mini's fashion file: October 2013

Thursday, 31 October 2013

We started Halloween early this year with Phin celebrating in style with his school scary hair day.
I couldn't help myself and went to town using soap to sculpt his spikes then spray painted it with red hair spray from Superdrug. His look was a mega hit.
Then after school on we went to the Cashmirino party at their gorgeous boutique in Burlington Arcade. And what a treat. The kids dressed in their H&M for the children striped dress, jacket, pants and skeleton tights and went to town having their faces painted Zombie style. There were fantastic decorations, ghoulish magicians and fantastic treats. A great start to one of our favourite festivity.

Happy Halloween part 3

These are our pumpkins for this year! I've been busy carving...

Friday, 25 October 2013

Halloween Here We Come...

Here at fashion file headquarters we love to celebrate Halloween and go to great lengths to dress up and have fun. So here are a few moments of past fun and tips on decorations...

I love this picture of Phin & Mini. They both look so perfectly non-plussed about having to dress up. Both their outfits are from my favourite place to buy Halloween costumes - Pottery Barn and the most exciting thing is they now ship outside the U.S.A not only do they do the sweetest and highest quality costumes but i adore their co-ordinating Halloween bags which you can have personalised to boot. Perfect for not confusing your sweetie haul with anyone elses!

I co host a party every year with Mini's godmummy and one of my best friends Karen. Her street is filled with Americans who take Halloween very seriously so there is alot of competition on the street when it comes to decoration. My specialty are the pumpkins. I do free style designs but for great templates and ideas check out the guru of all things stylish on the home front Martha Stewart The way i make my pumkins is by carving out the inside, especially on the front section. I then draw my design with a permanent marker and use lino cutting tools (available from art shops) to gradually pick away at the pumpkin flesh so that only a ver thin layer of flesh is left. I then paint the remaining surface in black acrylic paint (better than oil as it drys super quick) and then once i place a candle or electric lights inside the cutout flesh glows with a beautiful eerie quality. Real spooky.

We also go to town on the decorations, adding new ones each year from giant arachnids to hanging pumpkin ghosts from the tree and covering all the railings in spooky spiders webs. all available from party stores and the larger supermarkets.

You cant go wrong with Gap's glow in the dark pyjamas. My kids just adore wearing them.

Phin was obsessed with the Gruffalo and so i decided to make Tom his very own Gruffalo outfit out of brown felt. i stuffed a pillow down the front to create the paunch and crafted the head over an old baseball hat. Meanwhile Mini's outfit of a little chicken was made using two white John Lewis bodies and two feather boas tacked around the centre. I then added pillow stuffing in between the bodies to pad it out and made the feet out of two pieces of yellow felt sewn together in the shape of duck feet and i slipped them over her tights like socks. The chick hat i picked up at Portabello market.

Here are our friends Alex and Ari with their kids Alastair and Aurelia all kitted out as the story of Little Red Riding Hood. We love the family theme!

Last year we really went to town. Both Phin and Mini were getting Star Wars obsessed (much like their parents) so we decided to embark on a family and friends theme. Phin went as Han Solo in the guise of a storm trooper but Mini was really the piece de la resistance with her R2D2 outfit. I made it using two lampshades from Homebase which i covered in white gaffer tape and then cut out various shapes in blue and silver electrical tape to make the panels. i then used more gaffer tape to create two shoulder straps. I bought her a pair of silver leggings from American Apparel to wear underneath and her hat was made from the top of a bin lid and her light sabre was fashioned from a swimming woggle again covered in electrical tape.

Here we all are as a gang. Tom was Luke Skywalker in his X-Wing pilot outfit, our friend Alice is C3PO and her sons Bill and Sam are a Java and Darth Vader. While I wore an old dressing gown of my grandmothers, an old gold belt and my Vivienne Westwood pirate boots to create my Princess Lea look.

Mini and I as you know are huge Biscuiteers fans, baking our own and icing them. Here are some their fantastic Halloween ones. i adore these severed fingers, so ghoulish and the Mexican day of the Dead ones are so pretty.

If you want to get tips on how to ice your own check out their Icing How-To on You Tube and i hope we've inspired you all to have fun creating a weird and wonderful Happy Halloween

Plusher Fun

Mini and I are very excited about a special event taking place this coming Saturday 9th November in London at The Royal Horticultural Halls. It's the first ever Plusher exhibition and we feel its well worth checking out!

Its an exhibition showcasing everything stylish for kids and their discerning parents. There will be a number of activities and events taking place for adults and children throughout the day including an Anorak magazine creative area, a pop up photography studio by Julia Boggio who will taking snaps of mini fashionistas, breakdancing classes for older kids as well as special appearances by children's authors and a number of panel discussions aimed at parents will run throughout the day covering the themes of Working Mums, Fitness, Food and Beauty.

The panel discussions will be chaired by some of my friends in the industry including Susannah Taylor, ex health & beauty editor at Vogue and Glamour and founder of my favourite all time beauty website www.getthegloss.com, the online directory of the best products and services in the health and beauty industry and there's even a fashion show styled by Carolyn Asome, deputy fashion editor of The Times and stylish mother of two.

Tickets are half price until 30th October with a couples ticket costing £14.50 and kids under 18 go free. The VIP bit is from 9.30 - 11.30am and then the show opens to the public at 11.30am. Get your tickets at http://plushershow-eorg.eventbrite.co.uk/

Tuesday, 22 October 2013

October sun

Ha! We've escaped and grabbed some ibiza sun. What a treat to grab some warm rays in October.
Ottilie as usual is napping everywhere and Phin & mini are playing poolside all day. Clothes? Who needs them!

Friday, 11 October 2013

Dungaree diva

I can't get enough of these Stella McCartney denim dungarees. So cute. Today we paired them with a Boden stripe mustard tshirt, matching ribbed tights and Phins old leopard boots from JCrew. Tipped off with an H&M floral headband and a lot of sass.

Sunday, 6 October 2013

Camo Boy

Phin is hijacking minis fashion file today. How could he not after looking so damn cool in his camouflage gear. Does he even know how on trend he is? Christopher Kane eat your heart out.
I bought his camo print sweatshirt from Crew Cuts JCrew recently and it's love. He just doesn't want to take it off. And after he came back from a class mates survival party with an army hat, matching torch and camouflage face paint yesterday he's gone all notting hill militia!

Saturday, 5 October 2013

Mini Mascot

Wow! What a day Mini had. Papa took her to see our local team, Queens Park Rangers playing a home game against Barnsley. It was Mini's first time at Loftus Road and what a way to kick off her football supporting career, because Mini had the great privilege of being a team mascot for the day. She was given her own kit, complete with named shirt, shorts and socks. But not only was she kitted out style wise, she also was able to go onto the pitch and meet all the players.