Pretty pastels

Without fail, a new fashion trend hits every season. According to the fashion brigade, the hottest look for S/S'12 is pastel colours. And the latest offerings from brands such as Topshop and ASOS seem to confirm that this trend has firmly hit the highstreet. It won't be long until the fashion conscious hipsters catch up and begin to stock up on lavendar skinny jeans and peach chiffon shirts.

I must admit, I much prefer the rich, dark tones of Autumn to these sickly, sugary tones. However, as they have featured prominently on the catwalks of Marc Jacobs and Louis Vuitton, who am I to argue against it? So I guess I'm going to go along with the masses and bag myself a frosted frock, à la Chanel.

Black and gold, black and gold

I think I am a little obsessed with winter party dresses. In the past few weeks I have bought four beauties, and spent way more money than I should have. Unfortunately, I don't have any occasions lined up yet for me to wear them. I need to get planning!

You may be surprised to know that this latest dress is not a Claudia Winkleman number (gasp!). It is actually a dress that I had my eye on last winter. However, being by Reiss, my student budget would not allow me to shell out the £139 needed. And so I had to let the black and gold wonder go.

I was reminded of the dress when I saw someone wearing it recently, so I decided to search for it again in the hope may find it for less than before. And low and behold, I found a BNWT one listed on eBay. As you can imagine, due to my dress obsession, I just had to have it.

Hello Haylows

I have been searching for the perfect pair of black party shoes for what feels like forever. As much as I love my Nine West peep-toe courts, they don't work for every occasion. Due to being slip-on heels, they slide off my feet when worn with my trusty black opaques. And I for one refuse to leave the house in the depths of winter with bare, pasty legs.

Therefore, I have been on the hunt for a pair of heels complete with ankle strap. I thought I'd found the ideal pair at my favourite shoe store, Kurt Geiger. However, by the time I got around to placing my order, the beautiful Androids were out of stock. I must admit, have never been so disappointed when indulging in a little bit of retail therapy.

Fortunately, whilst browsing (as I do), I came across the Steve Madden Haylows on ASOS. A pair of black size 5s wasn't available, but I finally managed to find a pair on eBay. Ordered from Charlotte, NC, they only took a week to arrive and cost less than our usual online retailer.

They are every bit as gorgeous as they looked on screen. And even though they have 5 inch heels plus a platform, the are surprisingly comfortable. In fact, finding an occasion to wear them may prove more difficult than walking in them.

Stop it Claudia

I just did it again. I purchased another Claudia Winkleman dress. I had been bowled over by the gorgeous red and black lace number Ms. Winkleman wore during the Strictly Come Dancing Halloween special. However, despite spending too many hours searching on the web, I was unable to find the dress. That is, until today.

Whilst browsing (as I often do) on the Topshop website, I stumbled across the burnt velvet beauty. The Dolly Dress by Goldie is, at £68, a tad on the expensive side, but I think it is well worth the price. However, for the sake of my steadily depleting bank balance, I sincerely hope that the Strictly style queen wears something cheap and/or ugly next week. It's possible, but highly unlikely.

Downton fashion

Fashion has undergone a subtle but significant change in the second series of ITV1's period drama Downton Abbey. Set during the first world war, the ladies of Downton appear to have left their figure-hugging evening gowns behind in favour of a more relaxed, boyish dress. With Lady Edith Crawley helping the war effort by driving a tractor and Lady Sybil becoming a nurse, practicality is key.

Downton fashion has also become increasingly popular on the high street, with Debenhams announcing a major increase in its sales of (faux) fur capes, elbow-length gloves and pearls. And achieving the feminine glamour of the time on a budget has never been easier, with only a few essential accessories needed to recreate the look.

Strictly gorgeous

The majority of fashion lovers tuning into Strictly Come Dancing every weekend would probably be watching for the hand-made sequin-fest adorning the celebrity competitors. I, on the other hand, tune in solely to admire the gorgeous frocks on the ever-stylish Claudia Winkleman.

