Liberty’s early support of Michael Van Der Ham continues with a selection of his knitted lurex dresses in autumnal shades and draped Grecian velvet dresses.

For the first time, Liberty is stocking pieces from Lulu & Co, including this stunning Louise Gray for Lulu & Co. sky blue tunic dress.  Liberty continues to be the ‘go to’ store for Antipodium, Richard Nicoll, Christopher Kane and Carven (look out for the most adorable navy duffel coat).

One of the most exciting new arrivals is the new collection of geometric satchel bags by French designer Florian Denicourt.

Based on rue Charlot in le Marais, Florian Denicourt (formerly a designer at Vanessa Bruno) is known for his beautifully-crafted androgynous leather accessories, all made in France.

Pauric Sweeney’s Autumn/Winter 2011 collection will be available in store and he has designed an exclusive range of embossed leather bags for Liberty, which bear a resemblance to the iconic Ianthe print.

Desirable bags for the new season come courtesy of Jérôme Dreyfuss, newly-stocked brand WYRED and Alexander Wang (how about those metal-hinged messenger bags!).

Liberty prints feature highly on the agenda with limited edition Liberty print Barbour jackets, seasonal scarf designs and a brand new selection of Liberty Knot Watches.

Autumn/Winter accessories include Jennifer Behr crystal braided headbands, Simeon Farrar screen-printed scarves and crystal-encrusted sunglasses by A.Morir Keren.Rose.

Dominic Jones, Elke Kramer and ACB by Annie Costello Brown make their debut at the jewellery hall alongside new collections from Eddie Borgo, Lucy Hutchings and Iosselliani.

For more information and to buy online, visit: www.liberty.co.uk

All photos by Chérie City

Throughout the sale, there will be samples from Christopher Kane, Raf Simons, Yves Saint Laurent, Givenchy, Margiela, Lanvin Mens, Sacai, Undercover and many more.  As the deliveries arrive, Dover Street Market will be adding new items to the sale over the three days, so there’s no pressure to get up and queue at 5am on your day off.

Also present will be selected food stallholders from London’s weekend markets providing coffees, juices, bacon sandwiches, pastries, cupcakes, salads and ice creams for some much needed energy and shopping clarity.  I’ve already spotted that cupcake company, Crumbs & Doilies will be there serving up mountains of mini cupcakes and if you were sent a voucher by email, you can grab a dozen box of mini cupcakes for just £7.

Dover Street Market in Mayfair is like a fashion wonderland in which I could quite easily spend the afternoon away (especially over tea and cake at Rose Bakery), and is an exemplary of what the perfect concept store should be.  The samples sales are legendary and are guaranteed to be busy, but it’s well worth a look.

Finally, some wise words on the act of shopping from Fashion East’s Lulu Kennedy – don’t bother carrying a handbag, just bring your credit card and a compact mirror in your back pocket – so simple yet genius.

Dates:

Saturday 1 May – Monday 3 May
10.00am to 7.00pm

Location:

The Old Depot
1-3 Wenlock Road
London N1 7SL

Nearest Tube Stations: Angel and Old Street.

London’s gone mad as a hatter for Alice with afternoon teas, jewellery, make-up and treats inspired by her adventures. Everyday is like a Mad Hatter’s tea party at Ladurée (although a much more civilised one), so it’s fitting that the divine temple of macaroons would create a limited edition Alice box.

The gorgeous music box is covered with illustrations from Alice in Wonderland and Ladurée’s signature cakes and in packed with 12 green apple macaroons (Ladurée’s new Spring flavour).

The Ladurée tea salon at Printemps in Paris has been turned into an ephemeral Wonderland, with giant tea pots and long communal tables, so you can have your own Parisian Mad Hatter’s Tea Party!  Printemps have also installed their own Alice-inspired creations by designers such as Haider Ackermann, Manish Arora, Chloé, Ann Demeulemeester, Christopher Kane, Nicholas Kirkwood, Maison Martin Margiela, Bernhard Willhelm, and the late Alexander McQueen.

The limited edition Alice macaroon box is available until 18 March at all Ladurée stores.

If you’re after more of an English Eccentric kind of tea, The Sanderson invite you to fall down the rabbit hole for a Mad Hatter’s tea party.  The afternoon tea consists of rainbow-coloured sandwiches, Heston Blumenthal-style molecular cakes and some very traditional scones with clotted cream and jam.

Curious desserts include a Queen of Hearts teacake, which melts in the mouth when you bite through the white chocolate and strawberry shell; a hazelnut and passion fruit tart topped with the White Rabbit’s pocket watch; a chocolate crackle cupcake; pineapple lollipops that turn your mouth from cold to hot and mint chocolate chip ice cream lollipops that explode with a single bite.

The tea is served in the hotel’s Courtyard Garden and is presented on the prettiest vintage tea set by ClaraBows.

The Mad Hatter’s afternoon tea at The Sanderson is available daily from 2.30pm – 5.30pm throughout March 2010.  The standard tea costs £20.00 per person, and is also available with a glass of Veuve Cliquot Champagne for £26.00. To make a reservation, call 0207 300 1444

Selfridges have also given their appropriately named Wonder Room an Alice make-over.  They are displaying costumes from the film, including Johnny Depp’s Mad Hatter suit and hat (sadly, that’s as far as most of us will get to him).

