Friend Friday #48: Locational Influences

Taken from the balcony of the apartment where I stayed with friends on a trip to Paris last Spring

This week's Friend Friday topic is all about how where we live has a lot to do with how we dress.

1. What part of the world do you blog from? (feel free to be as specific or as vague as you are comfortable with.)

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Haircut: help me to choose a style

Sources, clockwise from top left: Kate Moss; Freja Beha; Sarah Jessica Parker; Kate Moss; Carrie Bradshaw; and Alexa Chung.

No matter how long I put it off, there always comes a point where my hair simply becomes so unmanageable that a trip to the hairdressers is a necessity rather than a luxury. I love going to the hairdressers, it's just that finding the two hours needed and the money for the trip is not always so easy. But once I'm there, I relax completely.

So that time has come and with my appointment quickly approaching, I need your help. Do I go for an Alexa Chung chop or like Carrie Bradshaw's curly bob? And maybe add a fringe à la Kate Moss? Or do I keep the length and make like Sarah Jessica? And maybe add a fringe to that?

Let me know:

Please nominate me in the "Established Fashion Blog" category

#BloggersDoItBetter: Arm Party

I haven't participated in one Pretty Shiny Sparkly's #BloggersDoItBetter challenges yet but this week's played into something I've been toying with for so long that I couldn't pass up the opportunity. That, and I actually saw the challenge on time this time too!

So? The challenge?

"Ahhh…the arm party. Coined by one lovely Man Repeller, the trend has been around for longer than its name. Editrixes, models and fashion bloggers alike all sport a plethora of friendship bracelets, bangles, chains, watches, and more."

I've been collecting wrist-wear inspiration over on my Pinterest Style Pinboard for a while now:


Sources, clockwise from top left: eatsleepwear; eatsleepwear; My Style Pill; and Stockholm Street Style.


Here is my interpretation of an Arm Party, I like to think of it as a full-on rave!!


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What I Wore: Thanks to Coco

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Style Inspiration from Kate Middleton's shoe rack!

So far during her visit to Canada with her husband, Kate Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge, has been seen sporting a pair of Sebago boat shoes on two different occasions. If you fancy getting your hands on her style, why not snap up a pair by the New England based brand for yourself?

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How to... COLOUR BLOCK

Last month I was contacted by Claire of Filofax regarding a “blogger style off” to celebrate the launch of the brand new Filofax Apex, the personal organiser that aims to “put the fun into fashion”. Each of the bloggers involved chose one out of the four colour combinations and use the organiser as inspiration for our outfit. 

My choice of the pink and blue Filofax soon seemed a little ambitious when trying to put an outfit together but I didn’t let that put me off! Instead I decided to pull together a couple of mood boards.

The first is filled with the colours and confirmed that the combination is in fact everywhere and, in addition, a pretty summery combo too:

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Holiday Inspiration: Footwear

Source



Next month I am heading to Ibiza for the weekend to celebrate my birthday. I cannot wait. A little sun, a little partying: what's not to love? But before I get there, I need to sort out a summer wardrobe, something which I have had very little need of here for nearly a year! So I decided to do a little internet browsing and see what I came up with by way of inspiration. Of course, footwear is always the very first thing I consider when packing is concerned:

Last summer I discovered wedges. I seriously do not know how I survived summers without wedges: they are easy to walk in and add a little glamour to any outfit. So in my internet search, I found these little beauties:

Having found these wedges by Ravel, I decided to check out the rest of their summer collection and found these sandals:

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Weather To Wear: Cardiff Wed. 20/04/2011

At a recent event in London I met the lovely Kate - the girl behind i am not a celebrity. A couple of week's ago when reading Kate's blog, I discovered a new project she's become involved with, Weather To Wear: London. This new site offers daily outfit suggestions based on the weather forecast in London - such a fabulous idea, I thought! So I decided to have a go at producing my own outfit suggestion for the weather in my home town of Cardiff for tomorrow:

With the sunny weather continuing this week in the Welsh capital, I chose:

A Miss Selfridge playsuit - the perfect piece that takes you straight from work-to-beer garden;

Miss Selfridge sandals;

A straw clutch from Warehouse - don't know about you but straw bags are completely all I want to carry in the warm weather;

And, of course, the obligatory pair of huge designer sunnies like these by Gucci.

