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

Fashion Blog: Luxe High Street Find: Chic, Easy Jacket and Off Duty Pants In The Zara Sale

The Zara Sale is nearly over, it's a great time to bag a bargain with the super final reductions. Remembering of course, it's only a bargain if it fits properly and will be worn as part of your fashion lifestyle.

Earlier this season I spotted this very light jacket. It immediately reminded me of the stunning Helmut Lang pieces I had seen at Flannels and Shopbop.com.

The jacket is now in the sale reduced from £49.99 to £22.99 in the UK. I ordered it online for home delivery as I did not have the time for in-store collection which I usually favour.

It arrived beautifully folded (along with some other items that I returned) in the usual minimal but chic Zara packaging. The quality far exceeded my expectations, no visible stitching apart from on the cuffs (which were so long that after altering has left me with enough fabric for a small scarf!), the fit was excellent and the gold zipper details just enough to be cool rather than bling. A great grab and go piece. I am going to wear this as a cardigan alternative, as often a plain knit is just a bit too plain.

I also got, in a separate order, these super stylish yet comfortable lightweight Herringbone Trousers with faux leather pockets and elastic ankle cuffs Was £29.99. Now £9.99. This is the perfect off duty easy pant to wear and the ideal alternative to sweatpants (which I loath! for anything except exercise).

Lovely Zara has won my style heart again, I certainly talk about the store a lot in my posts and why not... they fill their stores with good quality pieces, with great style and have a good animal welfare policy. Worth talking about!

Fashion Blog: Reliable, Stylish Zara.

Zara is reliable. Zara is stylish. I can always make a list of items that I would like to take home from any of their stores worldwide. Their sales are great too.

I love click and collect. It secures the items I would like in my size and also enables me to have good browse around the store when I pick up my package of delights.

The Zara.com sale and the Zara in store sale is almost at an end, there are still some great everyday pieces to pick up from the sale and ever brilliantly priced, quality apparel in the Zara new season collection.

My thrifty buys from the Zara sale are:

The Snake Print Full Length Maxi Dress With Side Split.
Was £69.99. Now £22.99.

The Shearling Wedge Ankle Boots
Was 79.99. Now £39.99.

Finally Back! And Celebrating with Fabulous Shopping!

Finally back! After two months away from my computer my eyes have finally been given the all clear from the opthalmic surgeon. I am delighted to back to the luxury of blogging and getting in touch with my readers. Thank you all again for your messages of cheer.

After a weekend and a week of reading, using the computer and a general eye use extravaganza I felt ready to embark on some genuinely fabulous shopping. I like buying in February with the the forceful Christmas and New Year advertising behind me I feel refreshed and ready to shop at leisure. I never buy anything in December and January. February brings a glimpse of pre-spring collections in store and in my in box, the comfort of autumn pieces (some at great prices) and the knowledge of what is comming for summer.

I have ordered a few pieces that I have been stalking online for a while from TheOutnet.com, Zara.com and BlackWhiteDenim.com. I will detail over the next three days in separate posts.

Luxe High Street Find : Zara Silk Top - Arrived!

I few days ago I jotted a note about a super bargain and luxe high street find, a silk top £15.99 in the Zara sale. I ordered it online, it arrived in store, an email alerted me and I collected it. It is beautiful!

zara.com

Luxe High Street Find : Zara Silk Top

If I buy something from the high street it has to follow a firm set of rules:

1. The fabric must be good quality, silk or wool are favoured and other fabrics that hang well and feel good to touch can win me over. Polyester, cotton sateen, nylon and velveteen are definitely out.

2. The item has to be £50 or less, if I am going to invest any more than this I'd rather jump up five levels in price and buy a designer item that will last for years in both quality and style.

3. The item must compliment other clothes that I have and it must be worn regularly, it must not be left in my wardrobe waiting to be worn.

4. The piece must have good seams and some detail that makes it stand out style-wise from what you expect to see on the hight street rails.

Zara is a quality high street store. They have a really good sale on right now and are continually adding more items and reducing items further every few days. Check back to the site regularly.

I have browsed on the Zara.com website for a few days looking at the sale items, I couldn't resist this 100% silk top newly added to the sale today, it was reduced from £39.99 to £15.99. I really love the detail on this top, the flattering cap sleeves and it is grey (not black). I ordered it online and will pick up in store as soon as I get an email telling me it has arrived, this will give me a chance to have a quick look around the store too. I have a tweed Prada Irise pencil skirt purchased from Flannels Manchester crying our for this soft contrast to compliment it.

I also spotted a pair of leather boots reduced to £19.99. The indulgent Bordeaux colour and luxe leather look remind me of the Gucci Pre Fall & Chloe Pre-Fall collections where the 70's luxe style embraces leathers and wools for Autumn. Also a great dark orange 100% silk scarf reduced to £12.99, such a perfect shade again for an Autumn awash with rusty hughes.

Favourite Fashion iPhone Apps

These are the iPhone Apps that I keep reaching for, they're addictive! To get these go to the Apps store on your iPhone and search using the names of the apps listed below.

Net A Porter FREE
Magazine, what's new, editor's picks, items to buy now, access your wish list and Buy-OnPhone, the product photographs are high quality and there are multiple views and a good full description as you would find the full size website.

DVF Diane Von Furstenburg FREE
News, special purchase Buy-OnPhone wrap dresses and the latest collections.

Zara FREE
Buy-OnPhone, entire collection available, lookbook & catalogue (nice fashion photos in here).

H&M FREE
News, Whats new in store, and much more. Product images are good, but the descriptions are poor (fabric composition etc.). Shake for 20% off.

ShopStyle.co.uk FREE
Exactly the same as the full website, search for designer collections, individual items and clothing genres, the results offered are a collection from many stores including Net A Porter, Matches, Shop Bop, Nordstrom, My Wardrobe & More.

Style.com FREE
All the designer collections present and past, the runway photos and detail pictures to view, this app is endless!

DIOR FREE
The Lady Dior Bag Films x3, The Couture Collection and News. Very chic, beautiful styling, timeless fashion and captivating films.

I also like the Gucci, Donna Karan, DKNY Cozy and Victoria's Secret Apps too.
I am just waiting for a DKNY, Prada App and Burberry App now!