How to: California Waves

2012-01-30T19:00:00.001Z

After I posted the california waves video the other day, the lovely Jilly from John Frieda got in touch and sent me some products to try out! I've done a little how to post following the video instructions and testing out the products...

1. Secret Agent Perfecting Creme
2. Dream Curls Styling Spray
3. Volume Refresher

1. Towel dry and rough up your hair using the Dream Curls Styling Spray
2. Roughly blow dry your hair upside down - make sure your parting behaves, mine went a bit wonky...
3. The video says to separate into sections and curl but my hair is naturally wavy so I didn't bother!
4. Rub Secret Agent Creme through the ends of your hair to smooth it down and get rid of the frizz
5. I smoothed the rest of my hair and tidied it up with straighteners but that's up to you!
6. Boost and set the style with hair spray and Volume Refresher to get lovely California Waves!

What do you think of the wavy hair? I like the effect of the John Frieda products, it's quite a lot of effort to do the above every day but I'll definitely be introducing the products into my daily routine, my hair feels voluminous, manageable and the style held all day, all good in my book!

Do you have any top tips for mid length hair? I need some inspiration!

A Little Bit Kinky

2012-01-27T18:36:00.000Z

Now that my hair is at a relatively normal length instead of the Jarhead look I used to sport, I've started to treat it a little better and get more experimental with it. Since New Year I've been wearing it natural (kinky, wavy and curly) more than usual instead of straightening it to death every day, I quite like it but a guy at work said that I looked like Michael Jackson so maybe it's not a good look...

I've been experimenting with different products and so far my favourite has to be Morroccan Oil, it's amazing but so expensive...

So it's time to find some more affordable alternatives! John Frieda have uploaded a range of different videos onto their Youtube channel showing you how to get saloon styles at home using their products, the videos may be a little cheesy but the end results are pretty spot on!

I'm going to have to get my hands on some of them and give them a go, results to follow! Think I'll try the California Waves style to try and make myself a little less Jackson 5...

Any Given Sunday

2012-01-25T21:12:00.001Z

Any Given Sunday is a a gorgeous little film by creative audiovisual wonders Watergun in collaboration with Jacky Tsai, the artist behind Alexander McQueen's classic skull print.

It follows a rather lovely girl with hair I will never have but always want wearing dresses by Jacky Tsai and being a little bit stalked by an impossibly good looking but no doubt mysterious boy. The dresses featured are perfectly simple with a splash of dye, and the tee sported by the lovely boy is also part of the more casual collection.

You can see more of the dress and tee collection here and watch the video above.

Bracher Emden

2012-01-24T21:08:00.000Z

Now, I love a handbag, it would be a bit weird if I didn't seeing as I work for a website that sells only handbags... But I especially love handbags that are a little bit amazing. Bracher Emden's collaboration with Jean-Pierre Braganza, one of my favourite designers, couldn't be described as anything but amazing.

Give me architectural shapes, supple leather and metal and you'll have my attention. Have a look at the full collection on the catwalk here.

Which is your favourite?

Emu A/W 12

2012-01-14T11:26:00.000Z

Now, I'm not really a sheepskin boot kind of girl but I've always been impressed by brands like Emu and Ugg's non-sheepskin boots collection, Ugg have gorgeous clogs and leather boots whereas Emu has the most amazing accessories.

I was invited to the Emu Australia press preview in Manchester on Thursday (they win instant brownie points by having an event up North!) where we spent the evening stroking sheepskin, wishing the kid's shoes were in our size and lounging around in the suite where it took place.

The clothing line was a little bit too mature for my taste, I like my leather jackets a little bit on the Grease side rather than yummy mummy, but the quality of them was amazing! My friend Jana and I were a little bit obsessed with the trapper hats, kid's shark boots and the amazing sheep cupcakes by Hey Little Cupcake, how cute are they?? I also love all of their heritage imagery in their lookbooks, the pictures of ancient sheep and emus running around.

To see more of Emu, have a gander here.

Company Style Blogger Awards

2012-01-13T19:56:00.000Z

The Company Style Blogger Awards 2012 have just been announced and I'm up for three of them! Yay!

There are some amazing blogs in there so I highly doubt I'll get close to winning anything but it would be lovely if you could give me a little vote!

Click here to vote, I'm in the categories for Best 'What I'm Wearing Today', Best Fashion Insider and Overall Winner... Plus, if you vote you automatically get added into a draw to win £250 of New Look vouchers!

Congratulations to everyone else who is nominated!

Iconemesis

2012-01-11T21:14:00.002Z

I've been a little bit in love with Fifi Lapin for several years now, I just want to be that little fashion bunny so darned much. So when Iconemesis got in touch and asked if I fancied reviewing a Fifi Lapin iPhone case, I of course said yes.

I wasn't sure which design I was going to receive but when the Fifi, Sonny and Stella case ended up in my post box, I was more than pleased. Even though it's made for an iPhone 4 rather than a 4S like mine is, you can hardly tell, just the silent switch doesn't quite fit in the hole in the case is all! Having white sides on my phone is taking a little getting used to (boo hiss at white iPhones!) but I'm sure I'll come round to them. I took the photo with my phone so it's a bit grainy but in keeping with the post!

The Fifi Lapin cases are available from Iconemesis for £24.99, have a look at all the different styles here.

Iconemesis also collaborate with lots of other UK artists including Gemma Correll, Pete Harrison and Serge Seidlitz all definitely worth checking out!

RIP Eve Arnold

2012-01-07T11:52:00.000Z

One of my very favourite photographers Eve Arnold, passed away this week at the grand old age of 99. I've picked out my favourite images as a mini tribute to her.

She has taken some of the most beautiful photos of Marilyn Monroe, amazing images of 1950's Harlem and intimate behind the scenes images. She is an inspiration to women photographers, fighting adversity and sexism throughout her career.

My thoughts are with her family.

Three Floor

2012-01-04T20:29:00.001Z

Three Floor is officially my new favourite online shop, when I was busy swooning over everything and not really paying attention to the important boring details like prices, I thought it would be one of those shops that were entirely out of my price range but I took a deep breath and looked closer, lo and behold they're only Topshop (sometimes Topshop Boutique...) prices!

I've picked out a few of my favourite pieces that may very well make it into my wardrobe after payday...

1. Lemon Aid Skater Dress 2. Bear Hug Jumper Dress 3. Finders Keepers Embellished Trousers

4. Floored Smart Jacket 5. Freha Faux Leather Mesh Insert Culottes 6. D'vil Shirt

Visit Three Floor by clicking here. What's your favourite piece? How awesome is the headpiece?? I can't find it anywhere on site though!

Shh... It's a secret

2012-01-01T23:06:00.000Z

I loved Ellie from Pretty Much Penniless' Blogger Secret Santa so thought I'd get involved, in November Ellie assigned everyone with their very own blogger to be Secret Santa for. I received my parcel a couple of weeks ago but only found out who it was from today so I thought I'd do a little post to say thank you.

I was sent a gorgeous paisley print silk scarf and a little jewelled beetle brooch from Gem from Fat Frocks, thanks Gem, I love them both!

Did you do a Secret Santa this Christmas?

Welcome to the New Year

2012-01-01T16:54:00.000Z

(Images by Nykoh)

Happy New Year! I cannot believe it's 2012... I barely even registered 2011 but now it's over I can see that it was probably one of the most important years of my life, I graduated, got my first proper job, moved in with the boy, went to Hong Kong to compete in a global competition, featured in Vogue online and cooked my very first turkey.

I can't even imagine what kind of adventures are awaiting me in 2012...

How was your 2011? What are you most looking forward to in 2012? My plan is to get fit, win the lottery and go on an adventure.

Vogue Online Fashion 100

2011-12-07T21:01:00.002Z

The Vogue Online Fashion 100 list was announced today and look who's Minne Mouse ears featured! I was so surprised and was not expecting an email popping into my inbox congratulating me for being in Vogue, I thought it was a bit of a joke... But I'm very happy to be in between the lovely Queen Michelle and one of the investors in the company I work for!

Apologies for being a bit quiet on the blog front recently, work has been a bit hectic but I've got a day off tomorrow so expect to be hearing more from me...

Winter Accessories Wishlist

2011-11-19T11:10:00.000Z

1. Nikita Black Ankle Boots from Office
2. 15" Cambridge Satchel in Black from MyBag
3. Fur Pom Hat from Topshop

I thought I'd pull together a little Winter Accessories wishlist, at the moment I'm still pottering around in wedged desert boots, tote bags and cold ears. I think it's time to get ready for Winter!

I chose some practical flat ankle boots from Office to start with, they look like they'd fit perfectly with everything in my wardrobe and can be dressed up or down. The Cambridge Satchel is something I've been lusting after for so long, it's definitely nearly time to invest in one! Who can resist the little pom pom hat?? I'm not usually a hat type of girl, but I think this one is too cute to resist...

