NVC Christmas Calendar 5: Christmas Photoshoot

Hello, my lords and ladies!

For the final post in Christmas Calendar series, I want to show you some Christmass-y pictures. We made this photoshoot for the Christmas cards, and though only two pictures made it into actual postcards, the rest of the pictures are quite nice too. The photography and retouching is by Sanni, and the models are me, Kata and Mimi. We also had two assistants for makeup and hair -  a big thank you for them also for making this photoshoot possible! :}

All the pictures are © Sanni S. 2013 - please do NOT use them or repost them without her permission.

♥ Happy Christmas to all of New Vogue Children's lovely readers! ♥

P.S. Now that the Christmas Calendar series ir complete, I would like to hear your thoughts on it. Did you like it? Or do you have some constructive feedback to give? Share it in the comments!

NVC Christmas Calendar 4: Inspiration

Hello, lords and ladies!

For the fourth Christmas Calendar post, I decided to find some inspirational pictures to help you get in a Christmas (or Yule, or whatever it is you will celebrate) mood. At least here in Helsinki it's just rainy and dark, so some inspiration is in order. I hope that where ever you are, my dear readers, there will be some snow for Christmas! ♥

P.S. Pay attention to that nail polish tuto and those ginger bread cookies that look like adorable chubby reindeers - I chose to post them because they are so wonderfully easy to make! I'm very lazy when it comes to nails and  I don't even like baking that much, so this kind of simple solutions really appeal to me. :D

NVC Christmas Calendar 3: Hair Tutorial (+ Announcing The Giveaway Winner)

Hello, lords and ladies!

I've been asked many times for some hair tutorials - so here's one, finally! This hairdo is quite easy to make (though it does require some practising to perfect it). It is also very versatile; by changing the size of the hair bun and the hair accessories you wear, you can make it fit lolita, vintage-inspired styles, or just ordinary fashion. You can make it casual or festive, just according to your wishes. As it is Christmas time, you can of course wear this to Christmas parties of all sorts! ;D

I hope you find this tutorial useful - and good luck, everyone, if you try to do this hairdo!

1. You will need:
♥ Lots of poppy pins (20-50 pins, depending on how much you have hair)
♥ Flowers, feathers etc. to decorate the hairdo
♥ 3 bigger hairbands
♥ 2 extra hairbands (to be used during the making process only)
♥ Hairspray and hairbrush, obviously.

2. Brush your hair, if necessary.  Part small sections of hair from the front. Tie with hairbands, so they don't get in the way.

3. Part the remaining hair in three sections and tie with the hairbands. At this point it doesn't matter if they are slightly uneven.

4. Wrap each section of hair around your hand as many times as it goes.

5. Pin each of the three sections with a poppy pin. It still doesn't matter if it's uneven, we will fix that later.

6. Take the hairbands away from the two front sections of the hair.  Twist the section with your fingers, and loosen it a little bit near your face. You can also make the front sections into loose braids, if you wish.

7. Pin the two front sections of the hair to the back of your head with rose corsages (or some other hair accessories you wish to use).

8. Start working with the rest of the hair. Always stick the poppy pins  upwards, hiding them carefully under the rose corsages and locks of hair. Continue to apply poppy pins until you reach the desired shape. This is the point where you want to try and make your hairdo as balanced as possible; here you will correct the earlier unevenness. Remember to apply some hairspray to secure the hairdo, but don't spray too close - at arms length is a good distance.

9. And voilà, you are ready!

All the pictures are taken by Sanni. (Thank you very much for your help, dear!)

Also, the giveaway from previous week closes now. My boyfriend acted as the unbiased assistant and chose the winner randomly:

So the winner is Natsu! Congratulations for the winner, and thank you for everyone who partivipated! Natsu, I will contact you via e-mail. :)

NVC Christmas Calendar 2: Giveaway Time!

Hello, my lords and ladies!

This time I have a special treat for you: a Christmas Giveaway!

