Aviator Jacket

I was eyeing up various Aviator jackets for a while trying to find one that would last me beyond its current residency in the trends. Distraught after having to give up on a gorgeous black one that had sold out on Zara, I began to give up on finding my perfect jacket, until I found this blue one from Missguided. I wanted a jacket that was a sort of sheened-suede in material and had a boxy-oversized shape for layering in the winter time. I also wanted one in black so that it would go with everything, but I couldn't find one that I liked in the fit that I wanted. 

I was a bit hesitant about this blue one a first as I was worried that when it arrived it would turn out to be a lot brighter than the muted blue that showed on the website. Luckily I was as in love with it in person as I was with it online. It's quite heavy and the fur lining extends through the whole thing, even the arms, which is a little impractical for the warmer months- but I can't fault it for anything other than that. It has such a cool vibe to it and I love that its different from others that I've seen.

I wanted the jacket to be the main focus for this look so I kept the rest simple with some washed out denim and a white tee.

Coat: Missguided

T Shirt: The 1975 Store

Jeans: Asos

Shoes: Topshop

Bag: Primark

Sunglasses: Primark

Not That Kind Of Girl

I can never decide if I'm a hat person or not, but when I saw this fedora with gold detailing from Zara last year, I couldn't resist it. I've owned a few fedoras in the past in my desperate attempts to achieve the same cool-girl aesthetic that I see time and time again on Instagram, but none of them have quite got me fully on the hat bandwagon. Having quite a round face means that I find hats with a wider brim more flattering and less baby-face inducing. To me, this one has the perfect width and structure to it. The minimal detailing, bar the gold lettering obviously, means that I can wear it with anything. Plus, whilst the material is thick enough to keep a structured look, it's not so thick that I can't see this through the spring and summer. 

It will take a bit of courage to wear the hat out in public as I worry that they can be a bit obnoxious, but if I style it with something simple like this jumpsuit, I think I can pull it off. I recently got this tailored jumpsuit for my birthday and I can't get enough of it. I was a bit hesitant that I would look frumpy in it, especially after seeing how great it looked on the model on Asos, but it actually turned out to be so flattering thanks to the synched waist. 

The material is super light and soft, so it will be perfect for the warmer weather. I especially love that it's a bit on the fancier side but still day-time appropriate, so I can literally wear this for any occasion. I can't wait to dress it up, maybe with some heels. I was worried about the length before it arrived, being a tall gal at 5'10, but it actually turned out to fit great! I went for a M in size, but perhaps could have sized down, especially as Monki are usually quite generous with sizing.

Hat: Zara

Jumpsuit: Monki

Shoes: Topshop

Earrings: Topshop

A change in direction; Harry Styles’ solo debut heads into Bowie territory

(Piece for University of Warwick's The Boar. 8th April 2017)

★★★★

Almost six years ago, I sat awake at 7.30am during a school holiday, eagerly awaiting the first play of One Direction’s first single, ‘What Makes You Beautiful’. Now (somewhat embarrassingly) at age twenty, I was doing the same for the release of Harry Styles’ solo music.

It’s been a sixteen-month drought of hearing the beautiful raspy sounds of Styles’ voice, but after a haircut, becoming a movie star and adorning a trio of covers for Another Man magazine, he is back. Taking a little while longer in his release than his 1D counterparts, his widely-anticipated music drop was rumoured to be an amalgamation of his various musical inspirations. Whilst Niall gave us a Sheeran-esque, acoustic track, signalling a wholesome, folk-influenced direction for his future album, Louis teamed up with DJ/producer Steve Aoki to drop uplifting EDM song, ‘Just Hold On’. With the One Direction boys seemingly heading in opposite directions from the sort of music they produced as a group, it was now Styles’ turn to set himself apart from the pop-drenched discography of the boyband.

Previously citing music legends such as Elvis Presley, Fleetwood Mac and David Bowie as his influences, it was interesting to see if the spirit of their music would be present in Styles’ own. As rumours flew about his highly anticipated forthcoming album, sources claimed that the record came with an overarching stamp of 70’s British rock, and if his first single is anything to go by, the influences are evident. ‘Sign of the Times’ is a crooning, piano driven ballad that exhibits the full spectrum of Styles’ talents.

