Showing posts with label Bristol. Show all posts

Christmas shopping evening at Clifton Rocks

Tonight Clifton Rocks is having a Christmas shopping evening. I’ve blogged about Clifton rocks in the past (here) it’s a brilliant independent jewellery boutique in Clifton owned by the very lovely Clare Chandler. She stocks a whole host of gorgeous designers alongside her own collection, and prices start at a very tempting £10 so there’s something for every budget.

The evening will not only have you sipping wine while you browse for the perfect Christmas present (or, let’s be honest a little something for yourself) but you’ll also be able to get 10% off everything and up to 20% on some selected items!
I can’t think of a better way to spend my time shopping for Christmas gifts, but if you still need some persuading then scroll down...

Skull drop earrings by Bjorg - £140

Silver/oxidised silver/gold plate silver berry necklaces by Hannah Bedford from £115

Mixed dome cufflinks - £75 by Claire Chandler - £99

Silver, gold plate heart and garnet locket by Clare Chandler- £135

Gold plate and smoky quartz ring, silver and phrenite ring, gold plate and pearl ring. £35 , £45 and £39

Silver and rock crystal snowflake bracelet by Dorit - £172

MyStreetChic.com is giving you the chance to win some fabulous fashion prizes!

Shop mannequins will be appearing around Bristol as part of a city-wide style competition from 11 – 18 July 2011.

The Street Chic team will be placing ten mannequins around the city between 11 – 18 July. All you need to do to be in with a chance of winning, is find the mannequins (with the help of a few clues via the mystreetchic.com, Facebook and Twitter) photograph the two of you together and share your style credentials with the rest of Bristol’s style savvy by uploading the image to MyStreetChic.com.

“We were fed up of seeing stick thin models in the fashion press and wanted to give real people the opportunity to show off their sense of style,” explained MyStreetChic.com Editor, Gina Dyer.

“By uploading your photos to MyStreetChic.com, you’ll get the chance to create a more accurate picture of what stylish means for real women in Bristol, and maybe even influence the city’s trends –as well as winning some fabulous prizes”.

So come on, show off your style and inspire others to try something different and you could be in line to receive a fabulous fashion prize!

MyStreetChic.com launches in Bristol

I bet you thought I’d given up on blogging...well no, I’ve just been so busy with clients that I’ve rather neglected it (again). Anyway, I’m back, and with news of a just launched, fabulous new Bristol based fashion website - MyStreetChic.com.

Image courtesy of Elena Goodrum,
Make up - Verity Gough,
Clothes and accessories - Shop Dutty and Elsie Riley

It’s THE place to go if you love fashion, clothes and styling. Gina Dyer, Editor of MyStreetChic.com describes Bristol as being “home to a hotbed of different styles. MyStreetChic.com aims to celebrate what’s best in the West for fashion”, and I totally agree! I love Bristol for just that reason, anything goes and locals aren’t afraid to experiment with their look, check out some serious street style here.

To celebrate the launch of MyStreetChic.com, Bristol hairdressers will attempt to set the World Record for the highest number of topknot hairstyles completed in one day in a special event at Cabot Circus on Saturday 11 June.
The event, organised by MyStreetChic.com, will see local shoppers’ hair transformed into the iconic topknot style as part of a speed styling challenge. A team from Robin James Salon Ltd will attempt to get through as many topknots as possible to score a World Record – and put Bristol firmly on the style map.

Image courtesy of Lee Stafford

I’ve tried to pull off a top knot, but somehow I never quite get it right, but if you want to rock the latest look and look fabulous to boot then, head down to the MyStreetChic.com stand in the main street at Cabot Circus on Saturday 11 June between 10am and 6pm and take part in the Great Topknot Challenge.

Back to Bristol

Now that I’m living with my mum and dad in Bath, I’m finding it very hard to resist girly days out with my Mum. Yesterday, I gave myself a well earned day off and drove Mum to Bristol for a spot of shopping, coffee drinking and deli eating. I know I've only been living in Bath for a week but I have to admit I really am missing Bristol. I miss being in walking distance to my friends and I miss the Bristol buzz. Bath is lovely but it’s so different to Bristol.

