New year: Last minute fashion emergency

After resolving the huge question on where to spend new year's eve, the second big question involves of course new year's outfit. If, like me, you still haven't decided what to where on this special night, here are some casual and formal ideas to help you match the perfect outfit to start a fresh and exciting new year. And I also want to wish an amazing new year full of happiness and fashion! Thank you for reading my blog and thank you for supporting me on instagram.

 

Casual looks:

 

 

 

Formal looks:

 

 



Leather today, Leather tomorrow

A few years ago, leather was (and still is) considered as one of the most prestigious material. Amazing designers used it to create and realize their biggest classical pieces like leather bags and coats. And progressively, the use of the material increased. Tops, bras, leggings, hats, fashion used leather for any possible item. But today, leather doesn't follow the trends anymore, it creates them. Designers start to seek ideas and think about what to do with leather. In fact, this hit material has taken a whole new level on the market. All seasons included, leather revolutionizes new trends. I've been seeing leather everywhere lately especially in one of my favorite shops: Zara. And I have to say I wasn't indifferent at its magical charm. I bought two beautiful leather skirts, one of them is wavy and flared and the other is knee length and slinky. I also tried two amazing leather pants, both were baggy. They also have a lot of leather leggings, some of them are half leather half velvet. Other than Zara, most of the shops invested in leather, and especially in the famous bag packs that we see everywhere this season. From Stella McCartney, Calvin Klein and Alexander Wang to H&M and Topshop, they all prepared the leather pack bag revolution. And of course you also have the return of leather high boots which are slowly replacing ankle boots. What I liked this winter particularly, is that designers took time to create new and innovative leather items. They even created cool leather coats, different from the classical jackets that we all know. They used it in different ways to suit different styles (chic, formal, casual, baggy...). This material never dies; it may be a vital classic, but it is also a source of innovation and creation. My examples for this post are taken from amazing bloggers.

Never too late for Christmas gifts

Christmas shopping is exciting and complicated at the same time. Thinking about presents ideas is not easy especially if we want them to be special and of course different from the previous years. I face the same problem every time so the first thing that I would suggest is to start thinking of ideas and window shopping. If you still didn't start visiting shops and look at the trends online for inspiration, here are some fashion ideas with places where you can find them. I hope it will facilitate your Christmas shopping!

 

Because winter is about comfy scarves:

Even though scarves are very cliché, they are also stylish, practical and cozy, which make them suitable for all ages. Chose the materials and colors that you like according to the person's taste and style. I would suggest wool scarves for winter or handmade scarves which are very stylish and original. You can find these items at all prices starting from H&M, Zara, Topshop, Massimo Dutti to Fendi, Prada and Chanel. Here are some specific examples to help you with your shopping.

Bershka

Zara

Zara

Zara

Zara



Zara

 

Because Christmas is about cool sweaters:

I don't know about you, but personally, I love pullovers with Christmas prints. You can't wear them all year long of course, but for people who love fashion and cozy sweaters I think it's the coolest gift. And if you want to offer a cute and original present for a friend, I would also suggest matching wool socks with the same prints. Imagine how cute it  would be!

H&M

H&M

H&M

H&M

 

Because fashion is about couture and design:

There is nothing more fancy and chic than offering a couture item as a Christmas gift. And I got the perfect Lebanese designer for you! She is launching her first collection this season and she happens to be a great friend of mine: Jennyfer Fakhoury. Her boutique is located in Achrafieh and you are more than welcome to contact me for more information or directly take a special appointment with her (009610857997). And if you don't live in Lebanon, I really suggest that you encourage your local designers and buy an original and unique piece as a present. 

Because style is about head accessories:

By head accessories I mean winter hats, of course.  If you regularly follow my blog I think you already know how much I love winter wool hats. I am not going to repeat myself over and over again, you know how I feel about hats: stylish, super practical and elegant.

(pictures)
 



Urban Outfitters

Urban Outfitters

Urban Outfitters

 

Because holidays are about gourmandizes:

If you really have no present ideas, you can always offer Christmas gourmandizes like huge chocolate boxes or some fancy holidays sweets like truffles or candied chestnuts. I think no one can refuse such delicious gifts. You can find a lot of cool and original sweets at Cocoa&co which is known in Lebanon for its amazing holyday designs. You can also find a variety of choices at Noura where I will be working for a few days during the holidays, so you can come and visit me!

Dresses aren't dead

Wearing dresses in winter is not very common, at least in Lebanon. People rather wear pants and pullovers perhaps because it's more practical and easier. But personally I think there is nothing more stylish and feminine than wearing a dress in cold days. There are two types of dresses that you can wear in winter:

The typical winter dress:

By typical winter dress, I mean an adequate winter item in wool for example with long sleeves... These kind of dresses alone aren't really interesting because they don't usually value the body of the woman (no shapes). This is why the accessories here are very important. For the shoes, ankle-boots can give a stylish casual rebel-ish look for everyday. And for a more dressy look, you can wear high-heels, it breaks the casual style (but still you cannot wear this kind of dress in formal events for example) . You can match any kind of bag but I suggest backpacks, very trendy this season and I love them with dresses. And for the rest of the accessories, don't hesitate to wear sun-glasses, thick scarfs or leather gloves for example. You can also match beanies or wool hats of course.

The new winter dress:

Today most stores present "summer" dresses all year long. You can easily find strapless short dresses in the middle of winter but it's not a problem because you can style them for a cold season. What I recommend with this kind of dresses is long coats. If you have a black short dress, you have to match it with a colorful coat and the other way around. I love the way colorful coats bring a brightness and stylish touch to the dress. Don't hesitate to buy green, yellow or orange coats! Of course you have to wear opaque tights (not flesh colour tights) and the good thing here is that you can wear the same outfit (with different accessories) for casual and formal events. For an everyday look, I suggest boots or platforms with a cool backpack for example and a beanie. And for formal events, sexy heels are required of course, with a beautiful wool hat. Add jewelries and elegant lace gloves for example.

As I already said, dresses in winter are feminine, elegant and sexy. You can play with the accessories and the colors but make sure you are matching opaque tights and not flesh color. Honestly I find it much easier than matching pants, tops and sweaters!

You can of course ask me where to find the items above. 

Alexander Wang x H&M: last details

Let the countdown begin! I don't really know the details about other countries, but in Lebanon, H&M will be opening at 8:00 am in Abc achrafieh and Beirut souks. Don't be late otherwise you won't get anything for sure. And as I already mentioned in the previous post, the prices are between $10 and $350 and you can find the whole collection online: www.hm.com/wangxhm.

See you there!

Alexander Wang x H&M

And here we go again! What an amazing way to start the season! After Isabel Marant, it's the iconic Alexander Wang who's teaming up with H&M. The collaboration includes a 61-piece collection for women and men. The items reflect Wang's sportive universe with structural pieces and several tones of gray. The collaboration also includes shoes and a big variety of unisex stylish bags. To be honest, at first I didn't really like the collection globally because I found it too dark and sportive. But now that I look at the pieces individually I think they are very stylish in a casual way and value the body of the woman. What I didn't like actually is how they matched the items together on the ads; it's hard to really see the effect of every piece especially that the colors are black and gray mostly. The dresses and jackets are very feminine and modern. And the men's bags are super practical and trendy, I hope I will be able to get one in the crowd! The prices are between $10 and $350 which is quiet good for some Alexander Wang! 

The collection will be available in 250 different stores around the world (including Lebanon) on November 6. Apparently, both H&M Beirut souks and H&M Abc Achrafieh will be selling the collection but we still don't have information about the timing. I will of course keep you updated on all the details as soon as possible. Who's excited??