Fabfrocks reviews: Vivienne Westwood Naughty Alice perfume

Hi guys,

I mentioned a while ago that I wanted to buy a new fragrance for my wedding, so every time I smelt it i'd always be reminded of the big day: As soon as I saw "Naughty Alice" by Vivienne Westwood I knew I would have to buy it as my wedding perfume. It was love at first sight, closely followed by love at first sniff. The packaging is beautiful, it has massive Alice in Wonderland overtones, and and it smells wonderful. The scent settles on your skin and lasts all day.

Here's the blurb: "Naughty Alice transports you to a sensual dream world where anything is possible and your curiosities can be unleashed thanks to 'floriental' notes including black roses, carnal violets and ylang ylang." It's a really feminine fragrance, sweet and girly at first, but with a muskier base note that gives it an intensity that will last all day: I find fragrances that are too feminine and sweet wear off pretty quickly, but I can still smell this on my skin 5 hours on.

The 50ml bottle costs £50, but this gift set I bought (containing a 50ml bottle and 150ml body lotion) was £51.50: that means you got the body lotion that is selling for £26 for just £1.50 by buying the set. I always like to have the body lotion with a perfume, as it increases the intensity of the scent, and makes it last much longer too. Oh and the charm around the neck of the perfume bottle? It is a very cute Vivienne Westwood bracelet in a gorgeous, vibrant "Alicey" shade of blue. In my slightly biased opinion, this is a brilliant homage to the genius of Lewis Caroll!

It is going to take all the willpower I have to pop this in my big "stuff i'm saving for the wedding" box, and not put it on straight away, but I know it will be worth it in the end!

Love, Tor xx

Rihanna to turn on the Christmas lights at Westfield, London

Hi guys,

Back in my home town the Christmas lights are always switched on by a dodgy B-listed panto star. Turning on Christmas lights is generally a coup for B listers, or desperado's trying to make a come-back. So it is a massive coup for Westfield London that they have Rihanna to switch on their Christmas lights on Thursday!!

The star is in town to promote her new album, LOUD. RnB isn't really my type of music, so I haven't heard the album, but I thought she looked and sounded great on the XFactor on Sunday night! I also loved her look on the Xfactor on Saturday (hence the picture above) The dress was gorgeous, as were the matching bloomers and OTT hair accessories!

Rihanna will arrive at Westfield London in true superstar style, to count down the turning on of Westfield London’s dazzling Christmas lights and officially launch Christmas 2010 and 100 lucky fans will be chosen to have the ultimate experience of meeting the superstar herself! Westfield London will make this the most memorable affair with an amazing display of pyrotechnics, while Rihanna will be surrounded by a beautiful set of Red Roses. Rihanna will be joined on stage by Children from Help a London Child to help for the big switch on moment.

For the chance to win a wristband to be one of the lucky ones to meet her in person, visit www.westfield.com/london

I love it when the Christmas lights are turned on and the Christmas window displays get installed: it makes me feel really festive! This must mean it's time for my annual trip to check out the windows at Selfridges.

Love, Tor xx

Primark picks for a very gloomy November

Hi guys,
Writing these Primark pick of the week posts is getting increasingly difficult and frustrating. The Oxford street store now seems to have hired staff specifically to stop people taking photos. Without meaning to sound snobby, I think it's ridiculous that Primark are so militant in their anti-photography policy. I mean, you cannot buy clothes cheaper. You could not make clothes cheaper. They are at the bottom of the high street food chain: its not like a wedding dress shop where they're frightened you might copy their designs. Primark's designs are usually copies of Topshop designs anyway!

I digress. Anyway, by flaunting the rules I did manage to get a few snaps. Here's what's hot in Primark this month:


First we'll start with the window photos: lots of great looking snuggly outerwear and knitwear. I have had a couple of pairs of Primark leather gloves and swear by them: the quality and fit is great and they last forever. The hats and scarves also looked and felt lovely, although the snoods are a bit on the small side! A word of warning about the knitwear though: I saw knits hanging on the rails with buttons missing and holes in them. I bought a chunky knit cardigan to get it home and find a hole in the collar. The quality of the knitwear just wasn't great, and given they are now charging £15 for a jumper, you'd probably be better investing your money elsewhere.

