My week in pictures!

I'm off to Paris tomorrow so will be out of action until around next tuesday. Well, I'm leaving home tomorrow to go to a gig in london then going to Paris early friday morning. It seems I do nothing for months then all the fun things happen back to back!

Anyone know any cool stores or places to go/see in Paris?

Here are my recent outfits. Sunshine = lack of clothes = kinda boring!







All shades - Car Boot Sale
Purple dress - £1 Primark sale last summer
Bow Belt - New Look
Salmon pink dress - New Look
Nautical bikini - Primark
White tee - Primark
Shorts - New Look
White sandals - Topshop
Beads - Car Boot Sale

I've also been loving big bows:



And orange eyes (If I can't have orange hair, I'll settle for the eyes!):



Polka dot dress - Primark
Eyeshadow - Stargazer
Bow - Car Boot Sale

I love typing out wear I've bought all my stuff. It's all so bargainous! Although in this post I'm not exhibiting much style, I think generally I do the style-on-a-shoestring thing pretty well! I guess it's because I have to, as I am so skint all the time.

I find it disheartening when I go on some blogs and the amazing outfits are unattainable to me because they are from expensive shops/designers. That's kind of why I started the blog, actually. It's a shame Miss Woo already coined the term cheapskate chic, because that sums up my ethos! :) Maybe I'll change the blog to... Skint Style! Hehe.

Anyway I must stop virtual-nattering, and pack for gay Paris! Give me tips on things to see & do!

xo

Style appreciation!

This is Katy Perry. She had a record out last year that was good fun (she did that song 'ur so gay'), but her new stuff is sooo good! I am totally addicted to her song 'I kissed a girl', but that's not all - her style is so yummy. For 50's lovers like me, anyway!

New pics for her new single:




How delectable is that playsuit?! The belt is h&m.

Here are other pics of her style from the last year or so:








Delightful! She is Travis from Gym Class Heroes' girlfriend - some interesting (?) trivia for you there!

You've gotta check the afore-mentioned 'i kissed a girl' out! I'm not usually a music-peer-pressuriser (new word!) but this is an exception!

xo

Birthday bits

So it was my BFF Katie's Birthday party yesterday. I went as Minnie Mouse but don't have a full length pic of my outfit. Just the ears I made! I'm so proud of them. I want to wear them all the time! I'm feeling a tad vile today though. Was up most of the night being sick. I forgot to feed my tummy before filling it with vodka. :-(.

Here's me and my ears:




(Not topless, just wearing strapless top. Airing my sunburn!)

Money is a bit non-existent in the world of Gem, so I made Katie's gifts. I made her some Chocolate chip brownies and decorated a little box to put them in. And made her a friendship bracelet and put it in a <3 shaped box with confetti in. Hehe. No expense spared! I think DIY gifts are nicer anyway, more personal :-)







The party was a lot of fun. Hopefully I'll be able to post a pic of my outfit when everyone else uploads their pics on Facebook (Yuck. Hate Facebook) because I didn't take many pics.

Gossip Girl in 15 mins!! Hooray!

x

Car Boot Sale!

Here's what I wore today:



Oversized tee - charity shop
Belt - " "
Cardi - h&m
Beads - car boot sale
Leggings - h&m
Sunglasses - car boot
Jazz shoes - ebay

I went to a Car Boot sale this morning with mummy dearest! It was fab!

I bought a large pink cat sweater:



Lots o sunglasses:



Material for my bi-annual bouts of creativity:



New neck wear:



Hairbows - 3 for 50p, couldn't refuse!



I also found a red & white polka dot skirt for my Minnie Mouse outfit (going to a fancy dress party on wednesday) but forgot to take a pic. Can't wait to be Minnie Mouse! Making my mouse ears tomorrow. Watch this space..!

The weather's been amazing this weekend. I am only truly happy when the sun is shining.

xoxo

Just a quickie!

Just a quick post with some pics of recent outfits that are clogging up my phone!

Out at my sister's bday meal:


Me totally defeating the object of my Adios 'slimming aid' tablets, by scoffing a cheesecake!





