When you know you ain't getting any younger.

Primark check coat: £30. Topshop scallop collar blouse: gift. Warehouse denim skirt: £2, sample sale. Bally chelsea boots: £8, charity shop. Marks and Spencer leather bag: £43. Hobbs leather bracelet: £20. MAC "ravishing" lipstick. Barry M "Paprika" gelly nail varnish.

Hello, 2015!

My New Year's Eve was spent at Harry's in London with Jazmine and the Jetts (it's a boyband waiting to happen) and a playlist so carefully curated with 90% of Bowie's back catalogue that we almost forgot to keep an eye on the clock for midnight. After the last few years' efforts, this laid-back approach to seeing in the new year was a welcome change - even if it did mean I didn't get McNuggets on the way home. A few days later it would appear my body's finally decided to let the cold that started over Christmas take a proper hold*, and I'm sipping a lemsip with every full stop. *slurp* So instead of heading to the gym, I'm planning to spend the day in bed with endless cups of tea and catching up on blogs new and old (leave your links in a comment below!) - I'm not sure what happened to that healthy fresh start, but I do kind of like it! Sniffles excluded, obviously.

* These photos were obviously not taken today, where I am currently sporting a rather fetching pyjama set and dressing gown combination - #ootd come at me. 

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Despair in the departure lounge.

Oasis roll neck jumper: £38. Catherine Kelly for Oasis skirt: £40. Missguided heeled boots (old). Primark check coat: £30. Faux fur tippet: £1, charity shop. Vintage bag: gift from Jazmine.

Anyone who spends an extended period of time in my company will know to what extent I hate public transport. Whether it's the trains I use on a daily basis, flyin' solo to Munich or the God-forsaken carcasses that First Buses use to provide their "service", I don't generally find myself getting along with public transport any more than simply getting on it (just about). The one exception to the rule is Bessie the Bus. When I first started at Oasis there was a buzz in the Marketing department which soon manifested itself with four wheels and a pink roof outside our office. A peek inside reveals fur coats hung from under the stairs, socks in saucepans and a pale pink fridge full of knitwear - beats the 42 into town any day. Of course, as Bessie is a bus, she's able to visit anywhere she fancies, so when she headed to Basildon I popped along to see how she was doing on her journey as the token Essex contingent in the Oasis crew. She's currently in Braintree, Essex, but want to see whether Bessie's heading your way? Check her timetable here!

I'm still umm-ing and ahh-ing as to whether to post an end of 2014 roundup here on Wednesday (does anyone really need to know anecdotes about that time I came home from a night out with a cricket medal or how I spent Valentine's doing the cha cha cha with an Austrian at Atomic at 5am? I think not.), but let me know if you'd like a little something. If not, I hope you had a wonderful 2014, and here's to making 2015 a year of wishes coming true.

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I knew this would be on the cards.

Zara coat: £30. Primark fedora: £7. New Look faux leather backpack: £23. Harrods scarf: £3, charity shop. Hobbs NW3 heeled boots: £40, warehouse sale. Rimmel Kate Moss 30 lipstick.

It's my birthday! Today I'm turning twenty-three, and it's the first time I've been home to celebrate it for the last four years. I've spent the morning slobbing about in my pyjamas (come on guys, we all do it) whilst watching vlogmas videos, and will be heading out for lunch in a bit, on the hunt for some proper pub grub. Yesterday I took the day off and my mum and I headed to Pontlands Park for afternoon tea and a quick wander round the grounds. As I live fairly nearby, Pontlands has been a place I've always been intrigued by, and I'd definitely recommend popping in if you fancy a fancy bite to eat. It's absolutely beautiful there (far cry from TOWIE, of course), and I'll be sure to head there when I need to spend my weekends blogging and fancy somewhere other than home - free wifi for all!

I'm looking forward to tonight as I'm heading out with a few people (some of them new to Essex nightlife, eh Jazmine?), so be kind to me tomorrow! Hope you're all having a lovely Saturday, and enjoying your advent calendars!

If you fancy a little chuckle (I certainly did), here are blog posts documenting my birthdays from the archives:

twenty-two

twenty-one

twenty

nineteen

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I'm not gonna diss you on the internet.

Primark brushed check coat: £30. Primark check scarf: £5. River Island full-time fashion blogger sweatshirt: £25 (now in the sale, typical!). Asos Ridley jeans: £30. Leather loafers: c/o Clarks.

Primark's game is strong right now. When I headed to Lakeside I picked up a fair amount of their AW14 offerings, including this beautiful check print coat which I'm sure will become a blogger favourite before the season's up as we do tend to have pretty good taste. Inspired by Caroline's simple styling (and a niggling hangover), I paired my new wonder-coat with my faithful Ridley jeans and a sweatshirt that's just made for Sundays spent make-up free in the gym.

I've been on the hunt for the perfect pair of loafers ever since I saw Alexa Chung in those Russell and Bromley loafers, and have been through my fair few pairs bought from ebay. As I'm the kind of girl that'd rather walk two tube stops than suffer underground, I'm rather reluctant to drop a small fortune on a pair of shoes which will last me a year at most, so instead started shopping around: cue Clarks. Since those chunky heeled boots that everyone had in year nine, I've only had one pair of shoes from there, but while wandering around their Oxford Street store whilst waiting to meet friends for pizza (what else is new here?) I couldn't help but pick up a pair. Even if they are particularly painful to break in, I can tell already that these are going to be an all-weather staple.

Right now I'm catching up on everyone else's blogs whilst Sunday Brunch is on in the background and my tea brews (such a classic mix of Essex and Liverpool, as you can see above!). Sometimes it's nice to have a Sunday completely switched off, even if it doesn't happen all that often!

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I can feel the love, can you feel it too.

Urban Outfitters stripy top: £22. American Apparel sunflower shorts: £54 (watermelon ones here). Primark wax jacket: £22. French Connection bag: gift. Hunter boots: won in Char's giveaway.

It hardly feels like it (talk about a whirlwind), but just a week ago I was stood in a rather muddy field in Manchester singing myself hoarse at Sam Smith. The lovely people at Yahoo Lifestyle invited me up to sample the northern soul and snap some street style photos (that bit's coming soon!). Seeing as I took a load of photos, I thought it'd make sense to separate them into two posts, so here's day one for your delectation.

I haven't been to Manchester since last November, but it certainly fulfilled my expectations: it rained. A lot. The Saturday was a bit of a washout, and I still feel like I've got a little bit of mud on me somewhere, but the music more than made up for the constant cold, particularly when the sun reared its head towards the end of the afternoon! We tended to stage hop to see what was going on, but highlights included Camo and Krooked, Duke Dumont, and, of course, Rudimental, who I've been wanting to see for ages, and they do manage to make you feel good despite the inevitable onset of a cold making itself very present. I also spied an Almost Famous stand, which I insisted we try out having heard the hype surrounding their Liverpool opening, and boy was I glad we did. I had the special Parklife burger which included all things chorizo, while Sabby favoured the Famous, and I can really see why they've earned their reputation (and it gives me an excuse to talk about food).

Day two will be coming up on Wednesday, but for now I plan to curl up in a very small ball and pray this hangover goes on its merry sadistic way.

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