Sunday 28 April 2013

A lesson in girl impressing and man repelling

How to girl impress/man repel...


Dungarees, £45, Asos


Hyper Cherries MK II, £320, Piers Atkinson

Givenchy tee, £380, Matches 



Céline mink shoes


There is no better past time of mine than man repelling, the art of dressing for one self and other women which oft results in the repelling of man repelling. I also find it is one of the greatest reasons for fashion and its existence, mostly for the reaction it garners off men and women. Girls are oft impressed by the most edgy and fashion forward looks a girl can rock, and boys are usually horrified/confused/repulsed/amused in equal measure. I love gaining such mixtures of reactions from boys, I find it totally hilarious. Especially when they laugh. Then I know I have completed my mission in dressing as randomly as is humanly possible. 

I never intended to be this kind of dresser, I just kind of dress for myself and tend to throw on whatever I want, or whatever is closest to hand. The only rule that I have is to NEVER match (unless of course I am attending a wedding/funeral/job interview) and that an element of said ensemble should seem a little 'off kilter' to help me create the desired effect. I only ever get compliments when I am in this mood of dressing of other girls and my gay husbands, and this suits me just fine. Oh, the odd hipster (straight) boy may rarely compliment too, and we may share tips on where to buy vintage and loafers. I enjoy being this way, I just love the element of the devil-may-care attitude and I like not caring what others think, why should I? Why should anyone? I hate this culture of the Best Dressed/Worst Dressed list bullshit, women's magazines should not have the audacity to dictate and judge on what they deem is acceptable for a woman to wear. I tend to prefer the Worst list anyway, it is always the really cool girls that end up on it, that have more courage to wear the standard 'tight dress/high heels/bouncy blow dry' formation that seems to be pimped by every stylist and hair and make up team the world over. 

Don't get me wrong there is a bad taste line that can be crossed and you can go from man repelling to child scaring, when you suspect this might be the case take something away or change completely. I don't think I have ever managed this feat of scary outfit but I have probably come quite close. Not that I'd notice, I'm too busy boy scaring which I find rather fun. I love a girl with courage, it is nothing but refreshing.

So with this in min 'Go Forth and Man Repel!' It's fun...




Thursday 25 April 2013

The Daily Perv



BI-CABAS IN PYTHON AND LAMBSKIN PEARL GREY

Here I present you with a shameless fashion perv from the Céline Summer leather goods collection... It was a hard choice I want nearly ALL of their hand bags on offer but I chose this because it is technically functional. Because it's a tote. And that is about it, because with it being a super pale shade of grey, and the bulk of it being python skin. Alas that is not the point of the fashion perv, this is all about shameless lusting over very un-functional marvellous pieces that were created simply to look fabulous.

I won't waffle anymore... This post is for perving only. So... HAPPY PERVING!!!!

image courtesy of www.celine.com

Saturday 20 April 2013

Kenzo x Vans










I am a Kenzo pervert. There I admitted it. I am also a secret fan of Vans... I only own one pair that I love and wear a lot in summer, but I am definitely going to have to extend my collection, for the skate brand of coice have done one hell of a cool collab with Kenzo. This is the first collaboration for the fashion house under the creative direction of Opening Ceremony founders Humberto Leon and Carol Lim. 

The pair are no strangers to the collaboration as the founders of Opening Ceremony, and have executed some amazing joint ventures, but convincing Vans (as well as New Era) to do some sexy business with them at Kenzo is pretty fabulous. The brand which is well known for it's heyday in the 70s has become the go-to for hipsters and fashion kids alike, with prices at the lower end of the designer price scale it is easily accessible and the tees, sweets, accessories and now Vans are at a price point that many can afford. For the collab with Vans they have used the overblown leopard print that they are fast making Kenzo known for to add a cute, cool and downright fabulous Vans collection. Don't get me wrong you probably won't see many of these at the skate park, but I am sure that every hipster, fashion editor and buyer worth their salt will be rocking these bad boys at the weekend. I for one want every single print!

