i'll give it to someone special

A very special pressie was waiting for me at the P.O. when I got back from Cardiff. Isn't it great when they are spread out a bit and not just in one big assault on the one morning? I am lucky in this respect anyway as my birthday is in about 5 weeks so I can get anything off my wishlist that Santa forgot this time around.

I really loved the card and packaging - how cool is the zip-up cardboard bag? - and Sportsgirl's primary colours came across pretty well in the photos, considering they were taken in my gloomy London living room. And the gifts inside are just my style, like I picked them out myself. Thankyou Sportsgirl!! Have I ever blogged about their website and forum? Both are pretty great, you should check them out, it's a proper little community where everyone is very lovely, lots of members have blogs, you can vote on Street Style pics and they often introduce me to new music. I hope that doesn't sound like a contrived advert because I have been using the forum since it launched, which is before I had a blog. Actually, it was from the encouragement of the girls on the forum that I got the courage to start my own blog!

pah-rah-pah-pum-pum

I'd better post about Christmas before the New Year takes hold and That Special Day In December becomes relegated to a distant memory. Well, I had a wonderful Orphan's Christmas in Cardiff with great company, even better food and a Wii! Presents were plentiful, sometimes too much so as you can see by my lovely pjs from Wes. 'It said size twelve on the hanger!!' he insisted again and again. My most favouritest present was my fluffy white Muji bathrobe: so cosy, I wish it was acceptable to wear them for more than the five minutes between showering and getting dressed. Much more. Like all day.

We established that The Little Drummer Boy is all our boys' favourite carol. I don't think I have a fave as I actually really hate them. Does Wham count as a carol?

listen to your body tonight, it's gonna treat you right

I don't often post on 'inspiration' like photoshoots and catwalk shows, but this spread in the Guardian magazine (duh, what paper did you think I'd read?) really caught my eye. The photos were not visually that interesting, in fact, the whole point is the simplicity of it all. This is a real-life editorial. Take that bodycon dress you have in your closet, and your favourite chunky knit, and of course you already wear black ankle boots with everything (or is that just me?) and voila! You're ready to leave the house. That's it! Go! I think I may just be able to incorporate this way of dressing into my daily routine.

good news for people who love bad news

We went to see Modest Mouse last week and they were awesome! I wasn't really sure if I would know many songs but they played alot of good ones, and the crowd was just filled with dedicated fans so everyone really got into it with lots of dancing and singing along. I'm really loving going to gigs regularly, but don't have anything planned from now on so will be on the look out for tickets...thought I might go see Lisa Mitchell, New Young Pony Club, and Efterklang who I've only just heard of, but that can be a good thing when it comes to gigs, it's always nice to be surprised.

So I felt a bit like Minnie Mouse in this outfit. So many hearts and bows! There is a red heart on this tee and one on the clasp of my belt but you can't quite see them in the pics. It is getting increasingly hard to take outfit pics as it gets cold - everything is covered up by a coat and scarf :-( but I have been making extra effort to include more outfit posts so I hope you guys like them!

Headband: Accessorize; Tee: Urban Outfitters; Skirt: H&M; Belt: FCUK; Tights: Topshop; Brogues: Topshop; Scarf: cashmere from Edinburgh.

we're fated to pretend

Still haven't made it to the car boot sale, but one of the best, and most unexpected markets I have browsed lately is the one on Camden Passage in Islington. It is quite small, and it's wares are different depending on the day of the week: Wednesday is good for antique jewellery, but Saturday is best for vintage clothing. Unfortunately the pieces are all of that class of vintage that happens to be a bit out of my price range, but I still like to play make believe...

Sorry about the crap quality of these photos. They were taken on Wes' phone, which he is always telling me is 'a better camera than your digital one, really'. Hmmm.

float on...

I actually stayed home sick from work today :-( But I had a front row seat for lots of snow showers throughout the afternoon :-) As soon as it stopped I just had to run outside and take some snaps before it melted...

Sweater: Wes' by Samsoe & Samsoe we bought in Vienna last year; Leggings: old; Boots: ASOS; Socks: H&M; Scarf: cashmere from Edinburgh.

