Hot New Designer: Saro

Yup, this is the name on everyone's lips, Blackberry's, Wish-list right now.

My little spy say's this label, Saro is the next big thing, all i'll say is that Kate Moss wanted the Saro Dress that Natalie Imbruglia was wearing at a recent charity event so much they decided to swap in the bathroom! Mossy loved the dress and the ruffled cloak so much she wanted to keep the outfit, but the gorgeous Natalie declined the offer. The full article is here via Handbag.com

Kate Moss in stunning Dolce & Gabbana corset dress
image via Daily Mail

Natalie Imbruglia in Saro
image via Handbag.com

Saro's A/W 10 collection below

images of collection via Saro

Smart Shopping

Hip, Hip, Hooray!

Yup, I'm one of those gals, who like to take advantage of discounts when shopping, who wants to pay full price nowadays anyway?

The Outnet is celebrating their 1st birthday in a matter of weeks and they will be selling items for £1!!!! Yes, that's one whole pound and just a little over a one euro. So get signed up quick to RSVP which opens today!

I also picked up goodies online at HOF & Play.com last week and was delighted when Mama Brit Greek called to say my delivery had arrived including this book by Kelly Cutrone. I want to see what's going on inside that head of hers. She terrifies me to my bones. Actually she reminds me of a former boss, who of course was just trying to do their job properly, which meant screaming orders at the minions...and throwing tantrums when things go seriously wrong.

image via Amazon

Before i completely forget, Dorothy Perkins have a got a whopping 25% discount - type in this code: DPVIPE when you're at the check out page. I've also dicovered that shipping to Europe doesn't cost an arm and a leg - £5 per product, which is quite reasonable, esp after the discount anyway! Shipping to the USA is £10 and takes around 5-7days which isn't too bad either.

So why am I buying from the UK/USA/anywhere but Greece these days? Athens is so friggin' expensive, that's why! I picked up Greek Elle the other day and flicked through their fashion pages for 'Fashion under 150 euros' and was a little disappointed. The pulls selected just didn't do anything for me (some pieces look dated) and i know it's Elle (who don't exactly do cheap frills) but still I could have pulled a better selection of clothes for their 'Cheap & Chic' story.

I do love the wedge heels, I already have a pair of cheapo heart shaped sunnies, thanks to the fab markets in Hong Kong circa 1989 and i already have some awesome striped tops from when Kookai reigned the UK high street.

Motherhood: work/life balance

Today, I'm digging this article from the Times online about the modern woman's dilema of getting that work/life/parenting etc balance right.

They've captured some advice from different 'experts' such as the one below, what do you think?

THE HIGH-ACHIEVER

Julia Hobsbawm, founder of the media and networking business Editorial Intelligence, and author of The See-saw: 100 Ideas for Work-life Balance. She has three children and two stepchildren, aged 5 to 20

I was hospitalised with pneumonia in 2007, when my youngest child was two and my business was very young. It was the proverbial wake-up call — I nearly died and realised I had to change my life to survive. I discovered that if I apply business tactics to my home life, I’d probably be 25% more productive in 25% less time. Multitasking is important. I’ll listen to a podcast when I’m washing up, and catch up on phone calls when I’m walking somewhere. A rigid routine is unrealistic — you need to go with the flow, but you need anchored points, like Sunday lunch and film night, for stability. I also try to have “quick quality time” with my children — one-to-one time with them is essential, and an hour spent meaningfully with a child is worth a whole day spent resentfully, or only half there. Pausing to reflect is essential to avoid muddy thinking — I have a daily bit of me time, even for 15 minutes: maybe a soak or a massage, but it has to be a total switch-off. And we have pyjama days at home. I make sure we have at least half a day when the family does nothing. It’s lovely.

www.timesonline.co.uk

Spring Goodness!

Sorry I'm late for showing some spring goodness, I feel yuck at the moment! Anyhow, I have saved my fave accessories for a while now and it's high time I shared my love for Bib style necklaces/chokers with you, oh that and H & M'S new Garden collection - the colour, prints and awesomeness is insane.

