recently .16

- finally got to watch the fantastic (if not very long, over 3 hours!) french film 'Celine and Julie go boating' - went to the Man Ray exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery - sneak look at the Urban Outfitters AW '13 Press Day (will post more on this later!) - wearing my favourite new sandals from Office with Margaret Howell trousers, jumper and a vintage trench coat - more midnight/under the duvet shopping results in this beautiful vintage french handmade cotton shirt -

Budapest April '13

some pictures from a recent trip i took to Budapest. it's such a gorgeous city, the building are all practically in a state of decay and yet they're still so beautiful. i think i counted over 30 snaps i took of the buildings alone, definitely recommend the place if any one needs a quick cheap escape!

obsessing....

(images via www.poplinlondon.blogspot.co.uk)

seriously, how perfect are these silk banana leaf printed pajamas?!

they're the latest print from Poplin and while i was going to get myself a pair of their classic cotton Bardot pjs for the summer, i have seriously fallen in love with this pair above. considering i could totally get away with wearing the top out and about in the daytime, i think it's a pretty good investment. watch this space guys.....

snow, haircuts and polka dots

- Ballycastle beach and Fairhead covered in snow - out in the garden wearing vintage brogues and new Margaret Howell trousers i picked up in the recent sample sale - the brilliant 'Margaret Howell style' shirt i picked up - freshly chopped hair, there is no greater feeling! -


another quick back to the emerald isles earlier this week, even when its for sad reasons, it's always lovely to see family and escape the smog of London, and how pretty is my local coast line when its covered in snow?

being home also meant the usual hair cut encouraged by mother, and while helping the boy buy a shirt and tie i stumbled across this gem of a shirt above! i've been obsessing over the Margaret Howell polka dot shirts for a while now and had even been considering ruining a Cos shirt in a dye attempt to just just the 'right' kind of spots i was after (see here). i actually came across it in a rather old fashioned department store normally catered to the older generation, it was styled terribly on a mannequin but it didn't stop me practically squealing with delight when my eyes fell on it! no idea really of its brand but for £45 and 100% cotton i really wasn't going to complain. just goes to show you can find the best things in the oddest of places sometimes, in other words never knock the 'old folk' shops!

flowers, good gin and nice clothes...

some pictures from a quick visit myself and Zoe made to the new Toast store in Marylebone last week, decorated beautifully by the guys at The Flower Appreciation Society. it was a good chance to investigate a brand i hadn't really paid much attention to to be honest since my mother wore it years ago. but recently i have found myself eyeing up quite a few pieces from the website and i made a mental wishlist after the evening with this Hepburn suit of jacket and trousers is no.1 on the list alongside these leather sandals if we ever have a summer!

down by the river

first image via www.touristmagazine.co.uk
trousers - Margaret Howell, solid perfume - Diptque, lipstick - Tom Ford, cardigan - Toast, striped tee - Sunspel, straw hat - Topshop, leather sandals - H by Hudson via Urban Outfitters.

what i wish i was wearing right now, rather ironic since its pouring with rain at the moment in London and a river has practically formed on the road outside the cafe i am sitting in. guess the sandals must remain in my wardrobe a little longer.... 

sample sales and talks

some good news to cheer those up who feel this has been one loooooong week (anyone?.....just me?).

it's that time of the year when Margaret Howell host another of their fantastic sample sales, handy since i was just thinking last night 'i need more good trousers for the Spring/Summer' and i have practically lived in my pairs picked up there last year.

and also another of my 'women heroes' Penny Martin editor of The Gentlewoman is going to be interviewing Margaret Howell herself in a talk held at the V&A later this year in June. and yes, i have booked my ticket already!

interview with Clash magazine

 
(image via www.clashmusic.com)

this whole having no internet thing is sucking majorly guys, the only saving grace is the Goosebumps and Arrested Development DVDs keeping me sane, otherwise my laptop would be deemed totally useless!

