Monster

Whilst I still get myself to properly think about what I'm wearing now , I can quite easily build a fantasy summer wardrobe in my head and at the moment I'm having a serious discussion with myself about which of these shoes would fit into my imaginative summer wardobe?

I have a soft spot for chunky and somewhat clumsy looking shoes, some might consider those as a bit of a fashion monstrosity but simplicity and practicality always seem to come first on my list, so no wonder I'm slowly becoming captivated by this trend and whilst I really can't see myself jumping on the Birkenstok-mania that is slowly unfolding, these sandals from Zara are certainly tick the boxes as to the type of sandals I can see fit for my imaginary summer wardrobe. 

The fashion snore

My lack of posts recently can only be explained by the fact I have now officially entered that phase of the year which I call the 'fashion snore', I experience this every winter just after Christmas when the shops are still full of last season's sale items and all you wish for is to see something bright and new that hints that in a few months time spring will come. By now my fashion snore situation is so bad that I can't even look at myself in the mirror in the morning after I get dressed simply because I know that seeing myself wearing that black roll neck again might send me back straight to bed.
To keep it short, I'm feeling a bit fed up with my dark wardrobe, the same boring black dresses and solid jumpers that I've become so used to in the last few months, I just feel that I'm in an urgent need of a colour and print injection but deep inside I know I'm not brave enough to make that switch yet, so I find myself scouring the internet for the most eye-popping prints and colours in a hope of finding something that will finally help me conquer my craving for a little bit of colour and print and save me from this fashion snore.

Darker shades of summer

It’s usually around this time of the year that the new Spring/Summer trends slowly start appearing in shops, magazines and blogs and although I’m usually quite keen on seeing how these trends are translated by the high-street chains, the real thing that is usually on my mind is how do I work my mostly dark wardrobe with the usually light and colourful spring and summer trends. 

I recently joked with my friend that my biggest fashion nightmare will be the disappearance of black and dark colours from the catwalks and shops in the summer. As I mentioned many times before, when it comes to getting dressed, summer is definitely my least favourite time of the year, especially because suddenly everything seems to turn so bright and colourful so last night, I had to reassure myself that not all summer clothes this year will be washed in shades of pastel and wild prints and so I gathered my favourite black and grey designer looks from the Spring/Summer shows in celebration of the darker shades of summer and now the only thing left to wish for is that the UK will actually be blessed with a real summer this year.

Bright splash

Although this winter has been very mild so far, I'm starting to get a little tired of winter clothing by now. It happens every year just before Christmas, the combination of holiday madness, grey and cold weather and short days are probably the perfect time to start digging deeper into the spring/summer collections and pass a gloomy winter after noon with some bright inspiration. I started this with a close examination of Stella McCartney's spring lookbook as her collection are always simple and elegant. I really love the mix of prints and pastel colours, can't stop thinking how beautiful the combination of the snake print bomber jacket with a delicate floral print dress, the sort of outfits I can only dream of actually pulling off but I guess there's nothing wrong with a little bit of bright inspiration on a cold winter afternoon to help banish the winter blues.

Pink haze

This morning, as I was walking to work from the tube station, I saw not one but 5 ladies dressed in all shades of pink, all looking gorgeous wearing their little blushed cashmere jumpers or fluffy pink coats and then it hit me, that feeling that I was left out of the pink party. As I was walking and staring enviously at the lady in the gorgeous boxy pink coat I asked myself 'why am I afraid of wearing pink?' and unsurprisingly immediately found about ten reasons to rationalise why I can't wear pink. The list of excuses and reasons could have probably filled a post on its own but I just couldn't help not being a little jealous in those that could so easily add a touch of pink and look totally fabulous and chic. But despite all of the temptation and all of the gorgeous items available, I still can't imagine myself in pink. Maybe it's just a case of going into a shop, finding an item I like and trying it on but maybe it takes more than just walking into a shop and a bit of love for pink, I think there's also a big question of practicality involved, at least for me, trying to rationalise why I suddenly want to wear pink is one thing but there is also the question of what will I be doing with that gorgeous pink jumper next winter, will I still wear it? What will happen to that fuzzy pink coat, will it still look fuzzy and pretty in a few months time? I suppose my answer to these questions is a very simple no. I just know that in a few months time I'll be looking back at this moment when all I wanted to do is wear pink and I'll probably be thanking myself for leaving this sudden fascination with pink where it should be (at least for me) - on the pages of magazines and shop windows.

Gift search - part 1

Every year , before Christmas, I do a list of gift requests from my friends, it's a tradition we've had for years and I think it's probably the best way to buy Christmas gifts for friends, we all agree on a budget and tell each other what we want and voila! 