Our day of shopping started in Clifton Village and The Arcade, a part of Bristol I love rummaging in. It’s changed since I was there last; there are some great new shops. I went into a gorgeous craft shop – I Love Crafty. It was full of lovely presents perfect for Mothers day but with my mum was in toe I couldn’t make any purchases. I’m pleased to say however that they have a website so I’ll be visiting it later today before it’s too late.

Next I walked straight into fab vintage shop Clifton Vintage Boutique (I took some photo’s but they really don’t do it justice – note to self – must buy a decent camera!!) and spotted a really cute, blue, floral fifties dress, I wish I’d tried it on now; my wardrobe could really do with an injection of this seasons florals!

After the delights of Clifton Village, we jumped back in the car and drove to Park Street to visit my favourite shop Whistles. I must have tried on half the shop but was lucky to have a very patient sales assistant. I was naughty and made a couple of purchases, a blue shift dress, perfect for Personal Shopping trips, and a high waist pleated skirt that fit’s like a glove and will slot seamlessly into my wardrobe. Being a pear shape I love this seasons fifties inspired skirts that are springing up everywhere.

On our way home we popped to Cribbs Causeway, and then home for a much needed cup of tea. It was a long day but really lovely. I’ll find it hard to resist more girly days out – and they’re a great excuse to go back to Bristol.

New Hobbs store

I know...three posts in one day is unheard of from me! Well, I’ve got some catching up to do as I’ve been offline for far too long. The main reason is that I’ve been busy sorting out wardrobes and taking lovely clients shopping, but the other reason is that I’ve been in the process of moving house. I’m pleased to say that everything went to plan and we completed on Friday so things are starting to get back to normal, well kind of, my husband, dog and I are now living with my parents so it’s not quite normal, but it’s very nice all the same.

My office has taken some setting up, I hadn’t quite realised what an undertaking it would be but thankfully it’s done and so I’m able to pay my rather neglected blog some attention and start to get through the huge mound of admin that’s piled up.

So, I’ll stop rambling and will get on with my next post of the day, and this is, as promised, all about Hobbs.

Hobbs is a brand that I regularly use for clients, I find that it suits a range of people and mixes fabulous wardrobe staples with fashion items. So when I heard that they were opening a standalone store at Cribbs Causeway I was over the moon, anything that makes my life a little easier and my client’s wardrobes a little better is always a winner.

For those of you who don’t know Hobbs or haven’t been in for a while, it’s what I’d describe as quintessentially English with a little dash of quirkiness.

This season’s collection is so strong and I love their NW3 range, that’s got to be my favourite collection of the season so far. Unfortunately the NW3 range isn’t available at the new store, although I’ve got my fingers crossed that it makes an appearance. For now it can be sourced from John Lewis and the Hobbs store in Bath (which by the way is huge and full of lovely things).

Here are a few of my favourite pieces from Hobbs spring/summer collection, along with my must haves from the NW3 collection.

Hobbs

NW3

Images courtesy of PR Shots

More photos from Gok's roadshow in Bristol

The Bristol-based episode of Gok’s Road show will be aired on Channel 4 tonight! Here are some more photos from the finale of Gok’s stylish week in Bristol. The not so great one’s are mine (it was freezing and I was shivering) and the other’s are courtesy of Elaine Teh.

As always, Gok styled three women. I have to say they looked gorgeous as they shimmied down the catwalk. Make sure you’re watching Channel four at 8pm to see who won the fashion face off.

Courtesy of Elaine Teh

Behind the scene at Gok’s Road-show!

Meant to post this before I went away on holiday but ran out of time...

My friend Naomi and I nervously made our way to Cabot Circus, not really too sure what to expect. Emotions were a mixture of excitement (we were going to witness Gok’s magic firsthand!) and nervousness at the prospect of potentially being on TV.

We were amongst some of Bristol’s fashion students and hair stylists, privileged to be invited by Endemol to take part in an intimate seminar with Gok Wan for his new “fashion fix” road-show on Channel 4.

As soon as we arrived outside the venue, the filming started. We were asked to peer excitedly through the window waiting to be welcomed in by Gok, it was raining and cold (I was hoping I’d put enough hairspray on my fringe to withstand the elements) but it wasn’t long before we were called inside and positioned around the set for more filming. The set was styled beautifully, there was a selection of yummy shoes and bags perfectly positioned, jewellery dripped from the walls and oozed from the dressing table. I’d love to wake up to a dressing room like that every morning!

