Denim jacket: Gap (very old, also seen here), floral scarf: Primark, striped top and rolled hem chinos: Topshop, bag: Mulberry, wedges: Bertie, jewellery: gifted (see below).
As I said in my last post, the boyf has been fabulous recently and so supportive of my blogging. I think you will all notice more outdoor pics - all courteousy of him. This is my work outfit from today which also nicely shows off my first "gift" - lucky me! The silver ring was so kindly given to me by the lovely Sarah from LuShae Jewelry. Check out my ring here - I love the texture on it and within no time it has worked its way into my weekly rotation. As you can see from here, I have a thing for rings and also found myself being quite partial to this ring as well. How can you not love a good cocktail ring? Sarah was so lovely - you have to check out her website.
I hope everyone feels suitably rested after their weekend and has had a great Monday. My weekend consisted of chilling with my boyf, running errands and completing various DIY tasks in the apartments - my latest project is finally framing all the photos that I've been collecting on my desktop and hanging them. It sounds simple but has taken weeks!!
We're going to Edinburgh in a couple of weeks for the Fringe festival so we also spent a lot of time laughing our way through various comedian's sketches on YouTube. There are so many acts to see but such a short time in which to see them. In the end we settled on Jason Byrne, Best of the Fest (we went last year and this is a good all rounder), Shappi Khorsandi and Paul Merton's Impro Chums. I am most looking forward to Shappi...check out this YouTube video of her:
Finally time for another outfit post - sorry I haven't been better at blogging but you know how life is. I've been pretty busy with my new hobby, sewing and have really been making headway with the project I am working on - I am really looking forward to showing you. It's like a whole new world has been opened up to me and I am suddenly drawing loads of sketches of all the things I want to make, some probably a little ambitious considering what a novice I am but aim high I say!
But I digress, back to the outfit....I wore this to work the other day and felt very elegant. I think it has a lovely vintage feel to it. I am wearing the skirt I wore here and the House of Harlow 1960 ring I showed you here. I love the fullness of the skirt - I just saw Alice in Wonderland and wanted all her costumes. I added a studded belt (worn backwards) and my favourite wooden wedges, which I can no longer wait to wear. The snow is finally melting so the summer clothes are coming out to play! I am trying new things with my hair since it is in such a state - i just can't decide whether I want it long or short anymore - what do you think?
Top: Warehouse
Belt: Primark
Skirt: H&M
Shoes: Bertie
Flower ring: Topshop
Tortoiseshell ring: House of Harlow 1960
Thanks for reading and all your sweet comments and emails. I hope you've all been doing things you love and being with the people you love.
xxx
p.s. sorry for the bright flash in the last two pics - I just really like the way my nails look in them! Vain much?! lol!
p.p.s. just noticed I have a hair across my chin in those 2 pics as well - oh well, no photoshop for me so it must stay! Who's perfect anyway?
How are you all? I hope you have been having a wonderful weekend - mine has been so relaxing. I finally cracked out the sewing machine my boyf got me for Christmas and started on a project that I am really looking forward to showing you all. I am not a very patient person and I know that my mum especially was a bit dubious of me embarking on such a hobby. I tend to be a bit faddy and start things but never finish them, for example I haven't been back to hot yoga since I blogged about it here, oops! But I haven't once got stressed with sewing even when I've had to unpick it all and re-sew it, which is quite unlike me (perhaps the yoga's not needed anyway!). Instead I find it quite cathartic and I'm really enjoying learning via trial and error. I hope I sustain this enthusiasm; I'm going back to sewing classes this week to pick up some new tricks....so watch this space!
As well as sewing, I've also been thoroughly abusing my credit card via online shopping. I wasn't going to show you all the things I've bought since the last time I did that here and here only a handful of my purchases actually looked any good on me and most had to be sent back. But I suppose that it's the tight rope you walk with online shopping and I am not deterred but determined!
As seen in many of the 2010 autumn/winter collections, I am very happy in the knowledge that harem pants are not going anywhere so given the fact that ASOS are still continuing with their amazing clearance sale I just had to scoop up these 3 bargains. I don't imagine that all 3 pairs will look great on me but there is no harm in trying. I'm not planning on keeping them in my wardrobe until the autumn though, I plan on teaming them with cute crop tops and/or floral bustiers and chunky platforms during the spring (see below).
