Category: Fashion

Beautiful Baby Cambridge has been a busy boy since being welcomed into the world just a short time ago. He has already made his royal debut on the steps of St Mary’s Hospital, spent a night at Kensington Palace, and met various members of his family including the Queen! But today, he has had his first afternoon out. He and his parents, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, were driven from Kensington Palace to Berkshire to visit his Grandparents – Carole and Michael Middleton.

 

Your new born baby’s first day out is such a special occasion and here at Seraphine, we couldn’t be more proud to report that The Duchess of Cambridge wore our beautiful short sleeved knot front lavender dress on her gorgeous new son’s first trip out! This lovely summer dress is simply perfect for such a hot sunny day, with short capped sleeves and a feminine floral print she looked calm cool and had the radiant glow of a proud new mother. The first visit to the grandparents’ house is a great excuse to take plenty of photos for the private family album, and in our breezy summer dress Kate is sure to look stunning in them!

With the royal due date just around the corner, July is shaping up to be quite a month! As excitement for a brand new royal baby builds around the country, we here at Seraphine are celebrating the new arrival by launching our most exciting competition to date.

We are giving you the chance to win a dream maternity wardrobe from Seraphine worth £1000!

To be in with a chance of winning, we want you to tell us the answer to the question on everybody’s lips…

Is it a boy?

Is it a girl?

And most importantly: What is the royal baby name?

We all know that choosing your baby’s name is a hugely important decision as it will follow your child around for the rest of their lives. But just imagine how it would be to have the whole world scrutinising your choice! We don’t know about you, but we certainly don’t envy the royal couple. In the past, royals have gone for very traditional British names like Elizabeth, Charles and Henry, but recently they have been branching out a little – we have a Zara and the Queen’s first great grand child is called Savannah – nothing boring and traditional there! On top of this, Kate who comes from a normal middle class family will of course be bringing her own ideas into the mix. Who knows, we might even get a complete celebrity style curve ball à la Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin’s Apple or Kim Kardashian and Kanye West’s North! (We’re not saying it’s likely, but anything is possible!)

For your chance to win our truly a whole new maternity wardrobe from Seraphine worth £1000, simply click here to enter your name and email address and give us your best royal baby name guess – it couldn’t be easier.

Best of luck and get creative!

 

If there’s one thing we would recommend that every woman should have in her maternity wardrobe, it would be a great maxi dress. They are incredibly flattering, as they skim fluidly over your body while also making you appear taller, no matter how petite you are. They also look so stylish and can be dressed up or down depending on the occasion and time of day, but they’re really quick to throw on when you’re in a hurry. Is it any wonder that maxi maternity dresses quickly become a go-to piece for when you’re not sure what to wear but know you want to look fabulous?

 

OK, so you won’t want to cover up for the whole of your pregnancy, but a nice long maxi will provide comfort as well as a polished appearance for the days when you do. Pregnant celebrities are also well aware of the benefits a long dress can provide, if the huge list of famous faces who have been spotted in them is anything to go by.

 

To name just a few over the past couple of years, we’ve seen Neve Campbell, Melissa Joan Hart, Alyson Hannigan, Megan Fox, Jessica Simpson and Jessica Alba all rocking maternity maxi dresses to great effect, sometimes for high-profile events and at other times just for a stroll around the shops.

 

One thing you’ll notice is that all of these women are very different shapes, sizes and heights, proving that this type of maternity clothing is flattering for everyone. For example, Alyson wasn’t swamped by hers even though she’s petite, while Jessica Simpson appeared balanced out despite her larger chest size.

 

These girls have also helped to showcase the variety of ways you can wear a maxi dress during the summer. Alyson was spotted wearing a denim jacket over her patterned style when it was cooler, while Megan’s plain black one was dressed up with fancy sandals and elegant jewellery for a family event.

 

And proving that they know great maternity wear when they see it, a number of celebrities have also been photographed in Seraphine’s very own maternity maxi dresses.

 

Alyson often wore our Blue Printed Maxi Dress, while Jessica Alba had our Brown Floral Print Maternity Maxi Dress.

In fact, the latter seems to be a particular favourite, as its bohemian floral print is always on-trend and the cut provides an amazing slimming effect. It’s also 100 per cent cotton so you won’t have to worry about being too hot.

 

Get a great summer look for any occasion with our Brown Floral Print Maternity Maxi

 

• Easy and breezy for running errands, like Jessica

 

Jessica wore a beige cardigan with her maxi and accessorised it with a grey bag. You can get a similar look with our Sand Linen Waterfall Maxi Cardigan and Grey Storksak Olivia Satin Maternity Bag – all you need are some A-list sunglasses to go with them!

