george at asda: high summer 2013

A few short weeks ago, on a lovely sunny Saturday, I headed with my chums Lily and Sophie for a bit of summer fun with George at Asda. In a beachy set up quite far from the norm in Central London, we were treated to cocktails, cake and candy floss. All whilst perusing the lovely high summer collection. As surprising as it may be to some, given my usual expensive tastes, my favourite pair of jeans are from George so I was really looking forward to delving in to the collection. In the usual summer friendly brights, there is a nice selection of day and evening dresses, printed trousers and gorgeous swimwear. I particularly enjoyed their range of printed backpacks, which I think would be great for a festival or day on the beach. Fingers crossed the weather will catch up with all the delectable offerings the high street has for us this year. Will you be picking anything up from George this summer?

Lily

Sophie

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christian dior resort 2014

With the images streaming through from the Christian Dior Resort 2014 catwalk, I couldn't resist sharing them. I think it's safe to say that Raf Simons can do no wrong. Since his arrival at the brand, I feel it has gone from strength to strength. No one but Simons could make crop tops, hot pants and thigh high splits look so elegant and lady like. The 1950s influence first adopted for the Spring Summer '13 collection. With a colour scheme reminisce of his first Dior collection, Simons has taken the midi skirts and updated coats seen across the AW13 collections and adapted them for the Cruise season. Mixing sporty and floaty shapes with structure and sharp graphics, Simons continues to wow me with his brilliance. And with a beauty like Jennifer Lawrence as the current face of Dior, I'm intrigued and delighted to see the new heights Simons takes the brand next.

Images: Style.com

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afternoon tea: millennium hotel, knightsbridge

As a fully fledged Londoner, a quite often like to partake in quick bite of afternoon tea. After all, who doesn't enjoy mini sandwiches, endless cups of tea and a scrummy cakes. So along with some of my best blogging pals, I ventured in to the Tangerine Café Bar of the Millenium Hotel, located in the heart of Knightsbridge. Recently launched, the Café have been offering a modern twist to the classic afternoon tea. 

In cosy surroundings, we were sat at a intimate table of 4 and served with our choice of tea (green tea for the fuss pots). The area is comfortable, with the ultra cool bucket seats, and you don't feel too overlooked by other neighbouring tables - unless you want to shout across to blogging pals of course! 

As we sat down to enjoy our afternoon tea, we were treated to some insider knowledge and insight from Christine from Minding Manners. Not only did she tell us about the history of the afternoon tea;  ladies were not allowed outside the house unattended so they would have to host their friends in their homes, she also helped us brush up on our etiquette. Just FYI, it's a major faux pas to move on from sandwiches until the whole party is ready too, and an even bigger one to cut your scone with a knife (it should be torn).

With Executive Chef Anthony Robinson at the helm, the menu offers a delicious, and beautifully presented, range of (endless) sandwiches and other savoury nibbles to start. We enjoyed some scrumptious mozzarella and tomato bruschetta, eye salad in white bun, chicken in a brioche bun (my particular favourite) and salmon on a mini wholemeal baguette. With our bellies full of sandwiches, we quickly moved on to the scones, piled high with clotted cream, jam and strawberry coulis. Despite all the delicious food, we managed to stuff even more in. After all, who can resist a chocolate mousse cup? 

All in all, Millenium is definitely worth a visit if you're after a new tea spot, but I think I shall let the pictures do the talking. At £17.50 for 2, it's certainly an afternoon tea worth the money! 

Millenium Hotel 

17 Sloane Street, Knightsbridge, London SW1X 9NU
020 7235 4377

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the boyfriend mix

And when she walks, all the wind blows and the angels sing.

For me, the warmer months incite a nostalgic image of adolescent boyish charm. Recalling the many summers of my youth (not that I'm that old) of my teens. Spent in my baggiest jeans and trainers, listening to the punk rock flavour of the month. A time with very little worries and new found independence; when many a day would be spent walking around town, gossiping about older boys. So around about this time of year, I always reminisce about the simple (and tragic) fashions of my youth. All the while trying to incorporate that unsophisticated and juvenile look in to a polished and more sartorial-worthy outfit in my adult wardrobe. With the ease of the boyfriend jean mixed with a boxy top, comfort is the key to a look like this. Converse remain as timeless today as they did back then. So even though the shoes might not have changed in the past 10 years, the rest of the accessories certainly have. An outfit is just not an outfit for me without a statement pair of sunglasses or a drop dead gorgeous handbag. With a summery slick of coral lipstick contrasting with a shimmering navy nail polish, this is a classic look perfect for any summer day spent eating fro-yo in the park.

MiH Jeans long sleeve stripe top • Saint Laurent Betty mini chain suede shoulder bag • J Brand Aidan slouchy boyfriend jeans • Dior Demoiselle sunglasses • Tom Ford lip colour in Insidious • Converse low top trainers • Chanel Le Vernis nail colour in Blue Satin 

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the usual clashing prints

Hey, it's me again.

So my ginger monobrow and I are back once again. Thanks to the recent bout of sunshine that London has been enjoying (which seems to have disappeared as rapidly as it appeared), these babies have been permanently glued to my face. I guess that comes as no surprise though, as my magpie status has been well documented within this blog. And so, has my love of clashing prints. Something that I have been avoiding during most of the colder months. There's something about winter that makes me pack up any sartorial notions and abandon ship in favour of cosy knits and layer upon layer upon layer. But alas, the sun has got his hat on, and so I have got my prints on.

Now, I'm not going to be untruthful here interwebz, I hit the DvF sample sale hard. I'm inclined to blame my partner in crime Miss Elle Yeah, when in fact I should just blame my giddiness towards Miss von Fürstenburg. A former princess appealing to a future one...? Yeah, in my dreams. As iconic as she is for her wrap dress, she is also a lover of prints. Her collections always conveys a colourful confidence that I wish I could rock 24/7. So in I dove, with prices at a ridiculous mark down, it would be rude to say no, right? The coat is probably my favourite piece I picked up, yes it's about two sizes too big, but I'm trying to portray that oversized, devil may care attitude that other girls pull off so easily. There was no way I was leaving without it, it's the perfect lightweight fabric, perfect for this in-between British weather. And with my sudden proclivity towards outwear, what's another one to the mix. Just six coats and counting...

Coat - DvF • Shirt - DvF • Jeans - George at Asda • Shoes - Gucci • Bag - Mulberry • Sunglasses - Prada • Ring - DKNY • Watch - Michael Kors

The rest of the outfit, well it was my usual thrown together style. As ever, always trying to achieve that effortlessly cool 'I just threw this together' look which always ends up more 'did she get dressed in the dark?' For now, I'll continue to do my thing, after all judging from the muddles of prints on the SS13 catwalks, print clashing is still 'in' for now. I guess that's a win for my Eddy Monsoon like fashion tastes for now.

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