It's all about the accessories

On the weekend I was having a particularly bad bout of Cabin Fever. Being confined to bed most of the time doesn't often phase me any more, but I do still get the odd day when it feels like the walls are closing in on me, and I just have to break free of the tethers. 

One of my sisters drove us to the nearest town where we dawdled and browsed around the high street. I wasn't intending to buy anything, as I'm really scraping the pennies at the minute... but then Accessorize happened...

I left with a new snood, and five pairs of earrings. I particularly fell in love with the studs and couldn't leave without them.

The earrings included a pair of retro glasses, a pair of rainbows, and three pairs of ladybirds.

These little glasses were just £2, and came in a variety of colours. My favourite pair was the turquoise. I love retro inspired fashion, especially from the forties and fifties, and I'm a fan of all things quirky, so it was love at first sight with this pair. I think they'll look cute with many of my dresses.

I'd been admiring these ladybird studs for some time, and had been meaning to adopt them, so I did. Well, you know me and my love of wearing animal inspired garments and accessories. They were £4 for the set.

My favourite pair of earrings purchased is definitely the rainbow studs. They're adorable, cute, and quirky, and exactly my style. I'm looking forward to wearing them with my yellow polka dot dress this summer. This pair was £2.

I also bought this lovely orange and navy fairisle snood. The orange isn't as bold as it appears in these pictures. The colour to the left half is the best representation of the true colours which I'd describe as quite soft and subdued.

The Phoebe snood is long enough to wrap around the neck twice, although it's shorter than other snoods I own. I really love the fairisle pattern, and the wool is soft, and keeps in a lot of heat.

It was originally £20, but on sale for a meagre £6, so I snapped up the bargain, and went on my merry way!

There were lots of other earrings and a few necklaces in colourful colours and quirky designs in the range which I also loved, and hope I can pick up later in the year. I'd definitely recommend popping in for a look this season.

Which one is your favourite?

Have you shopped at Accessorize lately?

Thanks for reading.

You'll find a way to make your natural tendencies pay...

No, your eyes aren't deceiving you; this is in fact an outfit post. Yep. Really!

I'm just as shocked as you are! 

I had an early appointment at the House of Torture- (read: Dentist)- this morning, so I was actually awake during daylight hours for a change, and out of the pyjamas for the first time in a week.  My appointment came at the end of a trying week, but after ignoring my dental discomfort for a few months because my disc injuries make travelling, sitting, and lying on my back unbearable, I just had to give in and grin and bare that necessary root canal. I got through it, but man alive, root canals are nasty! I hope I never have to go through one of those again. 

So how does one dress for such an occasion?

Like it's Summer outside, instead of the three degrees it actually was! 

Some would call me insane for wearing a cropped cardigan over a dress at this time of year, but I didn't want to over heat in the chair. I really didn't feel that cold either.

[Please excuse my face in these photos. My mouth and cheek were still numb from the anaesthetic.]

 So, I think I've shared all parts of this outfit in previous OOTD's but not together. It's been a while since I last wore this beautiful brown bird print dress, but it's one of my favourites. I bought this one back in the Spring from Dorothy Perkins, after falling in love with the black version I bought before it. I love the shape of it. The skirt is perfectly flared and great for swishing around; the fabric has a good weight to it, and the bird print is adorable. It's so comfortable, so was perfect for today's ordeal. I wore it with purple leggings, and an off white shrug, studded slippers, a quilted heart shaped bag, a polka dot snood, a patent black belt, a couple of beaded bracelets, and a heart shaped ring.

The birds have little blue feet!

The two bracelets were given to me last Christmas by my best friend. I've worn them so much this year, so she chose really well.

Last night I decided to try something new with my nails. I'll go in to that in a separate post, though.

The heart shaped ring was part of a set I bought from ASOS earlier this year.

I have a soft spot for quilted bags with chain straps, and just had to have this beautiful heart shaped Topshop one when I spotted it in their Oxford Street store a couple of years ago. It's cute without being too girlie.

My lovely new New Look wide fit slippers got a debut today. These slippers are so comfortable. They're also really generously sized in width and length. I have really wide feet and there's still room  for my feet to breathe, and  I'd recommend sizing down as they come up huge.

