All I want for Christmas.......

So I've decided to put together a little list of gifts/gift ideas that could make good presents for sisters, girlfriends, friends, secret Santa and also things that I would love to receive, so it's a mix of both really. This is purely based on my personal taste but it may give you an idea of what to get someone if you are struggling to think of something.


1. Etsy Phone Cover 

Over the past few months I have discovered Etsy, which basically is an online platform for really creative people to sell pieces that they have made or designed such as jewellery, clothes, personalised blogger templates and phone covers, just to name a few (there's much more). But as someone who loves a good phone cover I always find that etsy.com by far have the most original designs and completely unique from anything that you will find in any Carphone Warehouse shop. Also they are priced higher than your average phone cover but this is because they are one of a kind hand made gifts, and still reasonable to justify paying the premium. Below are some of the phone covers that I love which can be found by clicking into the Etsy link above.

2. Fur Gillet

For the winter it is essential to wrap up because it seems to be getting colder each year. So fur is the obvious choice, yes? And now I am mad about the idea of a fur gillet and was absolutely delighted to find this amazing one in my local Promod, and I wasn't even aware of this shop until recently. When I buy from the high street I usually try and stick to a specific budget and this would normally be out of my budget so I'm really hoping that if I drop enough subtle hints that it may just appear under my tree on the 25th........

3. Free People 

This next idea is inspired by a website called freepeople.com, which is an online fashion boutique based in Australia. I love this place because every thing they sell is bohemian themed and if I could afford it I would literally buy the whole website, but I can't! So for the minute I have just hand picked my favourite bits.

Khaki Vest $13

Denim Waistcoat $170

Beige Denims $22

Tan Ankle boots $145

Black Soft Leather Satchel $465 

All can be purchased at freepeople.com

4. Instagram Gifts

Instagram is fast becoming one of the most popular platforms for social media addicts. Personalli I cant get enough of it (@cicijewels) and think that these personalised gifts centred around photos that have been posted by your friends are a really nice and thoughtful gift. The following are just a few ways that you can create a really special gift for someone.

 StitchGram
This site allows you to personalise gifts such as pillows, christmas stockings, bags and purses.

Printstagr

These guys can professioanl print your instagram pictures and put it together like a book/memoir so you can remember those special moments long after your post has been published. 

Postgram

So if you have at least 50 images on your instagram account these guys can create a stunning poster similar to the one below. 

5. MAC Eyeshadow Palette 


AS I've stated previously, during the winter months I prefer to go darker and edgier with eye make up (even during the day), so I am always on the look out for colours that  1) I haven't used before or 2) that I haven't used in awhile. Right now I am searching for deep purple tones with a glitter underlay. It is also a common fact that investing in eye shadow palettes is definitely the way to go because of the variety of colours, tones and endless experimenting.  MAC offer a great palette containing four base eye shadows (of your choice) for 40 Euro. This is amazing value and will definitely make nay girl happy.

6. Downton Abbey Season 4 

If any of you follow me on twitter (@cicijewels) you will already know that I am OBSESSED with this series. Last Christmas I got the boxset with series 1, 2 and 3, and spent the rest of the month gripped by Lady Mary, The Crawleys and the waiting staff. If you haven't seen any of it, invest! And if you have I would say pick up season 4 because it doesn't disappoint.

7. MAC Lipstick and Liner 




So instead of picking obvious colours for my next lipstick purchase I decided to be a little bit more adventurous and I am going with brown! Normally I would not even think twice about this but while sampling various shades at the MAC counter, I really surprised myself at how much I warmed to the earthy tones. I finally settled on a tone : Lusturing  Lipstick  and Film Noir Lip Liner to match. A great fresh look for the party season which will be sure to grab some attention!



So that's it! My list is short but sweet and if I could have it all I would be a very happy girl :) Wishful thinking........

Hope you found this interesting/helpful.

