How to dress like you’re from Coronation Street without their wardrobe budget!

Ever wished to look as good as your favourite TV star?

 

Look as stunning as our favourite Corrie babes for just a fraction of the price. With New Year's Eve coming up, there’s no better time to look like a star!

Everyone’s favourite girl next door, Kym Marsh, looks truly stunning here, wearing a fabulous jewel detailed French Connection number with a high neckline!

Long sleeved dresses are all the range this season (and good job too with the weather we’ve had so far!) and you can achieve the look for a bargain price.Yumi at ASOS is offering this cute little quirky number (pictured below) for just £42- what a steal! Complete the look with these Gladiator shoes, just  £25 from New Look!

Teen Corrie babe Helen Flanagan works casual but classy here, pictured out shopping. 

Mirror her look with the ultimate boyfriend blazer available from AXParis for £25. Add last summer’s must have high waisted hot pants and a cute pair of heels and you’re away! Don’t forget to add a giant shopper to complete the look! Bag a great bag for £8 at Matalan for that patterned look that's so on trend right now!

Written by Olivia Morley.

Procrastination Station.

Our favourite vaguely fashion related material on the web.

Possibly the best (and only) fashion game on the internet.

Play: WHO SAID IT? KANYE OR KARL?.

Written by Kate Lloyd.

I Can't Believe They Wore That..

 Investigating the frightening world of celebrity fashion misdemeanours.

The term celebrity is going to be used pretty loosely in this next post, as this weeks faux pas focus is on all stars reality. From Katie Price to Kerry Katona there are some major mistakes in there. It makes you wonder; do they just do it for the attention? Surely not…

Apart from being one of the most annoying reality stars, excluding Paris Hilton of course, Heidi Montag has a pretty poor fashion sense to add in to the mix. The star of the reality show The Hills, and one half of the “Speidi” duo, has a never ending wardrobe of tiny short shorts, cleavage revealing tank tops and hooker heals.

Take this example, where the zebra print teeny top is clashing with tangerine tan, and almost transparent white hair. Maybe her infamous fallouts means she no longer receives advice from her always fashion forward co stars… 

Now on to one of this years favourite reality girls: Stacey Solomon. She has won the nations’ hearts with her kooky personality and amazing voice, but definitely not with her fashion sense.

Although she looks gorgeous on X Factor’s live shows every week, the stylists are clearly not on call 24-7 as, is that a baby pink valour tracksuit I see?

I thought that they had officially died with the popularity of “J-Lo” and Jennifer Ellison started to dwindle.

Onto the boys, casting our minds back to Big Brother 2009. If anyone is as equally sad as myself, no matter how hard we try, we can’t lure ourselves away from the Big Brother temptation We can't stop watching – it may as well be a drug, and it can’t be because of the contestants' intelligent wit or their fashion sense. This is where Marcus Akin comes in.

If I could advise anyone not to wear a white wife beater (everyday for three months, may I add) it would be Marcus. A cocktail of horrendous hair, scary beard, and several leather items does not add much to the mix. In my opinion, leave the wife beater to the man who made it – the OC’s Ryan Atwood.

And finally, keeping to the X Factor theme, (as I haven’t met anyone who truly dislikes it) my final fashion disaster… JEDWARD.

Love them or hate them, there is something very wrong about post-pubescent identical twins loving dressing in identical PVC. 

I don’t think the ladies will be screaming so loud for this when they have the oh so cool Mr Murs to contend with…

Written by Kate Tudor.

How to dress like you’re from EASTENDERS without their wardrobe budget!

Ever wished to look as good as your fave TV star?

You can now look as gorgeous as these classy Walford wonders with some brilliant bargain buys! 

When I found this dress (pictured left) on savvy internet site www.asos.com, I was amazed at its resemblance to Kara Tointon’s number she donned for this years soap awards (pictured right). The beautifully structured strappy even mirrors the under wired cup structure of the dress worn by the star, as well as being a perfect match colour wise- what a find! And the best is yet to come... This piece will set you back just £55! A steal for any special occasion! 

With pastels being this season’s must have you can’t go wrong! 

 
Everybody loves a bit of Patsy Palmer don’t they... and rightly so! Britain’s favourite red head is pictured left on the red carpet, looking as elegant as ever. (Well, ok maybe she doesn’t look as elegant on screen as Bianca!) However, the star sure does look beaming in this snap. And hey, you could to! 

