It's here ...

Christmas has arrived. I think it officially started last weekend and I know this because we were rushed off our feet in the shop and our website has gone crazy! The shop is now brimming with gorgeousness - clothing, shoes, bags, clutches, scarves, hats, gloves, candles, books, gifts, all kinds of little home accessories - infact just about anything that a girl could want (but not necessarily need - but when we did we ever covet what we need?!). As always we offer beautiful free gift wrapping, which is a god send for many of us, and if you buy on-line we will deliver it straight to your door. http://www.lavender-room.co.uk/ If you're local and would like to join us for some Personal Shopping, a glass of pink sparkle, enjoy 15% off all purchases, and are free on Thursday 3rd December then come along to the boutique in Brighton between 5.30-9pm and enjoy a lovely evening of Christmas Shopping with us. 16 Bond Street, Brighton, BN1 1RD

The new look .....

Hopefully the fact that you are reading this means that you have seen our 'new-look' website! We hope we have made it easier for you to see, and purchase, exactly what catches your eye. Plus, we have added loads of gorgeous new things for you to choose from - many are best-sellers from our famous Brighton boutique which we thought we'd share with you on-line, and some are completely new to lavender/room. Take a look around and visit our new Jewellery section where we have some eye-catching statement pieces ... my current favourites are the bracelet-cuff's (pictured), very glamorous. Luxurious knitted scarves and hats can be found in Fashion Accessories (which I always think should be renamed as, 'the finishing touches' - no point having a fabulous winter coat if your bag or scarf looks like its seen better days), together with purses and clutches (the Mimi Dolly is divine!). And in Home Accessories there are dozens of new little treasures to add a touch of elegant charm to your home, which will help you want to stay in and play house now the winter nights are drawing in. Join our mailing list to keep up to date with customer events and promotional discounts (there will definitely be something coming up towards the end of the month, in time for Christmas), and please let us know if you think there is anything else we could do to make your on-line shopping with us a little easier. A wish-list mailed to your partner perhaps?!!

Sexy panties and naughty knickers

We are thrilled to be wearing Sexy Panties and Naughty Knickers again. They are a brand that we have stocked on and off since we opened and they continue to deliver exactly what they promise. They are super sexy, feel utterly gorgeous to wear, and do a great range of sizes to fit every fabulous female figure. Our current favourite is the Pussy Cat range, in a very sassy pink leopard print. The bra is ultra flattering - gently padded and balcony style to give you a teasing lift! 100% silk satin means great to wear and great to touch ... click here to have a closer look and order on-line.

Instant glamour .....

The time has come. It's Autumn. The new collections are in. It's time to make a new purchase. It's time for .... a new handbag! Probably one of the most exciting purchases you can make at the start of a season. Now, making a new handbag purchase can be tricky. You need to think about shape, style, size (always important), colour, and budget. Oh, and something which I often consider (especially when money is tight) is whether it would carry me through day to evening. So with all this criteria to consider it can actually be quite a job to find the right bag. However, this season I need look no further than the fabulous collection of patent styles from our long-standing favourite designer, Mimi. I am often reluctant to use the word 'fabulous', because in the world of fashion it gets banded around all too frequently, but I use it here with complete sincerity ... these bags are fabulous. This hot pink colour is so smart and striking and is tipped to be a hot favourite (I've already heard 2 of our girls getting their hands on it). And the thing I love about patent leather is that it always looks smart and always looks glamorous! No effort needed! So you could be wearing your dreariest of clothes, just popping out for a pint of milk (having one of those 'no-makeup-hope-I-don't-bump-into-anyone-I-know' moments), throw on your coat, pick up your gorgeous patent Mimi bag and there you go ... instant glamour, for day or night. Brilliant.

The Evelyn also comes in black, cream and red. It costs £12o, is made of the highest quality Italian leather, and it's made in the UK. Fabulous. Click here to check out the full collection and choose your colour!

Celebrate the good times .....

Last week we had a lovely evening out to celebrate all of our hard and succesful work through these difficult - and lets face it, depressing- times, and to welcome 3 pretty new faces to the team.

A lovely, yet very tame evening by our usual standards - we usually end up dancing on the ceiling, think its a fab idea to get the tequila flowing and roll home just before the milkman arrives! And if we had had one of those nights you definitely wouldn't be seeing the pictures! So here's a few snapshots of us all being serene and sensible, for a change....

From the top; Lou (boutique lovely), Nicky (owner), Bex (Manager) and Julie (boutique lovely). Middle; Poppy, Louisa and Corinna (the new girls and boutique lovelies) Below: Andrea (PR& Marketing), Nikky (Assistant Manager/Web Operations Manager), and Jenny (owner).

A good time which won't be quite so civilised will be this coming weekend ... The Big Chill .... anyone coming?!

