by the authors on Thursday 29th October.

Talk with the authors
Authors of the book, Geoffrey Rayner, Richard Chamberlain, and Annamarie Stapleton will be discussing the life and work of this talented and influential designer, the historical context in which she worked and the milieu of modern design of the era.
Date: Saturday 5th December / 2 - 4pm
Price: £10

Images reproduced from ‘Jacqueline Groag’ published by ACC Publishing Group

TIPS - Advice From Celeb Stylist Kirsty Drury

Celebrity stylist Kirsty Drury has joined forces with Wonderbra to share her top tips for making Kylie, Rachel Stevens and Cat Deeley look their best for the party season. Don't forget to enter the Wonderbra competition to win a free bra and tickets to the Ultimate Strapless Party too.

Warehouse Christmas Collection

On buying the ultimate party dress...

• If you’re splashing the cash on your ultimate party dress you want to be able to wear it again and again. Go for an exquisitely cut dress that accentuates your body’s curves in a luxe fabric.

• It doesn’t want to be a glitzy ‘in your face’ dress, that will date after one season, as you’re going to vamp it up from party to party with on trend accessories.

• You can find relatively cheap and ‘of the moment’ jewellery, bags, tights, belts, gloves on the Great British high street that will update this dress from season to season, keeping it bang on trend and keeping the cash in your purse for more fun nights out..

Strapless Digital Print Dress £38.00

Making the most of your strapless outfits...

• Make the most of your strapless dress by getting your hands on Wonderbra’s Ultimate Strapless bra. It really is the ultimate party accessory. The new hand shaped structure means you get a great cleavage and it won’t slide down, so you can keep dancing all night.

• Layer up an assortment of glam necklaces in the same colour palette as your dress – chunky sparkly beads, ethnic metal beads, chains, diamantes, long strands of stones. Raid your jewellery box and pile them on. More is definitely more with this look.

• Oversized chandelier earrings that graze bare shoulders are sooooo sexy and look great with short hair. Long hair? A gorgeous updo is essential.

• If you’re a minimal kind of girl when it comes to jewellery then let your dress do the talking and give a nod to the party season by carrying an oversized jewelled clutch

Warehouse Christmas Collection

Ways to update last year’s dress...

• If it’s a mini dress that you’re reworking go warrior princess with OTK (over the knee) fantasy boots worn with same colour tights. Trust me, these are essential, as you really don’t want to rock that Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman look.

• If your dress is short why not start the night wearing an oversized sharp-shouldered suit jacket with it? Haven’t got one yet? Shame on you! Get yourself down to a charity store quick speed and pick up a man’s double breasted tuxedo on the cheap. The contrast of a man’s suit jacket with a saucy little slip of a dress underneath is too sexy for words.

• If you’re wanting to revive a solid coloured strapless dress add four diamante chain straps to each side of the bodice et voila you’ve got a very now Art Deco style strappy dress.

• Buy a couple of metres of velvet ribbon two-three inches wide in the same colour as your dress. Make an oversized bow and sew (or get a dressmaker to) the ends onto the bodice of your dress and you have a brand new one shoulder dress.

• If you wore that dress last year with bare legs then this year go for solid opaque tights finished off with a sexy on trend ankle boot. So cool, so modern, so now.

Now you’re party ready, grab your bag and head out of the door! For more style advice visit www.ultimatestrapless.co.uk

FASHION - Press preview at Warehouse

I popped along to have a proper look at the Warehouse Christmas collection last week and get excited girls because it's full to brimming with embellishment and sparkle with a toughened up edge. There are several long months of winter before you even have to contemplate floaty ruffles and fairytale frocks, so until then go all out embellished! The range of mini dresses, bold shouldered shifts, sparkle jackets and everything else your winter wardrobe needs, is coming soon with a few pieces already available.

Studding has been hugely popular this season and nothing proves this more than Warehouse's studded Tuxedo jacket. The press have been all over it like a rash and I've gotta say after seeing it in the flesh, I can see why. The craftsmanship is really something. Not sure I could pull off the look myself, If you like the look but need something a bit more practical, then try the studded lapel version. The studded gloves were also a definite winner.

Another detail I was loving was the chain overlay on this fab clutch bag. Not bad at £35...