A Not So Fashiony Post!

I mainly write about fashion and beauty on Belle of the Ball, and I will get right back on that tomorrow, but I just want to post about something else today.

If you are a long time reader, or if you know me personally, you'll know that I am a HUGE fan of Christmas...yes I am Jewish and yes I should be just as excited about Chanukah, but, let's be honest, Christmas is just SO much fun! I am one of those people who start to get excited about the festive season as soon as September rolls around, and as far as I am concerned, the build up to Christmas never starts too soon...all you grinch's who start moaning about decorations going up in stores in October... :oP

I actually don't just decorate my house at Christmas, but my parents house too...much to their...umm...joy, and I love buying presents and wrapping them up perfectly for them to be opened Christmas morning.

Anyway, my friend Jo just introduced me to the wonder that is Ikea's Christmas shop! Perhaps not as exciting and beautiful as Liberty's Christmas shop (seriously, if you haven't been there, then please go...now, but with prices starting from £1 and rarely going over the £20 mark...you can't go wrong really.

I'm sure I will do many festive posts in the build up to the big day, but I just wanted to share a few bits I saw in Ikea, which could help you create a gorgeous yet very purse friendly Christmas. Enjoy x

Baubles - £8 for 2

Pudding baubles - £5 for 4

Sleigh decorations - £4 for 3

Robin decorations £5 for 4

Candle - £2

Potpourri in a bag - £1.99

Baubles - £10 set of 50

Star candle dish - £1.75

Gift bags - £2 for 12 pack

Gift boxes - £5 for 3 pack

Wrapping paper - £1.75

Gift tags - £1 for 40 pack

Stickers - 50p

Ribbon - £3

What I've Been Up To Recently

I realised I've been a bit quiet on the old "My Week in Photos" posts.

There's no real excuse really, there's been a lot going on and lots of things to post about, and I've been taking pictures...it's just slipped by the wayside a bit...so I'm sorry about that!

The last month has been full of weddings, birthdays, celebrations, baby scans and more, so I thought I would just do a little round up of what I have been up to the last few weeks.

Enjoy! x

Our fabulous friends Lauren and Joel getting married!!

Amazing fox socks from Darren

Chowing down on a yummy fish pie at Bills Cafe in Covent Garden for my birthday

Early birthday flowers from Darren sent to the office

Meat Liquor...need I say anymore

Titch at 21 weeks!

Naughty indulgent snack 

Obsessed with this wolf hat from work

A box of robins at Liberty's Christmas Shop

Jo loving the Christmas shop at Liberty

A box of gorgeous baby gifts from my besties Rocsana and Negar all the way from LA

Kelly and Jo taking me out for birthday lunch at Cha Cha Moon

Ridiculously amazing afternoon tea at St. Michael's Manor in St. Albans

Tinkerbell enjoying my birthday wrapping paper!

Halloween Fashion Must Haves

It's that time of year again - the nights are drawing in, the days are getting colder, the clocks go back, leaves are falling from the trees and Halloween is almost upon us (which mean's it's also almost Christmas! yay!)

I love a bit of Halloween fun - we always stock the house with sweet treats for kiddies Trick or Treating, some years we dress up and go to costume parties and this year I am seriously thinking about creating my own pumpkin Jack O Lantern.

Just because it's a time of year to dress up in spooky costumes, does not mean you have to look like a scary old witch! This season, the glamorous gothic trend is all the rage, and looking dark and decadent is "So hot right now."

With that in mind, I've done a little round up of some of my favourite Halloween inspired pieces on the high street, to get you in that spooky frame of mind - I know we still have 5 days to go, but start planning now if you have a big Halloween party to go to - or if you just want to get into the spirit.

Do you think this little lot are tricks or treats? Are you planning anything fun for Halloween this year? Enjoy x

Lace maxi skirt Topshop £48

Lace panel dress Miss Selfridge £52

Jewelled leather gloves Boohoo.com £18

Platform boots Boohoo.com £30

Snake ring Boohoo.com £10

Feather capelet Topshop £85

Ghost tee Tea & Cake £20

Mesh trim slip Topshop £35

Skull nail wraps Nail Rock £6

Cat headband Miss Selfridge £4

Tassel jacket River Island £40

Cat tank River Island £20

Extreme Cardigan Miss Selfridge £52

Bond Girl Glamour!

I am not a James Bond fan - never have been and never will be. OK, yes Daniel Craig is extremely delectable and lovely to watch, but I couldn't take a whole film (I'll leave that to my dad).

So I am not doing a Bond post, even though Adele's song Skyfall for the latest Bond movie...ahem...Skyfall, is amazing. However, it was the Skyfall premiere in London town last night and the stars were out, strutting down that red carpet.

In honour of red carpet fashion (not James Bond) I had to pay tribute to the two drop dead gorgeous Bond girls in the latest epic; Berenice Marlohe and Naomie Harris. Fairly unknown, until now of course, these two stunning girls looked as different as night and day on the red carpet, both showcasing completely different yet equally fabulous looks.

Berenice Marlohe looked sizzling in a red strapless ballgown by Vivienne Westwood, which, although beautiful, created the classic error of blending into the red carpet. Whoops! Still looked hot though!

British actress Naomie Harris won the award for look of the night though. She dazzled in a daringly sheer gown with a sparkling bodice by Marios Schwab. Maybe on anyone else, this might not have worked, but on her elegant and gorgeous frame, this dress truly stole the show.

Which dress wins for you?

And just for our enjoyment, here is a little piccie of the man himself working the red carpet. You go Daniel! Enjoy x

Maternity Review #2 - ASOS

I thought I would do another round up of maternity fashion, as I got quite a good response to my Topshop maternity post.

We had our 20 week scan for Titch on Monday, and apart from a little complication with Titch's heart (which should hopefully be treatable once he or she is here - if it is needed) everything looked good! He or she is currently dancing away to XFM so another maternity fashion round-up is definitely needed.

Before I get started, here is a pic of Titch now:

So the brand I have chosen to do a round-up of is ASOS. As an ASOS fan, I've always been impressed with their collections, and the sheer size of them - although sometimes I find they have too much choice and I get a bit bored with perusing over 20+ pages of options. At least they have given their maternity range a similar lay out, with simply oodles of choice. This does make a nice change, as, from what I've seen on the high street so far, even if a brand has a collection, the choice is normally quite limited.

At the moment, ASOS have over 250 styles to choose from, ranging from bottoms, tops, dresses, coats, underwear, knitwear, you name it! They've also got a good mix of casual and dressy items and have obviously taken into account the top trends for the season, as well as including some great basic pieces, such as breton tops, jeans and jackets.

What's really nice is ASOS is obviously dedicated to providing quality ranges and the maternity range is no exception. I could quite happily order a dozen pieces and would want to continue to wear them after the baby, as they are so lovely. The styles are also realistic - they are fashion forward but not difficult to wear or style. For example, a sequin and lace skater dress with an empire line will look stunning with a big bump and certainly on-trend, but the relaxed empire line is designed for comfort. Perfect!

I've put a selection of some of my favourite pieces below. What do you think of ASOS's maternity range? Do you think it lives up to their regular collections? Enjoy x

Skater dress with hi low hem £25

Sequin and chiffon skater dress £40

Boyfriend jeans £35

Printed slouch trousers £35

Tiger face tee £16

Faux fur coat with hood £60

Knitted dress with lace collar £35

Breton stripe top £20

Skater dress in dark floral £25

Spot skater dress with belt £25

Skinny jeans with elastic waistband £28

Skater dress with lace top £35

Breton stripe dress £28