Wednesday Wish List

Morning all!

I've got a Wednesday Wish List for you today.

I can't say that I've been overly wowed by anything new in the last week; well, at least not since the Praslin dresses I discovered and blogged about last weekend. (If you're wondering, the two Praslin dresses I ordered were unfortunately too big and too low cut for me. Sadly, I just don't have the boobs for showing off to the world, so both dresses will be going back). However, there have still been plenty of clothes and accessories I've taken a liking to.

Some weeks I can notice a pattern in the pieces I've been coveting, and this week I have unintentionally gravitated towards a palette of black, reds, pinks, and corals.

1 // 2 // 3 // 4 // 5 // 6 // 7 // 8 // 9 // 10 // 11 // 12 // 13 // 14 // 15

And, of course, there's still the usual patterns, motifs, colour, and novelty accessories present in my choices, like there is every week. I doubt my love for such things will ever leave me until the day I die. And I hope it never does!

I've become obsessed with daisy print everything these last couple of months; it's everywhere at the moment, and that makes me happy because daisies are one of my favourite flowers.  Dorothy Perkins have now jumped on the daisy print bandwagon with a large eye catching print which has been used for several different garments. I LOVE the tea dress (1) in the collection, which is the most wearable one for me, but the joggers (8) are also rather lovely if dresses aren't your thing.

Another of my favourite things of late (okay, of always) are novelty bags. I love the quilted bunny ear bags from ASOS; I already have one in mint which I snapped up with some Christmas money from my Nana, but I'm still drawn to the classic black version. Black bunny-eared bag would go with everything; that's what I keep telling myself. You can see how pathetic my reasoning is! It also comes in nude, but it's a little subdued for me.

Other favourites this week include the Peacocks cherry print jumper (2, so cute!); the lip print skater dress (4) from F&F at Tesco; the pink neon lace skater dress (15), also from F&F, and the colourful leopard print maxi dress (3) from George at Asda.

What's on your wish list this week?

The Nail Art Sourcebook Review

Before I say anything else, can I let you in on a little secret? I've been meaning to review this book for you for over a year! I was given it for Christmas the year before last, and I've had these photos sitting in a folder since last August waiting to be used. I am a bad, bad blogger!

Ah well, better late than never, right?

The Nail Art Sourcebook by Pansy Alexander-Potter and Mineko Sugita is, unsurprisingly, a book filled with nail art designs, Over 500, to be more precise. 

The book includes a wide variety of different themes, including floral, glitter, jewelled and even bridal; and each one has been split in to chapters to make browsing easier. While the 255 page book is laden with nail art images, this book doesn't include tutorials to go with them; working out how to recreate them is down to the reader. It's a book full of pictures to gain inspiration from, which is probably best suited to nail art pros or any nail art fan who isn't afraid to dive in and give new designs a shot with their creativity. The images could also be taken to a nail technician who could do the design for you.

The following are some of my favourite designs from the book.

As you can see from this 'small' selection, there is a variety of nail art in different colours, patterns, prints, and styles in the Nail Art Sourcebook. While they're not all to my personal taste- for instance, I'm not a fan of the jewelled look- I think there's something in this book for every nail art fan. There are florals, animal prints, love hearts, stars, tartan, polka dots, 3D designs, glitter, and even holiday themed ideas for Christmas. And that's just for starters! There is just so much inspiration in this sourcebook.

Some of the nail art is modelled on hands of different skin tones, and those photos are beautifully shot and wonderfully clear. Other ideas are presented as single artificial nails. with 2 to 4 of them displayed on a single A5 page. The variety of images makes the book interesting to browse through, and I always feel inspired from flicking through it.

The book also provides helpful information on caring for your nails, and explains how to use various tools such as stencils, striping tape, and nail transfers to help the reader learn how to create any nail look.

It retails at £14.99, which I think is a little steep for what is essentially a coffee table book, but if you consider how many images are provided in it, it doesn't seem so bad. It's currently available through Amazon here.

