What's inside my suitcase? // Canary Islands

If everything has gone to plan, I am currently stretched out on a sun lounger in the Canary Islands. Technology will take a back seat until I get back, so this post has been sneakily scheduled in advance ;) Here are a few of the things that will be packed neatly rammed into my suitcase:

- Topshop white wedges - perfect for dressing up outfits in the evening
- Boohoo stripe crop - looks great worn on top of a bikini on the way to the beach / pool
- ASOS white skater skirt - high waisted and goes with EVERYTHING
- ASOS blue skater skirt - the most beautiful baby blue colour
 - Urban Outfitters kimono - quite literally the comfiest thing I've ever worn. Great for the evenings when it cools down or by the pool
- Tresemme Keratin Smooth range - to (hopefully) protect my tresses from the humidity
- Urban Decay Naked 2 palette - I don't own any other eye shadows and I don't need to - this set has everything you need
- New Look peach dress - I'm turning into such a girly girl.WHAT IS HAPPENING
- New Look sliders - I've seen these in so many magazines lately and finally tracked them down. The ideal pool side shoes
- Urban Outfitters kimono - another poolside / evening option. Now sold out
- H&M black tube top & blue dress - basics are always useful and can be dressed up with accessories
- Benefit Laugh with me Lee Lee fragrance - summer in a bottle.
- New Look diamante flip flops - satisfies the magpie in me

Because I'm boring, I've gone back to the same place as last year. It's such a chilled resort and I rate it very highly for food. Long time readers will know how important food is to me ;)

Everything is just peachy

Peach. Whether it's fashion or fruit, either way it's delicious. Satisfyingly sweet and juicy, or if we're talking clothing, muted, whimsical and soft - just like that lovely fuzzy skin. The ultimate spring / summer shade, there is an abundance of it on the High Street at the moment. Perfect for summer weddings, spring flings, and festivals when paired with braided hair and flowers. What's not to love?

ASOS  //   New Look (now sold out!)  //  H&M  //   Boohoo

I have a wedding next week and on Day One (yep, it's one of those weddings) the dress code for women is "peach". Being a colour I used to shy away from, I now absolutely love it. Are you so pale you're almost see through? Peach works well if you have a ghostly complexion like I do. And it never fails to make me feel uber feminine. You will feel like royalty

Do you like the colour peach?   

Come closer and see, see into the trees, find the girl, if you can

Bank holiday weekends for me are all about baking, photography, trips out, and catching up on sleep. And last weekend was no exception. Triple chocolate chip brownies were eaten on a daily basis and on Good Friday, a trip to the woods felt right.

Lunch break!

Feta and sun-dried tomato pasta:

Lunch time views:

I'd never seen pink forget-me-nots before!

Quite a few up-rooted trees blocked our path...

...but not for long...

The jumper is new. Some of you may recognise it from my Instagram. Believe it or not, it's not from the Warner Bros. Harry Potter Studio Tour - my Hogwarts sweater is actually from New Look! Intermittent sunny spells in the UK meant there was a chill in the air - and in that sort of weather only a jumper and jeans will do!

"Springing" into a wardrobe near you

Now that Spring is here, all I want to do is wear pastels - mostly peach, pinks and muted shades of blue - gingham, stripes, pleats, loose fitting blouses and crisp white shirts. Here are my top picks from the high street:

Checked skirts, bodycon dress and camel coat all from New Look

White coat, striped tops and lace cut out dress all from Boohoo 

Checked shorts, tartan skorts and gingham shift dress all from Boohoo

What are your spring staples?

Your new best friend: ESPADRILLES

Most of you will agree that shoes are beautiful, beautiful things. How wedges give you height and save you the discomfort of spindly stiletto heels. The elegance of a court heel with boyfriend jeans rolled up at the leg. How trainers are having a moment again... the list goes on. However one shoe that has never rated very highly in my eyes is the espadrille. Espadrilles - a French word - have apparently been in production since the fourteenth century so have quite the history. Once upon a time, espadrilles were seen as peasant shoes, but have grown in popularity over the years. Nowadays they are no longer solely - haha! - sold in Basque countries - they have a designer backing too. Chanel espadrilles, I'm looking at you.

Espadrilles were one shoe purchase I thought I'd never make. But with High Street stores like New Look and River Island bringing out pretty floral versions, it was then they caught my eye. On a total whim, I ordered a pink and blue floral pair from New Look a few weeks back. Ridiculously comfy, they've hardly been off my feet since. This weekend I bought my second pair - again from New Look - this time in blue floral print.

So far I find they go brilliantly with denim cut offs or trousers with a rolled up leg. 

But as ever, I turn to LookBook for styling types and inspiration:

Would you wear espadrilles?
Which type of shoes can't you live without?

