Candy Jeans

I find it really difficult to get jeans that fit me well so imagine my delight when I tried on some cheap as chips Topshop jeans that fit like a dream! The 'Leigh' jeans come in every colour & print you can imagine and I've already bought them in red and... wait for it... lavender! 

I hummed & hawed a bit before buying a lavender pair as I really wasn't sure I would get on with candy coloured jeans. I didn't want my legs to look like two sticks of rock!  I have to say however, that I absolutely love them! Lavender is the perfect Spring colour and lets face it, pastel, candy colours are everywhere this season, there's no escaping them!

I teamed my jeans with my newest Twenty8twelve purchase, the 'Idris' tee. The print is by T8Ts new Artist of the season, Talia Baldwin. I absolutely love the idea of wearing a piece of art! 

The cute little turn-ups on the jeans show off my treasured Christian Louboutin studded 'Pigalle 100' pumps to perfection. I bought these stunners on Net-a-Porter some time ago and they continue to cause quite a stir whenever I wear them. They are so rock & roll!

I have finished this laid-back look off with a silver Tiffany cuff and ring and Miu Miu sunglasses.

Get The Look: 

Jeans: Topshop 'Leigh' jeans in lavender

Top: Twenty8twelve 'Idris' Vest (similar)

Shoes: Christian Louboutin Studded 'Pigalle 100' Pumps 

Cuff: Tiffany & Co 1837 Silver Cuff
Ring: Tiffany & Co Elsa Peretti 'Sevillana' Ring
Sunglasses: Miu Miu Sunglasses (similar)

Chocolat

Happy Easter everyone! So, what to wear on Easter Sunday; something yellow? Or pastel? Or floaty & Springlike? No no no, it's all about rich, delicious chocolate brown today. J'adore chocolat! 

My Husband bought me this Betsey Johnson chocolate silk dress for my birthday a few years ago & I love it so much I subsequently bought it in a rich blue colour, a crazy multi-coloured Bambi print & a teal/dotty chiffon version (I'm sure all will appear on my Blog over time). This is one of Betsey Johnson's signature styles and is available this season in red/dotty & blue/dotty versions.  I am coveting the red/dotty dress very much! Check out the fantastic, flutter sleeves. Aren't they amazing? 

We bought the dress in the Betsey Johnson store on Floral Street in London and we were spoilt rotten from the moment we walked through the door. While I played dress up in their delicious emporium of loveliness, Dave was treated to complimentary tea & cupcakes. I've never seen him so happy on a shopping expedition! Do visit their store if you can, it is such a unique, special shopping experience. 

Today I've teamed the dress with my Christian Louboutin 'Mad Mary' studded, hidden platform, Mary-Jane shoes. There was a 6 month waiting list to buy these beauties when they came out & I have to say they were worth every impatient second I had to wait! The neutral cream colour means they go with absolutely everything. I perform in them often and at one memorable gig a lady came up to me & asked if she could touch them! I was so taken aback I said yes and stood there awkwardly while she got down on her hands and knees and lovingly stroked them! 

Get The Look:

Dress: Betsey Johnson Flutter Sleeve Dress (similar)

Shoes: Christian Louboutin 'Mad Mary' studded shoes in cream (similar)

Jewellery: Tiffany charm bracelet, open heart necklace & open heart earrings

Twenty8Twelve: A Bit Of A Do

Lisa E Moss Necklace

With Talia Baldwin, T8T Artist Of The Season

I do love a Twenty8twelve Do so I was delighted to get an invitation to their Artist of the Season Event this week! I chose to wear the Twenty8twelve 'Indiana' printed silk dress with pussy bow detail (from the S/S09 collection), because it is such a bright, eye-catching, standout piece. Nothing lifts your mood quite like a bold print or a bright colour! On this occasion I tied the pussy bow behind me, rather than at the neck, to give the dress some shape. (Note: the gorgeous print on this dress is by Artist Beshlie McKelvie, a former T8T Artist of the Season. This is my way of owning a piece of her fantastic work!).

 paired my dress with uber-high Topshop shoe-boots, a Twenty8twelve patent clutch in a bright teal colour & my ever present Bumblebee necklace. A sweep of red lipstick & I was good to go!

My Husband & I had a terrific night & it was an absolute joy to meet new Twenty8twelve Artist of the season, Talia Baldwin, a lady who is as beautiful, funny & lovely as she is talented! In keeping with my T8T tradition, I treated myself (any excuse!) to a cool t-shirt adorned with Talia's fabulous artwork (coming to a blog near you soon!).

Another T8T tradition is for me to play with the UH-MAY-ZING Lisa E Moss jewellery. Lisa designs seasonal collections for Twenty8twelve & I simply can't wait to own one of her oh so cool designs! Take a look at the necklace I tried on... gorgeous right? It wasn't easy to put it back let me tell you!! 

Thank you to Talia and the Twenty8twelve team for a super night! 

Get The Look: 

Dress: Twenty8twelve 'Indiana' Dress

Bag: Twenty8twelve 'Jezabel' Clutch

Necklace: Alex Monroe Bumblebee Necklace

Necklace: Lisa E Moss Charm Necklace

Shoes: Topshop 'Adina' Shoe-boots (similar)

Get Talia's Look:

Dress: Reiss 'Balbina' Dress 

Jaya and the Bee

My love affair with all things Winter Kate continues unabated! My latest purchase from Nicole Richie's fabulous brand is the gorgeous 'Jaya' dress (in tangerine rose) from the S/S12 collection. Take a close look at the dress to see the very cool, unusual Elephant print!