What are you lusting over this Winter?

Infrared

2011-11-01T21:03:00.000Z

I just had to post these images, they remind me of those Magic Tree things, anyone else remember those or is it just me?

These are infrared images taken by Japanese photographer Dennis Dung, and I love their eeriness and fantastical feel.

I needed some cheering up yesterday so accidentally purchased some shoes from Stylist Pick so I'll have to show you them when the boy gets back from a business trip with the key to the post box... Harumph!

American Vintage

2011-10-22T10:50:00.001+01:00

The lovely people at The Dressing Room kindly sent me this gorgeous American Vintage shirt which is easily the comfiest and softest item of clothing I own. It's a lovely digestive biscuit colour with gathered details on the shoulders and is slightly longer at the back. It's perfect for layering, dressing down or dressing up!

I thought I'd put together a little outfit as I'm about to run off to Nottingham and don't have time to do it in real life!

1. Topshop contrast sleeve jacket
2. American Vintage Beehive State Shirt
3. Topshop Textured Bodycon Skirt

Monki Magazine

2011-10-11T17:55:00.000+01:00

I'm sure all of you know how much I love Monki (just a tad obsessed...) so imagine my extreme delight when I was given the opportunity to be in their magazine! Have a look at the gorgeous Spooky Issue here and see my 'Spooky Place' photographed by my lovely sister.

Not only that, Monki now have an online store! It's a blessing in disguise that the internet in our flat is so slow because otherwise I would have snapped up everything it had to offer... Visit the shop here if you dare, everything is just so very perfect.

Apologies for the silence on here, I have lots of lovely new things to show you and I promise I'll be showing my face round these parts a lot more.

New additions

2011-09-29T21:30:00.000+01:00

I thought I'd stop my silence (seriously, don't get Virgin internet, it's taken me half an hour to upload two photos...) and show you a couple of new additions to our lovely new flat.

We fell in love with a little chilli plant in Sainsbury's so we purchased him, named him Carlos and put his shiny chilli treats in our dinner! I've also been collecting kitchenware including these rather delightful oil and vinegar (we've got salt in ours...) from Find Me A Gift which I quite love.

I'll be back and blogging properly once I've sorted the internet out showing you some lovely new things I've treated myself to, after all, it is payday tomorrow!

Valencia Fashion Week

2011-09-19T21:22:00.001+01:00

Apologies for being very quiet recently, work and a crappy internet connection in the flat doesn't work well with blogging but I couldn't stay away from Fashion Week musings...

Though I haven't had a chance to properly digest the LFW offerings, I found these backstage images from Valencia Fashion Week taken by photographer Laura Leal that I fell in love with. These analog offerings have a certain serenity seldom seen behind the scenes.

What's your favourite Fashion Week moment been so far?

Hello Winter...

2011-09-08T14:00:00.000+01:00

Classic Mac and Pea Coat from JD Williams

So apparently it's decided to be Winter with absolutely no warning... We've spent quite a lot of today in the office talking about winter coats, I don't have any coats and survive mainly in jackets and layers whereas another girl has a Winter coat from every year since she can remember! We chatted about fur, vintage and high street but no one could settle on the perfect Winter coat.

I really need to invest in a classic coat that will last me for years, my little leather jacket can't last for long... I've always had problems finding coats because of my rather large 'assets', but thankfully JD Williams offers a good range of plus size coats for women. Even though I'm not technically 'plus size', it seems to be the best way to go for curvy, busty girlies like myself.

I picked out a couple of my favourites, what do you think?

(This is a sponsored post but that doesn't make it any less true!)

Bespoke by SimplyBe

2011-09-07T20:22:00.000+01:00

Ever since payday I've been 'accidentally' stumbling onto websites and into shops but haven't actually bought that much stuff (ignore that bag of new clothes in my wardrobe, ahem...) even though I wear pretty much the same style of clothes to work as I do when I'm lounging around the flat, I always like to pretend I'm more important than I am and look at clothes that would make me look very out of place in an office full of jeans and t shirts...

During my travels around online shops searching for inappropriate (in the right way) clothes, I found SimplyBe's Bespoke range. I usually check SimplyBe for clothes as I'm curvy and have a rather ample bosom so it was really good to see some trend led, gorgeous UK plus size dress. Usually all the plus size girlies get is floral things with a strange sleeve length... Plus I'm sure it helps that the model looks rather like Zooey Deschanel, another way to my heart...

What do you think to the Bespoke collection?

Banana and Caramel Cupcakes

2011-09-04T15:26:00.002+01:00

Since moving into our new, little flat I've been treated to having a house husband as the boy was off work so this weekend I've been a domestic goddess! I've baked banana and caramel cupcakes and I'm about to make the most amazing roast ever, well maybe not, but it'll be yummy enough!

I also got to test drive my new Joseph Joseph nest of mixing bowls (which the lovely people at Find Me A Gift sent to me as a moving in present, thank you!) and they did not disappoint, plus they look very pretty and bright in the white kitchen.

I made up the recipe as I went along but the cakes are rather delicious so I thought I'd post it here for you to try too!

Ingredients

175g Caster Sugar
175g Self Raising Flour
175g Butter/Spread
3 Eggs
4 bars of Cadbury Caramel (or whatever else you want to put in them!)
2 super ripe bananas

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees
2. Cream together the butter and sugar
3. Add the eggs one by one, mixing well after adding each egg
4. Mush up the bananas with a fork and add it to the mixture along with chopped up chocolatey bits
5. Sieve in the flour and fold into the mixture
6. Spoon into cupcake cases
7. Bake for 15/20 minutes or until they're cooked all the way through, test them with a knife and if it comes out clean, they're done!
8. Leave to cool and either eat them or drizzle some chocolate on the top

Happy baking!

Shoe Porn

2011-08-23T20:43:00.001+01:00

Ok, so I should be packing all of the shoes I already own into boxes for Friday when I move into my new flat (yay!) but instead I'm watching The Great British Bake Off and lusting over shoes...

Until payday these will remain mere lust objects but who knows what will happen next week, who knows where my debit card will end up and what my feet will be dressed up in!

I found these bounty of beauties on Viva La Diva, a veritable black hole of gorgeous shoes, I warn you, if you visit that site, you will be there for some time...

These shoes range from the affordable to the more, shall we say, luxury and high street to designer including Schuh and UN.

What to wear when...

2011-08-19T19:07:00.001+01:00

...It's your first day at work!

I'm working through these with things that are close to me, but if you want to suggest different 'What to wear when's...' just let me know! I often get emails asking me questions so if you want them answered like this, let me know. Obviously this post won't be relevant if you're an accountant or something!

(All items above are available from Cashmere Scarf and Topshop)

1. Be comfortable, wear something you wear every day but smarter.

2. Small heels or wedges are always a good way to build confidence they usually make everything look better!

3. Opt for gorgeous but subtle accessories like the shoes and bag above.

4. Make sure everything fits you properly, you don't want to have your trousers cutting into your waist when you're sat at a desk for 8 hours!

5. Make sure you have something to layer up with, air conditioning can be your best friend one minute then turn on you the next...

What to wear when...

2011-08-19T18:42:00.003+01:00

...You're travelling!

(All items above are available from Topshop, Aldo, MyBag.com and Benefit)

I travel A LOT. There's never a week that I spend every night in my bed, I'm always living out of a bag whether I'm home, at my boyfriend's, on business, on holiday or at a friends... I've got packing down to a fine art and have made myself a capsule wardrobe for the weekend that can deal with any situation...

1. A big bag that's easy to carry.

2. Comfy shoes that can be easy to take from tramping around train stations to bar hopping.

3. Clothes that look good when you layer them up, especially if you have to go from rainy, cold London onto the blisteringly hot tube.

4. A smaller bag where you can keep everything like tickets, passports and Oyster cards to hand.

5. Portable size make up, trust me, you'll need it!

What to wear when...

2011-08-19T18:18:00.001+01:00

...You're curvy!

(All items above are available from Marisota, a great place to find clothes that fit properly! They have a website and womens clothing catalogues so it's easy to get them)

I often get emails from readers asking where they can get specific pieces for different kind of body types and, being a curvy girly myself, I thought it would be nice to do a few 'What to wear when...' posts to help out those tall, curvy girls who don't know where to get gorgeous clothes from and what to do with them when they find them! Here are some tips from my experience...

1. Embrace your curves! Wear things that accentuate your figure, like the black, wrap dress above, it's flattering, covers up problem areas and it'll make you look frigging awesome.

2. Accessories are key. No one (especially you) will be looking at your perhaps ample bosom when you're carrying an amazing bag or wearing shoes that stop even you in your tracks.

3. Don't be scared of colour. I know black is flattering and an easy option, but don't rule out reds, greens and purples, they're your friend too.

4. Be comfortable. As long as you're comfortable, you're going to be confident. Wear something casual, comfy and chic.

5. Don't avoid the trends. Just because you don't look like Alexa Chung, doesn't mean that you can't wear key season trends, just adapt them to a way that suits your body.

