OOTD - Monochrome Jumpsuit

Last week I went into the charity shops with my mum and was so happy to find a really nice jumpsuit. I had been looking for one for ages but every time I tried them in the high street shops they never fit me quite right, they were either to long and baggy or not long enough in the body and just didn't look right.

When I tried it on and was surprised to find it fit me I knew I had to get it! It is a TU at Sainsburys one and it actually still had the tags on which said £22 but I got it for just £6.99! I really love it and the fact it was such a bargain is even better!

Jumpsuit - Charity shop £6.99

Black Asos vest top  -  Charity shop £3.99

Shoes - New Look £19.99 (here)

Denim Jacket - Charity shop (can't remember the price)

Black rucksack - Primark £10.00

Earrings - Topshop £6.50 (here)

Diesel sunglasses - TK Maxx £10.00 (here)

Necklace - Pia £26 (here)

(Anna on the left and Abbie on the right)

I wore this outfit last week when my friends came and as all my ootd posts Anna (from the blog Stylishimoto) was my personal photographer. I really love the photos she took especially the close ups. My friend Abbie also has a blog called Ohabbiee.

Summer Outfits

Summer is coming and hopefully we will be able to wear some lovely summer outfits here in the UK, fingers crossed for some sunny weather! Today I thought I would do a post with some inspiration on summer outfits.

Day or night

This outfit would be perfect for both day or night as you could swap the shoes for flats.

F&F Tulip print trousers - £16.00

New Look yellow bar back cami - was £5.99 now £3.00

New Look stone T-bar wedges - £17.99

New Look fold over clutch - £9.99

 Summer party

 This would be really nice for a night out or even maybe a summer wedding.

H&M Sleeveless playsuit - £12.99

H&M Short statement necklace - £7.99

New Look cream pocket front cropped blazer - £24.99

New Look khaki pointed court shoes - £19.99

Day time casual

An outfit great for during the day with flat shoes and simple jewellery.

New Look khaki tie waist shorts - £12.99

New Look white crochet trim strappy off the shoulder top - £17.99

Topshop FIG lace up sandals - £39.00

Next multi row gold coin necklace - £12.50

Work Clothes Wishlist

In just over a month I am starting a work placement for 13 months. It is part of my university course and I am really looking forward to it as it was one of the reasons I picked my university as they offered a year out to experience what it is like to have a job. Although I know it might be hard I love learning new skills and I am also excited to meet new people.

I will be working in an office environment for most of it and I have been told to dress 'smart casual'. I don't know about you but I have never understood what people mean by that but I guess it means don't wear jeans and don't wear anything you would be seen out in on a saturday night haha! I was actually reading something the other day that said to do the 'smart casual' look it is best to have staple pieces such as a blazer, skirts, shorts and casual shirts in neutral colours. I agree with this as you can mix and match things with plain items and adding a blazer to any outfit instantly makes it look smarter. So here is the few keys items I have had my eye on...

Black pocket front cropped blazer - £24.99 - I actually ended up buying this the other day as I thought if I get any new clothes then a black blazer is a must. I was really happy as I got student discount and the jacket fit me really nice. When I got it home I realised I have the same style jacket in a mint green colour I bought it the sale last year but I know I will get a lot of wear out of both of them. 

Curved hem sleeveless top - £12.99 - Some simple tops I think are a must to just throw on with different bottoms and I like wearing patterned trousers so I think these would look really nice. At the moment I am really wanting something in this khaki colour too, I think it would suit me and is different to what I normally wear.

Black skinny trousers - £22 - I am currently on the hunt for some smart trousers. I want some that are fitted as I can't stand flared ones as they look too much like school trousers. These ones from Next are a perfect example of what I want.

Black crepe sleeveless duster coat - £22.99 - I can't remember where I first saw these but I really love them. I think they are very smart/casual as there are basically a blazer with no sleeves. I can see myself wearing this with patterned trousers or leggings and a coloured top.

Khaki tie waist short - £12.99 - Hopefully this summer we are going to have really nice weather so some shorts are a must. These look a really nice shape and smart enough for work.

Black laser cut pencil skirt - £12.99 - I think a simple black skirt would look really nice in the summer for work with a summery coloured top and pretty flat shoes.

DIY - Lacey Edged Top

Recently I have seen a lot of the same top designs across a few stores on the high street. It is a very simple top, quite boxy with simple lace edge detail on the sleeves and hem. I really loved the design but because I am a fashion student and have sewing machine skills I thought why not make my own!

