H A I R | Hairtrade Hair Extensions

Hair Extensions*: c/o HairTrade

I continuously drone on about my want need for belly-button length, mermaid hair. I invest a lot of money into remedies to will it to grow, but still it refuses to grow no faster than snail pace. I AM CURSED I TELL THEE! It seemed like the time to finally cave in and acquire some hair extensions. I had a little phase of wearing hair extensions around a year ago, but found they became 'ratty' and thin rather quickly, so gave up wearing them. Also, there's nothing worse than seeing a girls clips under her hair where her extensions are clipped in. I hate it. In fear of this happening everytime I wore them I would end up wearing a hat to stop this happening. I gave up.

However, I was recently given the opportunity to review some human hair extensions from HairTrade so I thought I would give it a go once again! HairTrade stock I&K human hair extensions and I chose 18 inches in the colour Auburn (30). When it arrived I was a little taken aback by the colour. My hair is an awkward colour as it is, as it's just the grown out, faded produce of bleaching and dying it all these years. I wasn't expecting it to match completely, but it was definitely a lot more red than it appears in the photos and I'm a lot more on the blonder side auburn. I didn't see this as too much of a problem though as I had a bottle of lightener in my house and as they were human hair extensions it states on the website that they can be coloured. Unfortunately though the lightener done absolutely nothing. I'm not sure why either, but it just didn't lift the colour at all. Also, the colouring made them really brittle and they began to break off in clumps as I washed them, which was also a little disappointing.

Unfortunately for me, these hair extensions didn't work out too well, but I'll blame that on my awkward hair colouring. When they first arrived they were silky, soft and great quality, but I strongly recommend you don't dye them because it weakens the hair too much. Also, HairTrade offer a sample that you can order to home, which certainly would have helped me in colour matching my hair a little better.


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O U T F I T | Sunflower

Top*: Poppy Lux c/o Sugarhill Boutique
Sunglasses: Urban Outfitters
Shorts: Vintage
Rucksack*: c/o Chicnova
Sliders: Primark

Sunflower prints are everywhere at the moment and I'm not complaining! They're a different spin on the traditional, 'granny-chic' floral print for summer. This particular sunflower number is from the Poppy Lux range at Sugarhill Boutique. It's made from a lovely, stiff fabric and has a zip up back that runs down the entire top (which I forgot to photograph - d'oh!). I only own a couple of things from Sugarhill Boutique, but I'm continually impressed with the quality of their items. This top even has a matching co-ord matching print skirt available too, which I want more than anything so I can team them together this summer!

There's nothing better than Southampton parks in the summertime. There's so many across just the city centre to choose from and they all make idyllic settings for a sunbathe and an ice cream cone. I truly wish I could stay a little longer, and by the time this post has gone live I'll have moved back to the big smoke.




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O U T F I T | Festival Frenzy

Raincoat*: c/o DryStar
Hat: New Look (old)
Dress: Vintage
Bag: Urban Outfitters (old)
Sliders: Primark

Festival season is upon us with Isle of Wight Festival a couple of weekends ago and Glastonbury this weekend. Of course, British weather can be totally unpredictable even in the heart of summer, so a sturdy raincoat is an essential in your festival rucksack. Howvever, waterproof attire doesn't have to be boring. That's where DryStar come in. They've created a range of cute, mermaid-inspired, pastel raincoats for any style conscious festival damsel. I could not help but fall for this iridescent, ice blue number that has helped cheer my not-going-to-Glastonbury blues. Although I haven't got a festival planned just yet, I'm hoping to score a last minute Bestival ticket in September, in which this Drystar coat will definitely be travelling with me!

Now I've been a little uncertain about the sliders trend and wasn't comfortable spending £50 on a pair of Birkenstocks. When my housemate came back with these holographic, platform rip-offs from Primark I knew I had to have them. At only £10 it's not as much of a blow to the bank account on a trend you're not certain about. I think I've been won over though as I love these sandals so, so much! Hurry down to Primark to grab some as I think they'll be a definite sell-out!




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O U T F I T | Home Is Wherever I'm With You

Dress*: c/o Inlovewithfashion
Hat: H&M
Bag: Charity Shop
Shoes*: c/o Desire Clothing

First thing's first, I cannot get enough of these shoes from Desire Clothing. They pretty much go with every outfit I put on in the morning hence why they keep appearing it outfit posts recently. The white makes a change from the usual black ankle boots I opt for and make every look that little more summery! On top of that, they're so comfortable! This festival perfect dress arrived from Inlovewithfashion recently and I adore it. Not only is the blue and white paisley print a bohemian dream, but the fringed, crochet sleeves are ever so festival appropriate!

