Ooh la la... It's Paris Couture Week!

Oh do I have a treat for you dear readers. Today began Paris Couture Week and you know what that means don't you?! Beautiful, gorgeous, drool over creations that will never ever, ever be ours...but we can ogle for as long as we want.

Bring on Dior: the most exquisite collection of all...

Lady Gaga meets Marilyn Monroe? Well, whatever, I love this futuristic-retro hybrid. So feminine, so chic.

Makes my wedding dress train look like a rag (not that I'm giving anything away about my dress obvs) but how amazing is this 40's style evening dress with added mille-feuille of net trailing behind?!

Red carpet hit I'm guessing. Place your bets now...

Who, when and where? But who cares. It's divine!

Another joy of day one was Alexis Mabille, with some slightly more toned-down but still utterly fabulous pieces:

Give me a 1970's Hollywood mansion, a pool, a man in Speedo's, a Gin Fizz and this dress. Sorted! (Though I'm sure that this dress wasn't intended for that!). 

And there's a rare glimpse in to the weird goings on of my imagination. Enjoy!

Minimal but oh-so chic!

Lady in red. Always perfect.

I wonder what tomorrow holds in store? I can't wait! Stay tuned for more.

Now for some beauty sleep.......zzzzzzz...........

Wardrobe weeding with Miss Magpie

Last week was crunch time: either my wardrobe would soon burst at the seams (I know that's just a saying, but I feared that in my case, it could actually come true) or I did something drastic.

Yes, dear readers, it was time for a very premature spring clean of my wardrobe (or a very belated one, depending on how you look at it).

So today Mummy Magpie came to my aid and helped me weed out every unnecessary item of clothing from my full-to-the-brim wardrobe.

The result?

It turns out that there were a few things I could do without...

Believe it or not, I was stunned in to complete silence when we collected all my unwanted items together. Is it really possible to have this much stuff? (Well, clearly it is)

Naturally, my new New Year's resolution, once I have shifted all this at a carboot sale, is to refrain from buying/accumulating anything else! Enough is enough (unless of course, Madame Chanel or Monsieur Louboutin enter my life).

Like I said, I shall be flogging all this treasure (it is after all only my trash), at the Capital Carboot sale VERY soon, so stay tuned if you want to bag any of the following gems:

Shoes glorious shoes

 The perfect-for-winter vintage maxi

 

 Nautical crochet

Totally on-trend tartan

Figure-hugging denim

Pretty in pinstripe

A miniscule mini (no longer befitting a nearly married woman!)

1950's glamour

All sorts of arm candy

Lots of bling!

 And much, much more...

There's something for everyone so don't be shy - come and buy my wardrobe!

Details to follow soon...

And as for wardrobe weeding, I highly recommend it. I feel as light as a feather and totally guilt free. Sweet dreams one and all...

Style perving

It's January. It's bleak. It's pouring with rain. And I haven't worn any sequins since 2010 (well, technically not since the very early hours of 2011).

I hate January. I've been switching between pyjamas, my home-made 'slanket', my gym kit (yes, I've started the wedding transformation) and some duller than dull 'outdoor' clothes for the last 10 days. I'm having some serious sequin and glamour withdrawal...

So I've taken to perving on those that have a more exciting January than me. Celebrities.

Rachel McAdams in Michael Kors

Here's a zingy maxi to inject some life in to the miserable greyness of January.

Taylor Swift in J. Mendel

Taylor doesn't normally hit my radar, but I'm totally loving the elegance of this frock.

Nicole Ritchie in Pucci

OMG - Nicole has ventured out in her slanket! Genius! But seriously, I love the deep velvety texture of this dress. Very on-trend.

Selena Gomez in Irina Shabayeva

(nope, I haven't got a clue who she is!)

I love this totally glam number. It's so summery and refreshing and I can totally picture myself by the pool in Marrakech right now. Eat that, January blues.

 Camilla Belle in Alberta Ferretti

A shiny ruffled number - well, it's sexier than anything I've put on in the last few days!

Taylor Swift (again!) in Mark and James

(I didn't realise I liked her style!!)

Short, black, sparkly... What's not to love?

Kristen Stewart in Reem Acra

Oh dear sequins, how I have missed you...

Ok. That's enough. I can't take any more, I need to get out of my slouchy clothes. Sparkle and glamour, here I come. Costcutter won't know what's hit it!

Red Velvet Nation...and me!

It's always lovely to be appreciated and especially lovely to be appreciated for your style, so you can imagine my delight when little old moi made my debut on Red Velvet Nation. Here writes the Editor (amongst other lovely things)...

It's been a while since our favourite style minx Stephanie Holding left our shores to return to her London life...
we celebrate this lovely lady's incredible, and effortless sense of style! A lady who is equally at home in designer duds, as she is in high street bargains, she can make a plastic bag look like haute couture! Some people just have it....
and our Stephanie is at the top of the style ladder...
her upcoming wedding in Marrakech this summer promises to be a style lovers heaven! RVN will be there to capture it all!

