London exhibition // The Alice Look

This year is a very special year for all Alice in Wonderland enthusiasts like myself. This year celebrates 150 years of this very special text which has been read - and used as inspiration - worldwide. To celebrate it's 150th anniversary, this is being marked by several events in London. Some of you may of heard of Alice Underground (I've yet to go!), Macmillan has announced it's re-releasing some of the texts, and there's currently an Alice in Wonderland themed exhibition hosted at the Museum of Childhood in London's Bethnal Green

The exhibition hosts a collection of books, images and outfits showing the impact and amount of influence the book has had on pop culture. What was most interesting to me, was how the image of Alice has transformed over the years to fit in with the fashions of the time. Little changes like frills added to her apron, a fuller skirt, ribbons in her hair and a more defined waist. It was interesting how Disney has shaped our perception of how we think Alice should look - because in the first colour illustration of Alice, she was in fact wearing a yellow dress not a blue one.

In some texts, she is depicted as wearing a black and white check skirt, a pink t-shirt, or even jeans!

It was also interesting how the image of Alice - and her attire - varies from country to country. For years it has been a major form of inspiration for the Harajuku girls in Japan - particularly Lolita style.

There has been Alice in Wonderland inspired Liberty print for Vans

 

... as well as appearing in fashion editorials, Temperley London's shop window and Vogue

Younger visitors to the museum are  encouraged to design their own Alice outfit - a variety of ages participated, most of the designs very cute.
 

My favourites included an East London hipster Alice who wears culottes as they're both "on trend" and "practical"

... and let's not forget "stroppy Alice" (definitely had a giggle there!)

 Most drawings adhered to the well known dress and apron combo - because why change a classic?

The Alice Look is exhibiting at London's Museum of Childhood and is definitely worth a visit! Although not a massive exhibition, it's ideal for those who are really pushed for time, as it's right at the front of the museum and will only take you about 10-15 minutes to look around (if that).

EXHIBITION NOW CLOSED

Streets of Spain

One of the highlights of being in London this bank holiday weekend was #streetsofspain on the South Bank. A short walk away from Waterloo station, delicious aromas of meats, spices and Campo Viejo wine filled the air. The very experience of being there reminded me of the La Boqueria market in Barcelona and lots of lovely memories came flooding back. As the sun came out and the temperatures crept up, we craved ice cold beverages. The sangria, although mostly ice, did the job.

We browsed the different stalls, seeing what was on offer.

To give you an idea of how busy it got...

The longest queue was for the chorizo and rocket sandwiches, so instead we queued for paella... which wasn't much better. There was a choice of chicken paella (chicken leg, thyme, saffron, runner beans and butter beans) or seafood paella (two types of mussels, king prawns, peas, peppers and saffron). Both cooked in vast quantities:

It had to be the seafood paella. We queued for what seemed like a lifetime... but it was worth it!

I love events like this and can't wait for the next foodie event to hit London. There was a Malaysian food market at the South Bank over the weekend too - I didn't have a chance (or space in my belly!) to try anything, but it all smelt pretty damn amazing!
 

It's my birthday!

I've had a lovely - if busy - birthday weekend spent with my loved ones. I've been spoilt for choice with food, stayed in the loveliest hotel near London Bridge (review coming soon!) and enjoyed a day off work today (my birthday is actually today!). Blogging will resume later this week when I've had a chance to catch up on sleep and go through all my photos. Here are a selection from my phone for the time being...

Birthday shoes!

Burgers, cider and bourbon & vanilla milkshakes at MEATMISSION

Right now I'm en route to dinner with my family which will probably involve a meat feast of some kind! Thank you for all your lovely birthday messages and Tweets so far! 

The ultimate birthday gift guide / wishlist

 Jo Malone candle  //  Diptyque candle  //  rose gold headphones  // straws //  milk bottles

Zoeva rose gold brushes  //  Yankee Candle mango peach salsa //  terrarium //  pink pointed flats

scrabble ring  //  flowers //  yellow courts  //  floral straws and mason jar

pink courts // vouchers //  playing card bag // artwork

My wish list this year is a lot more homeware orientated - whether it be vouchers for my favourite places to buy homeware from, or specific items to decorate my home with, like that lovely terrarium. I am still obsessed by all things copper and rose gold - such as copper storage baskets for the home, and don't even get me started on those rose gold headphones and rose gold make-up brushes. Swoon. As ever, candles remain prominent on my wishlist (you can never go wrong with a candle!). Mango peach salsa are my favourite Yankee Candles - although their newest range which includes pain au raisin and tarte tatin are intriguing. I love mason jars, milk bottles and other kitsch "drink me" type glassware filled with patterned paper straws. Another Alice in Wonderland shout out to that amazing ace of hearts bag which matches my favicon perfectly! Lately I've been a fan of the lady-like shoe - namely embellished ballet pumps and low courts. I never used to do pink and I never used to do colour - so it shows what this ageing malarkey is doing to me(!) Never thought I'd hear myself say this... but how darling are the yellow pair? Oh to have all of these in a UK size 6...

My birthday is a few days away now (Tuesday 5th May if you're interested!). It's always nice having a birthday in early May because of the long weekend you get with the UK bank holiday. Wishing all my UK based readers a lovely long weekend, and everyone outside the UK a lovely weekend too (do let me know what you're up in the comments!)

An Ibiza inspired look with River Island

Everyone has their ultimate summer holiday destination. I don't know what it is, but when I think of summer, I think of festivals and Ibiza. I've never been to Ibiza before, but it's definitely on my bucket list.

