Splurge Or Steal: Bows

Good news – I now have a gap year job! I'm going to be working as an intern in the Maths department of an academy in Sheffield, and I am so excited! The plan is to reapply to start a Maths undergrad course at uni in 2011; I think I might try for Oxford, but we'll see how brave I'm feeling when October comes around ....

Anyway, on to today's post, inspired by the lovely Blair Waldorf:

BOWS! As a firm fan of the late Luella label (RIP), I just can't resist the quirky, countryside charm they have. They're definitely an easy way to add a girlish touch to an outfit that might be too dressed up or serious otherwise, and I've been wearing them a lot lately. My measly collection is as follows:

Black hairband: British Heart Foundation; Plaid hairclip: The Clothes Show; Spotted hairclips: H&M

I've had my eye on a couple of bows on the high street though, so if you like me are looking to expand your collection, look no further! I've divided up my discoveries into two categories: splurge and steal.

STEAL (under £10)

Cameo aliceband: £3.75, Dorothy Perkins

Purse: £3.99, New Look

Skinny belt: £4, ASOS

Tights: £4, New Look

Lace kirby grips: £6.50, Topshop

SPLURGE (£10 and over)

Chain ring: £10, Topshop

Tweed brooch: £14, Topshop

Bandeau dress: £18, ASOS

Mesh jumpsuit: £34.99, New Look

Black gloves: £38, Mango

Personally, I'm already in love with the tweed brooch! I picked it up in Topshop Sheffield on Thursday, put it down before I got to the till, and regretted it the moment I got back to Norwich ... I think I'll be making a trip to the high street fairly soon. ;)

xxx

OOTD: WWLBD?

... where WWLBD stands, of course, for "what would Luella Bartley do?" I think I'm going to start quoting that when people ask me how I'd describe my style.


Hairband: British Heart Foundation charity shop; Earrings: Aldo (New York); Ring: ASOS


T-shirt, belt: Primark


Skirt: Century 21 (New York); Necklaces: Superdrug & BHS


Tights: mytights.com; Bag: Urban Outfitters (New York)


Off to my friend Ani's house for a girly sleepover complete with face masks and manicures! I've known Ani for about 6 years now plus we were on the Head Girl team at our old school, so we're in about a million photos together; the only problem is that she has such fantastic natural style that I always look so shabby standing next to her! I think I have her to thank for actually starting to care about what I wear ...

xxx

Ring The Changes.

I've been paying a lot more attention to my hands lately, as weird as that sounds! But since July, I've stopped playing piano and guitar regularly, which meant two things: firstly, I actually have fingernails now, and secondly, I've started wearing rings a lot more.

I say 'a lot', but actually my collection is pretty pathetic! I'm trying to get mine from sales and low-price shops as much as possible though; I don't want it to become an expensive habit like my earring collection. The first ring I ever bought was a beautiful £8 snake design from Topshop, which wrapped around half my finger, but it broke after I'd worn it about twice and I've learned my lesson!

 

From top to bottom: £1.80, ASOS (see this post for more); £1.50, The Clothes Show; £2, Dorothy Perkins; 

£3, Topshop; £4, Accessorize; £2, The Clothes Show; £2, The Clothes Show.

 

£4, Accessorize. Millie spotted the pendant version at the Liverpool Street Station sale and I fell in love with the ring!

£2, Dorothy Perkins. I picked this up in the sale to wear to my Leavers' Ball. 

My newest addition is this H&M ring:

 

They have a matching pendant too (only £2.99, unbelievably cheap!) but I don't want to fuel another jewellery collection just yet! I got comments from the changing room assistant, the girl at the till, and even the woman behind me in the queue, all saying how cute they thought it was – not that I needed much persuasion at this point since it was a mere £3.99. I've seen a lot of owl jewellery on the high street recently, mostly from Miss Selfridge, Topshop and Urban Outfitters, but nothing as low-priced as this for such a statement piece.

I just can't resist a good bargain!

Love Sanchia xxx

A Lesson Learned?

by Sanchia

I've been very aware for the last few years that I've never owned any sandals. The only shoes I ever wear in summer are ballerina pumps, brogues and the occasional wedge – all of which tend to get very uncomfortable as the weather warms up. And as for when I go on holiday ... well, that's a horror story for another time!

So I decided, as I usually do, that the internet would solve all my problems for me. After a couple of hours trawling through the usual online haunts (ASOS, Topshop, New Look, etc.), I found a link to Linzi Shoes dot com through Twitter. They have a huge range of stock and it's all very reasonably priced, so it took me all of a few minutes to place an order for myself and my mum as well! I went for the "Danna" style and my mum went for the "Kate", all the while feeling very smug that we'd discovered this site all by ourselves. (Can you see where this is going? :P)

In total our order came to £50, which included a £20 pair of sandals, a £25 pair, and also £5 delivery. The package arrived as promised three days later, and although we loved the actual shoes, my size 5s were too big and my mum's size 7s were too small. We had to pay £4.50 to return them to the company, which came out of our own pockets, but our size replacements were sent to us free of charge. Although I do now have a pair that fit and that I really do like, I'm really not impressed with the short, unapologetic email I received after e-mailing to ask them a question about delivery, not to mention the beaten-up shoeboxes that looked like they'd been used more than once already! 

