Sugar sweet September

September had a trip to Ibiza stored so once again, it was time to do some packing (which I always go overboard with...standard)

And what does one pack for the party island of Spain? 

Well crop tops and hot pants ahoy first of all, surely.

Secondly, anything with a palm tree or tropical print is going STRAIGHT in my suitcase

Oh and no holiday's compete without your watermelon bikini of course, otherwise water-melon-choly time away that would be am I right?

But it's sad times when you come back from holiday and go back to work. That means no more crop tops and tropical kimonos on a daily basis. Not really office appropriate is it? No. Didn't think so. 

But fear not, you can carry on the khaki colour theme of your summer tropical forest with a slinky chained crop top to go with your ripped high waisted jeans. Feel weirdly like I'm in Liberty X and I weirdly don't hate that...

And even if you have got a bit of holiday blues, don't fight it, show it via your outfits. Blue skirts, blue bombers, blue camis - blue e'rything y'all.

What can I say? I just can't enough of the khaki - and I've even upped the anti and pimped out my camo coat with some pretty pins.

You can put the girly girl into an army jacket, and she'll find some way to make it more girly with sassy pin badges and floral embroidered jeans. 

And if flowery jeans weren't jazzy enough, you can mermaid your way through Monday like a shimmering mermaid with your sparkly pleated skirt. Toughened up with a Biggie Smalls tee, naturally.

When the sparkles get to much, be safe in the knowledge that you can always slide them off in favour for your trusty dungas - available in blue and blue - and perfect with a sheer, pastel top.

Dungas are all fun and games hwen you're pint-sized a la me. Can we just start naming heights in a more exciting way please? Instead of 5ft 5, you can just call me fun-sized. Like a mini Milky Way Celebration if you will.

 Wrapping myself in a lilac and white strappy mini dress with white heels that Cupid has given it's stamp of approval of with a glittery pink heart and arrow - who knew Daisy Duck could be such a style inspiration eh?

Until next time...

A.x

6 style struggles every girl has going into autumn...

Even though I haven’t been in education for a few years now, every time that September rolls around, I still get that dread of going back to school. Yep, summer is done and dusted for yet another year and autumn is rearing it’s head again, those awkward dilemmas of what to wear during this trasitional period appear once again.

1.) Layer it up like a Mary Berry cake

 This is especially true if you live in that there Big Smoke of London. It’s still stupidly hot on the tube due to there being about 200 people packed into a carriage about the size of a sardine tin. But the sun’s not making an appearance as often and it’s getting chillier with each day you walk to work. You wanna wear something breezy for the commute but wrap up warm for everything else. Cue you wearing more layers than a cake in the Bake Off, and you dressing and undressing more times in a day than you care to wish to.

2.) Right, so how long can you hang onto that tan you got on holiday?

You've caught a bit of the sun and now you’re feeling like a bronzed goddess from your summer holiday. The sun’s fading, but you don’t want your tan to be as well! So you do everything with all your might to stay golden while the skies turn grey. You wear loads of white to flaunt it - while you’ve still got it and everything. You invest in some of that after-sun that has a bit of fake tan in it and your bedding ends up smelling of biscuits. But in the end, you just had to do like Elsa from Frozen and just Let it Go. You’re going to be so wrapped up soon anyway, that you won’t see any skin, never mind a tan.

3.) I love and hate tights simultaneously.

As a loyal skirt wearer, they are an essential in my wardrobe as soon as those leaves start falling - I don’t know how i’d live without them! But my god, I love strutting around with bare legs. And the fact that they have to be prisoned once more by an 80-denier prison makes me so sad. Let’s also not forget that those little menaces ladder like crazy, you have to buy so many pairs that it ends up costing more than your rent, are just so unattractive. You will never feel more unattractive than the split moment you catch yourself in the mirror as your getting ready and you’ve just got your bra on, and a pair of tights pulled all the way to your bellybutton.

4.) Dust off those jackets and coats boy and girls.

