Bargain of the week

December 2, 2013

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I’m a bit obsessed with knits at the moment and have been perusing ASOS on a daily basis looking for lovely charcoal versions that are relatively lightweight.

When I spotted this J.D.Y one for just GBP16 I had to have it. I thought to myself, I’ll just chance it and if it’s awful on it won’t be the end of the world. Thankfully, it’s quite far from awful and I’ve worn it more times in the last week than I’d like to admit!

It’s made from a non-scratchy, lightweight acrylic material and has a relaxed fit. It’s slightly sheer (you can see the outline of my bra in the above pic) but it’s sheer in a very French way I think – nothing too obvious! I’ve worn it mostly with my Only jeans (on sale right now), which incidentally are from the same design house as J.D.Y.
As you can imagine, I’m feeling a little bit smug about my lovely 16 quid purchase so I thought I would share :)

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Blog love

December 1, 2013

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Considering I do pretty much all of my reading online, check Bloglovin daily and rarely buy magazines (apart from Elle – absolutely loving their work at the moment) I don’t think I have ever done a ‘share the love’ blog post.
So without further ado, here it is :)

Duckling to Swan. Written by Amelia, a Yorkshire lass I had the pleasure of hanging out with in Dubai when she was here on hols. Her blog was about her day-to-day life in Korea but she has just moved to Jakarta so I’m patiently waiting to see what she’s getting up to there. She has impeccable style and is the queen of nail art (see this post). She’s also a dab hand at interiors and takes gorgeous blog pictures.

Lips So Facto. Ah Meg, who doesn’t love Meg? Such a great blog, great pictures and she always blogs about cool things; new tricks to implement into your beauty routine, new products you might never have tried and new beauty looks (see this cool post). She’s just fab, and that’s all I have to say.

Wearing it today. Laura is the Fashion and Shopping Editor at Red Magazine so naturally, she has amazing style. Her blog is all about what she wears day-to-day, her new purchases and fashion finds and who she admires in the fashion world. I have a major girl crush on her to be honest. She introduced me to MiH Jeans, made me fall in love with J Crew (hello – she hung out with Jenna Lyons!) and she does a weekly post called WIT Mama Friday where she details what she wears on days out with her little daughter.

The road is home. Rarely do I come across a blog that really moves me, but this one does. Written by Nirrimi and her husband, it’s all about their beautiful life together as parents who are frequently on the road. Nirrmi is a professional photographer who has won national and international photography awards, which won’t surprise you when you see the images on her blog. She is also the most beautiful writer and many of her posts have made me cry (this one in particular about Alba’s home birth is incredible). A gorgeous, heartwarming read.

Lucy Laucht. I discovered Lucy through Laura’s blog, above. She’s a British girl living in New York and from what I gather, she works for J Crew and lives a rather fabulous life. She has amazing style and takes amazing blog pictures and I kind of want to be her. She doesn’t post that often which makes her all the more intriguing.

From Roses. Rebecca is a photography graduate so as you can imagine her blog pictures are outstanding. She writes beautifully about makeup and beauty and other things that take her fancy. She has amazing tattoo’s and great hair but you’ll have to search through quite a few posts to find pictures of her as she doesn’t post selfies a lot. This is my favourite post – all about her makeup routine.

There are lots of other great blogs on my bloglovin feed (you can follow my blog here) but these are the ones that stand out to me at the moment. I’m always on the lookout for great new blogs to follow so please let me know in the comments which blogs you love at the moment! I would love some recommendations.

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Breton stripes

November 30, 2013

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This is what I wore yesterday. It was sloppy and comfortable and very ‘sports casual’ according to The Husband. I don’t really know what that means but I’ll take it nonetheless.

We went for breakfast with Louise and Co. and then did a little bit of shopping for Charlie in Marina Mall so I wanted to be comfortable without looking like a complete slob. My favourite boyfriend jeans of all time came out to play, along with a new breton top from Jack Wills and my white Converse. I bought them all from ASOS – who are offering 25% off brands at the moment so no doubt I’ll be having another er, innocent browse tonight.

