ANSWER THE CALL

Sometimes, I just get The Calling: an enigmatic desire to go to the charity shops. Do you ever get that? I mean, don't get me wrong, I love poking round the chazzas any time, but sometimes I get pulled there by an unseen force, and usually there is something so special and precious waiting for me that it all somehow makes sense.

Take Wednesday, for example. I had the day off, and the evening before I started getting the urge to go charity shopping, specificially to South Manchester, despite being recommended some other locations. I first hit Chorlton, then Didsbury; I'd picked up a few nice things (patchouli incense, Me Without You, paisley fabric) but nothing that would really explain how I had been drawn out.

I left the penultimate shop on my circuit, wondering whether I could be bothered going to the last - it was across a busy road, after all - and something reminded me about the calling I'd felt. And of course.. in the last shop, there it was. Brand new with tags, Minkpink, burnout velvet blazer. For £7.50. Seven fifty! I felt like I was robbing the poor charity, but I didn't complain out loud; I just grabbed it and paid for it straight away, without trying it on or looking at anything else. To me the worst part is that it's the old Minkpink tag, and it's not a piece in my memory.. so it's been sat around in somebody's wardrobe for years, most likely. Sad!

In one fell swoop, I have the foundation block for my autumn/winter wardrobe for less than a tenner. What can I say? Just gotta answer the calling.




He always has to get involved, doesn't he?
PS. We've launched a YouTube channel at work and we made our first video yesterday when I wore this outfit. Check it out and recall that I am a Northerner who is too lazy to say her "t"s!

PINK TO MAKE THE BOYS THINK

What a coincidence that the first outfit on mine I've liked for ages was worn on the first day it was really, really nice weather. Sun really does make everything better and it was great to cast off the confines of my leopard coat, although I did start to get chilly towards the evening, I coped with it easily enough. First iced coffee of the year, too!

This was also the first day I'd worn my Pointes since I broke my toe in them. Nervous at first, I took it slowly, but actually found that they're a lot easier to walk in without socks or tights in as your feet grip on more. Another win for spring.

Oh yeah! And I dyed my hair pink. In true ongoing saga of my hair style it was meant to be pastel (thanks for providing the Crazy Colour, Sara!) but it went neon. Pretty OK with that though. At least it worked this time, right?

I'm wearing:

Topshop jacket

Evil Twin tank c/o the Easter Bunny :)

Vintage/DIY waistcoat

Forever 21 skirt & bag

Jeffrey Campbell Pointe shoes

Wildfox Twiggy sunglasses c/o Self Service

By the ways, the new WAISTE collection is online now! I basically want everything but am 99.9% certain I will be getting Starry Nirvana come loan day.

SUGAR HIGH

Imagine if every day (let's not push it - maybe five days a week) you got to get up in the morning, got on a party bus full of excited people (no need for caffeine, these guys are high on life and sugary breakfast cereal), to a place where you saw all of your friends, learned cool stuff, got to run around and act completely daft for an hour and a quarter of the day; then you're done and home in time to lay on the sofa to watch CBBC.

Sounds good right? I'm going to call it "scool".. like, it's cool. S'cool. I believe there is a similar concept that already exists but mine is going to be miles better and everyone will be totally psyched to go in every day.

The kind folks at Zalando let me choose a piece from their site and this Wildfox baggy beach jumper was the one. The s'cool I'd attend would be Sugar High, and this would be our uniform. Nutella for break, pizza for lunch, and absolutely no boys allowed.

I'm impressed with the Zalando site - there's a huge selection of lines to choose from and they carry some of my favourite shoe and clothing brands: Wildfox, Minkpink, Miista and Jeffrey Campbell. I'd be pretty pleased if my wardrobe was filled with those four. Delivery was fast and by a courier company, which is an unexpected perk for free delivery.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I gotta go do my scool homework: petting my cat and drinking a brew. Those teachers are real slave drivers.

I'm wearing:

Wildfox jumper c/o Zalando

ASOS skirt

Charity shop coat

Topshop socks & heart bag

Office shoes

THAT'S MIINT!

I'm wearing:

Minkpink Stolen Moment dress

Pamela Mann tights

Topshop bag

Jeffrey Campbell shoes

River Island hand chain

A fashion blogger walks into a room.. and immediately scopes out the best spot for outfit snaps. Am I right, or am I right? I was pretty pleased to find that the bed & breakfast I stayed in over the weekend in Grasmere put these curtains up precisely for photographic purposes. They're so kind! But I really would've preferred something that coordinated with my outfit a little better. Maybe pink and white stripes. Or holographic silver. Or galaxy print...

I was in Cumbria for the wedding of one of Chris's university friends (it was a blast - especially with Ceilidh band Thistle playing), which meant it was finally time to debut my Minkpink Stolen Moment dress. This dress fills me with such joy - especially the colour, which is as rich and sumptuous as it looks in the photos. My only issue is that it shows up lumps and bumps, so underwear has to be chosen carefully; this is unusual considering it's thick velvet but is a small price to pay for such a beautiful dress!

I bought my dress from Urban Outfitters but have recently discovered Miinto, where this dress is also available. Miinto pull together the best of indespendent stores across the UK (including those very local to me, like Eternal Envy), meaning you can shop boutique brands right from your sofa. Miinto have given a proper miint £50 to spend on the site for one of my lucky readers - if I were you I'd put it towards a piece of Wildfox or snap up a cute Gentle Fawn kimono.

Follow the instructions on the Rafflecopter widget below to be in with a chance. The giveaway runs until midnight on January 2nd - so if Santa didn't quite bring what you were hankering after, you can treat yourself in the New Year!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Today I'm wearing.. Pink & Burgundy

Just a quick post to show you what I wore today. I was inspired by the spring/summer 2012 Prada show, which was amazing (naturally), but I was mainly interested in the colour combinations: cornflower blue and candy pink with burgundy. How could I possibly not love it?!

I started playing with the idea today with a burgundy top and pink skirt, plus some polka dots, which are of course on trend for this autumn/winter.

Topshop bowler hat, Glamorous dress (worn as top), 50p unknown make charity shop skirt, H&M blazer, Vivienne Westwood bag, Dr Martens boots

My lovely mum also wanted to get in on the street style snapping, so here's her outfit, perfectly on-trend in purple and teal. We love to colour block - like mother, like daughter!

Primark top, Per Una jacket, COS bag

We dressed colourfully to stand out today - and my post tomorrow will reveal exactly why!