Things

Something wonderful happened yesterday. I went into town looking to get a few bits and bobs from Boots (because I pretty much always need something from Boots) and to go into New Look because this month's Cosmo had a 20% off voucher in it and I'm a sucker for a bargain. Now I wasn't expecting anything great to happen; it was just another ordinary Saturday in Liverpool - girls were out and about with their heads full of velcro rollers (seriously, they do that here), scallies were lurking outside McDonalds and blinged up babies reclined in their pushchairs (I actually saw a pushchair lined with fake fur yesterday, no lie) but this day was to become a day of glory...

Aaaanyway, I went to Boots and New Look, bought some eyeshadows and conditioner and a long tee-shirt and a bunch of necklaces and then decided, because apparently I hadn't spent enough money already and because the window display was enticing me, to go to H&M. Now I've come to realise that I am basically a walking advert for H&M, it's very rare that I'll go in there and not buy anything, but yesterday nothing really called out to me. I picked up a pair of very blue jeans but then put them back again because I realised I'd look like a twat in them. Then, suddenly, from above, it appeared, like a beautiful leather bird of paradise; magical and overwhelming, the JACKET.

Oh it's just... there aren't enough words. Let's take a minute to compose ourselves shall we?

Thirty five of your English pounds and worth every single one of them, thank you very much.

Now I know what some people (ie the stupid ones) might be thinking - "a leather jacket? Really? It's Spring - it'll be Summer soon - will you wear it?"

Well I have two things to say to you, firstly, it's cropped, so it's perfect for Spring/Summer. And secondly, I live in England. Even when it's hot, it's still cold. Judging by last Summer, I'll probably need a bloody cagoule, never mind a leather jacket.

So I was the happiest of all the people in town yesterday, I guarantee it. So happy in fact, that I was momentarily blinded by sheer joy and literally went mental in HMV because there was a sale on and whenever there's a sale on I panic and think "Oh my God 4 DVDs for £20 - I should buy all the DVDs, ALL THE DVDs!!!"

You see, I've got this image of me in the future, where I'm rich and have a big house, and in the big house there is (as well as a pool boy with an ass that won't quit) a massive DVD library, which I've built up over the years and has every single film and tv series imaginable. Of course what I always fail to think of is that, by the time I'm a proper grown up with a big house, DVDs will probably have become obsolete and we'll all be watching films by having some kind of chip implanted into our brains that allows us to watch whatever film we want when we close our eyes... anyway, I digress. So I bought Madagascar, Fight Club, the 28 Days/Weeks Later boxset and Atonement, which I've not seen before and watched last night. Bloody hell it was depressing, but their silly posh accents made me chuckle and James McAvoy is beautiful in a "is he beautiful? No, not really...and yet he is..." kind of way, so I still liked it.

But back to the jacket. I had a conversation with my friend fairly recently about how I feel that I'm just not very fabulous anymore. Now please don't read this as me being a big vain loser, because, while I may be those things, I don't mean it like that. It's just that I used to take risks with fashion and wear whatever I wanted and not care; my first year at uni I wore the most ridiculous ensembles, but they were eye-catching and interesting and people said things like "I love that whole Africana vibe you've got going there" and "wow, you look like a model"...I'm coming off as vain again aren't I? Well I don't mean to, honestly, I'm just trying to make a point. You see the thing is, I got lazy, and I spent a lot of time being skint and I just kind of forgot how to shop for fun things. Whenever I had money for shopping, I'd buy the things I could afford rather than the things I loved, and while those things were still cool and pretty and fashionable, they were very rarely *FABULOUS* and I found myself falling into a bit of a style rut. Cue the violins... oh dear...

Well, anyway, the point I'm making is that this style rut is officially over! I can't blame it on not having money anymore because I'm now in a better money situation, which means I'm allowed to shop and buy fabulous things, such as the JACKET! So I'm making a vow to make more of an effort with my outfits and take risks again! RISKS! Starting right now with ensembles such as these... (when I say 'right now' I don't really mean that because it's night time and I'm in my pyjamas, but, you know, the next time I go out)

Jacket - H&M, Skirt - H&M (see? I should have shares in the place!)

I know, blurry, and you can't see my shoes, but my bedroom is incredibly small and it's very difficult to get a full length photo of yourself...

Shirt - H&M (seriously), Skirt - as before (so H&M then?), Shoes - Topshop

I'm actually really liking this whole "let's bare our midriffs like it's 1996" thing, but only with something high-waisted, obvs.

Having a non-curly day... Necklaces, worn as headband - New Look

Can I get away with this? Who cares!? RISKS!!!

And finally, remember the sunglasses I bought from (where else?) H&M last week? I didn't realise it at first, but look! They're two-toned! Which means they are awesome :)

Happy days.

The Prints and the Pauper.

It's Saturday night and I'm at home listening to my parents and their friends getting drunk downstairs. I know, I know - what kind of lame-ass 21 year old am I?! This is the first Saturday night I've had in ages where I've not been in work so really, I should be dancing like a lunatic somewhere to make up for all the nights out I've missed of late. But you know what? I'm tired ok? I've been busy doing all kinds of crazy things this week so just give it a rest and let me boring, yeah?

Anyway, one of my favourite people in the world came to visit me yesterday and apart from a minor mishap involving an exploding bottle of chilli sauce and my H&M oversized shirt/dress thing (which was washed to within an inch of its life when I got home), it was a lovely day. Being the good friend that I am, I showed her the joys of Liverpool shopping. Fortunately (or unfortunately, depending how you look at it) both of us were feeling thrifty so we didn't spend a great deal, but I did still manage to snap up some nifty little bits and pieces.

