Katie Fashion

Shopping the sales 2011

Even though I am officially off work in my day job now till the start of January, I still have lots to be doing to keep me busy for my own company as well as all those inconvenient family get togethers and oh y’know PRESEEEEENTS!! Combine being so ill over Christmas and super busy, I just don’t have time to physically get to the shops. Partially glad about that as I hate crowds but I do feel like I miss out on lots by not going to the shops but hey ho!

I’ve been hitting the sales online and I can’t wait for my parcels to arrive!! Thought i’d give you a run down of what i’ve bought… so far, I was even shopping online at 8.30 on Christmas Day!!

Mathias Chaize “I’m Evil” necklace from www.net-a-porter.com was £65 paid £32.50

I absolutely love this cute little necklace by Mathias Chaize.. it’s a bit of an in joke between friends and family (i’m not REALLY evil!) but I felt £65 was a lot of money for me to pay as i’m not a committed jewellery wearer unfortunately! When I saw it was half price… I thought it was a sign to buy it… so I did!

Black chunky heeled knee length boots was £49.50 paid £25 www.evans.com

I think these are a nice classic looking boot and will be perfectly fine under trousers or with jeans tucked in and the leather / suede contrast will make them nice and interesting for with a skirt. Bargain.

Illamasqua Intense lipgloss in Absorb and Femme was £13 paid £7.50 www.illamasqua.com

Image from Google / Temptalia

I’m looking forward to this, i’m a sucker for a nude, thanks to my dark lips. I’m hoping for high intensity pigmentation!

No picture of Femme but its labelled as a bright coral pink.

Illamasqua lipstick in Drench was £15.50 paid £7.50 www.illamasqua.com

Described as a pink berry red, judging from the swatches, I think it will suit my complexion perfectly!!

Joico K-Pak Deep Penetrating Reconstructor Treatment for Damaged Hair was £12.75 paid £11.45 www.feelunique.com

Thought i’d finally give this a try, the reduction is tiny but every little helps!

Daniel Sandler Watercolour Blush in Gentle was £14.50 paid £12.33 www.feelunique.com (available for £12.00 from www.very.co.uk)

I’m super excited for this one to arrive after looking at swatches. This could be an ace colour for me!

I also picked up a trip of superdrug lipbalms for £1.99, some knickers and a stash of Topshop make up that wasn’t reduced so i’ll do a seperate post on that once it arrives.

I’m still on the hunt for a new leather handbag and purse but not seen a single thing I like! Grrr!

What has been your biggest bargain or favourite buy?

Katie Fashion

Party Underwear solutions with Rigby & Peller in time for the Party Season

My lifelong fight with fashion often consists of finding the right underwear to go under outfits. Finding a bra to go under my wedding dress was quite possibly the most stressful thing about getting married, i’m sure.

Not only do I have a large cup, I also have a large band size (Gutted!) which sometimes makes finding the right bra tricky.

Don’t even get me started on sticky on bra cups, as recommended by Rigby & Peller. I think they are great if you are a small chested lithe lady but once you throw in a hefty cleavage, curviness and the need to keep your chebs up around your chin for an entire night out.. 2 bits of sticky plaster just don’t cut it for me sadly! Saying that, my friend seems to wear them every night out and all summer long but she does fit the description above!!

The gods of underwear, Rigby & Peller have come up trumps with a mini compendium of party solutions for all eventualities that suit this seasons hottest cuts and trends.

I know myself, I have opted for colour matching AND plunging for under my Christmas party ensemble!

Do you struggle to find the right underwear to go under formal wear? Do you just wing it and deal with visible bra straps etc?

Katie Fashion

Bare Minerals : Deep Cleansing Foam

I have to be super careful with new skin products due to my hypersensitivity (yeah, thanks mother nature!) and because of this I am always really reluctant to try new products, usually waiting until I have read reviews from similar people.

Since the skin care was launched from Bare Minerals I have been using this cleanser every day. I will admit I have built up from once a week, to every other day to now once a day (after taking my make up off) without any issues at all.

The cleanser comes in a box and a rather large tube for your £15. It looks quite nice in the box on your bathroom counter but also just as nice with the tube alone! It’s a great size for a cleanser and I like that it’s a tube. Due to the thickness of the product I think you’d get a lot of wastage with a pump dispenser, you can just squeeze out the amount you need from the tube.

This product goes a long way and you only need a small pea sized amount to get a really good amount of foam to cleanse with. On mixing with water you are rewarded with a super duper luxurious foam with a lovely, natural smell.

The foam spreads over the face and makes me feel a bit like I’m a man having an old fashioned shave! Yes, I have totally pretended to just put it on my jaw before – HA! Because the foam is so creamy and luxurious, I have not experienced any drying of my skin, stinging around the eyes or reaction to the product in my most sensitive parts of the face (side of nose and cheeks).

Because you only use a tiny amount, this tube will last you ages which makes it really good value for money. I choose not to do 2 full on cleanses a day so I reserve the good stuff for a night time meaning I’ll get longer out of this tube but even using it twice a day, it will still go on and on.

Bare Minerals Deep Cleansing Foam is available online here for £15 or from their own Bare Minerals counters

I’ll be keeping an eye out over Christmas to see if I can get any mini tubes of this in gift packs which will be perfect for travelling!

Have you tried Bare Minerals before?

Katie Fashion

Ladies! Are your boobs sitting comfortably?

