Elegant Creatures

The t-shirt I'm wearing is by new British label P&Co Clothing. Their mantra is 'Life, Style and Elegance' which is a pretty cool mantra to live life by. I stumbled across the company insta-stalking men with beards (think Ricki Hall and Chris John Millington). The t-shirt is part of their Elegant Creatures collection which took its inspiration from nature with prints based on the butterfly (above), peacock and parrot. The label designs items for men but all of their ad campaigns feature women and I am wearing a size small. 

The above look is a little mod inspired. I am wearing my ASOS brougues with everything at the moment and they go perfectly with my velvet bomber which belonged to my granny. I am also carrying a black studded rucksack from Bank which I won at the Fabb Glasgow blogger event which I will write about soon!

I'm writing this blog from Dubai. I booked last minute tickets a week ago to come over and stay with my friend from uni who lives out here. So expect a post filled with sunshine and summer clothes amongst all the posts on winter warmers and parkas! 

Easter Holidays: Week One

My Easter Holidays Week One:

Friday:
Made lunch for my Mum then went shopping. Bought new boots from Topshop and had a mini Primark splurge (including the above black and white sandals).

Saturday:
Went to Glasgow with my fellow Claire's on Saturday. Managed a quick look in the new Forever 21 but it's so big it will require a whole day visit!

Sunday:
It was a bank holiday Monday so we went to see a local tribute band. I wore a new dress from River Island and taupe spiked Litas (finally treated myself to the real deal).

Monday:
Had Easter lunch with my parents and grandparents. My evening was spent on the couch having an American TV marathon eating chocolate. Plus the sun finally came out (so of course I took a picture of my door - as you do!).

Tuesday:
Went to a restaurant in Culross called the Red Lion with my sister Lauren. The steak was to die for and you had to wear an apron as it was brought out on a sizzling plate. Lauren stayed over and we had a Girls marathon.

Wednesday:
DIY!! I began the mammoth task of painting the hall.

Thursday:
Attended the Zen Lifestyle blogger event with Cat. See previous post.

Friday:
Finally finished painting the hall and bathroom. My parents came round for tea and mum stayed as we had an early start in the morning because...

Saturday:
We went to the infamous Scout Sale in Morningside, Edinburgh. I spent a grand total of £3.50 and got a set of coasters, two cushion covers, a shirt from West Germany(?), some new books and a letter holder (not pictured). It was absolute granny shoving chaos! We then went to Ikea for lunch and I bought the obligatory scented candles, some lovely new teal towels and the main reason for the trip a massive rug for my living room. We drove past my granny's childhood home and got lost in the countryside. I had a banging Saturday night and finished painting my kitchen roof.

Sunday:
Today I finished painting the kitchen and bought colours for the kitchen and bedroom feature walls. At night I had a meal with the girls at our favourite restaurant to hear about my friend Leigh's trip to Thailand.

Being a teacher I get 12 weeks off a year (don't hate me!) Sometimes it feels like I have done nothing with my holidays so it helps to write it all down. I hope you've enjoyed a wee sneak peak at my life.

Sparkle and Shine

Dress - TFNC £35 // Cape - Vintage

Happy New Year! I had many blogging plans over the festive period but somehow they failed to come to fruition. My two weeks off instead alternated between cooking, drinking and lounging. In fact the majority of my December has consisted of cooking and eating; hence the large amount of winter weight I am carrying (and trying to tackle with Weight Watchers, which I will post separately on). The above pictures are from New Year's Eve and my bosses 1920s themed fiftieth birthday party respectively. I was lucky enough to borrow my friend's grandmother's sequined cape and considering said friend is in her sixties then the cape was truly special! I bought the TFNC dress from a new boutique that has opened up in my town called Maggie's Farm. They sell a mixture of new, vintage and reworked items and have stores in both Dunfermline and Dundee. Their items are very on-trend, stocking a number of web based brands such as TFNC and Love. It's really refreshing to have a boutique like this open in a town where there are a very limited number of fashion stores.

I have a few new posts up my sleeve; lots of things I want to say and wished I had said over the past few months so hopefully the new year will bring me the time and the thirst for blogging again!

One Shirt, Two Ways

Shirt - George // Cardigan - Vintage £15 // Culottes - Charity £4 // Earrings - Charity £1.50 // Gold Necklace - Gift //
Lips - Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Lip Balm Stain in Honey

Excuse the "Instagramed" photos but the quality of my pictures isn't that great today. (A rushed shoot in between work and a dentist appointment and very poor light). If I'm quite honest I like the vintage haze it gives the photos due to the slight blur! I wanted to show this shirt in a contrasting outfit to yesterdays post Chain of Fools. Today I teamed it with culottes I got from my local charity shop and my favourite cardigan which I have worn to work every week without fail since I bought it over a year ago. I like the clash of prints here and the granny chic look of the mismatched colours and textures. 