Stella McCartney, Tom Binns and Anna Lou of London have teamed up with Disney Couture to produce a range of Alice in Wonderland jewellery, all available at Selfridges.  Expect a multitude of charms such as playing cards, pocket watches, broken hearts, white rabbits and tea pots.

Make-up junkies will find it hard to resist the Alice in Wonderland Book of Shadows by Urban Decay, OPI’s collection of Alice glittery nail polishes and Paul & Joe’s adorable Disney range.

Warning: As lovely as these Alice-inspired events and goodies are, don’t get too distracted and forget to go and see the film!

TOPSHOP are continuing the democratic trend with a flurry of amazing events at their Oxford Circus flagship store from 19-23 February.  Whether you’re doing the rounds at Somerset House or glued to SHOWstudio, you can stop by TOPSHOP to get  nail art done by the coolest nail techs in town, demolish some cupcakes and get insider tips on how to create a hit fashion blog.  They also will be streaming the shows that they support as part of New Gen, straight from the catwalk.

Dalston-based WAH Nails are setting up a pop-up concept salon, where the technicians will be recreating looks from the catwalk or anything you could possibly dream of, they really are THAT good.

With a huge presence of bloggers gracing the London Fashion Week shows (your truly included), TOPSHOP have invited some of the luminaries of the blogosphere to share advice on how to create and maintain a must-read blog.  Leading the workshops will be Oh Elle, Coco’s Tea Party and one of my fave bloggers, Disneyrollergirl.

But even with all the fashion madness going on, we still need sugary treats to keep us going.  I reckon even weary and famished fashion editors won’t be able to resist a ‘couture cupcake’ from pop-up store, Ella’s Bakehouse (founded by supermodel-turned-baking goddess Lorraine Pascale).

During London Fashion Week, it’s all about new creations, so it’s easy to forget about the joys of vintage garments.  Vintage experts Claire Nicholls and V&A curator, author and fashion historial Judith Watt will be showcasing a hand picked collection of vintage pieces by icon designers such as Jeanne Lanvin, Chanel, Ossie Clark, Azzedine Alaïa and Balenciaga.

Together they form The Vintage Acadème, specialising in sourcing the very best twentieth-century women’s fashion and haute couture. Clare and Judith will be on hand to give advice on the history of the garments and their designers. You’ll be able to try on some of the pieces – with tips from a TOPSHOP Style Advisor – and some items will even be for sale.

The Fashion Wall will be playing shows by TOPSHOP Unique and long-term designer collaborators Meadham Kirchoff, Christopher Kane, Mary Katranzou, Richard Nicholl, Marios Schwab, Louise Goldin and more.

The impossibly gorgeous Erin Wasson will also be teaming up with Blake Mycoskie, founder of ethical footwear brand TOMS, to host the first ‘Style Your Sole’ workshop, providing ideas to help you customised your shoes.  TOMS’ mission is to match each pair of shoes sold by donating a pair to a child in a developing country and fans of the brand include Karl Lagerfeld and Sienna Miller.

Providing the soundtrack throughout the week will be live DJ sets from Stricken City, Peggy Sue, Esben and the Witch, Wet Dog, Bleech, Chew Lips and Samual and the Dragon.

As if that wasn’t enough, every time you spend £80 in store (lets face it, that’s not too difficult), you receive a free gift – just visit the Fashion Wall to see what prize is on offer.  Gifts include free WAH Nails manicures, new season accessories and loaded gift cards to spend in store.

Visit the TOPSHOP website for details and event schedule.

The ELLE Style Awards (newly sponsored by Next) have the reputation of being ‘the fashion Oscars’, but I reckon they’re the rebellious, bad gal cousin of the red carpet snooze-athons.  With not a floor length, chiffon Elie Saab dress in sight, the ELLE Style Awards are a fashion magpie’s dream and there’s always some naughty behaviour and gossip from the night  - last year courtesy of Mickey Rourke, who tried it on with Thandie Newton.

Last year’s awards saw Hollywood misfits Courtney Love and Mickey Rourke pick up Woman of the Year and Best Actor – a formidable and brave choice for ELLE, given their turbulent lives.  On the fashion side, Lara Bohinc, Rupert Sanderson, Peter Pilotto, Erdem and Christopher Kane all scooped prestigious awards, with Style Visionary going to Viktor & Rolf and Stephen Jones being recognised for his Outstanding Achievement.

This year, Naomi Campbell is being honoured with an Outstanding Contribution award for her 25th year in the fashion industry and for her role as Global Ambassador of the White Ribbon Alliance.

So, who is going to bag all of the prizes this year?  Any guesses?  I’m placing my bets on Georgia Jagger for the Model award, Carey Mulligan for Actress, Alexa Chung for Style Icon, Nicholas Kirkwood for Accessories Designer, Hannah Marshall for New Designer and Jonathan Saunders for British Designer.  If I get at least one designer right, I think I should treat myself to one of their pieces to celebrate!

Oh yes, and more ELLE-related news – they have just launched a new horoscopes application for the iPhone.  You can now get free daily astrological updates from ELLEuk.com’s resident astrologers, The Saturn Sisters.

As a horoscope sceptic, I’m hoping that ELLE will follow this with a fashion-based app, for when I finally get round to trading in my knackered old Blackberry for the phone of my dreams.

The ELLE Style Awards will take place on 22 February at the Grand Connaught Rooms in London.