This is the first year we’ve been prepared for Mother’s Day and not forced to buy a quick bunch of flowers and bottle of bubbly. With the launch of Beautiful Day, we’ve pretty much had Mother’s Day all wrapped up.

For just £49 you can choose three indulgences to create a special pampering day for your mom, including an appointment at a top city centre hair salon, professional make-up session, and manicure. There are also options for a champagne indulgence at House of Fraser, or Afternoon Tea or Personal Shopping at Harvey Nichols.

As well as the fantastic Beautiful Day, here are some other quick-fix solutions to your Mother’s Day gift needs.

Stunning zebra print clutch, £18 from Wallis

Mitchell & Peach Body Cream, £36 at Harvey Nichols

Fantastic K by Beverley Knight cosmetics, available from Selfridges. Get your hands on a Free Professional Brush Set worth £25* when you purchase any two products from the K by Beverley Knight cosmetics range.

A scrumptious box of 125 to-die-for chocolates, £80 from Hotel Chocolat at Bullring

Juicy Jewellery stand with necklace, £75 from Harvey Nichols

Molton Brown’s new Sleep – cedrus room aroma rocks, £30 from Molton Brown at Bullring

Gorgeous Clare bag, £225 from LK Bennett at Pavilions. They are also running a special Mother’s Day promotion, get this ‘Love My Bag’ care kit free with all bags over £180.

Have a lovely day, and remember to treat your mom like a queen!

This week, Birmingham Royal Ballet kicked off its celebration of two decades of success in the city with the 20th Anniversary Gala performance at the Birmingham Hippodrome. The amazing performance was attended by HRH The Prince of Wales, President of the Birmingham Royal Ballet. To continue celebrating their anniversary, BRB will host an array of performances at Birmingham Hippodrome, the Company’s home theatre.

BRB has undoubtedly had a profound effect on Birmingham’s culture so here at Style Birmingham we’ve decided to celebrate its effect on fashion.

Fashion-conscious women across the world have embraced ballet fashion in recent years wearing an assortment of leggings, wraps and of course ballet flats. Not content with simply inspiring fashion trends, Ballet also got more stylish when New York’s hottest fashion designers Narciso Rodriguez and Isabel Toledo created the sumptuous costumes for Sadler’s Wells resident guest company, Morphoses/The Wheeldon Company in 2008. In recent months style icons Kate Moss and Emily Blunt have also announced that they are enjoying ballet lessons in preparation for upcoming film roles.

As with BRB, this dance-inspired fashion trend is continuing to prove hugely popular, with several pieces appearing in designer’s 2010 Spring/Summer collections. D&G recently brought ballet flats to the catwalk and Elle Magazine ran a feature last month on the new, embellished style.

Furthermore if you really want to indulge your inner ballerina and feel like Birmingham’s answer to Carrie Bradshaw check out the gorgeous black and pink ballerina skirt available from Lipsy at Selfridges.

For more ballet style head to Bullring, proud sponsors of the Royal Ballet’s 20 years celebration, where you can find this adorable one shoulder feather dress available from Oasis.

Looking for the perfect weekend break? Why not try Birmingham’s premier shopping destination.

With a range of exclusive eateries, luxury stores stocking the latest men’s and women’s fashions, as well as a fantastic selection of café bars, The Mailbox is the perfect place for a romantic trip or even a girly getaway.

Right now, The Mailbox and Malmaison are offering one lucky person the chance to win a meal at The Mal Brasserie and a luxury night’s accommodation at the hotel for two people with breakfast included.

Oozing charisma and style, Malmaison is renowned for its luxury and premium service. Serving divinely tasty cuisine using local produce in beautifully designed surroundings, The Mal Brasserie offers a truly unique dining experience.

- You have until 12pm on 30 April 2010 to enter -

Clements & Church is one of Birmingham’s most stylish independent stores in the heart of the financial quarter. Specialising in high quality tailoring along with crisp shirts, bold scarves and striking ties, this store caters for even the most fastidious dresser.

