Liberty of London for Target available online

It may be sold out in stores across the States, but you can rest assured that the Liberty of London for Target collaboration is available both instore and online. A beautiful floral fusion across a range of goods from bicycles to watering cans and scented candles to clothing. I love the floral dresses at only £50 each, very girlie and easy to wear, great to throw on with your sandals, (if we ever get a summer) and there are some super pieces which will make great gifts for Mums or Aunts who have birthdays coming up.

Lady in Red

If I never hear the song with the same name as the title of this Post, it won't be a day too soon, God it drove me nuts, but whenever I think about Red dresses it just automatically pops into my head and stays there, along with visions of Chris De Burgh - ugh!
So if you are not interested in trends, flinch at the thought of florals and have nightmares over nudes but are looking for a summer alternative to winters LBD, then look no futher than red. It suits all skintones and hair colours and radiates sexy sophistication. Check out the selection below, all from Matches, which one would you choose? If money were no object, I would lust after lanvin!

DVF £273

Issa £368Maxmara £398

Lanvin Draped dress £1,620

Sexy Swimwear from Agent Provocateur

There are a few things I hate about getting older and putting on weight (exactly why does this happen to some of us, who eat the same as we did 10 years ago?) and one of those things is Age Appropriate Swimwear.

Mrs Fab can't bear not to get her belly brown on holiday, so still opts for a bikini whilst poolside, and as aforementioned belly is now about 10 inches closer to the sun when laying flat, than it was a few years ago, it does go a rather nice shade of tan, even if I say so myself.

I adopt the attitude "if you don't like the look of me in a bikini, then look away" and luckily no matter where I am in the world, there is always some poor sod on a sun lounger, who is about 5 stone heavier than me and won't even take her skirt off, so that always makes me feel a bit better. Well it did until I got an email about the new Agent Provocateur swimwear range! Wow!
These skimpy pieces not only have me hankering after my youth, Big Style, but also make me want to eat nothing but Spinach leaves for the next six months! You need to be brave, have the body of Cheryl Cole, (post Ashley), and be as sexy hell, before you can even think about adding any of these pieces to your online shopping trolley or holiday suitcase, but we can all dream and as some of my readers are a fair bit younger than Moi, you may well be interested! Go on, I dare you!


Top £90, Bottoms £55

Top £90, Bottoms £55

Swimsuit £165

So not a good look

Sorry Coleen, I usually love everthing you wear.  However this stripey dress is not doing it for me, nor you for that matter.  I love it, don't get me wrong, I have always been a big fan of stripes and nautical trends, but it makes you look podgy, just like I did when I tried on a Whistles stripe dress last summer.  You have done so well to lose your baby weight and I am not a fan of people who starve themsleves, I much prefer the look of real women, which you are (I know this because of your programme, Coleeens Real Women) but lots of your post baby outfits have had you looking quite svelte, alas not this. Of course I love the Wedges, Fendi Bag, watch etc but there are so many other beautiful things, with your budget, you could have worn.

What a Bummer!

Many years ago, when I first saw Carrie sporting a Gucci Bumbag in Sex and the City, I knew I had to have one. It was total love at first sight as were many things I first saw on Carrie. Eventually I got one and I loved it and although I didn't have the washboard stomach of Miss Bradshaw, I was able to wear it without feeling too self concious (that wouldn't be the case now!) and as Little Man had a pram that you couldn't put a normal handbag on the handles, it was so useful, but I have been thinking a lot about this bag recently and wishing I could find it!
I never sold it on ebay, but for many years I haven't been able to find it. I have hunted high and low and can only think some dastardly removal man may have recognized the Gucci logo print and nicked it, as I have moved twice since I last saw it! Bummer eh!
I have often seen this bag being worn by people when I have been on holiday.  Men have had it and women have had it and I have seen it slung over one's shoulders rather than being worn around the waist.  I am sure I had it in my head that Bumbags would be around this seasons but I can't find one on any of the high end websites I spend hours browsing on.  I have even been on Gucci's site and they don't have it on there either, does anybody know if Gucci still do this iconic bag? I don't think I would want one by another designer anyway.