Shirt - Charity shop, I think
Jeans - Primark
Wedges - Matalan (£6!!)
Hairband - Oasis

At work the other night:



Polka dot dress - Topshop via Charity shop
Polo shirt - QS
Necklace - Charity shop


Shopping in town yesterday (pic taken in QS changing room! Tried on a cute dress but looked crap on. I hate that):




T-shirt - Woolworth's kids
Swimsuit - Charity Shop
Skirt - h&m
Tights - Primark
Shoes - Primark
Cat brooch - Can't remember

xo

Black and gold

Can't get Sam Sparro out of my head! Get out!!

Anyway, here's today's outfits. I'll make it brief, as I need to go to bed. The kittens are going to their new homes tomorrow :( I'm so sad. People are coming from 9am onwards so I must get my beauty sleep. Back to making it brief. Here they are.

DAY:




Dress - Primark
Flesh coloured patterned tights - Accesorize via xmas stocking!
Shoesies - Topshop via Ebay


EVE (work):





Top - h&m
Skirt- DIY
Plimsolls - h&m
Tights - see above



Bed now. So sad about kitties going :(
xo

Yesterday's outfit

Sunnies - charity shop
HSCS shirt - gig
Cardi - h&m
Dress - New Look
Grey Tights - Primark
'Lucky' necklace (the shop's words, not mine. It's brought me no luck!) - Some random museum gift shop
Jazz shoes - Ebay

xo

I like line-dancing

I'm feeling very line-dancey in my over-sized shirt which I've tied at the front. For some reason, I can't really pull off the super baggy top & leggings look, which is a look I rather like for it's simplicity. Shame. Oh well!

By the way, some of my items from previous post are now on ebay : BID ON ME! (Desperate for money, much?)

Can't wait for Gossip Girl tonight!! My boyf is a little less excited.





xoxo (I was doing this before gossip girl!)

Gem

Ebay bits

Had a little photoshoot with Alex today for the bits I'm selling on ebay. A lot of the items don't fit me which is heartbreaking but for the best. Here are some scrummy things that should be on Ebay tonight:






I've not really been into the whole denim trend lately but this denim dress is so lovely. Doesn't fit me by about 6 inches but hopefully some skinny minnie will give it a nice new home! Although, I've done a bit of denim research on ebay and denim dresses aren't selling very well, even though they're all over the mags right now.

Another fave that's too small is the blue floral dress. So cute! The pic doesn't really do it justice.. It looks a bit frumpified. But it's not!

Gonna go make some tea now. I'm on a[nother] health kick, so I'm gonna have a sweet potato and salad for tea. This health kick is inspired by the fact that I want to wear this dress in Paris (I'm going in 3 weeks) but can no longer get it over my derriere! I've been doing exercise DVD's too which is just so embarrassing. So time will tell if my hard work pays off!

xo

zzzzzzzz

Sorry I've been so boring lately. I've been really busy at work but will be back to my old ways soon. I've got a few fab thrifted items to show!

Check back soon!

xo

Strawberries & DIY!

It's been a good night so far. I've eaten some yummy strawberries:



Then my Tonight Is Goodbye t-shirt underwent major surgery! I got it when I saw them in Brighton, but it was one of those weird shirts thats too wide and too short! So rather than never wear it, I thought I'd hack it apart! Also, this t-shirt surgery works well for oversized tee's because the neck and back are so adjustable.

BEFORE:



AFTER:




This is not very practical for anyone with breasts because you can't wear a bra but you can either A) go commando like moi, or B) wear a bra, and wear a cardi or hoodie so it covers up the back & shoulders but you can still see the front.

It's a bit of a lapse from my usual high fashion ways (LOLZ) but inside me there is my old 15 year old band geek self who likes to come out every now and again! I embrace it. Also, it doesn't have to be a band shirt necessarily! I think a floral tee would look cute this way.

If anyone wants a tutorial, I took lots of pics along the way so I'll be happy to post one!

xo

Bow tie

I wasn't quite done with the yesterday's formal theme.





Fred Perry Polo, h&m Bow Tie, h&m V-neck, Primark jeans, h&m Plimsolls

Alex has been away for the past couple days, but got back earlier today. I surprised him by meeting him at the station with a flower in my hand :) I stole it from someone's garden. It was so scary! but the flower & I lived to tell the tale!

xo

Updating blogroll

I'll be updating my blog roll in the next week or so, so if any of y'all are not on it (not hard as it's only a teeny one!) and wanna trade links, comment this post!

