OOTD | Love Actually knitwear

Coat (GAP sale in-store) | Jumper (H&M in-store) | Scarf (similar here, H&M in-store) | Jeans | Boots

I go to New York this Friday! Super duper excited, if not slightly shivery at how cold it's supposed to be. Right now it's something like -20 degrees, so I've been stockpiling coats, jumpers and scarves like a mad woman in preparation. I've never been to America before, so I'm pretty excited for the culture shock - any tips on where to go or what to see would be cool!

Sticking with my theme of toning down my wardrobe - I've started to ignore colours and patterns and impulse buys, much more in favour of muted colours and staple items. For example - a pair of snakeskin boots have been on my wishlist forever, and because of their monochrome palette, they pretty much go with every outfit combination I own. 

This jumper has gotten so much wear over the past couple of months. It's quite honestly the cosiest item in my wardrobe. I pretty much chuck it on every single day, after getting dressed and realising my outfit isn't cold weather appropriate. My boyfriend tells me it reminds me of Jamie's cheating girlfriend from Love Actually - which is a great compliment. That jumper is the best.

I realised whilst writing this post that I am such a cheapskate. I literally refuse to pay full price for anything - all of these items were either purchased with my discount or in the January sales. I always manage to find absolute bargains - prime example being this thermal lined coat. It's been reduced from £100 to £25, so if you can still find it in GAP stores it's definitely worth a purchase!

Buy the shoes

I am a firm believer in the opposing saying that 'money can buy happiness.' Yes, I completely agree that money can't buy love, friends or a state of mind. However, money can buy festival tickets, plane tickets, concert tickets and new shoes. These shoes, to be exact. I rarely treat myself to anything full price, when I know it will always end up in the sale - and ASOS didn't disappoint! Yes, they're slightly unseasonal, given that winter is coming... But how could I turn down these lace up, studded platforms for half price? Anyway, life's too short. Buy the shoes.

What I Wore :

Waistcoat : Next

Polo Neck : M&S

Jeans : ASOS

Boots : Vagabond

Yeah I'm totally aware that I'm wearing a waistcoat. But with good reason! 

Walking past Zara in the Trafford Centre the other night, I couldn't help but notice the increeeeedible new season window displays. The item that had taken center space was nothing other that the most beautiful black velvet embroidered waist coat. It was love at first sight. Yet, I knew we could never be together. The reason? The £69.99 price tag. 

So instead, I went home and cried for my long lost waistcoat. And then - as if by magic - my mum decided to have a clear out. And what should be on top of the pile, other than this woolen beauty! 

Admittedly, it's not as delicately bohemian-chic as the Zara one, but it's totallllly 70s and I think I'm going to try and find a way to work it into everything that I wear for the next month or so...

What I Wore :

Tee : Primark

Scarf : Debenhams
Jeans : Primark

Boots : ASOS

Apologies for the total weirdness of my recent backdrops. I can't find anywhere that I like, and by the time I do the sun has gone down... Typical really. So I'm back to my usual garden shrubbery backdrop - missed that little plant pot guy!

Life at the moment consists of writing snippets of my dissertation in between motivational Gossip Girl and coffee and ASOS-browsing breaks. I'm writing about how internships affect the fashion industry, and although I pretend to be bored of it, I am actually enjoying writing it. Mainly because it allows me to write down my own experiences through other people's words and share experiences of which I thought I was alone. 

Internships are great. They give you a glowing C.V to compliment your degree and (hopefully) secure you your dream job. Looking back on your own internship is always a rose-tinted-glass experience I think. In reality, you were probably working for pittance - if anything at all - commuting to a cold office, where people didn't take you that seriously and you weren't really given any training in your supposed job role. But it's an experience and a reference you can write up on your C.V. Am I right?

A lot of students are probably taken advantage of, in that if you won't work for free, you can be easily replaced by someone who will. As there's no official definition of what an internship should be, a lot of companies get away with giving their interns mundane tasks and roles that involve no actual thought process. I think the main the issue is to set a definition within the fashion industry - because really it is just fashion that gets away with bending the rules - of what being an intern entails, including pay, job role and experience. Because what's the point in spending three months at a company, unpaid, paying to get to work every morning and not learning anything particularly substantial?

So this post turned into a bit of a ramble... It was good to get that off my chest and I think I've actually manage to conclude my dissertation over a blog post. Kudos to me.

Top 5 :

I fear I might have a problem. My morning routine has gotten to a point that before I even check my texts, facebook or Instagram, I'm on ASOS' New In section seeing if there's anything I've missed off my 'saved items' collection. 'If I was a rich girl' starts playing round and round in my head as I click the heart button on pretty much everything. But how can I not, when their own brand line is this good?

