The Hotness - Pump Action

For what has got to be the first time in recent memory, flat shoes have made their way to the top of partywear footwear lists.

Flat shoes might seem to take some of the fun out of dressing up, but sometimes, just sometimes, its nice to have a little injection of comfort.

The party season is THE season for dressing up to the nines for no apparent reason so if you're going for flat shoes, make sure the rest of your outfit is the hotness. In my humble opinion, flat shoes by night work very well when worn with very short skirts and dresses. And they look better when work with tights too. It helps tone it down just a teeny weeny bit.

So a thigh skimming, barely covers your bum LBD or black sequinned mini, a bright pop of colour with the tights (www.tigerbites.blogspot.com/2008/11/bit-of-leg.html...and some spingly sparkly ballerinas. Cuteness.




And you just knew I'd say the more sparkly the better. Be the dancing queen in these fabulously sparkly little pieces of joy from
www.faith.co.uk £21.54


Or if you prefer you spingly sparkly shimmer and shine with a little more sophistication, go for these black ballerinas. BP Edie from www.nordstrom.com $49.95.


And why not take a delicate pirouette on the wild side with these calf hair leopard print ballerinas? Fabulous. www.nordstrom.com $49


Jewelled is the way forward. Love these. www.asos.com £15.

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Oh my, these Antik Batik are very sophisticated aren't they? There's something about black suede that is so much more sexy than black leather n'est pas? www.asos.com £100 now down to £80.


And last but not least, a good dose of girlie fabulosity. Dolce Vita metallic pink leather ballerinas from www.nordstrom.com $69.95

The Hotness - Take a Leaf

I'm definitely feeling the new very seasonal trend that's been creeping up on the horizon for accessories inspired by nature. And most specifically, the leaf.


These fabulous leaf inspired earrings are from California Hot new brand, Ateliette. A bargaintastic $20. Love it. I have a pair and they're fabulous, big earrings that are light as a feather, in 50 years time your ears will thank you for them.


Or how about this fantabulous pendant? Its a real leaf dipped in copper!
Regular readers know I love to give kudos to Etsy as and when I can. This pendant is by Elilu Designs or follow this link.....
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?ref=sr_gallery_2&listing_id=18486013
www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?ref=sr_gallery_2&listing_id=18486013


One of my favourite jewellery designers of all time is the short and wrinkly Kenneth Jay Lane, the guy just keeps churning out fashion finds. I'm loving this cuff and the best bit about a hinged cuff is you can wear it on your upper arm too when you feel like it. Nubian style.
www.shopbop.com

Song of The Day: Lady Gaga - Just Dance

Bright, Pretty and Quirky Party Shoes

I've just found one of the most fantastic new shoe websites I've come across in a long time.

www.kitty-cooper.co.uk

Kitty Cooper Laura £240 now £120. You get a choice of three fabulously decadent brocade.




Kitty Cooper, Dina £235 now 115. You can choose from the luxurious looking dove blue silk satin, chesnut or wood smoke nubuck. And yes, they all come with that seriously hot pink heel.


Kitty Cooper, I love the Tamara for their quirky appeal. Cute and fun, quite possibly a bit more of a daytime shoe but it depends, as always where you're going. Is it just me or is the social arena awash with weddings this Xmas? If you're going to one, and intend to be the hotness, these shoes would work a treat. £230 now £115.


I'm in all types of love with the layout, look and photography on the site and they've even had the decency to put almost everything on sale...and that's on top of the VAT drop. The shoes are bright, pretty and quirky and are the perfect type of shoes to work by day, by night, by brunch, by lunch, by dinner.

And quite frankly in these hard economic times, while I do advocate buying less and buying better over the cheap nonsense that WILL fall apart from the cheap and cheerful retailers....you also need to make sure you putting your cash down for items that will work hard in your wardrobe.

The shoes are definitely very ladylike and a bit proper, but when you work your magic with the dress, the clutch, the gems.....you will be ....the hotness.

The Hotness - Party Clutch

I'm a HUGE fan of a cute clutch. There's something about the sophisticated elegance of a cute clutch in the evening, whether you're wearing jeans or a slinky dress, a clutch is the perfect accessory for you look.

I've never been a big fan of Accessorize, a little too made in China looking for me!

BUT I have to say, I'm eating my words right as as even though these babies were undoubtedly made in China for peanuts, they're tooo cute!


I'm loving the 20s flapper style influence on the style of this clutch. The scalloped edges, the all over beading, the colour, the hotness. And only £17.40.


