I don't post a lot of outfit posts but when I do I try to always take something away from the experience, and this particular one, although quite boring and insignificant to some ties together a couple of recent blog posts, one which was about taking your summer wardrobe into Autumn, and the other which all about ways in which to boost confidence and self belief (read my posts here and here)
These trousers were really a summer buy from Dorothy Perkins Curve line, when I bought them back in April / May time, and whilst I've worn them a couple of times with both a white top, and a white shirt, and a chunky yellow necklace, I can honestly say that I've never felt completely comfortable in them, I don't mean fit wise, I mean more mentally comfortable, and confident.
I've seen so many people look amazing in similar coloured pants, but on me they were just too much, they were too bright and they drew too much attention to the worst parts of my body. So like a lot of items lately I put them back in the wardrobe and reverted back to my "safer", more conventional, darker pants.
When I was putting together that post on Autumn fashion though, these trousers immediately came to mind. Drawing on the colours of the Autumn leaves, yellows and mustard's are pretty much staple shades at this time of year, and whilst I'd originally just seen the trousers as a summer season wonder, there was no reason why I couldn't try wearing them again in the colder months.
So instead of teaming them with lighter, more summery tops, I switched it up a bit and teamed them up with a real wardrobe staple, a plain black t-shirt, some black and white low top Converse, and just to soften the look, and to get a bit more wear out of it, a very summery floral scarf, that contained similar mustard yellow tones.
Not only that but I ditched the mirror selfie and I persuaded Mummy Lou to take a few outfit pictures for me. As much as I love clothes and I love fashion I've never been comfortable with having my photo taken, I don't know whether it's down to my facial paralysis but I've always needed to be in control of how people see me, but sometimes you need to face your fears and do it anyway - after all she's my mam - she's there to love and support me, and to lift my confidence.
So we went outside, dodged the rain showers and found a great place to shoot that was full of character, and looked positively dreary next the sunshine yellow of my trousers, and we shot a few pics, and do you know what? I don't hate them, and I certainly don't hate the trousers.
Obviously there are things that I would change about myself, and my appearance, but hey this is me at the moment, curves and all, and I think I need to try and love what I see in the mirror a little bit more. Do you know what though? I do think I'm rocking those trousers, so much so in fact that I ended up wearing them for an appointment and a shopping trip.
I don't think that I'm ever going to have the supermodel esq confidence that a lot of bloggers, You Tubers and Instagrammers seem to have when it comes to posing and posting outfits, but we aren't all the same, and hopefully in time I will become more comfortable posting pictures, and sharing my style with you, and at the same I hope that with every picture I'll learn to love and accept myself just that little bit more x I'd love to hear your thoughts on this - how do you learn to love yourself, and how can you improve your own body image? Let me know in the comments x
I disappeared again, didn't I? I promised you some more posts and then I went AWOL again! I'm sorry that I haven't been the best blogger lately but if you follow me on Instagram or You Tube then you'll know that I haven't been completely absent from social media.
I've always tried to establish an all round social media presence, my aim is to make all of my channels work together, so if you see something on my Instagram, or on my Twitter or on my You Tube channel, then at some point it will probably pop up on my blog.
Although like many users I recently lost the ability to monetise my videos on You Tube, I still enjoy making them and having another mouthpiece for thoughts and ramblings, and dare I say it sometimes it's easier to make a video then it is to take and edit a kazillion pictures for a blog post!
It's always difficult to find content that other people will watch and hopefully enjoy, so at the moment I just seem to be sticking with the old tried and tested, hauls and unboxing videos. I definitely went to switch it up a bit though so I'd love to know what type of content you'd like to watch so please leave me your suggestions below x
In the meantime though I've recently posted a couple of haul videos that I thought I share with you, the first one is a Dorothy Perkins haul which you can watch below or via this link. I recently took advantage of one of their 25% off everything weekends and picked up a few jewellery pieces, and a couple of pairs of cute socks, so have a watch and let me know your thoughts.
As well as a fashion based haul, I also recently uploaded a very, very late, post Christmas beauty sale haul. Yes I know we're now in April but better late then never eh? Yeah I was pretty ill over the Christmas period but I still managed to make a couple of online sale buys from Benefit, Clinique, Tarte and Marc Jacobs Beauty. You can watch my haul video below or via this link if you are on a mobile device.
