It’s our first Ella Mag Christmas and it really would not be complete without a gift guide. Okay – this less a gift guide, more a not what to buy guide, except of course there are a few suggestions.

Smelly things

If you are going to buy anything that involves a lotion or body cream then make sure it’s a decent brand- Clarins/Boots No7/Cowshed and Sanctuary are all good ones to go for. Supermarket-own brands have their place, namely on the bathroom shelves of grannies and aunts. In fact one of our favourite beauty buys of the year is No7’s body exfoliator, but you don’t want to buy this alone (she may be insulted!)  opt for a No7 gift sets with body lotion and your lady will not only thank you for it, she’ll think you’re a genuis. We also love Aveda gift sets, you can’t go wrong with some gorgeous-smelling shampoo, or even a candle.

Underwear

Don’t make the mistake of buying ill fitting/scratchy/tasteless bras and knickers. Instead buy your loved one vouchers in the nearest posh underwear shop, and let your lady do the choosing. And it’s a great excuse to shop in the sales. Carols in Bishops Stortford is our local underwear boutique. Alternatively go online and get vouchers for sites such as FigLeaves.

Gadget no nos!

Much as us ladies love gadgets Christmas is not a time to buy vicariously. So as much as your lady might show an interest in a gadget that measures her body fat/sleep patterns/loo habits etc – she’s probably rather you bought her something cool like a pair of fluffy headphones that double up as earmuffs – fashion and function can’t go wrong with that.

Perfume

Do not buy anything you are not sure about. Even if you know that she loved Chanel No5 when she was a teenager she may not like it now. For example I went off a bunch of smells when I was pregnant first time round, including a perfume I’d loved for years. Even now some of them still make feel feel unwell.  So unless you know for sure what fragrance she likes – don’t buy at all.

Books

Chances are she owns 50 Shades of Grey already. If you are going to buy her book buy a coffee table book Nigella’s Nigellissima is great because it shows you think of her as a domestic goddess or at least have the potential to be one.  Anything by Bobbi Brown is always cool. If you want to go the extra mile buy her a book with intelligence,  (Personally I’d like to read Naomi Woolf’s Misconceptions, it’s been on my must read list for ages – Sam, ed)

Let us know if you have any other suggestions – we’ll be aiming to update this list in the run up to Christmas.

The news that clothes catalogue Boden has decided to re-brand itself has resulted in a slew of stories about how the label which is ‘the preserve of yummy mummies’ has given itself a trend over by using the model Helena Christensen.

Boden, it has been reported,  is the uniform of the middle class mother who wants to look good but doesn’t want to look like they’ve made too much of an effort. And its clothes are great.

Okay, I have to hold my hands up here. In the year after I had Immy I gave myself a mummy makeover which involved eBaying a few pairs of skinny jeans, a very trendy leather jacket from All Saints and a cape from FCUK.

I replaced the items with the money I raised with some Converse style ‘baseball’ pump deck shoes, baggier jeans and long coats, plus t-shirts of various colours.

Now I look back and think, booooring!

Within 18 months I was back in my skinny jeans  and rocking pink shirts with weird logos on them.

Admittedly I have been told I can look like a teenage mum (in a good way apparently) but while that might have bothered me in my post-birth fashion haze I couldn’t give two hoots now.

The last thing I want to look like is a mum, I want to look like me.  The word yummy mummy has been invented by ad men who want to sell us the dream of immaculate motherhood and try and make us buy a whole new wardrobe.

And I don’t actually know any frumpy mums, and yes that includes those friends and family of mine who moan about how tired/overweight/old fashioned they are! You aren’t, believe me.

When women become mothers, they are not suddenly supposed to adopt a uniform of baggy cardigans, jeans and flat shoes, nor should they need to buy new clothes.

Last week while out with some women I actually felt like the trendiest of all, not the best dressed I’ll admit, just the one who was probably a little bit more OTT in her attire. But then I do occasionally write for fashion magazines and of course blog on this site so I kind of have to…

While I appreciated my more stylish companions, who were wearing lovely dresses and heels (and most were non mummies) I was so glad that didn’t throw away those American Apparel disco pant leggings. And I have no intention of doing so now.