With somewhat melancholic lyrics (“Just stop your crying/It’s the sign of the times/We gotta get away from here”), the debut offers a taste of what’s to come of the singer’s raw and personal lyricism. Whilst it could be argued that One Direction’s music occasionally lacked integrity and harboured a “made for radio” formula, it would appear that Styles is making the music for himself. The song, coming in at almost six minutes in length, is slow and not exactly catchy. That isn’t to say that it isn’t good – because it is – it’s just that without the commercialism of Harry Styles himself, the song would perhaps struggle being a mainstream hit. It’s an interesting song for a debut, especially if you’re accustomed to the poppy, beat-driven singles of 1D. ‘Sign of the Times’ offers a hazy melody, filled with Bowie-driven intergalactic synth and guitar. The lyrics are repetitive, but not in a way that makes the song monotonous, in fact it’s more dreamlike. Styles blesses us with heavenly vocals, opting to showcase his ever-improving talents with a falsetto bridge alongside his signature raspy drawl.

Judging by his debut, it would seem that Harry has a promising solo career ahead of him. We’ll have to wait and see if future tracks offer an upbeat reminiscence of his boyband days, but something tells me that whatever Styles puts out will be a success. If not, he’s always got movie star as a backup.

The Spring Coat

 I finally have a spare moment in between waitressing and essay writing to upload a blog post. My second year of university has certainly been overwhelming to say the least and blogging has had to take a back seat once again. As it's currently Easter Holidays and I've been enjoying some time at home, I thought I would take advantage of my younger sister and get her to shoot some outfits for me to bring my blog out of hibernation.

This longline navy coat from Topshop has seen me through the last 6 months, having bought it last October, and I'm still in love with it. Its classical, tailored style is timeless and can be paired with almost anything in my wardrobe. Plus, it's a perfect coat to see me through to the Spring as it's not overly heavy or warm.

For this simple look, I paired the coat with some jeans and a classic white shirt- an easy outfit but definitely a go-to. Statement earrings are still a must have for me this season, so I went with a pair of my favourite tassel ones for a pop of colour and texture. Matching those are these pink sunglasses I picked up from Primark recently. Their unconventional, hexagonal shape and reflective lenses drew me in and I couldn't resist them at £3. 

Coat: Topshop

Shirt: Topshop

Jeans: Asos

Bag: Primark

Shoes: Topshop

Earrings: H&M

Sunglasses: Primark

Scarf (on bag): Vintage shop

December 'Dress of the Month' with Boohoo

Recently I was contacted by Boohoo to take part in their DOTM, or Dress of the Month, campaign. The idea is that they send the same dress to several different bloggers to see how differently we would all style it. As the bloggers, we would have no idea as to what the dress was like until it arrived in the post, which I found very nerve racking. I'm fairly confident in my own style, so the thought of having to work with something that would perhaps be the opposite of what I would have chosen, was quite daunting. There was a possibility that the dress would arrive and I would have nothing to wear it with because it absolutely wasn't my sort of style. Luckily, it arrived and it was something that gave me lots to work with.

The dress is fairly simple; a navy blue, velvet halter neck dress with a slit in the thigh, but it was beautiful and very flattering. I was a bit nervous considering it was basically a bodycon dress and I tend to stay clear of them to avoid showing off every imperfection in my figure. However this one features a synched in waist, giving you more of a flattering silhouette, one that made me feel way more confident. 

This dress is actually part of Boohoo's Going Out section, so technically it's meant for a night out. However, I decided to take the tone down a bit and make it more everyday appropriate. I added this white polo neck underneath to cater to the cold weather, but kept a fancy flair with the frilled sleeves and these utterly brilliant tassel earrings from H&M. Their statement earring selection at the moment is great if you're looking for something to easily spruce up a look! I kept it simple in the shoe department with some black heeled boots to complete a slightly fancy everyday outfit.

