"Falling through lost spaces"

Shirt and skirt: Pull&Bear

After going home for the weekend and promptly coming down with sinusitis I haven't been feeling great to say the least but my sister took this of me before-hand in one of my favourite outfits. The skirt I'm wearing I have blogged about before. both the skirt and shirt are from Pull&Bear a really cute shop you can check their website out here and their shop in Westfield at Stratford is really worth a visit. Have any of you heard of it before/been there? Decided to put my hair up as well to make a bit of a change, I can't keep it up in a bun for too long due to the combination of my hair being long and thick it falls out quite quickly. Teamed with a bit of red lipstick too this outfit is definitely not one to wear if you want to be invisible!

Uni work has been mega crazy these past few weeks but have got some new posts up my sleeve. Also I thought from now on I would attach a song that I'm loving at the moment, I've chosen Ben Howard for this one as I cannot stop listening to him and he is not to shabby on the eyes either! What is everyone listening to at the moment?

"Land of hope and glory"

What with us being in the midst of London Fashion Week, The Brits happening tomorrow (not forgetting pancake day too!) and the Olympics and the Diamond Jubilee celebrations it seems quite fitting to do a slightly patriotic post!

I was a very excited girl indeed yesterday when I heard the news about Mulberry's launch of their latest bag the 'Del Rey' after Lana herself (she's not English but we'll let that one go as she's such a babe). It looks gorgeous and although its obviously out of my price range but a girl can dream!

Us Brits are renowned for our love of baking and I am definitely no exception to this, so at the end of last week I indulged in some baking of my own much to the delight of my house-mates and made a carrot cake, I didn't have any icing sugar so had to whisk up some cream instead still just as yummy though. I'm having slight withdrawal symptoms with the 'Great British Bake Off' not being on any more. Below is a pic of a cheeky slice of the cake!

Also in-keeping with the theme of London Fashion Week I thought I would put together a little wish-list of items from everyone's favourite British high-street shop- Topshop. Yes I admit it this was a bit of procrastination avoiding my uni work! What do you think of the pieces? I tried to select items from several different key trends. I know the skirt might be a bit too much for the daytime but I know anyone would struggle to not feel ultra feminine and princess-like whilst wearing this!

1) Feather print top £36

2) Deck shoes £45

3) Tea dress £36

4) Skirt £65

5) Lipstick in 'all about me' £8

So this post might have seemed a bit all over the place but I thought where better to conclude than with a bit of music from a Brit of our own, she might not be up for any awards for tomorrow night but M.I.A has certainly still been getting the headlines what with the controversy about her performance at the Superbowl in America earlier in the month. My house-mate played me the video a couple of weeks ago and I have not been able to stop listening to it since! She's a pretty cool lady! What are everyone else's views on it? xxxx

"But with eyes shut it's you I'm thinking of"

Happy Valentine's Day everyone! Its always interesting to see how people react to this day every year whether they are in a relationship or not and how they choose to spend it. Personally I'm just having a quiet one with the boyfriend along with some Dominoes pizza!

People are quick to point out its just like any other day and if you are really truly in love why do people feel the need to make a song and dance about it, a relationship is there 365 days a year not just the 14th February, I agree with this but I really like the fact it is one day that people can stop and maybe appreciate their loved ones a bit more. There's no point going over the top because what's going to happen for the rest of the year?

So, tying in with this I've kept my make-up pretty low key:

With maybe a smidgen more of my tinted lip-balm (Korres in 'quince') and blusher (Natural Collection in 'rosey glow') the eye make-up and foundation is all the same.

However one aspect I have made an effort in is my nails:

Polka dot nail art, ring: H+M

I am no nail art expert and this is my first attempt at anything besides just block colour. I painted the base with  Rimmel 60 seconds nail varnish in '270 shocker' and applied the white polka dots with the tip of a pencil (not very glamorous!!) using white Revlon nail enamel and finished it off with a see through top coat to protect the dots! I'm pretty pleased with the results, obviously a lot cheaper than the nail foil transfers that are popular at the moment which is a cheeky bonus for a student like me!

How is everyone spending their Valentine's? R xxx

'I put my little shoes away'

After waiting patiently for a few weeks the boots I ordered from the next sale have finally arrived! (pair on the left on the above pic). They were £65 down to £30 so I couldn't resist and snapped them up. Next always seem to have a delay in getting their sale items sent out but I think they were definitely worth the wait. The small wedge heel gives them a bit of height and excitement. Don't even get me started on the fleece lining its so soft! 

