Cold ears: BOBBLE BEANIE

I need a new beanie for this winter. Ive found a few that I really like across high street stores but when I noticed this one, in Topman of all places, I knew it was my favourite. Its soft, and the colours are cute. Don't care if its supposed to be sat ontop of  a guys head.

I think I will loosely curl my hair, with my black eye liner and my favourite red Mac lippie. Sorry guys, this beanie will look better of us girls this winter!

xxx

Day and Night: MAWI EARRINGS

Every woman has them, and every woman does it. I am referring to the simple wardrobe staples and the ability to dress them up for the night time and  dresss them down for the day. I, however do it with the majority of my wardrobe. I am talking maybe 85-90% of it. I can easily wear that tight bodycon dress that i wear out, during the day with some flat pumps, and oversized bag and a leather jacket, and wearing the high waisted shorts with a pair of skyscraper ankle boots rather than converse, is a simple and effective switch to make.

I have, however, realised that I don't apply the same dressing method to my jeans. Maybe cos I own two pairs of jeans, and rarely wear them. But since the cold weather has decended upon us, when walking my dog, I've both ruined my black skinnies and fallen back in love with them at the same time. I think some staple shopping is in order before christmas.

Anyway, this is, about a pair of earrings, I spotted whilst browsing mywardrobe.com. I have 5 days until payday so this is a ridiculously, silly thing to do. I create a mental list, by the time friday comes, I would have forgotten most of it.

A simple way to liven up your wardrobe staple jeans and t-shirt. For the day; Nike Blazers, Zara slouch bag. For Night; Zara studded leather clutch and suede Charlotte Olympia heels. Jeans are Topshop, t-shirt by Acne and MAWI earrings.

When I think about it I could probably very easily recreate these looks by delving into those monster wardobes I have.

If you ever have a spare afternoon, look through your wardrobe and start pairing things that you wouldnt normally wear together, with each other. Believe me its so easy and once I started doing it, it actually started changing the way I looked at pieces I wanted in the shops before buying them. If youve read back in this blog you'll know that, I can like an item of clothing, but as soon as I start building outfit ideas in my head thats when I fall in love with it.

XXX

Wishlist: ANKLE BOOT edit

I, like most women these days are addicted to ankle boots. I have a fair few pairs as it is but you can never have enough. In my opinion, one little detail, can make or break an outfit. Consider this, you create the perfect outfit in your head, with clothes you already own, with shoes that you already adore, but theres something missing.... I cant tell you how many times I've put together an outfit and thought, well that would look SO much better if that bag, had studds!

The same applies for shoes.... I might have to be a careful buyer but that doeesnt stop me wanting many variations of the same thing. Take for example; I have a pair of leopard print heels, from Office. They are a few years old, but I still love them like I did the day I saw them, but I bought a pair of heeled ankle boots as the variation. They are from Topshop, the print is almost identical as is the fact that they are both ponyskin. But sometimes the ankle boot looks better than the shoe and vice versa.

I'm babbling, my point here is; same boot, three colours? WHY NOT!!! We've all seen Sex and the City....It's a womans right to shoes, even if youre more into bags, or watches, or rings, every woman loves a shoe! I am no exception. I have run out of space, they fill the space under my bed, they are crammed in one of my three wardrobes and yet there are still boxes stacked in the corner and pairs lined up on top of magazines and books on shelves. I dare not count them.

This Christmas, the first thing on my whishlist (aside from a cream faux fur gilet for Topshop) is a new air of ankle boots. I've sub conciously sent the last few weeks noticing many pairs on my visits to shops, now there are far too many pairs for me to choose from! I am a little overwhelmed to say the least. will I choose, another black or brown pair, or maybe i'll go after a beautiful purple velvet pair with barouque stitching....(Or maybe i'll put them on my christmas list and see how lucky I get).

I've put together small edit of some of my favourites, and if any of my family manage to read this, take the hint, alright?

Topshop 'PRAIRIE 3' Black stitched velvet boots. Zara Cream boot with zip and red insert.Topshop 'ADIOS2' Black suede studded boot. Topshop 'AFLAME' Black suede studded boot. Topshop 'ADIOS' Brown Suede boot. Miss Selfridge Black simple harness boot. Topshop 'ANARCHY' brown western chelsea boot. Topshop 'ACCENT' navy stud cut out boot. Jeffery Campbell at office stud harness boots. Miss Selfridge 'Amelie' tan suede cowboy boot. Zara Cream studded ankle boot. Topshop 'AGGRO' black studded ankle boot. Jeffery Campbell at Office black leather Benetar ankle boot. Topshop 'PROUDLOCK' Premium black leather studded ankle boot. River Island brown square toe western akle boot.

Oh if I had the money there would be no complaints. Maybe I should start playing the lottery??

Which ones would you choose? Help a girl out here!!

XXX

Long time, all WEARABILITY.....

Actually wearing my clothes.