And I went with the polka dot Topshop snood today. I love this aubergine colour with the brown of the dress. I think it, along with the clashing pattern, adds a bit of fun to a traditionally boring colour, and brightens the earthy tones up, too. I really like wearing brown with a bit of colour instead of just sticking to neutrals or black. Purple and dusky pinks compliment most brown shades really well.

Outfit Details
Dress: Dorothy Perkins
Cardigan: Lovedrobe at New Look
Leggings: Evans
Ring: ASOS
Bag: Topshop
Snood: Topshop
Belt: Dorothy Perkins
Bracelets: A gift from my best friend

Sorry for the quality of the outfit photos. The camera obviously doesn't like me...

I also hope you don't mind seeing remixed outfits from me on this blog. I want to show that there's nothing wrong with wearing pieces in our wardrobes over and over again. I was always quite the frivolous spender, but I've always shopped with the intention of getting my money's worth, too. I rarely buy clothes that I intend to wear just once. If I buy a piece of clothing I love, I will wear it regularly, otherwise it just seems like a waste of money,  and time and effort pursuing that 'must have' dress or top. I've definitely changed how I shop over this last year; I'm much less frivolous then I used to be, and I'm loving building up a wardrobe full of clothes I actually wear.

Do you wear clothes in your wardrobes again and again, or do you only wear your outfits once or twice?

I promise I won't leave it so long until the next outfit post!

I ♥ Fall Tag

I saw this Autumn inspired tag on Sarah's blog and decided to steal the post idea as I was having a bit of writer's block. This tagged post is all to do with Autumn and Halloween. Well, technically, the questions are titled with 'Fall', but I'm English and in England this season is more commonly known as Autumn, so forgive me for answering a Fall question with the word Autumn in my sentences.

1. Favourite Fall lip product?

I have a new found love for Benefit's Benetint lip and cheek stain after getting a small pot of it free with a magazine recently. One coat of it gives a subtle, natural look, but it can also be built up to create a more intense pout. It makes my small lips look so much fuller, and it gets extra points for being versatile and giving my cheeks an English Rose glow, too.

2. Favourite Fall nail polish?

This Autumn I'm really loving Barry M's Raspberry, Racing Green, and Ruby Glitter polishes, and also NYC Backstage Brown. Each colour works so well with my Autumn wardrobe, and even though they're all inexpensive polishes (which are fab as they don't break the bank), they all dry wonderfully smooth, and can remain chip free for days.

Ruby Glitter (Centre), Raspberry (Right)

Racing Green (Right)

Backstage Brown

3. Favourite Starbucks Fall drink?

I'm not much of a Starbucks drinker. I don't drink tea or coffee, and I personally prefer to head to Costa for a sweet treat. On the rare occasion I visit either, it tends to be for a hot chocolate when I'm out shopping and freezing because the temperature is below zero. I do remember loving the hazelnut hot chocolate I once had in Starbucks in Covent Garden, though.

4. Favourite Fall candle?

It's technically designed for the festive season, but during both Autumn and Winter I love the scent of the Christmas Cupcake and Vanilla Cupcake Yankee Candles. They smell like a mixture of vanilla cupcakes and shortbread, and smell delicious. The aroma of cakes baking in the kitchen reminds me of cold dark Sunday afternoons when my Mum would often be baking something delicious in the kitchen, so they give a really comforting, nostalgic smell.

[Source]

 5. Favourite fall scarf or accessory?

I've just purchased myself a new knitted teal snood, and it's so warm and cosy. It's definitely my new favourite accessory, and it's in one of my favourite Autumn colours.

I also adore my navy polka dot scarf, and my cut off crochet Accessorize gloves, which I have in two different colour themes.

[Source]

6. Haunted house, haunted hay ride, or haunted corn maze?

I can't say I've ever experienced any of the above. Halloween was never much of a big deal in England when I was growing up. People are beginning to get in to it more these days, but I've never stumbled up on a 'haunted' social event.

