Autumnal outerwear

Magical Pocket Coat: here & Hammered Ring Drop Earrings: here. Both C/O Laura Ashley. Boots: here. Shirt: here.  - - - 
'Tis officially the season! And by that, no, I don't mean Christmas (although there's a concerning amount of Christmas themed decor popping up in the shops already...) I mean the season of rich, striking jewel tones - as I've always associated the A/W season with luxurious colours like ruby and emerald.
In addition to that, I feel like my style repertoire really expands with the reintroduction of coats come autumn, so you can imagine my joy when I spied this vibrant red number. Red is without a doubt one of my favourite colours to style and one of the most versatile, especially come autumn. I love mixing red with block colours like black, white, green, or even pink if I'm feeling brave enough for a deliberate clash, textures like faux fur and leather, and printed pieces too - checks or stripes are my favourites! As well as mixing patterns and textures, I also love mixing metals. It's something I've always done and thought nothing of, despite it being regarded as a stereotypical no-no. That's where these hammered ring drop earrings come in; two differently sized silver hoops held together by a single gold hoop. To me, mixing metals when it comes to jewellery only leaves you with more choice for other accessories, as you're not tied in to any hardware shade. Can't decide between your favourite silver hardware handbag and gold hardware belt? Wear both! 
This coat is one of those quite rare finds that I'd describe as; warm enough to be practical but elegant enough to be stylish. It's not a style VS. substance piece, it's very much both. Another little detail I just have to mention is that it has REAL POCKETS. Yes, you heard me right. REAL, quite sizeable pockets that you can put things in. Not a fake, deceptive 'I'm-not-really-a-pocket-I'm-just-a-weird-slit-in-the-fabric-made-to-look-like-a-pocket-but-I'm-actually-not-a-pocket' pocket. PRAISE BE.
So, I've told you that red is my favourite colour to style come A/W - I'd love to know yours. Please let me know below! - - - 
Thank you to Laura Ashley for sponsoring this blog post. 

Tom Ford - Signature Colour collection

*Tom Ford Black Orchid: here. *Tom Ford Lipstick: here. - - - 

Today, I am thrilled to present to you; two icons from Tom Ford's beauty repertoire - both from the Signature Colour Collection. They are inarguable classics. 

The first, Tom Ford's Black Orchid. Encased in black glass and adorned with classically Tom Ford gold accents, this is a dark, luxurious and sensual blend of florals and warm spices that sits atop the dressing tables of stylish women everywhere. I can't begin to recall the number of times I've caught this beautiful, recognisable scent on a friend, at an event or in a meeting and asked the wearer 'which perfume do you have on?' and they always answer 'Tom Ford, Black Orchid'.

"A luxurious and sensual fragrance of rich, dark accords and an alluring potion of black orchids, and spice, Tom Ford's Black orchid is both modern and timeless. Bottled in fluted, black-glass, black orchid makes an unforgettable statement of iconic style and worldly glamour."

The top notes are french jasmine, black truffle, ylang-ylang, blackcurrant and citrus, the middle notes feature spice, fruity notes, orchid, lotus, gardenia and jasmine whilst the base notes are made up of patchouli, sandalwood, dark chocolate, incense, amber, vetiver, vanilla and balsam.

Next, what must surely be Tom Ford's most iconic and beloved beauty item; the lipstick, which comes in a rainbow of shades from classic reds to wearable nudes and more experimental colours like purple and fuchsia. I already have about 8 of these, and so can say with absolute sincerity that in my opinion, they stand out as the best lipsticks I've ever used - in terms of both aesthetics and functionality. For my every day shade, I opt for Casablanca (as does my mother!) and if you ever see me wearing a red lip, I can assure you it's Cherry Lush. 

"To Tom Ford, there is no more dramatic accessory than a perfect lip. It is the focus of the face and it has the power to define a woman's whole look. Each lip colour is Tom Ford's modern ideal of an essential makeup shade. Rare and exotic ingredient including Soja Seed extract, Brazilian Murmuru butter and Chamomilla Flower oil create an ultra-creamy texture with an incredibly smooth application. Specially treated colour pigments are blended to deliver pure colour with just the right balance of luminosity."

For this feature, Tom Ford and Harrods kindly sent me a new shade to add to my collection; Scarlet Rouge. When compared to my much used, classic, postbox red Cherry Lush, Scarlet Rouge is a slightly darker, slightly more brown-toned and sexy red. It's utterly perfect for evening wear, with just the right amount of shine. As expected, Scarlet Rouge has that same velvety but pigmented texture and the same deliciously appealing smell. I swear I could recognise a Tom Ford lipstick from the scent alone.