Check out the full post here...


And for a glimpse of the looks RVN's very style savvy Editor chose, here's a taster...

And now I am blushing...


One last thing... If you read the full RVN post, you might find out a little snippet of information I haven't yet divulged to you all. Well, I promise all will become clear very, very soon!!

Sale through the new year!

Happy New Year dear readers! I hope your 2011 has started well,  diets have not yet been broken, sobriety still seems achievable and you've bagged a few sale bargains.

If you haven't managed the latter however, Miss Magpie is on hand to show you the top sale bargains to be found:

Sequin leggings, Was £1,385, Now £831, Isabel Marant at Net-a-Porter

Everyone wants a piece of Marant at the mo, so bag these sparkle-tastic trews for the ultimate statement.

Strapless gown, Was £1,150, Now £460, Temperley London at Browns

When don't you need a full-length evening gown? With the level of this discount, it's not even worth sparing a thought. Buy it now!

Shearling jacket, Was £1,560, Now £780, Acne at My-Wardrobe

I love this take on this season's popular shearling jacket. I know it's still over £700 but it is leather and lamb's wool, so it's a piece of luxury at a snip of the original price!

Glimmer dress, Was £3,478, Now £698, Thakoon at Matches

An 80% discount - you don't see that much these days, plus it's a glam day dress that everyone's wardrobe could squeeze in. Sold.

Sequin dress, Was £120, Now £36, Asos.com

This dress is a piece of old school glamour - I can just imagine standing in a smoky jazz bar posing in this number. Buy it!

Court shoes, Was £355, Now £215, Viktor & Rolf at Selfridges

A sensible pair of heels!! At last! There's no way you'll fall over in any snow with those grips - plus they are sparkly, so Miss Magpie can give them the real thumbs up.

Taffeta dress, Was £175, Now £70, Jaeger

A cute little party dress that'll carry you through the whole year. Wear with tights now and go solo come summer. A wardrobe staple for sure!

Happy New Year Shopping....

Goodbye 2010. Hello 2011.

Can you believe that it is the 31st of December?! I just can not believe that we got to the end of the year already.

For Miss Magpie, 2010 has been a very special year. No prizes for guessing why:

Something to do with this perhaps?!

2011 is set to be a great year too. I don't what I have done to deserve this but I feel like the luckiest girl on the planet right about now.

But, enough of all that mush...

To all my lovely readers, have a fantastic New Year and I hope your 2011 is filled with happiness and joy (and buckets and buckets of style!).

KEEP READING!

Love Miss Magpie xxx

Merry Christmas!

MERRY CHRISTMAS ONE AND ALL!

Firstly, apologies for disappearing on you. A quick trip to Marrakech followed by Xmas preparations have had me busy, busy, busy!

But here I am, just in time to show you what Santa (a.k.a. my beau) treated me to this Xmas:

YES!! I am such a lucky girl - I got the Anya Hindmarch clutch I've been dreaming of for so long!

And it didn't take me long to put it to good use:

I teamed it with my gorge Lanvin for H&M dress. It was the perfect Xmas outfit - with all that silk on me, I wasn't allowed in the kitchen at all!!

Speaking of Xmas outfits, here's what I wore for our Christmas Eve shindig:

Sequins, sequins, sequins...that's what Xmas is all about!

Well, actually, Christmas is all about giving and today, rather than shower each other with expensive gifts (Anya clutch not included of course), we decided to play Secret Santa where we make each other special presents.

That's my darling grandfather, with a knitted lavender cushion I made for him - he's not been too well of late and I thought it would help him sleep and get some much needed rest. It was made with bucket loads of love and care!

And now I must got to sleep - there's more Boxing day and Bank Holiday fun to come, so I'll be back soon!

Merry Christmas!
Love,
Miss Magpie
xxx

P.S. I promised you last time that I'd share the present I found my beau...

A modern laser cut cuckoo clock with an actual mechanical cuckoo to keep us on time (though may live to regret this!). My beau saw this clock in a bar on a trip to Edinburgh, I hunted it down and now it is his. Phew!

My Christmas Wish List

What do you get the man who has everything? Well, this is the very quandary I found myself in last week whilst trying to find a Christmas present for my darling beau.

I did eventually find something and I'm really quite excited about his reaction when he opens it. Just in case he ever decides to read Style State, I'd better keep it a secret until after he's opened it. I promise to share asap after that though.

Anyway, all this got me thinking about the struggle he must be having to find a present for me! So I thought I'd be ever so helpful and draw up a little list of goodies I'd like (and anyone who feels like it is welcome to pop something under my Xmas tree!):

1. The OMG clutch

Anya Hindmarch, £250.