I love this dress as it's a perfect all-rounder; you can wear it dressed down, like I am here, or you can wear it for evening attire. I can't wait to dress it up for a night out! Perhaps I've found my NYE dress?

This campaign from Boohoo is brilliant as it's given me the opportunity to take a chance with my style and put the fate of my outfit in someone else's hands. It's encouraged me to take more risks with my looks and go for things that I normally wouldn't- a great new mindset to take into the new year!

You can check out Boohoo's amazing selection of dresses on their website here! 

Dress: Boohoo*

Jumper: Asos

Boots: Asos

Earrings: H&M

How are you hoping to mix up your style in the new year?

Winter in the City

The other day my family and I took a Christmassy trip up to London to visit the The Royal Academy of Arts for an exhibition and see the delights of Winter Wonderland at Hyde Park. 

The exhibition was on Abstract Expressionism from New York and was absolutely brilliant. Large, energetic, abstract pieces are my favourite and it was great to see the sort of art that I like to do myself. I've been feeling so uninspired at the moment, but being back in an artistic environment really helped- it also reminded me of how much I miss formally studying Fine Art. One of my main goals for the new year is to actively make time for producing art as I've seriously neglected my artistic side since leaving college.   

After the exhibition, we took a trip to Carnaby Street for some shopping and whilst I didn't find anything to buy, I did find this great little side street for some outfit photos. 

London felt so festive and definitely got me in the Christmas spirit! Winter Wonderland was as garish and over the top as you can imagine but it was a bit of fun. Plus, I got a chance to be a big kid and get an overpriced waffle with every single sugary topping I could get. Buddy the Elf would have been proud.

Coat: Topshop

Jumper: Primark

Jeans: Topshop

Bag: Primark

Boots: Topshop

Jouer Best of Nudes Collection

Jouer has been a brand that's been floating around the beauty community for what seems like forever. I've watched countless make up tutorials and hauls that sing their praises for this chic little brand, in particular their lip cremes.

But with such an incredible array of nude tones on offer and an incredibly indecisive personality, I could never sit down and pick a shade to start my foray into the brand. Luckily for me, Jouer recently released this brilliant mini set of lip cremes featuring their most coveted shades, so now I could try a bit of everything. 

Included in this beautiful little set are the shades Skinny Dip and Papaye, two glitzy colours that I feel like I haven't stopped hearing about ever since the metallic lip trend came into fashion. With Skinny Dip being the more intense in terms of glitter and functioning as a lip topper, you can use it to add a bit of glamour to any of the other neutral shades in the collection.

The range offers lip cremes from dainty peach tones to beautifully rich terracotta shades- perfect to help transition from an understated daytime look to an edgier look for night.

L-R Skinny Dip, Terra, Buff, Dulce de Leche, Papaye, Noisette, Melon, Creme Brule

After hearing such rave reviews about these beauties, I must say I was nervous to try them out myself. Despite loving them to death, liquid lipsticks and I aren't the best of friends and I often find them extremely drying, no matter what the brand. But with these being cremes, I had high hopes and they didn't disappoint. Jouer's lip cremes are extremely light weight and, not to point out the obvious, ridiculously creamy. They're so comfortable to wear and after they've dried down, it doesn't feel like you're wearing anything. That doesn't mean that the colour payoff suffers at the hands of comfort; these shades are amazingly opaque and not at all streaky, not even the lighter shades. Plus, they fade beautifully throughout the day, so you're not left with that awkward lipliner look. Due to the fact that they are creme lipsticks, there is a bit of transfer, but not enough to deter you from that coffee in fear that you'll lose all your lipstick with one sip.

I purchased my set from Cult Beauty a few weeks ago, after waiting with baited breath for it to come back in stock. I had to get my hands on it considering it was such good value; the whole set was £34 which makes each lipstick a mere £4.25 each! Granted, they are mini versions of the usual £15 lip cremes, but even so, the set still works out to be a great bargain!

If by magic you're able to get your hands on this set, then I definitely recommend that you do. Or alternatively, pick up some of the full size lip cremes as they're such amazing products- I know I'll be doing so when I run out of these.

Have you tried any other Jouer products? Let me know in the comments and I'll check them out!