Owl brooch - £4.50 from an amazing vintage jewellery shop in Grand Central, Collection 2000 Glam Crystals eyeliner - £2.70 from Boots, dress - £14.99 from H&M and sunglasses £4.99 also H&M

The dress was really just something I was trying on, I'd actually intended to buy a different dress but it's such a lovely, "flippy" (as my mum called it) shape that I changed my mind. My sister (very sensibly) pointed out that it'd go well with a leather jacket so now I feel like I need a shrunken leather jacket, I think it's important for my personal well-being that I get one soon. The sunglasses were too good a bargain not to buy; I only ever wear bug-eye sunglasses coz I've got a massive head and other sunnies don't look right on me (aviators make me look like John Lennon for some reason).

Can anyone explain why, when I turn the flash off on my camera, the photos go really blurry? Why is that? Why? I was trying to take a photo without the flash so that the brooch and the eyeliner didn't go all reflecty but it just didn't happen. Harrumph. I am in love with the little owl though. The price label called it a "Tweet-twoo brooch" - how ca-yoot is that?!

If you were to take a little look-see into my wardrobe, the first thing you'd notice, as well as the disturbingly massive collection of knitwear I own, would probably be just how many of my clothes are covered in prints and patterns, obviously my new dress is a good example of this. My other most recent purchase, another dress, this time from French Connection via ASOS is also all about the pattern;

Dress - £24, French Connection (ASOS Sale)

Ignore my hair in the photo as best you can, I was between styles (not quite curly because I hadn't scrunched it after washing but not smooth enough to be straight - the Little Curly Girl's eternal dilemma...). Anyway, the dress was a kind of random impulse buy; I generally don't buy online because I'm never sure what size I am and can't be bothered with all the faff of returning things if they don't fit, but I figured since French Connection sizes are pretty consistent and a smock dress is basically a sack with sleeves, (a very nice sack, but a sack nonetheless) I'd take a risk. I bloody love it so it was a risk well-taken. It's very flouncy, and flounciness is pretty much something I always want in a dress, plus I don't usually wear long sleeves so it makes a good change. The drop-waisted shape and the dense black and white print really remind me of these two pieces from the Anna Sui Fall RTW show;

( photos from style.com)

So now I'm thinking I need a cameo brooch (back to the amazing vintage jewellery shop go I), a pair of fringed boots, some lacy tights and, of course, a crazy feathered hat. But then, don't we all need a crazy feathered hat?

Bow-l me over...

For a while now I've been intrigued by the Lady Gaga "bow-bun". To be fair, the first person I saw wearing it was actually Paris Hilton, but Lady Gaga has kind of made it her own. Since I'm a little obsessed with bows, the idea of literally making your hair into one just seems too wonderful not to try. I found this video on youtube which shows exactly how to do it - the girl makes it look so easy, although it probably helps that she's got incredibly thick, straight hair.

I decided to try it out and although it is do-able, it's pretty tricky and if you're an impatient person like me, you might end up tearing your hair out in the process. Make sure you've got lots of grips to hand, and some hairspray. The more hair you have, the better, because it's all about making the 'bow' parts really fluffed out so that they stand alone.

My attempt - not bad but it's nowhere near as good as the girl in the video's. This was my second attempt and by this point my arms were hurting so I gave up after taking this photo.

I'll definitely try it again when I've got more time and maybe someone to help me.

Hurting

I went for a little look around the shops today and felt so completely uninspired, it was just depressing. Here's the issue - everywhere is currently stocking spring/summer collections - you know; linen, pastels, flouncy skirts, strappy tops etc etc et bloody cetera. Zara was the worst culprit for it - clearly their buyers are extremely optimistic for a hot summer...maybe they know something we don't...

But at the moment it's so dismally cold and wet that I literally can't imagine buying anything except tights, cardigans, scarves (my friend dragged me away from a massive black one because she didn't understand my yearning for it...I may go back and buy it tomorrow) and possibly some kind of raincoat (ok, I'm joking). I hate the cold. Hate it. I completely understand the appeal of hibernating like woodland creatures do, in fact, I'm currently on the look out for a suitable cave, stocking up on acorns and advertising for a squirrel room-mate to keep me company.

So yeah, not feeling the summery clothes just yet.

Also, is it just me or is anybody else offended by how stupidly expensive Urban Outfitters and American Apparel are? I constantly find myself vaguely picking up some simple, basic piece, like a t-shirt or jersey knit skirt, looking at the price tag and then going "HOW MUCH?!" before hurriedly slamming it back on the rail and storming off in a huff. £52 for a fine knit jumper! I just think it's silly, I do, I really, really do. Maybe I'm getting old and cynical...

Even so, I did find one moment of sheer joy when in the shoe section of Topshop today. My goodness, their shoe designers are on form this season! Actually the whole of Topshop is very, very good at the moment - the current jewellery collection is incredible (I know I praised it a bit in my last post, but it really is beautious).

I talked myself out of buying the ruffled ones and then sat down to read Style magazine and was faced with a massive picture of them - it's clearly a sign that I should buy and love them forever...

from left to right - PASSION £95, SHE-RA £70, LULU £60

(photos from topshop.com)

Big is beautiful

Won't you take a look at my new earrings? Just a little look?

Yes they're dangerously big (and heavy) and I do fear that a crazed gypsy woman may try to rip them out of my ears because they're actually the wheels from her (somewhat elaborately decorated, let's be honest) gypsy caravan, but even so, I'm just going to come right out and say it, Freedom at Topshop, you're a bit good aren't you?

You can't really see in the picture but I'm also wearing the pinkest lipgloss known to man. I mean, it actually is pinker than anything I've ever seen before. This is the kind of pink that means business. My lips look like someone melted down a pair of Barbie's shoes and made me eat them without using cutlery. It's by GloMinerals and is called Bougainvillea.

See? PINK!