Well I just don't know when I wouldn't use this! It's totally up my street and I can imagine it going with absolutely everything.

2. The oh-so comfy cashmere

Figleaves Cashmere night set, £115, and wrap cardigan, £100.

Yes, I'm all about the comfort and what's more comfortable than cashmere?!

3. The good luck charm

Annina Vogel 9-karat gold agate horseshoe necklace, £550.

Everyone needs a little helping hand on the luck front and if it means I get to wear this totally cute horseshoe necklace, even better!

4. The diet aid

Magimix ice-cream maker, £219.95

I know what you are thinking - how can an ice-cream maker be a diet aid? Well, my beau's very clever sister has been making me frozen yoghurt with hers. Take any fat free yoghurt, put in here for 1/2 hour and voila, frozen yoghurt, Not only delicious, but there's no guilt involved at all. A must have.

5. The bridezilla comforter

Lanvin Suitcase Honeymoon set, £415.

Well, what an ideal present for a bride-to-be...though perhaps a bit premature. Maybe I should be urging my beau to actually think about the honeymoon destination first. In any case, I'm sure I'll be needing this set...so why wait?!

6. The 1950's housewife kitchen

Oliver Bonas Pip Studio set of 4 plates, £30, and Pip Studio small plate, £7.50

I am totally in love with these kitsch plates. I've been honing my domestic skills for a while now and I think it is about time that I was rewarded with some absolutely fab crockery. I'll definitely be a better Mrs with these!


7. The environmental treat

Brooks Devon rear panniers, £460.

What's the point of riding around London on my Pashley with Waitrose bags hanging off the handlebars? Not chic at all. When I go shopping, I'd like to be able to still look good (Pashley's are poser bikes remember!), so these rear wheel bags will do just the trick. Though perhaps at that price I could just head to Mulberry...

8. The moves

Wedding dance classes, approx. £250 for 5 hours.

This is perhaps one I should be buying for my beau, but let's face it, we both need to brush up our dance techniques for the big day. Though I've had many years of dance training (of all different types) I have never learnt the traditional numbers. My beau is erm, well in need of some loosening up! Not only will this be fun, we can wow our wedding guests next July.

9. The bedtime treat

A VERY big bed, £££££.

My secret is out: I'm a starfish sleeper. Much to my beau's dismay, he has chosen to marry someone who can not keep to her side of the bed. The solution? A very big bed! I would love a hotel sized bed, with Tempur mattress and sumptuous topper. I'm getting sleepy just at the thought of it. Zzzzzzzz...

10. The charitable choice

Christmas is for many of us, a time of gluttony and greed, but for lots of others it is lonely and miserable. I think it is important that we all do something for those less fortunate than ourselves - after all, Christmas is a time of giving.

I like to donate to Crisis at Christmas and this year I am donating money to help provide the UK's homeless with a Christmas meal. You can do the same, right here.

And...

...with that, I bid you all some very joyful Christmas shopping!

Bargain central!

Ooh, I love a bargain I do...and the past few weeks have been full of them!

Let me share with you my fabulously frugal finds:

This Manoush cardi is 100% merino wool, so incredibly snuggly and makes such a statement (I could have tried to get a better picture, but that's snow on the floor of my balcony there and I was freezing my ass off!).

Originally £570, I bagged it at the bargain price of £70. Thank you TK Maxx, Kensington High Street. FYI it is officially the best TK Maxx I've ever been to - it has a whole designer section which is always bursting at the seams with amazing finds. Don't say I never give you anything!

When I saw this little piece of summer hanging on the rails at the Jaeger sample sale, I knew it had to be mine. As you can see, it'll serve me well all year round. I particularly love the frilly tie-up neck.

I love even more what I paid for it. £20. Yes, you did read that right. £20 for a 100% silk blouse. Bargaintastic I'd say!

Another TK Maxx find, this Dents clutch was just irresistible. It'll go with my saris as well as my party dresses and is perfect for the festive season. At £12 it wasn't even worth debating!

This is the most exciting bargain of the lot. I could not believe my luck when, at the Aquascutum sample sale, I found this iconic trench coat sitting all on its lonesome. Once I had it in my hand, I could not let go if it; I was surrounded by Aquascutum-trench-coat-hungry vultures.

Not to rub salt in to their wounds or anything, but I purchased this piece of fashion past, present and future, at the purse-friendly price of £75. Price per wear comes in at about about 20p, for we all know that a classic trench like this lasts a lifetime. Read it and weep, dear readers. Boy did I have a spring in my step that day!

And here's the one that got away:

TK Maxx Edinburgh. How mental is this bag! I adore it. Can't remember the designer now (something Italian and unknown) but at £179.99, I decided to give it a miss. Practicality took hold - imagine lugging that around on the tube.

Today I say practicality, schmacticality!

Oh well, never mind. You win some, you lose some.

So what do you think? Has Miss Magpie done well?