Happy Holidays To All : The Colorado Mountains My Favourite Place at Christmas Time

Aspen Mountain, the most beautiful place with real Christmas trees glistening with snow.

Fashion Blog : Christmas Gift To Me! : Chloe Navy Tailored City Shorts From TheOutnet.com

Two of the Fall 2013 trends I have welcomed with open arms are 1. Navy and 2. Structured, volume-ous designs. I have really yearned for some nice navy tailoring to add to my wardrobe, but with navy blue care must be taken to keep the style of the entire outfit correct to avoid looking like your best friend's mum from the 80s.

Luckily there is plenty of stylish navy to choose from this season. City shorts are a cool change from trousers and not so dressy as a skirt (and you can tackle tall steps easily in shorts!) I spotted these Chloe Navy City Shorts Was £355. Now £106. In navy blue wool suiting type fabric and needed them instantly, I clicked away and they were a Christmas Gift To Me! I got them from TheOutnet.com.

This pair are a classic tailored style with belt loops and subtle front pleats. A design that will not date. The quality and build are outstanding with every seam perfect and the interior looking just as divine as the outside.

Buying good quality tailoring has it's rewards, the fabric does not age quickly with wear and dry cleaning, most importantly the fabric drapes and falls perfectly. The absolute worst feature of badly made trousers with unsuitable fabrics are the pleats at the front not sitting flat but instead bulging like two extra breasts under the waistband. Today with the abundance of outlets selling fashion worldwide it is possible to get good tailoring at discounted prices, these Chloe shorts were 70% off and are very wearable.

City shorts are the ultimate ageless style piece, navy is kinda neutral when it comes to adding hosiery, tan is great and a classic, black tights for a Dior look with navy and any bright hosiery for a stronger vibrant look.

Time Out : Christmas Decor : Decorating The Tree & More Decorations

When Christmas is so close you can almost hear sleigh bells, the final week is filled with festive gatherings and the last few preparations here at Couturenet HQ - my rural home. This week is "especially special" (can you say that in good grammar?) in England as often on Christmas Eve or even Christmas Day I can be on a flight to somewhere snowy in the States for a week of cosy festivities ensconced away in the mountains.

One of the best parts of Christmas is putting up the decorations. There's something about filling the house with sparkly lights, candles, garlands, winter greenery and shiny gold that makes the darker evenings so much more cheery. I have just put the finishing touches to the tree. I have a faux tree for two reasons 1. I don't like the idea of chopping down trees, I want to see them growing in nature especially when skiing in the mountains and 2. I am often away for the main festive week or so.

I wanted to really saturate the tree with gold this year, I did this by hanging lots of different shaped gold baubles from virtually every bough. I contrasted the really modern and smooth baubles with Victorian style ornate shaped with sparkle. The red frilled garland is what I use in place of tinsel which I have never been keen on. It's more understated and the perfect background for the flame coloured lights and gold balls. The only other decoration is the collection of peppermint candy canes scattered around the tree which are super pretty and fun.

Time Out : Christmas Decor : Liberty Print Christmas Napkins

After some blissful browsing in the Liberty of London fabrics department I was drawn to the Mitsi Valeria in red. I mused how cheery and stylish it would be to have some napkins from this fabric for a more modern take on the traditional Christmas table setting.

I purchased 1 metre of Tana Lawn Mitsi Valeria at £22 per metre. This made 4 napkins at 50x50cm (slightly smaller after the hem has been sewn) with a reasonable sized piece of left over fabric 37cm x 1m for something creative.

To make: I removed the surplus 37cm of fabric to leave a square 1m x 1m. This was cut into four equal squares 50 x 50cm. Using an iron I pressed the edged into double hems and then sewed them with red thread. Two hours of fun later, the result was four very fetching napkins ready for my annual pre-travel, pre-Christmas dinner with friends. The invitations have already been sent!

The perfect accompaniment...

Place Card Stamp Kit £19.95 from Liberty (Ships Worldwide).

From a formal dinner party to an intimate gathering, personalise your table setting with this stamp set. In waterproof, permanent ink, you can even decorate table cloths and tea towels with the design.

Time Out : Couturenet Picks : Another 12 Stylish Gifts For Under £20 2013

With just one week to go until Christmas Day, Couturenet picks...

