What Kimberley Wore: In The Past

With us running around on bridesmaid duties this week we've delved into the recent archives to bring out posts that didn't quite make the cut. It's funny how when you look back at something you realise that you weren't looking too shabby that day after all!

Jacket | Fearne Cotton
Dress | Topshop
Shoes | Primark
Tote bag | c/o We Are Rushworth
Sunglasses | Accessorize
Necklace | Pearlswirl
Moon Ring | borrowed

These photos were taken back in April (I think?). I was just enjoying a Saturday shop around Grassmarket in Edinburgh, grabbing a milkshake at Hula Bar and some lunch at Peter's Yard. Nothing special. This outfit is one I've rarely worn and seem to swither as to whether I actually like it or not. I've wanted a biker jacket for ages. A decade actually. But let's face it, my granny style just doesn't cut it when it comes to this kind of cool. I always feel they either look too cheap, or I look like I'm playing dress up. Not now! This one is from Fearne Cotton's range on Very. I always check out her latest collections, as there's often a wee gem in there. This is super soft leather (sorry guys) with a feminine subtle print of flowers in purples. I do wish the shoulders etc didn't have the traditional padding of a biker jacket, as it is slightly less girly than I'm used to, but I love the overall look nonetheless. This is a keeper, and I can see me getting years of wear out of it. I picked this item up in the sale for about £80 at the start of the year but I see at the moment it's down from £250 to a bargain price £175 on Littlewoods. Gotta love their made up prices. If you love it it's currently £139 on Isme.

This dress is a Topshop sale pick that turned out to be a maternity dress. Hence the floaty loose bottom half. I'll be honest, I picked it because it had the voile hemline I'd been looking for. I don't know if it's the association or the dress (it's totally the dress) but I feel quite self-conscious in this dress in how it adds to the waist. It's just the fabric, honest! I do quite like to wear it to work though, as it's an easy throw on. It's also pretty good for date night- I can fit in all three courses in this baby!

Speaking of carrying spare tyres, I'm finding all my cute handbags way to small so I I'm really building up a collection of tote bags. This one is from We Are Rushworth, and was sent to me with my amazing penguin scarf. On one side is "trier" and on the other side is "doer". It's simple, effective and goes with pretty much everything.

Looking back on these photos make me kinda miss my violet-grey hair. Then I remember how much of a pain it was to maintain. I think this is one of the three days it looked right all over. I do envy my hair length though- it held a cute curl and was blunt when it was straight. I've been growing out my locks for being a bridesmaid and I'm desperate for the chop so I've booked myself in for a cut two days after the wedding. It turns out I'm not the only one- both the other bridesmaids and the bride are making appointments that week and we're all going short! A year of re-growth for one day. It's pretty daft what we'll do for friends, isn't it?

Thanks to my sugar date Miss Vicky Viola for taking these photographs.

What Helen Wore: In the Past

At the weekend we had a banana themed hen party for our awesome friend Susan, who is getting married next week! In the process of transferring photos from the night I came across these outfit pics. Captured on a cold and windy day in Dundee I'd snapped a few and then gave up on them, thinking they weren't all that good. Looking at them again I really enjoy the outfit I put together. It would've been perfect for the hen party shenanigans. I love dressing to a theme and I'm kicking myself for not remembering I owned this dress!

Dress | Claptrap
Shirt | Monki
Boots | c/o DUO
Jacket | Charity Shop
Belt | Charity Shop
Necklace | Karen Mabon
Brooch | Chalk

The dress is by Claptrap Boutique, a fashion design duo consisting of  two graduates from Edinburgh College of Art. You may remember it from this outfit post. Unfortunately Claptrap don't seem to be on the go any more, so I'm glad I snapped up this dress when I had the chance! It's definitely one I'll be holding onto, I just have to remember to wear it more often.

The fringe blowing, blue skin and strange expressions do hint to how cold it was. The photos were snapped back in March so I guess it's understandable (not that the weather's that much better now). Ross and I had taken a wee wonder off of our usual path along the Perth Road in Dundee. I do enjoy exploring new (to me) ally ways and seeing different parts of the city.



Photos by Ross Bull.

Totally Tropical Winner

Just a quick little Friday post to announce the winner of our fabulous Lou Taylor giveaway and also as an excuse to share some more bright photos of us. What can we say, we really enjoyed getting tropical for these photos. Yellow backdrops mean we can't help but feel cheerful!

But, without further ado,  the winner is Katie Campbell. Congratulations! An email is winging it's way to you as we speak. Huge thanks to everyone who entered and to the lovely Lou Taylor for the amazing prize. And, for anyone who may be interested, pink came out on top as the most popular colour choice. Of course Kimberley wasn't surprised.