Album of the Week

Was it to cure shellshock??

Off with your head! Dance til your dead!

You suddenly complete me...

I can't stop listening to Yeah Yeah Yeahs latest album, It's Blitz! I have long been in love with this awesome three-piece and not only because lead singer Karen O is so inspirational. They just write such amazing pop songs, they get me every time. Ever passion-filled, their sound continues to evolve, and is now laced with a dose of synth, which I am right into at the moment. It almost goes without saying that they are amazing live. I am sure, if you are a music lover like me you have heard stories about their tremendous performance exploits. Or, if you are a fashion lover, perhaps you have heard about Karen's crazy stage costumes which could range from a glittery leotard to a lion's head within the same show. We just missed out on tickets for their recent London gigs, but they are touring Australia at the moment, so anyone down there should get along to see them any way they can. In the meantime I will content myself with listening to my favourite tracks over and over and over.

one is never enough

I have been on the lookout lately for some new long chain-necklace-pendant-type-things. I wear them all the time so I think it makes sense to get a couple more so I'm not wearing the same old locket and heart all the time. But the high street ones seem so, generic.

As if by magic, into my inbox today popped a link to the website for One Luv, an Aussie site offering unique jewellery. The Seafarer's collection really caught my eye. Very me. I'm all about things being useful and practical. I certainly don't think I'll be doing any seafaring anytime soon, but I can really see these coming in handy if I get stuck in a blizzard this winter (been snowing this week, I keep my fingers crossed for more!).

Backwards and in heels...and wearing a corset!

I wanted to document this outfit as I felt quite un-me when I wore it yesterday. Not in a bad way, in fact I sometimes dress like that on purpose, just to push myself out of my comfort zone. In this case literally, as I am so used to wearing loose layers on top, definitely nothing tight or revealing. I can clearly remember scrap-booking an article from 'Shop Til You Drop' which used a corset exactly like mine to make some interesting outfits, so I think I was inspired by them.

This is an H&M top that I bought last year and never wore, not even once, as it seemed too dressy for super-casual-me. Of course I just needed to find a casual way of wearing it. Had to try on almost every pair of jeans I own to find the ones that had just the right rise, as well as 2 different tees to get the length right! I also think it would look good with my ripped boyfriend jeans, but it is a bit cold for holes right now!

I wore this to go meet some friends for a pre-Christmas lunch thing that turned into a marathon all-day stint at the pub, ending with crashing a friends' date. I ate so much food I nearly exploded. The corset was probably not the most comfortable thing to be wearing under such circumstances - I wager lassies back in the 18th century never had to contend with gastro-pub sessions with Kiwis!

Heaps of fun, and back in bed at a reasonable hour, I love Saturdays!

Corset: H&M; Tee: H&M; Jeans: Topshop; Ballet flats: Joto; Charm bracelet: my childhood; Bangle: gift from my mother-in-law; Grey feather earring: Marine de Diesbach, Paris; Diamante earring: Oasis via my sister.

Stuff December

Presumably you all know exactly what you're doing at this time of year, and don't really need to know about umpteen other things to clog your schedule as you run mindlessly from one party to the next:

• Eat to the point of a food baby on a (sometimes more than) daily basis. And have dessert with every meal.
• Go shopping for presents but spend way more on yourself than on anyone else, and decide to keep those that were intended for everyone else as well.
• Drink way too much and with meals that usually don't include alcohol at all. But at least when this happens you usually end up in bed by a reasonable hour.

But actually, being in a cold city for the festive season has its charms that should be experienced and enjoyed at least once:

• Strolling through a European-style Christmas market, either at the South Bank, or Hyde Park's Winter Wonderland. Or you could really go to Europe, apparently the German ones are the best.
• Go ice-skating somewhere glamorous like Somerset House. Of course, this requires booking far in advance (something I am a bit averse to doing) and those skates really hurt my feet last time!
• Visit Kristie and Coralie's Christmas Cooler Drink, Shop & Do pop-up shop and bar in Kings Cross, with events on each weekend leading up to Christmas for those into DIYing. Or just drinking and eating cake.
• More drinking, but this time you must sample the seasonal specialities like mulled wine, winter Pimms, or hot toddies. No, I haven't tried any of these yet! But don't they sound intriguing??
• Go to see Where The Wild Things Are!!!! How long have we all been waiting for this movie? I am so excited, but finding the time to go to a movie in December may be a challenge...
• Cross your fingers for a White Christmas. I had a white birthday last year, which was pretty awesome, but imagine a white Christmas day! Just like in the movies.
• Find Santa. I've said for a few years now that I'd really like to get our photo taken with Santa to send back to our parents at home, but with only one Westfield in this whole city I think that Santa might be a bit busy. Where else do you find Santa in London? There is also no Harvey Norman or K-Mart. I'm guessing maybe Selfridges or Harrods.

Um, yeah, don't tell anyone

Had a client this week who thought he was hilarious when he referred to Hackney as 'Agony' (you have to imagine it with an old-school London accent). Oh, Dad's jokes. I know it wasn't exactly the place to be back in the day and there are still plenty of signs of that, but now the 'cool' spreads further from Shoreditch by the minute. I have developed a real affection for the place as I've been living and working here for the last 2 years. I did get a bit of a shock, though, when I saw this Secret Market feature in a recent issue of Timeout that someone left at work. The first one is around the corner from my house! I unwittingly walked past it last Saturday and briefly thought about going in, but had other errands to run. If only I had known! I will definitely be heading by this Saturday to see if I can pick myself up a bargain or two. I will let you know how I get on...

Dyeing to wear

Yes, I couldn't wait to wear my new tie-dye leggings. For some reason, I thought I might get a few negative or at least somewhat puzzled reactions, but I actually had several compliments throughout the day. Always a nice surprise. Meanwhile I got several errands done as well as lunch at the Breakfast Club, an afternoon nap and yummy Indian dinner and drinks with friends.

Trench: Nique from Melbourne; Tee: Something; Skirt: Lipsy; Leggings: Topshop; Cardy: Urban Outfitters, Boots: mega old from home; Headband: Accessorize.

Back on the work horse

One of the hardest things about going back to work has been getting dressed in the mornings. I have always hated workwear. Well actually, I can appreciate the aesthetic of a lovely tailored pencil skirt or a simple shift dress, it is just such a huge departure from my everyday style that I always find it difficult to find work-appropriate pieces that do not make me want to cry out in boredom. Plus, my job has many little idiosyncrasies that make for a very specific clothing brief. Not too short, not too low-cut, no longer than elbow length, sensible footwear.

So off I went with pretty low expectations last week to look for a few new things to spice up my weekday wardrobe. I searched far and wide, high and low, and came away with only a couple of things, though I must admit I am quite satisfied that I might actually wear these in real life, too.

This skirt is quite a bit longer than I am used to, and when I walk to work I have to go a bit slower than usual and do a funny hip squiggle!

To wear under skirts of course - remember leggings are not pants, people!

Pretty much perfect Breton top, I think I will buy another one to cut off at the midriff for wearing on the weekends.

I know, more brogues, I am obsessed!

I have had my eye on these tights for ages so thought I'd treat myself.

Album of the Week

So the other day, I stumbled upon (not Stumbled Upon) The Brunettes somewhere or other, and was so impressed by what I heard, I had already decided I had to post about them this week. Then I listened even more and realised 'Hey! I know this B-A-B-Y song!'. I think it must have been played on triple j. It is great, but so are all their songs - quite catchy, yet mellow, not too poppie...basically they are indie. And they are a really quirky and cool couple, so, they are my new favourites!

ps. Definitely rethinking my original comments on Kasabian's other albums...

pps. Just finished my first week of work in my new job!!

ppps. Congratulations to my friends on the safe arrival of their new baby girl Natasha xxxx

ASOSickofhavingnomoney!

Did I mention my new flatmate works for ASOS?!?! Of course she gets a very nice discount. I'll take these please...

Horace coat; Sass and Bide tee; Pringle leather and cashmere gloves; Karen Walker dress; Markus Lupfer Love tee; Gestuz bow back dress; ASOS robe.