Onwards and Upwards!

Nestylsmart is no longer my baby. It has been up and semi running for 2 years now and I have to admit that it has been harder than I thought to run a blog whilst having a job and a life, but I have loved every minute of it.

I’ve now decided that its time for an upgrade which, if I’m honest, I have always been wary of! One of the things that I loved about my blog was that it was real, a bit like me. It was never going to be an all singing and dancing blog that was styled to perfection for many reasons. Firstly, I consider myself a writer, not an I.T specialist, so designing an eye-catching blog was never on the cards. I am also not the girl that you will see posing at various landmarks around the North East of England; again, I am not a model, I have approximately 2 poses and I really can’t, and don’t, want to pout!

I am simply a girl that loves fashion and writing, so I thought 'why not combine the two?'. I would like to think there is more to me than what I wear and my opinion of fashion, which is why I’ve decided to bring in a lifestyle section; this will not be lifestyle in the form of Gwyneth Paltrow or Blake Lively, there will be no recommendations for £200 heart shaped lights, or how to never eat any saturated fats. It will be real lifestyle for real people - restaurants, pubs, days out and interiors - all at real prices.

All of this was going to be too much for my blogger account, and whilst I have never been overly concerned with my blog looking immaculate, it was becoming overcrowded. The sensible solution to this was to upsize to a website, and whilst this has been quite a work in progress, I hope you all agree that it has been worth the wait!

From now on my ramblings will be over at
http://ne-stylesmart.co.uk/index.php

I hope to see you there!!!!!

It's a girl!

It's a girl!  I am writing this as I sit here eagerly awaiting the first glimpse of the new Princess.  I  must admit I am getting a bit sick of watching a front door, so I have decided to amuse myself by looking through Kate's most stylish moments, and this is one daring Duchess; wearing polka dots, dalmatian prints, floral frocks and shocking in pink!

Here are my favourites.

Bold and bright florals at The Goring Hotel

Sleek and stylish in a black cut out Temperley London

Going out with a bang - the final appearance in this unforgettable shocking pint coat!

 

Not too good for the high street in a polka dot skater dress from ASOS

The recycled Dalmatian print coat by Hobbs

Subtle yet stylish in Navy for the Commemoration Service at St Paul's Cathedral

Spring/Summer 2015 Catwalk Trends on the High Street

Spring is supposedly on it's way!  Vogue says so, therefore it must be true, but, with gale force winds keeping me up half of the night I'm not so sure.  I've decided that the only way to get me through - what feels like - the longest winter ever, is to daydream of what I will be able to wear when the sunny North East reaches the glorious highs of 14 degrees.

I'm usually more in favour of Autumn/Winter clothes; there are only so many times you can see people wearing a maxi skirt and vest before you start to feel as though you have been transported back to 2005.  But ten years on, the Spring /Summer collections have finally managed to excite me: stripes galore, double denim, wide-leg trousers and all-white dressing (go on, I dare you!).

What's not to love?

Check out some of my favourite Spring/Summer trends that can be found on the High Street!

Chic Wide-leg Trousers from Oasis £45.00

70's Wide-Leg Striped Tailored Trousers from Next £50

Jasmine Midi Denim Dress from Oasis £45.

Tailored D Ring Culottes from Oasis £55.00

Gingham oversized shirt from Zara £17.99

Triple Stripe T-shirt from Oasis £18.00

Utility Jumpsuit from Oasis £55.00

White bandeau organza dress from H&M £59.99

What are your favourite Spring/Summer 2015 trends?

Hits, Misses and Tumbles of the Brits 2015

The awards season is continuing and this time it's the Brits.  The names on the red carpet might not be quite as big as the Oscars, but the names of who they were wearing most definitely were, with red and black dominating the red carpet.

Check out the hits, misses and tumbles of The Brits 2015!

Hit - Not a hug fan of Paloma Faith's music, but Paloma has earnt some brownie points in this stunning red and black strapless gown, with a tulle overlay by Armani Prive.

Miss - Cara Delevingne - loving the Saint Laurent hat, but the effortless rock chic looks too try hard!

Miss - FKA Twigs - Bondage and embroided pom poms should never be on the same garment!

Hit - Taylor Swift wowing in Black with embroided Red feathers by Roberto Cavalli

Miss - Holly Willoughby looking amazing after having a baby - but this high neck, over embellished dress makes Holly look like a Christmas Tree!

Hit - Karlie Kloss wearing monochrome, cut out Tom Ford. BFFs Karli and Taylor clearly went shopping together!