I had to pre-order this dress so I waited very impatiently for what seemed a lifetime (it was only a month!) before it was finally despatched! It was worth the wait though & arrived just in time for a lovely night out at my favourite Thai restaurant & cocktail bar with my Hubby! 

I wore it with my (current) favourite shoes, the STUNNING torquoise Miu Miu python effect pumps. I love these shoes. They go with more outfits than you might initially think given the unusual, striking colour!

I finished my look off with the most neutral bag I own, the corner detail leather clutch from Cos (I'm obsessed with Clutches) & my treasured, iconic Alex Monroe gold Bumblebee necklace! I love this necklace so much I've actually named it. Betsey. What? WHAT?? 

Get The Look: 

Dress: Winter Kate 'Jaya' Dress 

Shoes: Miu Miu Python Effect Shoes 

Clutch: Corner Detail Leather Clutch 

Necklace: Alex Monroe Bumblebee Necklace 

Manley

When I was growing up in Ireland I must admit I didn't pay too much attention to the Irish fashion scene. There wasn't really that much of an Irish fashion scene to be honest. But oh how times have changed! These days we have Irish Fashion Designers like Natalie B Coleman and Emma Manley blazing a trail to be reckoned with in the fashion world!

I discovered Emma Manley's designs very recently, thanks to incredible Dublin based Stylist Ingrid Hoey, and to say that my Manley wish list is now somewhat out of control is an understatement!! I got in touch with Emma on Twitter (oh I love Twitter!!) to find out where I could buy a gorgeous little t-shirt from her A/W11 collection. The top was unfortunately sold out. As per usual I was the last kid on the block and it was almost time for Emma's S/S12 collection to be released. However, I was absolutely blown away when this lovely lady offered to MAKE THE TOP FOR ME!! We discussed colour & I chose grey (it is, in my opinion, one of the most underrated colours ever! It flatters almost everyone... trust me, give it a go!). Emma gave me a choice of three or four different trims; I couldn't choose so I asked her to surprise me.

The top arrived and I absolutely loved it! She made it with 100% merino wool (the original design was simple t-shirt material) which makes it a fantastically trans-seasonal piece and the gold tassel trim is exactly the kind of colour clash that I adore in clothes. This is a completely original, one of a kind top that I will be wearing for years to come and I can't thank Emma enough for it!

It's first outing was for a chilled, laid back evening at the Cinema, followed by drinks. I styled it with my Zara denim shorts (I wear these shorts to death!), Reiss 1971 'Cedar' sandals (the perfect Summer heel) and my Cos clutch in tan. This whole look is very casual and keyed down so I made sure to keep my make up just as simple with complimentary nudes and bronzes. 

Get The Look:

Top: Manley tassel trim top 

Shorts: Zara Demin Shorts

Shoes: Reiss 1971 'Cedar' Sandals (similar)

Bag: Cos Corner Detail Clutch in tan

Scarlet Woman

Kymerah. An American brand launched in 2011 that I fell head over heels in love with from the very moment I discovered them. Modern, classic, strong designs that are versatile, comfortable, fiercely feminine and utterly gorgeous!

And it all started with one beautiful, red dress. When I saw a picture of the Kymerah 'Nia' dress, I wanted it. It was that simple. Except it wasn't. I had been lucky enough to come across a sneaky peak of the Kymerah A/W11 collection and it would be many months before I could even think about buying my dress! 

I came across one of the owners of Kymerah on Twitter, a gorgeous girl called Alana (in fact she is so gorgeous she should be their model!), we got chatting & she promised to keep one for me as soon as the new collection was available! 

Lovely Alana was true to her word! I was in New York some months later, when the new collection was finally launched, and one of the fab Kymerah girls delivered the dress to me personally at my Hotel (two dresses actually as I was unsure of my sizing)!

What can I say about this dress? It is so obviously absolutely stunning, so dramatic, such a delicious, rich scarlet colour and it absolutely screams 'look at meeeee'... oh I have so much love for this piece!! It can be styled in many different ways; with sky high shoe boots, a thick waist belt & black opaque tights for an edgy London look or just kept simple in all it's floaty glory with a pair of neutral heels or even clashed up dramatically with equally vibrant mega-heels! Generally I like to keep it simple & let the vibrant colour & the unusual asymmetric shape do all the talking.

Today I have teamed the dress with my Christian Louboutin 'No Prive 942' Tiger print slingbacks... I love how the iconic red sole matches my red dress so perfectly! 

Get The Look:

Dress: Kymerah 'Nia' asymmetric Dress

Shoes: Christian Louboutin 'Very Prive' Peep-toe Shoes

Leopard

We were invited to a Leopard Party. Why was it a Leopard Party you might ask? Well, our friend Phill had recently returned from a holiday in Africa where he had been attacked & bitten by a Leopard (he'd been stung by a scorpion on his previous trip there!). He was fine thank goodness & quite proud of his battle scars so what else could he do upon his return but have a Leopard Party!

I didn't struggle with this theme as I do rather like a bit of leopard print. I wore the Reiss 'Myla' dress (one of the best value piece I have ever bought) & paired it with the Reiss 'Lexie' belt & Topshop 'Adina' platform boots.

I love Reiss; yes I think it's fair to say that I am a 'Reiss Girl'. It has become my 'go to' store for beautiful dresses, especially to gig in, and their current collection is to die for!! Check it out here and prepare to actually drool! 

Get The Look:

Dress: Reiss 'Mayla' Leopard Print Dress

Belt: Reiss 'Lexie' Belt (similar)

Boots: Topshop 'Adina' Platform Shoe Boots (similar)