Its not all Junk

Junk Mail drives me nuts. When 80% of the days post goes straight into the blue wheelie recycle bin, it is just another bloody chore, everyday, that needs doing. However, there is one kind of Junk Mail that I am always happy to receive and that is any kind of clothing catalogue. The plastic wrapping gets ripped off as quickly as if I were opening a cheque from the National Lottery, because what I love about them is the fact I get to look at brands that I wouldn't otherwise have any interest in, enter the Joules brochure.


To me, Joules is a brand synonymous with the Horsey fraternity as I have seen the branding on some items of clothing worn by certain Mums in the Playground. Whoever wants to drop their kids off at school wearing a baseball cap, wellies and stinking of horse shit is beyond me, but it may not be too long before I am embracing the brand they seem to love (avoiding the Equestrian section obviously).


Prices are beyond reasonable and the spring and summer collection consists of some very pretty dresses, I am thinking wedding/party attire

£99


or simple daytime, lets chuck on a dress and some beads and we won't have to think too hard but will still look effortlessly stylish



£55, but out of stock in my size or I would have ordered it!


I am also loving these pretty pink driving shoes, all the comfort of a Tods style Loafer sole without the price tag, ice cream colouring and an upper not too dissimilar to the Chloe Paddington Flat, that I wore into the ground a few years back.

£49

All in all, I am extremely impressed and the childrens collection is beyond cute with a lot of the little girls items in a very pretty print that is not too dissimilar to Cath Kidston!

£19

You can buy Joules directly from their website at http://www.joulesclothing.com/ where you can currently get 15% off and free p&p using code Hello579 at checkout, or there is a selection at John Lewis online.

On my fashion radar

There are a few reasons why Jones Bootmaker has come up on my fashion radar this week. Firstly the lovely Tor at fabfrocks posted about this fab bag, which had me thinking if I wasn't such a designer bag lover then this would be a great investment at only £69 for a leather bag which will go with everything, never go out of fashion and looks big enough to fill with everything except the kitchen sink!




Then this weeks Grazia featured a classic Leather Satchel, also £69, for those of you who a) can't afford a Mulberry Alexa or b) don't like it anyway!

My favourite weekly Glossy also featured another one of my current obsessions - Clogs! Totally loving these (both colours) at a very reasonable £65, but alas I think Mrs Fab will need to continue her quest for a slightly lower pair as I want to be able to wear them everyday and any shoes with heels over 2 inches are purely for transportation by Taxi not for traipsing around Tesco, although I might have to make an exception for the Russell and Bromley Leopard print ones, they are divine and have me drooling like a dog! Oh and can somebody please tell me why R&B don't sell online?

Fabulous at every Age

Any article, whether in a magazine or online that concerns fashion for all age groups and how to wear trends appropriately, always draws my attention, so imagine my excitement last night when OH came in with the M&S magazine, jam packed with trends for every age and sections on "yes you can wear a blazer, tailored shorts etc ".

When I absorbed all the looks, I couldn't help but wonder, how I find it so easy to put outfits together for other people unyet I often feel I need to see stuff in black and white, in print, before I can be convinced a certain look or an individual garment, would work for me. However there were quite a few pieces I liked.









but they didn't include the outfits above. A jumpsuit for an over 40 and a skirt, way to short for an over 50, surely? Nice skirt though, just should have been on the over 30 model in my opinion, what do you think? I can't say I know any over 50's with a pair of legs like that!

Being Mrs Fab means mostly being Mrs Casual, as I still do school runs and when working, wear a uniform, so I am mostly "dressed down" to be honest, which is the reason I really liked the casual look above for a bit of playground chic! Three quarter sleeve jumper £29.50, Jersey Top £12, Jeggings £18 and cluster necklace £9.50. I am still searching for a pair of Cowboy boots and this outfit would look great with a Tan pair.

The magazine also had all of the item codes, to make shopping even easier if you saw a piece(s) you wanted to buy, so if you are passing an M&S do pick one up, as the clothes look much nicer put together rather than searching online, as I sometimes feel there is almost too much to look at. I'm just waiting for payday next week, then my spring haul will be on order, I've seen a few other pieces I want to get and am getting excited already!

Mulberry Alexa back in stock!

