(6) - Keep it cool, Keep it warm

Scarf - Liberty for Comic Relief
Seriously loving this scarf, buy yours here
Also, Comic Relief T-Shirts here. I got Queenie.

Busyish day today. I went to the gym this morning with Mr Good and then had lunch in a supermarket cafe (his choice). Then home and cleaning out the rabbit shed.

You know, I love America's Next Top Model. Seriously, love it. I've seen every cycle. And every cycle there is at least one girl that gets criticised for 'forgetting her face' - her poses are great, but her face is vacant. Every single cycle I've been like "WTF dude?? Just look at the camera all serious! How hard can it be?"

Seriously, why am I so stupid at taking pictures of myself? Here's my process;

1. Turn on crappy camera. Put on anti-shake, flash and self-timer mode.
2. Balance camera precariously on something. Step tentatively back.
3. Realise camera will definitely fall. Move it to somewhere more solid.
4. Press shutter button to begin 10 second beeping countdown.
5. Rush back to the agreed* photograph area.
6. Arrange body into casual/hopefully non-awkward stance.
7. Wait for camera to take photo.
8. Watch flash.
9. Realise did not do anything with my face in the photo.
10. Review photo. Be disappointed in my face. BAD FACE

Seriously, man, it's hard.

That aside though.

I bought some new wellington boots from the supermarket, they were only £12.50 and they're really comfy. They're a softer rubber then my old ones, and have more of a Hunter-esque molded foot, as opposed to old-fashioned boot-style wellingtons. I decided to take Darcy for a muddy walk to test them out. I took my camera and got a few pictures of myself enjoying the cold weather.



Waterproof Coat - Marks and Spencers (Similar)
Wellingtons - Asda

I adore these wellies. I had a proper squelch in the mud while Darcy minced around it, not wanting to get her feet wet. I think I might get some pink rhinestones and bedazzle them a bit, just on a couple of the swallows perhaps.


Pretty dubious accessory choice but I always do this so I leave my pockets free.
Lead, worn as belt - Jollyes (always a good selection, this particular number was on sale!)



Ear muffs - Christmas present, so ask Santa ;)
Scarf - $5 from a guy on the street in New York


What do you think? Should I bedazzle my wellies? What do you think of my practical, dog-walking look?

(5) Manchester Presents...

Today I went to Manchester with Miss J to get a present from Miss H, whom I'm soon to visit in Germany.

I enjoyed playing with patterns today, wearing lace and florals together. I think it was subtle and worked well. I was originally going to introduce another texture to the outfit by wearing my leather jacket and converse pumps with this outfit, but as it happened the weather disagreed. I ended up wearing my boots and my mum's mac from about 1993.



Coat - Marks and Spencer (Vintage)



Out of my hatred for paying £10 for parking in the city, we got the train in, checked Primark for what I needed to buy later and then went along to TK Maxx to buy some Red Nose Day merchandise (it's for charideee).

Edmund Blackadder ♥

We had lunch and then went to Selfridges. I bought a couple of bits from the groceries section, got myself a yellow bag and then headed for the beauty counters. Since reading this post I've really wanted to try Benefit's newest blusher Bella Bamba I asked Miss Benefit Counter about it and she gave me a quick demo. She first used Hoola to warm up my face, put Bella Bamba on the apples of my cheeks and then finished with Girl Meets Pearl (couldn't find GMP on UK site... odd) to highlight my cheek bones and eye area.



Chubby face - Nature and Nurture
Paloma Heart Necklace - Tiffany and Co
Pearl Necklace - Grandmother's
Scarf - Liberty for Comic Relief

Even though the flash has washed me out a little in the above photo, I definitely think that the blusher stands up to its claim that it creates the illusion of sculpted features. Bella Bamba was a really pretty colour on the cheeks and Hoola is a gorgeous bronzer that I definitely want to try again; it's so rare to find a bronzer that is neither glittery nor orangey!

I then made Miss J embarrassed by insisting on painting each of my nails a different colour using the testers at the Nails Inc counter.



Shades L-R - Shoreditch, In Style London Sky, The Hurlingham,
Montpelier Square (metallic), Neal Street (matte), Chinatown, Union Street (matte),
Seven Dials, Belgrave Place, Carnaby Street



I've used a lot of Nails Inc products before but I had a lot of fun just playing at picking up bottles at random. Even though I only managed to splat on a quick, single coat I got surprisingly good coverage. I'm really impressed with all of the colours here except The Hurlingham, which is an orange red which just doesn't really suit my skin tone. I was really excited by both of the matte colours, as this is a look I haven't tried before. I really want to invest in Shoreditch, which is a true Barbie pink, Carnaby Street (a totally fitting bright yellow) and London Sky.

I picked up the presents I need to buy and after all this our feet were getting to that stage so Miss J and I headed home as soon as I was finished photographing her Jack Wills bag.

