The New Years Eve Outfit Dilemma

CONGRATULATIONS! You survived Christmas, and it seems we did too, which is the perfect reason to celebrate. Well done. 

But wait. Theres more. The celebration of the end of 2011 and the beginning of 2012, also known as New Years Eve! Before we start complaining about the onslaught of the Olympics, it's one last excuse for a worldwide party, and thousands of women (and, I assume, men) are already starting to panic about what they could possibly wear. 

There is always the old faithful, but you wore that last year.. and the year before. Perhaps this is an excuse for a new old faithful, or something new and eye-catching because 2012 will be GREAT and you will definitely be keeping all those New Year Resolutions! 

So, why not consider something a little bit different this year? Something none of your friends will be wearing AND you will be bang on the underwear as outerwear trend (bare with me here..). 

Here is one idea: We styled our luscious black silk shirt and satin pencil skirt with one of our underbust waspies for a classy, yet eye-catching outfit.

Not only does the waspie and the curve of the pencil skirt create that classic hourglass figure, but this could be dressed up or down as much as you like! 

 

Wear this outfit with black stockings, bright red shoes (either small retro heels like our Pin Up Couture shoes, or if you are feeling really naughty, these fierce Bordello shoes!) and a statement chunky ring or necklace. 

The Underwear as Outerwear trend has been going strong since 2010, seen on celebs and fashionistas worldwide. This article over on The Lingerie Addict explains the do's and don'ts of this look and when it is done right, it looks amazing.

For example, here is The Only Way is Essex's Maria Fowler rocking some of our lingerie at the amazing The Box nightclub!

Teaming a longline bra with a black waspie and skinny jeans looks stylish and gives a little bit more to a casual look.

Overbust corsets look stunning if you happen to have lost your shirt - whoops! Team with a black pencil skirt for a vintage tease. 

Makeup tutorial: A very Burley Christmas

My name is Simone Camps and I am a London based professional make-up artist trained under Dani Guinsberg, CEO of The Session School. I was extremely fortunate to be part of The Get Naked Calendar 2012 in aid of Molar Pregnancy, working with Head MUA Amanda Bell, photographer Chris Dunlop and many more amazing people for a very good cause,   ! During London fashion week I headed the makeup team for HEMYCA LFWSS12 Fragments of Illusion.  Most recently I have been doing makeup for the general public at the  Good Results press day, (where I did Beverley Knight’s makeup) and Levi's ® UK Mirror Mirror Photo Shoot for Levis Curve ID in  London, Bluewaters and Milton Keynes.

I am extremely mindful of my clients’ desire to have the very best products on their skin, therefore I am very particular about the products that I use. For me, creating a flawless and unique individual look is a must, and I find that Bellapierre mineral makeup is perfect in assisting the beautification without harming the skin. I believe that the way a person looks can essentially alter the way they feel and how they portray themselves.

In this blog post I’m going to give you all the tips and tricks for how to get that perfect burlesque look for Christmas! I took my inspiration from Christina Aguilera’s take on the classic 1940s look.

 

1. Let’s start by preparing your skin. I’ve used Bellapierre’s milky cleanser to cleanse the face and neck. Then use the toner, moisturize, and apply primer. This will give a clean and smooth base for the makeup.
2. Apply Compact Mineral 5-in-1 Foundation with a Kabuki brush by dabbing the brush into the compact and then applying in a circular motion over the face.
3. One of the best things about mineral foundation is its versatility; Bellapierre’s foundation has 5 uses in one product, including concealer. Using a concealer brush conceals any problem areas.
4. Apply your favorite mineral blush colour (I used Autumn Glow, a luscious coral colour) to the apple of your cheek and blend. To get that gorgeous glow, highlight the cheek slightly by using Pure Element Bronzer.
5. For the eyes I’ve used earthy tones, such as Bellapierre’s Shimmer Powder in Champagne, Earth and a tiny amount of Bronze.
6. Using the lightest colour first, apply over the eyelids as a base, which will make the darker colours really pop. For a vintage look without being too vampy, blend and contour the sockets with the darker shades of brown.
7. Apply a liquid eyeliner to the upper lash line ending in a cat-like flick at the outer corners.
8. Using an eyebrow brush and a dark powder (Bellapierre’s Eyebrow Kit is fantastic for this) apply the powder in soft strokes along your natural eyebrow. Dark brows are a must-have for this look.
9. Finally apply Bellapierre Ruby lipstick to complete your very own burlesque Christmas makeover!

And there you go, a gorgeous look just in time for the Christmas party season!

I can be contacted on Twitter @simonecampsmua simc_mua@london.com or you can find me on Facebook!

SS13 Design Competition

We are offering you a tantalising chance to feature one of your lingerie designs in the Playful Promises SS13 lingerie collection ‘Paradise’.