<3

St Trinian's gone wrong

So I had intended to go for a vaguely St Trinian's inspired outfit today. I fell at the first hurdle, because I don't own a white shirt! I was quite shocked at myself. So I went with a polo. Then, I didn't have anything suitable for my lower bits. I wanted something pleated or just a plain skirt that wasn't too short (didn't want to wear yesterday's one because I don't like to wear things 2 days in a row! Except jeans, obviously.) So I opted for my DIY animal skirt. Which kinda took away from the school aspect of the outfit. So it is an outfit rather tenuously linked to St Trinians!

By the way, sorry about my dusty mirror, I'm not just skank, it's a really old mirror so the dust is under the glass!






Polo - old school h&m, Tie - Boyfriend's, V-neck sweater - h&m, Skirt - DIY, Tights - Primark, flats - h&m, Ribbon in hair - from my huge box of ribbon

I just got that thing where you say a word too much in you're head so it doesn't make sense anymore. Ribbon. Ribbon. Ribbon... It just sounds weird. Wow I literally type before I even process my inane thoughts - sorry about that!! Ooh, must buy more bread tomorrow.

Back to the school theme. Is anyone watching Gossip Girl? It's been on for a few weeks, but I never had time to watch it so I recorded it all on Sky+ and have watched all 3 episodes over the last 24hours! It is bloody amazing. Lots of cute style in it too! Check it out, if you haven't already!

xo

Majorly crud photo skills

I was in a super duper hurry not to be late for work today so quickly took a pic of my outfit, in a highly blurry and rubbish fashion.




Newly thrifted oversized shirt - £1, skirt with braces - Primark, Shoes - h&m, Jacket - Primark, Bag - Red Herring

I know I really need to address the photo situation. I think my blog would be a bit better with lots of nice clear pictures. My boyfriend is a semi willing photographer, but I don't really like posing for him... It's embarrassing! And I don't have a suitably high ledge to put my cam for self timed... But I'm working on a plan. I'll figure something out.

Here's one of my mum's puppies, Dexter, snoozing as I watched St Trinian's tonight after work. The film was a bit whack, but the outfits are awesome!! I'm definitely incorporating a tie into tomorrow's ensemble!




xo

The hair glare.

I'm really liking my orange hair at the moment. It's nice to have a change from blonde. Blonde was nice but I wanted to look more like a mermaid. This was one of the reasons I dyed it! Childish, perhaps!

BUT.

Ever since I have dyed my hair, EVERYONE is commenting on it, wherever I go. Not always nice comments, either. I dyed my hair for myself, and I know it's bright so I should've expected people to comment on it but it's so grating. My boyfriend and I were walking through town and a big group of emo's were just glaring at me! Alex said, 'well what do you expect when your hair is that colour?' which was kind of a shock to hear from him. Why does my personal decision have to involve anyone else? I've always enjoyed being different in the way I dress but I just had no idea how much difference a bright hair colour would make.

"That's different/unique/zaney/quirky etc" I hear these cringeworthy phrases so many times a day. The kind of phrases attention seekers probably relish. But I'm not trying to seek attention. I didn't want 'zany' bright pink or green hair or whatever. I just wanted to be like Ariel from the little mermaid. :-(

I am contemplating just bleaching it out or dying it brown because I literally cant hack the constant comments and staring. And I'm quite disgusted at myself for contemplating that. I just don't see why people have to make it their business what colour your hair is, or what you wear. I have NEVER stared at someone with brightly coloured hair. Looked, yes, but not stared! I don't stare at anyone. It's so rude!

I am just sick of the relentlessness of other peoples opinions. A little old dear who was working in a charity shop earlier said, "Ooooh that's different!!!" to me, and I was like... How do I respond to that? 'Thanks'? I just wanted to say, 'Oh fuck off and leave me alone.' And I'm a people person (eww, another cringeworthy phrase there), so I'm always nice to random oldies if they speak to me! But I guess she was just the straw that almost broke the camel's back.