I think it's a great little book, but if you're looking for a book to show you how to recreate designs step-by-step, then this isn't the book for you. You may prefer DIY Nail Art instead.

Sunday Favourites #70

Hey guys,

It's that time of the week again...

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Mint and monochrome chevron nails.

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This DIY for Kitty Loafers from P.S. I Made This.

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Gorgeous retro style.

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Lovely make up.

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I wish this came in my size!

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I love this idea of sending letters packaged up!

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Vanilla and Blackberry Mascarpone cake. I love the colours!

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This hair colour and style is so pretty.

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I ADORE these whale tattoos by Sasha Unisex.

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And also this one!

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A rooftop swimming pool! What an incredible swim that would be with a view like that!

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Dream hair.

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Pretty fields in Japan.

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I want a rainbow granny-square blanket!

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Isn't this rainbow park, Keukenhof Park, in Lisse, The Netherlands, stunning?! 7 million flower bulbs are planted in the 80 acre park every year!

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A tree in Boston adorned with pom-poms!

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All these photos of pet capybara shenanigans (lots more at the source) are confirming one thing: I want a pet capybara! *Throws a Veruca Salt tantrum.*

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This adorable little fox.

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Heaven.

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Say hello to Honeybun and Henry the senior centre therapy donkeys!

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The remains of ancient forests buried for thousands of years have been discovered on some of Cornwall's beaches; unearthed because so much sand has been ripped away by the recent storms! 

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Just be yourself!

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Beautiful shot.

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Nasar the Arabian horse was brought in to his owners' home when storms hit Germany in December... and now he won't leave!

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I don't know why this is so funny!

I don't usually get sucked in by cutesy videos, but this litter of bloodhound puppies howling for their dinner is too cute for words.

♥ An artist called Joe Mangrum makes beautiful, intricate works of art on the streets of America using coloured sand. Just take a look at these!

♥ A man called Andy Media performed some random acts of kindness by delivering pizzas and hot drinks to homeless people who were living on the streets in the recent sub-zero temperatures over in the US. Heart warmed! 

♥ While we're on the subject of heart-warming tales, take a look at this video of a lone boy shivering in the cold without a coat and how people around him reacted. Faith in humanity restored.

♥ And what happened when a terminally ill man called Rooie Marck was granted his wish to see his favourite football team play one last time.

♥ In the town of Weesp in Holland, a village for dementia sufferers called De Hogeweyk has been created where patients are able to live fairly normal lives. They are able to live in apartments with their carers, do their grocery shopping, get their hair cut, and roam about safely. My Nan had dementia, and I think the idea of helping sufferers maintain a more normal life like this is pretty damn amazing.

♥ 25 Abandoned Places That Feel Like You're in Another World.

♥ This post '75 Places So Colourful It's Hard to Believe They Actually Exist', is crammed full of stunning photography of some of the the world's most colourful places. I may have pinned most of them...

and finally,

♥ I love this post from Small Town, Big Smile over on Junebugs and Georgia Peaches on how to style swing dresses with tights.

Have a great day!

Praslin Wish List

I was having a browse at the dresses on Dorothy Perkins' website the other day, and came across some beautiful dresses by Praslin that I just had to share. I was instantly smitten with half a dozen of them, so I thought they deserved their own post.

As almost all of the brands Dorothy Perkins stock are marketed at smaller sizes, I didn't expect this collection to be any different. After all, Dotty P's isn't considered a plus size brand, although their own pieces extend up to a size 22. (Which I'm sure you'll agree is a rare thing!) I was happy to be proved wrong. The selection of Praslin garments available through them caters to sizes 14-22, which is good news for us ladies on the lower end of the plus size scale!

However, Praslin is also stocked by Simply Be, and Fashion World, who, I discovered, extend the sizes further! Most of the following dresses are also available from them and up to a size 28!

You can find them here...

