Must Buy Monday? Blue Monday

In the midnight hour navy is my standby shade. Never mind purple's prominence this season or black's desperate attempts to be the shade du jour. Again. Navy looks subversive on a young(ish) body (although in twenty years time I see myself steering away from the staunchly establishment shade), it stands out in a flock of raven LBDs and looks refined amongst slivers of cheap lame. Just one of these pieces will instantly chicify your look. Shop on.























1: Tunic by Principles; 2: Patent 'Carker' bag by Anya Hindmarch at Net-a-porter.com; 3: Sequin top by TopShop; 4: Patent courts by Rupert Sanderson; 5: Skirt by RM at Net-a-porter.com; 6: Lurex coat by Dorothy Perkins; 7: Velvet jacket by Marc by Marc Jacobs at Net-a-porter.com; 8: Pleated dress by Moschino at Net-a-porter.com; 9: Clutch bag by Warehouse; 10: T-bar shoes by Christian Louboutin at Net-a-porter.com

Prayers. Answered.

You may or may not have realised that I like handbags. And you may or may not have realised that I quite like denim. Therefore is this not the most perfect amalgamation of said fabric and said accessory? It's a Bayswater, by Mulberry. And come Spring it will be firmly nestled in the crook of my arm. Come to Mama.

































I'd also like to point out a couple of looks from their clothing collection. It's the first time I've ever looked at the pieces and seen a design origin other than Mulberry's own brand of idiosyncratic Englishness (or perhaps generic Ossie Clark-isms) and was rather suprised by.

This zippy frock - rather Balenciaga-ish, no?; denim shorts - hello Marc by Marc. The whole collection looks street-tough (there's even a denim boiler suit in the Spring lookbook!) but also slightly derivative - they seem to have lost the waftiness of previous collections (considering the amount of waftiness we'll be seeing in Spring perhaps it wasn't a good season to do a U-ey).

However on the whole I do believe the change of style to be a good thing and, if the prices are affordable (yeah, right), I could see a lot more of the young set appearing in Mulberry clothing (rather than toting their totes) instead of the forty-something fashion directors who always order blouses and pretty frocks for the office.

UPDATE:
Big Glasses Girl: You screengrabbed the dress image above and posted it one thefashionspot.com which is totally fair enough. Thanks for the semi-credit as the source (although a link or correct spelling - I don't use a dot after Mrs - would have been awesome!)

But, FYI, if you wanted some more info re: the image source you were welcome to email me and ask where I got the shot. It wasn't from "neimen (sic) marcus or something similar", it was from Mulberry's Spring / Summer lookbook.

And in other news: I'm an idiot

I know I should have done this in August - but I didn't. Now I'm totally stuck with only myself to blame (although I am trying to shift the blame onto anyone else in the near vicinity). What on earth am I talking about? Buying a Winter coat of course!

The weather has changed. It's cold and I am currently trundling along my rat-run commute with only a light layer of cotton protecting me from frozen fingers and chilled bones. It's not working! Of course now that I'm ready to part with my hard-earned I can't find anything I want to actually buy but, I have to admit - just like my search for Summer sandals, I'm being a bit picky.

The criteria:
*I want something more akin to a long jacket than a coat so I don't feel smothered with fabric. However the length must cover the top of my thighs (*whines* it's not my fault I don't have any junk in my trunk - it's called being fashionably thin).

*I don't want cropped sleeves - hello, I'm buying a coat to keep warm!

*Dark colours (navy, charcoal) are best but I'd rather steer clear of black (or prints or plaids). It must look different but not distinctive.

*The coat must last several seasons without looking dated (so classic styles are best) and without pilling or wearing through (therefore I'm searching for a tough wool).

*I'm hoping that the bigger the spend the better the coat (it's been the case with my previous purchases) so the budget is £500

Would you like to see my rejects?













Burberry £675: It's over budget but I could s-t-r-e-t-c-h for this one. Love the hood (will keep my lugholes toasty) although the wide flappy sleeves are a little incongruous.

Dries Van Noten £690: The empire line might kill my figure but this is a sweet coat that I could feasibly wear next year without feeling dated (mainly due to it's sombre shade). But is it too dull? And perhaps a little too femme for me?

Fendi £790: Neat but not too sweet. Good sleeve length and good derriere coverage too. However it's still black and it's still over budget!

Fendi and Burberry from Net-a-porter.com; Dries van Noten from Brownsfashion.com













Marc by Marc Jacobs £345: That's more like it, price-wise! But the gold buttons look tacky, cheap and possibly irreplaceable while the puff shoulders are too twee for a grown-woman to carry.

Miu Miu £625: Great shape, perfect length but it's sky blue! How am I going to keep it clean when traversing the Jubilee line? (As seen on Kelly Osbourne too. So that's a no, then).

Both from Net-a-porter.com

Then these are the possibles













Balenciaga £990: It's a little short but I've fallen in love with the styling - so idiosyncratic, so this season and yet so timeless. Good investment pieces will last and last, however I might have to do some serious begging or possibly drugging of Mr Fashion before it arrives chez nous.

Whistles £195: A great classic and it would quickly become my signature - there would be plenty of dosh left in the budget for fripperies such as party frocks too! The deal-breaker? There are Whistles logos on all of the buttons. NOOOOO!

APC €350: Great price but I don't think I can splash out on something so obviously Autumn '07. Every time I look at it I can't help thinking "bandwagon", "hipster", "jumping", and "on". Brown's so not my colour anyway.

Balenciaga from Brownsfashion.com; Whistles from Whistles.co.uk; APC from APC.fr

So, have you bought a winter coat yet? Do tell. I bet you're way more organised than me!

A blaze of glory

I've seen lots of chic girls looking sharp and pulled together at press days in Spring's freshest reinvented classic: the blazer. I'm not talking about the sleeveless interpretations at Saint Laurent, more like Miami Vice versions from the high street circa 1987. Reiss had especially slick versions at their show on Tuesday night (in steel grey) and M&S showed a nipped-in white 3/4 sleeve piece that I will invest in come March. I think I'll search out a little soft frock with flou to offset the jacket's structure and meanwhile will take inspiration from the following shows:

Alexander Wang

















Versace

















Maxmara

















Bottega Veneta

















Phi