I know summer is a while off, but who cares if there's still snow falling from the sky when your wardrobe could be full of crochet and summer dresses?

To justify my choices, they are all black. No white linen, no colour and no bikinis... Yet.

Patchwork Crochet Jumper

The ultimate summer layer. Although, I'm actually half tempted to skip this purchase and learn to crochet instead...

Beaded Feather Choker

ASOS' jewellery game is spot on at the moment. Which is an unfortunate thing for my bank account, because while I can resist spontaneous clothing purchases, jewellery - not so much.

Heeled Sandals

Because when booking a holiday to Istanbul you need at least one pair of shoes in preperation...

Striped Trousers

Still can't get enough of two pieces, especially the kind with monochrome stripes...

Swing Dress

This is ridiculous. It's less than 1 degree outside and I'm looking at dresses with no shoulders. What's the deal?!

All the links are in the names of the products and I'm posting them here to stop myself adding them to my online bag...

Send help.

What I Wore :

Top : Charity Shop / Debenhams

Jeans : Urban Outfitters

Boots : Vagabond

I imposed a no-spending ban on myself to try and save a bit of money while I'm still at uni. Then I went charity shopping and told myself that it didn't count because it's cheap. And then I totally relapsed and bought a pair of ASOS boots and the most beautiful leather jacket from Zara. Oops. Well, I tried.

This tee is from a charity shop and cost me all of £3. I love that its short sleeved yet still has a turtleneck, because turtlenecks should be worn all of the time IMO. Also, I'm literally obsessed with flares, they literally go with everything and give a totally different dimension to any outfit you'd usually pair with skinnies...

What I Wore :

Shirt : GAP

Jumper : Zara

Jeans & Boots : ASOS

The only white wall in my entire house has shite lighting. And as the world's most uncomfortable photo subject this leads to major stopping at my boyfriend. My bad.

I'm currently in the midst of writing my 10,000 word case study for uni, so I'm spending most of my time ignoring it and dressing up and going out for meals. Also my bad.

What I Wore : New Year's Eve

Yeah, yeah, I know. It's the 5th of January. But I completely forgot to post this in between dying of flu and drinking ridiculous amounts of Kahlua over the new year... 

My boyfriend is the best. Why? Because he bought me first piece of Kooples clothing for Christmas. I know I shouldn't get so excited over a black t-shirt but it's the king of black t-shirts. Seriously. So obviously it was my first choice New Year's Eve attire. Paired with black skinnies and my trusty Vagabonds and various bits of jewellery. Nothing fancy, but I did sequins last year.

What I Wore : Brussels Day 2

I've been searching for the perfect camel coloured roll neck jumper for so long before finding this one from Gap at the back of my mum's wardrobe. Apparently it itches. I think not. Therefore it's now mine and I absolutely adore it. I always end up pairing it with my flares - which are my favourite jeans in the entire world. Add some hoop earrings and you have total unintentional seventies vibez. 

We traveled up to Bruges on our second morning to explore their Christmas markets. It's honestly one of the most beautiful places I've been. The multicoloured buildings and little cobbled streets were covered in Christmas decs and there was even a real-life nativity parade featuring a brass band, a few sheep, horses and a donkey!

What I Wore : Brussels Day 1

A week ago today we were mid-way through our four day pre-Christmas weekend in Brussels. It's now three days post-Christmas and it all feels a bit of a blur. 

Time is the one thing you can never have more of, so it seems a waste to not go out and do things and see the world. The only thing I really want to do in life is to see everything every country, city and tiny little village has to offer. Unrealistic, I know, but I'm yet to spend a holiday lying around doing nothing when I could be exploring...

We mainly decided on Brussels for it's Christmas markets, where we spent most of the weekend drinking gluhwein and amaretto. It's such a beautiful city and the locals are so friendly and helpful and I think we literally walked a hundred miles over the four days just trying to see and cram in as much as we could! 

These photos were taken in the botanical gardens just by our hotel - so worth a visit. The turquoise blue statues stand amongst fountains, mazes and winding tracks that lead downhill into Brussels city centre. The main attraction is of course the domed greenhouse, where inside there is a bar and a roundhouse where they hold gigs every week or so!

I'm so glad I found this coat in the Urban Outfitters sale last year - I hadn't worn it until last week and turns out it's perfect for the cold Belgian weather. I also wore my Vagabond boots all weekend which I'm pretty impressed about, especially with the amount of walking we did. Comfiest-shoes-ever.