It's been a while, hasn't it? Nearly five months to the day to be exact.
Something else that seems like a long time ago is pay day. and even though the next one is less than a week away, it can not come soon enough. This month, for the first time in quite a while I will be able to afford clothes which is fantastic. I am especially excited because all the shops at the moment are dropping their Autumn and Winter stock. A/W as seasons are usually my favourite when it comes to dressing because I love layering, even though during the Spring/Summer months I enjoy not wearing tights. Atumn and Winter is usually when I go mental on prints and lux accessories. Then there is always the excitement of finding and buying the perfect coat for the season (always keeping in mind it's longevity).

One of my favourite things to do during the colder months is finding new things to play up one of my leather jackets with. This time I'm after a faux fur snood. Snoods are great, I find them much more interesting than an average scarf! Also time to start stocking up on ankle boots. I need a new black pair but there is a great cream pair by Zara that have really captivated my imagination (see below). Behind that zip is a pop of red which finishes the boot perfectly.

When building an outfit I never really thing about jewellery, I am not a massive wearer of it ans usually just wear the same rings. I have stacks of bangles but because of work they get in the way so they stay in the draw. I have my ears peirced three times and most of the time forget to put earings in! I own plently of necklaces but again they get tangled in my langyard at work so I stick to a simply silver chain. I think though this Autumn I will pay some special attention to this void in my wardrobe, focusing on necklaces mainly, I think. I want some that sit high up and carry a lovely, bold statement.

I would even think it is safe to say, that for a while I fell a bit out of love with dressing up unless I was going out, but recently was reunited with my love of clothes. Which has come along at a great time because I can afford to attack the shops once more. Last month for example, the only thing I bought was a vintage t-shirt. For some time I never really found anything that I would see and think 'I must have that'. And when I really think bout it alot has changed in the way I approach shopping in general. These days it has to be about wearability. Am I going to still be in love with it this time next year and is it something that will transend seasons? Can I wear it as a day peice or is it something just there for partying? For example I have stacks of dresses, cute for the daytime but great peices that I can easily dress up for a night out by adding a statement pair of shoes or jacket. Gone were the days of ages upon ages of wishlists. I'd never get round to buying the majority of it anyway so it became pointless.  I am after more trousers though (scroll back to a few posts ago where I explained I was totally without trousers).

Anyway, enough of me rambling....

Clockwise from top left: ASOS faux fur snood, Topshop beaded peter pan necklace, Topshop Boutique leather biker, Topshop boutique navy dress, Zara cream zip ankle boots.

Talking of longevity, strip away the biker, the snood and tights and theres a cute summer outfit!!

I am looking foreward to adding some great peices to my wardrobe. I am even thinking about having a deep clean through my clothes and having a seasonal clearout!

xxx

Step ON

Can't stop thinking about these Zara beauties!!! I'm thinking at the end of the week I'm going back in for them. With the crappy weather we are having at the moment I need something to brighten up my day. Problem is though, which colour?! And at £30 a pop, anything could happen.

Xxx

WEARING MY HEART ON MY....LEGS??

You might remember that I told all about not owning a pair or trousers. Well I managed to rectify this little mistake fairly quickly with a quick pop into Topshop. I tried on two of the three pairs I showcased in the previous post. Can you guess which pair I bought?

I'll give you a little hint. I want to but the shirt, shoes and coat in the photo to complete the outfit. The coat is gorgeous!!!

xxx

Without a Pair of

I don't own  pair of trousers! Not a joke and no, I dont walk around in just tops and no bottoms. But I am trouserless. Have been for quite few years. Last pair of trousers I owned were black high waisted and tapered. But I always felt that they didn't flatter me, however much I loved them. Since then I have lost all interest in buying trousers because I felt they just didn't suit me. But I lost weight, and think I'd feel more confident in them again now.  In the last few weeks my eyes have been widely open to the large range of really nice trousers in the shops recently and I am ready to go and try on many pairs. My Secont point is I dont have much print in my life and I thought now would be an excellent time to change that.

So to mark this (fairly large, for me at least) occassion I decided to create an "edit" of sorts (well Zara and Topshop) of the pairs of trousers that in the next week I shall be hunting down and sliding my legs into.


First up: TOPSHOP (obviously)

 

Zara

I shall be wearing these with clashing prints or simple neutral tones. This Spring/ Summer is a perfect time to try something new, and prints and trousers/ printed trousers are the way I am choosing to go.

So go on try something completely un-you this spring. The sun is out. Enjoy.

xxx

When in doubt, make your own

A very good friend of mine went to various trimmings shops recently and picked up lots of different bits and pieces. Then she very kindly made me a (albeit odd) pair of earrings.

xxx

Pink pop

I have come to the conclusion that I am in desperate need of a new shade of lipstick for Spring/Summer. For a while at least, the red seems a little too harsh. So you can imagine my delight when I arrive on the MAC website to see this:

Yes, thats Nicki Minaj. And YES, that is Ricky Martin. Why on earth he was chosen to have a lip balm made for MAC I'll never know. But I thought it was only a matter of time before Miss Minaj got a chance to have a lippie made after her.