Another 12 stylish gifts for under £20 2013

Vegan Leather Box Clutch £19.99 from Zara (Stores Worldwide, Online Selected Countries)

Kinto Mugtail Cat £15.75 from Occa Home (Ships Worldwide).

Philippi Grip Handyhalter Mobile Holder £17 from Occa Home (Ships Worldwide).

Mulberry Home Mini Tartan Votive Orange & Clove £19.50 from Occa Home (Ships Worldwide).

Set of 2 Water Hyacinth Baskets. Was £40. Now £20 from Laura Ashley.

http://www.lauraashley.com/baskets+boxes/set-of-2-water-hyacinth-baskets/invt/3558252

Summer Meadow Candle. Was £14. Now £9.80 from Laura Ashley.

Lene Bjerre Bellara Candle Holder £18 from Occa Home (Ships Worldwide)

Kara Ross Gold Plated Ring. Was £135. Now £20 at TheOutnet.com (Ships Worldwide).

How to Tie A Scarf 33 Styles £8.25 / $13 from ShopBop.com (Ships Worldwide)

Adia Kibur Statement Gemstone Drop Earrings £19.03 / $30 from ShopBop.com (Ships Worldwide)

Liberty Strawberry Thief Print Fabric Covered Medium NoteBook £20 from Liberty (Ships Worldwide).

YSL : Pret-A-Porter Fun Activity Book £12.05 / $19 from ShopBop.com (Ships Worldwide)

*Extra Couturenet Favourite*

Place Card Stamp Kit £19.95 from Liberty (Ships Worldwide).

From a formal dinner party to an intimate gathering, personalise your table setting with this stamp set. In waterproof, permanent ink, you can even decorate table cloths and tea towels with the design.

From the series "12 Stylish Gifts Under £20"
12 Stylish Gifts Under £20 Autumn 2011
12 Stylish Gifts Under £20 Summer 2011

Time Out : Christmas Decor : Cute & Stylish Christmas Stockings For All Budgets

There is something very homely yet very exciting about Christmas stockings, they look cute and there is the anticipation to see what is inside on Christmas morning.

Couturenet picks cute Christmas stockings...

Felt & Hessian Christmas Stockings
Aren't these cosy with their tactile finish £5 each from Wilko.com.

Knitted Nordic Christmas Stockings
Understated and homely £6 each from Matalan.

Traditional Wool Christmas Stockings
Made from the softest lambs' wool, which is spun in Yorkshire and woven in Scotland, created in collaboration with the award-winning designer Donna Wilson. It's big! £30 each exclusive to Fortnum & Mason.

Alpine Christmas Stockings
A little embroidered fabric stocking filled with chocolate coins, squares and shapes, sugar mice and sticky lollies. £19.95 each from Fortnum & Mason.

See all Couturenet's Stylish Christmas picks on Pinterest.

Time Out : Christmas Decor : Re-Purposing Neal's Yard Remedies' Pretty Wrap

As a devotee of chemical free living I am a huge fan of Neal's Yard Remedies and all the treasures they offer from beauty products and bathroom delights to their clever, natural remedies.

Ordering online is easy and the website is such a pleasure to browse (bookmarking objects of desire as I go!). The deliveries arrive so nicely wrapped in bespoke floral tissue and blue ribbon which is just too pretty to throw away. I carefully store it away in a drawer ready to re-purpose and wrap a gift beautifully. It's a pretty twist on the usual Christmas wrap, this year I have saved enough to wrap a few of my presents to loved ones. I added 10 metres of navy blue ribbon at 23p per metre for a nice finish - who doesn't like a ribbon wrapped around a present!

NealsYardRemedies.com

Fashion Blog : Chloe Attitudes

'Chloé: Attitudes' chronicles the fashion house's 60-year history with over 200 pages of photographs and text. It highlights nine key designers that have been at the helm of the iconic brand - from founder Gaby Aghion to the current creative director Clare Waight Keller. This beautiful hardcover book makes a stylish gift or a vibrant addition to your library. £50 from Net-a-porter.com and Chloe Boutiques. Some images from the book (and launch) below... to transport you into the chic world of Chloe.