I also went to Afflecks Palace for the first time in about two years time, I'll post a follow up about that later.

Tights and Storage Geeks...

I bought this chest from Wilkinsons the other day (the last day of January, to be precise, it was a mini spending-spree binge before the fast that is Frugal Feb) and when I got it home I struggled to justify purchasing it for a while.

It's the sort of thing that would be perfect for housing my make-up, but I recently organised all of my beauty stuff into some mini-drawers I got from http://www.boots.com/en/Sanctuary/ filled with goodies, so I had to think of something else.

Then I remembered seeing this picture on Kendi Everyday and I was inspired to do this...

That's right! Tights storage! Previously my tights had existed in a wardrobe no-mans land, some pairs languishing in my pants drawer, some stuffed in my socks drawer. It would not do.

I tried to organise them as nicely as possible, with no blacks touching, but that's gone out of the window over the past couple of days as I've been wearing my colourful pairs.

Also, this is not all of my tights, just the colourful/patterned ones. So the black ones are, actually, still homeless. So now I need to make a decision once and for all; are they socks, or are they pants???

(4) Errands & Welcome Home Cardigan!

Tights: Dorothy Perkins
DP are fab for tights, great selection of colours and a really nice velvet, opaque feel.

Bit of a lazy day today, just running errands with Darcy, so I had to be comfortable. First thing this morning I checked the post and found that my uncle had posted my floral cardigan to me so I was so excited I had to include it in my outfit straight away, so I worked down from that. The boots are really comfortable and grippy so they were good for conducting myself properly while the dog pulled on the lead, whereas the skirt is a stretchy, jersey number so very comfy.

The top I actually bought last summer, it's a really nice cotton with a bit of embroidery on it. The hems are sewn with purple thread so I was tempted to wear my purple pumps, but they aren't quite so useful for dog management and I wasn't quite sure about the red tights/purple combo - is that something anybody else would try?

I let my hair dry naturally too today, so it was quite wavy and bushy (thin Hermione in the first few films) but I quite like it wild. I kept my makeup basic too, although I did wear on of Urban Decay's lipsticks in the shade Buzzkill. I also have two sticks of Lovechild from UD. I love their lipsticks; gorgeous colours, easy to apply and really moisturising, they feel like a balm and yet deliver fantastic colour.

Also it's Darcy's birthday tomorrow so I went and bought her a few presents. She's settled into her haircut, but I'm not sure if I have quite yet; she looks very different! Still very cuddly though :)



I love Darcy's collar, it was a hand-me-down from her big brother. It's patterned with red, yellow,
green and blue hearts so we matched today.

Close up hair and necklace, which I bought in France whilst
skiing about 3 years ago.

(2) Working the 60's

I was in work today so I had to wear black and white.

Sorry about the fuzziness/bad lighting; I was in the office/stockroom while the photographer was in the toilet/locker room.

I quite like wearing white tights instead of black for work. It really lifts the whole look.

Also I've only realised from seeing these photos how much you can see my bra through this blouse. Cami next time.

Have got my Bumpit in again and my hair half-pulled back. Big on top + Half back = Country and Western Singer to me, for some reason. A colleague said I looked very sixties though so that's nice.

I also wore my Laura Ashley knitted blazer for travelling and these photos in the garden.



Darcy decided chasing was more fun than photos



Windy today, so cold even though the celcius is up.

Fringe needs trimming. A bit too Claudia Winkleman for my liking.
I love this brooch; it makes this jacket look really Austrian.

Just realised I have to leave for the gym in like thirty minutes to make it to my aerobics class. I am so tired :(

(1) Lunch Date

Went to have lunch at a secret location today with my best friend. I got him to snap this picture just as we were leaving. It was taken at about 2pm and yet look how long the shadows are! Definitely still winter.

Ideally I would have worn my floral cardigan with this outfit instead of the jumper, but I realised today that I don't know where it is! It's either been left at my uncle's house or it's properly lost, in which case I will swap in another cardigan.

I ended up folding the jumper under and wearing a knotted belt over it so it was on my waist, not my hips (which made me look square and a lot wider).

Here are a few more awkwardly-taken self-shots.



Quickly taken in the garden to show detail on
back of skirt and vest - brr!



Believe it or not this is third-day dirty hair, thrown
up using dry shampoo and some nifty JML bits



 Kept the styling pretty simple today; black tights, grey scarf, Ray-Bans and a grey handbag. Not sure how successful the jumper alteration was, it looked alright in the mirror, like it defined my waist a bit, but not so much in the photos. Hmm.

My hair took literally a minute to do using one of these and one of these, both of which I got for cheaps from Wilkinsons. JML videos seriously make my day, I love when they are showing the alternative to their products when people are going made, like acting as if their bulldog clip is injuring them or frantically hitting a carrot with a knife.