 

• Ready to party in comfort and style

 

Add an Ivory Silk Sequin Shawl to your maxi and some chunky gold or tribal-style jewellery and you’ll be ready to party, whatever the occasion this summer. Just sweep on some beautiful bronze makeup to reflect the warm colours in your dress for a real glow.

 

• Go more formal for special events – or a smart-casual office outfit

 

Seraphine’s Black Cropped Cardigan or Ivory Wrap Blazer with some Python Ballerina with Suede Bow shoes will instantly smarten up your maxi, proving that it is suitable as part of a formal outfit as well as for a trip to the park or beach.

 

GIVEAWAY! (NOW CLOSED) HOW TO WIN OUR BROWN PRINTED MAXI DRESS:

To enter like us on FB, share this competition with a friend & post your favourite Seraphine blog post in the comments below! Double your chances by following us on Twitter too 😉

 

Terms & Conditions:

• Competition opens: 20.06.13 & closes: 27.06.13
• Automated entries are not allowed and will be disqualified
• The winner will be drawn at random amongst the correct answers
• The prize may be subject to size availability

 

We spend so long in our winter woollies here in Britain that it’s a real treat when good weather arrives and we can finally cast off those extra layers. However, we speak to lots of women who assume that because they’re pregnant, they can’t get away with short dresses and skirts any more. It’s as though they feel that being an expectant mum comes with a set of rules about how much flesh to flash.

 

Well, we’re here to insist that it’s fine to be a little daring with your pregnancy style this summer – and what better part of your body to show off than your legs?

 

Your belly and chest can start to expand really rapidly after the start of the second trimester, but those pregnancy pins are likely to stay pretty much unaltered. In fact, they’ll probably appear even slimmer than usual in comparison, so you should definitely take this opportunity to show them off!

 

First, ensure they feel good

You can keep your legs toned with plenty of walking and swimming during pregnancy, but don’t forget to keep putting your feet up to reduce swelling around the ankles. Rubbing plenty of moisturiser in will help to keep your circulation flowing and reduce any dry skin too. Finally, ensure you start wearing supportive footwear as soon as possible, as this will reduce the strain on your calves and feet.

 

Look stylish in smart shorts

Maternity shorts don’t have to be casual. If you go for a city style in a dark-coloured cotton, you could even get away with wearing them to work alongside a blazer and blouse. However, they will look equally as good with a summery top for a day out with the girls. You’re sure to turn plenty of heads while still looking polished and elegant.

 

Get the look with Seraphine:

• Stone/Black City Shorts
• Black Cotton Poplin Shorts

 

Feel cool in denim shorts

Denim is always a winner for maternity fashion, but sometimes a full-length jean can be a little too hot on warm days. Denim shorts are the perfect compromise, as they allow you to keep wearing that failsafe fabric while also showing off plenty of leg. Go for a style with a stretchy band at the waist and they’ll see you through the whole nine months – just wear them with tights as we move out of summer and into autumn.

 

Get the look with Seraphine: 

• Blue Denim Mini Shorts

 

Feel flirty in a summery skirt

There are lots of different skirt lengths you can choose from during pregnancy, depending on your maternity style. A mini is perfect for a casual look, while a midi is ideal if you would prefer to cover your thighs. Don’t forget the sexy pencil either, which shows off a great lower body without being revealing at all.

 

Get the look with Seraphine:

• White/Blue Mini Denim Skirt
• Black Pencil Skirt

 

Feel understated yet sexy with skinny jeans 

Whether you’re feeling a little pasty-skinned or you simply prefer to keep your legs covered up, you can still look sexy rather than swamped in fabric this summer. How? Go for skinny maternity jeans that cling to every curve but are specially styled for comfort. They’re perfect with a T-shirt for rock chicks!

 

Get the look with Seraphine:

• Black Skinny Jeans
• Indigo Slim Fit Skinny Maternity Jeans
• Dark Wash Slim Leg Maternity Jeans

 

Which style will you choose as the weather hots up?

If you religiously watched TV programmes like Sex and the City or Desperate Housewives, you’d be forgiven for thinking that the only acceptable footwear for fashionistas features a sky-high heel. However, this mindset is increasingly being challenged by women who are fed up with tottering around with the balls of their feet burning like mad – and it’s great news for your maternity fashion options when it comes to special occasions.

 

We don’t know about you, but we’ve spotted lots of celebrities wearing flat shoes lately and they look no less glamorous than those who have donned Louboutins – in fact, we think they look even more chic.

 

The most recent and probably best case in point is Keira Knightley, who wore flat shoes for her wedding to James Righton in Provence last weekend. She donned a beautiful short Chanel gown from the spring/summer 2006 range, which was very similar to a Rodarte dress she sported pre-Baftas in 2008. It was accessorised simply with a band of flowers in her hair and a sweet bolero jacket, while her feet were kept comfortable and true to her usual style in a pair of nude ballet pumps. The outfit really suited the down-to-earth ceremony and intimate party afterwards and it just goes to show that you don’t have to be dressed up to the nines to look fabulous. Sienna Miller also recently wore flat red shoes for the red carpet of a film festival to great effect.