Adam beaded Bib necklace

Donna Karan Multi-chain bib necklace

Falconiere peacock chest bib necklace

Oscar de la Renta beaded bib style necklace

I love this soooooo much - Sass & Bide Black Cat silk jumpsuit - 500 euros
images above via The Outnet

H & M's gorgeous Garden Collection 2010 - yum!

images of H & M collection via Marie Claire UK

National Independence Day in Greece

Today is the Greek National Anniversary and a major religious holiday with schools & military parades with double celebrations throughout the country. Firstly the 25th March is the Annunciation: the day when the Virgin Mary was given the message by an angel that she would bear Christ (and give birth to him exactly nine months later on 25 December - He wasn't premature). Secondly, in 1821, Greece decided that it had had enough of the Ottoman Empire, hence, on this day we celebrate Greece's victory (aka Greek Revolution) in the war of Independence against the Turks who had occupied the country for 400 years.

image via Ant1.gr

For Greece, the 25th of March is the equivalent to the 4th of July to Americans. This is also the day where you're supposed to eat fried salted bakaliaro (cod) and skordalia (garlic sauce) today. The fast is broken on this day for those who follow the religious calendar, as it usually falls during Great Lent (where most Greeks are supposed to abstain from eating meat, dairy and fish products).

Image via Kalofagas.ca

Also if you're interested in more Greek cuisine/recipes, this is the man who brings inspiration and passion to food.

Beauty: Priming Power

You gotta love Benefit for launching this product, available at House of Fraser -£19.50
Did I mention they have a special 2 day 25% discount thingy on selected brands happening online from midnight this Wednesday?
Get your plastic ready kids.

You'll have to forgive me...

If i appear to be m.i.a over the next few days. I've had an insane wave of creativity, I just need to get it together and i'll share later. For now, enjoy the cuteness that these images bring!

This image may have been from Elle, photography by Iris Brosch

image via Shelter

Monday Morning Lust: Tretchikoff & Kelly

My latest addiction is all about art, artists & portraits from the 50's era. This obsession began all over again when i saw this image from Living Etc bedroom gallery. Isn't it just gorgeous? I want this portrait!!!
I was originally saving this image for another post on bedrooms (for the work blog) but the need to find out who the artist was, was eating at me. Also an old friend had two of these portraits in her old apartment (luckily for me I remembered this) so it was easy to find out who it was by.
A while ago i also posted this pin up portrait below (on work blog) which I've seen all over the place but not really knowing who the artist was either.

Well here's the low down kids. Sir Gerald Kelly was probably more well known for his Royal portraits of the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth -the Queen mother, however, it is these two portraits that put him in the spotlight.

Burmese Silk

Burmese Pearl
Kelly images & purchases via here.

These lovely portraits are the work of Vladimir Tretchikoff, which i seriously LOVE!

Chinese Girl

Miss Wong

Lady from Orient

Balinese Girl
Tretchikoff images via here.

Shopping list: Beauty

I love all things to do with fashion & beauty. With beauty, the stuffs gotta work and be at a reasonable price. That said I don't and paying for something that produces effective end results and is simply amazing, than opting out for something cheaper and not so great. Given a comparison, beauty in Greece comes with a whopping price tag. I haven't quite gotten used to and neither found the ideal equivalent to Rimmel or should I say 'high street' beauty & make up. My supplies are running low ladies, which inevitably suggests a flying trip to the UK soon. Yippee!!! I've already started drafting up my initial list of beauty goodies I want & need. I don't know about you, but these products have never failed me and depending on budgets these are some of the most amazing, really works wonders beauty products. This one sensational product doesn't really fit into any particular category purely because it does everything - my best friend & I used to carry a tube everywhere!!! Elizabeth Arden's 8 Hour cream - great for chapped Lips, glossy cheeks, soothes scrapes (& burns) and you can mix with powder eye shadow and create a oil slick kinda look.

