DOUBLE, TRIPLE, QUADRUPLE LEOPARD

Working in fashion retail (and especially a department store) you get kind of jaded looking at stores' new stock. Is that another sequinned dress? A new style of studded jumper? And the jeans you bring out every season in a slightly different shade..? Well, last week I spotted a new item in Warehouse and finally got excited about it. A floppy leopard hat. I go through leopard phases, changing my spots yearly or so, and right now I am thoroughly immersed in the print. I love to wear this hat with my furry H&M coat, and can see myself wearing it with my Evil Twin kimono and old ASOS booties, too.

You know what they say - triple in your teens, double in your twenties, and a single leopard item thirty and above. Trouble is the faster I approach the latter age bracket, the less I care what they have to say.

Warehouse hat Evil Twin tee via Eternal Envy Oasis tee Evil Twin kimono Old ASOS boots Old H&M via British Red Cross coat
Oh, and you might notice that I am brunette once again. It certainly wasn't intentional - I used Garnier Olia in "Dark Beige Blonde" and the result was this horrid greyish, muddy brown. Somehow it looks better in pictures, but trust me, in real life it's dreadful. I can't get in touch with anyone from Garnier or L'Oreal (judging by their Facebook page they've probably been busy with everyone else's Olia-related complaints) so I will just tell you guys not to use this product... unless you fancy hair the colour of fresh sewage, that is. Good job I enjoy wearing hats, huh?

WATCH OUT FOR THE WEIRDOS, GIRLS

We are the weirdos, mister.
Along with 90% of the 18-30 population, last night I donned my spookiest attire and went out to celebrate everyone's favourite holiday, Halloween. There were plenty of halloqueens and trampires with costumes that delighted and disgusted the senses; medical outfits seemed to be popular this year, ranging from doctors (wearing Crocs, which is scary enough in itself) to nearly-naked patients dragging round a drip. There were some pretty impressive costumes too - check out the excellent appropriation of Maleficent, carefully applied Day of the Dead make-up, and lovingly DIYed Ghostbusters proton pack.

I wasn't dressed as Britney Spears, nor was I Cruella DeVille. I was Nancy from The Craft, but actually I just use Halloween as an excuse to dress how I would really like to dress all year if it were socially acceptable. Chris decided merely hours before we went out that he'd like to be Teen Wolf so I hastily made a t-shirt with an iron on logo and stuck some fake hair on him with latex glue. NB: follow the instruction to shave the area beforehand, otherwise it is very painful to remove!

So now that's over and done with, I think it's high time we started celebrating Christmas. In fact I am sat here dunking a Lindt reindeer in a cup of tea as I type...

  Don't call Jordan the Hulk... He gets angry when you call him that. I'm wearing: Charity shop shirt Oasis skirt Topshop jacket (via Sheree) Miista boots Ancient "I hate school" badge

BATS IN THE BELFRY

I really didn't know what to expect from the Bat for Lashes gig at Manchester Cathedral last night. What would the sound be like? Would Natasha's music be too sleepy for a gig environment? And would I even be able to get a pint inside a religious building..?

Thankfully I needn't have worried. The sound inside the Cathedral was amazing (Chris said it was the best sound at a gig he's ever heard) and despite the new record - The Haunted Man - being totally stripped back, when played live Natasha's backing band added beats 'n' bass to really get the crowd going. Besides, this gig wasn't simply about promoting the new record. I'd say it was two thirds old favourites, with of course Daniel being played as the encore track.

And, most importantly, there was a pop-up bar inside.

Most gigs nowadays don't let you take in a "professional" camera, so despite my protestations that I am really not a professional at all I had to leave my camera with the cloakroom. Hence, these photos from Chris's phone are not the best, but hopefully you can see how awesome the Cathedral looks with the coloured lights scrolling through, and also Natasha's super cute bob haircut - such a great decision which I'm sure will become her trademark. Despite having a cold and barely being able to speak, her singing voice sounded spectacular, and she hoped that we were all okay.

"It's our second night here and we love it. We want to do the entire tour here. They can come to us!"