 

There is even more of a reason to make sure your shoes are supportive once you become pregnant though, aside from just the fashion side of things – it’ll save your body a lot of strain and pain. Heels cause the balance of the body to be disrupted and your weight to be thrown forwards, which affects the spine, knees, calves and ankles at a time when they’re already under pressure from the baby weight, while research from the US also recently found that your feet can grow between two and ten millimetres during pregnancy.

 

This will make cramming your feet into stilettos even more uncomfortable, so it’s important to choose pregnancy shoes that will look after your feet while also complementing your maternity wardrobe for special occasions – and fortunately, we can help you out here at Seraphine. We have designed our own range of maternity footwear specially made for pregnant women, ShoeTherapy, which features an array of elegant and fashionable flat styles that also have ergonomically engineered soles to stimulate circulation and correct posture. There is just a tiny heel to prevent fallen arches, back and joint pain, but you won’t notice it because it is moulded into the base of the shoe so there’s no wobbliness.

 

Better still, they will look just as good with your maternity dresses as any heel this summer. Try colour-blocking by wearing the red ballerina with a bow alongside our gorgeous purple peplum dress, or complement our bestselling blossom printed dress with a pair of python ballerinas with suede bows.

 

We think you’ll be reluctant to go back to heels once you’ve tried our ballet flats – and you’ll look just as great as Keira!

 

 

We love it when Cannes Film Festival time arrives, it’s always full of our favourite A-list celebrities is fabulous red carpet style, and great for maternity occasion wear inspiration.

The stars turned out in force to celebrate 2013’s biggest silver screen offerings and we spotted lots of fabulous outfits, as well as some definite trends for this year’s summer season.

Here’s a quick round up in case you missed any of them.

Very vintage

The forthcoming arrival of The Great Gatsby in cinemas has had a huge impact on fashion for 2013, with 1920s style beading and dropped waistlines appearing everywhere. At opening night of Cannes on Wednesday (May 15th), you couldn’t move for vintage inspired outfits and we’re already eager to emulate some of them.

Carey Mulligan dazzled in a flowing gown that was the palest possible shade of pink and set off her creamy complexion perfectly, while Freida Pinto carried on the theme the following evening in a gorgeous flapper inspired gold dress.

Even the rain didn’t put them all off taking to the red carpet for photos, although it was umbrellas at the ready to prevent the frocks and hairdos getting ruined!

•    Get the look: The Embellished Butterfly Sleeved Gown from Seraphine’s Luxe collection is pure Great Gatsby and is perfect for all your big events this season.

Marvellous monochrome

The screening of The Bling Ring took place last night (May 16th) and the celebrities had mirrored its glamour by opting for a mixture of black and white outfits, with Chanel and Dior in particular hitting the headlines.

Homegrown talent Emma Watson is one of the stars of the movie and she looked beautiful in a long gown with a black bodice that had just a few straps on the back and a complementary white skirt.

Indeed, almost all of her co stars were wearing black and white, so it lent a very prom like, formal feel to the proceedings.

•    Get the look: Our Two Tone Empire Line Cocktail Dress is perfect for emulating Emma and co with sexy sophistication.

Stand out favourites

Of course, there were lots of different looks outside these themes and we had some definite favourites after spotting them in photos. One was worn by Isla Fisher, who went for a beautiful scarlet dress covered in feathers all over the skirt.

Totally different was the lovely Cindy Crawford in a white gown that was almost bridal with a huge train that she had to scoop up in her arms to avoid the rain.

Among the monochrome crowd, we loved Taissa Farmiga’s beautiful dress, which was almost Edwardian with its fitted skirt and lacy top, while Zhang Ziyi stood out in a Carolina Herrera dress covered in a brush stroke style pattern.

However, if there was a top prize for style we would give it to Nicole Kidman, who shone on opening night in a midi length gown that had a full skirt and was overlaid with gorgeous embroidered pastel flowers.

•    Get the look: Our Silk Printed Maxi Dress is a dead ringer for Zhang Ziyi’s frock and we have lots of floral prints in stock if you loved Nicole Kidman’s country garden vibe. To copy Cindy Crawford in white, why not pick Seraphine’s Silk Halter Neck Wedding Gown? Nobody will know it’s bridal wear, especially if you accessorise it with plenty of gold jewellery like she did.

As you can see, our spring and summer collection is full of Cannes celebrity lookalike maternity dresses so although you may not have had the chance to get to Cannes this year, you can easily get the look with some savvy shopping!