Ellen Rogers

2011-08-17T20:57:00.000+01:00

I love the dreamy nature of these images taken by Ellen Rogers, with ethereal beauty, interesting textures and gorgeous composition. She only uses analogue cameras (a girl after my own heart) to create these magical images, with no digital technology or enhancement used at all apart from a scanner, these are entirely created by her.

I could stare at these all day... For more images and info, have a look at her website.

p.s. I'm down in London for meetings tomorrow and Friday, anything I should be doing?

A/W Wishlist

2011-08-15T21:12:00.000+01:00

A/W pieces from Topshop, Dorothy Perkins and Miss Selfridge

So I've still got a couple of weeks until my first grown up payday but I'm already spending it in my head (don't tell the boy...)

This A/W I want to be wearing lots of bright red, deep turquoise, flowing chiffon, leather, black suede, full skirts and sleeves. Gone are the days of me wearing black jersey from head to toe, it's time to embrace colour and girly fabrics.

Now it's time to watch Cherry's Cash Dilemmas and pick up a tip or two... I totally want to be her when I grow up.

Books, biscuits and dogs

2011-08-10T22:07:00.000+01:00

Since the boy and I found a flat last weekend (yay) I've been pretty obsessed with thinking about what kind of spoons we'll have in the kitchen and what colour cushions we'll have in the living room, where people will sit when we have parties and what baked good we'll offer to the neighbours.

I've also been trawling interior design blogs, looking for inspiration. Judging by the images I've picked out, I'll be very happy with lots of books, pictures, cookies and a dog. Now I just have to make the boy agree...

As you may be able to tell, I'm rather excited...

Images from The Cherry Blossom Girl and The Selby.

Selected Femme

2011-08-08T19:52:00.001+01:00

I was a very lucky girl and got a lovely bundle full of clothes to play around with last week, they were from Selected Femme, Vila and Vero Moda and I've had lots of fun dressing up! Because of my grown up job, I've not had a lot of time to take photos of the messing around but here's a few of a lovely, beaded Selected Femme dress. The photos were taken by my lovely little sister, isn't she good?

It's super soft and floaty light in a gorgeous salmon pink with a beaded neckline. Perfect for a Summery day if we ever get one again...

I shall be posting more of my dressing up if I ever get a spare moment! The boy and I have just found ourselves a little flat so we'll be moving soon and I'll have a bit more time to concentrate on the blog. Also, expect lots of interior design inspiration posts!

IL2L

2011-08-02T07:00:00.001+01:00

The lovely people at IL2L kindly sent me over this rather gorgeous leather jacket (I now have a grand total of 6 leather jackets and have acknowledged my problem) to play around with. It's made of the most buttery soft leather and is possibly the warmest thing I've ever worn, something rather important seeing as it doesn't look like Summer will actually arrive any time soon...

I love the fit, colour and feel of the jacket, it's quite perfect actually. I have a feeling I'll be wearing it for a very long time!

The rest of my outfit is from Monki apart from my shoes which I got in the New Look sale for a tenner, win!

Check out the IL2L website and get yourself some gorgeousness!

The photos were taken by my lovely little sister, isn't she good?

Anna Jazewitsch

2011-08-01T07:00:00.001+01:00

I am totally in love with the clean lines, odd design elements and splashes of colour within Anna Jazewitsch's designs. The cutouts and swimming hat-esque headgear just adds to the look of the collection. It's striking, minimalistic yet complicated and interesting all at the same time.

For more information and images, visit her blog.

p.s. Lots of things ending in my 99p Ebay sale today! Have a look if you so wish :)

Outfit Challenge

2011-07-30T07:00:00.000+01:00

I have been useless at posting recently, I have millions (slight exaggeration) of things to show you and tell you about but I've been distracted by the whole graduating/getting a job/being a grown up malarkey.

Anyways, a while ago the lovely people at So Feminine set me the challenge of creating an outfit with £50 pocket money. I had been on a clothes buying ban (bar a lovely skirt from Topshop that accidentally made it's way into my wardrobe...) since Christmas, but I can never turn down a challenge or an excuse to shopping!

The outfit I got is quite simple it consists of a reddy/orange sleeveless shirt from H&M which was £7.99, a gorgeous suede skirt from Warehouse (which is actually a size six and is supposed to be worn at the hips...) which was £20 in the sale and the most gorgeous tan, leather boots from Urban Outfitters for a wonderful £10! I also picked up the classic staple of 120 denier tights from Topshop which I think were £8, so that makes nearly £50 plus a little bit extra which I spent on cake and wine, a good choice I think you'll agree. By the way, my nail varnish is Me Me Me.

What do you think of my outfit? What's your favourite piece?

Photo Friday: Riki Tinoza

2011-07-29T07:00:00.003+01:00

The second installment of Photo Friday shows off the work of Riki Tinoza as well as the design skills of hair stylist Florian Dovillez.

My favourite image by far is the first one, I love the composition, the hairy elegance and the different textures playing on one another. I thought I'd get bored of the hair design pretty quickly but it's still going strong in my books!

Candy Bright

2011-07-27T22:30:00.002+01:00

I'm not usually a fan of those websites full of little things you don't need but when find-me-a-gift.co.uk got in touch with me to see if I wanted to review some of the fashion and beauty products, I couldn't turn down the deliciously bright colours of the Me Me Me Summer Brights Collection after being stuck in a mink Nails Inc rut for so long.

I started at with the pink as it looked the yummiest but when I put it on I was quite disappointed as it was really thin, but after a couple of coats it was looking top notch and matches my new MAC lipstick beautifully! I was far more impressed with the other colours though, they came out in Love Heart-esque tones with a matte finish with just one coat. At £14.99 for four, the price isn't bad either!

I wanted to do a nail tutorial but alas I have no time so unfortunately there's just a couple of photos of me looking silly.

What's your favourite colour of nail varnish?

Ooh, also, I've just put loads of things up on Ebay for mere pennies so have a look and help me get down to just one wardrobe so my boyfriend doesn't disown me...

Akif Hakan

2011-07-26T07:24:00.000+01:00

I love these images by Akif Hakan, he is a photographer based in Hong Kong and the inspiration is clearly filtering through into his photographs. The styling, direction and movement within these images capture a certain moment and make an amazing photograph.

For more images and info, visit his Deviant Art profile, his official website seems to have turned into an Architecture website...

p.s. I start my new job today, wish me luck!

Photo Friday: I love Jenny Lewis

2011-07-22T07:00:00.002+01:00

I love Jenny Lewis. I have ever since I heard Science VS Romance by Rilo Kiley the first time, I'm a big fan of Rilo Kiley (RIP), Jenny Lewis and the Watson Twins, Jenny Lewis and Jenny and Johnny.

These images by Tierney Gearon for Fader magazine just confirmed it even more. Plus, I want her hair so I can drape it over hedges... More Jenny please!

p.s. I might start doing Photo Friday every Friday as an excuse to look at pretty pictures, what do you think?

p.p.s. I got a proper grown up job yesterday, I'm so excited!

Sca Ulven

2011-07-21T07:00:00.001+01:00

Draped jersey, muted colours and friggin' awesome shoes are pretty much the key things you need in a collection to get my beady eyes roaming over every stitch, button and epic wooden platform.

These images are from the S/S 2012 collection by Sca Ulven, a Norwegian design duo made up of Sara C Andersson and Marte Ulven, and I love every one. Each piece has a timeless and effortless beauty to it with a clearly Scandinavian aesthetic.

Make sure you have a look at their website and their blog for all the latest news.

Hello Real World

2011-07-19T14:02:00.000+01:00

I'm a grown up! Well, that short sentence probably tells you that I'm definitely not a grown up... But I have a degree and I've donned the mortar board, now it's time for the real World. Just a few photos from the day with me in the trusty Wonder Woman pose, the lovely boy, my lovely Momma and my beloved partner in crime Ashleigh.

I'm excited to move to Manchester, get a proper job, get back into blogging properly and begin a new chapter as Mat said. Now I just need to put all of that into practice...

Miu Miu Dreams

2011-07-18T23:05:00.000+01:00

So this shoot for Miu Miu by Bruce Weber is basically a dream... I'm quite jealous of the lovely Hailee Steinfeld who got to play dress up with all of these gorgeous Miu Miu A/W 2011 clothes, shoes and accessories. I love the mixture of her youthful features with the positively grown up clothes, it matches the playful nature of Miu Miu perfectly. It has a very (dare I say it) Alice in Wonderland feel to it, which I'm also a little bit in love with.

To be honest, I just want to lie in a pile of gorgeous glittery shoes...

For more info and to look at the collection, visit the Miu Miu website. Prepare to fall in love if you haven't already.