(from left to right, ASOS Wrap Front Tailored Trouser £38.00NOW £15.00, Tailored Peg Trousers in the style of Fearne Cotton £32.00NOW £20.00,Vila Tailored Jersey Trousers £35.00NOW £24.00)
Because of my love for prints and all things beautiful but outlandish, my wardrobe commonly lacks the basic essentials so I also bagged these 4 crop tees from ASOS. I got them in all 4 colours since they were so cheap and basic tees like this never go out of style. I opted for the cropped tee because I am so short in the body that proper tees often drown me and cropped tees actually stop at place just below my waist, which I prefer.
(ASOS Basic Cropped Tee £10.00)
I love playsuits and after blogging about the one on the right here, I finally got up the guts (aka bank balance) to purchase it. It's got a gorgeous low back and I think it's tailored cut looks so chic. I've got a few special occasion coming up soon and it would be perfect for them paired with my House of Holland mock stockings and some supersized chunky platforms - I really hope it looks good on me. As for the one on the left, the same rules apply really, great tailoring gives it an uber chic feel. Plus, this one was massively reduced and a complete steal. I think I'll wear this one to work although it would also look amazing with some skyscraper heels and lashings of jewellery....perfect for cocktails with the girls....mmmmh!
(from left to right: French Connection Belted Long Wool Mix Playsuit £100.00NOW £30.00, Warehouse Halter Tailored Playsuit£60.00)
So, they were the things I bought...now onto the things I want....I realise there is a lot of black in those purchases, which if you look back through my outfit posts, is quite unlike me. Hence my love of these beauties...once again Topshop has not let me down and I can see myself wearing outfits just like these two in the not so distance future...
Outfit 1:
I think this polka dot trench is a great twist on the classic trench and will be perfect for spring. It's so pretty and if you click on the link you'll see that at the back it has this super cute bow detailing. This is the item out of the 3 that I definitely almost maybe think I am going to buy - I spotted in Topshop a while ago and liked it then and as time has gone by I've re-visited it many times on the website and think that my liking is growing closer and closer towards loving. I love this floral playsuit, think the cut out detail is fantastic and I would definitely wear a print like that with the spotty trench, but I'm not so sure that this particular cut would suit me so with this fab print in mind, I am going to keep on looking. With these two pieces, the icing on my feet would be these fabulous wedges - nude, ribbon tie gorgeousness! I am a avid wedge-wearer, not least because they often sort out the problem of achieving statue without needing to adminster anesthetic to the balls of my feet. But again, even though I think these shoes are beautiful, I'm not entirely sure how much wear I personally would get out of them and since I am really trying to cut down on wasteful consumerism...for now I am going to keep on window shopping.
Outfit 2:
Just to highlight the versatility of the trench and wedges, here they are again! This time, I think they'd look great with these cropped chinos, which are very in keeping with the neutral pallette that was prevalent in so many of the 2010 spring/summer collections not to mention a closet classic. Just to add a bit of "me" and my penchant for mixing and matching prints (see here and here), I thought I would wear this with something like the leopard corset or the floral bralet. I already own a few similar corset-like items that would go well but what I am actually looking for is this floral studded corset that Grazia's editor at large blogged about here, but that I cannot track down anywhere...
Despite the fuzzy pic I can tell that this will be a very welcome addition to my wardrobe!
Wow, I think this has been one of my longest posts to date - hope you liked it! Let me know what you think will look great for spring or things you can't wait to get your hands on.
The snow continues to fall here and I now have a shovel as my constant car companion but I refuse to be de-railed by this snowy climate and continue to debut my spring wardrobe; this is what I wore to work today. I've had this denim waistcoat in my wardrobe for a while now but often struggle to incorporate into my outfits but I just loved all that gorgeous double denim in the D&G spring 2010 collection and so persevered with it. Since I chose to wear it to work I didn't "double denim" it with jeans because then it would be too casual. Instead, I layered it over a dress and lace vest top. With the addition of brown boots and long gold pendant, I think the outfit had an almost vintage-esque quality and reminded me a little of the groupies in that movie Almost Famous. I have to say this is one of favorite recent outfits, I just felt really good in it. I hope you all like it too.
