Tangerine

Hello all! So, I went to see Two Door Cinema Club last night with a couple of friends. It was really really good (every song they played was amazing) and I'd say it was probably my favourite concert out of the 3 I've been to recently! It was at Alexandra Palace - a very inconvenient place to get to, but a very nice venue overall (we even managed to get fairly close to the front). The support acts were Everything Everything and Chvrches  - I'd recommend both.

The first thing I thought when I put on this outfit was that I wish I had a pair of neon heels. I had to manage without and I instead opted for this belt to add a bit of colour to the outfit. I bought the shirt the other day from a charity shop for £2.99 and added on a top button myself. I've always wanted a plain white shirt but have never gone as far as to actually buy one. I can already tell it's going to be super handy to mix and match with and perfect for summer (if summer decides to eventually arrive). The grey blazer was just a cheap purchase from Primark. It's a great thing to throw on in these confusing temperatures we have at the moment but it doesn't quite compare to other ones you can get such as in Zara and Topshop. I'm thinking of modifying it in some way but I'm not sure how yet (maybe dyeing it or something like that) - any ideas? I've already shown this skirt a couple of times before (here and here) but it was a really good purchase (it pretty much goes with anything).

What do you think of my outfit? Have you been doing anything exciting recently?

shirt - charity shop

belt - piece of fabric

skirt - Primark

blazer - Primark

shoes - present

My Favourite Things - Part 2

Here is the continuation of my favourite things (you can see part 1 here). It's quite nice to write posts that aren't directly fashion related every now and again, so I hope you enjoy reading this.

6. My sewing machine

I've had this ...well actually I can't remember how long... but it's quite a long time. It's extremely useful and I honestly don't know what I'd do without it! As you can see from the numerous scratches and marks, it's been well used and I'm genuinely really pleased with how well it performs (the machines at school are awful so this one is perfect in comparison!). If you're thinking about buying a machine for yourself, I'd definitely recommend this brand.

 7. My magazines

I have a collection of magazines in my bedroom which I refuse to throw away (with the hope that they might one day come in handy - which they actually do!). At the moment I've got a subscription to Vogue so I'm always checking the post to see whether this month's edition has arrived. I really enjoy reading the articles (...ok fine... looking at the pictures!) in fashion magazines and it just gives me a lot of inspiration for clothes, styles and ideas of what to make. There's nothing better than rewarding yourself after a heavy revision session with 150 pages of designer shoes and couture dresses!

 8. My pin cushions

 Yes, this does seem like quite a random thing to put in my favourites list, but being interested in sewing has led to me receiving quite a few pincushions over the years! In case you can't tell, my assortment here includes a tomato, a bobbin, a mini hat (how cool is that!?) and a button jar/pin cushion lid. Although I have 4 of these wonderful pin cushions, I find that I never seem to actually keep all of my pins in them. It's not unusual  to step on a few pins while walking around my room with bare feet.

9. 10 My bag

This is not any old bag. I got this bag as a free gift from the first ever proper/non-public fashion show I went to. Back in 2010, I went to see the Romina Karamanea (not Georgia Hardinge as it says on the bag.. I guess it was because they were both part of the Vauxhall fashion scout) catwalk show at fashion week. It was incredible (especially since I was only 14) and we sat front row and everything! So it's become a sort of memento of the day and is also incredibly useful!

10. My CDs

 I don't actually own many CDs in real life form. These 3, however, are an exception. Foster the People, Two Door Cinema Club (so excited to see them tomorrow!) and Imagine Dragons are my favourites and I could listen to them non-stop every day. 

How has your week been?

Black Leather

Wasn't the weather so nice today? It was actually considerably warm for England (no jacket required). I'm hoping the sun is going to last (fingers crossed) but looking at the weather forecast, it seems as if it's going to be slightly cooler the next few days. I'm really (so so much) excited to go and see Two Door Cinema Club this Saturday though, so all is good!

