Tomorrow my brother leaves for Afghanistan... He is always in my heart.

War is not a life: 

it is a situation, One which may neither be ignored nor accepted. 

 -T.S. ELIOT

"BLOOM SKIN" ISSEY MIYAKE

                       

Just a few minutes to make your heart stop... Issey Miyake's retail project comprising of eight computer controlled fans and a single piece of fabric... aptly named 'Organdie'. The material used is the same as that of their 'Bloom Skin' SS12 collection. Calming, simplistic beauty.

Kooples...

By request (and a not so subtle threat) from my big sister, my boyfriend and I have entered 'Britain's most stylish couple' in association with Glamour magazine. Now I feel a bit silly doing this, I hate 'competitions' for fashion as I don't believe it's anyone's place to judge self expression what with fashion being so subjective but hey, it's a chance to take pictures with my beau (he hates his photo being taken!!) My boyfriend is easily the most stylish man I know, he puts together colour combinations that lesser men would recoil at, such a rarity it is to find a man with such an acute sense of personal style! I feel proud every time I walk next to him as the way he dresses completely reflects him as a person; beautiful, inspirational and immaculate without trying too hard. Click on this link to 'like' the picture and vote for us :) Thank you xxx

TWICETHEBLOG...

Sorry for the recent lack of posting, I have been snowed under with work, work, work- not that I'm complaining, I love being busy!

In the wake of fashion month I am left feeling somewhat empty - I fear I am experiencing withdrawal symptoms from that little notification I got to my inbox every day with the new collections- In light of this I have decided to go through archives of collections past and will be posting some of my favourite looks- You've got to revisit history in order to inspire the future!

I have also been spending time on my sister blog TWICETHEBLOG- for those of you not aware, let me tell you a little bit about it:

It is a joint venture with my best friend of 13 years, Lisa Marshall- she is a fellow blogger, fashion lover and creative creature. We are kindred spirits when it comes to fashion and so much of our time is spent discussing our favourite designers, inspirations and all things beautiful that we decided to join forces! I don't know quite why it has taken so long (but the best things always do right?) The blog is comprised of our personal style and how we can dress in completely different clothes (sometimes the same) and still manage to arrive at the same place- often looking like it was planned (It isn't, just incase you're wondering).

I love the bones of this girl and our blog, if nothing else, is a perfect example of our shared inspirations, passion and friendship- hope you enjoy!!

Elle loves River island...

On Thursday I went to an event at River island in accossiation with Elle magazine.

The event was pretty awesome. Free Malibu cocktails- I haven't drank that stuff since I was *cough* 16- at this point I must say I do not condone underage drinking :S However, I forgot how good it was- like a Caribbean party in your mouth.

There was also a free mani-pedi station, break dancers and a fashion show.

Showcasing the Miami heat, pastels and demin trends in River island for SS12- I definitley saw a few pieces that were lust worthy- check the embellished collar, pastel hues and the aztek printed jeans!!

I also caught up with the ever lovely Bonnie Rakhit of Elle magazine with a little Q&A:

Age: 33 (I know right?! I want what SHE uses)

Job: Fashion editor of Elle magazine

Wearing: All River island- Acne shoes (positively perfect heel)

Favourite High street shop: River island- I love all the Miami heat stuff, very Rihanna.

Favourite trend this year: Sport Luxe with a neon pop (girl after my own heart)\

What is your 'failsafe' piece? Vivienne Westwood Anglomania dress- no matter how I am feeling, that will pick me up!

How much do you spend on clothes a month: not that much actually (I suppose she gets most of them for free.)

I wore a relitively casual ensemble- pale blue Topshop jeans, a breton top from Zara (I loves me some breton) jewellry by Accessorize and A jacket I got five years ago from a brand called Almost Famous which I am now blagging as vintage.

*I have an exciting new project launched this week, it is a sister blog to this one called TWICETHEBLOG if you like this blog then I am sure you are going to love this one, click on the link to follow :)*

Watch out...

The lovely guys from seeking wonderland sent me this awesome bunny shaped slap on watch- it's completely darling.

Rubber strap and detatchable faces make it versatile, going with any number of outfits and colours- it reminds me of the completely covetable rubber watches I wanted as a child- except cooler. I cannot wait to wear it with my many sport inspired outfits in the coming months!