Aside from trainers for the gym and running I had not bought a pair of ‘normal/everyday shoes for 18 months. Not because I don’t like shoes but because it’s very rare for me to find shoes which match my obsession with comfort and style. A good pair of shoes is like  a good bra, it’s stop your feet going saggy (i.e. flat and bunion-ey)

As much as I love my Stella McCartney for Adidas trainers which I’ve blogged about before I was getting a bit bored with people asking me where I got them (men as well as women) every time I stepped out in them.

Most yummy mummies I know have a simple uniform of Converse, or ‘Converse-style’ pumps. These look great with great the other yummy staple, jeans. For me though, they just don’t feel quite substantial enough. I did buy a pair of grey Jigsaw deck shoes (somewhere in the region of £20) from a dress agency last year, but have hardly ever worn them.

In my quest to update my footwear I started looking around on eBay for a pair of sexy but comfortable boots. My inspiration was a pair of  All Saints boots I saw back during a window shopping trip in April. Loath to pay in excess of £150 for a new pair I  searched for something similar on eBay I found these suede lace ups (main picture). The heel is actually way higher than I’d normally wear but, they are really comfortable, and open toed so ideal for summer, spring and autumn. The real plus was that they only cost £17 including package and posting. They did have a bit of damage but a quick trip to the shoe menders sorted it. The only minus – they cannot be worn out in the rain. Oh well.

My Race for Life challenge attracted the attention of shoemakers Clarks whose PR sent a pair of these Inplay Flex in pink Race for Life Trainers by Clarks. I must admit when they arrived I immediately thought ‘old granny shoes’ but once on these were not only really comfy, they looked good with skinny jeans. These look more like a deck shoe but ‘act’ like a trainer, plus 10% sales of go to Cancer Research UK. My daughter now wants a pair.

And finally – my real find. Marks and Spencer Step Tone sandals. These are a much cheaper version of a certain other type of sandal (which I have several pairs of) and the ‘corsage’ detail means they don’t look too much like an ortho shoe. I bought these when I was out in the City of London and my trainers got too sweaty. They felt great and best of all, add about two inches to my height!

Okay, we will admit, as budget conscious as we are at Ella Mag, all the Union Jack themed press releases/press launches have finally got to us (not to mention the fact our neighbours have – not without too much insistence – encouraged us all to hold our own Diamond Jubilee street party) and we are getting a bit of fashion envy.

After checking out eBay for some vintage All Saints boots (found some priced £20 but still deciding weather to buy), we spent some time on the interwebs salivating over some potential new gear. First on the list are these Saint Tropez skinny jeans on the Melanie Drake website and will be saving up for a pair, sadly not in time to wear for the Jubilee though.

We also saw Diane Von Furstenburg wrap dress at our local dress agency Friends. When we visited yesterday they had a vintage one in pink and one in yellow print (both sizes 10/12).

However more likely we’ll be going on to Next’s website and checking out the very reasonably priced dresses (and children’s wear) and sticking to our tried and trusted L K Bennett wedge shoes (bought in the sale six years ago for £15).

It’ll all be reduced in the summer sales soon anyway!

(Pic courtesy of keithr via Flickr)

Before I became a mum I lived in black, funnily enough I also spent a lot more on clothes, but that was then and this is now.

Shopping for my daughter’s outfits  has inspired me to be a bit more playful with the things I wear. Like my Adidas for Stella McCartney trainers (pictured) or wearing some of spring’s bright colours.

I’ve also discovered the website Mistral, which does some lovely mid-price good quality basics with a twist. I’ve even worn the printed notch dress with my pink crocs!

Another bargain buy is a ‘birdy’ top bought in Gap during the  sale for £10. It’s made of silk and is both cool and warm, and of course washable, and it’s got a cute sparrow print.

How to dress like a mummy without looking (too) mumsy

Rule one: wear layers

You can go from being freezing cold in the park to sweating it out running after your little one at playgroup. I wear a long sleeve t-shirt underneath a short sleeved one and change when I get indoors. I’ve also been known to wear two coats, my smart Jigsaw one over a warmer Oasis one.t

Rule two: do colours but sparingly

Children’s clothing is bright, and its tempting to wear a rainbow yourself. Instead go for one brightly coloured item, like jeans and wear your more subdued stuff to neutralise it!