With his ‘stitch bitch’ Andy on hand to alter anything and everything, Gok worked his magic turning a rather plain dress into something that I wish I’d had for a Christmas party back in December (photo's to follow after the program is aired - wouldn't want to ruin the surprise!). The outfit he created was to compete with Brix Smith-Start at the fashion face off later that week. He showed us that with some imagination and a pair of scissors, it’s quite possible to create an outfit that not only looks expensive but that is completely unique – something that’s getting harder and harder to create thanks to the massive choice of clothing available to us now.

Although the show is very much about fashion, it was great to see how important it was to him to work with the body shape and movement of the model. I think that all too often, women wear the seasons ‘must have” item regardless of whether it actually suits or flatters them. It’s so important to take into account your body shape, personality and lifestyle if you’re going to create a truly perfect outfit that suits you.

A big part of my job is showing women how to wear more of the items they have hanging in their wardrobe, as so many of us only wear a tiny percentage of what we actually have. Sometimes it only takes a little tweak here and there to dramatically change the shape and fit of a garment, altering it from something you were never wearing, into an essential part of your wardrobe. Clothes are designed to be altered; they have to be as we are not all the same shape, but Gok takes it one step further and shows us that not only can we carry out minor alterations for a better fit, but if we stand back and find our creativity side we can completely alter the look of a garment and turn it into something that’s totally unique.

I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I have to admit I was genuinely impressed by Gok. Not many of us have the imagination and vision that Mr Wan has so I fully recommend tuning in to Gok’s fashion road-show for some inspiration to help you to wear more of those un-worn items taking up space in your wardrobe.

Charity shop challenge part two

So, here’s the results of the charity shop challenge, I hope it inspires you to visit your local charity shops to dress to give!

Photography Matt Collins: 07968 062859 or http://www.crushimages.co.uk/

Styling Niki Whittle: http://www.nikiwhittle.com/

Hair and make-up Dagmara Kojda: 07788 930902

Gok’s back in Bristol this week!

If you loved his fashion fix series then you’ll not want to miss his latest one – Gok’s taking his catwalk on the road, bringing his Fashion master classes to the masses, and Bristol is one of the chosen destinations!

Gok will take on fellow style expert and fashion foe, Brix Smith-Start, in one of the show’s most popular segments, the high street versus designer face-off. Models will be sent down the runway to show off different outfits chosen by Gok, championing the best of the high street, and by Brix, who favours exclusive designers, while members of the audience get to vote on their favourite.

For those who don’t want to miss out on the fun, everyone is invited to take part in this amazing fashion first for Bristol. Taking place on Friday 28 January at 5.00pm underneath the glass roof at Cabot Circus, the ‘Gok’s Roadshow’ catwalk finale promises fun, fashion and drama!

I’ve been invited to attend an intimate fashion seminar, where Gok will be working his magic and turning high-street clothes into high end fashion looks, I promise to share pics and tips with you when I get home!!! I’m so excited but there is one problem...what to wear?!

Charity shop challenge for Venue magazine - part 1

Four people, a selection of day and night outfits each, all sourced from charity shops – impossible you might think...but no, Bristol’s local Charity shops impressed me no end!

With Bristol photographer Matt Collins in toe, Rachel Nott (Folio magazine’s editor) myself and two gorgeous models, spent a Saturday rummaging through the treasures in Oxfam in Clifton, St Peter’s Hospice in Bedminster and Cancer Research UK on Gloucester rd. We spent almost five hours collecting - and trying on of course - clothes and accessories to create fabulous outfits, at bargain prices, to be featured in Venue Magazine.

With many of us having to tighten our purse strings at the moment, it’s the perfect time to show you that looking good doesn’t have to cost a fortune. With a little imagination and a good selection of accessories it’s possible to create some great looks from your local Charity shop.

I love a good rummage and often find little gems from charity shops, flea markets and vintages shops to add uniqueness to my wardrobe, but I must admit, I’ve never tried to create complete outfits using only charity shop items. I was a little apprehensive about how things were going to turn out, but I don’t know what I was worried about, we had that much choice we struggled to decide what to go for!

I had a fantastic time and everyone was so lovely and professional, will be great to do this again if they’re up for the challenge!

You’ll have to wait for part two to see the final looks, but until then here are some behind the scenes shots. The full feature in Venue will be available to purchase on Jan 26th.