Instant Goddess is Miss Goody Two Shoes

Carrying on from last week, my body is still a temple and I’m still sitting here drinking lemon in hot water. I’ve only fallen off the wagon once, having 2 small glasses of vino in 14 days… and still no caffeine or dairy.

So, all this leads me to the question: Will I ever be happy with my body? In actual fact, is any woman ever happy with her body? I was chatting to a friend and she said the happiest she had been with her body was when she had broken up with a boyfriend and got down to her skinniest ever – due to a misery diet of not eating. So, do you either have to have an emotional crisis leading to misery weight loss, a life of hardcore exercise and abstention, or a wonder metabolism? Or just be happy with what you’ve got and work with it embracing the good bits and disguising the less good bits? As for me, I’m still wondering where my new found willpower to resist caffeine, booze, carbs and dairy has come from. Where is all this going? How long can I be Miss Goody Two Shoes Instant Goddess? After all, a life of being good and abstaining from all that glorious food is a little boring isn’t it?! Or in those oh-so-very controversial words of Kate Moss does “nothing taste as good as skinny”?  But even if I did reach “skinny” would I still be thinking I’m fat, does my bum look big in this? In fact, I wonder whether La Moss has fat days?

The Fash Off:  ASOS v Shopbop

I was going to try and do this in one fell swoop but there’s just too much stuff on both these sites to cover in one blog. So this week, it’s ASOS to kick off with their offering for Autumn/Fall transition trends. Next week will be Shopbop, but who will win…you decide.

Embellishment, Baroque, Sequins – and all that Glitters

So to start off, I couldn’t resist but begin with my favourite A/W 13 trend: embellishment: gems, sequins… anything goes as long as it makes a statement and dazzles.

Bodycon dress in baroque embellishment (don’t be put off by bodycon tag if you watch catwalk image it’s not that bodycon), HK$1025 | Embellished kimono with sequin stripes, HK$1030 | Vest with floral beading, HK$550

Blazer with all over sequins, HK$890 | Karen Millen on ASOS sequin sleeveless dress, HK$3215 | French Connection on ASOS embellished sleeve fit and flare dress, HK$2050

Embellished stone floral collar, HK$265 | Oasis on ASOS oversized jewel jumper, HK$750 | Oasis on ASOS embellished stone collar top, HK$550

Leather

I’ll say it again… leather is big this season. Leather trousers are skinny and taking on a jegging effect. The only problem with getting the real thing though is the care of the garment; especially with jeggings, so for the leather look, i’m going to opt for a cheaper and easier-to-clean solution. Coloured leather is also hot this season…berry and oxblood shades are the ones to watch.

Kookai on ASOS leather pencil skirt, HK$2175 | Leather pencil skirt in colour block, HK$1230 | Skinny trousers in leather look with panels, HK$410

Mini dress with leather panels, HK$1165 | Oasis on ASOS cut work leather skirt, HK$1340 | Kookai on ASOS boxy jacket with leather contrast sleeves, HK$1900

Military

Military doesn’t have to be boring or too masculine with these great jacket and coat options for when it starts to cool down…I know it’s still hot out there now but come January you’ll be thanking me.  Failing to plan, is planning to fail after all Goddesses!

Military blazer, HK$820 | Mango on ASOS funnel neck military coat, HK$1575 | ASOS woodland tweed mix parka jacket, HK$1095

Opulent print

Together with embellishment, rich opulent prints are also a key trend for this season..oh, the opulence of it all…wear any of these fabrics and you’ll feel richer in a trice.

 ASOS premium baroque trousers, HK$615 | ASOS premium blazer in geo print, HK$890 | ASOS premium cropped trousers in spot print, HK$615

Lace & crochet

I am loving the idea of the lace knitwear below teamed with the Kookai pencil leather skirt above. I’ve even included a peplum as A/W 13 isn’t complete without a peplum or two.  But my favourite has to be the lace leggings below…if you haven’t got the legs just wear a longer length jumper.

A Wear on ASOS crochet front cardigan, HK$410 | Mango on ASOS lace back detail jumper, HK$480 | River Island on ASOS fitted peplum lace top, HK$300

Darling lace chiffon dress, HK$795 | Warehouse lace leggings, HK$385 | Oasis front shell lace top, HK$520

LBD

Whatever the season dictates there’s always room for an LBD – or two or three – in every collection.  Here are my pick on ASOS

Ann Sophie Back lace nightie dress, HK$1370 | Selected sequin bodice dress, HK$1500 | Midi dress with velvet detail, HK$1640

Gothic prom dress, $1400 | Hybrid dress with deep V and frill, $1165 | Vera Moda on ASOS textured sequin mini dress, $520

Oh and not forgetting the shoes!

Shoeboots are still in… no flats this week – it’s all about the heels Goddesses!

Aldo Frossac studded shoeboot, HK$1165 | Dune Bexhill pointed lace ups, HK$1350 | Miss KG Florian heeled Chelsea boots, HK$1026 | Miss KG Arctic pointed shoeboot, HK$1026 | Dune Napoli tiger shoeboots, HK$1355

Dune Balmoral metal toe cap court shoes, HK$1355 | ASOS prissy metallic pointed wedges, HK$685 | ASOS prior pointed high heels, HK$550 | ASOS prop metallic pointed platforms, HK$615 | Dune Addereley Maryjane heeled shoes, HK$960

Midweek Meal Inspiration

This week it’s Signal 8 Superfood: OBE Organic Meatballs in Pho – not that there’s a typhoon coming or not that I know of anyway!   I’ve discovered some new organic meatballs that have just arrived in store in Hong Kong and I tried out their Pho recipe which promises to be the “perfect emergency dish for extreme weather warnings; everything you need is already in your kitchen!”.  And I wasn’t disappointed – the meatballs are tasty, plus they’re super easy to use as they’re already pre-cooked. This Pho dish can be knocked up in no time at all and is delicious. I used the OBE organic meatballs, but you could use any meatballs of choice and if you don’t do meat, then just throw in more veggies as the Pho stock is a great base for many an addition. Recipe below:

Also, for Mum’s of fussy eaters, my 2 year old loved these meatballs… not in the Pho that would have been a stretch too far for her mundane palate! We just stuck them in the oven from being frozen and voila you have a happy 2 year old at dinner time, always a welcome sight.  Also, as they’re pre-cooked so they can make a great snack too…just pack them frozen in a lunch box and by lunchtime they’ll be defrosted and ready to eat. It’s also great for a plane journey as well, if you have fussy kids and as we all know plane food can always be a bit of a hit and miss.

Click here to find out where to buy OBE Organic Meatballs in Hong Kong.

Yogi tea saying of the week: “Life is kind of like stairs… going down is easy but going up yields all the reward”.

Instant Goddess saying of the week: “Really, do I have to run up yet another hill?”

Until next week Goddesses and remember you are always, always worth it! XX