You would literally have to be living under a rock to not realise that the World Cup 2010 has begun, every advert on the TV has been tailored towards the campaign, the papers are busting at the folds with support for England, and the streets are beaming in red and white colours amidst a frenzy of flags flown in celebration , even David Cameron has got into the spirit of things, flying the St Georges flag above number 10 in support of the English team. For some of the readers on here the idea of four weeks of football is the sort of things dreams are made of, for others (uhum, us ladies) it’s a summer sat on the couch, preparing for the inevitible post missed penalty sobbing from the  hubby. Even though Fabio’s banned the girls this year, we can still be chic supporters, flying the flag in style.

We Love dorothy Perkins range of football T shirts, guaranteed to make you look more Wag, than Chav

Navy Stripe England Bow Vest

If your looking for something casual, yet stylish, we love this slouchy Grey marl sequined sweatshirt by next.

Grey Marl England Sequin Sweater – £25

This union jack handbag is bright, patriotic, and perfect for if you attend any world cup parties, or barbeques

Union Jack Quilted Bag – £13 – Very.co.uk

For those of you who are a little bit more adventerous, you could even try painting your nails in Englands colours, or maybe try painting your face ! However you choose to spend your World Cup, We hope you enjoy it.

Continuing our theme of looking at the styles of the Sex and The City girls in celebration of Sex & The City 2, today we bring you Miranda Hobbes.

Miranda is quite often completley under rated and personally she’s our favourite of the four girls. You have to give her credit, she juggles her time between being a high flying lawyer and a Mum, whilst still managing to look absoloutley flawless!

In the office Miranda suits up, looking smart, and sophisticated. Elements of this have rubbed off onto her evening style which we describe as being sophisticated and stylish, whilst still remaining practical. Because of her pale skin tone she often opts for neutral, earthy tones.

Dress :

Fitted Wasit Sundress – Asos.com – £22.00

Miranda’s dresses are often in pastel or neutral tones, and whilst being conservatively cut she often glams up the dress itself with an exciting belt to flatter her figure and also spice up the dress, we love  this fitted waistband sun dres from Asos, its pastel pink colour is perfect for the girl with the lighter skin tone.

Accessories :

Vintage look bead detail waist belt – Asos- £15.00

As we mentioned before the key to the look is to accessorise! This belt, again from Asos is the perfect accessory for achieving the look, it is cool and quirky enough to compliment an outfit without being too bold that you make an over the top statement.

Shoes :

Bow Trim Platform Shoes – Newlook- £30.00

So as to keep within the simplistic dressy yet practical theme we reccomend these Bow trimmed platforms, they are elegant and lady like enough to be worn on a night out.

Bag :

Milli Bow Tote Bag – Boohoo.com – £30.00

Keeping with the bow detailing from the shoes, we absoloutley adore this cutsey Clutch bag from Boohoo, again the light pastel colour will compliment a lighter skin tone and will really bring the whole outfit together.

Good Luck with the look

Il2L.com

xxx

When it comes to dressing stylishly there is one Woman who’s opinion you would never doubt, and that is Kate Moss.

It’s hard to believe that the UK’s most famous fashion model launched her first collection with Topshop almost three years ago, and whereas other celebrity inspired/designed collections have often failed Kate has instead excelled her peers to become a firm favourite in every girls wardrobe. She lays the collaborations success on the fact that all the items designed are actually items that she would wear herself. She has again maintained this mantra for her latest collection, the 12th for Topshop, which is set to hit the shops tomorrow. When recently asked about her influences for the new collection she stated, “I just think of what i want to wear in the summer”.

As you can see from the pictures below the new summer collection focuses mainly on dresses and this time Kate has combined classic vintage styling with modern, currently on trend fabrics and prints. The leaf printed floaty dress pictured below is my favourite piece from the collection that i have seen so far.

The whole collection seems miles apart from the original quite racey, trashy collections that Kate has put out in former years, as the softly lit pictures above suggest she seems to have adopted a lighter, bohemian stance.

What’s your opinion, do you prefer Kate’s softer, more lady like approach ? Will you be joining the queue’s tomorrow morning ?

Lots Of Love

IL2L

xxx

Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past six months you’ll be well aware that this years biggest spectacle this side of the world cup (And who care’s about that right!) is now only one week away!