7. Favourite Halloween movie?

Hocus Pocus! I grew up watching it every Halloween, and over the years it's become a tradition to watch it every year. Childish, maybe, but it brings back good memories, and let's face it, nineties kids, it really can't be beat! When I was little, I wanted to be Sarah Jessica Parker's character... what was I thinking?

I love to dig out the Scream saga, and Labyrinth, too.

8. Favourite candy to eat on Halloween?

I don't have a preference or any traditions, as I don't usually make much of a deal out of Halloween, apart from watching movies and occasionally carving a pumpkin... I'm not a big fan of sweets, but you can never go wrong with some Haribo Star Mix or a bar of chocolate.

9. What are you dressing up as for Halloween?

I haven't dressed up for Halloween since I was eleven. If I had somewhere to go and celebrate, I like the idea of dressing up as Amy Ferrah Fowler from The Big Bang Theory. There was a photo of a girl who did just that on Tumblr last year, and I thought the idea was brilliant!

When I was younger, I was usually dressed as a ghost.

My pumpkin from last year.

10. What is your favourite thing about Fall?

I love crunching through dead leaves, buying new clothes, layering, keeping warm in cute gloves and scarves, and knowing Christmas isn't far away. I love how pretty everything looks with a backdrop of colourful leaves, and feeling the frost on my skin on cold mornings. Oh, and ordinarily, I get excited for bonfire night.

 Halloween 2011

What do you love about Autumn/Fall?

Feel free to give this challenge a go, too!

Woke up, fell out of bed, dragged a comb across my head

I've been such a bad outfit blogger recently, and for that I'm sorry. My outfit posts have been few and far between, and of terrible quality. I've been wanting to share outfits with you, but I've either been waking so late in the afternoon the light has been terrible and really not worth taking photos, or I've not been getting dressed at all.

 Mostly I've been spending days on end in my pyjamas concentrating on just getting through one day to the next in a particularly testing spell of pain. During the 'bad' days I can do little more than lie on my side in bed and surf the net, or read, and getting showered and dressed becomes an impossible task and to be honest, the least of my worries.

I am trying to push myself to get out of the house with my Mum every now and then, for the sake of my sanity than anything else. Today, I popped in to town six miles down the road with her for a browse. I started my Christmas shopping and bought my first little something for my older Sister. I also managed to find the new Schwarzkopf Pillar Box Red hair dye I've been dying to try, and can't wait to give that a whirl in a few days.

I took a few photos of my outfit, but I can't deny how terrible the quality of them is. My camera timer makes me grainy at the best of times, so taking them as the sun was going down was always going to be a recipe for disaster. Since it's been so long since my last OOTD, I decided to share them anyway, but I've kept them small because of the quality. I hope you'll forgive me, and look past the graininess. I'll try to put something better together soon.

Today, I fished out this lovely black bird printed dress from the depths of my wardrobe. I bought it from Dorothy Perkins back in the Spring but I hadn't worn it in several months. I love everything about this particular number; the quirky print, the shape, and the length. I now remember just why I had to buy it in brown as well! 

I dressed it with black leggings, and my favourite cobalt blue cardigan. I'm so in love with it. It's so soft and vibrant, so worth the £10 I paid for it.

The dress has this lovely bird print all across it.

I accessorised with my new tartan flatforms; my new purple and teal polka dot snood; a lizard ring; and my old owl brooch. I was also wearing a feather necklace but managed to break it the second I got home.

The flatforms are from River Island, which I bought from ASOS about a fortnight ago. I was initially hesitant about ordering a pair of flatforms as I wasn't sure if they'd one be suitable footwear for my current situation, and two if they'd fit my wide feet. Thankfully, I needn't of worried. They're the perfect fit, and so comfortable! 

The flatforms are made from a vibrant red tartan, which has a quilted appearance, and has studded toe caps.  I'd say the wedge is about an inch or so at the heel. They were a fantastic buy at just £25.

The gecko ring came from Matalan a couple of months ago, and is stretchy so would fit most fingers. It's a couple of inches long so makes a good statement.

I bought the owl brooch a couple of years ago, which I think came from Accessorize, but it could have been Topshop. This was before this style of owl jewellery popped up everywhere. I love owls, but am beginning to feel a bit tired of seeing the same owl jewellery everywhere I turn.