Although a lot of the kits and the holiday sets that I talked about were limited editions, I still think that this video was worth sharing with you. Why? well a lot of the kits also contained a lot of permanent items and permanent shades some of which I'll be reviewing on the blog in the next month or so, and if you're a Tarte fan then make sure that you're following my blog because I might have bought a few extra sets to giveaway.
Again I hope you've found these videos useful, as I say I have quite a few reviews to come but if you have any questions on any of the items that I've mentioned in either of these videos then please leave me a comment below, and of course don't forget to subscribe to my You Tube channel if you haven't already x
As much as I love fashion, clothes, accessories and shoes, unlike a lot of bloggers I don't really post that many outfits of the day. There are many reasons I guess why I don't do that many ranging from a lack of confidence in front of the camera, to poor body image, and a not very skilled principal photographer (sorry Mummy Lou) but with a big birthday approaching I'm trying to be a bit more accepting of myself and a bit braver all round.
So just before I headed off to Monday night's Intu Eldon Square Fashion Spooktacular, the mother ship kindly shot a few pictures so I could cobble together a very rare outfit of the day post and this was the result...
What I Wore
Joe Browns At Simply Be - Autumn Leaf Wrap Dress
80 Denier Black Opaques - George At Asda
Madia Tan Buckle Ankle Boots - Dorothy Perkins
Lola Rose Sloane Square Beaded Bracelet - Fire Agate
Olive Wood Wooden Bracelet - Somewhere In Cyprus
I ordered this dress a few weeks ago now after seeing it on the Simply Be website. Joe Browns don't carry the plus size line on their own website (Why not though? How weird is that??) so I think that this dress is a Simply Be exclusive. It's not hard to see why I ordered it, it's just perfect for this time of year.
In a faux (essential if you're on the curvy side) wrap style, it's made from a stretchy jersey fabric. The dress has a black base which is a perfect foil for the flower and leaf print. Thanks to the brown, yellow, orange, tan, and grey tones, this dress fits perfectly into the traditional Autumnal colour palette, that gets its influence from the changing colours of the leaves and foliage, and those fabulous Autumn sunrises and sunsets.
Outside I teamed it with a black PU bomber jacket, and a black Michael Kors tote bag to tone in with both my holy grail black George opaque tights, and with the background of the dress.
Instead of going for a black boot or shoe though, I teamed this outfit up with one of my favourite pairs of boots, a pair of past season, tan, brown, buckle detail ankle boots from Dorothy Perkins, that coordinate perfectly with the colours on the dress They don't have a huge heel and they aren't too flat either so they're really comfortable which is great when to you need to walk around a bit, as I did on Monday night thanks to a fire alarm. They're quite a classic style so it shouldn't be too hard to find something similar in stores this season. Sticking with the tan theme and thinking of how I can wear the dress in the future I could also potentially wear it with my Clarks Hamble Oak Brogues (see my post here) for a different look.
Because the dress had such a busy and I didn't want to accent my cleavage too much, I decided not to wear a necklace and instead I wore, a bracelet on each wrist. On one wrist I wore a slightly, chunkier stretch bracelet which I got on holiday in Cyprus a few years ago, which is made from a varnished, golden brown toned olive wood, and on the other wrist I wore a Lola Rose bracelet, which I received as a Christmas present a few years ago now. I don''t think it's the easiest one to find anymore but it's the Lola Rose Sloane Square Beaded Bracelet, which originally came from QVC UK and mine is made from Fire Agate, which with orange and brown tones, again perfectly with the print on the dress.
I know lot of bloggers let their pictures do the talking but you know me I love to talk and I thought it might be nice for you to find out a little bit about the pieces that I wore and why I chose them, even though in most cases here it is down to colour coordination ha ha. I'm really going to try and do more outfits of the day to try and be brave and boost my confidence a bit. Why shouldn't I ? After all human beings do come in all ages, shapes and sizes and we all clothes so if we love clothes we shouldn't we have the confidence to show ourselves off and put ourselves out there. Are you a fan of autumnal tones in clothing, jewellery and accessories? Let me know your thoughts in the comments x
I don't know about you but the fact that another month starts next week terrifies me, at the moment I'm really feeling as though life is starting to pass me by! As scary as it seems though, it does mean that we're one step closer to my favourite time of year, Christmas. I love Christmas but strange as it sounds I've heard a few people say that it isn't their favourite time of year. There are loads of reasons I guess why that could be, but a lot of people seem to to prefer another holiday or special day and for that reason a certain day next week is their favourite day of the year, What am I talking about? Well Halloween of course!