While a bespoke suit looks smart and slick, it is the choice of accessories and additional touches that really make an outfit stand out. Clements & Church pay attention to the finest details from hand-finished enamel cufflinks to cashmere and silk scarves.

Its new spring/summer range includes a Leather goods collection of hand-stitched wallets, flasks, card cases, key fobs and key holders along with a selection of ‘Poole’ scarves; cashmere and silk scarves available in a series of bold designs.

The brand has also collaborated with Liberty of London to launch iconic printed shirts in floral, paisley and striped designs.

Clements & Church is offering one lucky Style reader a selection of accessories from their new range including a wallet, cufflinks and scarf, up to the value of £500!

- You have until 12pm on 30 April 2010 to enter -

We all love a bit of vintage so where better to get the real deal than Antiques for Everyone, which is coming to the NEC from 8-11 April.

Home to more than 350 specialist dealers from across the country and offering something for every taste and price range, it’s the perfect place to go for some authentic items. With objects totalling more than £20million on display, you can browse fine period furniture, pottery, glass, sculpture, jewellery, fashion, and arts and crafts… all of which are vetted for authenticity by a team of experts before the fair opens.

Stylebirmingham.com has teamed up with the antique experts to offer a special 2-4-1 on tickets. Tickets cost £10 in advance or £12 on the day and include free parking at NEC.

To book, call 0844 581 0827 and quote ‘AFESpring’ to get the special Style Birmingham offer.

For more information visit: www.antiquesforeveryone.co.uk

The Mailbox has become a haven of creative art of late, and next week Castle Galleries will host a hotly anticipated appearance from contemporary artist Drew Darcy.

On Saturday 20 March, Darcy will be in the gallery to showcase his hugely popular collection of limited edition and original artwork, from 1-4pm. Drawing inspiration from the fashion world, Darcy creates exciting and provocative imagery fit for any fashionistas wall.

It also seems that fashion is in his blood: “My grandfather was from five generations of tailors and trained in Saville Row to become a bespoke tailor. On my father’s side, my grandfather was an industrial designer and skilled draughtsman. Thus the fabric of the artist was woven,” he said, when we caught up with him to talk about the show.

So, take some time out of your shopping trip next week and pop into Castle Galleries to meet the man behind these fantastic images.

Castle Galleries
25 Wharfside Street
The Mailbox
Birmingham
0121 633 0015

http://www.CastleGalleries.com

Last week saw the star-studded Harvey Nichols Spring/Summer fashion show, and whilst we reported back on the latest trends, we still thought you’d like to hear from the woman behind the styling of the show. Here, Dawn Williams, Personal Shopping Manager at Harvey Nichols, discusses the key trends for this season.

This season will see a real emphasis on prints; more technical and digital in style than past seasons. Eye catching colour for the summer season combined with striking prints appeals to a new generation of designers more used to working with computer graphics. Upcoming designers such as Peter Pilotto and Mary Katrantzou have produced some of the most attention grabbing pieces, while McQueen has featured prints inspired by engineering and technology also introducing these prints to his MCQ diffusion line. Diane Von Furstenberg who always produces beautiful print-work has introduced strong vibrant colours to her collection this season with hot pinks being the main focal point. Cavalli is the main proponent for printing we featured his gorgeous chiffon maxi dress in a myriad of colours on our SS10 runway. This is one trend not for shrinking violets.

Denim will be a real feature of most collections, especially clashing denim on tops and bottoms. D&G has really gone for this trend and it forms the basis for their current Ad campaign. This is not a subtle look; denim this season should be head to toe, lighter washes were the most popular on the catwalks with mixed textures of patchwork, ripped and frayed jeans and matching shirts. Designers such as Ralph Lauren, See by Chloe and Jeremy Scott all featured head to toe denim looks. On our SS10 catwalk we had whitewashed Juicy denim in a head to toe look as well showcasing silver denims from Sass and Bide and denim dresses by Paul Smith and Armani Jeans.