Sorry, I couldn’t resist the title! I’ve been doing my “essentials” shopping online today and stocked up on some new basic colour bras and pants for work, y’know, socks and such like for Mr Tramp and I and as usual I wandered off on to the beautiful Rigby & Peller website (lustful sigh). I have a few items from them but always have room for more, more more!

Recently, Newcastle’s Bravissimo branch left town and turned in to a Mexican restaurant, with such a sad departure of a ‘specialist’ bra shop, I wondered how many women would bother to continue getting their boobs measured and reassessed?

Rigby and Peller (My lusty bra gods, if you hadn’t noticed) have carried out research recently about bra fitting and sizing….

WOMEN COMPROMISE HEALTH AND POSTURE FOR ILL FITTING UNDERWEAR

43% of UK women have never had their bra fitted
30% of women are not happy with their bust
71% of women in the UK have been up to 5 different bra sizes in their lifetime
Men and women agree that the buxom hourglass silhouette of the 50s is most admired (31%) over super-skinny look of the 90s

Research* commissioned by luxury lingerie specialist Rigby & Peller to mark its 50^th anniversary, today lifts the lid on the women’s attitudes to their most debated feature – their bust. With 80% of the UKs women wearing the wrong sized bra, it’s no surprise that the research shows just under half (43%) have never been professionally fitted for a bra. But what makes that revelation even more interesting is the fact that over two thirds (71%) of women have been up to FIVE bra sizes in their lifetime** – with puberty, yo-yo dieting and pregnancy all part of the cause.

After five decades of helping women achieve a perfectly fitted bra to improve their health and well being, results showing that a third of all women (30%) are unhappy with the appearance of their breasts don’t come as a surprise to Rigby & Peller. This coupled with the fact that a third of women clearly avoid the purchase of new bras (34% have not purchased a new bra in the past 12 months) goes a long way to explain the love-hate relationship many women have with this part of their anatomy.

Encouragingly however, it seems that the fuller figure is still top of the wish list where both men and women are concerned. With both sexes opting for the hourglass 50’s pin up look (50%) over the super-skinny look of the 90’s (3%) it will come as no surprise that Marylin Monroe (31%) and Kelly Brook (30%) topped the charts as most admired celebrity silhouette.

Having been in the business for over 50 years, fitting women from sight alone and without the use of a tape measure, Rigby & Peller Owner Mrs June Kenton comments: “Breast sizes have increased significantly over the past 50 years with an increase in demand for smaller back sizes, however there is a common misconception that only large breasted ladies need to be concerned about a well fitted bra. No matter their size or shape we want women to understand how dramatically they can improve their quality of life and general well being by having a bra that is properly fitted and well made – it is staggering how many women stick to one size throughout their lifetime.”

Rigby & Peller caters for sizes from 30A to 48N, with the average Rigby & Peller bra containing 38+ components compared to just 16 in an average bra. In addition to lingerie Rigby & Peller also offers swimwear, sports bras and nightwear in addition to a mastectomy range and made-to-measure service. Visit http://www.rigbyandpeller.com/ for more information and store locations.

* Research carried out by Atomik Research 1,001 women and 435 men

** From the age of 18 (the average age a woman’s body stops developing)

Ladies, we’ve all seen the dreaded 4 boobs, back boobs, no boobs and busting out the bottom boobs… I urge you to go and get a fitting the next time you buy your over the shoulder boulder holders!

Do you get fitted regularly?

Katie Fashion

Fangirl Friday : When Fashion met Friendly…

If someone asked me which brand I think embraces Social Media the most, there’s only one answer. Masato.

Not only are Masato’s designs simply beautiful but between Masato and Mike, their online Twitter interaction with followers is just exemplory. Their @masatostudio account gives an honest and open insight in to the world of fashion, designers, the trials and tribulations and a little sneak peek at the secret life of a designer. Most of the tweets are done by Mike, Masato’s partner, but it really challenges the misconception that all fashion insiders are snooty and aloof (we’ve all thought that, come on admit it!).

And to top that off, for further awesomeness, Beverly Knight has been dressed by Masato for her current tour and has appeared at events in the designs. Beautiful lady, beautiful voice, BEAUTIFUL dresses.Masato designs for Ghost and has worked with Giles Deacon.. with those credentials who wouldn’t be impressed.

So, after so many people complain about brands social interaction with fans and followers, I take my hat off to you @masatostudio. You are a gem.

I highly recommend my lovely followers to check out Masato because if you are looking for a slinky gorgeous outfit for party season, you can’t go wrong here.

Here’s a few of my favourites from the A/W collection… now… where has my husband hidden my bloody bank card?

I think this dress has a lovely vintage feel too it, and with the right accessories and make up would make the perfect outfit with a rockabilly / 50s twist.

Look how snuffly this looks! I love that is accentuates the models beautiful curves. You could easily wear this day or night, jeans or with a dress! Versatile pieces can be worn year in and out.

And finally, my very favourite piece is this top. As i’m a huge fan of vintage / retro / rockabilly fashions, I would definitely team this with mid calf pencil skirt, a natty little pill box hat and a slick of my very favourite Rockalilly London lippy. You’d catch a sneaky peek of the tattoos on the back of my neck tattoos… it would cover the top of my arms (that I hate) and still keep me looking quite modern.. yet so thoroughly vintage.

I guess that’s one of my favourite pastimes, interpreting modern, cutting edge fashions to suit either my plus size arse or my addiction to vintage.

What brands do you think have great social interaction?

p.s I am in no way affiliated to the brand, I just truly love the clothes and their lovely friendly tweets.