What do you think of the site? And my attempt at a similar post? Hope you're all enjoying the sunny weather and not too cooped up in an office (like me!).

My Style Pinboard

Tell me, do you have this problem? I have a folder on my computer (both at work and at home) that is entitled "inspiration" and is filled with photos that inspire me that I find every day as I stroll through the interweb. But then when I want to find one of these photos for a post or even just as inspiration for getting dressed in the morning, I can't. I'm at home and the photo is on my work computer, or I'm at work and I saved the photo to my laptop the other night when I was watching Lewis/Midsomer Murders/some other quaint English detective programme.

Now I have found a solution:

Pinterest has kind of been on my radar for a while now. So I went to check it out and it turns out that it is exactly what I have been looking for. Somewhere I can "pin" all of those photos that inspire me and that I can access from any computer. Perfect.

Have you tried Pinterest? If you have an account, let me know and I can follow you! (I think that's how it works!!)

Style Inspiration: Converse trainers

Sources (clockwise from top left): The Sartorialist; StockholmStreetStyle; StockholmStreetStyle; The Sartorialist; Vogue; and The Sartorialist.

All winter I have lived in my ankle boots but now, as the weather gets warmer I am faced with the problem of what to slip my feet into so that they are not boiling. And my answer? Converse trainers.

Recently all of the photos in my "inspiration" folder have been girls in dresses/skirts and Converse trainers. And you know what? I love the look. And I plan to incorporate it into my Spring wardrobe, just as soon as my new lilac Converse arrive.

If you fancy incorporating a pair into your Spring wardrobe, check out my top picks:

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What Was I Wearing: colour blocking

There are two positive points to having finished the 30 for 30 Challange: first, I have everything else in my wardrobe to play with and second, I can shop again!! And shop, I did. I will explain more about my little "spree" in another post but let me just say, if you live near to a Gap store - go check out their current sale. For those who don't think Gap is really their style, think again. Gap isn't really about being one particular style, the key to shopping in Gap is realising that they sell well-made and reasonably priced basics which create the foundation of a wardrobe and provide the perfect pieces for layering.

Anywho, back to one of the very first outfits I put together after the 30 for 30 challenge and taking inspiration from the trend for colour blocking for Spring Summer 2011:

Source


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Style Inspiration: belts

Sources (clockwise from top left): #1; #2; #3; #4; #5; and #6.

I have always loved the cardigan-belted-over-a-dress look (as my inspiration folder is testament to, above) and have a plethora of belts in my wardrobe to choose from but somewhere never quite know how to do it. So today I decided to throw caution to the wind and just "go for it":

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Style Inspiration: Christopher Kane's Spring neons

After seeing this post over on The Style Crusader, I realised that maybe I, too, could get in on the neon trend next season:


Source: style.com


I have also decided that in the spirit of "budget" dressing, I am going to take inspiration from Jazzabelle's Diary and begin to tell you just how much everything I wear costs (or least, everything I can remember!), to demonstrate how "easy" it is to look stylish on a limited budget.

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I've been after a [insert here] for-ever...!!

I've been after a camel jumper and wedge boots for-ever!!

Now I have both. And both were bar-gains! Nothing makes me happier. Or nearly nothing.

I am wearing: Primark camel roll-neck, Dorothy Perkins maxi skirt, H&M wedges and vintage belt (from my mum, via my stylish sis!).

A new little addition to those outfit posts that it applies to: the inspiration behind the clothes. For this particular outfit, the inspiration was two-fold:


First, I was chatting to Amanda of Forty Not Out about teaming my maxi skirt with heels for ages and umm-ing and ah-ing about the right sort of heels. And then I found these wedges. Perfect.


Second, I spotted this "instant style tip" from bargainista fashionista and wanted to try it out for myself.


What do you think of this outfit?


*Sorry for the silly photos - I haven't worn make-up for a week and hadn't straightened my hair for these photos. Back to smiles soon. I hope.