Sorbets & Ice Cream

Dress: vintage from Fleetville Emporium

Boots: Zalando

Sunglasses: Marc Jacobs

Sunshine: beautiful!

Oh hi! Remember me? I accidentally, sort-of-on-purpose, took a 3 week hiatus from blogging. Oops! For a minute, I thought I might have forgotten the basics. Scary stuff. Anyway, wedding stuff is taking up 90% of my time at the minute because there are- scarily- only 44 days until our big day. I'll be blogging a wedding update type post in the next few days for those interested but let's just say we are getting down to the nitty-gritty stuff now- table plans and napkins anyone?!

I was one of the very grateful bloggers to receive a pretty bag from Brit Stitch, a brand new face in the handcrafted satchel market. I was asked to give some feedback on the bags and thought I'd make it public, in the name of an honest review. 

What do you think of the style/design? Personally, I love it. The rounded corners and simple, no-frills design looks expensive and very different to what is currently available out there. The unfinished edges give it an edge to counter-act the pastel colour.

How easy is the bag to use? The turn-lock clasp is really easy to use on the go. My one complaint about most satchels is the buckles and what a faff they are to use when you're struggling to reach for something quickly- i.e. a phone or an oyster card!

Are the bag sizes suitable? Yes, I went for the A4 size larger bag and it's quite remarkable how much I can fit into it, including cameras, notebooks and a laptop!

When would I use the bag? If I'm honest, I wouldn't use this bag everyday. This is purely down to the pale colour I chose and I've noticed that since taking it on public transport, it can become quite marked. Most of these wash off, but I am going to be a bit more careful with it in the future!

Any comments on the quality? It seems very well made to me, I've not noticed any loose threads or wearing away of the colour which is quite impressive as I've taken it out and about quite a lot. The strap seems very strong and there is no cracking of the leather which has happened on some of my other satchels.

Are the bags reasonably priced? The smaller, half pint satchel retails at £70 (with an extra 15% off at the moment!) which I think is pretty good. The other well-known satchel brands start from around £100, with the limited edition ones in similar colours going up to £125.

And  now I need your feedback! What do you think of the bags? Do you like the shape? I personally think that it's a little bit Mulberry, for a fraction of the price and the candy colours are lovely for summer (if it ever arrives!). A small selection of the bags can be found here with that cheeky discount available on all the bags.

Take 10 Project: Lacoste

Lacoste is one of those brands that I've never even spared a thought for. I mean, I knew they made mens clothing but was more familiar with their perfumes than their fashion, like most people I presume.

They stepped forward as our most recent Take 10 sponsor with these gorgeous cotton polo tops and I'm a little in love with mine! They come up pretty small, so mine is an XL and still a bit on the tight side, but I blame the Euro sizing and all of our skinny european friends across the channel. The shape is great though, it hits and skims in the right places and as with some high-necked tops on big-boobed ladies, it doesn't make me feel top heavy (it might help that I'm wearing my new Rigby and Peller bra under it in these photos but more on that another time).

The collar is my favourite part, delicately scalloped it makes the top feel smarter and more feminine than your average polo. I decided to go a little sporty-luxe and pair it with a Topshop sequin skater skirt that I bought in the sale for £15 and my Marks and Spencer loafers that I've not stopped wearing since I bought them. Sadly it has been far too cold/snowy/rainy (delete as appropriate!) for me to take photos outside, so the tiny stairwell in my flat was the best I could do!

You can see how the other girls styled theirs up below. Olivia's shoes are amazing and I love Natasha's burst of colour from the bag!

Lucy, Paula, Harriet, Sarah, Olivia, Sherin, Vicki, Natasha, Mel

Silver Jewellery from Ernest Jones

Sunny Days, Eating Cake

Marc Jacobs Sunglasses- Courtesy of Sunglasses Shop  

Dress & Collar- Vintage

I love days that start with a lazy morning of TV watching and breakfast-eating. Days when I spend an hour getting ready just because I can, and then eventually, we leave the house for no reason inparticular other than to make sure we 'do something' with our days off.

Last Sunday was one of those days, there was a vintage fair on at a local church and we just wanted to get out into the sunshine because we knew it wouldn't last too long. Oh, how right we were.

I didn't wear anything special (as I said, it was a lazy Sunday!) but I did debut my new Marc Jacobs cateye sunglasses from Sunglasses Shop. I think it may be a while before I can wear these again but at least I have them stored away for my honeymoon in June and as soon as the weather gets a little brighter.

The vintage fair was good for a rummage, I found a 1950's bathing suit for a fiver and a few table decorations to add to our wedding pile- definitely a successful visit! Especially as there turned out to be a little cafe selling tea and cake! I definitely should not be eating cake a few months before the big day, but I've finally acknowledged and accepted the fact that I'm not going to lose a heap of weight in the run up. I've realised that I'm quite happy the way I am, thank you very much!

I'll be back later this week with my Beauty Spots for March and some vintage finds to show off, but for now, try to keep warm. I'm currently shivering away with just an electric heater for company!

Designer Sunglasses
Marc by Marc Jacobs Sunglasses
Marc Jacobs Cat Eye Sunglasses

A Woman

Do you ever step back from reading another tweet or article or blog post and feel absolutely the opposite of what they wanted you to feel? Not empathy, not an urge to add your voice to the cause, just nothing. Most of the time I find it very hard to relate or anything or anyone, whether about fashion or feminism. I often feel I'm not knowledgable or substantial enough to have an opinion. Who am I to agree or disagree when I know so little and have experienced so few things? I don't think I can be the only one who feels like this when they read something that aims to hit home but just leaves them feeling left out of something important.

