Lust-have #3: Coloured Trousers

This week has been thoroughly hectic, but I'm back and ready to blog about my latest style obsession: coloured trousers. Since posting my most recent Style on a Sunday post I have been toying with the idea of adding more trousers to my wardrobe. I have a confession to make: I only own one pair of jeans, one pair of casual trousers and one pair of work trousers, the rest of the time I live in tights or leggings. However, brightly coloured denim and soft pinky hues in chinos are pulling on my heartstrings and I'm very tempted to spend my hard earned cash on something I've never considered a wardrobe essential.

It seems to me that coloured denim or coloured chinos could slip nicely into my weekend and working week wardrobes (I really don't enjoy mixing the two normally, is that weird?) and help me in my quest to become a little more professional and maybe a little more grown up looking (no more bubble-hemmed skirts for me). To me they scream Parisian cool with a hint of cheekiness and when I see people wearing a bright red pair of jeans or pink chinos I instantly think they stand out from the crowd, and not that I necessarily want to do that, but sometimes it's nice for your outfit to say "Look At Me!", right?

So, as usual, here are some fabulous examples of people standing out from the crowd:

The lovely Chloe rocking some A.M.A.Z.I.N.G bright red chinos - if I saw her in the street I would be staring and she would probably be scared.

This is just so effortlessly cool. I have my eye on a pair of pink chinos from Primark, I tried them on a few weeks ago but didn't think the fit was right in a 16, so going to maybe look at trying the 18 and wearing a belt. Will have to see!

Yellow denim and Hello Kitty - what more is there to say? Oh right, there's SEQUINS too. I am in love.

Do you like coloured trousers? Have you been rocking the look? Let me know what you think and link me to your outfits!

Style on a Sunday: School Trip

This Saturday Ryan and I caught the train to Bradford to visit the National Media Museum and this is what I wore:

Jumper: Primark, Top: H&M, Trousers: Next, Shoes: Primark

We had such a fun day, I'd really recommend going as there's some really good photography exhibitions on over summer. After a couple of hours we decided to head back to Leeds and go to Wetherspoons for some tea, we both tried the Gourmet Chicken Burger for the first time and were very impressed. Nom nom.

What do you think of this outfit? I'm never sure what I think of trousers, I hardly ever wear anything other than dresses or tops and leggings, so I'm just not sure how to style them!

Did you do anything nice this Saturday? I'd love to hear from you.

My Most Prized Possession

I'm pretty sure that everyone I know owns a Pandora bracelet, they were all the rage when I was at University and I desperately wanted one for my 21st birthday. My mum and bought me the bracelet and first two charms and then family and friends bought me a whole bunch of charms. I had barely opened the box before I had about 7 charms to add to it, it was brilliant. I was scared it would look a bit rubbish with only a couple of charms, but no, it looked fabulous from day one.

I won't bore you with a description of every single charm, but thought I'd take some photos to show you all a few of my favourites.

This bracelet means more to me than any other piece of jewellery because when I wear it I have my mum, dad, nana, Ryan and my friends all with me. It sounds stupid but it reminds me how supported I am by everyone, and for that I am truly grateful.

Do you have a Pandora bracelet? Do you have something else that gives you confidence when you wear it? I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Lust-have #2: Lita Boots

This week my lust-have is a shoe I have been obsessing over for a while, but haven't been able to justify the price: the Jeffrey Campbell Lita Boot.

They are overstated shoes with a platform and heel which would make me well over six feet tall, they come in a wide variety of ridiculous colours and I'm not sure I'd ever be able to walk in them, but barely a day goes by when I don't think about these shoes. They have wooed me with their uber coolness and I have wasted hours looking at the pretty girls on lookbook.nu who intimidate me just a little bit wearing them and looking incredible, which makes me think I'd be the number one cool girl in Leeds if I could just get my hands on a pair. I thought this was all a pipe dream, but according to this website they are available in black and in my size, and boy am I tempted.

I hope that by the end of the year I will own my very own pair of Lita Boots and I will be swanning around the streets of Leeds towering above everyone in my stupidly high platforms. Until that day comes I present you with a few of my favourite Lita looks courtesy of lookbook.nu:

Ah, look at this, the boots are the main focus and the rest of the outfit is simple but so full of style. I think this look would be really good for work (maybe with some thicker tights though!)

I have a dress that looks a bit like this dress, I therefore need these shoes to go with it... does anyone else use this type of logic when wanting to buy clothes? Please say yes.

I think I saved the best 'til last. This is simply stunning.

What do you think of the Lita boot? Maybe you own a pair - I'd love to see your styling of them!

Is Nakedness Always Sexual?

In real life, especially in summer, we are bombarded with images of women in bikinis and men in speedos advertising the latest fashion range in magazines and on billboards, but we also encounter girls walking down the street in hotpants and crop tops and spotty teenage boys with missing shirts. From these points we can immediately conclude that whether we like it or not, not all nakedness is sexual.