Sorry for ranting. It's just so annoying. I have never pandered to societies pressures to be normal before but I really am starting to crack up! Any advice? What do you do when you're happy, but everyone makes it their business to infringe on that and give you unwelcome opinions, thus making you unhappy?

I'm going to eat cheese (<3) on toast and watch hollyoaks. Comfort food and comfort telly.

xo

Why?

Why do american companies charge SO much to ship to the UK? It is so disgusting. The company in question at the moment is a t-shirt company called 410 bc, who are charging $25 dollars shiping! I want these items:





In my rage, my boyfriend advised me to send this message to them:



Haha. That'll teach them to mess with me and my empty purse!!!

I wanted to be a bit nicer and say 'I really like some of your designs and would love to buy them but this shipping is too much. Could we come to some arrangement?' But Alex, the devil on my shoulder, said I should put the angry message 'because it's funny'.

WHY do companies do that? It is so bloody annoying.

xo

EDIT: A woman replied and explained it's because they do it priority so it's insured etc, because so many undelivered parcels sent at a cheaper rate weren't arriving - thus giving the company a bad name. So hush my mouth! I am officially off my high horse!

K.I.S.S

Clothes wise, I've been keeping it pretty simple lately. Here is what I wore for a leisurely stroll in the park with my loved one, Alex. He passed his driving theory test today (Yay, I almost have a chauffeur!!) so I bought him a brownie from my work, and bought expensive steak. I think I cheapened it slightly by covering mine in bbq sauce and cheese. But hey. I like bbq sauce and cheese.




ALL ITEMS FROM PRIMARK! Except hat from New Look and Shoes from h&m.



Cheese <3 - Somerfield, BBQ marinade - Sainsbury's.

I've been in a bit of a boring clothing rut, but the end is in sight. I am getting the urge back to wear a dress and heels just to go and get milk from the shop. So watch this space :)

xo

For my Lolcat loving readers!! (For everyone else, sorry. No more cat pictures after this!!)

Just for you guys. Namely Miss Woo and Wendy B!!



Haha I had such fun making this!!

Back to fashion etc after this post. Honest. Maybe I'll make a new blog for my lolcat ventures! Or maybe I'll quit while I'm ahead.

By the way, when did photobucket get so awesome?! I cropped and added text using just photobucket, and noticed options to airbrush your pics!! Expect to see a lot more of my deceptively flawless face!

xo

My new fave accessory

Is a gaggle of squabbling kittens attached to my legs. They actually behaved rather well for this photo bless them. But don't be fooled by the cuteness, they're evil little monsters who like to climb humans and cause pain!x

My 100th post!

Yay it's my 100th post! But that isn't the only reason I'm happy... You know I sent my pic to i-D for the Agy issue (they were asking for 'lookalikes' to send pics in)? Well, I'M IN I-D!!!! Woooo! I haven't got the mag yet but my pic is on their myspace! check me out, top left...



I must get my mitts on a copy of it!

In other news: I've been bottle feeding lambs, re-dyeing my hair with 'napalm orange' dye!, and wearing my new spotty dress out to dinner.






Also, I have just discovered (much later than everyone else) Flight of the Conchords! I'm obsessed. Check out this song. It is tres neato!!


Bon soir, petit cochon-dande's (little guinea pigs)!

xo

New things!!! (this is my 99th post..!)

FIRSTLY - check out my new Ebay listings!!!

I've been gagging to shop lately (oh my god, cliché girl or what? I LOVE chocolate and Brad Pitt, too...) so I was soo pleased to go shopping with my pal, Katie today! Shopping is always exciting for me because I live in a tiny crap town with only a New Look and loads of charity shops and I don't drive, thus to escape said rubbish town I need money, which is a rare occurence. So when I DO get to go shopping it's the highlight of my week!!

My number one priority was bra shopping because mine are all a bit ropey and haggard. The woman in the shop helped me find one that fitted perfectly, so was running back and forth with different sizes, which was very amusing for me, and probably very boring for Katie! But I am now supported and happy. It's a weight off my shoulders...! ......... Get it?! ..... Sorry.

Then it was off to Primark to acquire boring tees for work and some new pretty things:






Black denim skirt with removable braces - £10
Polka dot sleeveless dress - £12, I think... I just knew I wanted it so didn't bother checking the price!