As I mentioned above, I find these lipsticks to be incredibly comfortable to wear, but they also perform well in terms of colour payoff and lasting power. A rather taboo subject to discuss when it comes to lipsticks is how 'well' they wear off. No one ever mentions how lipsticks do, inevitably, wear off. Of course, I look for long lasting power but I don't expect earth-moving miracles. As an every day wearer of Tom Ford's lipsticks I can tell you that when they do eventually wear off, they wear off well. In the sense that the colour fades evenly, not patchily or only in the centre, creating that clown-eqsue look. You can apply a Tom Ford lipstick in the morning, accidentally leave it at home and go about your day without fear. 

Have you ever tried Tom Ford products? If so, what are your favourites? Let me know below!

My Jungle Formalwear

Dress: here. Bag: c/o Bulgari. Pearls: Yonamine Pearls, purchased in Japan - VERY similar here. Shoes: here.
- - - 
Welcome back, and Happy New Year to you all! I arrived home from Singapore at 5:30am yesterday, and after a ridiculously long sleep I've hit the ground running. I'm feeling happy and filled with a real enthusiasm for the year ahead, what I want to achieve and the changes I want to make.

Imagine the humidity, the jungle-esque tropical greenery and the cicadas buzzing in the background. That's the image I want you to keep in your mind as you read this - but first, let me explain. These photos certainly were a palaver. As you may have seen me mention on Instagram, these photos were shot on my new camera and new lens (hopefully you'll notice the difference) and being the gung -ho, no-manual-needed rebel that I am, we shot in the wrong setting and when I came to edit them, my laptop was not having any of it. NONE OF IT. They just wouldn't upload onto blogger no matter how many different ways and programs we used to resize them. I even called my brother into action on our Christmas Day, and even he, who served as our family's household techie for much of my life, couldn't fully solve the problem. It felt like such a disappointment as I really loved how these photos turned out, and as a total last chance saloon style act of desperation, I plugged the card into my usual desktop computer at home... lo and behold, they worked and here we are...

Because of that, I hope you'll forgive the slightly over indulgent number of photos and I also hope you'll leave me a comment to let me know what you think! 

Onto the photos themselves which have been quite overshadowed by the drama surrounding them. If you've been familiar with me for a year or two, you'll probably know that every December I travel to Singapore to visit family for Christmas and New Year. This year was particularly special because it was my Granny's 90th birthday. For the momentous occasion, we decided to recreate one of her favourite previous birthday celebrations; dinner at Singapore's most well known hotel, Raffles - a place where we have so many lovely memories. So, despite the tropical heat, the men dressed in black tie and us ladies put on our best dresses. I helped Granny with her make up and we headed off to dinner. The building itself is stunning, the staff can't do enough, the food was magnificent and the pianist even took requests! To make things even more special, my uncle had also booked Granny's favourite magician who performed at the table for us after dinner. 

This is what I wore for the occasion - a look that my brother and uncle both referred to as very 'throwback', something that you'd have seen a lady wearing at Raffles in the hotel's heyday. However, I'll let you in on a secret. This was just a recreation. The night at Raffles was Granny's night, and I didn't want to spend time away from her taking photos, so the following day I got all dressed up again! It was worth it to have more time with my family and I think that in the end, the photos came out wonderfully!

Finally, thank you for all of the support and encouragement you showed me last year. I appreciate each and every one of you who takes the time to read here, like my Instagram photos and watch my videos. I'm so excited for what's to come this year and I hope you are too. 

MIXING HIGH END WITH HIGH STREET

*Cape: here. Top: similar here. *Shoes: here. Trousers: here.  - - -  If you're new around these parts, you might not know that my standard fashion formula is a mixture of high end/designer pieces and high street gems - this outfit is the perfect demonstration of that.
Whenever I wear this cape, I'm inundated with compliments and every time, the person has been aghast when I tell them it's from one of my old high street favourites, Coast. Admittedly, Coast is on the slightly more pricey end of the 'high street' category, but I'd say their pieces are still attainable to a lot of people - so it still counts. This cape (which is also a fave of style queen Olivia Palermo!!1!) has knocked all of my other coats off the top spot. This cape is my no.1, 2, 3, 4 and 5. I'm besotted. I want one of these capes to wear and another one to frame like teenage boys do with signed football shirts. There's something so flattering about the cut and the way the wing-like sleeves fall and swoosh. To me, it's cool but elegant. 
In fact, this love affair began when I saw Josie wearing it at an event (you must check out her marvellous blog!) and we went through the exact same hooha that I've been going through with strangers, which went something like this; 'OMG where's that from? Is it designer? It's Coast? WHAT?' *eyes fill with tears of joy*
I really do think that there are such wonderful, high quality pieces to be found on the high street and this cape is the epitome of that.  P.S. shameless self promo: there'll be an OOTD of this look and a birthday vlog up on my YouTube channel tomorrow if you'd like to subscribe in preparation!