I must admit that as an adult I can take Halloween or I can leave it, I carve a pumpkin, and get sweets ready for the trick or treaters but I can honestly say that I don't get that excited about it any more. I think I was more a fan of it as a child, with my bin bag costume, my hollowed out turnip and my witches hat but Halloween has come on a long way since then, and maybe that's why some many adults get so excited about it and dress up and decorate their homes as if it was Christmas.
When things become popular understandably retailers jump on the band waggon and play a role in creating the hype. Look in any store or online and the words Glamourween, Do Horror In Style, Hauntingly Beautiful or Scream Queens will jump out at you as retailers promote their Halloween themed fashion, accessories and home ware.
Is that a bad thing? No not my eyes I'm all for people having fun, and whether you're a fan of all things spooky or not, and you live in the North East, take my advice and head to Intu Eldon Square over the next few days to get both some spooky home and fashion advice, and some fashion hints and tips for the Autumn and Winter seasons ahead
On Monday night, myself and a small, select group of North East bloggers were invited down to Intu Eldon Square to experience everything that the Fashion Spooktacular has to offer and to experience a little bit of what's going to be going on over the next few days.
Conveniently sited near to New Look, Debenhams, and Dorothy Perkins, Intu have created their very own spooky themed walk in capsule wardrobe. Step inside and you'll find rails of clothing featuring some of the seasons key fashion and accessory trends from stores throughout Eldon Square including Adidas, Top Shop, and Oasis, intermingled with Halloween themed accessories, such as masks and hats from the likes of Claires, Accessorize and Ann Summers, and even some Halloween home items including pumpkins, wreaths and even black cats.
With Halloween themed music including Thriller by Michael Jackson, Black Magic By Little Mix, and of course the Time Warp from Rocky Horror playing in the background, we started off the evening as bloggers do with some food and drink and some lovely paella, tapas and sangria, courtesy of Tapas Revolution which is now open in the centre new Grey's Quarter.
Then clutching our sangria and day of the dead, skull themed plates we then had the opportunity to get some seasonal themed style advice.
Over the next three days, the team from Intu Eldon Square will be giving you the opportunity to attend their fashion spooktacular and get not only some Halloween style advice but also some more general autumn and winter fashion tips. There are three workshops a day and they are free to attend.
27th and 29th October 2017
11.30am - Creepy Crawly Homeware
How to achieve the chicest Halloween home
1.30pm - How To Pick A Wicked Winter Coat
Explore some of the seasons key outerwear trends and find out the style advice your need to pick your own perfect winter coat
3.30pm Autumn Winter Capsule Wardrobe Wizardry
Personal style advice on to pick on trend pieces that can be paired together to maximise your look in the seasons ahead
28th October 2017
11.30am - How To Pick A Wicked Winter Coat
1.30pm Our Top Ten Must Have Autumn / Winter Items
Showcasing some of the key pieces for Autumn / Winter 2017 including boots, statement t-shirts and knits
3.30pm - Scarily Good Halloween Costume Ideas
Tips on how to find and create the chicest Halloween costumes, and well as fun costume ideas for the little ones.
All of the styling sessions and workshops will held by a member of the style team and if you're lucky enough you might get to meet the Fashion Fortune Teller herself, or as she's known in real life Emma, you can find all about Emma and what she does on her own website Stylissimo and let me tell you this lady knows her stuff. She is an image consultant and personal shopper, a fashion blogger and writer and she is also a personal and commercial stylist and she is going to be on hand to answer all of you fashion and style questions over the next few days.
On the night Emma told us a little bit about the workshops and what exactly each one covers before giving us a taster of the Scarily Good Halloween Costume Ideas session. Yes I know you can go out and buy a costume off the peg but surely there are more glamorous ways to create a Halloween fashion statement?