Miss - Rebecca Ferguson aka Diana Ross!

Hit - Daisy Lowe wearing Emilio Fe La Morena - If Coco Chanel dressed Jessica Rabbit, this is how I imagine it would be!

And Finally, the tumble.........

Hit - Credit where credit's due - Madonna kept on going and managed not to break her hip!

Best Dressed - Oscars 2015

The Oscars have been and gone for another year and we know who has walked away with the coveted golden statues, so now it’s time to decide who won in the style stakes.  And while I couldn’t agree more with Reece Witherspoon’s #Askhermore campaign - discouraging reporters from only asking about the clothes women are wearing, and focusing more on their new ventures - it seems a shame to overlook the hard work and craftsmanship that has gone into the exquisite gowns.  Here are my top 5!

Lupita Nyong'o in Calvin Klein Collection

Rosamund Pike in Givenchy

Jennifer Lopez in Elie Saab

Dakota Johnson in Saint Laurent

And the Winner is............

Emma Stone in Elie Saab

Who was your favourite?

30 lessons in 30 years

It finally happened: I turned 30! I can honestly say that on this rare occasion my husband was right; the thought of turning 30 is far worse than actually turning 30. Life is not like Logan’s run: life is not over! Perhaps my days of clubbing every weekend are over, but with over a decade of this under my belt, that particular Cow has well and truly been milked!

Now that the inevitable has happened - and I am a not-so-wise 30 year old - I thought I would share with you 30 things that I have learnt in my 30 years. Here goes….

1. You don’t need to see your real friends every day; nothing will change.

2. Fashions will come and go, but style is forever.

3. It’s better to be different than boring.

4. Trying to sleep, will only stop you sleeping.

5. I am turning into my Mother.

6. Its fine to not be where you thought you would be - life will get you where you are supposed to be.

7. A good Umbrella does exist; you just have to spend more than £5.00.

8. All politicians really do lie.

9. Don’t talk on your phone on the bus, it’s annoying!

10. I will never grow out of eating chocolate spread from the jar.

11. Keep your morals and your manners; they are the only thing that is truly yours.

12. Travel! You will learn and grow as a person.

13. Never do anything to impress a man, it will only end it tears.

14. Never go out with a man whose jeans are smaller than yours, or who takes longer to get ready. This will also end in tears.

15. Cutting out carbs will never work, it will make you grumpy and eventually gorge.

16. Gyms suck!

17. It is unlikely I will ever be as thin as I was on my wedding day.  I simply don’t have the motivation any more.

18. Owning your own car will spoil you.

19. Always keep the receipt from an impulse purchase.

20. Smothering people with kindness will usually work, unless they are utter arseholes.

21. Marry your best friend (not literally)!

22. Don’t buy cheap - you will end up buying twice.

23. I need chocolate every day.

24. Take advice from others, but make your own decisions.

25. If someone tells you your outfit is interesting, they actually think it’s horrible!

26. Time goes too fast! I realised this when my husband told me that it had been seven years since Heath Ledger died.

27. Earn your own money!

28. Don’t compare yourself to others, they never show you their bad side.

29. Never listen to models: things do taste as good as skinny, clearly they have never tried Reece’s Pieces.

30. Most people are muddling their way through life, anyone who tells you otherwise is lying!  

Black Friday Warehouse Wish List!

A good friend asked me yesterday, whether I was excited about Black Friday, and I have to be honest, until this year, I always thought Black Friday was Black Eye Friday.  For those of you who aren’t familiar with this, this is the Friday before Christmas when all of the factory workers finish and drink all day; resulting in quite a few Black eyes – hence the name!   

I am now aware of what Black Friday actually is; The Friday after Thanksgiving when all of the stores have sales, (excuse the use of the words stores, but I thought I would go with the theme of using Americanisms/Traditions).  Obviously, it was only a matter of time before we took yet another American tradition, so here we are, and who am I to complain about discount clothes – hell, we have embraced traditions which are a lot worse.

So I thought, what better way to get involved, than to put together a Black Friday Warehouse Wish List!!!!  Health Warning - Only participate on-line, the stores are crazy!

Khaki Textured Oversized Coat £110.00

Longline Embellished Jacket £120.00

Sequin Bandeau Jumpsuit £90.00

Statement Half and Half Necklace £24.00

Embellished Yoke Jumper £45.00

Fedora Hat £25.00

Wisteria Printer Trousers £36.00