Rule three: trendy trainers are a great standby

Post epidural my back has been prone to the odd twinge, so I avoid high except for very special occasions. Hence my best buy of the last few months, the Adidas trainers pictured.

Rule four: have a good coat

My Jesire trench always smartens up an outfit and it only cost £10 from our local British Heart Foundation charity shop.

Read more…

How to get Kate’s look without looking like Kate

The lovely people at The Welly Shop have a pair of wellies to give away to one lucky Ella Mag reader. And thank goodness because with the weather like it is, a pair of wellies is a fashion essential whatever your age.

The winner has the choice of one of these stylish  wellies. They come in UK sizes 3-8 and you have the choice of wide fit or normal.

To enter all you have to do is fill in the comment box below (all our comments are moderated so your entry will not be published) and tell us your name, email and welly size, please also specify wide or normal fitting.  Closing date for entries is midday on Friday 1 June 2012.

(Please not the pic above was taken at a festival and is posed by models, however the pic below is the Miss Starry Eyed version which is included in our giveaway – enjoy).

Please note: this competition is open to UK entrants only.

Let’s get one thing straight this is not a plug for All Saints, a impossibly trendy UK clothing shop which proudly bases itself in Spitalfields, East London.

I used to love AS clothes. In fact I still have a very worn black Merino wool jumper, cost around £60, from autumn/winter 2006. It has an edgy button down sleeves and every autumn without fail my mum will say to me ‘do you want me to mend that old thing’.

I remember buying it, along with a pair of skinny grey jeans, which I also wore until I was too pregnant to do up the zip. I got back into them after having my daughter but sold them on eBay last year when I realised that my post-baby lifestyle needed something a little more comfortable and a little less outre.

So on my way to a meeting with some editors I decided to pop into All Saints. I was teasing myself with a fantasy shop because with a wedding to pay for we’ve no budget for clothes at the moment, in fact even Imogen is still wearing her age 2/3 Gap clothes.

I went off AS for a while, too monochrome for the bright shiny new mummy I was trying to be. But funnily enough with all the spring brights this year I was feeling rebellious.  ‘Go on’ said my fashion devil ‘try on a black dress, you know you want to’.

Thing is the clothes are a bit pricey, while I can see a time in a few months where I will be spending money again on fashion I’m not sure £160 for a black dress is justifiable, £100 maybe. And £350 for a leather jacket, well put it this way I could buy a lot of food, top my ISA, pay off that last little bit of debt with that.

But I did try on a leather biker jacket and a black dress – just to tease myself and convince myself that even in my fourth decade I can still do trendy. I have to say my legs are not the skinniest and the full skirt does appear to flatter them, even when wearing  leopard print tights. I think the trick is to balance out the look with ‘normal’ hair and almost normal shoes (cowboy boots from Jigsaw – autumn winter 2005).

What clothing shops do you like? Have you all but given up on fashion? Let us know! Or even better share some of your fashion secrets.

Chancellor George Osborne stood up to  make his annual Budget speech in the Houses of Parliament . His budget was what he called fiscally neutral – which means the government isn’t planning to give anything away – tax breaks – or take anything either- such as tax hikes.

He said could do this is because he expects the UK’s recession to ease over the next few years, in fact the UK economy should grow (rather than contract) by 0.8% this year and by  2.7% by 2014.

And while unemployment will peak this year it is predicted fall over the next five years with an estimated 1 million more jobs being created.

Inflation, which makes things more expensive and erodes savings will fall from 2.8% to 1.9% by the end of next year.All these predictions come courtesy of the Office for Budget Responsibility, an independent auditor of HM Treasury.

He’s also going to use the sale of the Royal Mail, which is due to be privitised, to help pay of Britain’s debts (although it’s worth noting the Royal Mail pension fund which is in serious debt will be subbed by the taxpayer in order to expedite the sale).

So what are the main points of the Budget 2012

• Full child benefit threshold will now be £50,000 a year, after which is is staggered which means households with £60k or more will not get it.

• Personal tax allowance – an individual will need to earn over £9,205 a year before they start paying tax.