The more time I have had to think about it, the more I think I may be going off it (a tad).
I think any "it" bag lover got a bit caught up in the hysteria surrounding the Alexa, afterall it seemed to tick all the boxes. satchels were going to big news for s/s10, vintage ones were fetching a pretty penny on ebay and this one was even named after Alexa Chung (not that that has any kind of impact on any of us who are actually old enough to be her Mum) but we do appreciate a good bag, no matter who it is named after.
I have been thinking abut the satchel style and how practical it is when in use as a bag. I thought back to when I had a Fendi B, I got so many compliments on it as it sat perched effortlessly, in the crook of my arm, but if you had seen me trying to extract my purse from it whilst at the checkout in Tesco, with an umbrella in one hand, my mobile in the other and all the shopping to contend with, it was a complete nightmare. You unclipped the flap which was stiff, no soft squidgy leather, so it didn't stay up whilst you hunted around desperately for something inside.
With the Alexa, you can of course eliminate that problem as it can be worn across the body,although this isn't always a good look for larger ladies, as the strap will sit between two big bosoms and the bag will be perched next to one of your hips, making you appear even wider than you actually are.
Then, not to help matters, I saw these recent pictures and I am not so sure I like the way it looks, all sloppy and just "hanging there" with little structure.

Above Pictures courtesey of http://www.thestylecrusader.blogspot.com/

Have you or anyone else you know bought this bag? If so, what do you think? and if you really must have it the Butter coloured one pictured at the top of this post, is back in stock at net-a-porter, but hurry!

Hello Spring and Summer, Leopard Lover

Here I go again, but there is good reason.
I don't know about you, but I usually think of leopard print as an Autumn/Winter Trend. Something we have grown accustomed to seeing cited as a "Trend" year in, year out, so much so, that it has become a Wardrobe Staple (or Hero) in its own right, as it seems, it is never really out of Fashion and who can disagree that chucking a leopard print coat over some old tatty jeans and t-shirt doesn't give your look the instant glamour factor?
We saw plenty of it on the A/W 10 Catwalk and can always rely on D&G and Cavalli to put an injection of it into their collections, but I was pretty amazed to see so much of it is around for spring and summer, its not just Nudes, Nauticals, Khaki and a Neopolitan Ice cream colour palette.
Just a little browse online at Net-A-Porter wishing I had won the Lottery this week, saw me lusting after these pieces.

Ponyskin Boots by Brian Atwood £1,315

Chloe silk blouse £414

Have to have a bit of Louboutin shoe porn, with some very discreet leopard print around the heel! £300.

I'd just love to be walking round the swimming pool on holiday in Puerto Banus with this Diane Von Furstenburg Kaftan over my swimsuit and those Louboutin sandals - pure poolside glamour! £395.

The Little Black Dress

I managed to catch a bit of the Fashion section on This Morning yesterday before work, where Jason Gardiner (Dancing on Ice's Mr Nasty) was talking about my favourite subject - Wardrobe Staples (although how an ex Dancer/Choreographer/Ice Dancing Judge got the Fashion "Gig" I will never know). Apparently he was saying that they are now referred to as "Wardrobe Hero's", Um, I quite like that expression! It had me visualising a crisp white shirt or a black cashmere v neck, charging towards me on a big white Horse to save me from my morning "what shall I wear today" wardrobe dilemma's.

Anyway, he showed this really lovely Little Black Dress from M&S but (and this is one thing that always gets me ranting) when I went onto the website, it wasn't there! Doesn't it just drive you crazy when TV and magazines feature garments that are either not yet in store, or have been in, and gone straight out again, never to return and all you are left with is the page you tore out of the publication to drool and cry over, whilst you spend the next two months searching on ebay for that elusive piece that nobody else in the world seemed to be able to get hold of either!

However, I did stumble upon a different little black beauty, this gorgeous number from the Autograph range at only £55. I was unable to copy bigger pictures, sorry, but the dress is belted and I love the puff sleeves.

Marks and Spencer

I would wear it with a statement pearl necklace from Dorothy Perkins at only £10.

Dorothy Perkins

and these gorgeous shoes, aren't they stunning? They are by Sam Edelman (not a name I am familiar with) but at only £165 from my-wardrobe, I am sure we will be seeing more of his reasonably priced heels in future.

my-wardrobe.com

So the Outfit is planned, all I need now is a table booked at some lovely restaurant for my wedding anniversary on 30th March, although somehow I think the only meal I will be getting requires salt and vinegar and gets eaten out of the paper, to save on the washing up - sigh...

Do you have a little black Dress?

Something extra from my-wardrobe

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