Celebrating Christmas – Moroccan Style

Posted in Blogging, Weddings.

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On Friday night, I slipped into a sparkly LBD, grabbed four good girlfriends and set out to celebrate Christmas in style… under canvas!

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I discovered Papa Kata while searching for marquee alternatives for my wedding. They provide amazing canvas tipis for all sorts of events and are based in Harrogate, Yorkshire. After much, much research we decided Papa Kata’s beautiful tipis were just a little out of our price range, but by then I was hooked. Luckily, I spotted an ad for ‘Papa Christmas‘ – a Christmas party under canvas, complete with Papa Kata’s distinctive styling, food, drink and a live band.

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The theme for the evening was Moroccan, and the interior was just breathtaking. Multiple tipis were connected together to create a huge open space, but fire pits, twinkly lights and glowing lanterns kept us warm as toast.

The five of us settled on our bench, complete with fur throws and plenty of wine, ready for our three course Moroccan feast.

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Hummus, olives, marinated vegetables and a delicious tomato tangine served with toasted pitas started us off. This was the only course I remembered to photograph before I was lost in the food – rare masala lamb with griddled courgette, bombay potatoes, a bean and vegetable tangine and minted yoghurt dressing, followed by cardamom pudding with orange and custard. Absolutely delicious.

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When the food was finished and the wine bottles empty, we took to the dance floor – the live band played soul and Motown, followed by disco classics and, of course, Christmas tunes from the DJ.

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It was a truly fantastic evening – every year my girlfriends and I have a night out to celebrate Christmas, but this was something completely different and the effort that went into creating this festive Moroccan wonderland made it extra special.

There are still tickets available for Papa Christmas 2012 – check the dates here. If you’re in Yorkshire or nearby and still looking for the perfect Christmas party setting, I’d thoroughly recommend it.

What I wore coming tomorrow!

Subtle Winter Sparkle

Posted in Blogging, Daily Outfits.

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Generally, I’m not a huge fan of sparkly things. A matte finish is my jam. I could probably be pushed into a dull sheen, if it came to it. But out-and-out bling isn’t my thing, even at Christmas.

But, it is Christmas – season of goodwill, good cheer and glitter. So I thought I’d brighten up another grey day with some subtle winter sparkle…

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Skirt, Warehouse | Jumper, c/o Barbour | Flats, c/o Jane Shilton | Tights, Super Cosy by Primark | Necklace, Primark | Ring, gift | Bag, Mulberry

First step in accepting glitter into my life – nails. A touch of sparkle on your fingertips won’t make you look like an almost-27-year-old Disney Princess with a penchant for mince pies. Oh no! Glittery nails are your friend. I had mine done c/o Russell Eaton – they’re OPI Gelcolor nails in Black Onyx, with Shellac and real glitter used on the ring fingers.

Next, the bling ring. Mine was a present from my grandma and the stones are real, which is quite terrifying when the rest of your ring collection consists of slightly green Primark pieces and the odd Topshop ‘blow out’.

Finally, a statement necklace made of tiny, mirrored beads reflects just enough light to make it shine… and we’re back on much more familiar territory as it was £6 from Primark. Phew!

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I’ve been wearing this leather skirt quite constantly since ordering it after reading Kristabel’s post. I think it’ll look great with a crisp white shirt and bare legs come May, but for now I’m teaming it with this military-detailed jumper sent to me by Barbour. A little reminder that Barbour are still running their Christmas competition with lots of prizes up for grabs – go on, have a go!

How are you introducing Christmas cheer into your wardrobe?

My First Party Outfit of the Season

Posted in Daily Outfits, Fashion.

It’s 3rd December. Christmas is OFFICIALLY here. Hooray!

I always think there are two sides to Christmas – the lounging-about-in-your-PJs-eating-pickled-onions-and-Quality-Street bit, which involves more calorie intake than I’d like to disclose and a close personal relationship with fluffy bed socks.
The other side is far more fabulous – parties, cocktails, dancing to Slade at 3am in a sticky-floored nightclub in your hometown… ahem. I LOVE Christmas parties more than any other – no one CARES if you’re wearing baubles as earrings, if you’ve dropped a prawn canapé down your front or why you’re teaching the accounts department the Gangnam Style dance while wearing a paper hat. IT’S CHRISTMAS. 
I went to my first Christmas party last week and it was a blast. Here’s what I wore…

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Dress, c/o Warehouse | Cardigan, H&M | Heels, Vivienne Westwood Anglomania x Melissa c/o Sarenza | Necklace, Primark | Ring, gift

The photos didn’t quite come out so I tried to make them look all oldy-worldy with a vintage style filter… let’s just go with it.