Power Dressing Wishlist

2011-07-11T14:52:00.000+01:00

Ok so it's not actually power dressing, I'm just taking a little time out from applying for jobs and sending my CV to everyone I know to concentrate on the most important thing; what will I wear?? I'm used to dressing however I want to, with legs out, wedges on and leather making more than one appearance. Though now I'm a grown up (I graduate on Friday, exciting!) I've started looking for something a little more suitable, but still totally me, think shift dresses and day dresses but with a colourful twist or a touch of the dominatrix all with a rather low price tag... These are what have tickled my fancy so far...

1. Black Belted Full Skirt Dress from Freemans.com £49 - The perfect dress for changing between Summer and Winter, plus it can be changed to whatever style you feel like by changing the belt!

2. Lilac Full Skirt Dress from Closet £40 - I love a dress that hides all my lumps and bumps so with sleeves and a full skirt, it's perfect for my fat days.

3. Black Tailored Bodycon Dress from Great Plains £33 - This one lives up to the Power Dressing title a bit more but it looks stretchy and comfortable as well which is always nice.

4. Pleated Cream Dress from Vero Moda £49 - A super cute yet still professional dress that I'm a little bit in love with...

5. Two in One Pencil Dress from Vero Moda £40 - More of a classic 'work' outfit without the fear of your shirt popping out of your skirt...

6. Black V Neck Cross Over Dress from Freemans.com £49 - Classic shape, colour and always flattering!

If you have any other suggestions for dressing for the real World without losing your own style, let me know. This week is full of meetings, interviews and Graduation so I'm seeing it as the first week of being a 'proper' grown up, wish me luck!

Parsha Gerayesh

2011-07-10T20:22:00.001+01:00

The lovely Mary Benson introduced me to the work of Westminster Uni Graduate Parsha Gerayesh, who not only has an incredible Graduate collection which you can see above but also won the Fashion Innovation Awards at Graduate Fashion Week.

I love the structure and shapes to his collection as well as the fusion of clothing and furniture construction. The unfinished edges and wooden structures remind me of embroidery hoops whereas the linear patterns hark back to optical illusions.

See his incredible online portfolio here.

p.s. I'm in London for a couple of days next week so if anyone wants to meet up, get in touch!

Excuse me, did you just say Fiat by Gucci?

2011-07-08T11:56:00.002+01:00

There all manner of odd collaborations in the World (I'm still waiting for Henry Holland Henry Hoovers to be honest...) but I'm always a little wary of when car companies team up with fashion brands, however the recent collaboration between Gucci and Fiat caught my eye. To celebrate the 90th Anniversary of Gucci and the 150th Anniversary of Italy's unification, Gucci creative director Frida Giannini customised her very own car.

The Fiat 500 by Gucci is the ultimate Italian car sporting the Gucci colours, leathers, two tone alloys and the classc Gucci cursive.

Fiat are no strangers to the fashion World, at the star studded launch event for this little slice of fashiony motor goodness The Telegraph caught up with French Vogue editor-in-chief Emmanuelle Alt to see her feelings on the car, Gucci and driving in general, see the video interview here. Fiat also sponsored designer Allegra Hicks' fashion show back in 2006 as well as giving her her very own little customised car covered in blue flowers, which you can see here.

To compliment the car, you obviously need to be looking pretty damn hot so I picked out some looks from the Gucci A/W 2011 collection that (if you have a spare £10,000 or so...) you can recreate for both colour ways of the car.

Firstly the white one...

This gorgeous blue belted jumpsuit would suit the white version of the car perfectly, the soft blue tones would match the white, green and red featured within the car whilst the pure silk fabric would mean little to no creasing when you're driving around the streets of Italy! Pair it with the beautiful bamboo handled handbag and you've got yourself the perfect outfit.

The black version...

Pair this stunning wool dress with leather collar with the black version of the Fiat 500 by Gucci team it with a stand out studded belt, climb in and drive off in style.

(This is a Sponsored Post by the way! Just trying out something a bit different...)

Elena Ciuprina

2011-06-27T17:40:00.000+01:00

I've been looking at a lot of graduate collections recently (seeing as I am now one, hee hee) and they are just so much more interesting and imaginative than anything you see elsewhere. These beauties are by Polish born Elena Ciuprina who graduated last year.

I like the simple, yet intricate nature of this collection, the drapes, the colour pallette and the cut of every piece within this collection. If I had that red dress, I'd never take it off... What's your favourite piece?

Niels Peeraer

2011-06-23T10:02:00.001+01:00

Apologies for the image heavy post but I didn't want to leave anything out, I love every single image. This is Niels Peeraer's MA collection entitled 'Guess technology isn't ready for pancake teleportation' and I want all of it. Want to know something depressing? He's younger than me, sob.

But anyways, there is nothing I don't like here, Chanel-esque tweed onesies, riding style hat with ears, gorgeous nude accessories, moulded leather body armour and beehive gauze attachments. I dare you to find something wrong with it.

I can't wait to see more from Niels, he doesn't seem to have a website as of yet but have a look at his NJAL profile here for more info.

My Work Wishlist

2011-06-22T21:04:00.000+01:00

With the whole finishing uni/getting into the real World/working/going to interview I've found myself fantasising about black trousers that fit properly instead of bright red dresses... So here's my little (achievable and affordable) wishlist.

1. Sailor style top from Monki. I'm still obsessed with Monki and I'm going to be featured in the next Monki magazine, so watch out for my face!

2. Oversized sheer black dress from Monki.

3. Tapered black trousers from Topshop. I need to train myself to wear trousers again!

4. A gorgeous teal shirt dress from Warehouse.

5. Patent loafers from Topshop.

6. Black Mary Janes from Topshop.

What would your work staple be? I think red lipstick is going to be one of mine...

Lost

2011-06-21T17:48:00.000+01:00

My brain is still a little bit fuzzy from Hong Kong, starting work again and having a job interview today, so I just want to look at some beautiful images and not really think about anything...

This set is by Formento + Formento, husband and wife team who travel the US in a silver trailer, styling and photographing 25 girls from 50 states. Each location, woman, theme and styling are unique to each shot which makes a very interesting collection of images. I love the mood and lighting in these particular images and the sense that she is completely lost...

There's also a behind the scenes video that's worth a watch. Make sure to check out all the other images on the website as there are some beauts!

Monki

2011-06-19T17:44:00.001+01:00

I've always been a little bit obsessed with Monki but I've never been able to get my hands on anything from there as they don't sell online or have a store in the UK (well not until September this year anyway! Excited!) so when I found out I was going to Hong Kong, the Monki shop there was one of my first thoughts...

We went and found it on the last day and all fell in love with everything in there, everything is just lovely, check out the website and fall in love with it yourself! I got jeans, tops, a purse, a skirt for a friend and a dress with a collar that you can see above. They don't let you take photos alas but I got some sneaky ones of the awesome changing room and the outside!

I also got a fringe cut and dyed my hair when we got back, as is my tradition of a hair change after a holiday, so there is my hair and me sporting a Monki top! (And yes, that is a wavy Ikea mirror, silly student house...) I really wish I'd bought more things!

Visit the Monki website or wait until September when they'll be stocked in Selfridges in the UK!

Adventures in Hong Kong

2011-06-14T17:35:00.000+01:00

I'm in Hong Kong! Hoorah! I'm here with three other girls from UCLan to take part in the semi finals of the Poly U Global Challenge, unfortunately we didn't get through to the final but never mind, now we have a couple of extra days to explore Hong Kong and it's insanity.

It's been so much fun meeting people from all over the World, presenting our little business to proper grown up people and experiencing a completely different culture along with a billion other cultures. I love seeing the way different people react to things. We were expecting to stand out like sore fashiony thumbs (we do a little bit) amongst a sea of suits and brainy people, but everyone is really lovely and so much fun.

I've posted some properly cheesy, touristy photos of the team which is me, Alex, Sophy and Tanya (in the order of the last photo, Alex is incapable of keeping her eyes open in photos...) so excuse the sweaty, grinning faces but they are some of my favourite times from the trip such as wandering aimlessly around the streets of Hong Kong, FOOD, meeting lots of awesome new people, Dim Sum on a floaty restaurant, sunsets by the harbour, presenting our 'business', commiseration comfort food with weird McDonalds, drunk old chinese men picking us up, being silly in Lang Kwai Fong, treating the 7 Eleven as a club/bar and making friends.

We're off to explore the millionaire lifestyle on Hong Kong island tomorrow evening so I'm sure I'll have a far more interesting post!

Let me know if there's any must visit places in Hong Kong if you've been here before, we want to make the most of our time here!

Graduate Fashion Week 2011

2011-06-05T22:12:00.001+01:00

From top to bottom: Hannah Cumming, Zoe Clark, Anna Stephenson, Kyle Graham Spires, Barbra Kolasinski and Laura De Barra.