The main reason I am oh so loving not only this little team up, but Kenzo as a whole is bcause they may not be dirt cheap, but this price point is making them not only commercially ready, but making such a covetable and on trend brand easier to afford. Most boys and girls can only dream of owning designer pieces, and spend months or even years saving for things but things like the Kenzo phone cases, New Era caps and now these Vans mean you can have a piece of the Japanese pie without bashing the plastic too hard.

I want every pair...


images kenzo.com

Friday 19 April 2013

Diary of a Lady part 3





blouse £14.99, H&M





jeans £9, Primark, customised by moi
first pair of Louby's, priceless





trousers, £36.99, Zara





shorts, £29.99, Zara
baggy shorts that make my legs look skinny, AWESOME!!!


Being heartbroken is a funny old thing, it does some strange things to you. As well as being the only one of my friends to lose 10lbs over Christmas, I lost the will to get dressed in the mornings. For someone so obsessed with all things fashion, style and god knows what else related this was a funny old feeling. Don't get me wrong, I in no way consider myself "cool/stylish/edgy/chic/good looking" but I like to think I can give good outfit and know my haute from my Primark. 

Despite this, after being extremely brave and plucking up the courage to walk away from a long term relationship (that meant the world to me, but simply wasn't working anymore) my heart being broken into a trillion sparkly red pieces meant that simply getting out of bed was a chore, so when it came to getting dressed I got terribly lazy. Despite losing weight I felt horrible, flabby and nothing short of repulsive. I got into a funk, and a habit of rotating leggings, oversized jumpers and anything I deemed comfortable that I could get my hands on. I just wanted to hide. Not only myself but my body as well. 
After a couple of months of crying, missing the boy and moping constantly, I emerged bleary eyed and awoke one morning feeling happy. Yes happy. After 2 months of no exercise (which if you know me is, well, weird) I rejoined the gym and decided to stop comfort eating or not eating at all and to sort myself out. I felt happy after all. I don't care what people say, leaving someone hurts the same as the one being left, and I have gone through a roller coaster of emotions and being predominantly miserable.
So after coming through feeling rather fabulous I decided enough was enough. I look like a lady, and now had to start dressing like one. Not a homeless person. I haven't been the most girly in the past, but I wanted to celebrate myself a little bit better. I'm no Karlie Kloss but I don't look too terrible. Also I have decided to start wearing more clothes that fit, and things that look less like maternity wear. So I decided as well as using most of what I already have, I have decided to make a few additions after getting paid. Yes, yes I know it is all from two places but I'm no Rockefeller and they are two of my favourite shopping haunts. I hope you like what I picked up and there will be more to come in my quest to be a lady.

As well as my sartorial overhaul I decided to make a drastic image change as well, and have gone back to my straight locks after a while rocking my afro. I think a lot of it had to with the ex loving my hair curly over straight, and the fact I just wanted to look totally different to me of recent times. I admit I am loving it, and people freaking out has been quite fun. I have mainly loved it being a part of the brave, new me. The new me who is making 2013 her year, and using this new found happiness to take on my career and give it a kick start. Hopefully this time next year the transformation will be complete. I will keep you posted...

PS. Sorry the posting halted, I needed some time to disappear and motivate myself, oh and stop crying over a boy! Thank you to all those who read the blog and support me...


Thursday 18 April 2013

New Girl...






I've spent the best part of four months nursing a broken heart and trying rebuild my little life after spliyting with a boy that I lived with, it turned my world upside down and then some...

It is only in the past few weeks that I have started to feel marginally human again and felt ready to face the world. After losing a little weight and making a rather drastic image change... I am wearing the afro straight again... I needed to do something drastic with myself because after feeling like the world was ending. I wanted to look totally different in order for the new me to face the world. I have been showered in compliments and had friends find me unrecognisable. As well as this I vowed to carry on with my 'lady' transformation and have been indulging in regular hair cuts and eyebrow threading, teaching myself to use curling irons, lavishing expensive skin and hair care on myself, and I am planning to add gel nails and bikini waxing to the agenda. One day I WILL get to the stage of never washing my own hair but I am SO not rich enough. 

