Waiting For Sunshine

January so far has been party central - which is really weird for January and hasn't been too friendly to my already sobbing bank manager! 

My very beautiful best friend got married and had the decency to choose these absolutely glorious bridesmaid dresses (still no idea how to put pictures into the 'right place' in these posts - but see below :) ) Which was an awful lot classier than I looked at the Hen Do, let me tell you. Ever the 'outdoorsy girl' the blushing bride wanted to do this so 'this' we did even though I actually cried while tipping myself off a cliff into what I am absolutely sure were sub zero temperature waters!

Wedding number two did not involve any need for icy waters fortunately - just icy temperatures and icy roads and me clinging for dear life to my boyfriend who swears I nearly yanked his arm off and wanted to know why I had to wear a dress and heels in the middle of winter. "Its a wedding!" apparently wasn't the right answer. Have a peek at my "Wedding wear" collage and tell me that isn't worth nearly breaking your neck over?!
 
(1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 - just fyi :) )

My mother finds it completely incomprehensible that there are people who go through life without owning a watch. Given that this is a woman who doesn't understand that mobile phones only work if you do, in fact, turn them on, it is hardly surprising that she also doesn't understand how a phone can replace a timepiece.

She has it in her head that she wants to buy me a watch. I don't wear a watch. I have had this conversation with her about 17 times but she is irretrievably convinced that if I HAD a watch, I would wear a watch. So.

Watches - anyone? Do you go for timeless classic on the assumption that you are probably never going to fork out cash for a watch ever again - or do you go for something fashionable you might actually wear?

She is bound and determined to buy it from here (because my brother's watch came from there - some sort of sibling equality issue - who knows) so that limits choices a little bit - though they certainly have a mind boggling range of watches.  

I am particularly loving white straps - This Marc Jacobs number is gorgeous and I also like this Michael Kors - but... white. I am basically a dirt magnet. Unfailingly, if there is mud/dirt/grime I WILL attract it. And pen. Within 10 minutes (literally) of buying a gorgeous new bag from Accessorise I had marked it with blue biro. All the more baffling is the fact that I had not touched a blue biro. So white. Not the best idea.

So probably something with a metal strap is better. But they all remind me of my Nan. And while I am all about the vintage (as mentioned on here previously) my Nan is not exactly my fashion icon.

Help? No really... help. Whatever I choose I WILL have to wear it - at least whenever mum might pop round. Which is usually unannounced. 

Heeeelllppp!

I have been loving all things vintage for quite some time now, without really knowing quite what 'vintage' means. In my head 'vintage' is anything with a soft focus 'yesteryear' feel with muted corals, jades and rose gold. Something exactly like the necklace in the picture in fact.

What I learned recently is that "vintage" is officially something that has passed the 25 years old mark. So um... that would be me then. Oh dear. Further investigation tells me that "vintage" is actually something pertaining to a particular season or period - like wine - so something from the fifties is vintage, simply by way of being from a designated period in time. (I assume the period has to be over 25 years? The 80's isn't vintage yet.)

My obsession with vintage, however, has never before stretched to 'antique' (officially something that has passed the 100 years old mark) and antique still reminds me of stately homes I was dragged around as a child where I did not even pretend to be interested in shabbily upholstered chairs and peculiar oil paintings of dead people. All this has changed. Antique jewellery, my friends, is my New Obsession.

Go have a poke around here and tell me that isn't something you would love to have in your jewellery collection. All of it. What I am noticing about antique jewellery is how unashamedly beautiful and sophisticated it is. I am not, and have never been, a fan of especially blingy 'statement' jewellery. There is something about it that is too ostentatious and too... gaudy. Antique jewellery is like the Queen - it can and will wear a tiara because it is old enough, and respected enough, that nobody would think to call it over the top. It is stately and it is quietly, determinedly, classy.

I unfortunately do not have a rich old relative with a stunning jewellery collection, so I am going about this very very slowly - with the hopes of being the rich old relative with a stunning jewellery collection some day. I cannot quite afford the jewellery in the link above, but I am officially going antiquing at the weekend (instead of "vintage hunting" through thrift stores) and hope to find something to start my collection (and learn a little something along the way!) I will keep you posted :)

I think I am a little late to this party, but as the autumn draws in I find my online ogling being more and more consumed with Rose Gold beauties. I just think there is something about it that says "warm and luxurious" and if there is anything I want from my drab rainy autumn months, it is warmth and luxury!