in the mean time the lovely guys over at Clash magazine asked me some questions in a quick interview which you can read here, then totally judge me on my Robert Smith childhood obsession afterwards.......

moving flat treats

- How to Boil an Egg by Rose Bakery (lots of egg related deliciousness!) picked up in Margaret Howell - potted roses and ivy from Liberty - mouthwash by Aesop - The Gentlewoman  magazine latest issue  - rose oil scented chocolate picked up on my latest trip to the Barbican -

Wallace Collection

i've walked past the Wallace Collection Museum every morning and evening on my way to work, and yesterday my curiosity finally got the better of me and i popped in for the afternoon for a look on a day off.

tucked away behind Selfridges, it is definitely worth a look at, if not for the glorious food in the glass topped courtyard, at least for the amazing jeweled coloured rooms and amazing collection of art. oh and for obscenely pretty tin plates like the one i purchased above!

moving flats....

(images via www.etsy.com)

blog posting has been a little slow this week (not that you didn't really expect it from me!) due to moving flats.

i always forget how much stuff i actually own! and after a 24 hour shift of cleaning and a long week of packing, the boy and me have got our first 'grown-up' place to ourselves.

i already owe him a big thank you for letting me take two thirds of the wardrobe space!

anyway, until we get our internet sorted i will be spending my evenings re-watching my Poirot and Arrested Development DVDs, so bare with me.

in the mean time im very tempted to order this beautiful hand painted bunting by Roxy Marj.

happy feet

(both loafers and sandals c/o of Office)

a biiiiig thank you to the guys at Office for providing me with comfortable yet rather cute shoes for this years LFW, it made all the difference, trust me! the loafers are so perfectly clumpy and mannish, and the sandals have freakin' gold glitter in the soles?!amazing....

i know for a fact both shoes are gonna be on my feet a LOT this upcoming Spring!

junk mail and 'green' fashion...

 

i actually stumbled across the above collection in a leaflet shoved through my letterbox at work last week. considering it's mostly ads for flats for millionaires or tasty offers of pizza that land on our door mat, this was a really pleasant surprise!

it was the styling that really caught my eye at first, then the coats, then that fantastic almost head to toe camel outfit in the first picture, and all of a sudden i very quickly found myself really paying attention to this 'junk mail'. from what little information i can find on Lardini, they are an Italian brand, previously concerned mainly with men's suits and accessories, they are now branching into women's wear. not only that, but they now have a diffusion line RVR Lardini which uses sustainable materials to create reversible coats (the second outfit above) which also are designed to be light weight and easily transported. all in aid of a project designed with Asap to test how sustainable clothing (and fashion) can really be. a rather interesting look at for anyone who is into ecological fashion and design, and most importantly more proof that 'green' fashion doesn't have to be ugly!
 

sale purchases this year...

(coat - Cos, navy patterned silk trousers - A.P.C., trilby hat - Margaret Howell, spotted silk trousers - Whistles)

currently I've been sorting out my wardrobe for a move later this month, and posts like that of Kristabel made me take stock of what I'd actually purchased in this year's sales. i notice i tend to buy less and less in the sales each year, partly because the things i buy in the sales are getting more expensive (lolz), but also because i see less of what i 'need' in the sales each time. so much effort has been put into building a capsule wardrobe i tend to only really purchase things that I've been hankering for for months in the sales now.

all of the items above have been on my wish list for months now and it was just a question of bidding my time and jumping in before they sold out. in the case of the hat i really was lucky since i actually ran all over town looking for it in my size while it was full price but it dissapeared pretty quickly. i gave up, moved on, and then last week while in Margaret Howell looking at the SS '13 collection i was amazed to see one had appeared as if by magic back in stock! both the silk trousers I've had my beady little eyes on for a while and both i managed to get rather cheaply again to sheer luck and patience. it's been hard not to purchase so much more, but since i already have a Spring wish list the length of my arm, i don't think i need anymore shirts, hats or patterned trousers, hmmm......