Love C X 

Sweet Velvetine

There is something about this time of year that always makes me want to wear velvet, particularly burgundy velvet. I always have this image in my head of a specific dress; skater skirt, sleeves to the elbow, scoop neck, very simple. But yet I have not found it anywhere. This time I am determined that I am going to find it! 

Velvet is also appearing more and more frequently in high street shops in the form of mostly crop tops and skater skirts. Personally I am not a big fan of crop tops, but the later I love and will definitely pick them up in black and burgundy. I'm picturing a lace top teamed with a dark rose lip to give an overall Gothic feel for the Christmas. 

The biggest shake up in the reviving trend is the breakthrough of velvet boots. These can be bought in virtually any fashion outlet at the minute. My favourite (Christmas wish list!) are from River Island for 65Euro, and will go with everything, therefore completely worth the money. Urban Outfitters is another brand which have lots of velvet options in at the minute. To mic things up a little I've been spotting this Navy Overall Skirt which although is way more than I would pay for a skirt at $110 (roughly 81Euro), I just think that there is something quite special about it and I haven't seen anything like it on the high street. Is it worth the money??

 One of the most influential style sources of our generation, Vogue, has suggested that those who are not entirely comfortable sporting a velvet outfit (sometimes it can be quite unflattering) could subtly embrace the look with the aid of a velvet fedora/jewellery/bag. It doesn't have to be an in your face statement. Vogue recommend investing in the "Rabbit Felt and Velvet Hat" by Maison Michel for $950, which is ridiculous! Pop down to H&M and pick up a brilliant replica for £12.99.

Back in September I wrote a post called Turkish Delight and I spoke about my love for a particular bohemian lifestyle that resembled Turkish and Moroccan markets.I also think this post has something similar to offer in that velvet co-ordinates this style effectively. If you need any more encouraging on the effects refer back to the previous post (link above). 

Love C X 

Ooh Girl, Love your Style: Nicole Richie

Love love love this girl so much that I just had to dedicate something on this blog to her. I seem to have a wide variety of different style crushes from celebs to girls who I hang out with so I've come up with a little idea to every now and then post a little piece on how I much I appreciate their particular style, so i had to start with Nicole Richie. She has come such a long way from The Simple Life with Paris Hilton when pink tracksuits were the daily attire. Over the years she has become a mother, got married, gained a sense of style and ditched Paris, all of which have created wonders for her. I am a little obsessed with any BoHo look, but she seems to always look great. effortlessly beautiful. 

The other day when I was looking for images, quotes etc of Nicole Richie, I ended up on this website starstyle.com. At first I honestly didn't know what I was actually looking at due to the cluttered layout of the site, but when you look past this aspect it is actually a great website to guide you where to buy certain aspects to re-create various looks and styles from the fashion icons. Her style is described as "laid back bohemian" and is very much reflected in her fashion boutique House of Harlow 1960. My favourite part of this brand has to be the jewellery collection. With gold and aztec as the fore fronting theme for the collection, it has Ms Richies signature style all over it. 

"Fashion give you the ability to express yourself, your mood; it's a creative outlet in many ways."

"I've always loved the possibility of being able to transform yourself through the way of dress". 

Nicole Richie 

Love C X 

In The Name of Fashion.....

Since I started this blog a couple of months ago I have found myself being more intuitive to up-coming trends, street style and editorials a bit more than I had before. This way I feel as though I am consistently gaining fresh ideas and keeping the creativity alive, and so far this has been going quiet well for me. I mostly talk about trends that I particularly like as this is what comes naturally to me, but just the other day I stumbled across an article in the latest issue of Company Magazine (one of my favourite reads every month) and discovered that this months unlikely trend is "Cathedral". At first I was a little intrigued to read the little segment on this along with the images of potential pieces to buy but the further I looked and thought about it, I have to say it just all seemed a little creepy. The take on the trend is an updated to the Baroque theme which was a massive hit last winter and I was a massive fan of certain elements such as gold embellishments and velvet textures, but I think this may be taking things a little too far.

