New Year's Fashion Resolutions

With absolutely no intention of giving up alcohol for January* or  resolving to "get in shape" we bring you our entirely fashion related resolutions for the brand spanking new year.

Siobhan's Resolutions

Clockwise: Dress by SUNO, Tops both from Topshop

1. Lady Murasaki: I will try to give purple more of a chance in my wardrobe next year. For some reason, my eye never wanders toward purple garments and the last purple item I have purchased was sometime back in 2007 (an adorable dress that unforgivably wrinkled, which may have caused some sort of association in my mind with the color). Now that Pantone has deemed Radiant Orchid the color of 2014, it is the perfect chance to let some of the royal color into my life. I also have an aversion towards yellow, but I am not fully prepared to cross that color bridge yet... maybe another year?

From left: Cheap Monday, ASOS, & Other Stories

2. Pass the Clutch: They say that ladies are usually either "shoe girls" or "bag girls" and my fashion genetic code leans more towards "shoe." I tend to cling madly to an black medium-sized bag until it pretty much unravels. You all know I love my PS 1 Bag madlyyyy, but I've decided this year to diversify my portfolio and try to rotate my hand bags more frequently. I've decided to start off small and work my way up, so I think I will first focus on clutch bags. Miriam is the Queen of the Clutch, so I shall be asking her to give me guidance in the way of the no-strap-wonder. 

Miriam's Resolutions

Clockwise: Dolce and Gabbana, Oscar de la Renta, MADE for ASOS

1. Earring Aid: As a result of Dolce and Gabbana's breathtakingly beautiful SS14 collection, I intend to spend the majority of next year prancing around in large gold earrings, pretending to be Sicilian.

From Left: Isabel Marant, Dune, Topshop

2. Best Foot Forward:  I rarely wear real heels because, as my friends will attest, I am a raging bitch when my feet hurt, but 2014 could just be the year that I finally stop being a baby and dress my feet in a more ladylike manner. This is of course resolved under the assumption that resolutions, much like ankles, are made to be broken.

*During dark and dreary January, alcohol is more necessary than ever but if you are unwise enough to give it up, please do keep it to yourself, there really are few things as tedious as a reformed character. 

Sneak Up!

Outfit details:
Black and White Jumper - Topshop
Joni Jeans - Topshop
Black Boyfriend Coat - Tokyo
Sneakers - Neon Pink Nike Frees

A simple and rather casual outfit of the day, but I felt that I should take our own advice about the sneaker trend and try it out in the wild. The first challenge was figuring out my color palette, and monochrome seemed the easiest to pair with my neon pink kicks. Next time, I'm going to experiment with a more girly outfit and see what I come up with it. But, you know -- baby steps! And speaking of steps, I did quite a bit of walking that day and my feet thanked me for wearing my Nikes. 

BONUS BLOOPER: Super windy day challenges of a fashion blogger. For every blog-approved picture there are several of these! (^_-)

Style Barometer: Christmas Edition

Merry Christmas eve, dear Remotely Fashion readers! We hope our latest choices of do's and don'ts for the holidays bring you some laughter and joy. Have fun everyone! And don't worry, you won't have to love-hate listen to "Last Christmas" for very 

much longer. 

Map My Heart

It's that time of year again and you're panic buying. But before you resort to selecting something from the gender specific sections of gift guides, ever so helpfully marked "For Him" and "For Her"*, take a look at Map My Heart**, the debut book from our all time favourite illustrator Dominic Evans A.K.A Dom & Ink. Now, we can wax lyrical about Dom's delectable drawings and on this very blog wrote that he draws what's in our hearts, but we were quite unaware that among his other qualities, he also has the power to cure heartache.

This book, chock-a-block full of beautiful illustrations and funny observations, will be well received by anyone who has ever had their heart tampered with. It's a gift for the giver too as its therapy, interactive style will stop your friend bleating on at you about whichever worthless individual has recently stomped on their heart. Because, whether a heart is wrapped in velvet and encrusted with diamonds or made entirely from ice, it can always be smashed -- luckily Dom, like a more successful version of all the King's horses, is here to put it back together again. 

Here's a peek at the pages of perfection: 

*Note to electrical manufacturers: Women are perfectly capable of using speakers, cameras etc that are not coloured bubblegum pink and whilst some of us may dream of living in Barbie's Dream House, this rule is not applicable to every individual with bumps under their jumper, so please be so kind as to stop it now. 

**Available from all good retailers: Amazon UK, Waterstones, Foyles and the brick and mortar Waterstones in Picadilly.

Magpie Eyes: New Year's Eve Inspiration

It is a truth universally acknowledged that New Year's Eve is awful; overpriced drinks, long queues and the depressing sight of people pretending to have had the most wonderful year - their smiles not quite meeting their eyes - all combine to create what is, to any right thinking person, the most horrid night of the year. And this annual evening, when your triumphs and failures are weighed up, inexplicably comes with the dress code of GLITZ, rather than Pyjama.

Now magpies we may be, but even to these glitter attracted eyes, sequins very much fall into three categories of the good, the bad and the ugly. So, if you are unhinged enough to throw off your PJs and venture into the outside world, adorned in your finery, take a peak below at our top spangly picks, which will ensure that when it comes to sparkle, you will even rival the glitter ball.

"Oz, The Great and Powerful" When Monkey's Fly! - OPI Nail Polish
Phone Case: Skinny Dip, 

Sequinned skirt: Topshop
Beanie: Markus Lupfer
Clutch: Mawi,

Lace up shoes: ASOS
Necklace: Miss Selfridge

Sneaker Pimps

Photo by Mark Iantosca

My poor, poor feet. I have not worn a properly supportive shoe on a regular basis since middle school. They were powder blue with white laces and may still live in my parents' house to this day (they might have been FUBU). Of course, when exercising I rely on my Nike Free's, and although I do love Converses you all know they are flat as pancakes and don't really offer support. Aside from those two instances, sneakers have always seemed completely foreign to me. I just masochistically accepted that my ballet flats or loafers would literally pound the pavement. But since the undeniable 'Sports Luxe' trend arose, it only makes sense that sneakers are now free again to cushion the toes of any fashionista. Seeing these fierce ladies (and baby) pictured below, give me the strength to accept that maybe I can rock sneakers and no longer bear the pain of city streets!

Photo by Silas Lee

Photo by The Sartorialist

It appears that sneakers can go with any type of outfit, whether it is fancy or casual. All that is necessary is a leap of fashion faith and adeptly hidden socks (or are they even wearing socks??). Below are our sneaker fantasies!

1. Nike Pegasus Air

2. LOSERS Readymade in Metallic Silver

3. Zara TRF Running Shoe

4. Nike Roshe Run in Black

5. New Balance 574 Trainers in Burgundy

6. Reebok Classic MonoColor in Blue

Drink Feast: A Journey Through Time And Space

Another night, another excellent Offbeat event. But this time instead of fashion, the theme was drinking, as twelve of  the capitals most exciting plonk purveyors set up shop in the Hoxton docks. From festive g&ts from The Travelling Gin Co. to sours from Pisco Fuego, there was pretty much every cocktail you could dream of and we took the opportunity to try to shake various ailments with concoctions from some mildly suspect Victorian apothecaries. Unless you're good friends with The Doctor, this is as close as you will get to travelling through space and time in one evening. 

Sharp suits, casino tokens, matadors and hay bales - what more could you ask for?