You walk into the room with refine and poise.

Burgundy Georgia blouse: c/o Lovestruck. Leather skirt: £15, Topshop. Black chelsea boots: £60, Topshop. Leather colour-block bag: gift, Marks and Spencer.

You know it's Autumn when the tones of your clothes match the colour of the leaves... perhaps. Lovestruck sent over this beautiful burgundy blouse last week, and I've been imagining wearing it whilst kicking up crunchy leaves in Sefton Park, before realising that I have a mild case of Fresher's Flu(TM), and the only thing I'll be doing for the next few days will be drinking tea under my duvet.

Liverpool has been doing its best to put a dampener on things by raining excessively for the past fortnight, but I shan't let it rain on my parade (yes, I like puns), and find myself wandering between Cuthbert's, Leaf, and the many student events that stores are putting on to entice those who have just received the loan windfall in their bank accounts. I'm going to be relatively good and try to just buy Christmas presents, but when have I ever been able to resist a lipstick

xxx

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The Apartment.

 

Black granddad collar blouse: £1.50, vintage Next, via charity shop. Truffle corduroy circle skirt: £15, American Apparel, via ebay. Black heeled Chelsea boots: £60, Topshop. Black leather belt: 20p, charity shop. Cameo necklace: £1.25, charity shop. Black clutch bag: £15, charity shop. Black Rotary watch: gift. Lipstick: Topshop Mischief.

As you walk away from Somerset House, you notice the atmosphere nosedive. There’s still a palpable excitement at Freemason’s Hall where Fashion Scout shows are held, and various other locations across the Capital host one-off events throughout the whole of London Fashion Week. Yet I spent a weird amount of time in Covent Garden (and that’s not including The Last Nando’s before my friend headed off on her Erasmus year). Abi noticed the distinct lack of amenities provided for bloggers over the past few seasons, and she took it upon herself to supply a solution. And boy, did she. When she first got in contact, I assumed it’d just be a room with a place for you to plug in your MacBook, but The Apartment even provided the computers for you. Obviously, food was the main incentive, my particular favourite being the vegetable biriyani provided by Cinnamon Soho, but special mention to Aubaine for presenting the best meal of the day: afternoon tea. I honestly cannot imagine a world where someone believes that they have had “too many” macarons.

 

1. I didn't realise there were so many types of make-up - thanks Becca

2. iya Ngoni

3. Post "makeover": hair by Wella, face by Becca

4. BFFFW (Best Friends For Fashion Week, lol jk, fo lyf). I stole the photo from Ngoni.

It simply wouldn’t be Fashion Week without the tiniest mention of “fashion”. Sadly I missed out on presentations by Forever 21 and Penhaligon's, but I had plenty of fun dressing up in a few of the garments ebay had picked out, and the lovely girls at Stylistpick even decided to “interview” (can I really say that?) me, which you can read here. Ngoni was a mega babe and took some outfit photos for me on the balcony – check out the killer view! – before I sampled Becca Cosmetics’ spread and Wella sorted out the mess atop my head. Would it be too P'Trique to call them lifesavers? Regardless, The Apartment was the more chilled part of London Fashion Week, and I’ve my fingers crossed Abi decides it’s worth the stress next season! And, if the stress isn’t worth it, the drawer full of jellybeans probably will be.

xxx

ps, sorry for my sporadic posting recently. I'm back in Liverpool but am currently without internet at home, and I find it a bit weird to write blog posts in the library (just me?). I hope you're all well, and sorry for not leaving long, rambling, and pointless blog comments. I can kinda reply to tweets on my cheaptastic plastic phone, so I can pretend I'm in the twenty-first century between Romantic and Pre-Raphaelite texts. But for now I am going to head into town to buy provisions for tonight (shout out to the Rodney Street gals!), and eat hummus. Leave your life update as a comment, and I will read with mirth whilst surrounded by unnecessarily stressed freshers.

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How to wear the military trend.

You can guarantee that when my friends see a little flimsy dress in a shop they'll define it as a "Cohen Dress". Peter Pan collar mandatory. Yet, when Voucher Codes got in contact with me a couple of weeks ago they set me a challenge pretty far out of my comfort zone. By simply sticking your head inside any high street store you'll see the distinctive areas marked out for each of Autumn's looks, and the one assigned to me was the military trend. With a budget of £80 to purchase three items, my thrifty student arose, and here's what I found when scouring the Liverpool high street (yep, I'm back!).

On a night out.

 

Mustard blouse: £14.40 (with 10% discount), Pop Boutique.

Paisley shorts, Glamorous UK. Bag: vintage. Elephant necklace: New Look. Watch: Roatry. Heels: New Look.

Can you really beat an oversized blouse? I'm pretty sure that this was originally from the men's section, but with the sleeves rolled up and tucked into teeny shorts, I reckon this'll work perfectly when you hit the town during freshers. Or any other time of year, I shan't discriminate.

  On a date.

   

Khaki jersey dress: £23.40 (with 10% discount), Topshop.

Pink silky collar blouse: American Apparel. Rabbit necklace: Topshop. Black heeled boots: Topshop. Glitter clutch: Topshop.

Who said miltary can't be girly? This outfit stands in the liminal space between girl-next-door and punk-rock badass (I tell myself), just make sure the person you're meeting is still taller than you in your killer heels. If they're not, then reassess whether you really need to meet up with them.

To a gig.  

 ,

Military jacket: £22.49 (with 10% discount), New Look.

Arctic Monkeys t-shirt: Don Valley Bowl. Indigo jeans: Topshop. Leopard print boots: Topshop. Skull bracelet: Made, via ebay. Bag: my wardrobe... somewhere.

As if you need any excuse to bring out your favourite band t-shirt! Channel side stage gals like Suki Waterhouse and Breana McDow with a little bit of loyalty, and what my friend calls my "Miles Kane Boots" (YES). Let's be honest, you'll garner more attention than the frontman.

 Even though the phrase "military trend" made my lace ankle socks quake in their boots, I'd like to think I managed to integrate it into my wardrobe without too much upset. Mission complete!

xxx

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