I wanted to go to Monsoon and get some vertical stripe tights but it was shut by the time I extracted myself from Primark. :-(. We then went for coffee and chats. Katie was wearing the most delightful navy high waisted mini skirt with cute buttons from Primark but they only had it in a size 18 when I went to poach her style! LAME! We're having a fun day out on Sunday. We're going to a farm and you can bottle feed baby lambs there! Wow. I'm too rock n roll for words.

I'm now going to gorge myself on Marshmallows and coffee.

Next post is my 100th, so have congratulations at the ready, people!!!


Lovvvve xo

(I think I'm the only blogger I've seen to end posts AND comments with kisses and hugs. Is that creepy? I just have an affectionate nature.)

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo!!

Stuff for sale!

If you like cute vintage dresses, I'm selling some. The blue one is a STUNNER but i'll never fit in it no matter how much cling film I adorn.

Pretty blue one (size 8)

Peach floral one (size 14)

Minty green floral (size 12)


Hopefully adding more soon!! Happy easter, lovely readers. I made some Choc Rice Crispy cakes tonight!! It was so fun. Unbelievably messy, though. :-)

xo

Fiiinally some DIY!

I've been meaning to make the Miu Miu inspired skirt I saw on Kingdom of Style. So I finally found some fun fabric and got cracking! I didn't actually follow the tutorial. I adlibbed a bit just through laziness. It's not as poofy as I'd like but I knew that would happen. I'm still proud of myself though because I always SAY I'm gonna do stuff but don't.

The material has lots of animals on it. Here it is (crank your necks, guys - forgot to rotate!):



Here's the skirt:



Here it is without belt:



But I prefer it with:




Ignore the outfit in general. I just grabbed the nearest shoes and stuck it on over the top I wore to work! I plan on dressing it up and down lots of different ways as soon as I can be bothered. (I say that a lot).

Hope everyone's having a nice Thursday. I'm gonna watch the Project Catwalk final I recorded last night. Come on, Jasper!!!!

xo

I am weak willed.

So. I decided to pull my finger out (HATE that expression!) and get Alex to photograph me in some stuff to sell on ebay. The first thing I put on was a really cool dress (The material is a bit hideous but that's why I heart it) that fits me almost perfectly except its ridiculously tiny waist. It cost about 50p! So anyway I was wrapping myself in cling film to try and get it round my bread & cheese loving midriff (this helped slightly) when I thought 'maybe a belt might cover it up'!

I put the belt on and hooray it concealed my tum tum! But... It also made me realise... it looks FAB! So there's no way I can sell it now I know the trick of wearing it!

So my ebay-seller career is not off to the best start... But let's not think about it. Let's look at the pretty dress!!!





The hair has faded after just one wash to this wishy washy fluorescence. YUK. I've got more dye in the mail. Carrot orange.


Here is what was going on under the belt (smaller pic to save the eyes of squeamish viewers)!!



Hahaha! I hope you appreciate my honesty. I'm not going to pretend to you that my beauty comes effortlessly! ;)

xo

Hair!

I posted a hair timeline in the 'madradhair' livejournal community (a site I used to frequent for hair inspiration in my younger years!)

If you are intrigued and want to see many a cringe-worthy teen-poser pics, then check it out!

Love xo

Cheesy Quaver

So I got my Orange Dye in the mail the other day and decided to bite the bullet and actually use it! So I did my roots (so the colour would be even) and put on what I thought was orange but turned out to be fluorescent fucking orange-pink gone wrong. So now my blonde hair is gone and I have the head of a 90's raver rather than a mermaid. But I guess sometimes life throws obstacles our way and we must deal with it! So I am rocking it to the best of my ability.

I might try and get some different dye soon but for now I shall let my processed locks chillax!

Here is my emotional journey in pictures:

Step 1 - Bleaching my roots. Ouch.



Step 2 - Wash out bleach. Enjoy precious last moments with blonde locks.




Step 3 - Put dye on hair. Realise colour is ker-azy.



Step 4: Rock the glo-stick chic.



Step 5 (optional): Cook soup to match hair. Just for fun!




What do you guys think??

xo