Examples of the existing design 

(photo taken from Tesco website)
Tesco - £12

(photo taken from Dorothy Perkins website)
Dorothy Perkins - £16 now £14.40

To make you will need:

A striped top - mine was from the charity shop for £3.99
Black lace edging - I used two different ones but you could use the same - £4.90
Black thread
Pins
Scissors
Sewing machine or hand sewing needle

How to make

1. Start by deciding if you want to shorten your top before you sew on the hem edging. I decided to leave mine the length it was but its up to you.

2. Pin black lace edging to the bottom of the top. When you get to the join leave a 1cm extra on each end.

3. Where you have the 1cm extra turn put them together and sew a seam. Open the seam and them pin onto the edge of the top. This create a neat join and finish. Then sew around the bottom to sew on the edging.

4. Repeat the same process for the sleeves and then thats it!

Before and after photos

It is such a simple top and for just under £9 it is such a bargain and something a bit more unique than one you would get in the shops.

(I actually ended up taking off the edge on the bottom as I didn't realise how stretchy the top was and when I put it on it wouldn't go over my hips but oh well I still think it looks pretty around the sleeves, just be warned if you have a stretch top stretch it while you sew the bottom edging.)

OOTD - Patterned Trousers

I recently bought some trousers from the F&F range at Tesco. They were in the sale for £5 so they were a great bargain down from £16! I went out in York the other day and really wanted to do a fashion post with them on so here it is...

Thank you to my best friend and my personal fashion photographer Anna (from the blog Stylishimoto)

Coat - George at Asda (about 4 years ago) - I think this duster coat would look good as well (here)

Top - Forever 21 - £10.50

Trousers - F&F at Tesco - £5 (loads of Tesco trousers on sale here)

Shoes - New Look - (bought september last year but these are similar - here)

Necklace - H&M (it was a present)

Bag - Primark - (bought last spring)

I really love this outfit and I think patterned trousers are perfect for spring and summer. They can be found in many high street store at the moment and are really easy to style.

My Fashion Wish List

Lately there have been so many fashion items I want so today I am going to share them with you...

                           

H&M Crepe Jacket £14.99 - I really like the colour of this jacket and I think it could be worn with both casual and more smart outfits.

H&M Striped Dress £29.99 - I love the shape of the and even though the stripes look black they are actually navy which I like. I am thinking of buying this to wear to my brother's graduation in July.

                           

New Look Black Grid Check Sleeveless Shirt Dress £19.99 - I have seen a lot of black and white items lately and I really like the simple shape and pattern of this dress.

ASOS Fine Square Choker and Chain Necklace £8.00 - I fell in love with this necklace as soon as I saw it as I really like unusual necklaces.

                           

H&M Stretch Trousers £24.99 - I have been wanting some fitted black trousers for when I start my placement in a few months and these ones have zipped pocket detail and look like really nice comfortable fabric.

Topshop Contrast Circle Shift Dress £36.00 - This is another black and white dress I have seen, I really like simple shaped dresses and unique patterns.

 Etsy Jenna Flower Ear Jacket Earrings £10.33 - I recently saw this style of earring on Instagram and I love them! I think they look so pretty and very different to what I usually wear.

My Little Shopping Spree

So maybe I lied a bit in the title of the post as I bought quite a bit, some of the things were essentials while others were just things I decided to treat myself to so here is everything I bought when I went shopping in Leeds a few weeks ago ...

The main reason I went to Leeds was because there was a vintage fair on with £15 per kilo which was really good. I love vintage as it means no one else will have the same thing and I like to be different. It was £3 to get in and if you didn't have kilo of clothes it was £5 per item which was also really good. The only thing I found was this long cardigan so it was £5 which is a bargain for something vintage and it will be perfect for Autumn/Winter.

These were the most exciting purchases of the day as I have always wanted to go to the Kiko Cosmetics store and one recently opened in Leeds Trinity Centre so I had to go. I bought a long lasting eye shadow stick in the shade 05 rosy brown, a smart lipstick in the shade 914 which is a deep purpley red and a lip liner to go with it in the shade 709 which was the closest to lipstick colour. Altogether I spent £13.30 which I think is really good and all the pricing in the store is very reasonable and I will definitely go back next time I'm there! 

Have a look at all products on www.kikocosmetics.co.uk

Swatches of all products

These next purchases were from Boots:

Boots Own Cosmetic Oval Pads

Clean and Clear Deep Action Cream Wash 

Bastiste Dry Shampoo

Sally Hansen Double Duty Base and Top Coat

Nivea Sensitive 3 in 1 Micellar Cleansing Water

Maybelline Colour Show Nail 

Varnish in Burberry Kiss

 My final purchase was this hat from Primark for £8. It took me ages to decide whether or not to buy it but in the end I got it because I love the colour and my friend said it suited me.

