Dirty old river, must you keep rolling.

18 and East playsuit: c/o fuse fashion. Angora jumper: £6, M&S, via charity shop. Bag: £4, vintage. Shoes: £22, Russell and Bromley, via ebay. Watch: gift, Rotary. Bracelet: gift. Rings: gift and vintage.

I'm not sure quite what's happening, but I think I'm going to need sunglasses. If you read any British blogs, you may have heard that summer may be just round the corner, and we're all rather excited by the novelty of it. I may not be a fan of my legs (go to the gym, Rebecca) but it was necessary to strip off the tights, and leave the house with a spring in my step in the prettiest 18 and East playsuit from fuse fashion, perfectly made for this kind of weather. To celebrate and send me off northwards for the final time, my friend Harriet and I visited A Cherry On Top, a café we'd both walked past countless times, but never really tried out. Despite it definitely being brunch time, we both opted for cake instead of eggs benedict, which is probably the best morning decision I've ever made. Although those meringues do look good too...

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Oh Manchester, so much to answer for.

There's nothing like getting a little older! My birthday isn't technically until next week, but my dad managed to take most of a day off work near enough to the date to come up and visit the Northern quarter (a little Manchester joke there!) and little ol' me. We had a wander around the Arndale centre before heading to the Second Floor at Harvey Nichols to have a rather indulgent late lunch. The moustache-adorned menu (I've noticed that Olivia's boyfriend is taking part in Movember - go go go!) was full of treats. Eventually I chose the vegetarian "taster box" as I couldn't decide on just one meal, whereas my dad plumped for classic fish and chips. For those who are wondering, it gets a big thumbs up from me, although I'm not sure leather trousers were the best accompaniment. Followed by a chocolate tarte (which escaped my camera - I wasn't leaving it on the plate for too long!), we rolled out of the restaurant to check out the christmas markets, as it wouldn't have made sense to go all that way without perusing their wares. Despite being snuggled inside my new Glamorous blazer, we eventually had to head inside, and jump in and out of phone shops to sort out my birthday present. I've finally got a device that isn't met with pity or derision (Samsung, I love you, but you're binging me down), and, as I'm so late on the bandwagon, pretty much every instagram username has been taken, so follow me @rscfanclub. 

xxx

ps, I do have a couple of posts lined up, but sorry if I go a little AWOL on the blog over the next month or so. It's hardly breaking news for a third year student to be stressed, but my workload is ridiculous, and I can't foresee any free time until January (cry) when deadlines have finally been met and exams have been sat. Hopefully this weird message will amount to nothing, but I'd rather my blog didn't become an obligation and additional stress when I've already got more than enough on my plate. Bis bald.

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Went for a walk down the old King's Road to see if anybody was there.

Floral top: £2.75, Topshop, via charity shop. Denim circle skirt: £28.50, American Apparel, via ASOS. Polka dot pop socks: £1, Primark. Two-tone ballet flats: 50p, Russell and Bromley, via ebay. Bag: gift, Marks and Spencer. Polka dot sunglasses: £1, Primark. Skull bracelet: £11, Made, via ebay.

Yesterday was, in short, hot. Walking westwards along the King's Road (in an outfit that probably cost less than the average person's left shoe), Danielle and I were rather grateful for our sunglasses and the occasional breeze. Neither of us had ever visited the Royal Borough before, despite obsessively watching Made In Chelsea, so it was about time we braved the Circle line and saw what all the fuss was about.

In all honesty, the King's Road itself is just a high street. Admittedly, it is a very nice high street, as the average shop is Jigsaw or Comptoir des Cotonniers, but if you wander off the tourist-infused street, you'll have the opportunity to gaze wistfully at wonderful architecture, and maybe even doff your cap to A. A. Milne at his former place of residence (yep, I'm a blue plaque geek). On a more palatable level, there's plenty of scope for rumbling stomaches. We were hoping to try out The Bluebird Restaurant until the sight of our already rather empty purses decided that it wouldn't be the most sensible option. Instead, we tried out The Chelsea Teapot. If you like a good scone - who doesn't? - then this is the place for you! For just over a fiver each, we managed to indulge in some sweet homemade treats; Danielle tried her first ever (!) red velvet and it got a very enthusiastic thumbs up.

Apart from the World's End Vivienne Westwood shop and the Saatchi Gallery, are there any other places you'd recommend in SW3? I'm such a Sloane Square Stranger!

xxx

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Cold as ice-cream, but still as sweet

Debbie Harry t-shirt: £7, H+M kids. Yellow midi-dress (worn as skirt): £13, Primark. Heeled chelsea boots: £60, Topshop. Bag: ma's. Belt: 20p, charity shop. Watch: gift, Rotary. Sunglasses: £1, Primark.