I think in the future I'll be sticking to places like ASOS and Littlewoods, who know how to treat their customers and who offer free delivery and returns on all of their products. Do you have any bad experiences of online shopping? Has it put you off that website, or even online shopping altogether?

Love Sanchia (@wakeorsleep) xxx

Label Du Jour: See by Chloe

See by Chloe launched on ASOS today and inspired me to do a quick brand focus post.

See by Chloe was launched in 2001 as a more casual and youthful selection of clothes compared to the Chloe mainline.

I'm a big fan of the classic cuts of the collection and lots of their S/S pieces featured some beautiful prints and ice cream colours.

My picks of the crop (all available from ASOS.com)...

Shorts £221

Blouse £245

Blouse £186 - Camel is the hottest colour this AW
 and I love the stud detailing too!

Unfortunately, I definately can't justify £221 on a pair of shorts!

Have you had a look at the collection? Which are you favourite pieces? See by Chloe is available now at ASOS and also at Urban Outfitters and Net-a-Porter!

Love Millie x

AW 10/11 Trend Focus: Lace

by Sanchia

"Ah, Lace. So we meet again ..."

Word on the catwalk: lace will be HUGE next season! I thought I'd write this post because I (brace yourself) hate lace with a passion, and since it's still firmly on the fashion radar, I thought it was about time I embraced it. 

Ugh.

We first started seeing lace way, waaaay back in AW 08/09, when Miuccia Prada decided that it would be interesting to see if she could base an entire collection on a material that she (at the time) just couldn't stand. 

 

But I've got to admit, the collection was more than just "interesting" – it was feminine, luxurious and seductive, and yet prim and stiff at the same time; it reminded me of forbidden love in a gothic novel. Back then the trend didn't really filter through past the couture houses ... but it resurfaced for SS 2010, and it hasn't stopped there! The L-word is a huge feature in some of the biggest new season collections: Valentino, Burberry Prorsum (damn you, Christopher Bailey!), Givenchy and Christopher Kane, to name but a few. 

I think it's got to the point now where I just cannot dig my heels in and ignore it any longer! So I've been doing a little internet shopping to see how I can try the trend by adding just a couple of key pieces here and there ...

Although I do need a new sweater, out of the above I think I'd go for the Topshop ankle socks! Anyone who knows me will tell you that I am absolutely obsessed with socks and tights (if you are too, check out this post by Sarah Williams), so no doubt I'll fall in love with them (and lace in general) on sight.

Oh gosh. The brogues. Are beautiful. Sadly they're white, and I don't know how long they'll last on a wet English street. While I love the peep-toe boots so much more, I think I'll regret them too the moment it rains, which I imagine is going to happen pretty often come November! But having said that, both pairs are very reasonably priced, so I may just eat my words and pick up one or the other (or both?) very soon. ;) (Ooh, before I forget, the TFNC dress is £17 reduced from £40 in the ASOS sale, so pick it up now or you'll miss out!)

The hoodie dress is staring at me. I'm hiding my debit card, just in case. (But just so you know, it's £65 reduced from £180, also in the ASOS sale. See my previous post for evidence of my ASOS addiction if you're a fellow sufferer!) I included the Warehouse blouse because the lace detail is very subtle, which makes it perfect for someone like me who wants to try the trend but isn't overly keen on it – and I can reference the white shirt mini-trend while I'm at it!

If you have any recommendations for ways I can try the lace trend, please let me know! And I'd love to know if and how you're going to reference it next season.

Love Sanchia (@wakeorsleep) xxx

P.S. Kudos if you managed to read that whole post! :) Have a free virtual hug: O

My Favourite Four-Letter Word

by Sanchia


I didn't have to think about it for very long: my favourite four-letter word has to be "SALE" (especially when it's in big, red capitals) closely followed by "ASOS"! Here are my spoils from the current ASOS online sale.

 

I snapped up this ring for £1.80 (I know, it felt like theft!) a few days ago:

The first one they sent to me broke in the package, so they replaced it with a new one the next day – and best of all, I now have a "free" ring and brooch (the broken-off top bit with a safety pin on the back)! Total win. :D

Secondly, I found this beautiful purse for just £10.80, after my 10% discount:

 

I'd seen it a few weeks ago but didn't have the money to get it before my holiday, and I found myself daydreaming about it more than once! (I know, I worry about myself too sometimes.) ;) It's blue and tan leather with a gorgeous (and very on-trend if I do say so myself) tassle, and enough space for my various cards, receipts, other assorted junk, etc. etc.

That's all for now; I've decided I'm going to give my debit card a break and put together a few trend edits for the next few days instead of shopping!

See you beautiful people soon ...

Love Sanchia (@wakeorsleep) xxx