I’m talking about Sex And The City The Movie 2, so ditch the boyfriend, grab the Blahnik’s and lets look at how to achieve the girl’s fabulous looks for less.

Carrie Bradhsaw

Style wise Carrie is the most diverse and adventerous of the four, her over the top style has defined her as an influential fashion icon thanks to her ingenous ability to mix many styles into one glorious head turning ensemble.

Dress:

Floral Contrast Maxi Dress – £75.00 Topshop

Maxi dresses are again huge this season, this cutsey offering from Topshop would not look out of place in Miss Bradshaws huge walk in wardrobe thanks to it’s bold statement making floral print.

Bag:

Fiorelli Kelly – £37.99- IL2L.com

Carries mantra when it comes to bags is the bolder the better, through out the series she is rarely seen without something especially quirky on her arm (and that’s not including her many boyfriends) This oversized shoulder bag by Fiorelli perfectly excentuates the simple silhouette of the maxi dress and also allows for spacious storage for the girl about town.

Shoes :

Leather Gladiator Sandals – £12 – Newlook

Footwear is Carries forte, the girl could practically write scientific papers on the subject.

Mixing the flowing floral, and classic grecian trends is something Carrie would do with ease. Complete the look with these leather  gladiator sandals which  are a much more stylish alternative to flats, or flip flops

Good luck achieving the look

IL2L

XXX

The thought of bold animal prints brings only one image to mind, and that’s of Coronation Streets bubbly barmaid Bet Lynch.

She’s hardly viewed as being a style icon, and from day one had heads turning as soon as she arrived in the Rovers wearing some of the boldest, most vulgar animal prints this side of the Serengeti, in fact in one scrapped story line she was actually chased around Weatherfield park by a poacher having mistaken her for an escaped animal. I joke, but seriously I was astonished to hear about the resurgence of animal prints until I saw some of the more recent developments. Acclaimed designers such as Roberto Cavelli and Christopher Kane have reworked the once trashy style into a sophisticated versatile option perfect for all seasons.

The look itself is a risky one though! Done wrong you’ll look like a brassy barmaid, but get it right and you’ll be a desirable animal and the leader of the pack for sure! Here’s our guide to getting it right:

• Mixing animal prints with other prints such as tribal is no longer a fashion passé as proven by Christopher Kane’s current collection, that’s not to say that you can’t still overdo it by caping yourself in multiple prints though . If you were to throw together an ensemble consisting of what looks likes the result of a joy rider gone wild in a safari park you would still come out looking like you’d dressed yourself from the left over wallpapers from Peter Stringfellows house, and that is not a good look!  Remember Girls, sometimes less is more.

• Keep it simple, an animal printed handbag, or belt can make an equally beautiful statement and can really spice up an otherwise fairly bland outfit

• If you’re feeling particularly adventerous and really want to let your inner animal escape then you could combine an animal print dress or oversized T shirt with equally bright accessories and shoes.

This Bank Holiday Weekend see’s the start of the Summer Blockbuster season with Iron Man 2 paving the way for what is going to be a period jam packed with fantastic, high budget offerings and If this film is anything to set the bar by then we are in for a treat !

We catch up with Tony Stark Aka Iron Man 6 months after the end of the first film, where he is quickly learning the age old Marvel patented lesson that “with great power comes great responsibility”, having revealed the identity of his metallic, crime fighting machine at the end of the first film and “privatising world peace” everyone wants a piece of him, from the government who are trying to obtain the Iron Man technology, to a gaggle of super villains the main being Whiplash played by Mickey Rourke sporting the most unconvincing Russian accent ever!

Unfortunately, the world’s new interest in Iron Man could not come at a worse time for Stark, who finds out that the element used in the reactor that keeps his heart beating is slowly killing him, paternal issues ensue and it is through these that Stark finds a way to upgrade the Iron Man technology.

Following the huge success of the first film, there has been high expectations of director Jon Favreau to deliver a film as solid and enjoyable as the original. In terms of special effects and action packed scenes he far exceeds the level set by its predecessor however overall the film lacks the depth and humour of the first, the narrative is at times clunky and there are quite a few pointless scenes put in to pad the film out. Don’t get me wrong Iron Man 2 is not a bad film; far from it, it just suffers slightly from sequel syndrome.

