2007 draws to an end

It's the day before the last day of the year and it feels surreal that another year has ended. I feel like it's wheezed by so fast that I haven't had time to catch a breath.

A lot of first(s) are associated with the end of 2007: it's my first end of year living in the City of London, it's the first end of year for the existence of this blog, it's the first end of year with my current employer, it's the first end of the year with my current church, its my first end of the year with my current flatmate etc. (many more could be listed but I won't bore you any further).

In addition to the first(s), this year has been marked with a lot more nostalgia than I've had in previous years due to a lot of re-connections with old pals, friends, and acquaintances largely by virtue of my joining Facebook (how many people agree with me?).

However, irrespective of my feelings about the year about to end, I look forward to the New Year with hope, high expectations, dreams, desires, faith, and lots of prayers. I know what I want to happen to me in 2008 and I know that God won't hold it back from me as long as I live in his word and according to his will.

For some people, it's been a year of hardship, for others it's been a joyful fulfilling year, and for another group it's been a mixture of all sorts of experiences. Whatever it is 2007 stands for in your life, I can only say with conviction that a new year is rolling around and that signifies new beginnings and a new chapter, you can turn everything around and start again.

Tomorrow is the last day of the year and I'll be reflecting on my plans for 2008 financially, physically, emotionally, professionally, spiritually and any other aspects that fall in the mix. It is important to take a step back and take stock just in time to be prepared for the change of date so that you're not left behind in a time zone everyone has moved away from. You need to step forward into the future and take charge of all parts of your life and move it into the future as well.

God has many blessings in store for you in 2008, make sure you are ready and at the right point in your life to receive them, roll with them, and have fruitfulness from the seeds he will sow in you.

I wish everyone a wonderful New Year full of good changes, better habits, beautiful looks, happiness, joy, unlimited blessings from God and all your needs and desires met without measure or hindrance.

HAPPY 2008 EVERYONE.

Merry Fashionable Christmas

I have just finished watching 'Akeelah and the Bee', a beautiful movie starring Angela Bassett and Laurence Fishburne. It was quite touching and of sentimental effect for me so I thought to write you all my Christmas piece.

This is my first Christmas in the blog and I hope to celebrate many more if not just a few. It is quite significant for me to point out that it's the last few days to Christmas and it only just dawned on me that it is actually less than a week to Christmas Day, the day Christ was born into the world to bring us a new message of hope, peace, triumph over evil, death, sickness, and everything assorted with the power of the devil over our lives.

In the midst of the partying, celebrations, and busy social schedule associated with Christmas, I have tried to remind myself to be happy for the right reasons and not have misplaced emphasis on the meaning of this period. I am celebrating the turning point in the history of mankind but in my own fashionable way.

I will be sitting in front of my TV and my computer catching up on the shows/soaps/reality drama I've missed over the year and eating away at any thing prepared and placed before me. My family is far away from me in another continent but my heart will be with them all the way. I will ensure that the nostalgia does not become melancholic ramblings of a homesick individual and find the joy in the season wherever I am. I love Christmas carols and so I'll be sure to sing along to any tunes I hear being played all over the Place (don't you just love Christmas).

Anyway, after sharing my itinerary with you all, I need to get back to the reason why I'm making this entry and it is to wish you all, my friends, confidantes, fellow fashionistas, and readers, a Merry Christmas and a wonderful holiday. May the joy and message of Christmas infuse your hearts and lives causing dramatic change in any situations requiring it. May the Lord be with you all and your families making his love abundant in your life and spilling over to everyone around you.

Make sure you enjoy yourself within your limits in terms of spending, alcohol intake, eating, and partying. Excessive habits aren't attractive to anyone or even God, be and stay in control at all times.

Fabulous Love to you all and I'll catch up with you at the other side of Christmas.

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE.

Gadgets - 'Must Have' Mobile Phones

Those close to me know that I love modern-day inventions that make my life easier (of course, there are some things you have to do yourself no matter what, no details provided). And so, with Mobile Phones moving away from just making phone calls and heading towards becoming your Personal Assistant, I have to be on top of my game in knowing and getting what I want from my Phone.

Over time, I have fine-tuned my needs and requirements for mobile phones down to the letter i.e.

• needs to have email on the move;
• have the web accessible and ready;
• needs a medium-to-large screen so I don't have to whip out my glasses all the time or go cross-eyed trying to read messages;
• must have MP3 capabilities seeing as I love my music and my favourite song would be my ringtone;
• must have bluetooth functionality allowing me transfer files from my laptop to my phone;
• must have a decent camera even though I tend to forget to use my hone camera but need to be able to switch to journalistic mode anytime;
• must have voice dialling to help in lazy times;
• must have a memory card or come with memory card slot for extra storage space;
• mush have a note pad; and
• anything else there is to learn to use.