Ignoring my facial expression (which I coincidentally find hilarious), this outfit consists of jumping on a trend roughly a year later than everyone else. The morning's bleary eyes decided it was time to try out a midi, however, it being "too yellow" resulted in bringing out the classic cohen technique: add a band tee. My collection's not the biggest, but there are two Arctic Monkeys, two Smiths, one Black Lips, and this, which I purchased from the children's section of H+M a summer or two ago. For now there is just one midi-dress in my wardrobe, and I'm not wholly convinced that I'll add to it, as I'm pretty sure I look even shorter than I actually am (5'4", FYI). Although it does do a rather good job of covering my ice-cream baby, and that's all I really look for in a dress.


Today is the last day of my current internship, cue going to M&S before work for chocolate chip cookies and milk chocolate digestives to dunk in our tea. Although I'm sad to be leaving, I am not sorry to avoid commuting past the Olympic Park during the first week of the Games. I'm going to try and find a pub tonight that's showing the Opening Ceremony as I wasn't lucky enough to get tickets (or rich enough to be able to afford them). Did any of you manage to get tickets for events?


xxx

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She was a princess, queen of the highway.

Jumper: £9, Fred Perry via Oxfam. Vest: Fat Face. Floral Print Trousers: £13, H+M. Chelsea Boots: £60, Topshop. Bag: gift, Marks and Spencer. Necklace: £1, Topshop. Rings: vintage, gift, Rock 'n' Rose.

Lunch hour equates to adventure time in my eyes. I went to Brick Lane yesterday and died a little inside at the prices (I swear it was cheap a couple of years ago? Now it's £45 for a fur hat??). I also received frowns/winks as my skirt couldn't cope with the wind. But less chat about my abysmal wardrobe choices, more about the pictures, which portray a slightly more picturesque image of my embarrassing life.


The "R" is a piece of graffiti by the artist Eine. In all honesty, if I hadn't researched his work for GCSE Art, I probably would consider this to be just another piece of wall-art, but seeing this brightly coloured piece of typography whilst meandering along, almost half an hour early, ignited a certain nostalgia for rooms that constantly smell of aerosol and the musicians who had lessons scheduled at the same time playing Wonderwall again, and again, and again... It's enough to make you hate Oasis, before you even know who the Gallaghers are.

If you're more into the Doors, then there's a restaurant that plays Morrison Hotel on repeat. The Breakfast Club may be only five minutes away from where I work, but my friend and I were still unable to finish a pitcher of smoothie in that time. And we really did try. I went once for cake and coffee with my dad on the way back from an Aresenal match (woo! football!! sartalics>), but this time I opted for actual food. And, boy, was it good. I decided upon the apple and cinnamon french toast (considering I dislike both cinnamon and eggs this was, perhaps, a risky option), whereas my friend went for a salmon and cream cheese beigel. I did get slightly confused when they placed a plateful of what was definitely bacon in front of me, but once they'd realised their mistake they were really apologetic, and brought me the correct meal (and an "I'm sorry!" chocolate bar). It is pricey, but you do get massive portions, and the toilets boast the world's smallest disco, which may only be experienced, not explained.


One week down, plenty more to go! I already feel like I know Liverpool Street station like the back of my hand (check it out in the background of the second photo!), and love being the only commuter wearing things outside of the muted greyscale palette.


xxx


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The East-West Divide: East. #GigNics

Postcode warfare!

The North-South divide is a well-known concept in the UK; my halls of residence last year were a breeding ground for (faux!) rivalry between southern pansies and the grim northerners born and bred above this invisible line. However, this binary opposition is paralleled in the capital, just spun on its axis. Londoners are notoriously defensive of their city, and take sincere pride in their location. Although I currently spend most of my time in NW3, I was born in E11, so can barely show a true allegiance. This weekend I travelled along the London Overground to Haggerston for the Nando's GigNics. And ate lots of chips.