Face/skincare:

Simple Vital Vitamins Night cream - in the morning my skin feels soft, what a delight. I also love the Clarins Multi-active Night/Day cream, Clarins Beauty Flash Balm (£26.50) for those emergency days and the Olay range of day creams with SPF. My mum used to use the Olay Classic care beauty fluid - 100ml religiously and has great skin (but i might put that down to genes). After they changed the brand name from 'Oil of Ulay' to 'Olay' the scent and the actual lotion seems to have changed too. I'm not loving it so much now. Have used Lancôme and also Estée Lauder too, they're ok for me but why pay more when you can get something that works just as well? I've got some Dr. Nick Lowe anti ageing creams I bought before to use next, so will report on that another time. I don't really buy into the anti-ageing cream stuff but I am reaching the age where lines are showing. Right now I just make sure I slap on the SPF everyday & try (being the operative word) to eat well to prevent further damage. Greece is getting sunnier by the day now and getting a sun tan just isn't a priority anymore. Not when you know that 10/20/50 years down the line you'll end up looking leathery - think the lady from 'There's Something about Mary' (shudder).

Make-Up: I love to play so much and experiment on my girls.

Lips:

Cheap & expensive glossies in tubes are great as long as they don't have an overly sticky consistency, which i find that this is the case with Lancomes Juicy Tubes (but I just so love the smell and yummy colours). You do get super shiny lips though.

I love Pout's Lip plump - in clear, i have no idea why they've shut down but i miss their gorgeous girly products - they absolutely rocked the lips department. Equally good in the plumping department is 'Sexy Mother Pucker' which you can buy at Boots for around £8.
Other amazing Lip glosses i adore are: L'Oreal Glam Shine Lip Gloss - £8
Benefit Lip gloss in 'Kiss' - it's a very soft shade of pink - £14
Also love the Dior lip gloss sticks too. Very delicious.
Mac lipstick in 'Girl about town' - i love this hot pink colour - £12.50
Love Mac for their vibrant variety of Lipstick colours and also YSL lipsticks.

Eyes:

I could go on forever on this section but maybe another time. I have short eyelashes, and as a kid growing up I wanted so badly to have my friends eyelashes which were like 12mm long. What's a girl to do but try every kinda lash extending mascara?

What's working for me are:

Max Factor's Master Piece Max Mascara - £10 - This rocks! Clinique High impact Mascara - £14.50 - This is really good and the wand doesn't clog up to much too. Rimmel Extra super lash mascara w/curled brush - £5 - I also wanted to have curled/upwards lashes too, so i bought this in hope. It's a good all round mascara for everyday use but there are better mascara's. Bourjois Volume Glamour - £8 - Have used this over and over again - tis pretty good.
Someone's just bought me the Dior Showcase Extase mascara - will report back on this another time and also Maybelline Colossal mascara - £7 with it's rubber wand.

Eye shadows

Love YSL, Bobbi Browns Shimmer wash range, Mac for colour and staying power, Shu Uemera - Iridescent colour crayon set - my lovely friend bought this gift from the states and they can be crushed and blended using the finger and has great staying power. I love that you can use the sticks as a high lighter, eye-liner and eye shadow too.
Benefit's Show Offs - £12 Super shimmery product for eyes, lips and cheeks.

Rimmel soft Kohl Eye Pencil - £3 - I cannot live without this product, it's inexpensive and incredibly effective. Easy blending too.

Foundation:

I don't really use foundation anymore, living in a hot climate just doesn't do any good whatsoever, either that or the fact that I'm much more comfortable in my own skin now. In the past I've used L'Oreal's True Match Foundation - £10 or Bobbi Brown - where the colours were matched perfectly to my skin tone.

Concealer

It's worth splurging here mainly because you want to cover up big time and have good staying power! Mac - Moisture cover concealer - £12.50 - doesn't dry out the spot in question. Rimmel Stay matt concealer - £5 - provides a much thicker cover but colours available are not so great which is where Bobbi Brown comes in. Her Creamy Concealer is amazing as is the Corrector (for under the eyes/uneven skin tone) both £16.50. Talk about saving the day...

Bronzer/Blushers

Hmmm, I love bronzers, they transform me from scary, pasty ghost into a glowing human being. I was also bought a gorgeous hot pink cream blush from Milan years ago and all I can say is that it changed my life. Carrie Bradshaw eat your heart out girl! An orange or hot pink cream blush added (by finger tips) in a sweeping upwards motion on your cheekbones/upper apples of your cheek area - mind you only need a little can just give you that healthy, rosy look. Most of my cream blushers and hot coloured powder blushers are from Hong Kong from either Sa-Sa or Bonjour.

