What’s All The Fuss About?

Think I’m gonna make this a semi regular thing were I blog about people and/or brands that I just don’t understand what the big deal is about them.

First up is Alexa Chung

Sure she’s pretty in an indie English rose kind of way but does she really warrant Style icon status?

She presented various shows on Channel 4 and seemed to be famous for dating cool indie band guys here in the UK before heading over to the States.

Her style is rather off putting to me – it’s all tiny shorts and oversized jackets, she very rarely looks “polished”. Even at red carpet events she still looks a bit scruffy to me!

It’s not that I dislike her but I just don’t understand why so many people rave about her fashion sense. And yes of course I am jealous of her having a Mulberry bag named after her but what sane woman wouldn’t want that???

Am I the only person not enthralled with Alexa Chung and her Style Icon status?? Would like to hear from like-minded peoples! Or even if you are a fan, tell me why   

<3

 

Expanding My Horizons

It’s shocking that as a fashion blogger I tend to stick to the high street when buying clothes/footwear/accessories especially when I do come across websites selling gorgeous products. My problem is that when I do have money to spend it burns a hole in my pocket and I want to go out and spend it instantly which usually means a trip into town and funding the high street instead of supporting smaller stores and boutiques. To rectify this situation I’ll be picking one website a week and showing you what I’m coveting.

First up: Not On The High Street

There are hundreds of different items but the accessories and homewares are my favourite. They offer a HUGE range of personalised goods as well which would make ideal wedding gifts. The clothing ranges are also gorgeous and Not On The High Street very kindly gifted me this Rise dress which I shall post photos of very soon.

£2.85 Each

How adorable are these lil polka dot birds??? They also come in blue and could be used anywhere in the house really.

£12.99

This rather sweet photo frame could be a great gift idea – I could give this to friends or my sister or as an engagement present etc

£19

I want. ‘Nuff said.

£14.95

Another great gift idea, there is also various different cards/necklaces for different occasions in life.

£25

A personalised Kindle cover would make a very thoughtful gift for someone. If I didn’t use my vintage leather envelope as a Kindle cover I’d have wanted one of these.

£55

Such a sweet dress, I REALLY like this one.

£70

This 50s style dress would be a real wardrobe staple for me.

£140

I’ve been after be a pair of cashmere leggings for about 4 years now but alas my budget just stretches to a lemonade rather than a champagne lifestyle. Still i can dream about owning these one day.

So what are you waiting for??? Go and check out the website, it’s excellent for gifts for your nearest and dearest but there’s also LOADS I want

What’s the Point?

I don’t really have time to write this but following a verbal attack by a seller on Etsy I am now raging and need to vent!

As a fairly new fashion blogger I am constantly trying to think up ways to generate more views/followers and thought about a giveaway for you lovely readers. I contacted a couple of different sellers on Etsy and enquired about perhaps being gifted an item in exchange for a blog post on their products. I know this may not be the conventional way but as I have said before, I AM A NEW BLOGGER. I am a supporter of handmade products and have bought items from various different sellers on Etsy before.

Now my problem is should I name and shame said person who verbally attacked me? I’ve thought about it long and hard and decided that I’m not going to as I wouldn’t want to direct any people her way . This woman clearly doesn’t appreciate the influence that bloggers can have on brands and making purchases.

The woman sells her handmade jewellery on Etsy and replied to my enquiry with this “A blog. and you want FREE JEWELRY thats a joke ! NO thanks! get a real job”. Lovely! I replied saying that the blog is a hobby for me and that I do have a real job (albeit part time). I was then told that I was trying to “scam” her and that she had reported me to Etsy. The woman then scorned the amount of followers I have and accused me of scamming hardworking people. In my opinion I was hoping for it to be a win-win situation – I’d have a giveaway for my readers and hopefully you readers in turn would have checked out this seller’s products and perhaps purchase from her. Does that sound like a scam?? While I may not have thousands of followers I appreciate every single one that I have and followers do not equate to views – in March of this year I had over 2000 views on the blog. The woman could have simply replied with a simple thanks but no thanks or even not bother replying if she felt that strongly about it and I did say this to her. She then accused me of trying to steal from her, by this point my blood was boiling and I told the woman she was a rude, small person. Imagine my astonishment to be told “It is apparent from your photos you are far from a SMALL person”. Words fail me.

I have since reported her to Etsy. There is nothing I can do now about it but it is my first negative interaction with someone due to the blog and it really has affected me. I have been called a fat, thieving scammer because of a simple enquiry. At least my views for the blog today are quite high as the woman clearly had a good scout around it several times

Was I in the wrong? Have I approached potential giveaways in the wrong way?

