Why is it, four days before Christmas, when I am surrounded by total festive disarray, a mountain of presents to wrap and no Crimbo food in the house but a shopping list as long as my arm, do I find myself writing a random blog post about my princess dress of dreams?

Well, there is a valid, if not impractical reason for that. I fell in love. Simples.

So let me give you a bit of context, I was at an event for Viktor & Rolf perfume with our family fave department store Debenhams and made a tiny chance remark that a particular Jenny Packham dress displayed on a mannequin outside was the dress of dreams (unbeknown to me it was also the dress sparkling in the Christmas advert!) and then got distracted by life and forgot all about it. A few days and one email later a courier delivered said dress and basically took my breath away!

Such a kind thought, such a sweet gift, with no hidden agenda or strings attached.

I was a bit taken aback if I’m honest because this was not a pre-arranged blog collaboration or a paid partnership with the brand. It was just a random act of kindness! God bless the Debenhams PR team for it. Merry Christmas to me!

This was not just any dress. A Jenny Packham no less, dresser of royalty, quintessentially British and classic to her core. Most of my ‘wow’ dresses over the years come from her, courtesy of her affordable-for-us-mere-mortals diffusion range for Debenhams.

As I unbagged it, anticipation filled me with goosebumps, would it fit? (I hadn’t told them my size or anything!)  Would it suit? Would it be everything I thought it would be? Basically yes to all of the above.

I no longer have the figure of my youth, I now have to dress cleverly for my mother-of-two-prosecco-and-cake loving silhouette and it is very rare that I can just throw something on and it ticks all the boxes. It fits like a glove.

So, under no obligation whatsoever, I just felt the need to take some beautiful pictures of it, for my own memories because when I wear this to my Christmas night out tomorrow night, it could, just possibly, get rather messy!

I stayed over in London yesterday for my annual festive sleepover with my girl Emma and exploited her photography skills to the max as we dashed around London in the rain, stopping to grab photographs of me in the dress in choice locations, whilst desperately trying to avoid splashing my maribou feather heels in the process. Walking around Oxford Street with the festive crowd, dressed to the nines but completely out of context in the crowd, I blended as only the diverse and enveloping streets of London can allow.

I felt like a chuffing princess, channelling my inner Kate Middleton, good and proper. Swishing my sequins and tossing my taffeta to the click of the camera. Some real bloopers were also had, and part of the magic was that we had a right good laugh in the process. Thank you for your patience Em!

I hope you love the results as much as I do. Now that dress will become an integral part of the fabric of my life, a hanging reminder of the memories I will make, the laughter I will share with fabulous friends, the champagne glasses that will be clinked in celebration and the joy of the spirit of Christmas.

PS If you also love this dress as much as I do and you need one in your life, it is half price in Debenhams right now and it’s a keeper!

Merry Christmas to you all xxx

Disclaimer *Didn’t get paid for this, obviously was given the dress as a gift, really didn’t even have time to be writing this post but sometimes, you just gotta share the love when something makes you stupidly happy*