Once upon a time, you could leave the house and go the whole day with just the top on your back. But those days are over my friend. Even your trusty denim jacket that goes with everything won’t even suffice now. Nop. You’re going to have to slowly step away from the jackets and infiltrate some big, snuggly coats back into your life.

5.) Better say seyonara to your sandals!

There’s no way that your little tootsies can withstand the ever declinging climates without being snuggled up in a pair of socks in the comfort of a pair of closed toe shoes. On the rare occasion you get ready in the morning and the sun’s peeking through and you think you can get away with one more appearance from your fave summer sandals, by midday you’ll realise what a grave mistake you’ve made

6.) Who knew you had such a GREAT winter wadrobe eh?!

Yes i know it’s sad to say farewell to those flirty and floaty skirts and sassy and strappy tops. But the upshot of all of this is that all of a sudden you feel like you have a completely new wardrobe to play dress up with. More jazzy jumpers, snuggly scarves and bangin’ boots that you can shake a stick at.

Until next time!

A.x

Icy November

Oh winter - you can be such a cruel and icy mistress, but dya know what? It does mean that I get to wrap up in a long ol' camel shearling coat that makes me feel like I'm in a 90s pop music video. And just to complete the throwback look, a slogan t-shirt that has 'trouble' scribbled inside a heart should do the trick.

It's no suprise that the weather hasn't deterred me from my love of all things pastel, cus y'know, the cold never bothered me anyway (sorry, not sorry). And you know what the best thing is when you wear all the pale colours under the sun in the winter?

You feel like a sassy lil' ice princess with your grey hair, frosted lippy and kick-ass over knee boots. (Can I add sassy ice queen to my CV please?)

If taking inspiration from from Disney princess Elsa isn't enough, then what about Brigitte Bardot? 

A zipped-up little cord number with some slinky 70s boots will make you feel suitably old-school, in the best way possible.

Or a laced-up knit with a trusty golden chained belt will do a similar job - the choice is yours! (oh don't I spoil ya?)

And of course, it wouldn't be winter without some festive knitwear now would it? Am UBER-cozy jumper with gold stars should do the trick, especially when teamed with a leopard print fuzzy mini-skirt and a big ol' high pony tail that would give Ariana Grande a run for her money.

Bit jazzy? Well, if all those patterns and prints are just a bit too jazzy for you liking, then it's time to take things down a notch with an all black ensemble, complete with sheer stripes and a deep side-parting. 

 Don't worry though - the underwear may be black, but it's still sparkly as a Disney festive parade.

And if all else fails, take a leaf out of your girl Posh Spice's book and go for a trusty LBD - i've gone for a scalloped edge and cut out number - and some high black boots wouldn't go amiss either.

 And why stop at going out ensembles when it comes to going back to black. A pair of ripped jeans and a tile printed polo neck will do the trick for any lazy weekend - and with a pair of sassy snakeskin boots and a Tracey Emin book on hand too, your inner Alexa Chung can sleep easy tonight.

Until next time,

A.x

Make up your mind October

The problem when you have quite an addictive personality like me is when you commit to something, you kind of do with it all guns blazing. And that's no exception when it comes the way I dress. Transitional wardrobe? What transitional wardrobe? 

It's wrapping in every single dark winter accessory you own - hats, boots, scarves - the whole lot...

Or it's either legs out in pretty pastels...

Hi, am I Britney yet? Well, when you're going on a night out when it specifically Beyonce vs. Britney, how can you not don your metallics leather skirt, fluffy heels and stick some glitter on your face?

But of course, pretty pastels have their place in all the autumnal shades too - coats that the Sugarplum Fairy and Elle Woods would be envious of are all you need to survive the British chill.

Oh, and always make sure that your undies and socks match under all the layers that you've piled on. You know. Just in case.

And then there's those times in Autumn when you go for stroll around a park in your dungarees, and because it's a lazy Sunday, you put your hair in a hun and whack on your shades thinking you look pretty rockin' with Caroline Flack vibes. But then your friend shatters your dreams when she tells you that you look like Belle's father - the inventor - from Beauty and the Beast.

Cheers mate.