WORLDWIDE WARDROBE

Approaching the end of the financial year is always a busy time for our office. Early starts and late finishes mean that when I leave work, I rarely switch off. My mind is always buzzing and thinking ahead to tomorrow's tasks. Gawd, I need a vacation. Once July swings around, I'm free to travel. I dream of:

• escaping my desk
• sight-seeing
• actually having the time to sit and read a book from cover-to-cover
• having the chance to take my new DSLR out

But where to go?

Clutch (£15 - now out of stock) // Dress // Earrings // Ring // Shoes // Nail polish / YSL lipstick 

When going out for cocktails, I don't think you can ever go wrong with a LBD. I loved this lace high neck version from Lipsy as this is very "me" and the sort of style I usually go for. With that incredible lace detail, I wanted the high neck to remain the focus of the outfit - so would pull my hair back and instead of a necklace, would accessorise with statement earrings, a red lip, and nails of a similar shade. And obviously when going out for cocktails, a cocktail ring is a necessity! :) I fell in love with these heels as the embellishment reminds me a little of that beautiful Zara necklace that the whole world snapped up before I had the chance to! To inject some colour into the outfit, I chose out a neon lime clutch to compliment the gems in the shoes.

Trench coat // Lace dress // Ballet pumps // Rose gold watch // Bag

The French get the city look so right - effortlessly chic, yet comfortable for spending the whole day on your feet. Paris in particular brings out a romantic side to me where I am attracted to neutral colours. This lace dress from Next fits the bill perfectly. I would wear this Zara trench coat on top as weather wise, I find Paris to be a lot like London - there's sure to be a spot of rain here and there. For a day on your feet, flats are essential. I loved the lady-like quality of this bag and it's a good size for carrying everything around with you all day. Rose gold is a big love of mine and this Michael Kors look-alike from Next would ensure that I get to the Eurostar terminal on time! I would use some of my spare change for a very French accessory - a baguette - which I would sit with in my favourite park, Buttes Chaumont, watching the world go by.

Playsuit // Ring // Clutch // Jacket // Boots // Nail polish // Bag

Although I live in London, I feel so out of touch with the city. There's so many touristy things I'd love to do - like see the Tower of London - and I rarely get the chance to go shopping (I think I've only been to Westfield once!) I love a print, so this paisley playsuit from AX Paris really caught my eye. Also, playsuits are so easy to get out of in the changing rooms! ...pretty much naked in one swoop! ;) My look is usually quite monochrome so I paired the black and white print with... quelle surprise... a black and white jacket. I loved this one from Missguided as it's different to a standard leather jacket. I live in ankle boots because they're just so comfortable for all occasions - whether it be shopping, going to gigs, etc. Urban Outfitters do lots of cute wallets at the moment which double up as phone holders - very handy for clubbing as well as shopping. I chose this design in particular as I love a bit of Aztec print! I always wear rings and the more unusual, the better! I was stunned at how amazingly priced this one from Boohoo was. Lastly, so that this outfit wasn't too monochrome, I added this bag and a glittery nail polish for a splash of colour.

Body harness // Playsuit // Sunglasses // Headband // Wedges // Rose gold cuff // Clutch // Nail Wraps

I wanted to keep this look quite simple, so went for white as the main theme with gold accents from the accessories (gold looks amazing with a tan!). The clutch is perfect for going out but wouldn't look out of place during the day either. I loved the neckline of the playsuit so didn't want a necklace to distract attention away from this. During the day, I would wear this playsuit as it comes, with the sunglasses (how cool are these?!). Later when heading to a club, I would mix up the playsuit a little by adding this body harness - it isn't too "out there" so you can still see the cut out aspects of the playsuit through it. When clubbing, I also like to be wearing some sort of statement accessory which is why I chose out the Grecian style head band. I guess you could even wear the sunglasses in the club too! I chose wedges rather than heels because it's far more feasible partying until the early hours in wedges. Rather than appearing too monochrome, I added a splash of colour with the nail wraps. With £60.82 left over, that's useful extra funds for club entry and drinks!

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The above is my entry for Travel Supermarket's latest competition where a holiday for each of the above cities is up for grabs as well as £200 to purchase your winning outfit! To enter, you need to create a look for as many of the categories as you like, with a budget of £200 per outfit. To find out more, you can read all about the competition on their website: www.travelsupermarket.com/c/holidays/worldwide-wardrobe/ 

Which of my looks is your favourite? 

Blame it on the sun

With the sun finally gracing us with its presence, I'm already planning and plotting and getting way ahead of myself in the process. Longing for summer, I dream of BBQs, outdoor swimming pools, holidays abroad, and drinks in the park. Perhaps rather prematurely, I ordered myself two bikinis:

 Blue & White Floral Bow - New Look

South Beach White Amy Frill - New Look

Looking outside now at the grim skies and fairly epic rain, I feel somewhat to blame for this sudden reversion back to typical British weather. Please accept my heartfelt apologies.

