Eyes on the Prize: Little Mistress and Alphabet Bags

Luck was certainly a lady to me last week, when I was very fortunate to win a competition on Twitter, being run by new clothing brand Little Mistress and Alphabet Bags to win some summer goodies.

I know a lot of people say ‘I never win stuff!’ but I genuinely never do, so I was delighted when my rather boring Monday morning was brightened up with the news.
For the prize, I got to select any dress I liked from the Little Mistress site and a large tote, a wash bag and a make-up bag from the Alphabet bags site, which is a really lovely thing to win. Here’s what I chose…

Little Mistress ‘Leah’ dress -  £58.00

Being a regular reader of Look magazine, they recently ran a feature on Little Mistress, so I discovered the site then and went and drooled over all the gorgeous dresses. What I like most about their designs is they’re very elegant, the kind of thing that would be perfect for a day at the races, as a wedding guest or going out for a nice dinner and drinks.

They also have a great selection of embellished maxi dresses and skater styles, plus on-trend separates. On my first visit to the site, I fell in love with the ‘Leah’ dress, so when I found out I’d won, it had to be that one, although it was hard to choose from all the pretty designs.

The dress has a navy blue shell top half that drapes really nicely, and goes into a cream lace pencil midi skirt that’s long enough to be elegant and lady like. The waist is highlighted with a gathered band of bright cherry red - it’s so pretty. Equally, you could wear a belt with it to give it another twist – a thick tan one would look great for more casual occasions, or a jewelled one paired with an ornate necklace to give it evening sparkle. The dress is incredibly well made and tailored to be a lovely, flattering fit. The other great thing about this is that its smart enough to wear to work function as well – I love it when my wardrobe does double duty!

I’m planning to wear this for a meal at a restaurant and jazz club this month, so look out for an OOTD soon.

Alphabet Bags ‘Take Me With You’ Canvas Tote - £20.00

Everyone needs that perfect easy canvas tote for summer. Whether its popping to the beach, a day out with your family, going to the gym, a nice picnic -  they’re so handy.

These totes are a really big size so you can fit the kitchen sink in – perfect for people like me that don’t know the meaning of packing light!

What I like best about this is that its so sturdy – it stands upright on its own and has a firm base, unlike other similar bags I own. It also has an internal pocket so you can keep your wallet/phone/keys to hand and they don’t get lost in the depths when you’ve filled it up.

It also has nice long, wide straps, which means its comfortable to tote around with you. The bag comes printed either with a monogrammed letter or a cute phrase – stuff like ‘I’ve got 99 problems but a beach ain’t one’, which made me chuckle! I went for this cute ‘Take Me With You’ design with an arrow graphic.

Alphabet Bags ‘You Look Lovely Today’ Pouch - £18.00

I also got this large pouch, which is great for storing essentials inside a bigger bag, using for toiletries when you go away or even as a casual clutch bag. This has a nice study zip and again, is really well made. I just loved the cute little phrase on the front –  it would definitely put a smile on your face in the mornings when you reached for it.

Slogan clutches are so hot right now as well – I’ve been eyeing up the Zara ones for a while! This will spice up any outfit and is a bit of a conversation starter.

Alphabet Bags Sweetheart Makeup Bag - £18.00

Finally, this gorgeous little make-up bag completed my prize. It’s made of a smart laminated cotton fabric, and who could resist the very sweet heart print all over it? You can also get them with letters to match your initial if you like, but this print just melted me! This is a good size to use as your day make-up bag and pop in your  handbag.

The quality of all these items is lovely – I’ve spotted them before on notonthehighstreet.com, where I buy a lot of my gifts, and loved the quirky prints. The company is run by a young husband and wife team in their twenties, and they obviously have an eye for cute, quirky homeware.

I’m really delighted with my prize and will be so well kitted out for travelling and holidays now, in my lovely new dress. Thank you to Little Mistress and Alphabet Bags -  its been great to try your stuff, I will be back!