So today saw the start of Graduate Fashion Week 2011, the third one I have attended but the first that I've actually been a Graduate (well not technically as Graduation is in July but still...) at. I've been nominated for a few awards so I have to be on the UCLan stand at all times throughout the week in case the judges pounce so if anyone else is around, do come and say hello! I'll even give you a business card as I'm a grown up now and have some...

Because of the having to hang around the stand all day, we didn't get to see many shows, though we did see the UCLan and Edinburgh shows, both of which were a delight.

Edinburgh was particularly good (as always) and I managed to get a few shoddy snaps of some of my favourite collections. The whole Edinburgh show was of a really high standard though, the manufacturing, fabrics and accessories were all top notch. I especially liked the wooden accessories peppered throughout the collections, give me a wooden box over a tote bag any day.

I love the bold and bright colour palette in Hannah Cumming's collection, the intricate wooden accessories and pom poms in Zoe Clark's collection, the gorgeous pleating in Kyle Spires's, the bright fur and printed trousers in Barbra Kolanski's and the contrast of knitwear and leather in Laura De Barra's. Anna Stephenson's collection was a stand out favourite of mine, as a massive fan of Hermione de Paula, I'm always on the lookout for more floral, optical prints. Anna's delivered just this in a delicate, feminine and eye catching way. Each piece hugged the models perfectly and effortlessly floated down the catwalk.

I'm hopefully going to see a few more shows tomorrow, depending on when the judges get round to seeing me...

If you're at GFW let me know how you're getting on and come and say hello! ALSO, visit the AVA Books stand and pick up the Styling book as I wrote a piece in it!

My 'holiday' wishlist

2011-06-03T00:33:00.000+01:00

I'm not sure if I've mentioned it properly but I'm part of a team taking part in the PolyU Global Challenge, a business competition type thing and we're off to Hong Kong to compete in the semi finals next week! It's not really a holiday as we'll be working really hard throughout but it's a trip to somewhere I've never been before so I'm seeing it as a cheeky getaway. These are a few things I'm coveting...

1. A cute red spotty dress from Monki. Red is lucky in China after all!

2. Classic sunglasses by Kiss&Kill. The shape is pretty perfect, a softer shape to RayBan, and will last forever, plus they have special lenses to keep my eyes nicely protected. I also want these for every day wear but that's just because I got distracted on the website!

3. Black, strappy Swedish Hasbeens. I've wanted some of these babies for a very long time but have never quite got round to getting any, I think I need to change that soon...

4. Dotty socks from Monki. I don't think I can quite pull off the ankle socks and sandals look, but in my wishlist I can wish!

5. A perfect little red satchel from Topshop. It can store all of my business notes, cards and laptop but still look pretty doing it.

Can you tell I'm really looking forward to going to the Monki shop in Hong Kong? I'm going to come back all Monki-d out!

Has anyone been to Hong Kong? Got any tips of what to see and where to go? Please let me know!

Class of 2011

2011-06-01T17:10:00.001+01:00

Uni is over! Well, everything's handed in anyway, just Graduate Fashion Week, PolyU Global Challenge and Graduation to go...

To celebrate four years of hard work, we decided to go out as superheroes and, as I barely ever share my face or personal life on here, I thought I would as an ode to my lovely friends and our mad costume skillz. I'm Wonder Woman of course, the lovely Ashleigh is a very good She Ra (we made the costumes ourselves, from scratch, we win), Sophy is Batgirl and will be with me at GFW and Hong Kong. We also have lovelies Cat Girl, Super Girl, Rainbow Brite, Bubbles the Powerpuff Girl and Super Ted. We wasted 4 years on our Fashion Promotion degree, we should have been superheroes.

Yay to everyone!

p.s. Things finishing on Ebay soon! Click heeeeere.

Project Ocean

2011-05-31T14:21:00.005+01:00

Selfridges have unveiled Project Ocean, a collaboration with the Zoological Society of London to ensure that there's always plenty more fish in the sea.

Jonathan Baillie co-creator of Project Ocean and Director of ZSL said, “Project Ocean signals the biggest-ever retail activism campaign designed to ‘sell’ and engage public mind-sets on overfishing, an issue that needs mass support. We hope that this innovative partnership with Selfridges makes the public understand the issues around overfishing, and measurably leads to more fish in the sea.

Project Ocean has taken over Selfridges London with film screening, talks and window displays on offer until the 12th of June.

You can experience Project Ocean online here, but it's always better in person! I'm going to go and have a proper look myself when I'm London for Graduate Fashion Week next week, who else will be around there? I'm up for four awards so I'm quite excited!

Also, speaking of Selfridges, everyone based in the North West should get down to the Xen-Tan pop up shop in the Trafford Centre and get your tan on! Click here for more details. I'm going to get my body bronzed for GFW and Hong Kong times!

My little Magazine

2011-05-22T22:52:00.001+01:00

Apologies for the lack of posting recently, I finish uni forever in a week so I've been really busy with work. I can't wait to get back to blogging properly and the rest of my life come to think of it...

Anyways, here's a little bit of my FMP work, it's a crappy magazine to go with my project, but you can see it all online here!

ALSO please, please, please vote for our advert here for the PolyU Global Challenge! I will love you forever if you do.

Interview with Marianne Rashid, buyer at MyLabel.com

2011-05-17T07:00:00.001+01:00

Marianne Rashid
Assistant Buyer at MYLABEL.co.uk

Can you explain a little bit about MYLABEL?
MYLABEL.co.uk is a trend-led website which offers a complete collection of branded clothing, footwear, accessories and lifestyle products for men and women. Expect to find on-trend collections with urban styling, statement party looks and heritage sportswear from both leading high street and boutique brands such as By Jam, Chunk, Franklin and Marshall, French Connection, UCLA and many more.

What is your role?
My role is Assistant Clothing Buyer so I assist our Senior Buyer Rachael in just about everything from supplier visits where we pick out the new season stock to making sure everything runs smoothly right through to when the stock arrives in our warehouse. My day-to-day my job can be pretty varied; a big part of my job is to merchandise the website and maintain its appearance by updating the products and offers, but other days I can be out on location for a photoshoot or in my scruffs in the warehouse labeling stock!

What's your favourite item on the site?
It's so hard to choose as there are so many items that I love on site at the moment but if I had to pick out one thing that I’ve got my eye on it would be the Motel Women's Blake Print Dress. I've already bought the Motel shorts in the same print and everyone loves them, so think I need the dress now too!

If you had an unlimited budget, what would you buy from the site?
Well apart from the Motel dress (and the version we do in pink) I would definitely raid the byJAM collection – their designs are inspired by all things vintage, girly and gorgeous, swoon! The striped t-shirt and navy shorts would be ideal for my holiday. To go with them I would get any of the Nica bags and probably a Fiorelli one too to wear in the evening. I’d complete my outfit with the new Moda in Pelle Philippe wedge shoes, these are the perfect alternative to heels for summer without the pain!

When you were little, what did you want to be when you grew up?
Haha, well it used to change very frequently… but the jobs that I remember wanting to do for more than a week were Ballet Dancer, Artist, Fashion Designer, Actress and Princess (ok, so that might not be a career option at school but I definitely wanted to be one). Eventually I chose the right career though, working as a buyer for MYLABEL.co.uk brings something new and exciting to my job every day…and the odd freebie doesn’t go a miss either!

For more info, visit MYLABEL.co.uk

p.s. Congrats to Claire from Rumour PR who won the Shopbop competition!

Blanche DuMois

2011-05-11T23:06:00.002+01:00

Just because I can fit one cup of my super sturdy bra on my head doesn't mean I don't want dainty, pretty lingerie, just if I did wear it I would probably be arrested and/or have someone's eye out.

Alisha Trimble, the designer behind Blanche DuMois got in touch with me to show off her new website and the girly designs instantly made me want to shrink 4 cup sizes so I could enjoy a little, vintage style, monochrome bra complete with bow. But alas, it is not meant to be...

I spoke to Alisha about her career, the collection and lingerie...

Have you always wanted to be a lingerie designer?
Well, I've been curious since I was a child about the intricate way that lingerie is put together, especially vintage bras. I did not know that that curiosity would lead me to becoming a designer.

You also have a ready to wear line, which one do you prefer designing?
I like them both for different reasons, the lingerie has a more broad appeal and I enjoy being able to share that with more people, whereas the ready to wear is more an expression of my personal point of view and it's more extravagant.

Tell us a little bit about how you got into this industry...
During art school I worked as a merchandiser for Cosabella Lingerie, and later on for La Perla. We went through training to measure and fit people for bra sizes and the accuracy in sizing led me to make more fitted dresses when I started designing.

Once I felt I had established my own point of view in Ready to Wear, I introduced the lingerie line. I was fixating on Tennessee Willams film "BOOM" at the time, Elizabeth Taylor wears white throught the entire film.

What is your favourite piece in the new collection?
I love the white pointelle group, because it's really comfortable & easy to wear. White clothes are all the rage right now.