I love and religiously use Rimmel's Natural Bronzer - £5.50 but am currently using one by Marbert (at Harrods - i bought this on sale for a fiver-bargain!!) There are a great range of iridescent, shimmery bronzers/blushers out there with varying shade in one set, so as you sweep along you get a highlighter and a deeper colour-depending on what you look you're going for. Bobbi Brown, Dior, Givenchy amongst a few others have excelled in this department.

Highlighters:

Benefits High Beam - £17.50 - I luuuurve this product for adding a swift bit of shine to your cheekbones, under the brow and a few other places... There are more inexpensive versions out there, this is just one 'splurge' product i love to use. I also love H & M (yes as in the fashion chain) for their Shimmer Powder in Gold which I use on the eyes and cheeks sometimes - it's really shimmery! I bought it for around £3-4.

Face cleansers:

Clarins One step Cleanser - £17.50 - I always pick this up at the Duty Free for a lot less, this removes all the nastiness and make-up on your face leaving it soft and smelling wonderful. A cheaper version without the frills but also amazing? Simple Conditioning Eye Make-up Remover - £3 - mainly for the eyes note! Problem skin - I know breakouts are the worst thing that can possibly happen, especially around the time of the month amongst other things. Clean & Clear Deep Cleansing cream wash - £3 or Clean & Clear Blackhead scrub - £3-4. To be honest i can't remember which one rocked it, but it was the one that exfoliates well, leaving no shiny skin and also felt tingly.

Body moisturiser:

Palmers Cocoa Butter Body Lotion - £3.50 - Holy Bananas this is my can't live without product ever! It's cheap, smells so yummy you want to eat it, leaves the skin feeling properly soft and re-hydrated and is simply Wow. I've used this product for like 16 years and counting.

Also need to get more of The Sanctuary's Body Moisture Spray - £5.50 - this is also amazing, smells amazing and leaves the skin super soft. It's not too oily either.

Oh my god, this post is like an essay and i haven't even added images yet. I'm officially a beauty junkie, yikes!

Miss Selfridge hits a fashion high

Hello Miss S, we've been waiting for you to hit that fashion high again since the reign of one Ms Fabulous Creative Director... I'm definitely one happy fashion bunny and am loving the vintage, super girly style. The SS10 collection has a wave of pretty florals, stripes, bows and soft romantic pastels and of course Miss S, signature style. There is way more stuff to drool over on their website though, better stash the plastic away now girls.

Cropped embellished jacket £95

Petites nude tiered dress £38

Nicole Ritchie, eat your hear out, this lace playsuit is a bargain at £38

Metallic beaded belt £28

The perfect blush

et voila, I've found the perfect blush/oyster pink dress, yum! You could probably rock a white blazer with some of these too.

This hand-embroidered beauty is by Haute Hippie, apparently it's ecru but it looks kinda like nude pink to me... check it out on Net-a-porter. Ok, we're in a recession, what's the next best thing??? See below fashion recessionista's!

SPLURGE

Hand Embroidered dress Haute Hippie £900

SPEND
Lace sleeveless D&G £595

STEAL

Lace beaded dress Dorothy Perkins £35

STEAL

Sleeveless butterfly print dress Miss Selfridge £28

Rosie gets hot for Thomas Wylde Ad campaign

These are the super hot new images from Thomas Wylde's new collection, doesn't Rosie Huntington-Whiteley look amazing?

Images via Daily Mail/Thomas Wylde

In Hong Kong, the girls are mad for Paula Thomas' skull encrusted, soft leather bags. It's also a shame that these bags are also being replicated all over the world. Shame on you.
For those who don't know Paula's work, she's a British model turned designer who worked as Julien MacDonald's business partner, co-designing the collection. By 2006 the label Thomas Wylde was born, the first boutique launched in Maxfields in LA. Since then she has exploded to say the least and has gone global. Look out for edgy, punk, Rock n' Roll style with a feminine touch (thinks floaty chiffon) and you know you've found Thomas Wylde.