• First time buyers will get help to get on the property ladder – although The Great Britain Building Fund and the National Loan Guarantee Scheme to loan money to small businesses.

• Green energy also got a boost, with more incentives for developers to build wind farms. Medicine and aerospace also got a mention.

• State retirement age to be reviewed. It’s likely to go up even more.

• Top rate of tax to be reduced from 50p in the £1 to 45 pence – for those earning over £100k a year.

• VAT is also going be reviewed – for example we pay VAT on sports drinks but not food.

• Pensioners will also benefit from a simplified tax system, different rates used to apply at 65 and then 75,now it’s going to be one level from 65.

• Cigarettes are going up by 37p a pack from 6pm this evening.

• The basic state pension is to go up by £5.30 a week.

• More action on property tax avoidance including making wealthy homeowners pay stamp duty even if they have put their property into a corporate envelope

Other things he announced included: a fund for faster broadband, reduction of red tape for small businesses plus government funding and a relaxation on Sunday trading laws during the Olympics this summer.

50% tax rate can only be justified if it raises significant sums,

More

If you are into saving tax you might want to read this exclusive story on the website FTAdviser (part of the Financial Times) about ISAs by our editor Samantha Downes

Ella Mag’s editor Samantha  has always wanted to try colour but she’s been too afraid to try. Until now.

For years my dress-code has been black, black and more black.

The only items in my wardrobe that are not black are my jeans (and I’ve even got a couple of black pairs of those too).

However, it may surprise you  I’ve not actually been a fan of wearing black for a while. In fact after having my daughter three years ago I’ve made a decision to steer myself away from black. My guess is that shopping for a toddler girl has brought out my inner ‘girlie’ and I no longer want to blend into the wallpaper or look like a jumped up fashionista. But nor do I want to make a fool of myself with garish colours that might upset colleagues/other mums/my family.

I’ve been looking for a chance to add some brights into my wardrobe – without spending large amounts of cash. Last autumn I kept a copy of the Boden catalogue because I particularly wanted a pair of  brightly coloured skinny jeans. I didn’t have the money to treat myself but kept looking at the picutres all the same.

So when I saw these pink jeans in Tesco – I had to buy them. I’ve bought the odd item of clothing from Florence and Fred. To be honest Tesco clothes don’t last that long – and as you already know we at Ella favour vintage clothes because they are not only well made but they also mean we can do our bit to help the planet.

Now I’m not going to do the whole hog with the bright thing, not yet, but I do have my eye on an orange long-sleeved top, which I’m hoping will be reduced in the sale.

So for the moment my pink jeans will be worn with my faded Madonna Top Shop t-shirt, Jesire beige rain mac (see vintage article for details) and teamed with Jigsaw cowboy boots (bought in 2004 and still going strong).

And here goes, 41 years old and my first pink jeans… Let us know what brights you are wearing this spring!

The young brides in My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding are most certainly putting the meringue into wedding dresses, and they are putting the lace and flowers and then some in there too.

But while younger brides can get away with fussy dresses (if we’d got married in our 20s we’d probably have gone OTT too) once you hit your 30s it’s a bit harder to pull off a fussy wedding dress.

The two Kate’s (Moss and Middleton) managed to get it right. Kate Middy’s dress was simple enough to look great on someone 5 years older and Moss went for simplistic rock chick.

Fabat40 blogger Sharron Granger gives us her tips for a classic 30 plus wedding look.

• Avoid a veil at all costs, a fresh flower or a diamante hair clip will be far more chic.

• Keep your dress simple and wow the bridal party with designer heels, a stunning clutch bag or statement earrings.

• We have recently seen a huge trend towards brides wearing coloured shoes on their wedding day, but if you don’t have the confidence for bright red suede, metallics or sequins work really well and can be worn time and time again, unlike your classic satin ivory bridal shoe.

• If you fall in love with a strapless gown but don’t have the confidence to show off your upper arms  there are some really pretty cover-ups and boleros around for all budgets. Faux fur works best for winter weddings and vintage lace for spring or summer.

• Invest in decent underwear and get properly measured.  Not only will your dress look better but you will ooze confidence on the day, knowing you look the best you possibly can.

For more fashion tips read Sharron’s blog Fab at any Age.