Once again I have no idea how to make the picture here feature at the top and not the bottom of the post - but scroll down and have a look at my wish list of awesome Rosy Gold 

Just for reference, because I hate when people post things that make me go "oooooooh want!" and then don't leave notes:

1. Obviously the Naked 3 palette. It is pay day today and it is FINALLY HAPPENING. I can't tell you how excited I am. I have watched so many youtube tutorials on this beauty that I am fairly sure I now qualify as a beauty pro. (hahaha... ahem).
2. Deborah Lipman 'Gorgeous Life' Nail polish - not a brand I've had much of anything to do with, but this colour is delicious. Perfect with some silver nail stripes! 
3. Hot Diamonds Shades of Spring Necklace ...alright so spring is long gone but lets just ignore that for now. This necklace is right up my street. So delicate and pretty. Every season I read about chunky jewellery and I think maybe it would be nice, but I actually look like a cartoon character when I put it on!
4. Noooooo... I just went to find the link to this and it is sold out :'( however I did find this Rebecca Minkoff Bag that is actually even more gorgeous and since its not metallic, also far more wearable.
5. I Phone case in swanky rose gold stripes... nothing more to say about this little piece of gorgeous.
6. Michael Kors - yummm! This White and Rose gold beauty if just stunning and I just discovered this store courtesy of a lovely bloggy friend; they are often about £50 cheaper than other retailers so technically it would be poor budgeting NOT to buy it... right?

I did consider also posting about the incredibly awesome faux fur hot water bottle that I bought this week (YES - IN AUGUST - GRRR) but since that isn't really style related I will not bore you with that. 

So... autumn. Before August has even finished. Grrr Britian!

Sunshine sunshine sunshiiiiiiine!! I finally got away for three WHOLE WEEKS of gorgeous sunshine on a jaunt to Morocco and, please please excuse the far less than stellar hair/makeup day on the picture below (if anyone knows how to move the pictures around in posts please give me a shout out because I haven't a clue!) but how GORGEOUS is this Kaftan??

It actually went straight back in the bag after this picture because its silk and silk - on a beach - um nooo! 

And now I am home and it has basically rained solidly for four days. Sob. 

So that's it. Fine. I will gear up for winter and winter is ALSO all about the silk. Silk scarves, silk kimonos, silk stockings... okay maybe not the stockings but definitely the scarves and kimonos.

I love scarves. LOVE. I bought by boyfriend this scarf as a random gift - who doesn't want a scarf? And then I decided it was far too soft and gorgeous to give away and bought him football tickets instead. (I am not a horrible girlfriend really!) I am also completely in love with this gorgeous water colour scarf and have my fingers crossed that it is still available/on sale on pay day because my holiday cleaned out my "pretty things" fund! 

And apparently autumn is alllll about the Kimono. Awesome. Though not entirely practical for the rainy English autumn, a gorgeous floaty silk kimono is amazing for "work to bar" nights out. I would have collage'd these into a pretty picture but I have nothing to do that with on this computer so pretty collages will have to wait. In the meantime I am loving this, this and this (though will end up with the latter because HELLO - SALE! 

And on that note - lunch break is over so its back to the grindstone. Earn the pennies to pay for the gorgeous silky floaty things.

xxx

Hello and welcome to my very first blog post :) First of all, its is lovely to meet you! Second of all... .what's with all the RAIN?!! 

That could be my English summer battle cry to be honest - but we were doing so well until today. The really sad part is that it is the company summer picnic today and it has all gone pear shaped (and not in a 'look at that fabulous booty' kind of a way!). Bad. Times.

So, to get started, and to get my blog off to a start, I have decided to write my post and share the beautiful gorgeousness my July paycheck is going to be buying me. 

Triad and True Dress - HOW CUTE is this dress? It remind me of an ice cream. I absolutely love this and I don't care how much it rains - I will be ordering one ASAP!

Ice Cream Social Butterfly Wedge - Being a not so spectacular five feet two, I LOVE me some heels and how glorious are these? Serious gorgeous colour and some major height. My boyfriend Mark is six foot two and these will actually get me within kissing distance without giving him back pains! Yay for fashion... helping everyone feel better ;)

Marc Jacobs Daisy Eau So Fresh Eau De Toilette - My go-to summer scent (and spring, and autumn if we are honest. I love this fragrance!) So many perfumes remind me painfully of my gran. Not on other people - they smell great on other people! For some reason (I am sure there is something scientific) a lot of perfumes smell exactly like each other as soon as they touch my skin - and not in a good way. This one smells divine! Hooray!

Revlon ColorBurst™ Lip Butter - Sticky gloss and heavy lipstick - nooo! I buy so very many lipsticks and glosses for the colour and they sit at the bottom of the draw sad and unused because I can't stand the texture. I will do a separate post on these beauties because I LOVE them. 

Bobbi Brown Nude Eyeshadow Palette for Spring 2014 Musings of a Muse - I actually already bought this one and had to go to Ebay to do it as they seem to have discontinued it - in the UK at least. Noooo! This is what happens when you don't buy the things you covet immediately. Sob. But it is (hopefully) winging its way toward me as I type this. Fingers crossed. If it shows up I will attempt a tutorial (if I can fathom out the photo thing on here!)

Rain be damned - I WILL have sunshine in my life, if only in the form of gorgeous summery beauties like these!