I can't believe how much it has snowed here in Bergen in the last three days - there has literally been metres of snow, which means that getting to and from anywhere is a real mission despite how beautiful it looks from the cosiness of my apartment windows. I'm not used to all these over-efficient seasons and in my mind, it's spring already. Hence my outfit that I wore to work yesterday (obviously, the boots were swapped for rubber wellies when dashing about in the knee deep snow!). I donned my trusty fur gilet to stave off the cold (also seen here) but layered it with my 10 yr old faithful Gap denim jacket - a timeless classic, and a chunky scarf. Floral prints, my gorgeous Chloe Heloise bag and a slick of hot pink lipstick gave me the final spring in my step I needed to kick-start the day.
Hope you all had a lovely weekend, even though that seems so far away already. I went to hot yoga and it was intense but brilliant - just what you need to blow the cobwebs away. I've signed myself up for another class this week plus some meditation....Ohm.....am determined to rid myself of any stresses.
Have you all been following London Fashion Week? Some of the shows have just been fabulous. I am spending many a happy hour trawling through the collections and designing my A/W 2010 wardrobe. I can't wait to show you all my favourite pieces.
Have a lovely day, wherever you are, whatever the weather!
Hello all, sorry I've not been posting much but the weekend was really crazy with my best friend Heidi here and then it was back to work, which is always hectic. I hope I can show you all the project that me and Heidi are working on soon but she's just putting the final touches to it. Not much to report in my fashion world, I've just been trawling through all the New York fashion week fall/winter collections online and wishing I had been there to experience it all first hand. I'm collecting my favorite pieces and trends and will post them soon. However, I have to say it seems a bit sad to be planning my fall/winter wardrobe when we haven't even had a spring or summer here yet. But will use these sneak peeks in order to plan ahead, which I love to do, and smug about the pieces I already have in my wardrobe that are perfect for next fall/winter as well! :-)
Here's just a little outfit post, i'm wearing my new H&M skirt together with some of my other favourite pieces - stripes, leopard, skinny belts and full skirts. I just love to mix n match!
Hello my name is Anna-Jayne and I am a shopaholic. I dreaming of chunky black heels paired with massive metallic jewels and tiny little black outfits. Pair with mussed up hair, smokey black eyes and nude glossy lips and you've got the outfit I wish I was wearing right now.
Currently these are my favourite trousers, which I bought from ASOS a few months back but wasn't quite sure about until now. Ever since skinny jeans made a return I ditched all my regular trousers in favour of skin-tight denim but recently something has been happening in my trouser department (ha ha!). Despite really loving the look of harem pants I always shyed away from them deeming them too unflattering - every pair I tried made me look like I was either wearing a nappy or was an extra from Aladdin. Not hot. But I perserved in my search for harem-style trousers that didn't make me look ridiculous and that is how I stumbled upon these babies. I am so glad I gave them a go as I think the high-waisted paper bag waist is extremely flattering and the tapered ankle is the perfect way to show off my heels which usually drown under other trousers.
I put together these three looks to show how versatile they are - the top and bottom looks are perfect for dinner and drinks with your girlfriends/boyfriend whilst I wear the middle one to work. I add a skinny vest top under the cardi of the bottom look when I want to wear that one to work as well.
Sorry for another indoor post but the ground is so thick with snow outside I daren't venture out unless I absolutely have to at the moment.
xxx
Top look: cardi: Matalan, vest: Gap, booties; Aldo.
Middle look: cardi and vest as before, fur and cameo brooch: vintage, booties: Topshop.
My love affair with Ashish started when I spotted his beautiful leopard wedges that he did for Topshop last year (see Major Shoe Crush! and Mannequin posts). Soon after I saw Pixie Lott and Lily Allen in these sequinned Ashish dresses and my love for Ashish was confirmed. He is a man after my own heart, as I sure you are beginning to appreciate I love animal prints, sequins and one shouldered dresses. But there is another thing that I love, and it may not be totally fashionable, and is probably a relict ingrained in me from my 80s childhood and teenage adventures at Gatecrasher and Sundissential, but I unashamedly love most anything if it is neon!
