I want desire.

Luella blouse: ebay. Vintage suede skirt: £8, charity shop. Laura Ashley trench coat. Adidas Spezial: £29, Freeport Braintree. Rotary watch. Rimmel Kate Moss 08 lipstick.

It's always a bit weird to revisit things. I'm not talking an ex-boyfriend here (bye means bye, okay?), I'm talking places. I grew up in Woodford, which is best explained as 'on the east bit of the Central line', and, despite heading back to Loughton every six months to go to the dentist, I hadn't really been back since we upped sticks and headed way out 'so far past zone nine you can't even use an oyster card' in 2003. For the first time in over a decade, my mum and I popped back down the M11 to have a little wander along memory lane. It's a bit like heading back to a club you frequented in freshers week - things are a bit hazy, but you know where the toilet is and vaguely recognise that booth.

In case you're not aware (you probably aren't, half the people I live with now haven't heard of Redbridge, let alone know it's in the same county), if you look at London on Google maps and see the reservoirs just north of Central, I'm talking a little bit east of there. We started off the day in Highams Park, by far my favourite of all the places in that little bit of the London-Essex border. There aren't many places I can see myself settling down (this is what moving all over the place does to a girl...), but there is something about this area which gives me complete chilled out vibes, and I would definitely move in without a second thought were it not so bloody expensive to live there. London housing woes aside, we walked past my mum's first flat, through the Park, past my childhood home, and round Woodford Green back to the car. We then popped over to Loughton for dinner before heading up into Epping Forest a little to take these photos. Oh, wisteria, how I miss you already.

Are there any little pockets of London you love to re-visit? I'm always on the lookout for more places to fall in love with!

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I've got another dream lover.

Luella blouse: ebay. H+M palm print trousers: £15 (can't find them online, I'm afraid, but only bought them this month so should still be in-store!). Bally boots: £8, charity shop. Cheap Monday sunglasses. Rotary watch. Topshop Really Ruby lipstick.

It may not be blue sea and SPF 50, but I considered my trip to Cardiff to be a little holiday, so when better to whack out the palm prints? H+M is a store that I never seem to find anything in (being over a size 6 woes, etc.), but a meander through from Topshop to the gym ended up with me making a little purchase I don't regret in the slightest. In lesson two of Don't Rely On Boys To Take Your Photos, I've paired them with my favourite white shirt, but Luke has inspired me to wear them on Mondays weekends with a slouchy sweatshirt.

Saturday was much sunnier, so we headed into town for a wander round the shops. Cardiff is full of tiny, twisting Victorian arcades, and Gemma recommended I head into Spillers Records (she had me at oldest record shop in the world) before I resisted a whole lot of denim-skirt-shaped temptation in Urban Outfitters. I'm sure it won't be long before I'm back, but do let me know if there any any places in the UK you'd recommend for a long weekend away - I'm fully intending to rinse my YP railcard for all it's worth before it expires.

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Torchwood.

Zara coat (old): £30. Vintage shirt: £2, charity shop. Warehouse denim skirt: £2, sample sale. Marks and Spencer bowling bag (old): £43. Bally chelsea boots: £8, charity shop. Rotary watch. Rimmel Kate Moss 08 lipstick.

Guess who was naïve? I headed over to Cardiff a couple of weeks back to watch the general election. I gave up around 4am (stellar effort, I maintain), yet the others made a night of it and didn't take all too kindly to me shoving a camera in their hands the next day, when the only thing they wanted to concentrate on was a pillow. Still, who could resist a backdrop like this? On a grey May afternoon Cardiff Bay was looking pretty spectacular, even if some of us weren't too keen to capture it.

On a more chronological note, I headed straight to Paddington from work and was in my friend's flat before everything kicked off, glass of Cava in hand, bottle of vodka in kitchen. You probably know what happened next, so we cheered things up the next morning by heading to Bill's on the way to the Doctor Who Experience. I found the latter pretty amusing, the ones on less sleep found it harrowing, but my fifteen year old whovian came to the fore and loved every bloody minute of it. That evening I headed into town while people recovered, and I met up with my main welsh babe Gem to explore what the capital had to offer. We headed off to a street food market for a catch up over meat, and would definitely recommend popping by for their words of wisdom.

Part two coming your way soon and, in the meantime, here's to making the most of the Bank Holiday!

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In many ways, they'll miss the good old days.

Vintage leather jacket: £17.50. Aubin and Wills stripe top: £30. Chinos (in 'Navy' and 'Chalk'): c/o Fat Face. Vintage bag: gift from Jazmine. New Look sandals. Rotary watch. Nail varnish on both fingers and toes were both Nails Inc freebies - winner.

It's not every day you're met with a sea of bluebells. In fact, I can date the last time I visited Blakes Wood as precisely five years ago. Since, I've seen a whole lot more places, and nowhere really compares to here for the mid-May blooms.

Back then, I'd just finished a shift at my weekend job in Fat Face, so it seemed apt for this to be the location for a little blue and white themed post with the brand. I'm queen of packing little for a long time (if I want to, I can also pack a lot), often turning up at a friend's for the night with essentials tightly packed into something smaller than my gym bag. So, when they asked me to pick two things from their holiday shop to style up, I went for the least Summery chinos, on the basis that they're travel-friendly for running through airports and up escalators, yet look good with everything from stripy tees to silk blouses when things are a little more chilled. I probably wouldn't recommend shimmying into the white pair after coming out of the sea as they're a bit see-through, but we all know I feel more comfortable at a bar, swimming in a hot waiter's eyes. Now, all I need is a flight...

On another completely unrelated note, have you started to get into Periscope yet? Find me @rebeccacohen for insights into my day, to hear my not-very-Essex accent and lower the percentage of weird men telling me it's OK to be drunk.

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