I'm loving the screen siren-esque glamour of this one. The minaudière (small hard cased ornamental case) is big news this Xmas and this one is f.a.b.u.l.o.u.s.

And with the VAT reduction, the prices are even more bargaintastic.

Take a look for yourselves www.monsoon.co.uk/icat/accessorize

The Hotness - Work to Play Outfit

With the increased traffic and the rapidly increasing invitations, a lot fo women just don't have the time to go home and get changed before heading out to yet another hot party.

So this is where you need the perfect day to evening outfit.

And I'm in all types of love with this dress, from www.asos.com, down to £29.37


By day, wear it with cute ballet pumps, thick knit black tights and a chunky black cardigan if you're in wintery climes.

Faith Ayork £28.
If you're a tropical beauty, wear it with cute ballet pumps and a lightweight cardi.

Keep the jewellery to a minimum to keep your look fuss free.




By night, amp up your sex appeal with these glam glad inspired heels from Nine West.

Nine West Jamil Heels $89


Inge Christopher St Petersburg Clutch $230


Ateliette San Francisco Earrings $25

With this cute clutch and some fabulously seasonal earrings, a perhaps a wide gold cuff...and you dear reader, will be the office party hotness.

Enjoy.

xoxo

The Hotness - Ruffle My Feathers

And as its the 1st December today and the official start of the party season, I'm giving you two pieces of fabulosity.

The black dress is timeless and classic in its sophiticated elegance. A great one or two or three will mean you ALWAYS have something to wear to that party you need to go to. Go wild with the accessories as how you choose to accessorise can totally transform your look.

Okay, I'm sure a lot of you look at this and think the ruffles add inches and have an unflattering way of making you look bigger all over. NOT TRUE! I just tried one on and not only did I fall in love with it as soon as it was on, it was supremely and surprisingly flattering giving a much more va-va-voom effect than expected. I'd recommend you stick to simple, bold colours to avoid looking too twee and work some serious magic with your accessories.



Take this simple but so damn sexy ruffled dress from Calvin Klein. $198....A price that makes it more of an investment classic LBD than disposable fashion. BUT with disposable fashion, just bear in mind that ultimately somebody pays the price. I'm not saying the more expensive the item the better, au contraire, I know enough about fashion and manufacturing to know that's certainly not the case (Louis Vuitton, please stand up). But I do wonder with that £5 dress, how much the underage, underfed workers got paid. Fair trade my ass.

So now that I've got your head round the numbers, lets get our heads round the accessories. The picture shows the dress in all in fabulous simplicity. Great. That's the best starting point.

Now picture yourself in it.
With your hair up in a messy ponytail.

Add some beaten gold earrings for a little ethnic je ne sais quoi (Monica Vinader £185)


And an erickson beamon style cuff for a bit of bad girl bling.


Throw on these fantabulous Christian Louboutin (yes, him again) Bretelle heels.


And bring on the colour riot with this fab purple alligator VBH clutch.


And where would the signature Tiger Tem style be without a quirky Bobby Dazzler? Loving this Alex Monroe Twig Citrine ring.


And dear reader, you would have gone from how pretty to gad-damn....she's the hotness.

Enjoy.

xx

The Hotness - One Shouldered Wonder

The asymmetric strap has been hovering on the horizon for a while now.

They're so popular as they offer little more coverage and a more interesting neckline than strapless, they're a little more edgy and contemporary than spaghetti straps and halter necks and they're just undeniably sexy.

And interesting neckline always attracts attention to the wearer so get out your best strapless bras (sagginess and over exposure being the biggest fashion faux pas in my book), leave out the necklaces, don a chunky cuff and load up the superstar earrings....and you dear reader, will be .....the hotness.

I prefer strappy shoes with long dresses (the point being sophisticated elegance) and the chunkier clunkier platforms with cocktail dresses (the point being attention grabbing glamourpuss). So now you know.



Ok, so the $288 price tag on the ABS by Allen Schwartz dress isn't necessarily credit crunch friendly. I am an advocate of buy less and buy better. Instead of a wardrobe full of crap, focus on a few timeless key pieces that will hold up longer than some Primark nonsense.

BUT there are deals galore to make the most of this season. Retailers need you, and don't you forget that. So don't be afraid to bring out the Ijebu in you and haggle like a Moroccan Kasbah carpet seller. I just did that at a big department store for a fabulous dress and convinced them to go from 20% off to 40% off.....RESULT!

....Nothing to lose ladies, not even any shame in that game. If you succeed, share your stories please!

Enjoy.