In other news, the Black Friday shopping pandemonium has kind of got to me. I know it’s mainly an American thing but good god! I just can’t avoid all the bargains. I’ve been stalking Pashli’s and leopard print heels like they’re going out of fashion. Here are some of the deals I know about;

1. 15% site wide at Les Nouvelles with this code LOVELN
2. Up to 25% off site wide at Shopbop, depending on how much you spend and using this code BIGEVENT13
3. Nordstrom are offering 33% off selected items
4. 20% off handbags and lots of other stuff at Selfridges when you use this code SELF2013

Not too bad, eh? They all ship worldwide too. I know ASOS are also offering an additional 20% off with this code GIMME20 but it’s only for orders being shipped to the US (sad face).

Have you picked up a few bargains already or discovered any epic deals? If yes, share and care! :)

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Guerlain Crazy Paris Collection 2013

November 28, 2013

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Oh my actual god, is what I said when I first clapped eyes on these beautiful pieces from the new Guerlain Collection. It’s just a feast for the eyeballs, isn’t it? So bright and punchy and pretty. The bits you can see above are as follows;

1. Crazy Paris Eye Palette. Pigmented, pretty and a crazy mix of shades (not really – it’s pretty sedate isn’t it?). Seriously though, I really like this palette – it’s heavy and the sleek packaging appeals to my shallow side.

2. Crazy Champs Élysées Météorites Pearls. I thought this would be quite finicky to use with a brush for some reason, but it’s actually very easy. The melange of pearls result in a beautiful dusky pink blush/soft focus look. Like!

3. La Petite Robe Noire So Crazy! Perfumed Shimmer Powder. Honestly, I’m not really sure what I’m doing with this. I’ve puffed it onto my hair, my bod and face and it seems to add a nice bit of shimmer but the mist is so fine that I’m not really sure whether I’m dousing myself in it or barely spritzing anything. Cool idea though and it smells pretty nice too.

4. Crazy 863 Rouge G de Guerlain. Hands down, my favourite piece from the collection. This lipstick is to-die-for. So creamy and magnificently pigmented, and the packaging is crazy! A little integrated mirror flips open as soon as you whip out the lipstick – bloody genius! It’s quite heavy too and the black lacquered packaging makes me feel like I’m carrying around the Chanel of lipsticks.

The entire collection is available now from all the usual places and online from Harrods. A nice collection for self-gifting I’d say… :)

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Lancome Oud

November 28, 2013

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Lancome are the latest beauty powerhouse to dip their toes into the oud market. Fast becoming the latest type of fragrance to have on your makeup table, this new offering L’Autre Oud does not disappoint. From what I can gather, it’s been on the market for a while but has only just made its way to the Middle East.

It’s quite a powerful fragrance, so definitely not one for more fainthearted fragrance fans. The main notes, as you’d expect, are a heady mix of patchouli, moss, spicy saffron, Turkish and Bulgarian rose, and of course, oud. Having tried quite a few of the new oud fragrances on the market from European beauty houses, I feel that this one is the most interesting. Mainly because they really stuck with oud as the main ingredient and didn’t water it down with fifty other things, and also because the bottle is to-die-for. Seriously – just look at it!

It’s available now online from Harrods or in the usual locations in Dubai and it retails for around Dhs660. Spendy, but if you’re an oud fan I’d recommend it.

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New picks from THEOUTNET.COM

November 25, 2013
THEOUTNET.COM sale picks

1. James Perse wool-blend grey sweater 2. Marc Jacobs square-frame sunglasses 3. Theyskens’ Theory woven blazer 4. Theyskens’ Theory leather skirt 5. R13 low-rise skinny jeans 6. Acne chunky knit coral sweater 7. Dannijo silver-plated crystal cuff

Ever since Acne arrived at THEOUTNET.COM, I’ve spent a ridiculous amount of time mooning over the gorgeous pieces. I love their knits so much, such delicious shades and not overly heavy for the current Dubai climate. Of course, there are lots of other lovely bits I want too (that leather skirt!). I feel that putting them all down in this little post will make my need for them much weaker, and so I will not purchase. Solid plan, right?

Also, my lovely readers in the US, you can get 20% off site wide at THEOUTNET.COM today and tomorrow by using this code: THANKSGIVING. Have a good one! :)

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The weekend

November 24, 2013

This weekend was a bit mad, for use of a better description. In fact, there was a few moments when our abode could have been described as a “mad house”, as my mother would say.

Our friends visited us from Bahrain and Muscat for a couple of days and over the course of the weekend – along with my brother, we went on a road trip to Ras Al Khaimah, ate lots of food, had lots of laughs (we found the desert particularly hilarious for some reason) and drank lots of er, refreshing beverages.