Now the stealth shots. I loved this jumpsuit and its mix of lots of different themes: leopard print, pastels, military detailing. In theory it just shouldn't work, but I think it looks great! I have a massive soft spot for mustard knitwear, and although I have concerns about what it will look like after it's been through the washing machine, I loved this cardigan. Again note the military details: Primark have gone crazy for military this winter!

I loved these clog-style wedges. They were my favourite piece in the whole store yesterday, having the right mix of classic and fashion forward styling. Sorry for the blurry picture of the shearling cape, I just wanted to share it because its such a big trend. It looked lovely (both on and off) but felt quiet thin; i'm not sure that it would keep you warm in the winter without a thick cardigan underneath. At £29, again, I think your money could be better invested elsewhere.

I left the store with a pair of black leather driving gloves and a heart full of disappointment. It could be that i'm getting too old for Primark, or that i've been spoilt by the sale prices outwhere. I will try again in a fortnight and keep my fingers crossed. But if things don't improve for the better, I think my love affair with Primark could be over.

Love, Tor xx

Emporio Armani Press Day: Accessories Lust

This morning I popped down to the Emporio Armani press day, for a closer look at their Spring/Summer collections. Layering seemed to be a key trend from Armani this season, and sports-luxe pieces in grey or mesh were teamed with almost everything. There were lots of gorgeous pieces fused with buttersoft leather, and printed leather jackets (which I loved) whilst the bold accent colour was definitely fucshia.

The stand out pieces for me though were the accessories, hence all the pictures: i'm a self-confessed accessories junky, and this collection seemed to focus on my three favourite things - necklaces, belts, and shoes. My favourite piece was the oversized blue flower and cord necklace (in the bottom picture) which was chunky and bold but feminine at the same time. I also loved the polka dot shoes and the boxy square bags in a variety of colours. The colours of the perspex jewellery were lovely, although it did feel like i've seen them a million times before. I loved the return of gingham, and will be trawling charity shops across the city for a boxy black and white bag, like the one shown in the third picture.

While i'm gushing (not shocking, I know!) a quick mention of the tan and gold across-the-body bag in the top picture: such a versitile piece that would go with almost everything. I think, come spring, i'd like to raid the Armani accessories department, and make everything my own!

Love, Tor xx

Taking the Heat with Aussie!

Hi guys,
As you can see, my bathroom shelf is like an Aussie (and Soap and Glory) shop. I've tried, and loved, all of their products: I love the peachy smell their coloured-hair products has and how easy to comb my hair is with just a little spritz of their leave in conditioner. My favourite product so far is the shine serum, which leaves my hair glistening and smooth, but not greasy at all.

So when Aussie sent me some of their new "Take the Heat" heat styling products and an invitation for me and my heat styled hair to an event on London Eye on Bonfire night, I knew i'd have to get creative. They also sent along this video, to give me some hair-spiration:

Determined to put the new "Take the Heat" products to the test, I decided to try something new with my hair (and something that i've never tried before, so it probably looks a bit ropey!) I decided to curl my hair using my straighteners. I know it's not a new phenomenon and people have been doing it for ages, but as I own curling tongs, I never saw the need to learn how to do it. However, having tried it, it really does give a different kind of curl. Here's how it looks:

Dodgy self-taken picture alert (and I hadn't put my mascara on either, so it doesn't look like I have any eyes!) But what do you guys think? The products made it feel really soft (so soft I had to add hairspray as I didn't trust it to hold!) and I quite like the softness of the waves. I usually wear my hair poker-straight but I quite like the curled look. Would love to hear your thoughts! Do I go straight or curly for the Bonfire night party?

Love, Tor xx