My Christmas Wish List | Sophie Cha

In my family there is a recent Christmas tradition of emailing wish lists around about a week before the day itself – since mine this year is full of horribly practical things that I can’t afford to buy myself, I won’t share the real thing.

But here’s a dream version to add to the lists done so far by Sophie Caldecott, Dee and Katie.

1. Devore dress by Michael van Der Ham for Topshop £200
I almost bought this gorgeous Michael van Der Ham dress for myself before my monthly budget struck. The designer produced one of our favourite LFW SS12 shows this season and I think the colours and the mix of fabrics in this stand out piece of his Topshop collaboration would be so perfect for Christmas parties.

2. Baume & Mercier Men’s 8786 Classima Executives Watch c. £2000
Nothing gets me madder than women’s watches – why do men get brown leather, hundreds of carefully placed rubies and diamonds and classic watchfaces and we get diamante’s and disgusting ‘jewellery’ straps? I love skeleton watches that show the inner mechanisms and workings but it can feel cluttered which is why this Baume & Mercier watch is just busy enough.

3. Touche Eclat by Yves Sant Laurent £18
One of the only items of make-up that does its job instantly and flawlessly, I’ve been hooked on Touche Eclat for years and now the Yves Sant Laurent highlighter and under-eye concealer is even better as you can choose from six shades. Trust me, people will notice the difference so it’s worth splashing out on.

4. Viktor and Rolf Flowerbomb Eau de Parfum £84 for 100ml
This was my first impression of the Viktor & Rolf exhibition at the Barbican a while back and it stuck – so much so that before long I’d gone out and bought the perfume. I’m not quite ready for anything heavy by Guerlain or Chanel just yet – I wouldn’t feel right getting chucked out of clubs wearing a grown up scent – but this girly, floral perfume is just right for now.

5. Asus Transformer Prime £500
I might have to whisper it but some of Apple’s hard work at becoming the only brand of technology we crave is unravelling this year. If you want a stylish addition to your family of – let me guess – iPhone, MacBook Pro etc then ignore the LG Prada phone or anything that’s pink and decked out in trinkets. The Asus Transformer Prime tablet is thinner, lighter and more powerful than the iPad 2 plus the price includes this keyboard dock that gives you 18 hours battery life. And it’s undeniably sexy.

6. D&G Herringbone Holdall £273 (on sale)
You may have already heard me fawning over the perfect weekend bag but here’s another beautiful holdall – yes, they do exist. It’s classic herringbone is muted enough not to clash with whatever you’ve packed for your work trip but stylish enough to sit smugly in the overhead locker next to tons of navy blue suitcases.

7. Limited Edition Lovebird Lambswool Throw by Heart Zeena £180
If, like me, you live in a fairly new flat that you don’t have time to decorate you might like the Heart Zeena range of printed textiles to make it a bit cosier this winter. This reversible lambswool throw was woven in Scotland and will add some character to bland, identikit Ikea flats.

8. Tickets to next year’s Bestival £170
What present do I want most? Well, I’m trying not to wish the winter away but tickets to a festival for next Summer – like Bestival, Isle of Wight in September – would be the perfect way to round off the year. Getting something to look forward to without having to lug it back from your parents house? Now that’s a thoughtful Christmas gift.

The Creative Christmas Gift Guide

Christmas shopping can be somewhat stressful when trying to pinpoint that certain perfect present.  And being an absolute gift-goblin I have started my shopping progressively earlier each year since I have been deemed old enough to do it myself.  However, this tends to still leave me running around with a bee in my bonnet until late December, because what if, horror of horrors, there is something better for that certain person than what is already hidden under my bed?  And with many creative types to buy for, I believe the personal touch feels better than the whole 3 for 2 in Boots.  That’s why I want to share a few pain-free shopping ideas that I believe would be good inspiration for you, our lovely creative readers, if you are also this way inclined…

1.   Firstly, I was told today about www.firebox.com and after a good root around, I found some perfect gifts for the photographer in your life, including this camera lens-style mug (with pull our biscuit tray!) for £14.99, as well as 35mm film USB sticks and iphone photo printers…

2.  Also, getting a gift for the perfect couple who have everything can also be a nightmare, so why not throw a double slanket (£52.99) their way!

