These shoes are perfect for a shift dress. You can buy them at Office and the best bit is that they were £55 but you can now snap them up for £10. Can you believe it? We couldn’t. What a bargain!

The heels are just the right size to add a bit of glamour and yet comfortable enough to wear all day.

Available in lots of colours Black, Pink, Gold, Navy and White

Our head says black because that would be a real investment for your wardrobe, but our heart says pink.

You can check them out here at www.office.co.uk 

 Pink Shoes from the Office collection WAS £55  NOW £10

£3.99 + £1 p&p

If you need a clothes brush we have found the best clothes brush ever. It cost £3.99 and it’s the best £3.99 we have spent in ages.

This brush is not only great at removing any stray hairs from your coats and jacket’s it’s brilliant at removing the bobbly bits from your knitwear too.

It’s called the Travel Brush and we promise you this will be the only clothes brush you will EVER need. In fact since buying mine I have thrown out our old clothes brushes because no-one used them anymore.

It’s easy to hold, it’s easy to use and it works like a treat. If you have any pets you are going to love it.
This brush is the business!       

You can buy one at www.caraselledirect.com 

Fiz Bags are reusable bags that  fold up really tiny so that you can pop them in your hand bag. We discovered them about 18 months ago and mine has been permanently in my handbag ever since.

We can’t believe how useful they’ve been. We can report that over a year later they are still going strong and look as good as new. And we are loving the fact that when we pop into a supermarket we can say NO to a plastic bag. That’s a good feeling.

They come in some really funky designs and you can choose either a shoulder bag or hand held, whichever you perfer. 
At £4.10 each they’ve proved to be great value.

Fizbags – They’re The Bag in Your Bag. They definitely get the thumps up from us.

Check them out at www.fizbag.com 

Renato Borsella’s shop in Shoreditch specialises in matching Shoes and Handbags and the good news is that you can now purchase them through our website.

Renato Borsella is brilliant if you have a special occasion coming up and need to accessorize an outfit. Shopping around can be a  very time consuming and exhausting experience. Now all you need to do is buy a pair of  shoes with a matching handbag from Renato’s and the problem is SOLVED. They really do finish off your outfit. They would be perfect for the ‘Mother of the Bride’ or if you were going somewhere fancy because you just can’t help feeling dressed up when you wear them.

All the shoes and bags are made in Italy using leather so the quality is excellent. Available in size 5 to 10, the colours are amazing. All the bags have a gold or silver chain – very Chanel. They can also be used as a clutch bag if you prefer. The designs are timeless.

As Coco Chanel once said ‘Fashion fades, only style remains the same’. They will be a great investment to your wardrobe. 

Renato Borsella’s Shop is in Hackney Road, Shoreditch, London, close to the popular Sunday Flower Market in Columbia Road. So if you are in the area it’s well worth checking them both out.

Alternatively you can click through to our on-line shop. You’ll find the link at the top.

Renato Borsella in Shoreditch, East London

If you are planning a staple wardobe, you should give a black shift dress serious consideration. They always looks smart and the different looks you can create with it are endless. 
The only limit will be your imagination

The perfect cardigan to wear with a shift dress should fall to the waist or kiss the hip, whichever you prefer. That length compliments the dress and achieves a classic look that is timeless and won’t date.

Ideally it should be made of cashmere or a good wool mix to keep you warm in the winter, and a cotton mix in the summer.
A good quality cardigan will last for years if looked after.

www.purecollection.com  have an excellent selection of cardigans that would look perfect with a shift dress. It’s a match made in heaven.

For example this cardigan made from 100% cashmere is available in a variety of colours. It has 3/4 length sleeves and a double buton detail. This would look great with a shift dress, denims and cropped trousers. We bet you will wear it over and over……………….

It was £99 but can now be purchased for £74.00

www.purecollection.com/round necked cardigan with double button detail 

This cardigan is cropped, also in 100% cashmere. It’s available in 6 colours, which include black, lemon and blue.

 www.purecollection.com/round neck cropped cardigan  £74.00

Teva Flip Flops with free p&p within the UK
www.purefootwear.co.uk

About 5 years ago I bought a pair of flip flops from a sports shop. I was a bit apprehensive at first because I didn’t know how I’d get on with the throng between the toe bit. I’d tried others in shops before but they had never seemed comfortable and even though friends said you get used to the toe thing after a few days, I never went for it.

That was until I tried on a pair of Teva Flip Flops and fell in love instantly. The comfort was unbelievable. It’s like you are walking on air.