And finally, this awful photo shows my new Topshop snood which isn't quite burgundy, and not quite purple either but what I am certain of is it's gorgeous. It has teal polka dots , and is long enough to wrap twice around my neck. It's quite thin, though, so I'm planning to buy myself something thicker for the cold- probably a teal knitted one I have my eye on.

Dress: Dorothy Perkins

Leggings: New Look

Cardigan: Matalan

Flatforms: River Island (via ASOS)

Snood: Topshop

Ring: Matalan

Brooch: Either Accessorize or Topshop (I can't remember which).

I'll try to be back with another, better outfit post soon.

Twenty Snoods

I was hoping to have an outfit post for you today, but I didn't wake up until 4:30pm, and since the light was already poor and I needed a shower first, it just wouldn't have worked. So, instead I've put together a post about snoods, and will attempt an OOTD tomorrow instead.

Over the last week or two I've been on the hunt for a new snood or two to see me through until Spring. My family keep rolling their eyes at me for purchasing things to wear outside seeing how I'm confined to bed and rarely have the strength to get down the stairs, let alone out the house. I, however, maintain that I do have to leave the house every now and again for medical appointments, and since I'm aiming to leave the house for a short while at least once a week for the sake of my sanity (when I feel up to shuffling about like an old lady), that I do need some things to keep me warm. I can't afford a whole new Winter wardrobe, but a couple of scarves and snoods can easily update some old outfits and can make all the difference in the cold.

 I currently own two snoods- a grey hooded knitted one I purchased from ASOS last year, and a purple polka dot one I got from Topshop this week, but I adore snoods (and scarves); I'm a little obsessed, so I'm not really sure why I don't own more. I think they can be a great statement piece, or perfect finishing touch to a lot of outfits, and there are so many different designs and patterns available which let your personality shine through. They're so easy to wear, too; like an instant scarf: ready to wear, just dress and go!

I've put together some of my favourite snood discoveries from a week of online window shopping.

1. Topshop polka dot snood £18.00

2. Topshop polka dot snood £18.00

3. River Island red waffle snood £15.00

4. Pieces (via New Look) red moustache print tube scarf £11.99

5. Accessorize pop leopard viscose snood £18.00

6. River Island sausage dog print snood (black/taupe) £16.00

7. River Island green heart print snood £16.00

8. New Look black unicorn print snood £7.99

9. Accessorize flock star snood £20.00

10. River Island cream star print snood scarf £10.00

11. Accessorize cami butterfly linen look stole £20.00

12. Accessorize leopard paisley woven snood £18.00



13. New Look grey and white aztec fairisle snood £9.99

14. Accessorize neon fairisle snood £22.00

15. Topshop studded grunge snood £18.00

16. Matalan chunky cable knit snood £8.00



17. ASOS textured knit snood £12.00

18. ASOS owl print snood £12.00
19. ASOS hedgehog print snood £18.00
20. Pieces (via ASOS) moustache snood £12.00

I came across hundreds of beautiful snoods, which made for difficult choosing. There's so much choice out there; so many beautiful colours, patterns, and designs! I was originally planning to buy the dark green heart print River Island one (no. 7), but after a lot of deliberating and procrastinating, I eventually bought the burgundy polka dot Topshop one (no. 2). There was something about the unusual colour combination of dark red and teal, and of course the polka dots, which stood out to me. I definitely made the right choice. I may pick another one or two up this Autumn; I'd especially like to add a thicker, wool knit version in to my wardrobe (no. 17 is beautiful, and no. 15 looks especially cosy). And I still adore the heart print one.  I love the daschund print scarf, but sadly my little Sister beat me to that one and bought it in taupe. Designs 1, 8, and 12 are also on my short list.

Which one is your favourite?

Have you embraced the snood trend yet?

ASOS/Topshop haul

It feels like Christmas has come early this year, as not only did I indulge myself yesterday on shoes and nail polishes, but today my ASOS and Topshop parcels arrived.