Today is International Womens Day and the one thing I've never doubted is that there are millions of brave, wise, revolutionary women on this planet and today, without the politics I feel uneducated in, I can celebrate them. I don't just mean those ones who pop up on the Top 100 Women of All Time- as if all females born since humanity began can be boiled down to a measly 100! Like Top 100 Trumpet Players, or Top 10 Impressionist Painters. I really mean the ones you know, the ones who you see at home or at work, the ones who have raised you, who have given you advice and their shoulder more times than you can remember, who have schooled you, lent you books, cooked for you, told you off and who you have admired from afar.

My list is quite long, but today I celebrate these people. My mother, my friends, my teachers, my idols. I hope you've remembered and celebrated yours today, too.

Project Take 10: Swatch

Lucy, Paula, Harriet, Sarah, Olivia, Sherin, Vicki, Natasha, Mel

When I say Swatch, you say...? If you'd have asked me that a few weeks ago, I would have said plastic, novelty watches. I found one in an old drawer in our flat that had rabbits in different sexual positions that changed as the hands ticked round which was a bit of a shock. I have no idea where it came from but it is safe to say it would have taken a lot to change my perception of them!

Take 10 took a little break over Christmas and whilst we sadly said goodbye to Fritha, we welcomed with open arms the amazing Natasha from Girl in the Lens. 

Shiny, large watches aren't really my bag so I was a little apprehensive when Swatch showed us their new range, but the whole point of Take 10 is to push us out of our comfort zone, so I chose the most shiniest, biggest one I could find! I paired it with a denim pinafore, one of my recent eBay buys, an ASOS blouse, my trusty army boots and wore no other jewellery so that it didn't feel too 'much'. It's a lovely watch and the black watch face means it's not too flashy, but overall I think I'll stick with smaller, daintier pieces.

Did you own a Swatch watch when you were little? I bet it wasn't as good as a shagging bunnies one!

Food Explorer: Wahaca

I was contacted by Westfield London to see if I'd like to try out a restaurant of our choosing in the White City mega-mall near Shepherds Bush and who can say no to free food, really? I searched the restaurant list here and after trying to decide whether I fancied steak or sushi, I finally settled on Wahaca. If you haven't heard of it, Wahaca started out as a single restaurant selling delicious Mexican dishes, all created by head-chef and owner Tomasina Myers. Now, it has a mini chain across London, all selling their signature dishes.

The idea was to celebrate something by going out for a meal but since our anniversary and Valentines Day were a few weeks ago, we decided to celebrate our wedding planning accomplishments so far since it had been taking it's toll a bit. We've been feeling a little bit frazzled about everything and so took delight in having a night off from it all!

The restaurant is spacious but cosy and although you do have to sit quite close to others, I was more interested in the cocktail menu than my elbows! If I'm honest, I probably had one too many cocktails as I can't really remember what we ate, but I do remember it was yummy. I had passion-fruit margaritas which were just right and for dessert we shared the sugar and cinnamon churros and chocolate dip which was bloody incredible. Thank you to Westfield for treating us!

In the spirit of weddings and Mexicans, I came across this Wahaca recipe for Wedding cookies which sound delicious! Have you tried Wahaca? What did you think?

Swallows & Amazons

I haven't been able to go thrifting or jumbling as much as I would have liked recently, primarily because it's still winter and apart from Capital Carboot, my regular haunts are still in hibernation mode. My local London charity shops are all a bit useless for the sort of stuff I look for. They tend to price up Primark and proudly display nineties Jane Norman dresses in their window displays which makes me both sad and nostalgic in equal measure.

Luton, however, has some gems. A lady who runs one in town is a genius when it comes to picking pieces from their huge warehouse and there always seems to be something catching my eye each time I visit. This particular time a couple of weeks ago it happened to be the blue swallow plates. Only two unfortunately, but so beautiful that I couldn't leave them behind. They make perfect stands for some of the glass bell jars I've been collecting for the wedding!

I also found the leather 1970's case/organiser buried under a mountain of old curling wands and didn't have a chance to look inside until I got home, I loved the colour of it and thought it might be a useful little addition for all those little notes and bit of paper that usually end up in my bag at the end of a busy week. When I did finally have a peek inside I found the little 1973 calendar, a mini address book- oddly still filled with lots of addresses for people in London- a huge handful of colourful envelopes and a pack of wonderfully tea-stained airmail envelopes.

And not that I realised at the time, but there seemed to be a bit of a theme going on: flight. Getting away. I cannot wait for our honeymoon in June, the longest flight I would have ever been on, some space to clear our heads and think about where we want to go and what we want to do with our lives. It still seems so far away though. We usually go on granny-breaks, you know, a quick weekend away somewhere near the sea, or with a big cathedral or some other landmark and whilst I've been scouring the internet for last minute travel deals, I think it would be a bit frivolous of us to go away so near to our wedding.

For now, I'll have to live vicariously through you. Tell me where you're going and what you have planned, or where you'd love to go one day if money was no object. I'll start: back to the west coast of America, Palm Springs, The Madonna Inn, some of the pacific northwest and Portland. Dreamy.