Whatever the reason, the shade of pink is perfect. Bright, fresh, summery and with highlight a tan in the best possible way. However, once on the MAC website, I am never one to escape so easily. It pulls me in like a black hole. I created a wish list and it has been discovered that I would happily spend over £200 on my perfect wish list to fill up my make up bag (need a bigger one, theres no room!!) to satisfy my needs.

Enjoy the sunshine!!

xxx

Oooh it's a FESTIVAL

I woke up this morning from a fairly disturbing dream where I was leaving for a festival to realise that me an my friend had no money, no food, no idea what clothes we had packed because our mums packed them for us (why in the hell!!??), was seriously running late for our train, no alcohol and ciggarettes, no wellies, AND NO TENT!!!! So not surprisingly I have my festival going bug back and it's time to search for a new tent. Instead however I find myself looking for the things that make the weeked go slightly mad. I am talking about brightly coloured fethers (I had so many tied in my hair last year), false eyelashes, and most imporantly and ANIMAL HOOD!!! I discovered MERRIMAKING at last years Secret Garden Party and created a sizeable list of animals that I wanted to wear on my head. Leopard, Tiger (even thought i bought a tiger one for a friends birthday present and then immediately borrowed for my own head), snow fox, red panda, giraffe, monkey, a deer (with antlers and all) and a Parrot.

You can't really tell what it looks like, it's a dark photo with an instagram effect on it. But go and have a look at last years photos.

Now, I'm off to actually look for a tent, that dream scared the crap out me!!!

Have fun!

xxx

Mono & Me

I am sure by now some of you have heard of Mono & Me. If you haven't, then why not? They are a spanish jewellery brand based in Barcelona and they make the most wonderful bracelets in wide ranges of colours. These are the little trinklet type that usually have a tiny cross, pom poms or, my personal favourite, little skulls. And the prices are amazing as well. Be warned you could get carried away!!

Collect them all? Don't mind if I do. It's just too hard to pick just the one or two!! These are deffinitely right near the top of my wish list.

xxx

(photos from monoandme.com and singer22.com)

Primark Suprise

I don't often go in Primark, unless its for tights and socks and the occasional vest. But I was having a proper look around one busy day after work and came across these two gems.

The first one I am sure some of you have seen before on other blogs but I really like it, and now it comes in other colours I might just have to go back and get them.

With the second one, I fell in love with the cuffs. There are these big floppy white bows attatched to them and the top is very floaty. I havent worn it yet but I will do soon.

I might have to investigate primark more often.

xxx

I'll Bring you Flowers....London Fashion Week

London Fashion Week started today and Topshop have launched Mary Katrantzou's third and new collaboration, the majority of which disappeared within moments and sold out online when it went live at midnight. Alongside that Topshop celebrated 10 years of NEWgen which was launched in 2002 as a platform for emerging British design talent. In recent years some of these designers have created small collections for Topshop, this has given those of us who have a great love of fashion but who's pockets might not go that deep a chance to own a designer piece.

Today I headed towards Oxford Circus to pick up one of these beauties!!!

However by the time I had arrived it was completely sold out. Gone! BYE BYE!! It upset me more than I thought it would have and got me down for quite some time. I found myself going on a mini rampage in search of one. But patience is a virtue and after keeping my eye open for hours, one popped up in front of me when I'd almost given up hope and stopped looking.

It came in it's own drawstring bag and I can't wait to wear it!! And I shall try and quit going on about Mary K for a while. Well until her new collection shows this week.

Enjoy Fashion Week lovelies.

xxx

Mary Katrantzou for Topshop s/s12

If you look back to this post you will know that I loved the Mary Katrantzou show last London Fashion Week. Since then I have been itching to know what is next in store for her collaboration with Topshop.

And it doesn't disappoint.

    

I love this collection. I can't wait to see it in the flesh and see the new collection at London Fashion Week for A/W.

xxx

Decisions, Decisions

I was really bored after work yesterday and while I was waiting around for 5:30 I went and tried some clothes on on the concessions floor of Topshop.

Here are my Favourites......

The first and last dresses are by Love Label and the middle two are by Rare London. I think I might need all of them.

xxx

My Week

I'm not sure if it was fate of just plain luck but, I found myself in the possesion of a pair of shoes that I wanted when they first appeared in the shop but just couldn't justify (or afford) spending £140 on. However early last week they popped up in the sale and I found a perfect pair sitting there on the rail. Almost gleaming. I am referring back to this post and the spotty boots shown about half way down. £40 well spent I think.

And for anyone who hasn't picked up the new Elle yet, go do it. Alexa chungs looks stunning and the Closet Confidential (my favourite part) is amazing.

xxx