Well, there are and Emma gave us some great hints and tips on how to create a chic Halloween look by taking some clothing pieces from some of the stores in the centre and teaming them with cute Halloween themed accessories, and make up sets to create some both fun and stylish looks.
I'm all for versatility when it comes my wardrobe, and although it doesn't look like as times, I do try to shop carefully and consider things like cost per wear when I choosing more expensive pieces, so her advice was perfect for my way of thinking. Whilst a lot of the pieces could be worn as part of a stylish Halloween ensemble, a lot of them could also be dressed down or worn casually or they could even be recycled and used as Christmas party outfits, by changing how you wear them and by changing your accessories. She showed us some beautifully pieces but I fell head over heels in love with this black velvet kimono style jacket from River Island. You can't see it too clearly here but it's covered in pearls and beading and whilst it would look great over a plain black dress you could also dress it down and wear it over jeans and a statement t-shirt, it also comes in the River Island Curve range too which is a bonus.
As I seem to have said quite a lot recently I do love a blog and press events, but the ones that really stand out to me are when you actually get to do something, be it try a new product, learn a new skill, or get really involved in some way and as result the next part of the night was right up my street.
The team from Intu Eldon Square had teamed up with several of the centres stores to set myself and my fellow bloggers some challenges, either individually or in pairs, so after being handed a envelope with our names on, we all went our separate ways, some of us were making bath bombs in Lush, one blogger had an Urban Decay makeover, some went to eat, and some us went to stores such as John Lewis and Top Shop, to create seasonal themed home ware settings and seasonal outfits.
I was paired up with the lovely Laura, and we headed to Dorothy Perkins, where we were asked to create a Christmas party outfit with shoes and accessories with a budget of £100. I'm not going to lie I let Laura take the lead, I love her style, and some of things that she wears, so it was interesting to see how she puts an outfit together. We decided to go for something just that little bit different, sequins, glitter and sparkle are brilliant and they have their place but we went for something that you could actually wear again either together or as separate pieces on a day to day basis. We teamed a khaki (that's what it says online but it's really a vintage, bottle green) Pu mini skirt up with an oriental design, statement print bardot style top, and then picking out some of the colours in the top, we chose a pair of burgundy Mary Jane style, suede effect heels, and a black patent clutch to mix up the textures a bit, and then we finished the look with a pair of long black tassel earrings to compliment the oriental feel, and the off the shoulder top.
It was good fun not only experiencing how somebody else looks at clothing but also because we had a chance to have a good look around the store and believe me they have a lot of things in at the moment that I want!
After snapping a few pics and saying thank you to the team at Dorothy Perkins we headed back to the Fashion Spooktacular zone to compare our experiences with Emma and our fellow bloggers. The next part of the evening and the next thing that the team at Intu had treated us to was a potion cocktail experience at The Alchemist, which is a popular cocktail bar and restaurant which is also located in Greys Quarter. Unfortunately due to my reliance on public transport on the night I had to pass, and headed home with my arms laden with goodies, including this beautiful flower arrangement / bouquet from Katherines Florists.
Apologies that this photo is taken in the amazing surroundings of Eldon Square Bus Station but I was paranoid that it wouldn't last the journey, thankfully though it did, and now both myself and my mum are getting the chance to enjoy the beautiful autumnal toned flowers and foliage. I'm particularly loving the orange Physalis that remind of little pumpkins.
We also received a lovely day of the dead, sugar skull themed loot bag full of goodies including Halloween themed sweets, a brooch from Tiger, a notepad from Accessorize, a NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream, a Lush Butterball Ballistic make up samples from Urban Decay and Inglot, and discount vouchers from Burtons, Dorothy Perkins, and Monsoon, a makeover voucher for Inglot and we were also very kindly gifted an Intu gift card which I will be putting to good use soon, what will I buy though decisions, decisions!
I'd like to say a huge thank you to Intu Eldon Square for hosting the event, on what was a very trying evening with fire alarms and what not, I also want to thank Emma, and the team from Tapas Revolution, and of course Dorothy Perkins and all of the other retailers involved. If you're in Newcastle over the next few days I would definitely recommend that you pop into Intu Eldon Square, and take advantage of the Fashion Spooktacular and get your self some style tips, for the season ahead. You can find out more about the Fashion Spooktacular and what Intu Eldon Square has to offer on their official website. Any questions please leave me a comment and I will see you tomorrow with a very rare outfit post x
*Blog Press / Event
Some Photographs Kindly Provided By Intu Eldon Square
Another week and it's time for another haul. I'm not feeling very comfortable with my size or my weight at the moment, so really clothes shopping should be off the agenda but sometime you either see a bargain or you just get the urge to buy some pretties and that's exactly what's happened here.