What can we expect to see from Blanch DuMois in the future?
Next season, I am going to introduce more color into the collection, and maybe some lace. Also watch for an actress wearing Blanche DuMois in a steamy bedroom scene in a very happening feature film coming out soon...

For more info and images, visit the website.

Don't forget to enter my competition to win $100 to spend on designer clothes at Shopbop.

Surreal Adventures

2011-05-11T12:04:00.000+01:00

I really like a little bit of oddness every now and then, especially when it comes in the form of an elk in a cape. These paintings are by Russian artist Sergey Ryzhov.

These predominantly dark paintings have a colourful splash of the surreal which appeals to me massively. I especially like the multicoloured whale and the purple rabbit. I can't wait until I move into my own little place and I can fill it with weird stuff. It'll be awesome.

For more info and image, visit Sergey's DeviantArt profile.

Apologies for the lack of posting recently, I finish my degree in 3 weeks, ARGH. But after that, I'll be running around to Graduate Fashion Week and for the finals of a competition in Hong Kong so there should be some interesting things to post about!

Don't forget to enter my competition to win $100 to spend on designer clothes at Shopbop.

Competition Time! Win $100 to spend at Shopbop

2011-05-04T19:04:00.005+01:00

This competition is now closed!

So the lovely Shopbop have given me a cheeky $100 (though the competition is available to anyone wherever you are and whatever moneys you use) voucher for one of you lucky people to spend in their rather awesome shop, seriously they stock designers from Acne to Zac Posen.

I've been 'researching' the site for quite some time, because it would be rude not to really... Here's my wishlist of things I'd be spending the money on if I got to keep it! Firstly, I'd invest in some Camilla Skovgaard Saw Tooth Wedge Sandals and since we're on the subject of shoes, I also fell a little bit in love with Coclico, who I'd never heard of before but they are yummy and I want them on my feet.

While I'm at it, let's have a little Marc Jacobs romper suit with some high heel pumps to top it off... Sorry for my insane ramblings, I've been trapped in the house doing uni work (it's all finished in 3 weeks, argh!) so I may have gone a little window shopping happy...

ANYWAY. Here's what you have to do...

1. Follow Tweet on Bloglovin'
2. Follow Tweet on Twitter
3. Follow Tweet on Google Reader
4. Leave a comment on this post
5. Visit Shopbop and leave a comment saying what you'd spend the prize on

Each one gets you one entry so you can have a maximum of 5 entries to the competition, but make sure you leave separate comments below telling me you're following as otherwise I won't know about it...

Make sure to leave a contact email too in case you win! This competition is international and anyone can enter.

The closing date is Midnight GMT on Saturday the 14th of May.

Make sure to check out Shopbop and start picking what you'd get with the prize!

GOOD LUCK!

This competition is now closed!

I love... Summer Festivals

2011-04-25T07:00:00.000+01:00

I can't wait for summer and the fourth round of Latitude Festival...

These images are by Corinne Day and are from Glastonbury.

I love... Tights

2011-04-24T07:00:00.000+01:00

I love... Tights. I wear tights far too much, I have approximately a billion pairs.

These images are by photographer Pierre Even.

p.s. Happy Easter everyone!

I love... Red Hair

2011-04-21T07:00:00.000+01:00

I love... Red hair. If only mine was this vivid...

These images are by Yvonne Schmedemann.

I love... Zines

2011-04-20T07:00:00.000+01:00

I love... Zines. Especially super simple ones.

No Thoughts Photo zine available here.

Slink

2011-04-19T07:00:00.001+01:00

Being of the curvy persuasion I often feel a little (very) fat when flicking through Vogue or something of that ilk which are all full of teeny weeny models wearing the most beautiful, unattainable clothes.

So, when I stumbled across Slink Magazine I felt right at home. Even though I don't quite fit into their target audience (Size 14+) I do fit into the curvy and proud bracket that they are championing, they are about loving who you are no matter what size you are, which I am well in favour of!

Also, the beauty of having a magazine that is not constantly centred around weight issues, means absolutely no 'Look how skinny Cheryl Cole is!' and 'Oh nooooo, my boyfriend doesn't love me because I've put on 3 pounds!', and plenty of much, much better things like yummy recipes and travel articles.

If you fancy a change from the usual magazine, have a look at Slink here.

IOU

2011-04-18T07:00:00.002+01:00

'If I were to sum up the IOU Project i would say that it has been a study in the creation of a Prosperity chain; an experiment to rethink how goods are produced and sold in a way that benefits everyone.' - Kavita Parmar, Creative Director of The IOU Project.

The IOU Project is about to launch, a project bringing the customer and the craft together, with each, unique piece carrying a QR code that, when scanned, shows you the story of how your clothes came to be.

I love the idea of this and can't wait to find out more, though you should probably watch the video above, it explains it a lot better than I can!

Visit the website here.

I love... Black and White photos

2011-04-17T07:00:00.000+01:00

I love... Black and white photos. Especially odd ones.

These are by Miheala Ivanova.

I love... America

2011-04-16T07:00:00.000+01:00

So it's nearing the end of my degree and my workload is getting a little bit silly, my blog's been suffering quite a bit because of it. I've decided I want to try and post every day again but at the moment they're going to have to be short, picture heavy posts! I'm going to try out a few 'I love...'s and see how it goes, let me know if you hate it!

I love... America. Especially the kind of beautiful, dreamy imagery that looks like it could be stills from Psycho, except uber glamorous and less killy.

These are by Formento + Formento.

Awear.com Summer Magazine

2011-04-15T11:08:00.000+01:00

Though I read plenty of shop magazines (ASOS, 214 Topshop, BooHoo...) I've never actually posted about one before, they always seem a bit more catalogue, not enough content (apart from Topshop, I just can't fault it) so it had never crossed my mind...

The Awear.com Summer Magazine dropped into my inbox this morning as I was in the midst of creating a bazillion pie charts and spreadsheets for my FMP (FML more like...) and I decided to take a little blogging break to show it off to you. The images within the main editorial were just a bit too good to leave behind, with a distinctly 70's theme, think Veronica Corningstone from Anchorman, the styling, location and model inspired me to wear maxi dresses and bright colours this summer.

The little trend features within the magazine (I would have screen grabbed but there's links all over it!) are on trend, to the point and a bit lovely. I'll even forgive the Kate Middleton mention, anyone else getting utterly sick of all this Royal Wedding malarky?

Anyways, have a gander at the Summer Magazine to escape from the real World for a little bit. Right, back to work...

p.s. The magazine also has a 20% off code for Awear, so go and treat yourself!

Cheer Up

2011-04-13T11:51:00.000+01:00

Apologies for the distinct lack of posting recently, I'm in the depths of Uni stress with my dissertation due in tomorrow and about a billion other things to do at the same time so I shall keep this short! I'll be back with a vengeance when it's all over though.

Just as I needed a little pick me up, images from Cheer Up clothing dropped into my inbox so I thought I'd share their super cute designs with you. I want to be those girls frolicking in the park right now but alas I have to go and film a promo video for the Uni along with Mat and then it's all nighter time... I can't wait to be a grown up.

Hesan Hejazi A/W 11

2011-04-08T07:00:00.000+01:00

There's only really one word I have to describe Hesan Hejazi's A/W 11 collection and that word is 'swoon'.

Seriously, how could you not love full red skirts, sheer shirts and plenty of leather? I adore the nods towards S&M with the leather gloves and full, red lips. I kind of want to put it all on and pretend I'm in the throes of passion ie. prancing around my room with lipstick on my face...

Visit his website for more images and info.

Point and shoot

2011-04-06T07:00:00.001+01:00

Here's some images from my morning shoot on Saturday, with the lovely Rosie from Select wearing things from Bitching and Junkfood, Alpha 60, Broken Fab and Tatty Devine. Unfortunately I had to take the images as the photographer was a no show, so they're not as good as they should have been, but it's something else to add to my portfolio!

Would these make you pick up a magazine or click on to a website? Which is your favourite? I love the one with the studded shorts!

It was shot on location at Rich Mix in Hackney, which is a cinema/venue/awesomeness which you should totally go to.

Bloggers, bloggers everywhere...

2011-04-05T07:00:00.001+01:00

A few of my favourite shots of some of my favourite Landaaan people from my shoot on Saturday. I ended up taking the photos (apart from the ones of me of course, which were taken by Chris Hudson) as my photographer was a no show so they're not as good as they should be... There'll be more for you to peruse tomorrow from the morning shoot with a lovely model!

Featuring Amy, Lucy, Jazmine, Lexxi, Reena, Fiona, Daniela and Anna Madeleine wearing things from all over the place including Tatty Devine, Alpha 60 and Obakki.

Let me know what you think! They're for a uni project so any suggestions would be useful!

Preparation

2011-04-01T18:19:00.001+01:00

Here's a little sneaky peek at what I've been gathering up today. I'm doing my shoot tomorrow so today has been spent collecting clothes and meeting PRs, best time ever to get a cold, but I'm powering through...