Lingerie as outerwear will also feature heavily with lace being a strong feature. Stella McCartney is one of the main users of this delicate fabric featuring it throughout her collection. Underwear as outerwear has inspired some of the prettiest and most delicate designs this season; luxurious fabrics and a body-con influence feature on bustiers, suspender belts, pants, sheer layers and bra tops. This trend features even in the smallest detail – e.g. lace edges on knitwear and dresses or layers of chiffon or tulle. Designers such as Dolce & Gabbana, Christopher Kane, Antonio Berardi and Marc Jacobs have all embraced this trend. This trend can be as dramatic or as subtle as you like; we showed lace bows on LBD’s and emerald green babydolls from D&G and nude chiffons and silk at Hoss Intropia.

Tribal is the new twist on Safari this season with a distinctively urban feel, divided into two camps – utilitarian pieces and khakis as seen on the catwalks at Gucci, Sportmax and Sass and Bide, and more striking tribal and animal prints seen at Dolce & Gabanna, Alice (Temperley) and Cavalli. Both lend themselves to the summer season, the fabrics being tough and durable yet tailored and feminine.

Candy Girl colors dominated most of the spring summer catwalk shows, a return to femininity and girly-ness, candy ice cream colours and pastels – baby blues and pinks, lemon sherbet, spearmint and lilac, sugary shades on the softest fabrics, wispy and sheer on chiffon, feathers and delicate embellishment. These pretty palettes are made high fashion by strong cuts and lines, thigh high skirts and splits but still very much a return to innocence – Lolita style. Sonia Rykiel, Alice and See by Chloe showcased some of the strongest looks. Our SS10 fashion show demonstrated how wearable this trend can be, pairing D&G floral chiffon blouses with candy colored boucle jackets.

My final strong trend for this season has to be draping. Fluid jersey continues to be the fabric du jour with the standout brand this season being Halston Heritage; featured in the upcoming Sex and the City sequel, this line from the famous Halston fashion house takes inspiration from its archives in the 70s and showcases gorgeous jersey silks in simple designs. New to Harvey Nichols this season, these will be some of the most sought after pieces for spring/summer with Sarah Jessica Parker pioneering the brand. Elizabeth and James, Donna Karan and Black Halo were all seen on the Harvey Nichols catwalk thoroughly embracing this luxe trend.

That’s my round-up of some of this season’s key trends. There are plenty more out there so get browsing and give yourself the ultimate Spring Summer wardrobe.

This Sunday will see us all painting the town green, as Digbeth hosts the infamous St Patrick’s Day Parade.

To celebrate the Irish holiday, Bullring’s Build-A-Bear Workshop has launched two special bears so you can take a slice of the Irish charm home.

Beary O’Lucky Teddy with boy outfit – £28

Beary O’Lucky Teddy with girl outfit – £25

Happy St Patrick’s Day!

This weekend, we caught up with TV Stylist and Dancing on Ice judge Jason Gardiner to get his top tips for Spring fashion.

How are you enjoying being the new style guru on This Morning?
It has been one of the best experiences of my career. I have an amazing team working with me and the best thing about it is doing the viewer makeovers on Raid the Rails.

Have you enjoyed working more closely with Phillip and Holly?
Phillip, Holly and I have worked together for quite a few years now doing Dancing on Ice, so to be on board with them twice a week on This Morning is brilliant fun. It’s really like a big family environment where we rib each other but ultimately enjoy working together.

How did your passion for fashion begin?
I think it was intrinsic from an early age. My mum always asked my advice about her clothes and I remember always styling her and my aunts for special occasions. As a performer I’ve always loved dressing up in costumes for the numerous shows I’ve been cast in, and as a choreographer I’ve had to work closely with big names in deciding their look and the looks for their dancers.

How would you describe your own style?
Structured tailoring with layering and inventive accessories. Sometimes you have to be daring to be original.

What single item of clothing do you wear the most?
Honestly, I’m not one to always favour one item of clothing. I dress for how I feel day to day, except if it’s work related, then I’m planned. I think people tend to get stuck in fashion ruts if they only wear the same clothes. Variety is the spice of life!