A squeeze at just £35, www.axparis.co.uk is offering a sensational maxi complete with jewel detail for that extra spurt of elegance. Complete the look with gorgeous shoes. Sequin capped courts are brilliant if you want to spice up your wardrobe with that little bit of glamour. Check them out at www.newlook.co.uk for an incredible £22! Add classy pearls and you’re away- delicate but bold enough to make a statement at the same time. £12 at www.marksandspencer.com!

Written by Olivia Morley.

Customisation Station.

How to turn something old, borrowed or blue into something new.

In honour of our new NYC writer, I thought I would show you how to make an 'I LOVE NY' top look less Mary-Kate and Ashley Oslen 'New York Minute' and more Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen 'Elizabeth and James' Fall Collection.

(If you haven't seen 'New York Minute' -WATCH IT, ITS AMAZING!)

Customisation of the t-shirt was a simple procedure. I cut off the sleeves and the tight neck bit and pulled the material so it stretched and curled up at the edges (no need to hem.) 

I wanted it cropped with a curved hem at the front. I put the top on and marked the length I wanted it at my sides and in the middle and then cut between those marks and stretched it again. SIMPLE.

To tone down the bright red heart, I found a black lacy top (absolutely vile) in my 'to cut up' pile and lay a square of it over the heart. I pinned it down and sewed (using a running stitch- two steps forward one step back) about 0.3cm away from the edge of the heart. Once completed, I cut around the very edge of the heart. 

 

This would look pretty snazzy done with any sheer fabric, but I like the lace as it looks a little gothic.

Written by Kate Lloyd.

Procrastination Station.

Our favourite vaguely fashion related procrastinatory material on the web.

The Procrastination Station Link of the Week is:  
Go Fug Yourself.

I have been addicted to this site for a couple of years now. It basically ridicules hilarious celebrity fashion choices in a light hearted way and is funny without being (too) mean.

Written by Kate Lloyd.

Why Did We Ever Wear the 'Gypsy Skirt'?

 Oh how foolish we were!

BOHO- OH NO!

We were all loving a bit of Sienna Miller and her ‘boho’ ways back in the summer of 2004. The billowy long, brown, gypsy skirt and disc wrestler belt were swooshing on every girls’ hips, including mine. Even the city girls were a hay bail away from becoming country bumpkins.

Every year such an ensemble emerges from the depths of closets, clinging onto a long forgotten furry gilet. They slyly arise from the back room of charity shops like an annual unwanted cold sore.

The hot weather does not condone these god-awful brown tents. They may well be breezy in the summer air as you stroll through the meadows in your wee cowboy boots- but they should never see the light of even a sunny day again!

It was Jude Law who binned Sienna and her boho ways in favour of a whole new type of nanny ‘free love.’ I’m glad we did the same with the gypsy skirt.

 Written by Marleena Cronvall.

Guilty Pleasures: The Night Remix

Why I Just Can’t Stop Wearing ...

In my previous article I discussed my daytime Guilty Pleasures, perfect for slobbing and hangovers, today we take it up a notch and consider those items that I just can't stop wearing on nights out.


I went home this weekend to visit the family; a highlight of my stay, aside from my parents’ witty banter, was ‘The Sunday Times’ provided at breakfast (free food and entertainment!).  Being the young hip chick I am, I nabbed the Style, and was pleasantly surprised to see the front page exclaiming “The Death of the Killer Heel”.  

Reading the article made me realise my guilty pleasure in wearing flat shoes on a night out.  I want to express how annoying it is as a girl to be expected to dress up by wearing stupidly high heels that often make you fall over before you’re even drunk.  

Thankfully, with celebs like Alexa Chung flying the flag for the ‘flatties’, it seems like it is becoming more acceptable to go out clubbing minus your heels and the consequent bunions.  The advantages of flats include a dramatic improvement in your dancing – I said ”reach (jump) for the stars!” - and an additional excuse to end your night using your spare change on some cheeky chips instead of being bundled into a taxi, alone, nursing your swollen feet.

My mom still has not got over the fact that the youth of today have no problem with having visible underwear.  I can understand her confusion as 99.9% of the time it looks ridiculous, but every so often I do enjoy flashing a cheeky bit of bra on a night out.  

Let me explain before you judge me.  I’m expressing the guilty pleasure of wearing a lacy number that reveals a flash of a nice bra, as modelled Hayden Panettiere. 

Her look is very (very!!) daring but us normal people can also pull this look off. As long as the bra is a neutral colour and matches the colour of your outfit you can avoid looking like a stripper.  Although, if wearing a white bra beware of the UV light!! 

