RAVE ABOUT REPUBLIC

My student loan is seeping out of my bank card faster and faster every day. I am a shopaholic. Sholpaholics need to shop which is why I am so happy to have, in the last year, discovered Republic. I have a massive obsession with evening wear, particularly dresses and Republic has some beautiful items for very reasonable prices. Republic was established in 1986 as a men’s denim only retailer trading from a single store in none other Leeds!It has developed over the years and now has 97 stores all over the UK. The brilliant thing about Republic is that it fills the needs of most styles from supporting surfer brands such as Soul Cal, Henley's and Fenchurch to more catwalk inspired brands like Miso and Jessica's Attic.

At the moment they have a brilliant collection of shoulder padded dresses, lace designs and sequined dresses and skirts.

THE DESIGNS HIT EVERY TREND

SEQUINS

Sequin Skirt. £19.99

Keep the look smart with a black or grey blazer and simple vest top-let the skirt do the showing off!

Mix textures, volume and sequins with this cross back dress:

Two tone sequin dress. £34.99

Add some colour to your wardobe with this striking, electric blue top. Team with black jeans to bounce off the brilliant blue.

Miso draped vest top. £29.99

FLORAL

I bought this dress the other day-the bold, feminine pattern attracted me.

Miso photo floral top. £16.99

THE VERY USEFUL BLAZER

!I have two blazers, one grey and one black and they are without a doubt the most useful, staple item in my wardrobe. You can throw them on top of any item make an outfit smart and sophisticated. You can wear them in the day with jeans or over a dress like the floral one above or at night over an embellished, decorative dress or skirt. THIS IS A MUST HAVE ITEM! It will remain timeless I promise!

Miso Jersey Blazer. £29.99

STRIPES

The nautical look will never go completely out of fashion. Stripes make appearances and reappearnces in shop windows year after year. They look great the summer The key thing is to not go stripe crazy-the aim is not to look like a captain of the seas but rather the captains elegant sailor. Keep it simple but bold. Stripes look great with plain, blocked coloured items like a white t-shirt and jeans. Never wear stripes with cowboy boots-things start to get much more complicated if you do!

Miso striped waterfall top. £19.99

and finally

THE CROPPED TOP

Crafted crop top. £19.99

Something I am yet to have invested in but will definitely be purchasing soon in a cropped top mainly for the reason that they are incredibly versatile. Wear on its own with jeans or a high waisted skirt or shorts otherwise, wear over a simple vest top and create a layered look. The fantastic feature about this one is its cut-out effect which gives it an interesting, feminine edge.

Visit www.republic.co.uk to look at more items.

Emma