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I have to say, I found Ras Al Khaimah a bit strange. It’s not particularly scenic and looked quite run down. Everyone seems to rave about the hotels there however, so maybe that’s the main draw? The local mall was nice though – we stopped and ate way too much food in Johnny Rockets (weirdly, it’s called Eddie Rockets in Ireland?).

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I slobbed my way through the day wearing my J Brand ass-lifting jeans (hurrah!) and my grey Topshop burnout tee (my neck bling is also from Topshop). Someone actually pointed out on Instagram that I basically live in my grey Burnout tee, and the answer is yes. Yes, I do. I’m not ashamed! :)

Hope you all had a lovely weekend. Roll on the next one!

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Festive sweaters

November 22, 2013
Christmas sweaters

(L-R from top) 1. Oasis sequin jumper 2. A Wear leopard jumper 3. New Look prancing reindeer sweater 4. River Island robin sequin sweater 5. New Look black reindeer sweater 6. River Island pink penguin sequin top 7. Wildfox glitter heart sweater 8. New Look polka dot pudding jumper

Yes, I am one of those people who wear Christmas sweaters. I wear them to work, at the weekends and even when I go out for a few festive drinks. Christmas only rolls around once a year, so why not?

These are my current favourite picks; everything from a bit of glitter to some reindeer action and a few snowflake bobbles thrown in for good measure. If I could only buy one, it would have to be the pink penguin sequin one. So ridiculously cute! My husband even said “Yeah, I could see you in that one.” Sold! If you’re rocking a particularly amazing Christmas sweater, send me the link!

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Christmas sweaters and new shoes

November 19, 2013

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The temperature is steadily dropping here at the moment so I have taken the opportunity to bust out some of my woolly sweaters. It was 24 degrees yesterday morning and I was seriously cold. I know that probably sounds ridiculous but when you’re used to 40-odd degree heat, 24 is actually quite chilly!

Anyways, out came one of my favourite Christmas sweaters from Zara from last year (I’m also obsessed with this Max C one from ASOS). It’s a little bit itchy but I don’t mind as it has a dog on the front with some studs and sparkly bits. I wore it with some new MiH jeans from THEOUTNET.COM. I had never heard of MiH until Laura from Wearing It Today started singing their skinny jean praises. She said they are super comfortable with the perfect amount of stretch, and she was right (as it often the case) – so I whipped up a discounted pair online.

I also wore my new delicious Reiss Brina heels. Black suede with the perfect height heel for me and mega comfortable, plus they are asymmetrical, which I can’t get enough of right now. They are so flattering with magical ankle-slimming/making-your-foot-look-sexy abilities. I never would have plumped for Reiss when looking for the perfect court shoe, but what do you know? They delivered :)

Also, my necklace is from Meeks Boutique in Dubai, just in case you’re wondering. They have a wonderful selection of neck bling (plus other accessories) and most of their pieces are one-off or one of only two or three available. You can check out what’s on offer and order through their Instagram or Facebook accounts.

That’s all for now :)

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Interview: Stephanie Phair – Managing Director, THEOUTNET.COM

November 18, 2013

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When did you join THEOUTNET.COM?
I joined the business as employee number two, two months before it launched in April 2009. We were a very small team and I had to wear many hats (as you do at a startup). Four and a half years later we now have around 150 dedicated members of staff based in three offices around the world. Originally, all of our stock was from NET-A-PORTER.COM. Now our dedicated buying teams based in London, New York and Shanghai source 75% of merchandise directly from the 250+ designer brands available at THEOUTNET.COM.

What’s the traffic to THEOUTNET.COM like at the moment?
We see over 1.5 million unique visitors coming to our site every month.

Are you surprised at how popular it is here in the Middle East?
No, not since discovering who our core customer really is. Women in the Middle East are renowned for their love of designer fashion. THEOUTNET.COM treats discount product exactly the same way as full price merchandise when it comes to the customer experience. We edit and merchandise our products, and we create editorial content which focuses on providing customers with outfit solutions, which is something women in the Middle East respond well to.

There always seems to be a huge selection of products on the site. How often are new pieces added? Does everything go online as soon as you get it, or do you plan by trends and seasons?
New deliveries from runway favorites like Balmain, Dolce & Gabbana and Stella McCartney and from cutting-edge labels such as Erdem, Peter Pilotto and Jonathan Saunders take place every Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. Trends tend to stick around for a few seasons, so we select the product that’s most relevant and upload it onto our website throughout the season so that our customers really only shop the best previous season fashion.