P.s. Excuse the "baby-hair" fringe. It appeared a year ago and is the bane of my life ha!

Chain of Fools

Coat - Charity Shop £10 // Shirt - George // Shorts - Market £5 // Belt - Primark //
Loafers - River Island // Gold Necklace - Gift

It's been a lovely Sunday. My sister, my mother and I went to a local vintage fair called Gin in Teacups (I got some lovely items but will post about them separately) and took a trip to Matalan. It started off a miserable and "driech" day but turned out rather nice by the afternoon resulting in lots of squinty-eye pics being taken. Despite the sun, it's still very cold in Scotland which means I can crack out my winter jackets including my old Barnardo's favourite.

Penny For Your Thoughts

  

Shirt, Vest & Rings - Topshop // Skirt - River Island // Converse - Office // Shilling Necklace - Vintage

So the count down to Thailand is on! 18 more sleeps to be precise and my mother is worried about my casual attitude towards my holiday preparations. She does not appreciate that I've got it all under control or being told to chillax... 

Actually it's 4 more sleeps now and the reality of my casual attitude and the adventure I'm about to embark on is all beginning to sink in. I have things to buy and a rucksack to fit everything into. My day has been an endless list of "to-dos" or "to-buys". On top of this I've been neglecting the gym since T in the Park and am currently in a quandary over a possible property purchase. Things are never simple are they? I think the fact of the matter is that when I booked this trip to Thailand I never thought it would actually arrive. When I bought my rucksack it seemed like a glimmer in the distance. And when my sister cracked out her notebook and started marking locations on a map of Bangkok it was still a trip someone else was taking. But I am taking it. This is a trip I've wanted to take since I was 14 and the reality of it is quite scary.

I'm escaping the rain, which has featured in the majority of my outfit posts since the summer holiday began, and heading off to a land of temples, smiling faces, jungles, beaches and thai food. And maybe I'm escaping all the thoughts that have been in my head for the past year... thoughts about my job, my living situation, my love life. I know these things won't go away but maybe I'll be able to think on them with a clearer head when I return. If I can blog when I am away I will... If not then Bon Voyage, I'll see you all in August!

Purple Rain

 

Shirt - Costume Cupboard // Trousers - American Apparel // Boots - ASOS // Ring - Topshop // Necklace - Vintage // Lipstick - Revlon Black Cherry

I am finally on holiday... for six whole weeks! This will mean a vast increase in the number of OOTD posts I am able to do. Scotland is very much against me as far as OOTD posts are concerned. It's either raining, freezing, once it was even snowing or I just don't seem to have the time. But today a little rain was not going to stop me - hence the umbrella! The shirt is another little steal from the costume cupboard (for those of you who haven't guessed I am a drama teacher). Our costume cupboard is quite literally bursting at the seams and so I generally have permission to take the odd piece now and again. I'm also showing off my ASOS Aggie boots for the first time. I bought these a couple of weeks ago and loved them so much I bought them in the tan as well. (I actually bought the tan pair during a night out. I had a few drinks and couldn't stop looking at my purple boots. Plus I had a 20% off code - damn the ASOS app!) The boots retail at £45 and are real suede but they are currently on sale though for the bargain price of £31! I think they deserve a post of their own but will probably feature in a considerable amount of posts are they seem to be the boots I am living in at the moment.

Orange Blossom

Dress - Costume Cupboard // Shoes - New Look // Bracelet - Links of London // Watch - Debenhams

It's May and the flowers are in full bloom. This dress is another pilfered number from the costume department... my treasure trove of vintage clothes. When it's warm enough to go without tights I'll pair it with brogues and ankle socks. I've found some great items during my costume cupboard rummages including a pink silk blazer which happened to be donated by another member of staff years ago. It was lovely hearing her exclaim that it used to be her favourite jacket and made it feel that bit more special. I've bought and borrowed (cough, cough) quite a lot of second hand items recently and would really like to do a post that focuses on outfits made up from second hand and vintage clothing. I don't think thrifting is as big a business in Scotland as it is down South but I think sometimes that's because people are scared to mix and match or are worried about making sure they are completely on trend. There's also a bit of a stereotype associated with buying second hand clothes but I really enjoy it; both the challenge of finding something unique among the discarded Primark cast-offs and being that little bit different.