If you're going to San Francisco.....

As part of our honeymoon we ended up in the beautiful city of San Francisco and of course what do girls do best 'shopping'. I spent a while looking at the major players of Union Square Macy's, Sak's Fifth Avenue and just off the side streets boutiques of the major players in the designer world Mulberry, Burberry, Maxmara..I was even partial to the Ferrari store! The most European of the American cities the sunshine blesses us, the pace of life was pretty bearable for a large city we watched several elder hippies dancing in the square with a refreshing pint of Blue Moon. Of course there are several vintage shops but alas with this being the last point of call on our itinerary we had to stick to a lot of major touristy things...and the fact I had very little sleep due to our noisy Korean neighbour who had the habit of leaving his bedroom door open where masses of tinned food adorned his bed...he also had a habit of dancing round the hotel corridors in tighty whitey's. 

                                                                   

                                                 

                                                           
                                                                   

Here were some beauties I managed to capture in SAKS before the Sales Assistants gave me the evil eye. I see the Summer Trends were out in force prints, pastel shades, movie star glamour and luxurious accessories. My place in the fashion world was seriously tested when I ventured into the fur department (not that I agree with any of it) but I walked over to a little green number and was looked at in sheer disgust when my filthy paws happened to pick up the price tag $135,000. 'That's because it's Sable' the lady said. I don't care what it is give me faux and a house any-day. 

Life in Mono...

                                                             Try some Mono

Add a pointy shoe...

And some funky nails...

Top: Gharani Stok

Skirt: Arma Leather

Shoes:Pied A Terre

Who you gonna call????

 I seem to have been inspired by hunting jackets and  novelty t-shirts, this one I usually wear for bed and I love my new vintage glasses and broaches. The bag was a crimbo pressie from Mummy!!!

And no I can't be arsed to do a completely beautifully crafted photo-shopped amazingly insane no imperfections picture. This is me...life isn't a rehearsal. 

Jacket: Betty Barclay
T-Shirt: Cancer Research
Leggings: MarksandSpencer
Shoes: Moschino
Bag: Unknown
Glasses: Vintage
Broach:Vintage 

California Dreaming

It seems my California dreaming roadtrip (well honeymoon actually) was a hit in the fashion world with full on Americana hitting the magazine shelves. There’s nothing better than driving top down in a Mustang and heading off to Coachella. Not that our honeymoon budget stretched that far but I was pleasantly surprised that Topshop had decided to shoot their new Festival collection at Mono Lake one of our first stop offs. My god I wish I was back in California….

I did a Ross and Rachel

Yes I know it seems forever since I posted but I do possibly have the best excuse ever….well I kinda got married! Yup a little out there I know but I guess I’ve kind of got ahead of the game when it comes to the very recent trend of frugal weddings’ which seem to have sky rocketed since Keira Knightly’s recent nuptials.

Well it was a cold and shoddy January when my other half had just returned from Switzerland on business when he announced he needed to take a trip to Las Vegas for the annual NAB show in April and thought it would be cool if we made it into a bit of a holiday.  Well whoopee! I was one excited girlfriend. 

Maybe it was because it was cold, maybe it’s cause we were sat in our local and the fire was roaring whilst the rain and sleet and the sky was trying to snow where we thought ‘fuck it’ let’s just get married. We've been together a while, nearly a decade in fact and whilst the idea of marriage was sometimes discussed we never took it too seriously as we never really had the money to put on some spectacular show. We were in quite a fortunate position due to the fact my partners work were paying for hotels/food/drinks etc etc so a wedding could possibly be at least financially on the cards. Telling family was another thing, disappointment echoed (I was actually quite offended by all this considering it was our day) no traditional church, no Dad to walk me down the aisle but what we had instead was no muss no fuss, glorious sunshine and each other.

The Dress

First I needed a dress something that was easy to wear in the blistering heat, something tasteful (I can’t do strapless), something with vintage elements and something that was simple and something that wasn't going to crease in my suitcase. I didn't have a large budget in fact I didn't have any budget, Mum had kindly decided to pay for this one. Her chosen designer for this special occasion was Oleg Cassini a French born but American designer whose style was sophisticated and timeless. He was designer to Jackie O the first lady where is signature looks included Empire Strapless, Sheath and the A-Line he was once engaged to Grace Kelly and married the beautiful Gene Tierney. His designs were worn by the Hollywood elite including Jayne Mansfield, Marilyn Monroe, Rita Hayworth and Natalie Wood. The glamour of this period appealed to me and I liked the fact ladies natural curves and beauty of this era were celebrated which would be the perfect complement to my pear figure. The colour was Ivory and made of a delicious silky feeling fabric (even though it was polyester) which was virtually creaseless. It had a paneled waste which was extremely flattering and ruched bust with some slight beading on the sleeve nothing too extravagant. If you love simple and classic designs I urge you to check out some of his designs for your big day some of them are incredibly reasonable our thriftiness in this matter went further when my dress was at my favourite discount designer store TK Maxx (or TJ) if you are reading from the states.

I was also given a beautiful vintage engagement ring from my husband to be that was worn by his Grandma when she married in 1945 (along with the band) that was fully engraved. The style of the time was a gold band set with 3 simple diamonds. My something old boxes were definitely well and truly ticked.

The Venue

We had chosen the most famous of the chapels ‘The Little White’ and had decided on a time when the sun on the strip was just setting and glistened against the many ‘trip the light fantastic’ bulbs in the mass of casinos that littered the way. Our nerves were palpable yet nothing that couldn't be cured with a glass or two of Moet & Chandon Rose as we helped each other (yes that’s right) get ready in the hotel room before our limo driver summoned us for our short journey. A simple ceremony a simple wedding I couldn’t have asked for anything better. We then went for Steak at Morton’s, Champagne underneath the Eiffel Tower at Paris (with a little gambling along the way) and people beeped their horns and offered their Congrats as we watched the fountains at the Bellagio what an amazing day!!!! One I shall treasure with the fondest of memories…

Instagram 10/06/13

From L to R: Superman Converse, Very Outfits, BBQ, Which Condiment?, A Country Walk, Art deco, Summertime Reading, The Queens Hotel, Lytham, Summertime

90s

I see the trend for 90's rebellion has well and truly spoken. The era of 'I simply don't give a shit'! So come as you are, wear a babydoll dress and don't bother to wash your hair, play your guitar terribly, 'eat my shorts' because you are a 'wannabe'.