I would love to hear opinions on the matter.

Lust Worthy Handbag

Just a quick post today.

A couple of weeks ago I was eyeing up the handbags in TK Maxx and came across the PERFECT tan bag, unfortunately the price wasn’t so perfect as I had birthdays to buy for/debt to pay off etc etc

Osprey £54.99

That’s right an Osprey bag for under 55 quid. The colour would go with a gazillion of my outfits and the shape is classic. Alas because it’s being sold in TK MAXX the chances of it still being there when I do have the money to buy it are slim to none unless any of you lovely people out there wanna buy it for me???? Nah didn’t think so but it was worth a try :p

The Perfect Blazer

Ok so usually despite whatever else I’m wearing I always feel “polished” in a blazer. It really is the perfect jacket – dress up skinny jeans and heels, matches dresses and skirts. My favourite blazer is a basic black number I picked up from H+M about 2 years ago and I’m not ashamed to say I’ve worn it to death. For spring/summer I feel I need a lighter coloured blazer but that seems to be easier said than found! Because of my (ahem) bigger bust I need it to be single breasted, preferably only one button and since my budget is almost none existent it most be cheapish. Also I really don’t like jersey blazers.

I’ve had a look around and this is what I’ve found so far and I’ve broken it down to what I can afford, what would skint me and what I’d have to take out a bank loan for:

Within My Budget

Label Lab at House of Fraser £75

This is actually a bit above my budget but think it’s really rather close to what I’m looking for and think it would give me a nice shape.

Dorothy Perkins £35

 Liking the shape of this and the colour is pretty much ideal, this could possibly be THE blazer

The Stellar Boutique £36

 Not technically a blazer but would suffice. I really like the studding detail

UNIQLO £49.90

I know I said that jersey blazers were a no-no but this is more structured than any other jersey ones I’ve seen.

Vero Moda £36

2 buttons instead of 1 but this is lovely.

Zara £49.99

Zara blazers last a lifetime so this could be worn year after year.

Zara £39.99

In the picture this looks like it could be exactly what I’m looking for. I was in Zara the other day but didn’t see it, may have to track it down.

Could Buy And Not Eat All Month

Bailey at Zalando £120

Aw man I wish I could own this!

DAY Birger et Mikkelsen £239

A bit darker than what I need but ever so lush

HUGO at StyleBop £286

The colour would go with everything.

Reiss £119

Would add a touch of polish to any outfit.

The Kooples £185

The most decorative of all the blazers featured, the lace is lovely.

Bank Loan

Alexander McQueen £1195

Beautifully made, who wouldn’t want to own this????

Ralph Lauren £1008

Gorgeous!

MAISON MARTIN MARGIELA £930

Oh wow what I would give to own this!

What do you think? What blazer should I buy?

A Rare Morning

Yesterday morning I spent an hour or so wandering around Harvey Nicks with my bestest (and fellow crazy) Yvonne. Even walking up to the store, we felt at peace and were able to ignore the atrocious road works which have plagued Edinburgh for faaaaaaaaaaaaaar too long. Our first stop was the MAC counter, however we were both disappointed by the current offerings. Yvonne has more MAC products than anybody I know, in fact she could probably open her own concession. I also spent a fair amount of time admiring the Alexander McQueen scarves whilst wearing my own Alexander McQueen scarf.

So onto the pretty things I saw and wanted:

I NEED this Jimmy Choo bag in my life, I do, I NEED it! Not to go all Becky Bloomwood on ya but my life actually would be much better if this bag belonged to me. Unfortunately the fact that it costs over £500 hinders me greatly from buying it. I clapped the bag for so long (that’s right I clapped it in the middle of the store) that I thought the sales assistant was going to call security on me.

Of course the Christian Louboutin’s had to be admired.

Unfortunately my phone died so couldn’t take any more pics

Yvonne wanted these stunning Louboutin’s but I’m sure she’d be arrested one day for using them as a weapon!

If you’d read my post here you will know how I feel about Topshop. Yvonne seems to shop only in Topshop and River Island so I was dragged into the Princes Street branch of Topshop. I found one dress in the entire store that I thought my flatter, and more importantly, fit me.

However the dress was awful on me and just reinforced my opinion that Topshop is only suitable for skinny minnies.

We concluded our trip by a quick visit to McDonald’s – such classy burds!

