New Year's Eve 2011

...and, this is too cute not to share.

Have a wonderful New Year's Eve! See you in 2012.

A holly, jolly Christmas.

This Christmas has been truly great; I've spent alot of time with mine and Joe's families, eaten way too much and had some much needed rest. I was spoilt rotten this Christmas - I finally received a beautiful milk glass cake stand from RE, which I been coveting forever, Balenciaga perfume, which came so beautifully packaged I didn't want to open it and a new 50mm lens for my Canon 450D (SO impressed with it).

To see in 2012, I will be playing hostess - having some friends round to my parents house to eat Nigella's Chocolate Guinness Cake amongst other things, drink hand-crafted cocktails and play board games. The last few New Year's Eves have either been spent abroad or in Newcastle, so it'll be a welcome change staying in. I'm more than ready to begin a new year - 2011 has been filled with a lot more lows than highs, so 2012 had better bring more good news than bad! What have you got planned for this New Year's Eve?

Fashion: Urban Outfitters opens in Newcastle upon Tyne

Courtesy of Urban Outfitters

It was well over a year ago when I first started hearing rumours that Urban Outfitters was to open in Newcastle upon Tyne and this month, that rumour finally became a reality.

Urban Outfitters Newcastle opened it's doors to the public on 9th December 2012 just in time to make the most of the Christmas retail boom.

Taking up residence in a former nook of Eldon Square, UO's Newcastle store boasts some impressive credentials: over 10,000 square feet of retail space across 3 floors, making it's one of their largest stores.

Courtesy of Urban Outfitters

Some of the fantastic women's brands being stocked by the UO Newcastle Store include:

TBA
Cheap Monday
Evil Twin
Mink Pink
Petit Bateau
Something Else
Vaudeville & Burlesque


Newcastle has long needed a directional and contemporary fashion and lifestyle store, and I can't count the amount of Geordies who've been rejoicing in the fact they no longer have to travel to Leeds or Manchester for their UO fix.

I headed down to the new store this week, so find out exactly what UO are offering to the stylish crowd of Newcastle.

The store is VAST, really a lot larger than I was expecting. Such a fantastic selection of womenswear, menswear, accessories, gifts, homeware and books. I saw about 20 pairs of shoes that I NEED including some gorgeous leopard print slipper loafers. I only had a limited amount of time to browse on this instance, so heading back to the store this weekend for a more in depth look.

And, finally, here is a sneaky look at a couple of the wondeful looks from UO's Spring/Summer 2012 collection - a big thank you goes out to UO's PR team who kindly supplied me with these images.

Courtesy of Urban Outfitters

All images © Alice Mary Barnes except where stated.

Christmas Time in the North

I am having the busiest few weeks at work in the run-up to Christmas, preparing for some big projects post-Christmas, so my blog is taking a back seat, which I am not too thrilled about! However, I have some exciting treats lined up over the next few weeks which I'll be sharing with you soon, including seeing The Puppini Sisters' live at The Sage, visiting the brand new Urban Outfitters store in Newcastle, shopping in Corbridge, Christmas festivities with friends, a trip to Yorkshire and finally, Champagne Christmas Afternoon tea with Katie and Paula.

Hope you're all having a lovely Advent period so far - I've been stuffing my face with sweet mince pies, red wine and mulled cider!

Image source: Pinterest