1 // 2 // 3 // 4 // 5 // 6 // 7 // 8 // 9 via Dorothy Perkins

1 // 2 // 3 // 4 // 5 // 6 // 7 // 8 // 9  via Fashion World

1 // 2 // 3 // 4 // 5 // 6 // 7 // 8 // 9 via Simply Be

So, naturally, I was drawn to the beautiful polka dot dresses, and got led astray. I think I have a polka dot problem! In my defence, the polka dot dresses in this collection are some of the loveliest I've seen in quite some time. (How many times can I say 'polka dot dresses' in one post?) 

I completely fell in love with the frilled spot print dress (1 and 2), but I had a hard time trying to decide which colour (mocha or navy) I preferred. In the end, I purchased both so that I can make a better decision once I've seen them in the flesh. I'm pretty certain if I like the dress, I'll want to keep them both! The mocha version makes me think of the Pretty Woman dress, although it's not the same style dress. And I firmly believe a girl can never have too many navy polka dot dresses.

I also have my sights on the classic swing dresses in red and navy spots (4 and 5), bird print (3), and butterfly print (6). The shape of the dress is classic and compliments curvy and plus size bodies perfectly, and I find them so fun to wear. I'd wear them year after year because the style never really dates, although if you prefer to follow the trends, they're bang on trend at the moment!

I purchased my dresses through Dorothy Perkins, who are currently offering 25% off everything using the code: DPFW25 and free worldwide delivery using code: ITSONUS. I paid £26 for each dress instead of the £34 they retail for! 

Also, if you shop through cash back site Quidco, they're currently offering 10% cash back with Dorothy Perkins! It takes no time at all to use, and you get a portion of the money you spent back; it's a no-brainer, really! (It was 9% when I made my purchases the other day, and I shall be getting £4.59 of my £51 bill back! So I've in fact spent just £46. 41!) Bargain!

Do you take advantage of discount codes and cash back rates before you make an online purchase?

Are you a fan of Praslin? Which of these dresses are your favourites?

Punky Penguins in Love

A few weeks ago I treated myself to the most adorable necklace I think I've ever seen in my life.

I doubt that's the first time I've ever claimed that here or elsewhere, but trust me, this time I mean it without a shadow of a doubt.

See? I wasn't exaggerating! What could be cuter than two penguins holding hands?

Nothing.

These two little guys are adorable. I love the Care Bear like pastel hearts on their stomachs and their sweet bashful cheeks. And the hand holding is too cute. 

The only thing that could possibly be cuter would be two real penguins holding hands, but it would be so much harder to wear them around your neck. 

The necklace is from a company called Punky Pins, who have been making kitsch handmade accessories for the independent fashion scene since 2005. Being a big fan of kitsch accessories, I had shopped with the brand before, but it had been years since I last thought to pay their website a visit. I'm so glad I did!

I discovered this Penguins in Love necklace almost instantly and knew I couldn't leave without adopting one. The problem was leaving without buying one of everything else! I wanted it all. I had to restrain myself and just bought the penguin necklace, which retailed at a reasonable £9.

The penguin charm is made from white printed acrylic and it's quite a statement piece at 6cm wide x 4cm high! The chain is silver plated and it's on the short size at 46cm long, sitting an inch or two below my collar bones. It has an extender chain, though, which helps to provide a little extra length. I like my necklaces long.

It has a lobster clasp fastening and the Punky Pins logo on a charm on the end of the extender chain.

And, it came packaged in its own little black box with foam inside to protect it. I think it gave the purchase a little extra touch; it's always nice when costume jewellery is packaged and presented with a little care and devotion.

Overall, I'm in love with my new necklace, and I was really happy with the service. The delivery charge was reasonable, and it arrived within a week, which isn't bad at all. I can't wait to start wearing it with my favourite outfits. You can find the beautiful Penguins in Love necklace here.

I've still got my eye on a variety of other gorgeous Punky Pins accessories including the Swan and Heart Necklace; the Strawberry Plant Collar Necklace; the Gumball Machine Necklace; the Strawberry Plant Bracelet and so many others. Now I know that the quality of their accessories is great, I'm sure I'll be collecting some of these in the future. 

Have you shopped with Punky Pins yet? Are you a fan of kitsch accessories like me?