Fashion Bargains

Over the summer I volunteered in one of my local charity shops. I did it as I needed something to put on my CV and thought that it would be good to do as there is so much you can write about. I did two days a week and most of the time I enjoyed it. One of the great things about working in a charity shop is the discount you get. I love charity shop shopping anyway so it was great bonus. I never really understood why they give discount in a charity shop because obviously the money goes to charity and its not exactly expensive anyway but I wasn't complaining I got 20% off anything I bought. 

The first two things I bought were a dress and a play suit. I got them for £3.99 each with my discount  which was really good because neither of them look like they had been worn before. They both have River Island labels in them and I got them for a bargains as I bet these were both around £20 when they were originally bought.

The top is from a different charity shop near where I live and I got this for £2! It was actually in the sale and had been priced before at about £4.50. It has a Marks and Spencers label in and also looks like it hasn't been worn. I really love the lace detail on the cap sleeves.

The jumper is from the charity shop I volunteered in and again I got it for £3.99 with my discount. It still had the tag on which obviously showed it hadn't been worn before. I can't remember what it said on the tag but its feels good quality and the knit is thick so it will be perfect for winter.

This bag I got from the same charity shop as the top above. It was only £4! I really love brown bags as they go with any outfit. The shape and size also caught my eye because I like quite big bags and I really love the embossed pattern on it. I looked inside and found that it has a Primark label. Although I have bought bags from Primark before and haven't lasted long for £4 it doesn't matter as its so cheap and the inside it looked like it hadn't been used as there was no marks on the lining so it was a bargain.

I was very happy with my little haul form charity shops over the summer and for £17.97 altogether I have saved so much!

Clothing Wish List: 1

If you read my blog last week you would know I posted my monthly beauty wish list (click here) and so I thought I could do a clothes wish list every month as well. I spend some time every week looking at clothing on line (which is a really bad habit but I can't resist looking at the clothing that is new in) and recently I have found some really nice things that I would love to buy for the upcoming season and today I thought I would share them... 

1. Navy Check Boyfriend Blazer - £29.99 - from New Look - I love this so much! I went shopping a few weeks ago and tried this on and I now really want it. I will definitely be buying this when I get back to university as I think this will be perfect for when the weather is changing and I just need a light blazer/jacket.

2. Dogtooth Cigarette Trousers -£42  from Topshop - I saw these on a haul video by Lily Melrose and I really like them. They are probably not something I would usually wear but I like the print and I think they would look good with either a plain jumper or shirt.

3. Red Long Sleeve Layered Shirt - £17.99 - from New Look - I actually saw this when I was looking for the blazer on line and it was paired with it on the photo of the model with blazer on. I really like the colour and I would also wear it with the blazer above.

4. Kelly Brook Monochrome Polka Dot Trim Strapless Bra - £16.99 - from New Look - I am always looking at underwear on the New Look website. There is always some really nice bras especially the Kelly Brook range. I own one from the range already that I got in the sale which fits really well. I like this bra because of the pretty detail and the fact it can be worn as a strapless bra.

5. Cream Pug Print Pyjamas Set - £14.99 - from New Look - Not sure if I mentioned in another post but anyone that know me knows that I LOVE PUGS! When my friend said she had seen these in store I had to see them so I searched the website and now I really want them to add to my collection of pug related things.

Autumn Outfits

Today I thought I would do a fashion post as I have noticed autumn clothing is slowly creeping into stores. So I decided to look on some high street store websites and put together some collages of clothing I would choose as autumn outfits.

New Look

Navy check boyfriend blazer

Red long sleeve layered shirt

Dark blue super skinny jeans

Tan block heel boots

Topshop

Textured wool jacket

Chunky rib jumper

Black ankle leggings

Cut out boots

Ribbon trimmed black ankle socks

ASOS

Dark grey knitted dress with zip back fastening

Rib sleeve biker jacket

60 denier black tights

Leather lace up ankle boots

(click on all items to look up on the store's website)

My Statement Necklace Collection

I love a nice statement necklace as I'm sure many people do so today I thought I would share my collection as I have quite a few...

Present but from H&M

£5.99 from H&M

£4.00 from Matalan

About £2 from a charity shop

£6.99 from New Look  - Bought last year for my 18th birthday night out

£8 from Accessorize

Present but from H&M

£3 from Primark

(Some of these necklaces were bought a while ago so might no longer be available)