Cute stuff: Little red shoes

M & S sent us a picture of these, ahem, heartbreaking shoes. A little bit Wizard of Oz, a little bit Moschino, a little bit Vivienne Westwood for Melissa. Just add a short velvet dress and glittery ankle socks.

We've Been Crystallized

Sorry we've been M.I.A. We weren't gone far, just got sucked into the vortex also known as the Swarovski-Crystallized website. Specifically, we're obsessed with its Personal Stylist tool. We've been experimenting with the jewels it suggested for us, based on our hair, eyes, skin colouring and taste in clothes. Not only does it give you a selection based on your choices but you can customise them as well. Such fun! You see why we were gone so long, no? Now imagine if Swarovski made make-up palettes...

We love...

...the arty farty style of Dior's new Love Dior compact but is it just too pretty to use? Oh the dilemma! Get a closer look when it launches on October 22nd exclusively at Selfridges' new Dior counter.

Trend alert: The 'now' nail

The classic nude 'squoval' nail is over - over we tell you! In its place come three trends to take you through autumn and beyond. Hot right now is the jade nail initiated by Chanel. Rumour has it that ten shades were mixed and Karl picked the one that was a closest match to a Chanel green tweed suit. Well who wouldn't? Why not match yours to your favourite bigger-than-a-china-cup cocktail ring?


The next big thing going on in nails is the Return Of The Talon. Yep, long, witchy claws are de riguer, just ask John Galliano who showed purple talons at his AW09 Dior show. We actually prefer Cassie's bubblegum pink tips but hey, there's room for both.



Finally, don't fret if you still hanker after a neutral nail. The grey nail is the new nude, as seen at Matthew Williamson and Tuleh. Barry M has one that gives good coverage at an affordable price.

Shooting from the hip - what's the etiquette?

We spent a good chunk of London Fashion Week people-watching and taking photos for some of the trend-prediction consultancy work we do. Let's face it, if you're at LFW and not taking pictures, something's up! But here's the question, what's the etiquette when photographing street style? One friend thinks it's rude to take a photo of someone's bag/shoe/dress without requesting a shot of their face too. Her strategy is to ask to take a picture of them and then once that's out of the way she asks if she can also 'get a quick shot of your insert-item-here'. Well we don't do that. We ask outright if we can take a photo of said item and don't bother pretending to be interested in the rest of the ensemble. Who's right?

We also routinely shoot from the hip, taking candid snaps as and when they present themselves. Shoes are the easiest, especially at parties where fantasy footwear is at its most evident and you can easily grab a snap without anyone noticing. But at LFW, we tried this on a lady wearing an eyecatching pair of loafer-wedges. Ooh, hybrid trend alert! We quickly aimed the camera and took fire but - damn - shoe lady saw us and deliberately walked off. What a spoilsport. We were hacked off because the way we see it, if you're at LFW, you're gonna get snapped, it's par for the course, right?

What does everyone else think?

LFW Skin Saviour!

There is a catch to being invited to all these fashion shows you know! We're calling it 'fashacne', a skin condition brought on by all of those early morning shows, late-night parties,  (oh and yes, the 'Lauderee macaroon' diet that we seem to be living on at the 'mo).  Thankfully we've found a solution! Well a quick fix anyway. Laura Mercier's Illuminating Tinted Moisturiser is a skin genius! A dab and a smear later and spots, dark circles (and that grey complexion tinge) are gone! You don't even need a mirror to apply it. Genius!

FREE GIFT ALERT!

We find that GWP's (that's marketing lingo for gift-with-purchase items) are always a tad naff, but this shopper (that comes free with a 50ml bottle of DKNY's Be Delicious Scent from 23rd September) goes against that grain. Why? Pop-art-esque with a subtle-but-seen designer-label tag, it will surely score high in the style stakes!

Call 0870 034 2566 for more info or go to www.DKNYfragrances.com

DIP DYE...DO OR DON'T?

Following in the footsteps of Lady Ga Ga (and Julia Roberts!?!) Drew has black-tipped her tresses. It's attention-grabbing yes, but whether it's a style we'll be trying ourselves, time will tell! 

Flats are back!

Can we just say how much we're loving the flats revival (and so are our chiropractors). We keep clocking these super-comfy Newbark shoes (above) on everyone including Rosie Huntingdon-Whiteley and Kate Moss. We'd wear them with cropped skinny jeans and a Brteon top for post-Fashion Week downtime.

We've also got our eyes on Christian Louboutin's studded slippers - just need to find an affordable version. Au revoir platform skyscrapers!

Lipgloss-watch

Spotted at Urban Outfitters. Cute packaging, fruit-scented, £5 - what's not to love?

CHERYL'S SECRET MAKE-UP BUY

We were lucky enough to meet the gorgeous Cheryl Cole yesterday! A few select journo's (ahem, that's us!) were invited to quizz her about her new role as Ms Beauty Queen (aka the new face of L'Oreal Paris). After a natter over cupcakes (yes, she did eat one) and tea, she let us into a sneaky peak inside her make-up bag. And inside we spotted her new must-have new foundation buy:





"This is a recent obsession," she said. "I love the new applicator. Oh my god, I put it on in the car the other day when I was running late, and I thought let me just try that - it was on within two seconds. Why has no one ever made this before? I should’ve thought of it 'cos my dad is a painter and decorator. It gives very even coverage. I’m well impressed with that one."

Aaaah, don't you just love 'er!