I had a bit of an I-don't-know-what-to-wear crisis ("to a gig?!" said Chris, who then asked me what he should wear. He went for his tie-dye t-shirt upon my instruction to "wear what makes you happy") as the outfit I'd planned in my head didn't work out. Don't you hate it when that happens?! I ended up wearing a dress I had altered from one of my nana's when I was about 19.. meaning nowadays I can only wear it when I am having a skinny day and haven't eaten three square meals. It was the first outing of my new Topshop boots I got at the sale in-store - but appear to be full price on the website. Did somebody make a whoopsie? And finally my beloved Evil Twin kimono to top it all off, which clearly sent me a little bit bats...


I'm wearing: Dad's trilby w/ Chris's grandma's hatpin Vintage dress Evil Twin kimono Topshop boots Forever 21 bag Mood necklace c/o Jon Richard Jewel
You want a flake in that?
PS. Here's something that may excite the Christmas-crazy amongst you. When we were walking home we found the Christmas lights going up along Deansgate. Merry Christmas! In October!

HALF LIGHT SOFT FOCUS

Oh, it is most definitely autumn now. And what better foil for the dreary days and dark evenings than wearing your favourite pieces.. all at once? Start with a pair of trousers that don't really fit you anymore but you just love their print too much to give up. Mix a fringed jacket specially sourced for you by Bottle Green Vintage, and a dash of Wildfox. Throw in a little leopard print for good measure. Chill for fifteen minutes (or however long it takes you to get to uni in the morning) and your warming autumnal recipe is ready to serve. Or sit in lectures all day. Whatever. Yeah.. this post isn't hugely coherent but this is what I wore today, after waking up late this morning and just wearing things. Sometimes it works, usually it doesn't; I guess I just got lucky today. I'm wearing:
Bottle Green Vintage suede jacket Cameo Rose leopard blazer Wildfox tee Topshop trousers Love Label boots Matalan bag Betty Jackson.Black necklace

IN MOTION

Just a quick post tonight - it's been a difficult day, and under the instruction of many to "make sure I look after myself" I've just emerged from a long wine-fuelled bubble bath, consequently I'm ready to sleep - but I couldn't resist posting these photos hastily taken by my university friend Zabrina (hastily as we were about to get run over.. she's pretty good, Chris might be out of a job) detailing those DIY fringed boots in motion. They make a satisfying swish, swish noise while I walk, and have a movement to match that is hard to catch on camera. For mere mortals, anyway.. who knows how street-style supremo Tommy Ton does it.


EXPECTATION...
REALITY...   Yeah I did just use a Tumblr meme.
I'm wearing..  Topshop coat  Oasis dress (now £10 in the sale, £8.50 with student discount!)  Accessorize beanie  Customised Ugg boots  Forever 21 bag (just seen)

DIY FRINGE BOOTIES

You may remember at Fashion Week I had the pleasure of knocking around with the very lovely Annie Bean, and during that time I crowned her the Queen Blagger Blogger. I'm rubbish at getting anything for free, so when Anna took me up to the Handpicked Media suite at One Aldwych Hotel, I was a little embarrassed and loitered in the foyer for a while. Eventually Anna's confidence rubbed off on me and I ended up leaving the suite with armfulls of stuff, including a pair of Ugg boots.

Not the sort of Ugg boots you'd expect, though. Very nice, black leather, wedged Ugg boots. Whenever I looked at them though I couldn't help seeing them as a blank canvas. My more-is-more aesthetic was longing for, well, more than simply comfort, warmth and quality.

Finally, inspiration hit. Leather fringing. I can't believe it wasn't more obvious, as this is something I am wild about. Armed with fabric scissors, a glue gun, and some lengths of pleather from a ripped pair of trousers (ouch.. that's a painful memory) I attacked the boots this evening, and considering how simple it was to do, I'm pleased with the outcome! I don't expect the fringes to last forever, but that's possibly the beauty of it - once they're tired, or I'm tired, they will simply be removed and replaced by my newest fad.