Goodbye Winter, Hello Spring

Tuesday 13 November 2012

Gift buying guide for gorgeous girls at Christmas

by Lucy Enfield

Somehow Christmas comes around faster and faster and the list of presents to buy grows longer and longer. The men and boys past 13 fill me with horror... Xbox games and iTune vouchers feel so boring (easy yes, but how much ribbon can one use?? Not enough.)  Whereas girls...well surely girls and Christmas are like strawberries and cream, Wills and Kate, eggs and bacon...the perfect match.

Christmas is the time to forget discrete and get out the tinsel. A time we can be shamelessly bling without the niggling doubt that more is not always more.

I think the ultimate gift for the girly girl is an AMAZING dress. And boy do we come into our own with that remit. With dresses in every style we can cater for every taste. I have two favourites for the girl that really wants to be noticed - our sequin Disco Ball Dress which, as its name suggests, means the party will happen around you, and then the delicate moth-like lace Oscar Dress which means you will be collecting the award for best dressed. The envy of every female in the room. Fit wise, we like our dresses to sit above the knee so there is lots of space to throw some shapes and keep it fun. 

Both can be finished off with a pair of cosy tights and Sparkly Plimsolls or wellies, as wearing these the party goes where you are...sequins on a Christmas Day walk? Why not! Sparkly shoes can make a great stocking filler too, they come in a shoe bag which makes them a bit easier to wrap. 
If a dress feels like too big a commitment then I have yet to hear of a child that did not like the Heart Mallow Skirt and super soft Logo Cardi combo. This skirt ticks all the boxes with tiers to twirl in and a fit-all elastic waist which means it is virtually impossible to get the wrong size. The matching cardi makes it a cosy option and of course each can be mixed with any other items in the wardrobe. Looks great and Mum will be thrilled at the practicality.  

If the girl you are buying for isn’t in to frills and flounce, then the gorgeously luxurious tactile Cable Knit Jumper and Frankie Skirt is a great way to go. Easy to wear and yet still has that ilovegorgeous trademark look with a hint of net and contrast button. 

All the above can come in our statement ilovegorgeous floral adorned boxes, tied with trademark brown and cream grosgrain tape and finished with a pink fluoro butterfly card and some love hearts...but you don't want to ruin the surprise. Or do you? There is that excitement of seeing the branded box under the tree...wondering, hoping it contains the piece you have been lusting after...the wait is exquisite. Or to really fox them you can wrap.   

The Christmas wrap holds so many possibilities and mine has covered many spectrums. A friend who is sublime at wrapping says she always works within a pre-conferred theme and in her family if you hit the wrong note - an off-pantone shade of teal, birds instead of butterflies - your presents are rather unceremoniously put to the back of the tree. I don't think I really relate to this regimented stance but I am sure it all looks very beautiful and tasteful. However with my love of all things that glitter, taste is not high on my wish list. I unwittingly hit a more reserved note one year when I left the wrap till Christmas Eve and forgot to get paper. I only had tin foil and old newspapers in the house but with the help of an old roll of biscuit coloured lace ribbon and some fluoro markers, the presents alternatively were Miss Haversham and Space Age nuggets. Other favourites in more organised years have been feathers, bark touched with a Pritt Stick and glitter, ropes, ribbons and bows, tonal or contrast, layered on one parcel. VV Rouleaux is the place to go for inspiration, it's a treasure trove of beautiful exclamation marks that can inform the whole look.      

The other great excitement is the stocking filler options. I am guilty of haphazard buying from October... the presents which I squirrel away, forget about, rush out in the days prior to Christmas worrying there is not enough to then find I have too much. Again I am a magpie around the glitter options. I just can't resist them. This means our jewel-like Lurex Cardi is high on my list of favourites, so for a stocking I find myself drawn to matching this with glittery note books, baubles and stationary. Lip-gloss packaging has become an art form so there is always some of that, any of the toys from the gorgeous Molly Meg website and the adorable crochet teddies and children’s mug from Pedlars. 

When I have run out of time to search the stores, The Present Finder or I Want One of Those have always done a great job in offering crazy bits that elicit a smile (if you have not tried their sumo suit, it's a must for all day giggles). And of course, it is all topped or rather tailed with a Satsuma... which is to be found rotting under the bed a week later along with the wrappers of the chocolate coins, of which none are left. 

The main thing is to enjoy it all as much as possible. The photos of the day so often become the memories, so your gorgeous girl dressed in her perfect outfit and big smiles are the priority in it all.

Have fun and have a wonderful Christmas!

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