I don’t know about you but I LOVE Christmas. A few clues? First of all, my name means Christmas! Natalie comes from the Latin word Natalis, and refers to the birthday of Christ, hence the Italian translation for Merry Christmas, Buon Natale. Secondly, I have four pivotal people in my life who are born on the 24th of December, including a couple of best friends and my ex-husband. I know, kind of freaky… Thirdly, I have Christmas lights inside the window frame of my living room all year round. What’s not to love about a soft, warm twinkle?
December is an extra-special month in our family. On the 6th we celebrate St Nicolas – we don’t have Santa Claus, we have a Saint who came from Spain or Turkey to deliver presents and oranges to the kids. And! My birthday is on the 29th and my sister’s is on the 31st of December so for us the whole month is just an overload of presents and celebrations. And we have always insisted to keep the dates separate. None of that package deal nonsense!
In short? December is PARTY time!! So I pulled out this little black outfit to set the mood. Now, what makes an outfit celebratory? Maybe some lace, some shimmer, some gold, some fringe? How about all of the above? Start with a little black dress. I bought this vintage fringe dress on Ebay a few years ago. It’s kind of Givenchy, no? I’m not entirely sure where I found the vintage fringe bag but I think it’s from Edith Machinist on Rivington Street. They have the best vintage accessories. It’s very hard to leave that place empty handed. The black satin coat is a vintage Martine Sitbon, who relaunched her brand as Rue du Mail a few years ago. The black suede wedges with ribbon ties are old Robert Clergerie. The sheer tights are Fogal, my favorite hosiery brand. And how cute are the lace mouse ears by Maison Michel? The Creative Director, Laetitia Crahay, is a fellow Belgian who also designs accessories at Chanel. J’adore!
I’ll be posting some fun party/dinner/December/winter outfits all month so watch this space!
Fantastic photos, brought to you by Mark Squires.
