True Colours Are Beautiful

As most of you fashionistas out there are probably aware, the natural world has been a huge source of inspiration for fashion designers all over the globe, from reworking prints such as leopard and zebra to using poweful images of animals such as gorillas and prehistoric animals on T-shirts and dresses. So I decided to get jiggy with the whole animal kingdom inspiration thing and today my muse is the the little ladybird.Tiny it may be, but from a colour perspective it packs a punch, translate that into the world of fashion and you're onto a winning formula, at least for those of you out there, who like to get noticed! Beware this colour combo is not for the faint of heart! My advice keep hair and makeup simple. So here are some of my favourite ladybird looks for this A/W, some as usual are a little playful! In case any of you are wondering, the red and black sculpture of a eighteenth century lady is a cake! Sx

You Need Your Greens Too!

Hi there gals, I decided to try and balance our Style diet with a few delicous green and ethical picks today, its a really great feeling buying clothes that don't compromise on Style, but enable the people who make them to live dignified lives, or keep our precious planet healthy, to pass on to future generations.My Dad is Nepalese and lives in his home country of Nepal (I was born in the UK), some of you may have heard of, home to the Himalayan mountains and one of the poorest countries in the world. Gradually things are improving in Nepal as more and more co-operatives are set up which ensure men and woman receive a fair days pay for making their beautiful handmade garments.Giving us all somthing to smile about.

I just had share some of these beautiful bags from ethical clothing company Hug, I think their silver wrapper bag is pure genuis (made from crisp packets) and metalics are set to stay. Next up is this sweet organic cotton dot bag, I love its mosaic like quality, followed by this stunning Peacock purse in shimmering turquoise which, would you believe it is under £6.00! I have a feeling Koralee might quite like this!Their felt Emily bag is so clever, it combines the structure of a leather bag with the softness of felt, it comes in chocolate also. Moving onto Autumn /Winter wear, hopefully by now, there is not a sniff of a candy/chocolate bar in sight, as you are feverishly fixated on my hot and healthy Style picks. Just think the extra pounds/dollars spent on chocolate/candy could mean that you could start to build up some juicy ethical buys.Ok starting with sweaters we have a hand knitted designer led, ink black tank and sweater with pretty embroidered detailing on the front of the tank and as a necklace feature on the sweater, made in Nepal, all by People Tree. Next I have a whole host of lip smacking lovelies for you, how about this hand woven dogtooth dress with contempory silk paneling on the shoulder or this handwoven rich magenta and orange totem dress ( one of my personal favourites). I was inspired by People Trees flamboyant beautifully made Kimono Style pieces, both the Kimono top and dress are made from organic cotton.The Kimono dress showcases, sections of striking red, black and white striped paneling and could be worn for either day or evening with the right accessories and the blouse is feminine but strong and as you can see works really well with black.  Im sure this will delight you gals who love black, Angela Henrie springs to mind! My finale pick is this stunning reycycled teardrop sari dress, in red black and grey.If all else fails and you simply couldn't resist the chocolate/candy, why not go for a Divine chocolate/Candy bar its fairtrade! Visit People Tree at http://www.peopletree.co.uk/ or Hug at http://www.hug.co.uk/

Just wanted to say a big thank-you to all of you who take the the time to read my Style posts and for following me, I really appreciate it and I enjoy reading all your comments, you are one Stylish bunch!  Sx   

Patterned Princesses Unite!

   

Hi everyone great to see you again! Summer may be leaving us, but this Autumn/Winter, patterns more than make up for gloomier days! A candy store full of colour, extravagant patterns and a playful approache to wearing this seasons hottest patterned pieces like these Missoni inspired high tops, are what makes Winter 2009 the best season of all to be experimenting with your Style. 

I have picked out my hot favourites for you, some of these patterns are old friends we have seen before that have been reworked to create a more contempory feel, like this sweet skinny lepard print dress from Warehouse or their grey lepard pencil skirt. Red and fuschia are both strong colours this A/W and I love the way red pattern has been used in this pillar box red two piece above, vintage with a modern and strident feel to it.

