Brunch at NAC

As a belated birthday treat, I asked my friend where she'd like to go for brunch. As we're both south west I thought she'd suggest somewhere local, but I was quite excited when she said she'd had her eye on NAC for a while, so did I want to try there?

My 25th in Mauritius

Fun fact: my Mum and I share the same birthday. Yep - as she celebrated living on this Earth for quarter of a century, she also happened to give birth to me. Last year we agreed we wanted to celebrate me turning 25 and her turning 50 (sorry, Mumma!) with a special holiday. 

An Italian feast at BungaTINI

BungaTINI, the "teeny" version of Battersea big dog Bunga Bunga, opened quietly a few months ago. The - seemingly - more civilised branch of the Inception Group (behind the likes Mr Fogg's, Barts and Cahoots), it sits unassuming, underneath the bright lights of the Theatre Royal Drury Lane.

A few of my favourite things...

1. Taylor Swift in Style 2. My Nikon DSLR 3. Failure is success in progress 4. Birthday snaps

BB Bakery Bus Tour

It was my birthday yesterday, and I definitely do NOT want to dwell on what 23 means to me, or look back over 22. Read my blog posts and you'll get the gist (spoiler: it was naff).

A not-so quick update

Apologies for the long absence. All I can blame is how busy I’ve been, along with the fact I stupidly left my laptop at home, thinking that my iPad was sufficient for all my web browsing desires... whoops! Writing a blog on an iPad keyboard is quite bizarre, I can tell you (I’ve bought a wireless keyboard but when I went to connect it today it was out of charge).

Anyway, I thought I’d take a break away from fashion and fill you all in on what I’ve been up to in the last month or so!

My last post was about how much I was looking forward to getting my hands on the lovely Dahlia stuff, and getting it a few days before my birthday I was absolutely thrilled. The clothing did not disappoint. The only piece I haven’t had chance to wear is the long shimmery pink skirt, but I haven’t been on enough nights out recently to warrant showing it off – and it is way too dressy for library wear.

My 21^st was lovely: my parents treated me to a day in London where we went to The Ivy and saw Viva Forever at a nearby theatre afterwards. The Ivy was super lovely; you barely noticed the waiters clearing your things away, and the pink champagne we ordered came in the most beautiful glasses with a really long stem (which went all the way to the bottom off the glass) the bubbles fizzed all the way up. It sounds a bit weird the way I describe it – you’ll have to go and see for yourself to understand. But be warned: you have to order the sides in ADDITION to the mains, AND VAT isn’t included with the menu prices. Ouch!

Birthday cupcakes!

We also had a night out, all dressed as cats. A wonderful theme, if I do say so myself...

I got really ill after my birthday from the stress of my reading week (I had a sudden interview and assessment day in the space of a few days which really took it out of me) which wrote off the rest of the week, but it’s been utterly full on with seminar prep, essays and dissertation stuff. And somehow I’ve managed to spend a crazy amount of money on food stuff and drinks to keep my energy up for long days in the library. It’s all extremely monotonous and tiring, but I’m constantly torn between wanting all the stress over but not wanting to leave York. I know I’ll be an emotional wreck in the last week of university...

Over two days I also managed to get up close and personal with the stars of Made in Chelsea AND see Bastille in Preston - a pretty star-studded few days. Here's some pictures of my soon-to-be husband/s (I'm not picky)

If you ignore the bouncer, it's fine...

Bastille!

So what do the next few weeks have in store for me? Blogs! I will try and blog hopefully every fortnight, because I do enjoy it and it doesn’t take nearly as much time as I think it will. I’m also working part-time at the university again as a Conference host/student porter whilst balancing essays (Late Renaissance and British & Irish Literature if you’re interested) and dissertation writing. Eep!

Oh, and tonight marks me returning to the gym after a hideously long absence. I’m terrified. I can tell it won’t be a heavy one. Between reading week, getting ill, work and my tattoo (did I mention I got a tattoo? Yeah, that happened) I’ve neglected my physical health.

So, as Arnie says: I’ll be back! 5 weeks really is unacceptable. I’ve managed to get over 1000 page views which is amazing, so thank you for reading :)

Daydreaming about Dahlia.