Think 2030 meets 1950 – future retro... break down re-create. Think about the emergence of the East for exotic infusions and to really get the brain in gear think of the poem ‘Paradise Lost’ – innocence Vs sin and above  all - think about flirty fun as most of all we design collections that are pretty, eye catching but always fun to wear.

So from briefs to bras via basques, suspenders and corsets...

...Push-up bra,  demi bra, longline bra, soft-cup bra, underwired bra, strapless bra, strappy bras or even no bra? Low waist briefs, high waist briefs, peek-a-boo briefs and crotchless briefs, thongs, boy shorts, tangas, and Brazilians what will you choose?

Don’t forget suspender belts, longline girdles, cinchers, waspies, corsets, garter dresses, basques, and garter skirts, nipple tassles, merquins and all!

We’re looking for an original, signature design to represent the Playful Promises brand. Think bold colours, unique patterns with a bang-on trend print. Look at trends, colour palettes and shades, nature, graphics and geo-prints.

Consider texture, digital printing and fabric weight.

The colour palette will be nudes and blush pinks with acid yellows with dashes of apricot and magenta pink. Stolen glances of teal and lime green.

About Playful Promises

Playful Promises is a London Based lingerie brand designing and making lingerie, swimwear, gifting and clothing collections. Playful Promises prides itself on being flirty and even a little bit dirty.

Our lingerie collection comes out twice a year. It’s a heavily anticipated collection by UK stores and further afield. It’s important that the lingerie design fits with the brand and previous collections, understated sensuality with a sense of quirky, flirtaceous tempatation.

How to Enter

Send in your designs to Delphine@playfulpromises.com

Accepted formats include;
Hand drawn designs (please scan in)
CAD designs in JPG format
(max 2mb per email)

One entry per person

Competition Closing date; March 30th 2012

Prize

1.  The winning design mass-manufactured and sold in stores across the UK including Playful Promises Boutique and online store
2.  Their design featured in press across the UK and further abroad
3.  The winning design sent to them in their size
4.  £100 gift voucher to spend online or in store on Playful Promises Goodies

 Any questions, don't hesitate to contact us!

Image by Bruno Dayan

Christmas gift review: Frilly Knickers

Stylist, fashion PR and Clo Clo’s Closet editor, Chloe Pierre reviews our frilly briefs!

Firm friend & insanely loyal fan of The Playful Promises Boutique, I had the pleasure to review the gorgeous Frilly Knickers range, which is temptingly affordable at a simple price of £10 a pair.

Initially I was skeptical of the Frilly Knickers set as I am a self-proclaimed ‘big panties’ kind of girl, who is usually averse in the luck of wearing frilly lingerie and feeling seductive in them, but honestly, these knickers didn’t even allow a hint of that dreaded feeling to flash back.

The knickers were extremely agreeable on, had a great amount of elasticity, which allowed enough space to fit my voluptuous rear without any strangulation of the waist or thighs and being so close to my intimates did not give one inch of irritation or leave me feeling uncomfortable.

With the heavy adorned frilling going right around the brief and the beautiful oversized bows at each side made my ample hips look very tantalizing if my boyfriend and I, say so ourselves.

With him being a French knickers junkie, per say, he made me model each one, whilst eventually deciding on the Magenta pair, identifying them as ‘keepers’.

Now be under no illusion that this type of underwear is produced to work underneath jeans or your tight LBD as for obvious reasons, the detailing will either show through most fabrics under jeans, is free for movement and will ultimately damage the experience of wearing such a luxurious product. My best bet is to either wear under a very loose garment or keep for a special occasion within the boudoir. 

This is definitely something every woman should have on their Christmas Wish List and pairs up as a great gift solution and stocking filler too.

I will definitely purchase at least two pairs for each my gorgeous and varied framed, girlfriends in the constructive colours that I instantly fell in love with, Black & Peach.

Three words that sum up the frilly knickers in my opinion are practical (wink), undoubtedly rapturousand exquisitely opulent. 

GIVEAWAY: 15 knickers, 15 winners

Want to get your hands on our pants? We are giving away a pair of knickers to 15 lucky winners chosen at random from the entrants! 

It couldn't be easier to enter, just like/reblog/share/tweet/show your love for us!

+1 entry for reblogging this post on tumblr

+1 entry for sharing THIS LINK on facebook (click share just below our facebook link to post to your page)

+1 entry for tweeting this post on twitter (must include @playfulpromises)

+3 entries for blogging (not on tumblr) about this give-away (post link to blog below)

Rules:

- Only one entry per platform, multiple tweets or reblogs will not gain entries.

- Give-away only available in the UK

- Competition closes and winners will be drawn on Monday 9.30am

Good luck!