What do you think will be the hottest new trends this season?
Techno Prints, utility chic, lace, shorts and sophisticated sportswear. Also corsetry and underwear inspired garments, kitten heels and sandals.

What will be the key colours to look out for this spring/summer?
Nudes, biscuits, sandstone, blushes, sherbets and sorbet colours. Scarlets, monochromes, muted grays and khakis will be big too.

What one thing should all the girls add to their wardrobe this spring? And the guys?
For the ladies a lightweight mac and a selection of great belts.  For the gents a good selection of waistcoats.

If you could give one fashion tip for how we can all look our best, what would it be?
For ladies, it would be not to be too obsessed with sizing on garments. Too often I see women squeezing themselves into clothes that are ill-fitting purely because their pride won’t allow them to go up in size so that the fit is correct. The sizing changes dramatically from brand to brand and store to store, so buy clothes that fit rather than because of their often incorrect sizes. Also, invest in good support underwear for a smooth silhouette.

Do you have a favourite designer and who do you think gets it right on the high-street?
I love the sharpness of Tom Ford, the voluptuousness of Westwood, the originality of Galiano, the genius of McQueen. Top Shop, Zara, Designers at Debenhams all seem to be doing great collaborations with top designers like Ben deLisi, Sonya Rykiel, Stella McCartney, Matthew Williamson, Julien McDonald.

Which celebrity’s style do you admire at the minute?
Helen Mirran looks amazing for her age and is inspirational for this age group. Kate Moss still turns it out and is the quintessential yummy mummy. Brand Beckham always look stunning and Anna Friel mixes designer and high street brilliantly. And Mark Ronson always works a cool for school look.

Last week we finally saw the start of some warmer weather; well, it wasn’t snowing at least; which has sent us all into a wardrobe frenzy. After the Harvey Nichols Fashion Show we were desperate to get shopping and start wearing the latest looks for spring, and the latest spring collection from ALLSAINTS has made us even worse.

The recently opened Mailbox store has revealed its key staples for the warmer weather.

Easy-to-wear block colour items, pretty ruching and belt detailing mean you can keep accessorising to a minimum.

As seen on the catwalk, the new look rocking the runway is the cowgirl look. So saddle up and add these to your Western wishlist.

Move over UGG, there’s a bigger, better boot in town. These Suede Damisi boots are perfect for updating your look, and for protecting your tootsies during the inevitable British rain.

So, take some time out this week and warm yourself up with a trip to ALLSAINTS.

Not that we need an excuse, but now we can justify another trip to the shops.

Aspecto, in Pavilions, is offering a special 10% discount when you sign up to their loyalty card scheme. Not only will you get insider knowledge, discounts and exclusive invites, but for every pound you spend in store, you get one point, which build towards money-off vouchers.

Take a look at the latest spring fashion in-store now, from brands including Barbour, Ugg Australia, Luke 1977, Money, Evisu, Original Penguin, G Star, Humor, Jeffrey West, Stussy, and Y3 Footwear.

Any excuse for a spot of retail therapy.

You may have noticed us getting excited about the start of spring… the perfect excuse for a new wardrobe. But the reality is that the cold snap isn’t quite over and the snow could make an unwelcomed return at any time.

So, whilst we’re sending you to Bullring to create a new Spring/Summer wardrobe during your lunch break, we’re also helping you warm up with this competition.

We’ve teamed up with Bullring and Urban Pie to offer you and your workmates a free lunch. The lucky city centre winner will be a pie, side and drink for ten people, to eat in the Bullring restaurant or to take back to the office.

Urban Pie prides itself on using only the highest quality ingredients to create pies that are freshly baked throughout the day, and last month they launched two new delicious pies – Cottage Pie and Chicken & Mushroom Pie – to add to the already vast offering.

Enter now for your chance to win – you have until 31 March 2010.

Terms & Conditions
-    All entrants must be 18 or over
-    One winner will win lunch for 10 people at Urban Pie
-    Lunch consists of one pie, one side and one drink per person