Je M'apelle Bella

Bella Freud's cult beatnik knits are just the thing for trans-seasonal September. We love these new shots by Susie Bick complete with pop-coloured wigs.

File under "why didn't we think of this"

We have a problem. We love vintage suitcases but we don't know what to do with them. Here's an idea... make them into coffee tables! We love all the re-use/re-love ideas on this site - don't you?

If you go down to Selfridges today...

You simply must head up to the third floor. Not only have they unveiled their new 3rd Central department housing Marc by Marc Jacobs, Alexander Wang and Sonia by Sonia Rykiel but how fun is this giant surrealist coat hanger?!

Fabulosity Friday

Who else is loving the new Accessorize campaign? We can't get enough of those rings, scarves and bags...

On our radar - the bracelet that thinks it's a watch

Who wears a watch these days? No-one, right? Wrong! We like the witticism of these silly but stylish accessories - what do you think?

Martin Margiela brass watch bracelet


Lazy Oaf perspex watch cuff

Kate vs Lily

Which one did it better?

The Cambridge Satchel Company

Instead of prepping for Notting Hill Carnival, we have spent all morning drooling over these satchels from The Cambridge Satchel Company. They come in a rainbow of colours and different sizes so can be used as a regular satchel or as a preppie handbag. You can even get your name embossed on them - very Malory Towers...

French fancy

We are off to Paris in a couple of weeks so forgive us for coming over a bit oh la la... For starters we are totally swooning over this APC T-shirt - The Teenagers, APC, Paris...Could there be a more perfect combination?

Lip Service

What is it about lip balms that is just so irresistible? We have shelves-ful of Carmex, Kiehls, Blistex and Burts Bees. Gloopy, creamy or even the humble Chapstick, you name it, we can't resist smothering our lips in it. Latest on the lip balm conveyor belt is Elizabeth Arden's Eight Hour Cream in this glamorous wee pot. At only £10 we think this is a bargain, therefore, or course we have to have it.

Foot candy in Shoreditch

Coat check

Coats in August- are we mad? No, very sensible actually. We weren't looking for coats in River Island, but before we knew it, something was sucking us in and making us try them on. We fell in love with this one - fabulously fifties shape, detachable furry collar and what we're calling 'glove-length' sleeves - stopping just above the wristbone to show off a snazzy pair of gloves, perhaps with buttons up the side? Oh, and please don't miss the Cecil Beaton wallpaper in the fitting room - how very couture salon!

Why don't you...?

...get your leather jacket airbrushed? We nicked this great tip from Acne founder, Jonny Johansson in the September issue of Vogue. Give your new-season leather jacket (Oasis has heaps) an authentic twist with an airbrushed design on the back. Need inspiration? Try here...

British summertime

Ah summertime - sea, sand and... wellies? We love this pic from John Lewis teaming a swimsuit with a trench and Hunter wellies. Now that's the British summer we know and love!

Spotted!

Oh how we love the ripped-neon-tights-over-black-opaques look that we saw on a trendsetter in Selfridges yesterday. Wear with a sixties mini-shift, trashed Converse and a studded hairband for full London-girl effect...

Cute stuff alert!

We can't help it, we just can't resist cute stuff. Cartoon graphics, kooky stationery, novelty make-up, we love it all. At the A/W Tammy press day we were all over the accessories, in particular, the mirror keyrings in the shape of old-school cameras and sunglasses with mini-lipglosses attached. And how disco-licious is the pink metallic make-up bag? Bring it on!

go wild in the country

GASP, how brilliant are these photos of cool kids wearing Westwood by Ben Toms? Makes us feel all creative...

Let There Be Light

Our love of neon, graffiti and 80s graphics just isn't going away is it? And do we care? Not a lot, no! Neither does Diesel, who has a new collection getting ready for lift-off in September. The Flash for Fun collection is a capsule range of glow-in-the-dark clothes that look oh-so-innocent by day, then undergo a Stephen Sprouse-esque transformation come night. Neon-tastic!

Stella does Disney

More on the Disney tip, we just love how Stella McCartney always thinks outside the box in such a cool way. Who else would have come up with a high fashion ad campaign featuring some well-loved Disney characters without it looking naff? Adorable.

Shoulder chic

Back in May, we reported on Graziadaily.co.uk on the rise in sales of shoulder pads and the shoulder pad frenzy that was taking over every high street brand from Topshop to Tammy.

Now, pics are in of the new ASOS collection and we're planning on shamelessly pinching their ideas taking a styling tip or two from them. Take one freshly-ironed loose white tee, a pair of £1.99 shoulder pads and a statement necklace, roll up those sleeves, tuck in the tee and voila, a so-right-now look with minimal effort. Alternatively, just buy the look readymade from ASOS.com when it lands mid-August.

THINK TINK

Kind of sticking to the kooky theme, we've just spied a potential new fashion crush. Okay, Disney characters aren't exactly on the same page as Alexa and co, but knowing how Minnie has inspired designers over the years (think Moschino's Minnie Mouse dot dresses and Luella and Giles' recent overhaul of Mrs. Mouse's ears) we have a feeling the newly made-over Tink (you know, Peter Pan's fairy side kick) may well strike a style chord. With her on-trend leggings and gladiator-style boots we can just imagine they'll be lots of fairy-inspired outfits hitting the catwalks sometimes soon.  Now where's our fairy dust...

Look out for Tink in her new film, Lost in Treasure, later this year.