All in all I really enjoyed my morning of lusting after items I can’t afford.

Who’s A Spoilt Little Bitch?!

Very quick post – just wanted to show off what my wonderful Momma bought me for Easter:

That’s right I got me a genuine Alexander McQueen scarf!

Beyond excited, am probably never going to take this off. The photos aren’t of the greatest quality but too busy doing family things to pose for proper pics.

My mum has always bought me clothes/accessories instead of an easter egg but she really has outdone herself this year. So glad that she bought me the black silk one as it’s timeless and will go with everything.

Anybody get anything exciting for Easter?

Wouldn’t It Be Lovely…..

Rather different for me to blog about such a subject but it’s been on my mind and watching classic old movies in bed when feeling sorry for myself hasn’t helped.

Why can’t life and especially love, be more like it was in old movies? You know when the complications didn’t matter when it came to falling in love? When a kiss meant marriage – not that I’m all for that but the whole idea of seeing someone and instantly knowing you are going to marry them. It never mattered that if  one of the main characters was attracted to someone else as soon as the other main character enters you just know they will end up together. Why can’t it be like that nowadays? Does this still happen or am I being too cynical and bitter about the whole luuuuuurve thing?! Why do we have to contend with women generally being perceived as pushy in relationships and wanting more committment than men or even before that stage when you like someone but you don’t know if they like you etc etc.

Take one of my favouritest films in the world, Calamity Jane, my cousin and I went through a stage of watching this movie EVERY single day for about 4 months. Even now if I’m ill it’s still my go-to movie to make me feel better. For those unfortunate souls who have never seen the film (why not?? you deprived person you) Doris Day plays a tomboy who thinks she loves some lieutenant, eventually she realises she’s actually in love with local bad ass who constantly winds her up. She then sings a soppy love song (which by the way I still know all the words to), they kiss then get married.

In My Fair Lady after the Ascot scene where Eliza Doolittle attempts to act as a lady, some poor schmuck is so besotted with her after meeting her for the first time he stands outside her house singing a ballad. I’m not for one second suggesting I would like a random man to do this for me, I’d be more likely to call the police and get him ASBO’d but you catch my drift. Where has the romance gone??? Am I silly for wanting t believe a love like that exists?? I know these are examples from movies but surely somewhere out there some guy is eager to demonstrate his love to a woman in such a heartfelt way??

Have these films damaged my belief and view of love?

Should I just embrace the current dating etiquette?

Am I just being a romantic fool who has clearly watched too many old films recently?

I’d love to hear your thoughts on the subject. Oooh and I promise normal service to the blog will resume shortly!

Rediscovering An Old Favourite

We all go through stages where we change are favourites stores/brands but what happens when you forget about an old favourite? This happened to me with Zara – several years ago my staple dresses were all purchased in Zara but then I went through a little spell of not liking the stock and thought the pricing had increased rather rapidly. When visiting the stores I frequently wandered around, nothing catching my eye. It has been several years since I’ve bought anything from the Spanish company however since adoring their Christmas windows I’ve come back to liking the products.

On the website right now the latest trends are catered for as well as wardrobe staples.

£35.99

Peter pan collar AND a bird print = win win

£39.99

Gorgeous lemon lace skirt which I’d wear with a mint tshirt

£39.99

I <3 this shirt, the collar is gorgeous

£79.99

This sequinned skirt reminds me of the infamous All Saints skirt that I lusted after

£29.99

Not embellished but more in my price range!

£39.99

I’d pair this with a hot pink blouse

£59.99

What a gorgeous print on this blazer

£29.99

The length of this pencil skirt is much easier to wear than a midi

£39.99

I want these but unfortunately they don’t have them in my size

£39.99

As you can see I’m lusting after the dark florals BIG time

£49.99

These wedges would last a lifetime and go with practically all outfits

£79.99

This suede fringed bag is stunning!

What do you think of Zara? Have you recently rediscovered any of favourite stores?

Lace Lovelies for Spring

No matter the latest trends are, I always feel lace feels fresh for Spring and with the sorbet shades being “IN” right now it’s about time to combine the two:

ASOS £45

Boohoo £20

Dorothy Perkins £30

Lilli London £24.95

Miso @ Republic £18

The conventional cream and nude shades are still popular though and personally my favourite

Boohoo £20

Chelsea Girl £30

Dorothy Perkins £26

Forever 21 £11.50

Matalan £12

Oasis £55

River Island £25

River Island £40

Urban Outfitters £40

What Spring/Summer trends are you excited about??