My 21st birthday is coming up which means I've been trawling the internet and thinking "What can I ask for that is super nice and not something I couldn't usually buy?"

Luckily, the solution came to me pretty quickly in the form of Dahlia (www.dahlia.com)

I've had my eye on this brand for a few years. It has a single store on Carnaby Street, London, and specialises in really pretty, feminine designs in sumptuous fabrics. At the moment their collection includes a nod to the Western, baroque print jumpers, quirky pinafores and flowing skirts... amongst other beautiful things.

The clothing is quite unique, which means they can get away with their higher-than-your-average-Topshop prices, shirts costing upwards of £38, for example.  Unfortunately they don't offer student discount which I think would be really good for them (if any people working for Dahlia read this: pretty please!) which means I can only usually afford Dahlia when it goes on sale.

Anyway, I decided that my turning 21 deserved some pretty pieces that I can use for sophisticated nights out at glamorous bars and interning by day (yes, this is how I visualise my life, post-uni, let me dream). Here's what I'm lusting after.

From the top: Bergen Burgundy Cross Print Blouse, £38; Bernice Chunky Jumper with Stud Shoulder, £25 (SALE); Ella Black Scallop Edge Pinafore, £64; Jakarta Pink Metallic Pleated Knee Length Skirt, £38; Sabrina Pink Blouse with Floral Beaded Collar, £48.
The shirts will look fab under the pinafore, with skirts, or with jeans and I can mix & match the tops with the maxi skirt, too. I love the prints, the embellishments and the cuts of the clothing. Dahlia is super flattering for the more slender, boyish figures amongst the female population, and I can't wait for my birthday and to get my hands on this lovely stuff.

Fashion Faux Pas

This post has been almost a week in the pipeline, but it's still very very relevant.

Despite trying as hard as I can as a poor student who really would love nothing better than to slob around in massive jumpers, leggings and big socks ALL DAY LONG (all whilst drooling at Blair Waldorf's wardrobe) to adhere to seasonal trends, I do occasionally get it wrong. Ok, maybe quite a lot.

At the time I'll put an outfit together and think I look good, and then I'll look back and say: "Oh my God, what in heaven's name was I thinking?!" Tagged photos will be swiftly hidden from my timeline, the memories will be repressed, my embarrassing outfit choices utterly dead to me.

But almost a week ago I think I out-did myself. I managed to make the ultimate faux-pas of revealing my undergarments unintentionally.  Nope, it wasn't to give the boys a cheeky sneak peak, or even because what I was wearing was indecently short.  In fact, the irony is two-fold:

1. The dress I wore was a MIDI DRESS.  As in, the dress was cut below my knees, mid-calf length.  And it was clingy, meaning if I had wanted to flash my knickers I would have had quite a job doing so.

2. I chose my underwear based on the fact I was worried about VPL (which, in case any readers are unaware, is an acronym for "visible panty line") - I did match my bra and knickers but was worried my knickers weren't seamless enough, so opted for some big bright pink pants.

After all of this, it seems that my worries were completely unfounded, because it was neither the length of my dress or the texture of my knickers that would be my downfall, but the lining (or lack thereof) that gave me away.

Without flash, in a particular light, at a specific angle, you could catch a hint of my undergarments.

But, alas, with the devil utilised, all was revealed.  It simultaneously brought to light (see what I did there?) my underwear choices and my unfortunate decision to not wear black.

Lesson learned.

To be fair, you CAN wear black dresses with whatever colour underwear you want, usually.  But, if the material is clingy and thin, don't risk it. Just don't.  Otherwise, like me, you will undoubtedly discover your mistake and squeal in embarrassment upon perusing the pictures the morning after, and for a few minutes you'll feel empty and wonder where your dignity has decided to hide.

So, the message is to make sure you think through your underwear just as much as your other layers, and to never ever underestimate the evil powers of a camera.

Here's a picture of all of my friends and I for my friend's 21st, wearing my lovely midi dress (from Ark) with my underwear on show.  Oops!



C'est la vie! Dress safe ;)