With the latest buzz created by the iPhone and the unfair exclusivity deals tied into the purchase of the phone, I am happy to bring to your viewing pleasure some other phones that should get your juices flowing to own and use in your busy lives.

My first current favourite is the Ted Baker 'HTC'. Currently available on O2 and Orange via Carphone Warehouse (http://shop.carphonewarehouse.com/), this phone is an absolute pleasure to own. With its touchscreen (giving you the choice of a keyboard, transcriber, letter recognizer etc.) and Windows-based features (music, instant messaging, email, and videos), it should be easy for a majority of users to get the hang of and enjoy (if you own a Mac or G4 notebook, there is an inability to use the music player without synchronizing with a Windows media player). Also, once you've got Web access included in your price plan, you are able to set up your hotmail/yahoo/or other email account fed straight to your phone to stay on top of things (no need to pay extra to get email services as Blackberry would require). It's very beautiful and slim and pretty much no different from the iPhone really.

My second choice is on my wish list and should be one to watch. It's the Samsung F700 which looks like the iPhone at first glance and is sure to be a good one because Samsung phones are well-known for quality and strength (believe me, I know). It slides across when open to reveal a Qwerty keyboard which certainly makes it easy to type with two hands and is the future for phone keypads. Its available on Vodafone (http://shop.vodafone.co.uk/) and it's their latest baby. With 3G features and a 3 megapixel camera, its a good one for the City girl who needs to have a modern-day phone (I am here for the girls so the men can stand aside).

Number 3 on my list is the 'Sidekick slide'. In America, this is a done deal and I wouldn't have to say anything before the girls tell you how much good this phone is. Well, the sidekick has been available in UK for two to three years (I used the Sidekick 2 and loved it). Sidekick 3 seems to have come and gone, and Sidekick Slide is here and available on T-mobile (http://www.t-mobile.co.uk/shop/mobile-phones/phones/pay-monthly/all/7/) This is the ultimate girlie phone with amazing instant messaging and email capabilities, Qwerty keyboard, and Internet capabilities.

The Blackberry Pearl 8100 is a current professional favourite but with expensive tariffs and a need to be a 'technical person', it is last on my list. It is reappearing with a wider variety of colours so it should make it onto the girlie list sometime in the near future but we'll see.

If you are wondering what phones to use and need to ask any questions, I'll be here. However, in the meantime, let your Christmas wish list include a modern-day, ready-to-roll phone with features that work with your varying lifestyles. Don't get sold on a phone that doesn't work for you. If you love simple, go for simple and if you love all blinged up, go for all blinged up.

It's a busy week ahead with lots of parties and your girl's gotta go, ciao.

Winter, Christmas, Cashmere, and Eric Bompard Discounts

Girlsssss, is it only me or what? The weekend hasn't been much fun with spitting rain and frosty air. There's Christmas gifts to buy and a necessity to keep warm at the same time. However, do not fear, the solution's here (I think I might just pursue a career in writing jingles).

If you remember my article on 'helping the Senses - Touch and Smell' where I covered the fabrics that work well for winter(http://www.vivalastylishliving.blogspot.com/2007/10/helping-senses-smell-and-touch.html/), you'll note that I mentioned that clothing made out of wool is a necessity for warmth in the winter and since they come in various fashionable forms (Coats, sweaters, gloves, hats, and even dresses), it shouldn't be too difficult to incorporate into your wardrobe. For me, a favourite and luxurious form of wool is Cashmere with its softness and comfortable feel against the skin and even with its premium price, I would still pick a cashmere item anytime, any day.

It is no wonder that I was excited to receive my cashmere hat and pair of gloves by Eric Bompard (http://www.eric-bompard.com/) in the post.
With its soft texture and adorable colour, you'll have to separate me from my hat and gloves for the next three months of winter.

Eric Bompard is a French Cashmere range arriving in London and providing accessibility to the English public (believe me, with the prices in Monsoon, this is a pleasure).

They have an amazing array of colours and trendy styles and I certainly can't wait to lay my hands on some more items in the collection.

It's one of the best gifts to give this Christmas because it's beautiful, functional, classy, and luxurious, and it's the perfect spoiling splurge to bequeath yourself this winter. To help you on your journey towards your first purchase, Eric Bompard is offering you an Exclusive 20% discount available on scarves, stoles and hats
starting on December 4th to December 24th (see flyer for applicable terms).

Don't hesitate, grab your own piece of cashmere while you can.