Head bands literally burst onto the fashion scene, alongside the ‘boho’ look being pioneered by Mischa Barton and her cronies.  I am a fan and after wearing my gold headband during the day I decided it was time to ‘work it’ on a night out.  I was aware of the possibility that everything could go wrong given its elastic nature, and so spent hours attentively fixing it into place with millions of curby grips.  Although I do have quite a large head, there is no excuse for the horror I had to endure at the hands of my headband.  Shamefully the thing actually ‘popped’ off my head, hit the ceiling and fell into a crowd of sweaty students and was never to be seen again.  But they look so good ... so what if I cause an accident?

Written by Sophie Harrison.

How to dress like you’re from 'HOLLYOAKS' without their wardrobe budget.

Ever wished to look as good as your fave TV star?

Not only can you look as swell as your Hollyoaks babes but for a fraction of the price. And here’s how...

          The gorgeous and ever so beautiful Carly Stenson is here looking as perfect as ever in a cute little bandeau dress and heels. Yes, as we all know the girl’s a star of a national soap so we would only dream to resemble her in any sort of way let alone imagine being mistaken for her in what we wear. Well hey girls now’s your chance! Check out this marvellous number from ASOS- where “As seen on screen” clearly lives up to its name. This bargain displayed to the right creeps in at a mere £40, and look it’s practically the same dress!  As for the shoes she dons, you can snatch up a similar pair from Matalan for just £12- pretty amazing if you as me.

Now over to everyone’s favourite... It’s Mercedes McQueen! Okay, fair play, she may look a little different (and definitely less glam) in the soap, but after seeing the darling Jennifer Metcalfe in this off screen shot, she certainly exceeds our expectations. Perfectly manicured with hair blow dried to perfection. You too could look a million dollars, here’s how... The slinky number that I found  comes in at just £40 from Oli -what a bargain! As for the cute clutch- bag yourself a similar one for a crazy £8 at New Look- you’d be mad to miss out.

Written by Olivia Morley.

I Can't Believe They Wore That....

Investigating the frightening world of celebrity fashion misdemeanours. 

Being poor students - often resorting to the wonders of “Primarni” - it’s always refreshing to know that, despite spending money we can only imagine on designer clothes and stylists, celebrities manage to step a foot (or major a leap) wrong in the style department sometimes. 

I’m sure it doesn’t surprise you, that in my quest for bad celebrity fashion, there were a fair few fashion faux pas to delve through, however here is a brief “what not to wear” sponsored by those we (usually) love to envy.

Taylor Momsen, star of Gossip Girl, is first on the hit list. The usually fashion forward starlet, whose character is a highflying teenage stylist, seems to have forgotten some vital items when performing before fans. 

It seems Momsen is going for the cool, dangerous look, but there’s a fine line between edgy and hooker, and I’m not sure it’s quite been cracked. Although sexy lingerie is never one to be frowned upon, surely save it for a more intimate audience?

Although not a repeat offender (and I feel I’m about to be overly harsh in my criticism) but Leona Lewis lets herself down with this next casual look. Spotted at Heathrow Airport, Lewis is dabbling in far too many of the “guilty pleasures” mentioned in Sophie's previous post.

It may just be me, but the overly cosy outfit is doing nothing for her figure and the less mentioned about the baby pink frilly bag the better. The denim jacket and tea cosy hat are easy to get wrong, and I’m not sure Leona has the “cool” factor to pull them off. Yet we’ll let her off, as I know I wouldn’t enjoy a camera in the face after a long flight…
 
Now, why should it just be the girls torn apart for their fashion mishaps? Even the likes of David Beckham, who can personally do no wrong in my eyes, has been guilty of some outrageous fashion misdemeanours in his time (purple sarong anyone?) However, it is Fallout Boy’s Pete Wentz who is the top of my list and far too consistent in his failing wardrobe choices. 

I’m sure we’ve all been through the phase of being effortlessly in love with that one “skater boy” at school. But in year eight, year nine at a push… the loving of the emo, skater look has long passed. Wentz is still clinging on with dear life - with black eye liner in hand. 

From denim shirts teamed with black bow ties, to various hoodies (which should really be left to the territory of Hollyoaks’ “Newt”) there was just too many disasters to choose from. Although, I think you’ll agree, this oversized shirt - red skinny jean number is everything we are not looking for in a guy’s wardrobe.

I’ll leave you with not only a fashion mistake, but an outfit that actually gave me nightmares. 


Only one word is needed for Lady GaGa’s outfit choice for the MTV Video Music Awards… WHY?

Written by Kate Tudor.