London Fashion Week, February 15th

Hi guys! Sorry for a couple of days of silence. If you follow me on the Instagram (@juliashutenko) you know that I've been fighting a flu for a couple of days and was forced to miss the first day of London Fashion Week and spend the whole Valentine's Day in bed. I am still not completely well, but I'm back in business and here is my take on London Fashion Week, Day 2.

So you have probably heard that weather in the UK is playing mean tricks lately. Yesterday was no different. One moment it was pouring down with rain and in a few minutes sun came out. There was a lot of umbrella vs. sunglasses action around Somerset House. Because I was still taking it very easy yesterday, I could only attend a couple of shows and rushed back into bed. But those couple of shows were oh so good! Every season I admire Holly Fulton and John Rocha and yesterday their collections were as wonderful as ever. You'll see some of my shots from the shows if you scroll down. 

In terms of my outfit, it might not be visible, but I have layers and layers of clothes to keep me warm. Dressing for February fashion week is never easy. It's cold, it's wet and you still have to try and look good. I am wearing Finders Keepers' top and trousers paired with my most versatile black coat and favourite heels. 

Hope you enjoy my LFW diary and do come back tomorrow for more updates. Have a lovely Sunday and I am off to see TOPSHOP UNIQUE show. 

xo

HOLLY FULTON AW14

TEATUM JONES AW14

JOHN ROCHA AW14

Photography by Patrik Lundin and Julia Shutenko

FINDERS KEEPERS jumper and trousers

T by ALEXANDER WANG coat

LANVIN shoes

L.K.BENNETT bag

DIESEL sunnies

Valentine's Knick Knacks

Valentine's Day is only two days away and I've decided to compile a list of cute little gifts for both him and her. So in case you are still looking for some ideas and inspiration hopefully you'll find it here. All of the things are under £50 which is always good news. 

And just to be clear on my opinion of this holiday - I absolutely love it!

P.S. This is the 100th post on my blog! Yay! Thank you all for supporting me! xo

Turtleneck Chic

Monday is here starting the final countdown to London Fashion Week. It begins on Friday making February 14th twice more exciting. I have pretty exciting things planned for this week including a menu tasting at our wedding venue so there is a lot to look forward to! 

I shot this outfit over the weekend while out and about in central London. I felt like it was a quite an unusual look for me. Last time I wore this dress I styled it with heeled ankle boots and a biker leather jacket. This time I went for a more season friendly variation. One thing I want to mention is the power of a good black coat. I have styled it in so many different ways since I got it earlier this year. The possibilities are endless and that's exactly what I want from a coat.

Have a good week and speak soon xo

Photography by Patrik Lundin

DIESEL dress

T by ALEXANDER WANG coat

SAM EDELMAN boots

ALL SAINTS clutch

How I Am

It's Friday! Are you excited to watch the Olympics opening ceremony? Because I can't wait! 

This is a very fun shoot showing you a bit of my home and some of the things I like. I love these kind of shoots especially when the weather outside won't allow you to be creative at all. I can't remember  the last day it didn't rain... And I haven't even seen a single snowflake this winter. That's a first! 

Shooting at home is also great because you can ignore the season and wear the most summery dress you can find. I've had this Finders Keepers dress for a couple of months now and kept hoping that I'll have an opportunity to wear it. I've been very playful pairing it with knee-high socks for this shoot while in real life it will work perfectly with heels, flats or even sandals. 

So I hope you enjoy scrolling through this post as much as I enjoyed shooting it. 

Have a great weekend! xo

Photography by Patrik Lundin

Wearing FINDERS KEEPERS dress
              MASSIMO DUTTI socks

How To Wear: Stripes

Hi guys! Today I want to talk about stripes and how to wear them. 

Stripes (especially horizontal) can be tricky and they can play a bad joke on you. When choosing a stripy top, dress or trousers think about your body type and be careful not to 'cut' your body in wrong and weird places. Remember that horizontal stripes are likely to make you look wider and bigger than you actually are while vertical ones will do just the opposite and will visually slim you down. That said if you wear a monotone (black in my case) coat or jacket, horizontal stripes become less of a danger. 

For my outfit I decided to go monochrome and minimalistic. A simple look like this needs the right choice of accessories to breath more life into it. I added a bit of a grunge feeling with the studded biker boots and an oversized chain necklace. 

I was thinking of making more of HOW TO posts in the future, so please email me if you have any specific trends, occasions or items that you'd like me to discuss. Think boyfriend jeans, neon accessories, hats as well as dressing for an interview, for a party, etc. You name it! 

Looking forward to hearing from you! xo

 Photography by Patrik Lundin

T by ALEXANDER WANG coat

COS dress

SAM EDELMAN boots

L.K. BENNETT bag

& OTHER STORIES necklace
BABY LIPS by MAYBELLINE 'Pink Punch' lipstick 

I Dream

Happy Monday everyone! How was your weekend? 

I am starting the week with a very dreamy post. Back when the New Year started I made a wish/resolution. In 2014 I dream to be happy.  That one little word holds so much in it. For me being happy means that everyone in my family and among my friends are healthy, that my blog is growing and doing better every day, that my life is full of laughter, excitement and of course, peace. 

I have always been a big believer in the power of dreaming. The biggest dreams of my life have always included music and fashion. Not many of you know this but I have wanted to become a professional singer for the most part of my life. Hard work and lots of vocal exercises secured me a place on the National TV channel back home where I was participating in a singing reality show. It was a bit like a mix of X-Factor and Big Brother. We would live under the cameras 24/7 and perform live every Saturday. I spent two months on the show and although I didn't win it I will never forget that experience. I was able to do the thing I love the most. I was singing (and I still do).

My second dream has always been to be a part of the fashion world. To be more specific, I wanted to work for one of the most famous fashion magazines. And those of you who know me, know that it wasn't easy but I made it. I can probably write a book on how to get in, prove yourself and secure a place in a magazine. So any of you who would like some tips don't hesitate to e-mail me. I went from being on two weeks work experience to an Acting Retail and Market Editor of ELLE UK magazine in a year. That's the power of dreams for you guys.

So you are probably wondering why am I starting this week by talking about my dreams? It's because I've received the greatest dreaming reminder from Winky Designs. It's a fun, young and emerging fashion watch and accessory brand based in Las Vegas. Their Words of Wisdom watch collection aims to inspire you to dream bigger, love deeper, laugh louder, believe candidly and hope freely. You can choose the inspiration that you need the most and wear it on your wrist. I chose to DREAM.

Photography by Patrik Lundin

I have teamed up with Winky Designs and am happy to give everyone of you an exclusive 10% discount when you shop at www.winkydesigns.com. Just enter JULIASHUTENKO14 at the check out. 

Also go ahead and enter their giveaway for a chance to win your own W.O.W watch. More details on www.winkydesigns.com.

Dream big and have a perfect week! xo

WINKY 'W.O.W' COLLECTION watch available here

H&M top

GAP jeans

SAM EDELMAN biker boots at MATCHES

KAREN MILLEN clutch

*Sponsored post