Pick of the Week

I'm buzzing from last night after getting my weekly fix of 'Gossip Girl' (I bet you can see that I wish I'd known about blogging in high school, I would have been a nightmare). Moving onto my next TV favourite ' Arrange me a Marriage' (every Thursday on BBC2 at 8.pm), I settled down for the night to see if I could learn a thing or two about finding 'the right' Life Partner (believe me, this is serious stuff). the dynamics of finding someone who connects with you just right isn't the easiest of things to figure out so every help is welcome.

I have been in a naughty mood lately (sort of like my biker chick mood) and since I can't indulge myself without having to deal with some unsavoury consequences, I'll be sticking to some fashion hunting to assuage the mood. This brings me to my first 'Pick of the week':

I love this leather jacket by Ted Baker (http://www.tedbaker.com/) (where there's a few other edgy leather jackets available) especially since I've got one myself from Leather World in Nottingham about two years ago and it's still working well for warmth and fashion. If you're feeling a little smoky or dangerous, get the leather look going and you're sure to encounter some danger (of the good sort). I'm gonna be sporting mine this weekend.

Once I got the outerwear sorted, I needed to spot my other hot look and this dress by Ted Baker (http://www.tedbaker.com)would/ would heat up your blood to sizzling in freezing temperatures (why don't you ask the boys and see what they say). Perfect for showing off a lovely neckline and clinging to the upper thighs, this number is sure to give you a perfect '10' score.
On the other hand, there's still the matter of getting through the day before getting the boys agitated at night, and this next dress helps me along just fine:

It's from Oasis (http://www.oasis-stores.com/) and the perfect number for a day-out with the aim leaving your mark wherever you go.

It's less that 3 weeks to Christmas and I need to drop hints on what I want from Santa ( Santa, are you listening?) It's definitely one of the two luxury handbags of the season, you don't want to miss:

This first one is the YSL (Yves St Laurent) downtown medium tote (http://www.ysl.com/) which is amazingly perfect because its Patent (a must for 2007/08) and its a tote which means you get to have everything you need in your bag wherever you are (light bulb gone off?).

My second choice is the Dior Black Shrunk Leather Tote (also known as the Large Black Lady Dior Bag) (http://www.dior.com/). I absolutely love this bag and can't wait to lay my hands on it. With the current waiting times of 2-6 weeks, you can see a lot of women also have nothing but love for it (Santa, I believe in you just because of this bag, LoL).

Gosh, I am now spent after all that talk of clothes and bags so I need to head off for some refreshments (wink, wink, you know what I mean). Only kidding. the drought is still on and I don't know what to do. As my uncle would say, the market is currently in recession, we can only hope the interest rates go up soon (not down as the financial gurus would want).

Anyway girls, don't get caught in the drought. Keep the boys on their toes, try some biker chick looks or the hot girl about town and don't let me down.

Till I visit this space again, it's me Kaffy.

xoxo (too much gossip girl). Fabulous love.

Creaking Bones , a Reality for me?

It's now confirmed, the bones are aging and creaking even from the slightest activity. I ended up at my girlfriend's (as in Girl who's a friend) house-party over the weekend and it's taking me a full day to recover and face the world again. It seems like every weekend I venture out to hit the town, it takes me twice as much to recover, what's that all about?

Anyway, I got to get a mini-reunion with some of the 'Hot Girls' (I bet you wanna know who these girls are) and after getting over the catch-up on what's been going on in each other's life whilst we've been away, the conversation swings to the dress codes for house parties.

What's the definition of a house-party other than the fact that it's held in a house rather than a club or other venue? What makes it any different from a night out to a club in the city such that the outrageous party dresses get left behind in wardrobes in favour of the casual, toned-down outfits? Well, the answer to that would have to lie in the intimacy that a house party portrays as opposed to the scary, indifferent atmosphere of a club. At a house-party, you are probably most likely to know the crowd or work the crowd much easier than within the anonymous confines of some club somewhere.

But does the comfort provided by a house-party mean you should look less hot than you would for a night out in the city? Definitely not, girls still have to bring it (if you feel like it). The one thing I know for sure (and it's tried and tested) is that it's easier for girls to work their magic within the intimate, uninhibited (no dirty thoughts intended) four walls of a house-party (wink, wink, I bet the boys don't know this).

Anyway, I have to fess up and admit that I now act like a true Londoner-on-a-budget that I am. I get to a party on the Underground and don't arrive back home until the next morning because the distance between venues can't be navigated economically i.e. if you don't drive, you rely on the underground or go broke taking cabs from one end of the compass to another. However, this means that party invites get screened and this babe ain't gonna be anyway chaotic and inaccessible to getting home or to safety, no matter how much fun its promised to be.

My Pick of the Week is on its way to you. Have a beautiful, strong, and fabulous week