The beautiful ‘oxblood’ dress (here it is in black) was sent to me by Warehouse – it’s a lovely rich shade with pretty lace detailing at the neckline, ideal for those early Christmas parties where you’re not quite ready to bust out the sequin bodycon. And it has a floaty skirt – something I request from all my party dresses. Because if you can’t twirl on the dance floor, frankly it’s just not worth it.

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The eagle-eyed among you might have noticed my hair has grown rather rapidly in these images. That’s not down to eating the crusts from my sandwiches, folks – that’s hair extensions. More on those soon. Needless to say my friends and family were impressed and there were lots of ‘OMG I DON’T EVEN RECOGNISE YOU’ squeals.

Have you been to a Christmas party yet?

Rediscovering The Hilton

Posted in Home, Travel.

On Friday night I did something a little different – I gathered my two girlfriends, packed my onesie and prepared a 90s playlist ready for a cosy night in… at The Hilton Leeds City.

The visit was arranged by Best British Bloggers – complimentary dinner, bed and breakfast so I could experience the newly refurbished Hilton in my home city. I’ve never stayed at a Hilton hotel before so I was excited to explore my surroundings for the night.

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After a swift check-in and a chat to hotel manager Adrian, I stepped into my spacious 7th floor guest room to see a bottle of white on ice – perfect! Whenever I stay in a hotel I check the bathroom – terrible toiletries are such a let down, but luckily I was greeted with sleek Peter Thomas Roth products, a waterfall shower and lots of fluffy towels. Lovely stuff.

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Onesies from L-R: Republic, New Look, New Look

Usually the point of staying in a hotel is so you have easy access to a city or event, and you’re out of the door before you’ve had a chance to sit down. But my friends and I were ready to spend a whole night in our room, complete with onesies, Christmas socks and plenty of snacks. We had two rooms, but snuggled up on the huge bed in the double with the Hollywood Movies package. Bliss.

The bar and restaurant at The Hilton was lively and festive, with a special Christmas carvery… but this was a night IN. So the onesies stayed on and we ordered room service – a sirloin steak and chips for me, pepperoni pizzas, onion rings and spicy wedges for the girls. I was so eager to eat I didn’t even snap a pic but I can confirm everything was utterly delish.

We stayed snuggled in the bed until 2am, chatting and eating and drinking that wine. It was such a brilliant night – we didn’t have to worry about disturbing our respective other halves with our laughing, singing or onesie dancing (they are SO good to dance in), and when we were finally falling asleep the beds were soft as clouds.

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We were up bright and early on Saturday morning to sample the breakfast offerings – I love a good Full English and this was a winner. Hot, tasty and plenty for everyone, including fresh fruit and cereal for healthy types!

My stay at the Hilton was wonderful – after a stressful week it was just what I needed. If you love a girly night in but lack the space or want to make it a little bit special, I’d definitely recommend an overnight stay – the hospitality was fantastic, the food was delicious and the Christmas decorations made me feel all warm and fuzzy as I was leaving.

My stay at The Hilton Leeds City (including dinner and breakfast) was complimentary but I was not paid to write this post. 

A Little Bird Told Me… on a Water Bottle!

Posted in Blogging, Fashion.

Brand partnerships can often catch you unawares. Some are perfect – like Liberty for Barbour. Some are a bit odd – The Kardashians for Dorothy Perkins? And some don’t quite make sense… until you see the finished product. That’s how I felt when I first heard of the collaboration between Diane von Furstenberg and Evian. Fashion meets hydration? I’m not quite there yet…

Turns out, Evian have a long history of working with fashion designers. Every year, they choose a prominent designer to create a special edition bottle, and 2013 belongs to DvF.  
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Pretty, right? Sleek and classic with a hint of playfulness, just like the DvF collection.

To celebrate the launch of the DvF limited edition bottle, Evian challenged me to create my own bottle design, based on my particular style preferences. After some frustrated sketching and a dawning realisation that I have no artistic skill whatsoever, I turned to lovely illustrator Michelle Allen, who made my jumbled ideas into something fantastic…

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Illustration by Michelle Allen. If you want one of your own, you can find her online and on Twitter

I wanted to base my bottle design on an outfit I’ve worn on the blog – something that typifies the kind of clothes I love to wear. I chose this stripes-and-skirt combo from earlier in the year as I thought the print and colours would be quite striking… and there’s a bit of a Parisian thing going on as a hat-tip to Evian. En Français!

Diane talks about the inspiration behind her own bottle design in this video – what a brilliant accent she has.


I’m really pleased with my final design – it’s Jean Paul Gaultier on a budget. If I saw this on the shelf I’d definitely grab it over a bottle of Sainsbury’s own – wouldn’t you?

I’m working with Evian as part of their DvF for Evian campaign and was compensated for this post.