As well as this I am working on the potty mouth and have been investing in more fitted clothes and generally trying to be as lady as possible. The biggest change that I wanted to implement was sorting out my little life and developing my career path into something fashion-y and that I am obsessed with, not just flogging clothes to the rich. This week the flatmate and I were faced with the dilemma of our landlord selling our home and us having until July, or until it is sold thereafter to find a new gaff. After much soul searching and idea planting I have decided a HUGE change is afoot... I was planning on disappearing to London towards the end of the year, but what with all this flat selling malarkey I have decided to do something out of my comfort zone and take a big fat risk... I'm going in July!!!

I have been dreaming of this for years, and wish I had been braver sooner, so I am off to a new city. A new career. A new girl. Recently I have been feeling happier, more confident and much more bold so I think this will suit this new girl. Don't get me wrong... I am shitting myself. But I am ecstatic. I may only be doing something shop related at first, but I have high hopes and think only fun, magical and big things are on my little horizon. Plus only great things can happen with my blog down there, mostly in terms of zillions of wonderful folk to document and share with you.

Wish me luck...

Wednesday 17 April 2013

öff beat live ft. Shoreditch Fashion Show 2013












So... thanks to a fabulous little illustrator friend of mine (called Dominic Evans more of him later) I have been invited to exhibit 4 of my illustrations at an event as part of the öff beat collective. The event is a festival based in Shoreditch to celebrate designers, illustrators, and artists with some cool live music thrown in... the event is based at the cool warehouse space Hoxton Docks and is in conjunction with Vivid Rocks and Made in Shoreditch.

The event is curated by OffBeat who are well known for their immersive events, Vivid Rocks and Made in Shoreditch magazine, who celebrate all things cool, influential and creative in the area. There will be over 100 brands and industry folk in attendance, which is REALLY exciting because my work will be exposed to this. It is an amazing opportunity and I am SOOOOO unbelievably to my amazingly talented friend Dominic who got me involved and convinced OffBeat to include me. The fashion show will be the main event, with guests such as Eliza Doolittle, Oliver Proudlock and Mischa Barton attending to bring some high profile glamour to the proceedings. It is on 27th April and you can get tickets on the OffBeat site listed below... Now you ALLLLL need to go and check out my friend Dom's blog. He's a hugely talented illustrator and he is totally worth a peek!!!

Thanks to...
http://off-beat.co/offbeatlive-2/
www.domandink.blogspot.co.uk


Tuesday 9 April 2013

J Crew x Liberty








Quick!!! J Crew is coming!!! The arrival of the J Crew flagship store in London, as well as the fact they now ship here has been muchly anticipated by fashion girls in the know... To celebrate it arriving in the UK the brand has collaborated with Liberty, the quintessentially British department store, and used some of it's archive florals and paisleys to create a capsule collection that is so J Crew it hurts. 

WHY ALL THE EXCITEMENT??? Some of you may be thinking, well you only have to take a look at the Creative Director Jenna Lyons, or have a little browse on the site to understand, the brand has become the go-to for fashion conscious and chic women across the pond, especially in New York where their first store opened back in '88. 
To put it simply, J Crew does quality, well made casual wear the won't break the bank, in a day and age where women aren't shy of splashing out on designer pieces, shoes and handbags not all of us can afford to wear couture everyday. This is where J Crew steps in... It is cool, chic but not too 'fashion' which I think will suit a lot of UK consumers. It makes getting dressed easy and something you don't have to think to hard about...

So like I said, to celebrate their store and the site shipping to the UK now they have collaborated with Liberty, a brand that EVERYONE wants to work with and it is a cute way of appealing to us Brit girls that might not be in the know about J Crew... I have picked a few of my little faves from what has been done so far... I want the pyjamas, but I would wear them out for an evening with some killer heels and a slouchy leather jacket... a little oversized and with the bottoms rolled up at the hem...