Bright and bold...

Bag: Kurt Geiger

Blazer: Zara

Pants: Zara

Shoes: Dune

Shirt: Zara

For those of you who are regular visitors (Thank you!) you will be very well versed in my on going battle with having a tidy bag or "refining my bag crap" as I like to call it. I blogged about it here with this Hermes beauty, expressing the need for me to reorganise my over complicated clutch and streamline it's contents and in turn, my life.

Enter new purchase- Kurt Geiger. KG have these wonderful little clutch bags for a thrifty £25- I couldn't resist buying one for that price! Not only does it mean I have to put aforementioned bag crap refinement into practice, it also answers the problems I face with bag/ outfit competition.

I love a good 'eclectic chic' look but I don't like my garments to fight for attention- they're all special and deserve their own spotlight- So, as I was wearing quite a loud outfit I wanted a bag that complimented it- a subtle nod to the colours I was wearing whilst still maintaing a bit of individuality with its see-thru wonderfulness.

Thank you Kurt Geiger- just goes to show, if you pray hard enough the fashion gods answer you!

Best in show...

I recently wrote a "Get the look" fashion feature for The Sunday Sun- the write up was inspired by a fashion show I went to on Thursday night at Cruise- a high end store with an affinity for luxury brands.

The show was of their new SS12 collection in a salon type viewing- it was rather wonderful and very chic- with champagne and macaroons on tap (did someone call ahead and tell them I was coming? As these just so happen to be two of my favourite things- needless to say I took full advantage.)

They were showing Victoria Beckham, Nicole Farhi, Alexander McQueen, D&G, Versus and Gucci.

Obviously I came out with a shopping list as long as my arm, and Just as equally unattainable- price-per-wear ratio isn't as easily justifyed on a dress for £3,567... so with this in mind I picked a few of my favourite pieces from the High street that channel the SS trends featured in the show.

I wore a skirt I found in Londons thiriving vintage scene, a breton top from French connection, Zara navy blazer and my green louboutins- I promise I will stop wearing this bag soon, the poor thing is exhibiting some serious signs of wear and tear, it's just that it goes with everything, I kid you not, EVERYTHING.

Balmania...

Images via style.com

Balmain AW12 was like some sort of Fabergé fuled dream... I'm still trying to process it.

Quilted embordery was the order of the day from Rousteing, this kind of detail is not for the faint haerted- some intense needle work went into these numbers!

Ignoring for a moment the fact that bodycon and I are not currently on speaking terms, one can't help but admire the intricacy these dresses demanded- it is astounding.

The colours that have been channelled for this collection remind me of renaissance France, a sort of 'Royal chambers' decore, but for the body, taking 'wearing art' to a whole new level- absolutely exquisit.

Ye old faithful Balmain box jacket was back but with an oversized edge and detailing that, even for Rousteing's standards, was remarkable and inspired.

You know who wants velvet pants? me. I have loved this look ever since I was a young girl- purple velvet boot cuts were my thing- there is not nearly enough of this around and I am loving the fact that leather and velvet are a perfectly acceptable coupling... if I then added a smoking jacket to the mix, would that be a step too far?

Going green...

Jumper: M&S

Bag: Cos

Shirt: American Apparel

Pants: Fashion Union

Shoes: Ebay

Sunglasses: Topshop

To quote a famous frog "It isn't easy being green" and I'll tell you one thing, Kermit weren't wrong.

I find Green one of the hardest colours to pull off on the bottom half without looking like an elf/ extra from Robin hood- are they the same thing?

These pants were sent to me by the lovely guys at Fashion Union- home of some wicked SS pieces- currently coveting this Orange pleated number.

They are light weight with a slight sheen to them and mould perfectly to your body - I always find it hard to get tight pants that stay tight, by that I mean don't bag around the knees, bum or waist- so far, these have proved to be good candidates- definitely a firm favourite.

I paired them with a lavinder chasmere jumper and a light blue oxford shirt to balance out the green and add a sense of impish mischief- I realise this may seem like a total contradiction to my earlier stament about elves- but imps are a whole different kettle of fish.

With a lemon bag and metallic shoe, I feel all a glow with the joys of Spring... now if only the weather would stay equally as bright.