My 30 for 30 Selections

So I'm starting my 30 for 30 wardrobe remix today, and have only just finished my selections due to my ridiculous amount of laundry. I'm actually going to spend most of tomorrow finishing washing and ironing my clothes so I don't end up actually doing a 17 for 30 remix, as the rest is lost in the laundry bureaucracy of my house.

Also my camera batteries aren't charged and, as I said, a few bits are still soggy/in the wash so I thought "Hey! I can't be bothered photographing 30 items of clothing, so why don't I DRAW THEM INSTEAD?? GENIUS!"

An hour and a half and a very cramped hand later, here we are...

Pussy-bow Blouse - Peacocks
Cotton Top - Asda
Cape Blouse - Next
3 Basic Vests - Jack Wills
 Long Sleeved T - M&S
Tunic - Top Shop
Lace Top - Asda



LBD - Next
Maxi - Dorothy Perkins
Floral - New Look



Pleated - ???
Cotton Black - Dorothy Perkins
Jersey Black - M&S
Tulip - Oasis



Leggings - Dorothy Perkins
Skinny Jeans - Asda
Jodhpurs - Next
Bootcut Jeans - GAP



Jumper - M&S
Floral Cardigan - Florence and Fred
Long Jumper - Red Herring
Knitted Blazer - Laura Ashley
Leather Jacket - TK Maxx



Wedge Desert Boots - New Look
Suede Courts - New Look
Leather Boots - M&S
Trainers - Converse
Pumps - Dorothy Perkins


So that's it! That's what I'll be wearing for the next 30 days! I'll put photos up of myself for each day and then you can attempt to match what I'm wearing to my dubious illustrations.

Fresh February

I'm currently in the process of what I call 'Sorting Out My Life'. I am reliably informed that this is commonly referred to as 'Growing Up' by people in some circles, but I will not subscribe to this nonsense.

In order to do this I am doing some boring money-ish things, but I'm also doing some exciting-ish things such as;

1. Re-decorating my bedroom
2. Getting rid of old stuff
3. Not buying ridiculous disposable fashion
4. Sorting out my bloody wardobe.

In order to do this I've decided to have a bit of a Fresh February and to help me along I am doing a couple of challenges I've found on other blogs.

For starters, I am doing Shoeperwoman's Shoeper Shoe Challenge. It starts on the 14th of February and lasts for one year. The idea is to count up all of your shoes and wear every single pair before the 14th of February 2012. Every. Single. Pair.

Oh my. The point it that if you haven't worn a pair after a year then you throw it away; use it or lose it!






I'm also going to blog along with Kendi as I do the 30 for 30 Challenge. She has done this several times as a way of Remixing her wardrobe and I think it's a brilliant idea! The rules are;

1. Pick 30 items from your wardobe (not incl. accessories ie; gloves, scarves, necklaces, hats).
2. Style them into 30 different outfits over 30 days.
3. Do not shop for 30 days.

  
I'm so excited to give this a try. I recently organised all of my laundry and I had seven loads of washing. SEVEN. That is RIDICULOUS. I think that after 30 days of not wearing certain items I'll be able to make much more rational decisions regarding getting rid of old clothes ("If I've gone without it for 30 days and had forgotten it existed...."). So I'll be starting that on Tuesday the 1st of February and blogging my outfits. I'm hoping I'll be a little more imaginative with my styling as I'll have much fewer pieces to work with.

I've also noticed that Gemma of Big Girls Browse is having a Frugal February and not spending on non-essential items for a month. I think this is a good idea that I will try and stick to as much as possible (avoid the stationary... it's like crack to me), probably excluding my trip to Tuebingen to visit Miss H. I won't be buying clothes anyway for the 30 for 30 Challenge so hopefully it'll be easier, and much kinder on my pathetic bank account. She's now posted a few more detailed 'rules', click the button to see them!




So that's it for now, all that's left to do is do it, really. I'll be posting photos irritatingly often from now on, probably. Oh my.

Amazing Crafters - Jewellery

It might seem a little ridiculous to be posting this right after advertising my own crafty store but I've only just got out all the business cards I collected from the Arts Festival held in Edinburgh during August.

http://www.eclecticshock.net/

This seller would have literally had no stock left if my bank balance had been a bit more full! The most incredibly chunky, bright and delightfully eclectic charm bracelets and necklaces I've ever seen. Truly unique pieces.

They also offer a really interesting service called 'Revive Your Jewels', where they take your old pieces of jewelry and use them to create new charm bracelets and necklaces. I think this is an amazing idea if you have any random pieces that you've inherited or found in a charity shop or antiques market that you aren't sure how to wear or use.

http://www.jollygoodstudio.co.uk/

My favourite bits on this stall were the jewellery made from Scrabble tiles and dominoes; as a domino enthusiast this genuinely made me so excited!