No matter whether I am jumping around in a field at a festival with friends, or partying it up on the White Isle, the look I would gravitate towards would be ethereal and boho inspired, with a splash of colour here and there.

Gold cuff - £6  //  Maxi skirt - £45  //  Floral print bikini top - £18 //  
Khaki fringed bag - £50 // Gladiator sandals - £40 //  Floral print bikini bottoms - £14 

Gold body harness - £50 //  Tinted lens aviators - £13

Sandals - nothing ruins a night out more than calling it short because of achy feet. Flats for the win!
Bikini - beautiful colours - plus versatile for if you want to take a dip later!
Floaty skirt - the light weight material makes this the perfect evening cover up, yet the slits add a cheeky flash of skin
Fringed bag - nothing says summer more than fringing. Also good swish factor for dancing.
Body harness - why go for normal jewellery when you can wear... a harness? Take bikinis to the next level!
Arm cuff - wear on your wrists daytime and on your upper arm later to take the look from day to night
Aviators - no holiday is complete without aviator shades. Ibiza screams for bold colours!

I chose these items because they are so easy to mix and match with other items in your wardrobe. No matter where in the world I am, with this kind of outfit I can see myself embracing summer, with a drink in one hand, maxi skirt twirling and swirling with me as I dance the night away to my favourite summer tunes. I'm still loving the Robin Schulz remix of Waves. It never gets old!

Which trends will you be embracing this summer?

* The above is my entry for River Island's latest competition #RIPACHA - as ever, all words and opinions are my own!

Thames cruise with #ladbrokespartylife

If you'd told me that one day I'd be sailing down the Thames, playing Black Jack and Roulette with a glass of rosé in my hand, I wouldn't have believed you. But that's exactly what happened last Friday.

The night itself was sponsored by Ladbrokes. I boarded the boat expecting Ladbrokes bunting everywhere, betting slips, branded food and drink, and maybe access to betting games through an app / iPad. However we were completely surprised by the lack of branding on-board. In fact, if I hadn't already been told the event was in association with Ladbrokes, I definitely wouldn't have known. The only tell tale signs were two Ladbrokes banners - one on the top deck, one on the lower deck. There were a couple of representatives from Ladbrokes there, but they consciously made the effort not to approach us - it wasn't that kind of event. Their aim wasn't to convert or to influence - and no one was pushing us to sign up to anything. They simply wanted to invite out an audience that they normally wouldn't have as much interaction with, and allow us to mix with new people, see the London sights, and have fun. Which is fine by me!

We were welcomed on-board with some fizz and a safety briefing before the boat set sail.

Then outside on the deck, we took a few pictures as the night was drawing in quickly.

We were each given £100 worth of chips to play with in our on-board casino. 

The goal being to try and increase your total by as much as possible to win one of three prizes that night.

I won some, I lost some...and repeat. That was pretty much my night in gambling. I temporarily called it quits for a food and rosé break, and discovered that I'd got back to my original total and added a mind blowing(!) £7 to it.

When they announced there were only 5 minutes left of gambling time left, everyone went all in!

On the lower deck there was a finger food buffet which was also vegan and veggie friendly.

... all washed down with plenty of rosé. Pippa was an absolute legend and enquired at the bar if we could have a bottle to share rather than having by the glass, to save us constantly going up and the down the stairs (which on a wibbly wobbly boat isn't the easiest of things!) The lovely people at the bar gave her not one, but three bottles. It went down a treat, and was the perfect drink for the mild weathered evening we had that Friday.

We spent some of the event placing bets (ha!) on who the anonymous Ladbrokes representatives were. As soon as we saw a guy in a red tie we thought: Ladbrokes colouring right there. Turns out he was Magic Pete - the on-board entertainment. We were astounded by the sorcery he did.

For one of his tricks, he made me write my name on a card, fold it up and put it in my mouth. Whereas he wrote his name on another card and put it in his mouth. He came up really, really close so both cards touched (but at no point did my card ever leave my teeth). He then removed his card from his mouth and unfolded it... it was my card. I then checked the card in my mouth, and when I unfolded it... found his card. Freaky.

Just after 11pm, we were called outside as we were approaching Tower Bridge which is extra stunning at night.

As we were nearing Temple pier, the winners of the night were presented with their prizes and we went to the bar for another cheeky wine before we hit the road!

Once moored up, some of the ship's crew kept us entertained whilst we were finishing up the last of our wine.

It was a really fun night and I got to meet lots of lovely people who I'm still in touch with to this day. Thanks so much to Ladbrokes for inviting me!

Do more of what makes you happy

If I asked you to look at the below images and guess the high street retailer, what would you say?
I'll give you a clue: they are a UK based fashion and homeware retailer, first founded in 1985.

Grey fleece throw - £20  //   Hanging heart planter - £15  //  Lantern - £15  //  Lavender plant - £8

Cushion - £8  //   Floral mug - £3  //  Birdcage lantern - £15  //  Glass lantern - £18  //  Owl plate - £6

Crochet jumper - £28  //  Camel A-line skirt - £14 £9

So what did you guess? Would you believe me if I revealed that you've been looking at items from... Matalan?

My family and I have shopped at Matalan ever since I was little. They are a company that has both earned and kept my respect over the years as they have never strayed from one very notable value: great quality but at the most astonishing of prices. Excellent value for money, most of their items look like they cost more than they actually do. The above clothing could easily pass as Topshop right?? That camel skirt though...