My High-Street Picks

I thought I’d put together a little high-street edit of all of the things that I’ve noticed lately. Whenever I’ve been out and about having a little browse of the shops recently I haven’t really been able to find anything I like, I think it’s probably because I’ve not been in the mood to try stuff on so I don’t really see the point in looking too hard. However, when I get home and I get to the point where I’m completely bored to death of watching my boyfriend play FIFA and uni work no longer has my attention; I have a little look online and voila! I find a whole of host of goodies. So here are a few:

Left to right: River Island dark red coated jeans, River Island paper bag waist skirt, Monki Paige tech case, Monki maroon vest singlet, Monki mint scarf, New Look side studded boots, Zara appliqué shouldered sweatshirt, Asos palm hand tee and Topshop faux leather skater skirt.

What are you coveting this month?

Today I’m Wearing…

Well, I am officially exhausted after my fourth day running at Topshop and in need of a nice, long bubble bath! But, obviously, I wanted to share today’s outfit with you before I settle down for another boyfriend-less evening (stupid work!). I went for an effortless look today which was indeed, effortless to achieve. I have lived in Topshop’s “Leigh” jeans ever since I discovered them and have them in three colours; I love the fact that the denim is so soft and stretchy so even if you’re having a “fat day” you can still squeeze into these little babies. I wore my black ones today with a black and white polka dot tee that I got from Zara a year or so ago; it has a great gold zip detail down the back and a dipped hem which fits in well with this summer’s trends. It’s a comfy, slouchy outfit that can be jazzed up with a few key notes of gold and a slick of lipstick. Topshop’s lipsticks are actually pretty amazing, I was sceptical at first but after speaking to one of the girls at work who swears by them I thought I’d give one a whirl. I have “Secret Admirer” which I wore today and “Nevada” which was featured on some of the runways this year. Both are nude shades, one real nude and one pinky nude and they even look nice when worn together as a cheeky little mix, perfect!

Zara polka dot tee £15.99

Topshop black Leigh jeans £38

Astley Clarke necklace – GIFT

Hultquist heart necklace – GIFT

ASOS boyfriend watch – GIFT

Topshop Valentine glitter pump £20

TKMaxx leather jacket £25

H&M Bag £19.99

Topshop lipstick in Secret Admirer £8

Sequin Overload!

Everywhere I go at the moment I seem to be seeing sequins, whether it’s pretty, embellished dresses or sequinned Union Jacks for the Diamond Jubilee; they are simply everywhere. I, for one, love a little bit of sparkle to jazz up an, otherwise, boring outfit and to brighten my day. Sequins should not be confined to “going-out” items of clothing or special occasions; in my opinion, they should be worn whenever they take your fancy. Even though I always try to find bargains on the high-street I think that sequinned items are worth spending a bit more money on as cheaper alternatives can end up looking a little nasty. Topshop do some great sequinned and embellished tops from around £40. Wearing a pretty sequin top with jeans, a pair of flats and a biker jacket would be perfect for casual day-wear or even a trip to the pub and delicate sequin skirts can be dressed down with tights, flats and a slouchy jumper on top. For a dinner or night out sequins need no other accessories and can do the talking all by themselves so I would team, say a sequin dress, with a plain coloured blazer and a nice pair of simple court shoes for a dinner. Here are a few sequinned items I’ve seen on the high-street and I think could be perfect for day or night:

Topshop sequin and chiffon tee £45

Topshop sequin crop top £45

Zara contrasting sequin top £69.99

Zara sequin mini skirt £69.99

Zara sequin studio skirt £69.99

French Connection sequin dress £156

French Connection tie-waist dress £104

Prophecy tribal print and sequin kimono £40

Zara geometric sequin wallet £29.99

I invested in my own sequinned top today as a part of my Topshop uniform. I’ve had my eye on it for a while now and finally got around to buying it:

Topshop £48 (£19.20 on uniform)

Midi Madness

The midi skirt is something that I never thought I would like seeing as I’m rather lacking in the long legs department and sometimes a little fearful of new things; however midi skirts have stolen my heart this Spring. They seem to be popping up all over the high-street in a variety of shapes and gorgeous shades; I am especially partial to chiffon midi skirts as the fabric is so girlie and floaty which is ultimately what I love. I managed to bag myself a gorgeous black chiffon, waterfall shape midi skirt from Primark, of all places, for just £10 the other day (the only size left was a 14 and I just couldn’t leave without it but with a quick stitch in the waist it now fits perfectly). I plan  to wear it high-waisted with a black and gold belt and plain t-shirt for a really simple day look for my internship in June. The high-street has some wonderful midi skirts at the moment to channel that girlie vibe that was created on the catwalk by the likes of Louis Vuitton and Prada.

