Seven Dials is a very cute place in London just off Covent Garden with some amazing shops.

On the 9th May, they held a fabulous shopping event and I was really happy to be invited by the lovelies from Sister Is PR to their VIP tent, before the trends talk began, to have a (maybe some) King Bloom cocktail, a Cawston Press amazing rhubarb soft drink and Propercorn popcorn (fuelling my Vanilla & Coconut flavour addiction).

I think the lawn around the dial should be a permanent feature, but unfortunately they just closed the junction off for the event, which had live music, a fabulous tombola and an even more fab 20% off in over 120 stores. Yes, 20% off. Plus the many demos, free drinks and food going round. What an ace day.

Enjoying the lawn, can almost fool myself it’s summer

The trend talks, which took place at a lovely tipee at St. Martins Courtyard, was something I was really looking forward to. NOT the drinks. I promise.

Elle UK’s market & retail editor Harriet Stewart presented womenswear trends and I was quite pleased to see it matched my picks for this season, which I spoke about not long ago.

Basically, she mentioned denim, print clash, textured soft pastels, 3D flowers (so more texture), gingham and espadrilles, which are not my faves, but maybe I could do with Supergas – in bold colours, like metallics or Liberty print.

Key pieces include utility skirt with a twist, such as pared with denim, a wear with everything dress which can be dressed up or down, a statement skirt – she had a magnificent one from LK Bennett, a summer coat, such as a colourful trench, high fashion trainers, like Superga and toughened up romantic, boho looks, with leather jacket and boots, for example.

She showed a lot of stuff from COS and Orla Kiely (love love love).

What I found really interesting was the menswear talk. Being a female blogger means I don’t really pay much attention, even though it takes much longer for menswear trends to be honed – like 8 season, says British Esquire’s senior style editor Teo van der Broeke.

The lovely Teo talked about layering, with the slight longer (but not dress-like) under layer being the twist. De-structured garments, such as jackets with softer fabrics, unlined and comfortable are also in, removing a bit of the stiffness of being well-dressed.

Pairing the same colour, but in different textures is also very elegant. Navy seems to behave very well under that circumstance. Finally, something we’ve seen in womenswear for a while has reached the male wardrobes: sports luxe. Tailored tracksuits, tapered trousers with elasticated hems are a good bet for the trendy boys.

As is a nice suede jacket!

Overall, a really nice day out. I also had the chance to take part in the tombola, which cost £3 (going to charity) and reverted into a lovely Joules bag (priced £45!) and perfect for the gym.

I visited Dawn O’Porter’s BOB shop, and fell in love with some items of her line as well as some of the vintage items. I also popped by one of my favourite skincare brands, Caudalie. Lovely.

The event may be over, but Seven Dials is not going anywhere. You can see more info on the area and the great shops they have and also apply for a Seven Dials Privilege card, which will give you 10% off full price items (T&C apply).