Each week I fall in love with the presenter's on-camera wardrobe. For the Halloween special, Ms. Winkleman rocked a red and black floral lace number perfect for the spooky holiday. And on last week's show, I was instantly taken with the black chiffon and velvet dress with gold lace trim. As is my usual custom, I was straight onto ASOS and within minutes found the beauty. £65 from Dahlia, bargain!

H&M and Versace

For all the hype over the H&M and Versace collaboration, ultimately I was disappointed. I'm not old enough to remember the fashion house's iconic prints of the 90's, but I can confidently say that if this recent collection is anything to go by, I wouldn't have liked it. The colours are garish. The digital prints are messy. And the styles are unflattering.

I have my doubts that those crazy people queuing over night at H&M's London flagship store, were actually there because they liked the fashion. Most, I bet, were there to get a designer item for a tenth of the price of a full Versace piece. And some of those were, no doubt, just there to nab some sought-after items to put on eBay and earn a quick buck.

The moral of this tale? I guess it doesn't matter what a dress or jacket might look like, as long as it is Versace. Fortunately for myself and my bank balance, I don't live by this rule.

The perfect shade of camel

For the past couple of seasons, I've been hunting for the perfect camel coloured coat. Sadly, that quest has been to no avail. The main reason for this is that camel is such an inconsistent colour, manifesting in various tones with hues of yellow through to pink. However, last week when I was watching good ol' This Morning, Holly Willoughby was sporting a smart winter coat in the most perfect shade of camel.

Quicker than you can say 'Jack Robinson', I was on the net Googling away in the desperate hope of finding my color-match made in heaven. But being spotted on Holly, I was worried that the coat would be out of my student price range. However, after some serious research, I eventually found it! Luckily for me, Ms. Willoughby loves the British High Street as much as me. The coat in question is from French Connection, and comes in at a just about manageable £165. So without much consideration, I dived straight for my wallet and hit 'Pay'.

Novelty knits

What better trend can there be for the festive season than novelty knitwear? From cute animal motifs to bold geometric patterns, there's a winter woolly to suit everyone. For cheap and chic, look no further than Topshop and ASOS, who have some wonderful reindeer inspired designs.

And for those who fancy something with slightly more pazazz for the party season, why not treat yourself to a sumptuous sequin piece from Markus Lupfer? After all, what's Christmas without a little bit of indulgence...?

Pudsey gets a make-over

It's that time of year again when Pudsey Bear makes his grand appearance in aid of BBC Children in Need. But as you may have noticed, Pudsey seems to have undergone a series of designer make-overs. Instead of the iconic yellow fur and polka dot eye-patch we are all accustomed to, Pudsey has been decked out in a variety of different colours, materials and prints created by the crème de la crème of British fashion design, including Henry Holland, PPQ and Giles Deacon.

The bears are currently on display at Liberty of London until 19th November, before being sold at auction to raise money for the charity. So if, like me, you're desperate to get your paws on one of these unique little mascots, you'd better head over to eBay, get your plastic out and be prepared to dig deep.

A sweater to die for

If, like me, you've been gripped by the Danish crime phenomenon 'The Killing', you could not have failed to notice the hype surrounding the star of the cult series (and no, I don't mean leading lady Sarah Lund!). I am, of course, referring to THAT sweater.

In almost every episode, the cream and navy wolly takes center stage, with Lund seemingly just as much in love with her knitted masterpiece as the rest of us. Unfortunately, for those of us without a television production budget, it will be difficult to get our hands on the original. Made by design duo Gudrun & Gudrun and hand-knitted with the finest organic Faroese wool, it's no surprise that the sweater will set you back a whopping €280.

Luckily for us, however, the high street appears to have cottoned on to the trend, with an abundance of winter knits in Fairisle and Navajo patterns gracing the rails of our favourite retailers. While I was scouring the stores in search of my Nordic fix on a budget, I found the perfect Gudrun & Gudrun imitation sweater from the newbie on the British high street block, Forever 21. Granted, it's not identical, but what high street copy is? But what it lacks in design, it makes up for with its beautifully soft feel and bargain basement price.

And it is with bated breath that I now wait (warm and snug, of course) for November 19 and the arrival of Forbrydelsen II on my TV screen. Let's just hope that along with Lund, that sweater makes a triumphant return.