Here are some of my favourite midi skirts:

Mango midi skirt £34.99

Zara printed skirt £29.99

ASOS orange skirt £30

ASOS red skirt £28

Primark spotty skirt £12

Primark racing car skirt £12

Topshop nude skirt £36

Miss Selfridge wrap skirt £35

Miss Selfridge lilac skirt £34

How will you wear yours?

 

Wednesday Wishlist

Here are a few things I wish that I could buy right now, maybe I will treat myself to a couple of them when my loan comes in. My favourites are the Topshop belt and Zara vest top and neither are  too expensive for my student budget!

Topshop oyster blazer £65

Topshop knitted grunge jumper £36

Topshop acid wash leigh jeans £38

Topshop black buckle belt £24

Urban Outfitters contrast satchel £48

Urban Outfitters panel lace top £45

Zara pastel green chiffon vest top £25.99

Mango cross-over back wrap dress £34.99

Mango asymmetric chiffon skirt £34.99

Fun prints at Prada S/S’12

Prints at Prada

The sun is shining in Kingston today and it feels like summer really might be on it’s way so I thought I’d have a look at some of the upcoming summer trends, one of which is prints. Prada S/S’12 was, by far, one of my favourite collections for this season, the clothes are fun and fresh as well as remaining sophisticated and ladylike; the use of car prints within the collection works wonderfully whether it’s a head-to-toe look or a simple bandeau teamed with a pencil skirt.Prada always seems to get it right for me, last year I fell in love with their S/S collection just as I have done this year; but sadly I am not a millionaire or wonderfully beautiful enough to get the clothes for free so i have to try and recreate these looks using the high-street. At the moment there aren’t a great deal of car printed items around on the high-street but there are still a lot of fun prints going on for spring and summer. I have found some brilliant alternatives to the Prada prints including bug prints and animal print for just a fraction of the price…here are some ideas.

Zara bird print blouse £25.99

Asos poodle print skirt £28

Zara horse print shirt £29.99

Zara leopard print shirt £29.99

Asos bug print skirt £25

Asos car print tee £28

Asos car print platforms £35

Zara palm tree print dress £22.99

Zara zebra print vest £22.99

Easy Embellishment

Embellishment was key in so many shows at London Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2012. Everyone from Mary Katrantzou to Christopher Kane used embellishment within their designs to add a spot of sparkle and glitz and glamour here and there. I, personally, am a sucker for embellishment, anything with a little bit of beading or a few scattered sequins to make it that extra bit special has my heart. The embellished items on the catwalk models looked so exquisite and beautiful, just imagine how many people and hours it took to sew the beading onto that gorgeous Christopher Kane dress.

But being a high-street girl I know that these dresses are a mere dream to most of us. So I have had a little look on the high-street and come up with some other options for those of us who are a little strapped for cash or awaiting the next student loan.

        

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Zara embellished skirt £59.99, Missguided sheer embellished top £21.99, Topshop flower embellished top £35, ASOS Religion embellished mesh dress £62, ASOS embellished dress £93, ASOS metal embellished dress £90 and ASOS jacket with embellishment trim £45.

Louis Vuitton S/S for less

The Louis Vuitton Spring/Summer collection is definitely my favourite, it’s everything I love and want from a collection. It’s pretty, demure, feminine, prim, polished, girlie and all in a gorgeous pastel colour palette complete with a carousel catwalk; what more could you want? Marc Jacobs has done the brand proud showing elegant broderie anglais dresses, lace, feathers and an array of feminine accessories and of course Kate Moss.

Sadly, not all of us can afford Louis Vuitton á la Moss so I have found some cheaper, just as pretty alternatives:

      

 

 

 

 

 

 

   

 

 

 

From top left: ASOS metal tip clutch bag £15, , ASOS patent blue court shoes £50, ASOS pink bird bag £20,  Zara Tangerine pink collared dress £35.99, ASOS mint lace blouse £25, ASOS collarless jacket £55 and matching mini skirt £35, Topshop high-waisted lilac Jamie jeans £40, Topshop lilac lace dress £48 and Topshop embellished collar pintuck blouse £35.