The email saying I'd got tickets served as a catalyst for an an almost incomprehensible stream of texts to my lahndahn lovely Sabby. Both big time fans of Nando's, we always go to the Euston branch when I'm headed to and from Liverpool, so we made the most of the peri-infused atmosphere by treating ourselves to some cocktails (I had a Peri Mary, Sabby a Caipirinha). We sat "chilling in East London sunshine" - my answer to the "sum up today in five words" question. Embarrassment, coming to a video near you soon! The line-up included a few favourites: some I'd never seen before, such as MistaJam, and ones I knew all too well - hello Ed Sheeran! (We'll leave the "I've sung karaoke with Rizzle Kicks" story for another time, as they fit somewhere in-between...) Of course, it wouldn't be a Nando's event without some chicken, so we queued up with some food vouchers we'd managed to procure. Unfortunately I couldn't get a burger - they'd sold out of veggie burgers, boo! - but the chips were very, very much appreciated. Haggerston was the most beautiful location, and in an area I've never had the chance to explore before. Hopefully, as I'm interning in EC2 this Summer, I'll be able to see more of what the East has to offer. Fingers crossed this rain subsides sometime soon! At least both ends of the spectrum agree that this weather is not suitable for summer, what happened to the sunshine?

xxx

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Take me back to dear old blighty

 

Sheer blouse: £13.50, Miss Selfridge. Pocket skirt: £2, American Apparel via ebay. Leather belt: 20p, charity shop.  Jacket: £22, Primark. Chelsea Boots: £60, Topshop. Bag: gift, Marks and Spencer. Bracelet: gift, H Samuels (one of the baby bracelets!). Sixpence pendant: stolen from mum. Red ribbon: 23p, market. Ring: £1.25, vintage. Lipstick: £1, shade 3, MUA @ Superdrug.

Happy jubilee!

I shan't pretend I've done anything vaguely patriotic (other than eat the delicious cupcake made by The Cake Shop in the last photo that I picked up from Aubin & Wills when browsing), but it's been nice to see so many flying the flag. I did indulge in this Cath Kidston pocket mirror, but otherwise I've been spending my money on making the most of what little time I have left in Liverpool before I return home for Summer. I did give the union flag a little reference in my outfit though. The white is in the form of a blouse I picked up in the Miss Selfridge sale, but, despite loving it, I normally reserve for going out as it's exceptionally sheer. The blue is the navy version of the American Apparel pocket skirt that everyone has (I have it in grey and a pale blue too). And the red is with some ribbon I picked up at the market, secured with a pin, which I covered with a sixpence my mum picked up at my village's summer fair last year. And then the wind decided it didn't like my beehive, but we'll ignore the rather windswept nature of these photos...

After much deliberation, I decided to create a facebook page for this blog. I've always put it off as I like to avoid the "so you take photos of yourself and put them on the internet?" question from my friends, but recently I've started to feel slightly more confident with the content I've been publishing. I would really love it if you could 'like' the page here, and a massive thank you to everyone who has so far!

I'm off to my flatmates from last year's house for movies with something a little patriotic (okay, I couldn't resist) and edible in my bag this evening. Hope you're enjoying the four day weekend, and keeping up with You Know You're British When.

xxx

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Where there's a Wills, there's a way

Striped breton top: £30, Aubin and Wills. Suede skirt: £8, Oxfam. Black pumps: 50p, Russell and Bromley via ebay. Shoulder bag: £15, Oxfam. Necklaces: (from top) vintage, elsie belle, gift.

Don't let that carefree smile fool you, the last photo is c/o my camera's irritating ability to take photos just as someone asks whether it's okay for them to walk past. Cue dying inwardly, the perpetual story of my life.

I bought this top with my birthday money last December from the then recently opened Aubin and Wills along Church Alley. Hidden just off the high street, I'm always popping in to see what I can only dream of owning (oh, why must I spend my student loan on boring things like rent?). Perhaps I go in there a little bit too much as Carrie, the store manager, passed my details on to Lucy in their head office, and was invited to an event they hosted in-store last Friday. Two of my friends and I headed down to listen to the beautiful harmonies of Blue Rose Code and sample the swift brown fox topped cupcakes made by Cake Shop Liverpool (the one with the rad Beatles cakes in Central Station). I had a look at the new collection whilst the band were doing band things pre-performance, and amongst the classic cuts that Aubin and Wills are known for, there were beautiful floral prints, and a navy (favourite colour!) dandelion print playsuit, that would be perfect for telling the time in - don't deny it, everyone believed that the amount of puffs it took to clear a dandelion head equated to the nearest o' clock when they were young! However, the evening soon drew to a close, and we got rather soggy walking home - typical Liverpool. It's not very often that stores host events like this, and it was nice to just spend an evening pretending I don't have coursework due next week (gulp), and indulge in my love of stripes. Obviously. I'm determined to go to the Aubin Cinema in Shoreditch when I'm home this Summer; I feel like I only ever do the same things when I visit London, so do you have any recommendations?

Plus!! The blogger meet up took place on Saturday, and it was lovely to meet such wonderful people at long last. In the vague name of chronology I decided to post this first, what a whacky idea.

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