I've since had a nose around her site and found they also make t-shirts, bags, a whole variety of crafty bits and bobs. The lady behind it all also blogs quite often, updates about her life, crafting and ideas.

I also found her link to a post about her Edinburgh here and was reminded of how much I loved her area! It has been transformed from an emotionless, empty stall area to a pretty little haven full of quirky patterns and beautiful jewels. The third picture down made me so excited too; I had forgotten about the framed fabric letters/words. I think they're so incredibly simple but I can imagine that having one would create a really kitschy and quirky feel in a room or area. The post mentions that she takes commissions, so I think that'll be going on my birthday list...

http://www.samesamejewellery.co.uk/

Really affordable site (they're having a particularly fabulous sale at the moment) selling great chunky rings, cameo bangles and sterling silver pieces made from a combination of new and vintage charms. Pieces that vary from elegant and traditional cocktail pieces to more quirky bits and bobs

http://www.kimbarelly.etsy.com/

Gorgeous snapshot necklaces and unique, geometric brooches and earrings made from wood and various charity shop finds

Temporary Tattoos

I loved temporary tattoos when I was little. I liked the ones you got free with magazines and those ones that you got in those plastic eggs from the turny clicky machines. I particularly remember the summer of 2000 being a particularly big time for them. In fact, I remember Miss H having a really hilarious tan because;


a) she had broken her left arm from doing three cartwheels in a row (show off) and had a cast to above the elbow,
b) she had a temporary tattoo on the top of her arm of Bart Simpson, which eventually came off, leaving a wonky, Bart Simpson shaped pale spot.


I'm older now and I still love tattoos. I love the rockabilly girls who have full sleeves, chests, legs, the lot. I worked with Miss D over Christmas and she's spent thousands on getting inked over the years and I think she looks incredible; unique, exotic and exciting.

I've sometimes thought about getting more tattoos (I currently have two small symbols on my arm and foot) but I don't want to make the committment. I don't regret the tattoos I currently have, nor do I agree with the 'Oooh you'll regret it when you're older' tribe, because I got them both because they were meaningful and marked a moment in my life. To be honest, when I'm older all the other people of my generation will be older too. If anything, when I'm fifty most people in their twenties will probably be completely clear skinned and piercing free, such will be their embarrassment at their parents' over-decorated limbs.

However, I'm still pretty conservative. I know that having tattoos can effect peoples' opinions of you, including people such as potential employers, and I'm rather traditional in thinking that an elegant ball gown loses some of it's sophistication if there's a sleeve of tattoos coming out from the spaghetti strap. For that reason, my tattoos are very small and easily covered.

There are still times, though, when I'd like to have some more. It's like sometimes I want to wear bright green eyeshadow, purple mascara and red lipstick. Fashion and make up are luxuries and therefore I think they should be fun. I've sometimes thought it would be quite cool to have a full sleeve of tattoos, or a big chest or back piece, but I know that would be something I would regret at some time in my life.

So when I saw this post I was so ridiculously excited. I instantly went to the site and saw there were a load of fantastic designs that were actually really quite reasonably priced; less than two pounds for an individual design and between five and seven quid for an A5 sheet with about six designs. If you consider it as a one-use only beauty item it's actually relatively reasonable.

The designs are far from the skate-boarding cartoon characters or flags of St George of my youth, instead varying from delicate, pretty designs to more traditional tattoo designs like skulls, anchors, roses etc.

I think these are definitely one of the nineties classics that I'll be reviving. Whether I just want to make an outfit complete or just terrify my mother, http://www.inkwear.co.uk/ is definitely my new go-to site.

I wish I had enough money...

... to buy some cat-eye specs, as currently my reading glasses are nice but, you know, normal. Whereas these bad boys....

Hello!

Then I'd get another tattoo. I want one on my arm or on the top of my thigh, which isn't somewhere I had considered before I went to Leeds Festival, when I saw a girl with a biggish, sprawling tatt peeping out from under her shorts which I found pretty cool.

Then I'd go to a spa.

Then I'd take some chums to Paris. Or New York. Or Auckland.

If they behaved themselves I'd bring them back as well.





Then I'd buy an old Land Rover, give BJR the Picasso, and then Darcy and I would go on some adventures.

And I'd probably take some lovely people and dogs camping.

Isn't that all rather sensible?

Actually, I just re-read it and it isn't that sensible. But I wasn't just all "I'd buy some Prada boots that I'd be too frightened to wear outside".

Disclaimer: This is if I had like £5000. Not, you know, Lottery or even scratch card money. Just like a few good runs at the bingo, or something. If I had Lottery money I'd pay off MR & Pigpen's debts and mortgate then buy a farm and live there with lots of adopted greyhounds. Also I'd buy a better graphics tablet.