Barry had a record store.

Oasis stripy top: £18 (incl. staff discount). Vintage mom jeans. Oasis Camden chelsea boots: £40.80 (incl. staff discount). Brit Stitch half pint. Little Nell key necklace.

When you're a few lemsip down, have multiple packets of tissues on the go and you've had to save your make up due to a sneezing post-mascara scenario (am I the only one?), it's not time to start pulling on your fanciest frock. Instead, go for the most-worn and fail-safe combination in your wardrobe: stripes and denim. Hey, you may not be Françoise Hardy wearing stripes in, um, a bush, but it's a notable step up from pyjamas, so we all know who's winning here. Add in some brand new chelsea boots, nail varnish that feels a billion times brighter than you do and some layers very close to hand, and you've got yourself a leaving the house situation.

Due to rail replacement (can I have a "hell no"), my mum and I decided to head to Billericay so that I could avoid the seventies on wheels for one leg of my journey to Waterloo. Billericay, of Gavin and Stacey fame, is one of those towns I never seem to visit, despite the joy it can provide. I went relatively recently for dinner and drinks with friends, but it was the first time I'd seen the high street in daylight for years, and we were pleasantly surprised to find a record shop come café with Mayer Hawthorne posters and plenty of cake. We whiled away the afternoon with cups of tea and eavesdropping conversations ("...and that's when he pulled on his coat and left the courtroom!") before receiving a whatsapp saying everyone was similarly ill and it was perfectly ok to return home, put the PJs back on and tune in to Take Me Out.

Till next rail replacement, Billericay - see you next weekend.

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Underneath the eggshells.

Finally getting the Boots disposable camera developed that Clarity bought me last year.

Although I love how much my blog's photography has improved over the past few years, sometimes it doesn't hurt to get back to basics. When I first started blogging, I didn't have a digital camera (let alone a DSLR), so most of my posts were accompanied with photos from disposable cameras, and I've got a shoebox filled to the brim with printed-off photos on my windowsill. I know I say it all the time, but I will get back into the habit of carrying one around with me and share them here, as it's not all glossy HD shots and perfectly positioned flat lays, however pretty they look.

I hope you all had a lovely January, and here's to February getting off to a good start!

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Hello, my only one.

The Kooples leather jacket. A-line skirt: c/o Fashion Union. Oasis Lily knit: £3, via sample sale. Vintage bag: gift from Jazmine. Clarks loafers. Vintage tippet: £1, charity shop. Jana Reinhardt and Topshop rings.

It's pretty chilly out, isn't it? Where I live we had a grand two minutes of snow yesterday, but that doesn't mean the air was any kinder. With clear blue skies and the bitter winds which accompanied it, my mum and I headed out for a bite to eat and sat in a cosy sunbathed corner looking over rolling countryside. This does sound incredibly picturesque (it was, and the food was good), but that did mean wearing two coats to counter the length of the sparkly mini skirt and having flushed cheeks even in one of the rare moments I hadn't done anything embarrassing, I promise.

This week looks set to be a good'un. From dinner with work at Dishoom to a belated birthday bash with my babes at Sushi Samba (if only that started with a B too), I've got plenty of excuses to not let blue Monday get to me tomorrow, because if a formula is telling me I'm going to be sad, I'm going to try with all my might to make sure that it's the best day ever. Take that science.

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