I've probably done something a bit silly with some things and I've sized down for when I do lose a bit of weight but I'm really hoping that it will give me a bit of an incentive and the offending pieces won't just sit there in my wardrobe for ever more - fingers crossed anyways x
We'll start of with some supermarket buys from George at Asda. Over the last month or so I've had a couple of business meeting in Asda Cafe of all places. With time to kill I had a mooch around the George sale rails and I picked up a few half price bits including this gorgeous blouse.
It looks absolutely nothing in the picture but it's made of a sheer, pale ivory fabric, it has long slightly puff sleeves with crystal buttons and the most beautiful Peter Pan collar that you ever did see.
The collar is covered in the cutest daisy embellishment, made out of crystal and a PVC like, faux leather. The collar was undoubtedly the selling point for LouLou the daisy lover, and even though this top is too sheer to wear on it's own, I know I'll wear it a lot over both leggings and skinny jeans.
Another top that I got from the Asda sale racks was this boxy, purple floral number.
Made of shiny, scuba style fabric, it has a zip at the back of the neck and I love it. There was also a dress and matching pencil skirt available, but me and pencil skirts don't really mix so I'm picturing this with some high waisted jeans, or even some flares, if I can find a pair that fits and suit me.
As well as the tops I also got this floral patterned tunic dress. Made of a textured fabric, it has a black faux leather trim around the neckline, which adds a designer edge. I think I'm mainly going to be wearing this with black opaques, and maybe the brogues you'll see later on in this post, but I think that this would also look good over leggings for a long line tunic look.
The final I bought from Asda was a non sale item but it was only £12 so I still consider it to be a bit of a bargain buy x
I'm loving the silky, shiny scuba type fabric that seems to be everywhere at the moment and I also have a bit of a thing for elasticated waists. Hey, don't knock them until you've tried them. They fit on both your fat and thin days and they're comfy. There also pretty easy to adjust if you lose weight so I'm all over them at the moment and this one fits the bill perfectly. It's black with a large grey and white floral pattern.
Unfortunately I can't find any of these items online now, but if you have an Asda Home, or an Asda store near you it might be worth having a look at the sale racks, you never know what bargains you might find.
Sticking with the scuba fabric idea and the concept of the elasticated waist I've also recently made a little purchase from boohoo. This is one those sized down items but I loved it so much it will be worth cutting back on the bad things to wear it x The Kadie Porcelain Print Box Pleat Skirt, is made of the same, silky, shiny scuba type fabric but it isn't quite as thick as either of my Asda purchases. It normally £20 but buy at the right time from boohoo (usually weekends) and you can either get some money off or free postage. I love the clean, sharpness of the blue and white and I can't wait to wear this when I've lost a few pounds and have a bit of a tan. I'm not 100% sure what kind of top to wear this with so I'd love to hear your thoughts x
I don't whether I've been thinking about the warmer months but after wearing skirts only sporadically for the last few years all of a sudden I'm obsessed with them. Again all about the elasticated waist, this skirt comes from H&M.
When I first received this skirt I couldn't decided if I loved it or hated it. As well as being stupidly tight, I just wasn't sure about the colour and the fabric, or the £39.99 price tag! Although it's still way tighter than I would have liked (I'll work on that!) it has grown on me. I still think it's overpriced, but the almost tan, terracotta brown shade reminds a lot of some of the 70's inspired bits that are everywhere at the moment. The sort of ribbed, knit, almost nylon also has that retro vibe about it. I'll make it work and it's something that you could wear across several seasons so I'm hoping that it will make a versatile addition to my wardrobe.
That almost retro style rib knit seems to be everywhere at the moment and despite the sweat issues that come from the fabrication I'm a bit of a fan. This high, turtle neck black ribbed jumper also from H&M is a real, wardrobe staple, and a bit of a twist on the basic black sweater. I've been wearing this jumper with statement necklaces for a stylish yet classic look. Unfortunately this was in sale so it isn't online any more and unfortunately neither is this jumper.