I still get excited when parcels come through the door; even though they're usually paid for by my own money, like today's little haul. There's nothing like diving in to a parcel, tearing open layers of plastic and tissue paper to uncover the wonders within. Sometimes the purchases are perfect, sometimes they're a disaster... the suspense from the moment I buy something to the moment it's delivered is always a killer.

On Friday I bought a few things I'd been admiring for some time through ASOS, and treated myself to a new snood from Topshop, too, after finally coming in to a little bit of money.

 

 

1. Topshop Polka Dot Snood (teal) £18.00

2. River Island (via ASOS) tartan flatforms £25.00

3. ASOS textured bow collar £10.00

4. ASOS Curve knit dress with zip back £35.00 £19.00

5. Models Own WAH nail art pen in white £6.00

You'll probably remember that I was desperate to get my hands on the collar, shoes, and dress... I did mention them a fair few times in previous posts out of adoration.

 





So many beautiful pops of colour in one haul. I love these Autumn hues.





 

 

Fanfare, please! I FINALLY own the tartan studded River Island flatforms I've been obsessing over for the last couple of months! In fact, I'd say obsessing is an under statement. I've not been able to get these shoes out of my head and knew I had to own them by any means. And thankfully after all that devotion, I wasn't disappointed. They're gorgeous!

 

The tartan is bright and quilted, with ball studs capping the toes, and the flatforms have about an inch wedge at the heel. I bought a size 7, and thankfully they're the perfect fit and wide enough to fit my wide feet- although I'll need to stretch out the toes a little. I have to keep them whether I wanted to or not as a cut on my big toe opened up when I was trying them on, and let's just say it wasn't a pretty sight. They're also insanely comfortable, so I'm pleased I ordered them. I love them! They're great for just £25.00. (The heels aren't grey or scruffy like they look in these photos btw).

 

 

Next up is the mustard knit dress from ASOS. I was desperate to buy this knit dress in burgundy for the cold Winter months, but this one was on sale (for £19.00), so I thought I'd try this shade first. I didn't actually own any mustard clothes before, but I do like the shade for Autumn.

 

The first thing my younger sister said (before I tried it on) was 'it looks like it belongs to Maria Von Trapp.' It's much longer than it looks on the model, which makes me think the models are either giants,or the sample piece was a foot or two shorter than those made for sale. It comes to a few inches below my knee (I'm about 5'6''), which doesn't look too bad and would be great for cold days, but I'm not sure whether to have it shortened so it doesn't look frumpy. It fit wells in the arms and on top (I love the v-neck), but below the waist it's very generous and has a lot of fabric. I bought the smallest size in the range, but I would have found room to spare in a size or even two smaller if they started at smaller sizes. The dress is a very warm but thin knit which I love because I get over heated so easily, but it is a little see through in places so a light, unpatterned bra would be best with it.

 

I'll bring it to an OOTD soon so I can see what you think.

 

 

I'd be searching for a cute new snood for a while, and eventually chose this burgundy polka dot Topshop one. Well, you know me and polka dots... The snood is even nicer than I'd anticipated. On the website the colour looked like a very dark brownish- burgundy red, but in reality it's a much lovelier deep purple-burgundy with teal spots. The fabric is super soft, and long enough to wrap around twice without feeling too bulky. It was just £18.00, and although this colour is now sold out online, the teal version is still available. See the links at the top of this post.

 

 

Another piece I'd longed for for months was this textured bow collar from ASOS, which was £10.00. It's gorgeous, but sadly a bit too snug around my neck, which I'm a bit gutted about. I can't decide whether to return it, or whether to try to modify it and extend it with some black ribbon or elastic.

 



 

My last purchase was a white Models Own nail art pen, which I got through ASOS for just £6.00. These nail art pens are fantastic; they have a thin nail brush for painting lines and other designs, and a pen in the lid for polka dots and to do other intricate designs. I've already used it to polka dot my nails, and it was so simple to use but effective! I'll hopefully post a photo of my nails tomorrow.

 

Mostly I'm thrilled with my new purchases (collar aside), but I'll be taking it easy with personal treats for a little while and start Christmas shopping instead.

 

Which piece is your favourite?