And of course, being October, there's Halloween. I flipping Halloween (despite hating all things spooky like scary movies) and this year I really grabbed the day by the horns and did a double Halloween and double fancy dress.

 Literally couldn't have been two more split personalities. From a zombie cub scout where everything went horribly wrong down at the woods at cub scout camp, to going as the sultry dark mistress of the Addams family that is Morticia. (Seriously - may throw out all my pastels and become a goth...)

And when the morning after the night before rolls around and you may be a bit worse for wear to think of what to wear, you can't really go wrong with a jumper and skirt combo, whether you want to go sensible or silly.

 But there are days when that's even too much and you just have to ride out your hangover with a dungaree dress, hot dog sweatshirt, glittery sunglasses and a glass of milk in a flamingo glass. 

Happens to the best of us...

Stay happy!

Until next time...

A.x 

September scarves & sillyness

Autumn is well and truly here. And for the first time EVER - I'm welcoming it with open arms.

Being a proper summer bunny, usually when the temperature and the leaves start to fall, I am clutching onto those last few rays of summer sun and refuse to give into the cold.

But this year, I'm saying 'yes' to the open fires, 'yes' to long coats and 'yes' to being wrapped up in layers.

And what better layer than the humble scarf? Seriously, where would me and my cold neck be without you?

Whether to top off a school-girl worthy denim ensemble - complete with rucksack - or fluffy enough to brighten up any pint-sized outfit

Outfits with all the fiesty skirts a girl could own may I add - leopard print and pink leather? Yeah, go on then.

And the perfect way to top such outfits? With your trusty hat of course - instant chic points, zero effort into doing your hair. Win-win all round.

But when those glimpses of sun still do manage to peep through, make sure you're got your glittery sunglasses and a plait in your hair before you leave the door. Oh, and any kind of floral dress will gain you compliments of lovely elderly women at the park.

If you thought September was all about the autumnal cover ups though, how wrong you were. September's just as silly as the rest of the year.

Enter, the glittery lucky cat bag. Putting the fun in functional!

And all sensible layers can be removed when it comes to bedtime in exchange for the most fun and flirty pjs you ever did see.

And yeah sure, when England rains, it really rains, but who needs a boring waterproof when you can have a yellow fisherman's jacket to shield you from the weather?

Oh, and looking like a french ballerina is always an option for work if you've got your blue stripes and lilac tutu to hand.

And if not, then get ready to go back-to-school with a polka dot heart shirt, topped off with your denim dungaree skirts.

Add in a swishy and sassy ponytail and your light-up rollerskates and you're ready to take on the world.

And anyone who tells you otherwise? Well, you can just tell them to kiss your sweet behind!

Stay happy!

Until next time..

A.x

Tons of Tartan

Every year when Winter comes around. tartan pokes its head out from under all of the fallen, auburn leaves and announces it's loud arrival.

While when most of us see tartan, usual associations that come to mind is Vivienne Westwood leading being the poster girl for the British punk scene, and the fresh, air of the Scottish highlands, breezing by a Scotman's kilt.

This time round though, tartan's grown up and matured a bit, and has taken over a wardrobe quite a bit.

How I wear tartan has evolved as well, instead of looking like a reject out of St.Trinians, I've been taking a more sophisticated approach, mixing it with ladylike blouses and contrasting with powder-toned knitwear.

This skirt is my personal favourite though, mixed with slick leather, giving it a tougher and darker edge.

I've been wearing into uni in the day with slouchy jumpers and plain white tees, and transformed at night into a little sultry number with crop tops and little, swinging, black cami numbers.

skirt: Topshop, belt: Warehouse

I need to be careful not to overdose on tartan!

Have you guys been swept in the tartan phase?

I've finally had some spare time away from law revision and shorthand studying and got a few blog posts lined up and ready, so hopefully these massive gaps inbetween blog posts will become more irregular, because I really miss doing them!

(Sources: my own photos, diaryofafashiondiva, lochcarron, style.com, ftape.com and msn style online)

Hope you're all well,

Speak soon,

A.x