This is just a classic, black and white horizontal striped, fine knit sweater, with an exposed zip at the back of the neck. I've been wearing this over skinny jeans, and leggings and accessorising if with chunky, black and white jewellery pieces, and my gorgeous Iced Rainbow necklace, that you may have already seen in this post x
This post seems to feature a lot of reoccurring themes, skirts with an elasticated waist, scuba fabrics, florals and blue and white. I think I get my love for blue and white from Mummy Lou and I couldn't resist yet another jumper.
This open weave jumper is white and features a lovely blousey, blue rose design. Unfortunately this one is long gone from the website too but I think will be a lovely piece for those cooler summer evenings.
My next clothing purchase came courtesy of Dorothy Perkins. I used to be a regular Dorothy Perkins shopper, but lately not so much. I find it quite an expensive store for what it is now, and to be honest all of their clothes are a bit samey :( Once in a while though something will stand out and on this occasion, it was this top.
My pictures just aren't doing this top justice, so I would recommend either checking it out on the Dorothy Perkins website or in person. It's all about the layers, with a wrap over a back and layers of fabric. Again the selling point was the neckline and I love the crystal and bead detailing. It should be £28 but if you look hard enough online you should be able to find a discount code x
My final clothing purchase came from QVC of all places. I know they have a bit of a reputation for old lady, and casual wear but I'm a firm believer that you can find fashion and beauty gems anywhere. One of QVC's most longstanding brands is British fashion jewellery brand Butler & Wilson. As well as a range of distinctive jewellery pieces, they also have their own fashion and accessory range.
I fell in love with this top the first time that I saw it presented. I love hippy and psychedelic swirls and patterns and this multi, coloured rainbow design called to me. The fabric is silky soft and feels gorgeous against the skin. The design has a slightly blurred finish which adds to the trippy feel. It was £30.40 excluding postage which wasn't cheap but I've already worn it once and received a few positive, compliments so it was well worth it for an unusual piece.
As well as some fashion pieces I've also bought a few jewellery and accessory pieces and a pair of shoes.
On those days when the rain and the ice have stayed away I've been ditching my boots for my beautiful Clarks brogues. I've worn them an awful lot and they still look as good as they ever did but I really, really wanted a black pair. Unfortunately I can't justify the outlay at the moment so after a lot of searching I eventually found a decent alternative courtesy of 24 Studio
Okay they aren't real leather but these Dolcis brogues look and feel like the real thing for a fraction of the price. I can't find them on the website anymore but I know they were less than £20 and they have some that look very similar on sale at just £12.99.
It wouldn't be a fashion and accessory haul on this blog if it didn't contain a few jewellery pieces x You've already seen a post on my gorgeous necklace from Iced Rainbow but I also a few pieces from Avon including this beautifully packaged necklace and earring set.
Packaged in a galaxy print, star shaped box you get a silver tone necklace with a tiny star pendant and matching stud earrings. As well as this sweet set, I also got this bracelet x It's a stretch bracelet in a sort of mesh, popcorn style, with a real gemstone, quartzite stone at the centre.
Alas these were sale items so they aren't on the Avon website anymore but it might be worth having a look through a sale brochure if you have a local Avon representative x
My final jewellery purchase came from one of my favourite places to buy jewellery, ebay x
This bracelet set contains a variety of faux gold, and faux pearl beaded bracelets, and one gold tone bangle, several of which have charms such as crystals, coins and stars hanging off them. All of these bracelets can be worn together or separately x They were just £1.09 from this seller x
My last clothing and accessory purchase was a bit of a silly one. I bought a pair of grey, furry bunny ears from Poundland.
An obvious Easter purchase don't you know and I wore them with pride to the hilarity of my family over the weekend x Why not? well all need to do something every now and then that makes us or someone else smile x I don't think Jasper was that impressed, but this picture seemed to make a lot of you smile on Instagram x
I've filmed a little You Tube video to accompany this haul, which I hope you'll watch and enjoy and I'd really love it if you'd subscribe x
If you have any questions or comments on anything that I've bought please leave me a comment, I love reading what you have to say x