A hat is a beautifully versatile accessory, with ease it can change the direction of any outfit. They’re crucial for completing a look in the summer, and ideal for keeping your head warm in the winter.

In recent years many of the old classics have been pulled out of the wardrobe and dusted off, and not only by the likes of you and Me. Here is our roundup of our favourite Male celebrity hat wearers, these guy’s are rarely photographed not wearing one!

Hugh Jackman

Who needs an oscar when you have the prestigous title of “Celebrity hat wearer of the year 2007” as voted by the Telegraph ? Hugh Jackman is a man who wears hats well, he looks effortlessley cool in this dark trilby hat, so much so that I am actually tempted to revoke my claim for 3 hours of my life back that I put in after having to watch Australia! Extra marks are also rewarded to Hugh for his cool leather jacket.

Johnny Depp

We couldn’t leave Mr Depp out of our list, after all he did play the Mad Hatter in this years adaptation of Alice in Wonderland, though we are not too sure the huge battered top hat would be looked upon favourably when walking into a local pub.

We much prefer Johnny in this simple, classic trilby hat though there are a lot of options to choose from, the man is rarely pictured not wearing some form of headwear!

Brad Pitt

Not instantly recognised as a style icon, however in recent years he has really upped his game. We think this flat cap works well with his rugged looks whilst still allowing him to look smart.

Keith Richards

An old classic, wearing an old classic ! The legendary Rolling Stones guitarist is constantly pictured wearing some form of headwear, and although you wouldnt necesarilly still put him in the same league as any of the forementioned, in his hay day this guy had more style than all of the above put together so you cant argue with that ! Here he is pictured below on his way to a fancy dress party dressed as Freddie Kruger on a night out wearing one of his favourites.

Before she was re-branded as the Bridget Jones for the size zero generation, everyone’s favourite girl-next-door, Jennifer Aniston, was something of a style icon: remember the haircut that launched a thousand copy cats, the laid back LA style that bagged her Brad Pitt? Yes, so do we . . .

But as brand ‘Brangelina’ was created, Aniston entered a sort of style wilderness for a few years. Her red carpet outfits – while un-offensive – were distinctly middle road and then came the press tour of, ‘The Bounty Hunter.’ It is not unfair to say that Jen’s red carpet attire is the most exciting thing about this mediocre rom-com and she has become the pioneer of an amazingly versatile new trend, the-evening-dress-with-jacket-look.

This is not about simply plonking a suit jacket over a pretty dress, oh no. The jacket must be long and tailored, the dress must be whimsical and ideally pastel and the heels must be killer.

Lots of love,

IL2L
xxxx

They are calling it the ‘Suri Cruise’ effect. The fact that British parents are now spending up to £800 pounds a year, kitting out little Tarquin or Edwina in the best the contemporary fashion scene has to offer. Welcome to the world of mini-me dressing. But is it too cute or too sad for mummies to dress in the same outfit as their daughters and vice versa? Well, here at IL2L, the jury is still out!

The trend first kicked off when fashion’s paradigm of soft tailoring and beautiful fabrics, Stella McCartney, announced that she would be bringing out a designer range with GapKids. Cue thousands of yummy mummies literally camping outside their local Gap stores to get their little bundles of joy the latest beautiful cashmere sweaters and cargo pants.

Then followed hero brand ‘Pretty Ballerina’s’ baby leopard-print ballet pumps and Zara’s Chloe inspired gladiator sandals for toddlers. All Saints have also just launched a little boys range which includes Lace-up bovver boots, printed tees and leather jackets!

A quick warning to all parents, by all means indulge your little angels, just make sure you save some money for your own wardrobe, you wouldn’t want to be out done by your kids in the style stakes!

Lots of love,

IL2L

XXX

Can you hear that? It’s David Beckham crying into his sarong!

That’s right, the cult of the metrosexual male, which dominated the last decade seems to have all but disappeared. Don’t get us wrong male grooming hasn’t been banished from the male style psyche, it’s just been replaced by something, well, more macho.

Take MTV’s new reality show ‘Jersey Shore’ for example. The men on here raise the bar for male grooming – the live at the gym, wear accessories and are obsessed by tanning, they just do it in a leather jacket. Which, we feel beats a sarong any day of the week!

Lots of love,

IL2L

xxxx