Gallianos three pieces are decadent, mysterious and romantic at the same time, a paricularly masterful and sophisticated look to achieve, his textured and patterned Russian inspired couture sent sparks flying of the runway! 

Warehouse are real genuises in my opinion when it comes to high street accessories that make you feel really special, but without the sting of a high price tag. I adore their red jaquard tights, which would rescue the plainest dress or skirt and their paisley tights if you wanting to create a romantic look. This gorgeous Aztec sequined belt in black and red will I predict fly off their shelves, its not hard to see why its so Art Deco and oozes opulance!Then there is their take on this years popular tartan jacket in maroon and grey  with a bib style collar and nipped in waist, soft but Stylish.I looove tartan, its huge this A/W as punk gets a revival and the flattering ever popular 50s lady like chic makes a return but tartan is not an easy pattern to work with or wear, if you get the colour combinations wrong or the balance in putting an outfit together, it can easily look brash and trashy. 

Finally we started with a pop of colour so we are ending with a pop of colour and pattern in this fleur de lys yellow and black dress and matching shoes, so sharp you could cut your finger and this gorgeous off the shoulder candy stripe evening dress! I love the elegance and the boldness of the designer in using  yellow and contrasting it with black.Bumblee chic!Sx 

In need of some expert Style Advice? If you follow My Passport to Style and subscribe to my posts, then you are welcome to post me in your latest Style dilemmas and the first one to be selected at random will feature here, you will be left a message to say you have been selected! Good luck and start posting in those burning Style dilemmas/questions!  

Black To Basics - Fun Wardobe Workout With Sharon!

This morning post was inspired by a recent trip to buy a new winter mac, I chose a minature hounds tooth pattern in the end, which I love, as it looks sooo sharp! I have as I have said in previous post, at times had a bit of a love hate relationship with black, purely from a Stylists point of view, it can easily drain all the colour from your face if your not careful. It can cheapen any colour that you are wearing, it can  look hard and unyielding, it can even cheapen the look of black fabric and conjur up images of polyester rather than cotton or silk or wool. 

However alot of women derive comfort from having vast quatities of the stuff in their wardrobes, which I usually encourage them very gently of course, to let go of and to start intoducing a colour palette that will energise their wardrobe and work for their skin tone.Of course it can be quite scary to reduce the number of black clothing items that we consider to be fail safe neutrals in our wardrobe.We are often tempted to remain faithful to black, due to what we perceive to be the magical slimming properties that black clothing has to offer plus our blind sweet belief that black clothing goes with practicaly anything! Its a little bit like saying, a staple pantry food like baked beans goes with everything, they probably do, but this does not mean they necessairly enhance the other elements of food on our plate. Ok that was a little gloomy, but hopefully food for thought, if not useful. Now for the good stuff,where black really comes into its own in my opinion is in the detailing of an outfit. It is literally like taking the control for your television and playing with the contrast button till you have that satifying crispness and clarity to the image in front of you.If you think about my hounds tooth coat, the back sharpens the white and the injection of pattern means the overall effect is crisp,but without looking hard, pure genuis!

Of course I do appreciate that the hard, masculine and edgy are all huge trends this A/W, but the trick here is still to bring in plenty of feminine elements to your outfit and grooming, such as soft full hair or a slouchy bag and to use varying textures of back or tonal shades, such as silver, pewter or slate.We all have that adorable fail safe black dress in our wardrobe, why and when does this piece work well? 1) You have olive or yellow tones in your skin, 2) you have young plump pale skin, with no dark shadows under the eyes! 3) You can wear the neckline low, exposing your skin, which means you are not wearing black directly next to your face.4) Cheat!! Tan your face olive rather than orange with a good quality bronzer! My absolute favourite at the moment that comes in a divinely packaged gold and black box, which would make a gorgeous and very useful gift, for any pale friends you might have and helps recreate that expensive glow, is enhance by makebelieve, sunbeam bronzer and blush.There is the option to buy the whole system,which includes concealer, tinted moisturiser,which has been great for my open pores and I would not be with out, now autumn has set in, a highlighter and a nude lip gloss.

Long live black in its rightful kingdom!

S x