3.  And finally, I came across this absolute beauty of a gift for any fashion blogger or style-lover from Moleskine on their site:

This Style Journal from Moleskine helps you record and manage everything from events and useful addresses, to inspiring outfits and designer  for all of us at Style & Then Some!  And at £15.99, I’m hoping to find one of these bad boys in my stocking this year.

Heavenly scents: A woman’s right to perfume

I recently read an interesting fact that 81% of British women own 5 or more different types of Perfume. And with Christmas in the not-too-distant future and Boots stuffing its shelves incessantly with perfume gift sets of cheap smells and body lotions, I got to wondering what it is about scent that Britain’s female population are so addicted too.

Take our male counterparts for example. They’re happy as Larry with a can of Lynx Africa yet throw a bottle of Charlie Red at a woman over the age of 15 and chances are you’ll have it hurled back at your head. Scent, it appears, is as important to many women as foundation or lipgloss. You just feel naked without it. It can help define who you are.  Perfume can shape a woman’s identity and that’s possibly why over 90% of the UK have given and received perfume for special occasions.

Whether you favour classic aromas such as Chanel No.5, the contemporary like Therry Mugler’s Womanity, or the cheap and cheerful celebrity endorsed bottles (hey, I’m not knocking it, everyone from Britney to Prince is cashing in!) it is fair to say that once you find a scent to suit, it will stick in your mind like a powerful memory.

So guys, I don’t see buying perfume for loved ones this Christmas as an easy gift. If done right, it can be the most personal present you can give.  And we all know how much of an absolute bitch it can be when your favourite gets discontinued. So if you are choosing to opt for the sweet-smelling stuff this Christmas, for someone else or for yourself (hell, we are all about girl power here ladies) you might want to check out some of the bargains Cheapsmells.com have got going on, as well as faithful Boots and Asda (who boast some of the cheapest ‘per-spray’ prices on the market).  You could even pick up this Prince perfume from their online service! (Who knew this ever happened?!)

So what do YOU think?  Do you have an absolute favorite perfume you couldn’t live without?  Let us know.

In photos: Selfridges Christmas preview

What do you mean you haven’t started your Christmas shopping yet? Don’t you realise there are only 155 shopping days left before 25th December? I know this because last Wednesday Helen and I went down to Selfridges, where the Christmas shopping is encouraged even at the height of Summer. On Wednesday, the Ultralounge (I’m not entirely sure what makes it more ultra than your average lounge) was transformed into an all-white winter wonderland complete with Christmas trees, fake snow scattered on the floor and Mariah Carey warbling ‘all I want for Christmas is yooooou’ in the background. It was all designed to get journalists and bloggers in the mood for the festive season because the Selfridges Christmas shop will be open by the end of July. Yep, you read that right, July – although the exact date is a closely guarded secret. Can’t wait to get started? Here are a few snaps of the sort of goodies you’ll be able to find there, and throughout Selfridges, in the run up to Christmas – from tiny Vivienne Westwood bears to a giant Dior bear in a box, plus possibly the coolest advent calendar I’ve ever seen.

Vivienne Westwood bear charm necklaces

Markus Lupfer pug jumper

Burberry Prorsum white double breasted 'Pattinson' coat

Roland Mouret white strapless dress

Issa white evening dress

Vivienne Westwood white evening dress

Dior bear in a box

The front of a luxury Lancome advent calendar...

...and all the Lancome goodies inside

Helen and I in the Selfridges white winter wonderland

Mulberry’s billion pound price tag

My lust for an ‘Alexa’ is slowly turning into a must.  Having spent a considerable amount of (wasted, some might say)  time daydreaming about the day when I own my own – note the lack of ‘if’ in this sentence – my infatuation was only spurred on last night when I came face to face with the Angel of all Mulberry bags…

This white ‘Alexa’ Satchel formed part of the display at the Christmas Press launch for Selfridges…and I thoroughly believe if the old Arc Angel was en Vogue, he would have been sporting this beauty.  But alas, it seems I am not the only one taken over by the power of this quintessentially British brand.  This week it was announced that Mulberry have tipped the £1 billion profit margin, making them the WORLD’S top performing brand this year.  And the ‘Alexa’ alone counts for around 30% of that.  Not bad for a Somerset based label.

So maybe there is a lesson to be learned from all of this?   Maybe, as we are just pulling ourselves out of this godforsaken recession, we want to invest our money in British made goods, who we know and trust…Maybe it is time to start investing in likewise companies…