The prize includes two lolita themed Christmas cards printed on a good quality carboard (Munken Lynx 400g/m²), so you can post them even without an envelope (if you don't want to keep them yourself, that is). The models for the cards are Yours Truly and our lovely Kata, and the photography is by our talented Sanni. The prize also includes Metamorphose Temps de Fille ribbons in pink.

How to enter the giveaway:

♥ You must be a public reader or New Vogue Children.
♥ Leave a comment saying that you wish to participate. You must post a link to this giveaway in your blog, Tumblr, Twitter or something like that. Leave a link to your post on your comment. Don't forget to leave your e-mail address so I can contact you, should you happen to win!
♥ For +1 vote: for extra votes, you can post the link to this giveaway in more than one place. Every extra place equals one extra vote. Leave links to those on your comment also. (For example, if you post the link to this giveaway in your blog and in your Tumblr, you will have two votes in the giveaway.)
♥ The winner will be chosen at random.
♥ The giveaway will close the 14th December.
♥ The winner will be announced on the next Christmas Calendar post (the 15th December).
♥ Good luck, everyone!

NVC Christmas Calendar 1: Ideas for Presents

Hello, lords and ladies!

This year I want to try something new in my blog, though the idea itself is old and borrowed from our old Cortile de Roses blog (may it rest in peace).

So ladies and gentlemen, I present you: New Vogue Children's Christmas Calendar! There will be five Christmas Calendar posts in total: one for each Advent Sunday, and one for Christmas Eve (which we celebrate on the 24th December here in Finland). All of the posts will be more or less Christmas related. I hope you will enjoy them!

The subject for the first Christmas Calendar post is to give some ideas for presents.  Now is the perfect time to start thinking about those - isn't it simply horrible to try to find great presents in a hurry and during the worst rush time? At least I hate that, but still, too often that is the situation I find myself in. So, on to the ideas!

Idea #1: Give Your Time

 Instead of a material present, why don't you try giving the most precious thing during these hectic times we live: your time? Could there be any better gift for the one you love, or for your very best friend, or for your dearest family member? Here are just some ideas: a gift card for a spa, theatre, or movies for you two, or you could take your special person to your favorit teashop, café or restaurant, or if you know s/he is considering about starting to exercise (New Year's Resolutions, anyone?), offer yourself as a company and support. And what's best, by giving your time you and your special person will get wonderful memories that will last forever. Besides that, you don't have to wrap this gift up, or buy anything for it (besides the gift card), so this option produces less waste, too!

Idea #2: Do It Yourself

The best thing about self made gifts is that you know the person who gave it thought you while doing it, and put so much effort into your present. At least I love hand made presents just for that! The second best thing is that by doing it yourself, you can give and get something that's absolutely unique, designed just for you. There are endless opportunities for DIY, and not all of them are complicated. For example bracelets, necklaces, ancklets and earrings are fairly easy to make, and you can find tons of cute supplies for a reasonable price in places like Etsy. Of course, if you are lucky enough to be able to sew, that gives you even more chances to do awesome gifts. And even if you are not that handy, you could always try to make at least Christmas cards yourself. But if you feel even that is beoynd your limits, you can still give something hand made - by somebody else.

Idea #3: When Quality Counts

If you simply have no time to give, or think that your special person would not quite like something handmade by you or anyone else, that leaves you no other option but to purchase something ready made from a store. If that is the case, try to find them something that is as high quality as possible. This doesn't mean your gift has to be too expensive: for example, you can get good quality perfumes for a reasonable price in shops like Yves Rocher and  The Bodyshop. Here are some more ideas: quality makeup and/or makeup brushes, skincare products, tea or coffee, dishes, home decor things, jewelry made of real silver or even gold, or a box of delicious Belgian chocolate. If you don't know what to give, a gift card is of course a good option with more materialistic gifts also.

So, that was it. Feel free to share your best Christmas present tips on the comments!