I'm still in the process of packing up my life ready for the big move back home this weekend. The majority of my clothes are at home now, but I've still got so much more to transport! My London calendar is already filling up pretty quickly for July as it happens. I'm just in need of a job now as I'm an unemployed graduate facing the big scary adult world. Help.




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O U T F I T | Crochet Crazy

Top*: c/o Fashion Union
Hat: Charity Shop
Jeans*: c/o Desire Clothing
Shoes*: c/o Desire Clothing
Bag: Urban Outfitters (old)
Watch*: c/o Olivia Burton

I've gone a bit 'crochet crazy' recently! The number of crochet items I've bought over the past month is a little excessive. I've even starting teaching myself to crochet so I can start making myself little crochet tops. This top from Fashion Union is the peak of my collection! I've even doubled up on the crochet craziness with a little custom made rainbow, crochet bralet underneath. DOUBLE CROCHET! Fashion Union have always been an online favourite for affordable pieces and I'm currently swooning over their their festival edit.

I've wanted a pair of white Topshop Joni jeans for a while, but this pair from Desire Clothing are the perfect dupe and are half the price! I'm not usually a fan of jeans as I'm not usually a fan of anything that clings and exaggerates my lower half, but hey-ho! You can pick them up here. Today is my last ever shift at work and tomorrow I start moving my stuff back to London before fully moving next weekend. I'm actually really devestated right now.






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P R E S S D A Y | Free People '14

Last week I was invited along to Free People's first ever UK press day held in their incredible West London showroom. If you don't know who Free People are, here's a little rundown for you. Free People are actually Urban Outfitters' and Anthropologie's sister company and originated in West Philadephia in the 1970's. In their own mission statement they declare that their customer is 'a 26-year-old girl, smart, creative, confident and comfortable in all aspects of her being, free and adventurous, sweet to tough to tomboy to romantic. A girl who likes to keep busy and push life to its limits, with traveling and hanging out and everything in between. Who loves Donovan as much as she loves The Dears, and can't resist petting any dog that passes her by on the street.' It's clear from their garments that they still take a large proportion of inspiration from their seventies roots as their collections are always a bohemian, festival fantasy with beautiful white, crochet dresses and oversized flowing smocks.

Now Free People have been a firm favourite brand of mine for years now, but sadly their presence has more or less always been focused over in the States. However, last year they launched their UK website for the first time and now I'm eagerly awaiting an opening of their first store so I can hopefully worm my way into a job there! Their showroom itself was an aesthetic delight as it all appears to be naturally lit with plants dotted around the room and a patchwork shrine above their lounging sofa. I could have easily set up camp and lived there happily for the rest of my days. Their press day delivered both their current high summer collection and the upcoming AW'14 pieces and neither failed to impress as there wasn't a single piece I didn't not want to take home with me! A couple of favourite pieces was a cream shaggy faux fur jacket a la Penny Lane that was on one of the mannequins and a beautiful, powder blue, embroidered maxi kaftan. I took home a few pieces from their gifting suite, which I just cannot wait to share with you!


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O U T F I T | French Connection x Olivia Burton

Dress*: c/o French Connection
Hat: H&M (old)
Bag: Burberry via Charity Shop
Watch*: c/o Olivia Burton
Shoes*: c/o Desire Clothing

Here's the second instalment to my outfit challenge with Olivia Burton watches and this is my attempt at a work wear outfit. When it comes to work wear for me, after having worked in retail I've been able to wear what I want and it's always been quite casual attire. It's fair to say I'm not that in the know about formal work wear. However, I feel as if this French Connection dress is the perfect candidate for a more formal summer outfit.

French Connection is a brand I've never associated myself with until recently. In comparison to the likes of other high street stores their designs are a little more sustainable rather than following fad fashions. As well as this their hemlines are a little lower, which I can fully appreciate as I'm not a fan of dresses being too short just because I'm a little above the average height. This gorgeous, checked, picnic dress is smock shaped too meaning it's ever so comfy and cooling on hot summer days. I'll be keeping it for years to come! This rucksack was my best charity shop find ever. An authentic Burberry checked rucksack, which set me back just £7! I found it a few months back and I'm still in awe that I chanced across it! It sits perfectly with the subtle checked pattern of the dress too. What do you think of my work wear look?

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