I am a big Lady Gaga fan, and of course she is known for her fashion, but she is also quite well known for not wearing many clothes. She graced the cover of Q magazine topless and with a dildo in her trousers - was she doing this to be sexual? I'm not sure. Did she do this to question our views of sexuality - I would say definitely. I'm sure many men looked at that cover because Gaga looks attractive and is topless, but then seeing the dildo, what did they think then? In my opinion, Gaga doesn't want to position herself as an object of sexual desire for men and women, she almost wants to be 'asexual'. Many of her fashion choices are not attractive, they are so OTT and haute couture but most of the time quite 'un-sexy', and when she does strip off down to a bra and panties combo it is often to make a point, not to be sexual. Let us look at the video for 'Born This Way', in one segment of the video Gaga is wearing black and white underwear and is surrounded by dancers who are male and topless or female and in plain black bras. Is this look about being sexually attractive, or is it about stripping down to your most vulnerable and accepting that you were indeed 'born this way'? I'm not saying that Gaga never acts in a sexual way, because she does, but it maybe feels like people can be quick to judge her for wearing a bra and pants and not look further into the potential reasons for that styling.

With the Bailey report being released people are now discussing the potential rating of music videos, meaning that videos with a inappropriate content for children would be rated 15 or 18, much like a film would be, but how do we judge what is inappropriate? Personally, I would say that Rihanna's S&M video is completely inappropriate for young children to watch and I would urge this to be rated 18. However, although Gaga spends a lot of the 'Born This Way' in underwear, I don't see the video as sexual and therefore wouldn't worry about younger teenagers/children potentially seeing it. I guess that is where the debate lies though - is it about nakedness? Is it about sexuality? Is it generally about inappropriate behaviour? What makes something explicit? Personally, I really don't want to be warned that a music video may contain moderate sex reference or a scene of mild peril. These arbitrary statements mean nothing to the average viewer and have since become a joke (well, in my household anyway) and I think if music videos are really going to be rated this system needs to be clear and laid out in simple terms.

What are your thoughts on the proposed rating of music videos? Do you think nakedness is automatically sexual? I would be really interested to hear your thoughts.

Style on a Sunday: Festival Fashion

There is now only 5 weeks until me and Ryan head to Knebworth for Sonisphere and due to extreme lack of funds I am unable to really buy any new clothes for the occasion. So, I'm starting to plan now so that I have a vague idea of what I need to pack nearer the time. In my experience it is most important to have simple outfits which can be mixed and matched with accessories/shoes/layers depending on weather. So, here is my first Sonisphere outfit:

Dress: Zara, Shorts: New Look, Belt: ASOS, Socks: Primark, Boots: Hunter, Bag: ASOS, Sunglasses: Claire's Accessories

Here I have my simple outfit of a dress and shorts which I think would be great for a typically muddy but warm festival day. However, if it was a boiling hot day, I'd take away the socks and wellies and add a pair of simple plimsolls (however tempting flip flops may be, I think I'd be in a world of pain if I stood anywhere near the front - poor toesies) like these from H&M:

Or, if it was a really cold day I'd add a plain black hoodie and leggings, and if it was rainy I'd add a thin waterproof jacket. The only thing I'd like to add to this outfit for a hot day is a hat, but I really don't think I suit hats so I never know what style to get!

What are your top tips for festival fashion? Please share your wisdom in the comments!

Little Tokyo

Last night I was really sociable and went out for dinner with Jen and Lucy to Little Tokyo in Leeds. As soon as we arrived I was taken aback by the beautiful decor, the walls were covered in wonderful paintings, there were fairy lights on the ceiling and there was BRIDGE over a POND which had actual real life FISH in it. Seriously. I have never been to a restaurant with a pond before. The tables are sunken (cure some slight hilarity getting in and out of the chairs) and you sit on wooden benches with cushions, which while I'm sure is very traditional did start to cause a case of numb-bum after a good couple of hours of chatting and eating.

To start we each had a cocktail, I chose a Pina Colada and it was gorgeous and creamy, absolutely perfect and then for food I chose a Chicken Teriyaki Bento Box. I've never had a Bento Box before so I didn't really know what to expect, but it was such a good way to eat a meal! The box (as you can see in the poor quality photo - sorry!) has little compartments for each part of the meal. So, mine had one section for the chicken, which was stunningly tasty, a section for rice with seaweed and salt, one for salad with a ginger dressing and one for tempura vegetables. There was also sauce and some fruit, but i wasn't completely sure about when to eat that. I'm not too skilled at eating with chopsticks so it took me a while to finish but that meant I felt nicely full and satisfied when I eventually did! We couldn't resist dessert though (we all have that little extra pocket of space for dessert, don't we?) and I had Mango Sorbet which was served in a bowl made of ice. Again, seriously!! I had never seen this before and it felt so fancy, even though I was a bit worried about the bowl melting before they cleared our table...

The evening was filled with good conversation about anything and everything, and I definitely feel so supported by these two lovely ladies in my blogging journey - thanks girls!