Alesha Dixon wears new collection to Pride of Britain Awards

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The Autumn/Winter Shift Dress- Get the French Chic Look

The shift dress has a simple straight silhouette which suits the more boyish frame or the apple shaped women who carry most of their weight around their waist. 

French women go for a quality capsule wardrobe and so make sure most items will mix and match. The shift dress  is a great staple piece because of its versatility –it can be worn on its own or over a jumper, blouse and tee shirt which can be in a tonal colour or a more contrasting colour for the more fashionable colour blocking trend.  The camel fitted shift dress from Elegance is a blend of 60% new wool and 40% angora. Price £249.00. Here worn with a black polo neck top in 100% silk jersey £119 and black leather bag £249.

All from www.elegance.co.uk 

M&S mini beret headband

Give a nod to the French look with the black M&S wool mini beret headband. Price £18 www.marksandspencer.com

Laura Ashley cape

Instead of a cumbersome coat, team with a cape. A cape is a good alternative to a coat for the transitional months, plus its simple tailoring complements the simple shift dress.  This Laura Ashley camel cape has a stylish black trim. Fabric: 75% wool 25% polyester Price £105 www.lauraashley.com  

Then add long leather gloves plus your bangles and bracelets and rings on the outside to give some drama. 

Most shift dresses have high necks so may make the larger bust look boxy.  One solution is to wear a mid length necklace (but not so long that it is dangling over your bust) or scarf to create a v shape and break up the area.

Glamourous Stuff for Spring/Summer 2012

Launched in 2007, the young fashion label 'Glamorous' is as the  name suggests, all about Glamour and takes its inspiration from the catwalks, night clubs and red carpet occasions. Here's a preview of some of their Spring/Summer 2012 collection on today's Spirit Young Fashion catwalk show at Earls Court:

The feminine lace is here for another season, but more grown up in nude colours...

.... along with the colour block..............here given a sophisticated makeover with more muted tones

Sequins are teamed with leather for an edgier look.

These won't be out in the stores until next year, but check out their website www.glamorousuk.com for their autumn/winter 2011 collection.

The Right Dress for Royal Ascot

Going to Royal Ascot ladies?

Then look no further than Jane and Marilyn dresses – they were made for events such as Ascot, where you want to look gorgeous but also need to follow a dress code.

Well OK if you have not been invited in to the Royal Enclosure, then the dress code is not as strict but you never know, a dashing gent in splendid morning attire may rush up to your side and say he needs a partner suitably dressed to escort in to the Royal Enclosure. And where would you be if you were wearing a strapless dress hey? - Definitely not in the Royal Enclosure.

So what is the Royal Enclosure dress code?

No halter necks, strapless gowns or spaghetti straps – dress straps must be at least one inch wide.

No minis, dress length should be to the knee or below

And of course a hat or a substantial head piece which covers the crown of your head.

So let’s look at a few of the Jane and Marilyn dresses

Peacock dress

Royal Ascot is all about being on show, like a peacock.

And in the silk taffeta Peacock dress you won’t be blending in to the background. 

The below the knee swing skirt  with button front fastening and matching wide belt gives a fashionable retro 50’s look with a sophisticated twist in the guise of a wide neckline collar and bracelet length sleeves. 

Fully lined in silk, you only have to decide whether to go for peacock blue or peacock green. 

Of course this dress would look great with a bold feathery head piece. 

Price £845

 

Joan dress

For the warmer sunny days we all hope will appear during Royal Ascot, the Joan dress is ideal.  

 A summer cotton frock again with the retro 50’s swing skirt.

Here the front may be high giving nothing away until you turn around to reveal a low glamorous back.

Go doubly royal at Ascot with the Royal blue print, or opt for the classic black and grey print.

Fully lined in pure silk and priced at £595.

 

Jane dress

In sexy lipstick red, body skimming with a fluted kick panel at the back and cut low at the front, the Jane dress is the most daring for Royal Ascot but still within the dress code with straps wider than one inch

In 100% soft lightweight wool and fully lined in pure silk, the price is £710.

Audrey dress

Stylishly chic is Audrey a simple shift dress in either classic black or bold violet with a cheeky double box pleat at the back. 100% soft lightweight wool and fully lined in pure silk, price £695

Elizabeth dress

Vibrant violet is the only colour for the Elizabeth dress, inspired by the late Ms Taylor’s striking eyes.

Also famous for her Hollywood curves, this pencil dress will help emphasize yours with its plunging neckline, gathering under the bust and fluted hem at the back.

 100% soft lightweight wool and fully lined in pure silk. Price £735.

Sophia dress

They say Italians do it better and the Sophia dress shows us how to be a vamp in black without exposing lots of flesh. 

The matching wide belt cinches in the waist whilst the flared fluted hem at the back emphasizes the curves.

The wide neckline is just asking for a diamond necklace

100% soft lightweight wool and fully lined in pure silk.

Price £740.00

Ava dress

Tailored whilst raising temperatures is the Ava dress in mercury silver grey.  

 The low cut neckline with soft gathering under the bust contrasts well with the sharp collar and tailored pencil silhouette with its box pleats at the back.

The bracelet length sleeves can be worn up or down, I’m thinking up for another sharp edge to the look.

36% silk and 62% cotton keeps the mercury cool. 

Fully lined in pure silk and price £695.

 

Grace dress

Play it cool in the elegant shimmering pearl grey Grace dress with its simple boat neckline, pencil silhouette and matching wide belt. Then make waves with the heavily panelled fluted back that gives a sexy twist to this otherwise demure dress. Also available in classic black. 100% soft lightweight wool and fully lined in pure silk. Price £740.

For more details go to their website www.janeandmarilyn.co.uk

Now to complete your Royal Ascot look, all you have to find is your hat.