These pieces are from Bitching and Junkfood, Tatty Devine and Okkabi (I want everything in this collection by the way...), I'll post the proper images next week and probably some more teaser/behind the scenes ones to see what you think!

Wish me luck...

Helen Bullock MA

2011-04-01T07:00:00.000+01:00

One of my favourite things about fashion is that you get to watch designers effectively grow up as their career progresses, from being a student to when they've made it into the big, bad World.

Helen Bullock is a designer who I've been keeping my little eye on since her Graduate show from CSM when I was working at Fashion156, we featured it in The Artisan Issue and I've been entranced by her work ever since.

I posted about her last year after spotting one of her dresses, thankfully with her in it, amongst the crowd at Latitude festival and she was just about to start her MA. Well, she's just finished it and the images above are from the show. I love her use of colour, playful techniques and swathes of fabric. I also love her drawings that accompany the collection and want postcards to cover my wall in please!

p.s. I'm in London for the weekend to do a shoot so if anyone has any ideas for what I should do when I'm not working or shooting, let me know! Wish me luck...

Edward Finney A/W 11

2011-03-29T12:55:00.000+01:00

These images are from Edward Finney's A/W 2011 collection, this collection makes me think of Landed Gentry and riding horses in the good old days.

But also, how amazing is the first black dress? I'm putting dibs on that for my wedding dress for sure, now I just need to find a willing victim/groom...

The model in these images is the lovely Sophie, who I did a shoot with a couple of weeks ago for my friend Kimchi Slaw, most of which I spent wondering where I recognised Sophie from...

For more information, images and film, visit his website.

Present and Correct

2011-03-21T11:07:00.001Z

I have an unhealthy obsession with stationery, bordering on the perverse in fact, so I thought I'd share one of my favourite websites to have a perv on.

These images are from Present and Correct, a lovely little website with the best pencil styling I've ever seen. Each image is well thought out and styled beautifully, with insane attention to detail. Present and Correct offer vintage, handmade and sourced stationery, and I love all of them... My housemate Lois and I often sit in the living room poring over websites selling envelopes, you should have seen our faces when we heard Liberty were opening a stationery department. I'll be in London in a few weeks and I've already allocated time to visit it!

Visit Present and Correct here. Other websites I like to perv on include Kikki K, SORT and Kate's Paperie.

Myrto Stamou

2011-03-19T07:00:00.001Z

I blogged about Myrto Stamou way back in 2009 when she showed off her collection at Graduate Fashion Week, now she's an actual grown up and top notch, polished designer.

This is her A/W 11 collection, and it's just a little bit stunning. The fit of the leather skirts are absolutely perfect and paired with the drape of the softer, finer fabrics, the whole look makes one gorgeous outfit.

For more info and images, visit her NJAL Profile.

A New Kind of Love

2011-03-17T07:00:00.000Z

Ftape teamed up with On|Off to create a portfolio of rather stunning images, featuring designers such as Ashley Isham, Bryce Aime, Charlie le Mindu and my personal favourite Hasan Hejazi.

The images were shot by Stefan Milev and styled by Sasha Rainbow, I loves them.

I've only posted a few images so make sure you visit the website to have a proper look through them all, they're worth it! I'm looking forward to seeing a lot more editorials from Ftape...

Click here to see more images and visit the Ftape website.

Gisele Ganne

2011-03-16T14:05:00.000Z

I love jewellery but barely ever wear it, because as soon as I put it on I feel like I'm dressing up and I don't look right so it's immediately cast aside. However, I often lust over pieces online thinking 'If only I had that, I'd wear it every day...', even though I know wouldn't...

These pieces are by Gisele Ganne and fall directly into the lustworthy category. I love the connected rings and delicate chains against the furry bits and juxtaposed with the florals.

Each collection has a morbid yet beautiful feel to it, ranging from mourning jewellery to divorce jewellery.

For more info and images, visit her website.

p.s. If any designers are reading this, I'm looking for pieces for a shoot in April so if you want to be featured, drop me an email to iliketweet@gmail.com

Sophie Hulme lusting

2011-03-14T19:14:00.000Z

I've spent a large portion of today lusting over the accessories in Sophie Hulme's A/W 11 collection, I'm a massive fan of simplicity and satchel-esque bags and these fit the bill rather perfectly.

I love the bright red number and can just imagine filling it with all my silly little unnecessary things and pretending it's full of terribly important things. Which is your favourite?

For more info and images, visit her website.

p.s. Currently excitingly waiting for the Latitude Festival to be announced, who else is coming? I'm WELL excited.

Yan To A/W 11

2011-03-12T07:00:00.000Z

Yan To is a designer I post about each season, because his designs are constantly changing form and shape but keeping his design ideals.

These are images from his A/W11 collection and I'm very much enjoying the swathes of velvet and leather. There are some more beautiful pieces in the collection but the model looked so painfully thin that I didn't want to look at her arms anymore!

This collection is making me want to find all of my velvety things and wear them all at once, I might actually do that...

For more info and images, visit Yan To's website.

dMajuscule

2011-03-09T10:54:00.000Z

Beautifully draped and designed pieces that blur the line between feminine and masculine. Using masculine cuts and fabric but feminine draping and fit, dM/ (they use initials rather than names...) creates almost perfect garments.

Check out the website here for more info and images.

p.s. If anyone is around Preston tomorrow evening and fancy coming to an exhibition of our work, just drop me an email and I'll add you to the guestlist!

American Vintage

2011-03-03T20:26:00.002Z

(Jacket - American Vintage at The Dressing Room, T Shirt - Topshop, Jeans - Primark, Shoes - Office)

The lovely people over at The Dressing Room sent me over a little, grey, cotton jacket by American Vintage that is perfect for layering up or for when it's a little bit warmer...

American Vintage offer amazing quality basics, perfect for layering and putting together. They are a French brand that mix up uncomplicated basics with signature US stylings, I kind of wish my wardrobe was a little bit more full of things like this rather than the bursting at the seams wardrobe full of stuff I never wear that I have at the moment...

I also thought it would be a good excuse to show my face a bit more and I'm wearing jeans, I NEVER wear jeans!

p.s. My Ebay sale is nearing the end, have a gander and help me streamline my wardrobe!

Lilly Marthe Ebener

2011-03-03T07:00:00.001Z

I've become a little bit obsessed with imagining massive amounts of knitted things draped around myself in recent weeks, since my foray into massive snood-ing...

These are some of the most beautiful knitted pieces I've seen in a while, and are far cry from the usual hand knitted cardigans you see around the place. Only 100% natural Alpaca wool is used, making them look like the snuggliest things on Earth. As it says on the site; it's where the body ends and nature begins...

For more info and images, visit the website.

Today's Levitation

2011-03-02T07:00:00.000Z

Natsumi Hayashi lives in Tokyo, she has two cats and can levitate. Well... She can kind of levitate in photos anyway.

These are some of my favourite of her levitating self portraits from her blog Yowayowa. Go have a look at more, they're a bit good.

DIY: Massive Knitted Snood

2011-02-27T13:26:00.001Z

In my spare time I usually make things or draw, so I thought I'd share with you a super simple DIY! I knitted a massive snood last week and it's one of the comfiest things ever and so easy to make. It would be best if you could knit already but it's also great for beginners as it's just one big, long strip of continuous knitting without any difficult bits and it only uses the basic knit stitch.

For all of you who can't knit, there's plenty of good video tutorials online here at Hook and Needles or if you know someone who can knit, get them to show you how! You're always welcome at my house if you fancy some cake and some knitting!

What you will need

Knitting needles - I used size 10, the bigger they are the quicker it is!
Wool - 2 to 3 balls, I used chunky Sirdar wool, it was about £2.50 a ball.
A safety pin or large sewing needle
Enough films and bad TV to keep you occupied while you knit

Instructions

1. Cast on about 50 stitches depending on how wide you want your snood, mine is 50 stitches and is about half a metre wide, cast on less for a thinner one and more for a thicker one! Bear in mind that the more stitches you have, the longer it will take you, mine took me about 3 evenings but it's probably unnecessarily long is it's about 2 metres... Learn to cast on here if you can't already.

2. Knit using a basic knit stitch for as long as you want to, use another scarf or snood as a measure of how long you want it. Or do what I did and keep wrapping it round your neck until you reach your desired length! Learn to knit here if you can't already.

3. Once you've got as far as you want to, cast off (see here for help) leaving quite a long tail of wool still attached and it should leave you with a great big, long piece of knitting.

4. Use the long tail of wool to sew up the two ends, using either the safety pin or large needle. After you've done this, trim off any excess strands of wool and you should have yourself a lovely, comfy snood perfect for this chilly weather!

Good luck knitting! Hope you liked the tutorial, if you need any help or have any questions don't hesitate to ask me.