So this year, one of my friends requested a small metallic or holographic clutch or bag, luckily there's plenty of choice at the moment and I'm trying to decided which one will be the perfect bag for my friend, I guess knowing what gift to buy doesn't necessarily mean buying the perfect one will be easy with all the choice available :)

Ready for a holiday

I really did not intend to mention my love for Whistles three times in one week but their email marketing team must be doing a great job making my heart stop for a second when I get one of their emails!

Today's email announced the launch of the Whistles Resort collection and I just couldn't ignore this gorgeous lookbook. I really love these looks and although I find it hard to grasp the idea behind 'resort' collections I really love the fact all of the items are keeping to the looks and aesthetics you will usually find at Whistles (I won't discuss the prices but Whistles is Whistles). These practical and chic looks might be part of a 'resort' collection, the sort of looks I might dream of wearing on a nice wintery city break (I'd wish!) but their greatness is that they'll probably be wonderful working wardrobe companions.

Inspired by the boys

Two weeks in an office full of boys and I'm already slipping into a somewhat lazy attitude towards my outfits, trying to avoid over-dressing to an office full of jeans, trainers and t-shirts and all I can think off is a comfy pair of trainers and a warm sweatshirt. I'm a little obsessed with this sweatshirt from Whistles that will be the perfect fit for my slightly more relaxed office wardrobe that is slowly coming together as days go by. I really can't say no to a comfy sweatshirt teamed with a basic skirt and trainers for a bit of a sporty and casual look. I'm really starting to enjoy the no-fuss attitude to work attire in my new office, it's such a relief for someone like me who's not really good at planning outfits in advance to know that I'm not stepping into a giant fashion show every morning when I get into the office. It's a big cheer for lazy and comfy dressing at work!

Touch of pink

I'm a little bit in love with all of those looks from &Other Stories, a touch of light and pink shades, so beautiful yet seems so out of reach for me. I really find it hard to wear pastels and pinks or even white, not because they're not really my colours but because I'm so clumsy that by the time I leave home and get to work I usually spill my coffee on myself about 3 times and manage to smear my mascara and eyeliner everywhere, not to mention the messy morning commutes on the smog and dust filled London Underground, all of those just scream 'accident waiting to happen' if I even try and think of something slightly lighter than my usual greys, blue and blacks. I do kind of envy those that are brave enough to rock a little bit of pink and pastel, I sort of wish I could find the perfect pink or pastel piece that I'd feel comfortable wearing without being worried about spilling coffee over it or mess it up in some kind of way. For now I'll keep on looking at these brilliant looks for some inspiration until I feel brave enough to add a little bit of pink and pastel shades to my wardrobe.

Bag obsession - the gym backpack

It seems like I can’t go a week without developing an obsession for a handbag style and after my foray into the controversial world of bumbags recently, I’m now developing a slight obsession with drawstring gym bags. Yes, it’s yet another time-travel adventure for me, back to the summer camp days when I was forced to pack all of my daily summer camp belongings into a flimsy drawstring bag decorated with all sorts of colourful and ridiculous motifs that were there to remind you what summer camp you’re in. Obviously, once the summer camp days were gone, I never had to look at the drawstring gym bag again, but recently it seems they’ve been slowly making their way back and luckily, this time, the loud and colorful is replaced by sophisticated and practical making the drawstring gym bag feel a little more age appropriate. 

These are some of my favourite picks, ranging from the very high end and ridiculously expensive Alexander Wang x  Samsung bag to the slightly more affordable high street option from Zara.  

Not a sequin in sight

The countdown has begun, the Christmas lights are on and the shops are starting to fill with all sorts of sparkly and sequiny 'holiday' outfits that make me want to scream. Luckily this year I'm skipping most of the holiday festivities, but I'm still faced with on pre-Christmas wedding and a work-do, so braced myself , took a deep breath and picked up a few slightly different and potential holiday outfit gems from Cos and &Other stories that still look incredible without even one sequin in sight. Here's for a simple and chic holiday outfit! 

Combat mode

It's been somewhat of a manic Sunday morning for me, I'm currently writing this while on a train journey to visit a friend who's leaving for a long period to travel around the world.

I woke up in a bit of a combative mood ( a mixture of not feeling very well an waking up way too early) and this outfit was the first thing I thought off. Sadly it was still too dark to actually snap a proper photo of this outfit so a quick browse through polyvore while on my train journey has helped to sort it out. 

I was trying to steer clear from the camouflage trend but I really fell in love with this pencil skirt from Topshop, it has a bit of an elegant touch to it despite the camouflage print. The shoes from Office were meant to be my winter shoes this year but I'm still having a hard time breaking into them so I have a spare pair of shoes in my bag in case it all gets too much!