There’s a bug on her shoe!!!

In ancient Egypt the Scarab Beetle was considered sacred and symbolised hope and the restoration of life. Also known as dung beetles, they were not only represented in clay and stone but also precious gems as the Egyptians fashioned scarab images in to jewellery and amulets.

Now I don’t know if the bug on Kirk Geiger’s Jitterbug peep toe is a scarab but it clearly is impressive and ready to be worshiped and admired by all shoeaholics.
The bugs are nestled in the centre of bows of classic black, light Egyptian blue or an orangey salmon satin, whilst the golden high heels add to the glamorous feel. Is it no wonder my niece fell head over golden heels in love with them?

Luckily 10 minutes before she’d also fallen in love with a Ted Baker multi coloured strapless pleat printed dress which was crying out for a pair of orange statement shoes.

However true love never runs smoothly and we had many obstacles to face before our happy ending.

The first obstacle was the store didn’t have her size in the shoes!! So began our quest around London to find the right size. Luckily the South Molten St. store was our knight in shining armour.

The second obstacle was the strapless dress wouldn’t stay in place (note for future strapless dresses – get a light weight one). Due to the pleats the dress had some weight and kept pulling down slightly. We tried several strapless bras but although they supported the weight of the dress, the actual style of the dress went against the new cleavage formed by the bra and flattened the bust. So out went the bras and in came lots of sticky tape. (Note: The dress does come with thin straps for those who don’t want to risk the tape alone.)

Now to accessorize – decided on bangles and wanted to bring out the more subdued blue in the dress so as not to fight with the salmon shoes for attention (as thought the bangles would win??) Could we find blue with gold? No, only with silver (remember golden heels). But perseverance prevailed and we found a better alternative with bangles by Club Mood in Debenhams – several slim bangles of blue, pink, green and light brown with gold, - all the colours in the dress yay!!!

No handbag you may ask? Well she already had a small plain navy shoulder bag with a thin gold chain which was perfect for the outfit – great saving and shows you don’t always have to buy the whole outfit.

Going back to our salmon shoes – not a colour that would go with many outfits. Well I think you’d be surprised and to prove it we found another Ted Baker dress in deep purple with a tropical print tie waist which looks great with them.

So after 5 hours of intensive shopping, we came home, changed and transformed in to an Egyptian Goddess (well my niece anyway). And off we went for a night in Covent Garden, a chance to show off the outfit.

Not exactly a great place for high heels (lots of cobbled stones) but to her credit, she didn’t complain too much.
 Well not that I could hear whilst skipping happily ahead in my pink satin flat ballerina shoes from Cocorose.

Modeled by Jane for www.frunkytofunky.com

New designer - Lisa Gibson

Lisa Gibson is so new and fresh as a fashion designer that her first collection was shown in Bournemouth graduate fashion week and more recently at the pop up fashion show held at the prestigious 40WiNKS boutique hotel in Sep 2009. This graduate collection is titled “abstract nature” and is inspired by Lisa’s love of all things nature.

Her appreciation of nature was nurtured whilst growing up in a small village in Staffordshire where she was surrounded by luscious green rolling hillsides. Art and crafts was her first passion which grew to include fashion when she went on to complete an art and design course. Through this course she learnt about textiles and the fashion history. Her work experience at a small craft business provided inspiration to create surface patterns and textures for unique and individual fashion pieces. Lisa then completed a three Year BA course in fashion and textiles at Wiltshire College Salisbury, a Bournemouth University Partner college where her graduate collection was put together.

The basis of her graduate collection is the machine embroidered fabric she created and the use of simple shapes with intricate seaming detail. Lisa's "abstract nature" collection includes:

Bubble skirt and embroidered top-

This cream wool skirt is made up of panels to give a bubble shape, in the middle is a machine embroidered panel inspired by textures and patterns from a tree knot.

The top is made up of a plain machine embroidered fabric with hints of colour throughout; around the neckline are small roses for a delicate finish.

Black bubble dress-This soft black wool dress has curved seams all round to create a bubble shape. The slightly puffed sleeves, made from machine embroidered fabric, give the dress a delicate look. Great for cocktails!

Trousers, top and jacket-

The soft tan leather jacket‘s shape was inspired by shapes developed within flora and fauna.

The luxurious silk jersey underneath has a flowing drape around the bust and a delicate tangling print creeping up the side.

The 7/8^th length trousers are in a two tone memory fabric - black and bronze, a hint of both colours is apparent when moving in the trousers.

Rose dress-

This very delicate looking piece is made all from machine embroidered fabric taking the rose shape as inspiration; great for day and evening wear.

Rose crop top and skirt-

The rose crop top is also inspired by the rose shape; this piece is organic looking.

The skirt has a slight bubble shape, made from a japur silk which has a slight shimmer giving the fabric a more luxurious look. The skirt also has 2 embroidered panels at the side so these 2 pieces are very elegant looking worn as a set but also look striking when worn separately. Team the top with Lisa’s black/bronze trousers for a softer rock chick look.

Grey silk jersey top and trousers-

This long top in luxurious silk jersey has gathers all down the sides to give a beautiful drape across the front; the top also has machine embroidered fabric around the neckline and down a short sleeve, giving a delicate, and eye catching look.

The trousers are in a black silk satin which gives them a beautiful sheen, they are high waisted with a slim leg.

Lisa states: “I now have an even bigger thirst for fashion; always looking at the latest trends, keeping up to date with the fashion magazines, but always trying to make myself and my pieces personal to me yet individual.” Can’t wait to see her next collection which she is now creating ready for the spring/summer!!

To buy any of these pieces or order specially commissioned pieces, contact Lisa through her website: www.lisagibson.co.uk