Five years later they are still going strong and look as good as new. I wear them practically all the time in the summer, well, whenever I can and they even double up as slippers too.
They have been one of the best investments to my wardrobe EVER.

You can buy them on line at www.Purefootwear.co.uk and the best bit is they even offer free postage and packing in the UK. Yay!

I promise you, you will NOT be disappointed

Teva – Mush Sandal £17.99
www.Purefootwear.co.ukTeva – Manalyn Sandal £19.99
www.Purefootwear.co.uk

Teva – Mandalyn Wedge £24.99
www.Purefootwear.co.uk

Think cut, shape, fabric and colour

It’s time to shop smart, buy less and buy better. The cut and how the dress is made is very important. The cut should be in a classic style and the ideal length is just below the knee. That way it will always be timeless and never date. It should be finished to a good standard. Watch out for puckering, check that it has a decent hem and a long invisible zip so it’s easy to put on (and take off).

Dress your body shape. Shift dresses suit most body shapes. They are ideal for hiding those extra pounds around the mid-riff that won’t seem to budge. If you are pear shaped look out for a shift dress with an A line skirt.

The colours we recommend for a shift dress is the colour of gemstones. Any gemstone. A block colour is stunning and will suit any age group. If you are reorganizing your wardrobe don’t be influenced by the ‘current seasons’ colour  choose something that compliments your skin tone instead, and most jewels will. It’s a girl thing.

A black shift dress is going to be the most useful dress in your wardrobe because it is very versatile. It’s the number one dress to consider adding to your staple wardrobe. The key is to accessorise it by adding bright colours, the variations are limitless. It’s perfect for formal occasions, yet easy to jazz up when you want to change the look.

A patterned fabric is great for diverting the eye away from the figure, no need to accessorize and if you want a formal look you can just add a black jacket.

Believe in yourself
 
Bring some colour into your life! It will lift your spirit.

• A shift dress always looks smart

• A shift dress is versatile and can be worn for any occasion

• It will never date

• A shift dress is so comfortable to wear

• A shift dress is kind to the the waistline

• A shift dress gives you  a great silhouette, so you look elegant and feel good. Even on fat days

• It’s the only dress that is a completely blank canvas

• You can dress them up or you can dress them down

• If you want to add a bit of fun just add some funky chunky accessories

• If you want to be sophisticated add diamonds, but hey diamante works just as well

• You can wear them plain and just let the dress do the talking

• A shift dress looks sassy with heels and wicked with stiletto’s. Men will love you

• You can go casual and wear your dress with ballet pumps. Your feet will love you

“Express Yourself!”  How will you wear yours?

The shift dress evolved from the sack dress, a dress that was first shown by designers Hubert de Givenchy and Cristobal Balenciaga in the 1957 Paris collections. Although not dissimilar in cut to the famous flapper dresses of the 1920′s Charleston era, it didn’t have the glitz. The dress bombed at the show and received a lot of bad press. Many Parisian’s thought the dress was ugly because it had no shape.

Givenchy however, was already designing much of  Audrey Hepburn’s wardobe for her movies since meeting her during the filming of Sabrina in the 50′s. In 1961 he designed the iconic black dress Audrey wore in ‘Breakfast at Tiffanys’. Givenchy had many famous clients including Jacqueline Kennedy and Princess Grace of  Monaco. Both great fashion icons.

Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany's

During this time an American socialite called Lilly Pulitzer was living in Florida, her husband Peter owned citrus groves there. Lilly decided to make juice from the different fruits and sell them to tourists. She set up a fruit stand by the roadside in Palm Beach and the juices were very popular. Lilly asked a dressmaker to make her up some dresses that would help cover the stains from the fruits. The design was simple, a sleeveless dress with two front darts and the length falling just below the knee. They were made using brightly coloured and patterned cottons. Her customers loved the dresses as much as the juice and some wanted to buy them, so Lily started selling dresses too. The design became her ‘classic’ shift dress and at the time were affectionately called “Lilly” dresses. When Jacqueline Kennedy, who was an old school friend of Lily’s wore one of the dresses for a feature in Life Magazine it started a fashion trend throughout America.

By now the shift dress had evolved by following the female figure more closely, skimming the body line. Because there wasn’t much emphasis to the waist line they were very comfortable to wear and gave a flattering silhouette. This simple dress was a hit and became popular with women all over the world.

In 1966, Mary Quant queen of the mini skirt took the shift dress and turned it into the mini dress, which was worn 6 or 7 inches above the knee. A young 16 year was hired to model the dress, her name was Twiggy – the rest as they say is history.