These fake leather shorts were a recent purchase from ebay (£3.99). They're originally from H&M so you obviously can't expect them to look quite as good as the proper vintage versions you can find but I don't think they look too bad. I'm also wearing a shirt I received from my grandma and the necklace was bought on holiday. Last year I broke my sunglasses - it was devastating - and I've been searching for a replacement pair for a while. I find it really difficult to find sunglasses that actually suit me so I picked out a pair pretty much exactly the same as my old ones but from River Island (my previous ones I had found in a vintage market). I'm still not completley sure about them yet, (hence me resting them on my head rather than wearing them properly) but hopefully as we go into summer I'll get used to them.

What do you think of my outfit? Are you doing anything this weekend?

 shirt - old

shorts - ebay

necklace - bought on holiday

shoes - Office

sunglasses - River Island

My favourite things - Part 1

I've seen this sort of post hovering around the blogosphere for a while now so I thought I'd try it out for myself. I hope you enjoy reading it and gain a small insight into who I actually am!

1. My camera

It's an Olympus Pen if you're wondering. Without this camera, I wouldn't actually have any photos for my blog and you'd be left with crappy phone photos, so this definitely had to go in my list. The camera itself is great. It takes good quality photos and also isn't really huge so it is easy to carry around, however I've only got a basic lens so I find that sometimes the pictures don't come out quite how you want them to. I'm hoping to save up enough money at some point to buy a better quality lens.

2. My glue gun

Yes, I got a glue gun for Christmas! How cool is that! It's actually really really useful and you can use it for so much. It's easy to use  - you just plug it in and you're off - and it's good for glueing smaller, trickier things together. Previously I had been using super glue from a tube but this glue gun has made things a million times easier and quicker. I highly recommend buying one if you're into crafts and that sort of thing.

 3. My purses

I was actually lucky enough to get two purses for my birthday. The first one I absolutely love! It was a present from my friend Katie (at The Gravity and She). It's a lovely design and is really great for storing all of your coins and notes. The 2nd one was also a present. I'm a sucker for crocodile material things so of course I really love it! Both of them are different shapes so it makes it much easier to carry things around when I can find the appropriate sized purse for my bag!

 4. My design book

This book is where I keep all of the designs I draw. I used to sketch a lot like this so I have loads and loads from last year and the year before piled up in this book. I date my designs so it's really interesting to look back on and see what I drew at a certain age. It's also really great to flick through the book and see how my drawing style has evolved from the beginning (I think I was about 14 when I started drawing out designs - I'm 17 now). I've sort of hit a block at the moment as I haven't had much time for drawing (or rather I choose to spend the time watching Gossip Girl and surfing the internet) but I'd definitely like to start sketching again.

5. My notebooks

I really love notebooks. There's nothing better than opening the first page of a new notebook and deliberating over what to write. I'm the sort of person who has to have everything written down otherwise I'll forget it straight away so I often bombard myself with 'To Do' lists and small notes to myself. Notebooks (and post it notes) make this so much easier. 

What are your favourite things?

Contrasting

I'm currently mourning the loss of my phone (I can't find it anywhere) so I'm feeling a bit lost without it at the moment. However, excluding that, the first week back at school is going well so far - the sun definitely makes a difference!

Do you like my new garden scenery? It's certainly a change to the wooden wall I normally take photos up against. Also, it was rather windy while taking these photos hence my hair flying it different directions! So the skirt was from ebay (really cheap again - about £4). I adore the print and colours so much and I love how it contrasts with the black shirt (from ebay, also in this post). 

What do you think of my outfit?

skirt - ebay

shirt - ebay

shoes - Office

socks - Topshop

Yiqing Yin

This is a new designer to me and I'm really glad I've found them! It was the detailing and texture that caught my eye and the slight resemblance to Alexander McQueen. I personally think these designs are all incredible but that's all subject to opinion, so what do you think? 

Autumn/Winter 2011

 Summer/Spring 12

 Autumn/Winter 12

 Spring/Summer 13