Not your standard winter hat

I love wearing hats in the winter, for years I've been wearing a black fuzzy beret that my mum bought for me as a gift during my first winter in England, that poor hat has gone through so many adventures throughout the last few years and sadly will be retired this winter. I would usually settle for a simple black hat but it looks like hats this year are anything but simple. I'm on a mission to find a fun and quirky hat this year and it looks like I'll be spoiled for choice this time. I absolutely love these lovely hats and can only wish I could afford some of them but at least they serve as inspiration for my hat-hunting mission. 

Take a trip to the moon with Stine Goya

Stine Goya has been a long time favourite of mine and every collection holds plenty of lovely surprises. This winter collection's themed around a trip to the moon, I love a good collection that is build around a theme that can spark my imagination and this collection certainly does with a wide variety of items to fit any style you can find anything from metallic accented puffer jacket, printed dresses and structured jackets and knits. I love how the trip to the moon theme is translated across the collection, the more you look at each piece the more apparent the theme becomes and for a fantasist like me it's just the perfect way to spark my imagination. 

So what will I be taking on my trip to the moon ? I will definitely go with those lovely berets , croc heals and a comfy and large backpack. 

Check out the gorgeous collection video to see more and spark your imagination:

You made me smile - Joanna Pybus A/W 2013

Patterns ? Check ! Blacks and Greys? Check! Quirky prints and fluffy monster clutches? Check! This collection by Joanna Pybus simply ticks all of the boxes for me. It instantly put a smile on my face because it has the perfect combination of quirky an chic. I love the simple cuts and use of monchrome prints mixed with touches on neon and I'm totally obsessed with the cute and fluffy monster clutches. It's just one of the pieces of this collection I would love to get my hands on but for now I'll have to keep on looking at the lookbook. Check this collection out , it's lovely and decently prices as well! I'm really looking forward to see more of Joanna's creations Spring/Summer 2014. 

BYCO. A different approach to fashion

A dear friend shared a link to a wonderful site that I have never heard of before but instantly got excited about . BYCO. is a platform dedicated to help designers bypass the hurdles that come with the process of production and distribution of fashion by handling the process of sampling, production, distribution as well as photography and marketing. Designers are invited to submit their designs and the selected designs are then produced and sold on the site. The designers themselves receive a percentage of the sales when their submissions are selected to be sold on the site. 

As someone who always likes a little bit of online shopping and more than that loves discovering new designers, it looks to be a very promising platform, the designs being sold on the site at the moment look beautiful and well made and what's more surprising is that the items are actually affordable with some items starting at $80. I think BYCO. definitely is definitely a great example of the future of innovation in fashion marketing and retail online and I'm really looking forward to seeing this platform growing.

Boy's choice

I'm having a bit of a sleepless night, I should have been in bed and asleep about 2 hours ago ahead of an early train journey tomorrow but instead of crawling into bed I found myself browsing the men's section at COS and it's not because I'm looking to buy anything for a guy, I just love a great men's jumper and accessories and the men's collection at COS has certainly caught my eyes with some great pieces I would totally love to wear myself. I would totally love to try some of those on in my next visit to COS! 

Grey block

I've had a bit of a rough week, actually a very rough week and can't wait for it to be over, so I found myself doing some online window-shopping (embarrassingly, one of my favourite forms of escapism) and ended my window-shopping tour browsing the Second Female website. It's been one of my favourite fashion brands that I discovered when I visited Copenhagen for the first time a few years ago. It's always simple and smart pieces like these that catch my attention. The black and grey seem to perfectly represent my mood this week, and I absolutely adore these the fact that these items can be the perfect winter essentials for a lazy dresser like me who is not a big fan of getting dressed on dark and cold winter mornings. 

Coat choices

Time seems to fly and it's nearly November, that time of the year when the temperatures drop low enough to switch from the 'fall jacket' to the proper 'winter coat'. I'm usually a one coat person, I buy one every two or three years and usually stick with it until I decide it's time for a new one. This year I'm very tempted to buy a new winter coat simply because there are so many great classic silhouettes that will work for years to come. I already have last year's biker coat from Zara which served me and will serve me very well for a long time but  I also really want a classic cut double breasted coat, a style that will be truly transcend any seasonal trend madness and will be the  practical go-to pieces on cold days for years. It's great to have a trendy coat but I feel it's time for a proper coat investment.

French Faves

I might not have the budget but I can't avoid some online window shopping every once in a while. My recent favourites are from French brands Claudie Pierlot and April, May. I love how easy to pull of some of those items look, especially as winter is just around the corner and all you can think of is how to keep yourself warm. These styles are certainly cool and chic enough to rock during the winter while keeping everything practical and easy to pull off. Now, if I only had the budget I would have been happier but for now I'll settle for browsing these collections to keep me warm and inspired before winter starts.