It's funny that I am a little creeped out by this print because in all other forms of life such as music, photography, TV shows, I enjoy anything that is a bit ery, dark and minimal. But honestly there is just something when it comes to religion that doesn't settle too well with me, not that I am an atheist in anyway, I just can't feel comfortable with wearing the virgin Mary on my t-shirt all day.

Once I had seen that this was going to be an up-coming trend I decided to do a little research and see how developed this "look" had become so far and it seems that it is initialling in the early stages. There are certain parts to the traditional Baroque theme which seem to have remained in tack, such as the certain jem-like print items which have undergone a slight maker over to resemble a church stain glass window (this I think I can get over).

                                  

Certain elements really link back to past runway shows from designers such as Alexander Mc Queen and Chanel, which I spoke about in Reviving the Runway. I am yet to see this actually on people or in shops but my personal opinion is that only a small handful of people will actually wear these "in your face" Virgin Mary t-shirts. 

Love C X 

November Loves .....

Chiffon Blouse, H&M, 18 Euro

Levi Acid Ripped Denims, Etsy, 34 Euro

Kookie Black Heel Platform, SPY LOVE BUY, 31 Euro

Double Triangle Necklace, Accessory Foundry, 27 Euro

Eastern Delight Rings, ASOS.com, 20 Euro

Floppy Brim Fedora, Rag & Bone, 130 Euro

BlissfulCASE Galaxy Pink Cover, Boticca, 22 Euro

60's Collection Lennon Glasses, 80's Purple, 6.69 Euro 

Heart of Flames Nail Polish, Etsy, 6.69 Euro 

Love C X 

High Life Through The Lens

A couple of months back I watched an intriguing documentary about a photographer by the name of Bill Cunningham (if you haven't heard of him before, google him now!). The man is  living legend. Acting fashion photographer for the New York Times, he has been "obsessively and inventively chronicling fashion trends and high society soiree's" for decades, and has created the street style phenomenally high standards which we have today. As Anna Wintour once said when asked about Bill Cunningham, "We all dress up for Bill". 

For as long as I can remember I have always been interested in fashion and this interest has been endorsed by buying infamous titles such as Marie Claire, Vogue, Elle etc, so fashion photography has been instilled in my love for fashion from a young age. It was only when I saw this documentary "Bill Cunningham New York" that I began to understand the task of fashion photography and the great depts of the industry. For anyone that has the slightest remote interest in the fashion editorial world I highly recommend this documentary. 

 

As I have said so many times now I'm highly addicted to Pinterest, although my love for Tumblr is growing, my one true love is Pinterest. As I have been so interested in fashion photography, or photography in general, I find this is a fantastic platform to access breath-taking images which can inspire you with ideas for your own fashion photos or, from my personal blogging perspective, inspire post ideas. As someone who is relatively new to blogging and still learning the ropes of the "blogging world", I know photography is a massive contribution to why people are interested in specific blogs and I aim to share with you the most amazing fashion photo's I find (personal style photos included). 

Kate Moss by Kate Garner

Ulyana Sergeenko SS13 by Nickolas Sushkevichr

Caroline Loosen by Julia Saller 

Fashion Crowns by Terry Richardson 

While in my final year of college I worked on my FYP for of intense months which was focused on a Fashion PR, Styling and Events company. During this time I put together many presentations detailing the company concept and various reasons why this would work and be successful. This company was Factory F. I loved every minute of the process and although I am not launching a company right now I realised that it is something that I aim to accomplish in the future, and it birthed the idea for this blog also! But the main reason I am even talking about this project now is for my presentations I used some of the images which are above and added "professionalism" and "depth" to my project according to my lecturers, and I received very good marks also. 

I am forever pinning amazing photos and saving them onto my desktop, particularly fashion editorials and street style images. If you are ever in need of some visually inspiration for your fashion blog, assignment or just life ingeneral, photography is a great mechanism for your imagination and ingenuity. 

Love C X