'Wow!' shoes from Chie Mihara

If you haven't heard of, seen, or worn a pair of Chie Mihara shoes before then listen up, because these shoes really are something else. Part of the new collection has just arrived in store, just 3 styles so far, and they are serious 'wow!' shoes . One pair in particular is causing such a stir that we already have a waiting list for the next delivery. Two celebs came in last week and snapped them up! They are the most gorgeous and wearable heels you will ever find. I guarantee. We love, love, love them! Order on-line www.lavender-room.co.uk or over the phone 01273 220380.

Sale - 40% off clothing, shoes and lingerie

We are now in Sale! 40% off selected clothing (Baby Ceylon, Pyrus, Starmela), shoes (Chie Mihara) and lingerie (Princess Tam Tam) at our Brighton boutique. As our loyal customers will know, our sales are hugely popular and we sell out fast. Come and see us as soon as you can!

Jenny and Jo

Jenny and Jo are twins. Jenny is one of the owners of our lovely boutique and lives in Brighton, and Jo is a nutritionist and lives on a beach in Thailand. They both live very different lives, thousands of miles apart but share such a special connection, which for those of us who aren't twins can hardly imagine. So it is a really special time right now as Jo is back in Brighton visiting her twin, family and friends ... and lavender/room, as she was one of the first lavender girls when we opened! There are lots of smiles, lots of happy times and lots of love ... which we thought was a nice thing to share with you. Also worth sharing is Jo's expertise as a nutritionist and well-being consultant. And for those of you who fancy a taste of Jo's medicine, "wholesome, nourishing foods, sunshine, fresh air, exercise, fresh water and quality relaxation" (sign me up now!) take a look at http://awakeninghealth.co.uk/, or you could just get yourself a ticket to Thailand!

The greatest day of our lives ... Take That, again

Words cannot describe the excitement, fanaticism, joy and emotion that swept some of us up at weekend when we went to see Take That at Wembly! We are still high, and still swaying.

A small apology is perhaps needed to those fans who we pushed through and jostled with on our plight to reach the front of the stage. We got to within 10 metres of the front and it was so worth it, despite a very hairy moment when a certain lady - lady?- looked and sounded as if she was about to scratch our eyes out, as all six of us (armed with gin and water) stampeded our way through (and not a drop of gin was lost - amazing!). Worth it to see every facial expression, catch Howard's wink (exclusively to us, of course), and feel that those gorgeous, happy, smiley boys were playing there just for us, their friends.

Quite how we all manage to come down from all the excitement I don't know (how on earth do the boys manage it?), we've had that date in our diary's for the past 8 months! What do we have to look forward to now? Oh, I know .... The Big Chill!

Have a heart .. and donate to charity

lavender/room are hugely proud to support the work of Dolphin House Charity by donating £1 of every sale of our gorgeous Wooden Hanging Heart, £8. Dolphin House Charity is a unique therapy clinic for children of all ages, from low-income families, offering a wide range of complimentary therapies as an effective and safe alternative to the use of drugs. It is the only clinic of its kind in the UK and we feel very strongly that its pioneering work for children should not only be supported but widely promoted. http://www.thedolphinhouseclinic.org.uk/

The Wooden Hanging Heart is available on line http://www.lavender-room.co.uk/ and in-store at our boutique in Brighton. It makes a wonderful gift, looks beautiful hanging from a door or hook in the home, and you can feel proud in the knowledge that you are contributing to a brilliant cause, for children. Everyone's a winner!

Take That!

We just have to share with you our excitement and sheer giddiness with which we are embracing Take That and their current Circus Tour! Some of us girls here are ardent fans, some of us have far better things to think about (although I don't know quite what?), and the rest think the ardent fans are completely crazy and obsessed (which we are ... about Howard). One of us has just been to see the boys in Sunderland, and is still coming down from the high (and dreaming about meeting Howard), and we are off to see them again in July ... at Wembly!! What a night that will be ... it could be, the greatest night of our lives. Of course we shall report back with all the news from the show .... the excitement is building already (for some of us)!!

Two special Lou's ...

Wow, what a weekend we've had! Plenty of sunshine and plenty of great sales of our gorgeous Mimi bags! One shining star in particular is the 'baby-lou' which is very special because of its unique silver fabric and it looks great with absolutely everything. It is our most popular bag by far this season and is flying out the door quicker than we can re-order! I always wonder who, or what, sparks a particular trend, why some things suddenly sell out quicker than others, particularly when we can't always rely on celebrity endorsement. So I'm going to put this trend down to the very first person I know to get a 'baby-lou' , and she is one of our very own shining stars, at our Brighton boutique, and guess what her name is ..............Lou!

Our famous sundress is back!

Sometimes you just can't get enough of a good thing ... and that's how we, and all of our wonderful customers, feel about our pretty sundress which we keep on bringing back year after year. It is the prettiest sundress we think you will ever find, in gorgeous colours - we are doing rose, reef, turquoise and white this year - and is sprinkled with gold sequins which will sparkle in the sunshine! We have two colours available on-line or you can call the shop and order over the phone 01273 220380

Welcome to our blog!

Welcome to lavender/room's blog where we hope to share with you all our latest news from our store in Brighton, exciting new product news, style tips and general chit chat about all things fashion and lifestyle!