Also, if you can't be bothered to knit one, I was thinking of putting some in my defunct Blog Shop so just let me know if you're interested...

Life Laundry

2011-02-26T22:01:00.002Z

So, I got back from holiday (apologies for my absence by the way, I have been galavanting!) and felt the urge to get rid of everything I own, seeing as I was quite happy living out of a little bag for a week, having an entire wardrobe full of clothes I never wear seemed a bit silly...

So yes, there are lots of lovely shoes, clothes and jewellery ranging from Topshop to Tatty Devine! Including everything in the photos above of course. Help me clear out my wardrobe and get yourself something pretty here. Spread the word!

Visit the Tweet Ebay shop.

London Fashion Week Round Up

2011-02-22T07:00:00.000Z

Instead of giving you my half arsed version of shows that I missed at London Fashion Week, I thought I'd give you a round up of the best sources of LFW info. My first and favourite source is Fashion156 who, after working with them over LFW, I know work ridiculously hard to bring you the best and fastest show reports, interviews and street style.

Visit their new Collections page for show reports and blog for behind the scenes snippets.

Style.com is the classic 'go to' for any manner of Fashion Week info, super fast, super slick images and reports galore.

Visit Style.com for everything!

The Sketchbook blog, though rather sparse, has coverage of lesser known designers and behind the scenes info.

Visit their blog for more info.

Enjoy perusing through the LFW coverage, and I will be back on form next season!

London Fashion Week Day One

2011-02-18T21:18:00.001Z

Alas, I have had to miss out on London Fashion Week this year as it's my lovely niece's first birthday and the boy has booked us a cheeky holiday! But never fear, Mercedes Benz is here!

They will be emailing me exclusive videos of LFW interviews and shows for us not able to make it to LFW to live vicariously through!

Hope you enjoy.

Handwritten

2011-02-17T07:00:00.000Z

So, I've started a new blog, as a sort of uni project and sort of just because I wanted to. It's called Handwritten, It will be full of handwritten articles written by people you're used to seeing through a browser rather than in real life. I love seeing people's handwriting, it makes you that little bit closer to that person.

I'm looking forward to seeing everyone's contributions! If you fancy joining in, email me at showmeyourhandwriting@gmail.com

I'd love to know what you think about it, have a look at it here.

Lick My Legs

2011-02-16T07:00:00.000Z

I first wrote about Lick My Legs back in the early days of this blog, just about the time when I was starting to post fairy regularly (by that I mean more than once a month...) which you can read here if you want to!

But nothing much has changed, I'm still a Lick My Legs fan and they still do raunchy T-shirts... I pretty much love all of them, especially the last leggy one and the bracey guy... These images are from their S/S lookbook.

For more info and images, visit their website.

London Fashion Week Preview

2011-02-15T12:42:00.002Z

From top to bottom: Alice Palmer, Anja Mlakar, Georgia Hardinge, Hermione de Paula, Tze Goh, Matthew Miller and Maria Francesca Pepe all from Fashion156 LFW Preview issue

Instead of donning the heels and copious amounts of black for London Fashion Week this season, I'll be at home celebrating my beautiful niece's first birthday (she is truly a LFW baby...) and going on a little holiday with the lovely boy. Therefore I will have to live vicariously through all of you guys and the rest of the internet to get my LFW fix.

My first port of call is always Fashion156 who put together a LFW preview issue the week before LFW kicks off, giving us a sneak preview of up and coming designers featured in LFW. This season is no different, with some of my favourite designers (Hermione de Paula and Georgia Hardinge) making an appearance. I love that you can instantly see which designer is which just from their trademark design touches, Hermione de Paula's floral prints, Maria Francesca Pepe's hard edged jewellery and Alice Palmer delicate knitwear.

Make sure to follow Fashion156 through LFW as they will be reporting on every show, party, street style look and backstage gossip.

Have a look at their LFW Preview Issue here, make sure to watch the video shot on location at Somerset House here as well.

(p.s. It's also been pretty much a year since I started posting on here properly but I completely missed the anniversary so I shall have to do something to celebrate soon, perhaps a giveaway if you're good...)

Dan Mountford Double Exposure

2011-02-14T07:00:00.002Z

These are a few double exposure prints, taken by Dan Mountford. I'm a little bit in love with double exposure shots even if they're just by accident, but these are a little bit amazing, I especiallylove the one of the city scape on the back of a girls' head...

For more info, images and to buy prints visit his website.

Ooh, Happy Valentine's day too everybody!

Girl

2011-02-12T07:00:00.002Z

A short and sweet post today as I've got to rush off to work right about now... These photos are by Scott Stemberg for Band of Outsiders, showing Kirsten Dunst wandering around a botanical garden, having tea with an elephant and generally having a jolly nice time and looking delightful whilst doing it.

For more info and to buy the clothes, visit their website here.

Bravo Bravissimo

2011-02-10T07:00:00.002Z

I rarely ever do shop reviews, but when Bravissimo approached me and offered me a proper bra fitting I jumped at it. I have a, shall we say, rather ample bosom, and find it hard to find pretty yet supportive underwear so generally just end up wearing plain black over the shoulder boulder holders all the time. Any time I've tried to venture into more exciting lingerie (ie. colour or lace...) there s bound to be spillages...

Bravissimo offer supportive, pretty, well fitting underwear for women with D-KK cups, the majority of the styles are rather more mature than I would choose, but there is something for everyone. I picked out, with the help of the lovely Kat in the Manchester store, some black plunges, purple satin numbers and finally this leopard print set (which I can't seem to find online...) which tickled my fancy that you can see above.

I went in a 34D and came out a 32E/F... I couldn't believe the difference it makes, the proper support at the back lifts everything up to where it should be and the way it's shaped makes me look a dress size smaller, win and a half.

To any girlies out there with bigger boobs and an un-inspiring underwear drawer, I thoroughly recommend a trip to Bravissimo, the fitting is free and you don't have to buy anything unless you want to. You also get a little personalised size card with instructions how to check if your bra is fitting properly.

For more info and to find out where your nearest store is, visit their website.

The Beautiful and the Damned

2011-02-09T07:00:00.000Z

This is the new collection from Stylestalker, the design lovechild of Rachel Zeilic and Sue-Ann San, and I am a little bit in love with it...

The elegant shirts, the touches of leather, intricate lace and full skirts make this collection beautiful. With a slight sense of darkness, these pieces offer effortless style by the bucket load.

The collection is available to buy online here. For more info and images, visit their website.

p.s. You can see the video that accompanies the look book here.

April and Harry

2011-02-08T07:00:00.000Z

I first stumbled across April and Harry's work after falling a little bit in love with Norwegian Wood's S/S 2010 lookbook images.

In real life April and Harry are April Lea and Harry Huu, who work together to produce rather beautiful imagery. I've picked out a few of my favourites for you to peruse, but visit their website for a proper look! I love the eerie mood and beauty within each image, it makes me want to put on some massive heels and lounge around in the fog...

Love and Rivalry

2011-02-07T07:00:00.001Z

These pretty images have been taken by Anastasia Cazabon, they're part of a collection entitled Love and Rivalry and these are the nicer ones... I love the lighting and sense of prettiness about them.

For more info and images, visit her website.

Apologies for the lack in posting recently, I've been a busy little person flitting around the country but I've had a delightful weekend in Kent visiting mine and the boy's family, jolly nice times for all!

Bálint Rádóczy

2011-01-31T07:00:00.001Z

These images remind me of Spirograph drawings all over peoples' faces, this is damn good thing. These were created by Bálint Rádóczy, a photographer from Hungary. I always love photos with light effects, but I've never seen any this dramatic and colourful, I thoroughly enjoy them.

For more info and images, visit his online porfolio.

p.s. Thank you for filling out my survey, you are all wonderful!

Dear bloggers...

2011-01-27T15:25:00.000Z

Hello lovely bloggers, I'm currently researching for my final project at uni (nearly time to be a grown up, argh) and it would be wonderful if you could fill in a short survey for me. I will love you forever and you will assist me in getting a degree.

Please click here to go to the survey!

Playing in the snow

2011-01-25T14:44:00.000Z

A few weeks ago, when the snow was thick on the ground, my friend Henry called me up to see if I fancied playing around in the snow in pretty dresses with his film camera, obviously I do.

Because they are film photos it takes a while to develop so that's why it's taken a while to show them off! I like remembering the snow days though and Henry's photography is well worth taking a look at, have a look at his work here and here.

I'm wearing a dress my lovely friends gave me for my birthday and beautiful shoes from Daniel.

Pomestaymenyami

2011-01-23T07:00:00.000Z

Anyone who knows me will know I like simple, comfy clothes and Pomestaymenyami combines the two with a dash of art.

The brand describes itself as "an artistic label that functions as a performance", which is pretty much exactly what it is. The images are also very simple, with an eerie yet strangely romantic feeling to them. I enjoy.

For more info and images, visit the website.