Just to prove my point, here's a few of my neon adventures from 2008 and 2009. Mostly I only feel liberated enough to wear neon during raucous occasions such as festivals (e.g. Exit, Serbia) and during afterski (e.g. Hemsedal, Norway) where it is almost a HSE requirement that you stand out or you risk being lost in the crowd. However, when I was in Miami last fall I felt it was the perfect backdrop to bring a little neon into my daywear, which is represented by my neon green shades and hot pink bikini top peeking out from under my blue AA skater dress. I am sure you are wondering how the black and white prom dress fits into this all - these pics are from NYE just gone, and even though the dress is monochrome, I was armed with my beloved neon face paints and set about spreading a little neon love amongst the crowd of Get Loaded in the Dark (see Mannequin post). This was also a good time to post these pics and show you what I wore for NYE. I said I was going to wear my neon splatter AA dress but after one too much supersized dinners over the Xmas holidays I felt this Topshop striped prom dress was more forgiving. I did recreate the make-up from the Mannequin post though, or at least I attempted to. It wasn't as crystalline as I would have liked but it still looked pretty good. I'm going out in London again soon and will try something similar but more intense then. But I digress....
I just found that gorgeous Ashish dress that I spotted on Lily Allen on net-a-porter.com with 60% off!!! It was obviously a sign, since even though I love that website I never spend as much time on it as I would like (probably because it is pretty close to torture when I can't afford most of the things I fall for on it). But with 60% off how could I resist the dress I have been coverting for so long? So I bought it!! It's currently in England being looked after by my mum until I visit her in a couple of weeks! I really hope it fits!!! I have the exact occasion I want to wear it for all planned out in my head...but I am keeping that a secret...I don't want to spoil the surprise ;)
Oh, and before I go, if anyone out there wants to donate one of these fabulous Blumarine dresses from last season to me....I would be eternally in their debt. How gorgeous are they? Love the crystal gladiators as well...swoon...
Happy New Year everyone!! I'm so sorry that it has been such a long time since I have managed to blog anything but my camera broke over the holidays and I had to wait until my fab friend Heidi managed to send me her pics of our festive celebrations. Here are some pics of from one of my Christmas Girl's Nights Out - I was channelling a 50's pin-up girl via Alice in Wonderland. Got my red dress from Primark about a year ago and never quite found the perfect occasion to wear it - until this Christmas of course! My beautiful mum let me raid her wardrobe whilst I was at home and I swiped her gorgeous fur coat which my grandmother bought for her when she was a teenager. Kept me lovely and warm on the frosty streets of London. Finished my look with my new obsession - heart patterened tights, and some cute ballet flats, both of which I bought on my last trip to London from Topshop.
Needless to say, Santa hats and reindeer antlers were obligatory.
Hope you all enjoyed your Christmas holidays as well! xxx
Not since watching Kim Cattrall in Mannequin have I ever been so jealous of a shop dummy but when I spotted these gorgeous models in Topshop, Oxford Circus I fell in love. I love the neutral yet sparkly pallette of their clothes contrasted against the rainbow glitter and smokey eyes of their make-up. It's all so crystalline and enchanting. Their fluffy feather accessories just make the whole look so fun. The perfect christmas attire I say! Topshop is one of my most favourite places - I could literally spend hours in there, and I did. As well as scooping up the Ashish wedges I have been lusting after, I picked up these gorgeous Aggie boots (below) and tonnes of gorgeous statement jewellery and fab patterned tights (some of which I'm wearing below). I even got my eyebrows shaped and my nails done at the beauty bars there! My nails are now this uber cool sparkly red courteousy of Nails Inc (Apsen overlain with Petticoat Lane) - very Christmassy.
I'm going to Get Loaded in the Dark @ Brixton Academy (http://www.getloadedinthedark.com/) for New Year's Eve so I'm going to try and recreate the make-up from the Topshop models and team it with my American Apparel neon splatter dress that I bought when I was in Miami (http://store.americanapparel.co.uk/rnt46p.html?cid=29) - neon and glitter, the perfect raving combo. When in London, there is no point in being understated, which is why I miss it so much.