See you soon!

Seeing as I'm flying to Barcelona at silly o'clock in the morning tomorrow, I thought I'd stop by and say bye as I'll still have lots to get ready tonight! I'm all jittery about my trip which is a mixture of excitement and nerves (I hate flying). It's take-off and landing that get me. I hate it when the plane is queuing on the runway and waiting to be cleared for take off. Just get on with it!

My suitcase is devastation city. I probably shouldn't have spent all that time ironing my clothes nicely! WASTE. I have also packed way too many clothes. I'll need a last minute cull!

At the weekend, I picked up some last minute bits from Westfield which include:

Motel dress

H&M skirt

View from back!

New Look shoes that look like

they should come from Zara!

Black lace = perfect underwear!

Thanks to everyone who provided me with ideas for my trip via this post. 

I won't be blogging whilst I'm away but will write about it when I get back, just like I did for Paris. If given the choice between staying in my hotel room using the Internet or going out exploring, it's a no brainer! 

Adios!

Roses are red, violets are blue...

... I don’t want to give into commercialism

And neither should you.

The above sums up my thoughts about Valentine’s Day quite well. It’s a day where the card companies and the alike try to manipulate you into spending a fortune in the name of love. And make you feel damn guilty and a terrible boyfriend / girlfriend if you don’t. But let’s face it, you don’t need to spend a lot to show someone that you love them. Handmade cards are much cheaper than the soppy, heart infested ones you get in the shops. And they show a lot more time, effort and care - it wasn’t purely an impulse buy at the till whilst you were out food shopping.

I found some mugs on Cafe Press which I feel are a true representation of Valentine’s Day:

("Express your love when you want to, not when you're told to.

Down with Valentine's Day!")

("Chocolate makes me fat. Roses make me sneeze. I hate Valentine's Day")

 ("Happy commercialized holiday!")

Brilliant. But also slightly ironic. Many of us moan about the commercialism of Valentine’s Day but now there is a new market (the anti-Valentine’s Day squad and the singletons) which the companies can then make money from too. Terrible, huh?

I am loved up and have been for the last 5 years. We never make a big deal out of Valentine’s Day because if you love someone, you should love them all 365 days of the year – you don’t need one day a year to say / show it. We never go out or have a master plan. Firstly because restaurants are a total rip off at this time and secondly because the one year we did make a plan, I was insanely ill which ruined everything. And we don’t do gifts. But there have been exceptions to this rule. Last year, my boyfriend surprised me a gift and this weekend, we’re going away.

And the question lots of us face: what should I wear on a date? 
I feel like Valentine’s Day adds extra pressure on us to look good (another reason why I semi dislike the day). I have come up with some ideas for looks based on the sorts of things I would wear for each occasion. I hope these are useful / inspiring:

Staying in

If it’s just you and boyfriend home alone, dress comfortably but also add a little sexy twist if you can (he’ll thank you for it!). Try wearing matching lingerie or nightwear with a floaty cover up:

Tesco - babydoll

Topshop - teddy in "Berry"

Topshop - dip dye water colour kimono

Cinema / day time

Because of this seemingly “special” day of the year, you can get away with being a little bit smarter than usual. If you’re making a day of it, wear what’s comfortable - avoid tight fitting garments and high heels. Wedges are a good alternative as they give you a little bit more support and won’t kill your feet after an hour. Floaty sheer shirts, lace detailing and flowing skirts can all look very romantic.

New Look - beaded mesh top

New Look - chiffon gypsy top

River Island - 3D petal tunic

River Island - cream lace skirt

River Island - Peter pan shift dress

River Island - peep toe wedge boots

Topshop - abeline boots

Topshop - crochet lace vest

Topshop - silk shorts

Nice restaurant / night out

It’s up to the individual, but I would choose a dress for an occasion like this. If you are going for a many course meal avoid tight body con dresses and waist belts. Been there, got the t-shirt. You will feel mighty uncomfortable afterwards and in a body con number, your food baby will be quite clear. Try flowing dresses that skim over your stomach and team with a nice pair of heels:

Miss Selfridge - black lace V dress

Miss Selfridge - tan canvas heel

H&M - dress 

… and finally, a clichéd look

If you really love Valentine’s Day, you may want to wear your heart on your sleeve (literally). The High Street has so many options right now so you can wear head to toe hearts if you wish. Show The Love with this cute ASOS hearts cardigan which would look lovely slung over a black dress. Or alternatively team a sweatshirt like this with these gorgeous Topshop scallop shorts and patent shoes. You can even include your legs in the heart fest with these ASOS tights.

ASOS - heart cardigan

ASOS - heart sweatshirt

Topshop - scallop shorts

Topshop - "Kitty" black patent shoes

ASOS - heart tights

  

Hope all you have a lovely Valentine’s regardless of whether you’re single or loved up!