The other pair in the picture are to replace my some other boots I bought from River Island at the beginning of the winter which started letting water up through the sole (even though there were no holes?!). With my trusty brogues (also from River Island) also about to break any day I was treated to these beauties whilst back home at the weekend. My Mum was adamant that I was not to get another pair from River Island so after much persuasion from her she took me to what she classed as a 'sensible' shoe shop- Clarks. I don't think I had been in to Clarks since I was about 10 and buying school shoes along with 100 other kids and their mothers fighting over just one or two shop assistants. BUT this was a totally different experience, when I visited it on a friday morning the shop was quiet and plenty of staff on hand and eager to help you find the right shoes. These boots were down from £79.99 to £69.99 so not bargain of the century but still a deal! Although my boyfriend has now called them my "army boots" they do the job of keeping out the water and cold  so I'm a happy customer!

Also here are a few pics I took over the weekend in the snow whilst back home, my dog Mallon didn't seem to understand sledges are to ride on not carry! Have any of you had much snow? I think we had about 4 inches! R xxx

A date with the rain

It seemed quite fitting that due to the horrible wet weather we have been having this week that it was time to crack out one of my new dresses which have a pattern of cutesy umbrellas and polka dots on. I got it from Forever 21 as I was passing through Stratford Westfield City from Stratford International Station to Stratford London (honestly the person that decided to put a shopping centre between two stations is a genius).

I didn't really know much about Forever 21 before I went in apart from it being from America and only having one other store over in England on Oxford Street (which I haven't visited). I was amazed how cheap the clothes were but still looked fabulous, were pretty on trend and feel like they are going to last you more than one outing which is more than can be said for some of my old Primark purchases.

Close-up of the pattern

What I really like about this dress is that its so versatile, I can wear it in the day up to uni teaming it with a belt, tights and brogues or dress it up if I'm going out in the evening with some wedges. The length is flattering as it makes your legs look longer......can you tell I'm a little bit in love with this dress?? Forever 21 is definitely one of my favourite shops now as they prove you can dress on-trend without having to spend a fortune! Have any of you visited either of their shops over here?

 R xxx

What's all the fuss about?

I have to admit I definitely wasn't Lana Del Rey's biggest fan when I first heard her last year after listening to Bombay Bicycle Club's cover of 'Video Games'  and wanting to hear the original. Her cosmetically enhanced lips and sultry pout that comes hand in hand with them seemed a bit over the top and thought to myself what is all the fuss about?

BUT!!!!! After several more listens and thinking about the lyrics the penny suddenly dropped and I had a complete U-turn, 'Off to the Races' was the icing on the cake for me. Her sudden surge in popularity is a massive achievement and her songs go deeper than typical songs that are in the charts at the moment. With her album coming out at the end of the month I really am getting quite excited and her lips are not quite so scary any more, I like it that she is slightly different and does have a pretty decent style going on (down to a stylist maybe? I'm not so sure) and I have serious hair envy!!

With 'Video Games' 'Off to the Races' and 'Born to Die' all being really popular so far I am certain her future songs off the album are going to do really well. Definitely predict big things for her in 2012.

Gilly Hicks girl

Being the impatient girl that I am I insisted that my sister open her birthday present before I came back to uni as I wouldn't be there on the actual day. Knowing that it was something from one of her favourite shops made seeing her face as she opened it even better! I got her a t-shirt from the shop- 'Gilly Hicks' and below is a picture of the birthday girl herself modelling it.

What is Gilly Hicks?

Gilly Hicks is the Australian sister brand of the American Hollister and Abercrombie & Fitch empire. There is just one of their stores open in the U.K and that is in Westfield (Shepherds Bush). Unlike Hollister and Abercrombie & Fitch, Gilly Hicks sells underwear as well as clothing (and some amazing perfume too). Gilly Hicks clothes can suit anyone that wants to achieve a 'girlie and preppy' look and with the right amount of florals and patterns you can end up feeling really special. The t-shirt that I bought my sister is one of their more casual pieces. Below are some of my favourite pieces from their current selection as well as a model demonstrating what type of look can be achieved with their clothes.

What with Hollister and Abercrombie & Fitch becoming so 'mainstream' in the U.K at the moment Gilly Hicks still create the nice preppy look but without the fear when you buy something from there that 20 other girls you know are probably going to be wearing it too....

R xxx