ACH JA

HO HO HO it's officially Christmas time! How do I know? Well the season isn't dictated by snow. The first day of Christmas, in Birmingham at least, starts with the opening of the annual German Market and Craft Fair. Pretzels, hot mulled wine, wurst, brot, bier and carousels; not forgetting the deliciously expensive 'fruit covered in chocolate'. I wish they had a more desirable name so those living outside the city could understand their merit, but its a 'Birmingham thing'.

With the ice rink nearly ready, the wheel reaching rooftops and the lights switched on, there's a festive mood in the chilly air. But what does this mean for fashion? It's layering time, ladies! Coats over jumpers over shirts over vest tops, cute knitted mittens and obligatory German Market tassel-eared hats, now is the time to swathe yourselves in scarves and lace up ankle boots. I love Winter for the ability it gives me to wear all my favourite things at once. But I'm no hardcore fashionista: weather influences my choices just as much as Winehouse.

Last Saturday, I gave my Russian-style hat it's first outing, keeping a vintage feel to my look with a lace vest, gold crochet cardigan and red lipstick. I added military style shoe boots to tie in with the hat, as you can see from the images below:

Stylish? Maybe. Practical? Perfect! Want to shoot style up a notch? You can't beat these heavyweight beauties from Topshop, http://www.topshop.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?beginIndex=0&viewAllFlag=&catalogId=19551&storeId=12556&categoryId=175036&parent_category_rn=175013&productId=1374421&langId=-1 , a (relative) steal at £95. Santa baby, hope you're taking note!