Blue coat – Anywho x Brics, Cream coat – Mum’s, Boots – Sam Edelman, Clutch – C/O Kurt Geiger, Watch – Casio, Bracelets – C/O Boticca, Dress- ASOS Salon

Oh how I love Christmas! Mariah (and lately Justin Bieber, the horror) constantly wanting only me from speakers of the randomest of places (butcher’s down the road, WHY); the smart-ass, seemingly-omniscient gift guides of the interwebs; twelve days of Christmas and one very bankrupt and exhausted true love; the visible struggle for the shops to make a watered down version of the season’s products (i.e very well-dressed snowmen decorations and elaborate snowflakes) that hopefully appeal to those that don’t necessarily, by religion or whatnot, celebrate the day but would still like to participate in the buzz…. But most of all, the ‘christ’-lessness of ‘Christ’mas, and a whole month of cringing at the fact that it’s less and less that and more and more ‘x’ of Xmas, probably x = the unknown? To be very frank, I always find myself distressed by the noise around Christmas – this of course will serve as the primary reason to the fact that my children will be the scoundrels who will break the Santa secret to all his classmates on the eve, making the night truly sleepless but for entirely different reasons. And I will die of chronic cynicism, on Christmas day, surely.

Babbling aside, this year I was most drawn to Malachi chapter 4, the final book and chapter of the Old Testament which dates 300 years before the birth of Christ, but in all its might leaves a big arrow towards the coming of Jesus. (Yes Christmas is defacto a pagan tradition and Jesus was really born closer to March but if we’re plastering babies & mangers over our cards and we’ve allocated ONE time during the year to remember His birth then might as well do it properly)

There’s that one sweater that goes with absolutely everything. I was contemplating the pink version of this at ASOS but decided I just might not be coherent enough in the morning to even consider making pink work.

By the time I’m done with those friendship bracelets that ship may have sailed… Time to call it vintage then?

I like to keep a few key pieces for the season separate so in the confusion of learning my name anew while scoffing down breakfast and slapping makeup on in the morning things would simply be easier.

Favourite pieces of the moment: Young Frankk 3-bar necklace & Twig Solitaire ring by Michelle Oh

Fell in love with the fact that it’sheer enough to see every single goosebump during the colder seasons. Pair it with a smart pea-coat and you got a whole new man attracting/repelling phenomenon right there.

Head over heels for this photoshop-in-a-box bronzing kit by Chanel (4 Facettes Bronzing Powder) & Kate Kanzier glitter shoes that strangely remind me of classic Ferragamos.

It’s been the best thing to cycle home to after a long day at work – lemon tea with water just hot enough to prevent boiling off the vitamins, with a bag of English Breakfast tea and a tablespoon of manuka honey.

Winter Skincare

Clinique All About Eyes Serum Probably more attracted to the feeling of a wet metal ball gliding over my eyes… yah, that didn’t sound creepy at all.

Kiehl’s Avocado Eye Cream Tub of magic, I call it – costs £30 but lasts months and months.

Lancome Genifique serum Two pumps after cleansing and toning, sets the skin for the next layer.

Vichy Nutrologie 2 I reserve this only for the colder seasons; the creamy texture is perfect for dry & sensitive skin types like mine.

Biotherm Skinergetic Nightcream – I only started using this a week ago but so far absolutely satisfied with waking up with dewy skin.

Shu Uemura Cleansing Oil Literally just melts off makeup and cleanses while depositing essential oils.

I’m rather obsessed with the smell of Sassoon Halo Hydrate Leave-in conditioner spray…

Sandy Bay White Tea Candle – smells like blisssss. That is all.

Nuxe Huile Prodigieuse Been adding a drop of this with my body lotion every now and then and it leaves this really refreshing feeling like just coming out of a spa. The smell is divine too.

I’ve been increasingly paranoid about the skin on my hands so I always apply FC5 Hand Creme after washing dishes.

Recovery Balm by Monu for stressed skin (stressed thinking of dinner ideas for the hubby, pork chop or pork stew!?)

Tartan Top  & shirt as half-skirt – Courtesy of Motel rocks, Shoes – Ferragamo, Skirt – C/O YesStyle, Bag –  C/O MCM, Clutch – ASOS, Cardigan – Topshop, Jacket – Vintage Burberry, Sunglasses – Jeepers Peepers from Topshop

If you feel like I’m talking too much feel free to shove a virtual sock in my mouth, unfortunately this is the only way to avoid you having to read about LFW on Christmas eve. Goodness knows what kind of excuses I’ll come up with then, the usual my-dog-ate-my-keyboard kind of spiel I guess. And I just realised how obsessed I seem to be with the silver clutch! Well, in truth it’s the only thing big enough to accommodate the pieces of cardboard I slipped between the few tickets just to look like I have a grand purpose during the week. Dash off with a powerwalk/jog muttering sorry I’m running late for the next show… a show of balancing a box of Krispy Kreme x Glamour doughnuts on my nose behind Somerset House before an impatient tourist audience shouts ‘SIMON SAYS, JUST EAT THE DAMN DOUGHNUTS WOMAN’. I’m sure I sent you all tickets for that, no?

Thank you Jen for helping me with the photos!

Edit: the red tartan piece is just a shirt from Motel Rocks buttoned up to the top and tied around the waist flat

Jacket – Paul & Joe, Trousers & Clutch – ASOS, Bag – On loan from Mulberry, Shoes – Zara, Shirt – Gmarket

Being a blogger at LFW this season:

1. A girl attending to the ‘blogger queue’ types in Park & Q dot com and tells me in the most matter-of-fact tone that my blog doesn’t exist. After a flurry of failed ‘cube’ jokes the blog finally loads on the laptop and she scrubs her touchpad down the first page, skimming through posts that took 5 hours to put together. Then she nods, says ‘Yeah… I like it‘ and asks for my statistics. I get a Blogger Pass.

2. The security man at the BFC tent thumbs my pass and frowns. ‘Yes, you may run in and get a few,’ he says, ‘but the Vitamin Water bottles aren’t just for anybody, you know’. Later I present my ticket for a show, sponsored by Vitamin Water – he waves me in nonchalantly.

3. My ticket request is denied, the PR doesn’t seem to remember telling me how much they liked my 6-hour-design post of their previous season catwalk. I then receive a mass mail with a standing e-ticket the day before the show.

I’m grateful for the opportunity to experience wonderful design so up-close, and be a part of the ‘magical’ scene, but if this is the kind of attitude I should be expecting every season I’d rather be home sharing an amazing cafe I found the other day or five ways to wear the pair of heels that I otherwise would’ve shredded my foot in doing strangers favours of free publicity.

Thank you Kit for helping with the photos. (Here’s a video by Style it Light TV with the outfit!)