What brands do people generally go crazy for?
Our customers in the Middle East love special pieces from designers such as Oscar de la Renta, Balmain, Lanvin and Chloé. The most popular category is dresses, followed by footwear. When it comes to shoes, it’s always Christian Louboutin! During our last Christian Louboutin sale we sold one pair every three seconds.

Is there a recommended way to browse the site, especially if it’s your first time logging on?
When shopping online, filter by size to ensure you avoid falling in love with an item that won’t fit. Start with the Just In section if you want to browse or shop by product category if you have something in mind. Check out our Dress Me section, which shows you how to master current trends through compelling videos, animations and fashion shoots that link directly to product sorted by occasion.

If you’d like to be notified about new arrivals I’d suggest signing up for emails, following us on Instagram and Twitter or liking us on Facebook as we’ll often give our fans a preview of items arriving on site, so it’s a great way to stay tuned!

What are the top five purchases from THEOUTNET.COM that everyone should have?
1. Cashmere is something everyone should invest in. THEOUTNET.COM’s own label, Iris & Ink, has a great selection of fine-knit cashmere pieces that act as the perfect styling accompaniment to every look
2. An oversized tote that holds all your daily essentials. I opt for classic styles by designers known for their leather accessories such as Alexander Wang, Alaïa and Alexander McQueen
3. A fabulous evening gown. If you spot one that you love don’t hesitate to buy it – it’s often the one item you can never find when you need it
4. Statement shoes can instantly transform an outfit. Nicholas Kirkwood, Charlotte Olympia and Sophia Webster are all known for their bold, playful designs
5. A wool coat or trench (depending on the time of year). Spend as much as you can, as this is a key investment. Not only will it last from season to season, but the cost-per-wear component can’t be beaten!

How often do you shop on THEOUTNET.COM Stephanie?
Staff have to wait one week to purchase an item that has just been uploaded – this allows our customers the opportunity to shop first. So checking my Wish List becomes a daily habit! I have to see what product we have available as part of my job, which can mean I’m tempted more than I’d care to admit.

Any particularly hot pieces you have your eye on at the moment?
I like to update my wardrobe with some key workwear staples that can be styled up for evening. This Jason Wu dress and Helmut Lang blazer tick all the boxes.
I love Marni for its use of bold color and print. The playful accessories, especially this one, are perfect for pairing with an LBD.
THEOUTNET.COM’s own brand is becoming renowned for classic pieces that every woman should own. The Iris & Ink skinny jeans are a popular choice around the office – they are so comfortable and very flattering.
With the holiday fast approaching I have my eye on a couple of pieces that will see me through the festive season and beyond. Anya Hindmarch’s glitter clutch and Alexander McQueen’s burgundy mini dress will never tire.

How would you describe your style? What pieces and brands do you like to wear?
I like clean lines and tailored pieces. A well-cut blazer is my fashion ‘must’. You can wear a blazer with anything and it will instantly smarten up a look. I love pieces by Stella McCartney, Alexander Wang and Preen by Thornton Bregazzi.

What about your beauty routine? What is your signature makeup look?
I cleanse and moisturise every morning and evening. My signature makeup look involves a little Chanel Vitalumière foundation, a slick of Laura Mercier’s Stone Grey eye pencil and Hypnôse Volumising Mascara by Lancôme to finish.

What products do you particularly like to use?
Although this isn’t strictly makeup, I use Lucas’ Papaw Ointment every day – it’s perfect for dry lips, cuts and sunburn, so you’ll always find a tube of it in my handbag. I also love to use NUXE Huile Prodigieuse as it’s a pure indulgence and I adore the smell. At the moment I love using BIODERMA Créaline H2O Eau Micellaire as a makeup remover – every makeup artist I’ve ever worked with has this in their kit bag.

What do you think of style and beauty blogs?
I love to watch Charlotte Tilbury’s Makeup Masterclass videos on NET-A-PORTER.COM’s YouTube channel. Her step-by-step guide is easy to watch – she ensures her makeup tips are effortless and it’s so helpful knowing what products she uses as part of her kit.

What do you think makes a good blog stand out?
A good mix of original content, high quality photography, an elegantly designed layout, easy navigation and a blogger who has an authentic tone of voice and unique point of view. I also think it’s important that blogs feature regular posts so we, as followers, are aware of when we can get our update.

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