Styled by Kimberley: Tropical

I was surprised when Helen said she didn't have many tropical outfits- she always seems so colourful. I guess she does wear a lot of block colours. I, on the other hand, have loads of tropical homages, shirts, more shirts, skirts and dresses. And this jacket, that I wore for a 'summer brights' photo shoot a year ago, so I guess I should get away with pulling it out again. Although it's a really fun print it feels a lot like a polyester shell suit and it is torture on a hot day- I worry that if I swing my arms too quickly I might ignite and set myself aflame.

Luckily for me, I live in Edinburgh where we regularly have four seasons in an afternoon so it's not hot enough to cause me to combust. When I left my house for this shoot it was another sunny day. Fifteen minutes later it was a drizzly, mizzly mess and so was I. Never mind! Apart from my hair being a little too candy floss like (frizzzz) it was all good. My photographer for the day was our main squeeze Miss Vicky Viola. We found a quiet little spot in my old haunt, the Dugald Stewart Building. I used to have lectures here ye know, young 'uns.

Jacket | New Look
Top | H&M
Trousers | Primark
Bag | Accessorize
Banana Charm | H&M
Necklace | Karen Mabon

My favourite thing about this look are my accessories. First is this adorable banana charm I picked up at H&M last month. While I have a #shopsmall accessory list as long as my arm I couldn't resist this. £1.99? You're coming with me! As my July wishlist says, I have tropical fruit on the brain right now as I'm Boss of Bridesmaids for my yellow-loving bestie Susan.
The other accessory is this Karen Mabon Shell and Show Girl necklace. I have coveted this necklace for ever, and consider it one of her staples, but I've always been put off because Helen already owns it. While I adore borrowing Helen's, I want to get more wear out of these bombshells, and I want them to be miiiiiine. So when Karen held a studio sale a couple of weeks ago, this beaut was in my hand before I even had a bubbly in the other. With all my interent shopping recently it's been a while since I've been in sale-frenzy mode but I could go ga-ga for Karen's scarves. I tried to shop smart, bringing cash with me to limit my spending but soon I was draped in silk like Cruella in spots. Scaaaaarves, all the beautiful scaaarves. I very nearly went home with a Coco Fennel number too, but the sizes left weren't on my side. That purchase is left for another day. Instead I went home with picnicking bears and a line of gymnasts. And these girls, of course!

If you love a studio sale (and who doesn't?) I recommend you get on your fave designers' mailing lists. Everyone is doing them these days and I'm on a few, including The White Pepper, Dead Sleekit, The Rodnik Band and Covet among others. Better yet, get yourself down to a local maker's market to see the goods up close and personal. Yes we bleat on but it's so important to support great talent and I bet there's some near you.

Styled by Helen: Tropical

To continue the tropical vibes of our Lou Taylor giveaway we thought we'd go for some tropical themed style by posts. Looking in my wardrobe I was sad to discover it was lacking these vibes. My Hawaiian shirt has done me proud but I wanted something different. Luckily I'd just been fabric shopping and had picked up some floral fabric that fit the bill. I didn't know what I was going to do with it when I bought it, I just knew I liked the pattern and the feel of it fabric. Plus it was on sale so it would've been rude not to.


 
So, I dusted off my sewing machine and got to work. I may have studied clothing design at uni for 4 years, but that wasn't yesterday. To say I'm rusty is a bit of an understatement. I decided to start off with a really simple pattern I picked up from ebay and made this little floaty number. While it doesn't have much shape to it it is super comfy, just the way I like it. The soft fabric and easy shape meant I was kept super cool on one of this summers rare sunny days. The only bad point is the fabric creases like a bitch! For a simple beach look I paired my new dress with plain sandals and my Whitepepper bread bag (which may have slipped into my basket when I purchased Kimberley's dino birthday present). To finish the look off I added my bargain sample sale Tom Pigeon earrings. The colours are so perfect with my dress fabric.

Dress | Handmade
Sandals | Topshop
Bag | The Whitepepper
Blazer | Primark
Brooch | Kate Rowland
Earrings | Tom Pigeon

As simple as it is, I'm rather happy with my new dress. It's definitely encouraged me to attempt a few more garments. It only took a few hours and I had something new to add to my wardrobe. I'm looking forward to styling up in different ways. Not looking to washing it though. There is a large possibility it may fall apart first time. If you're interested in getting your sew on there are plenty of classes and courses going to help you on your way:

Dundee | Jill Skulina's sharing her sewing skills at Summer Sewing Had Me a Blast or get super creative at her Wearable Art Workshop.

Edinburgh | Red Thread Studio have loads of classes to chose from, as does Mairi Brown at Out of the Blue.

Glasgow | MAKlab's Saturday Drop-In Dress Making or the more intense Fashion Textile Summer School.

Totally Tropical Lou Taylor Summer Giveaway

We may not be jetting off to any far flung holiday destinations but that doesn't stop us dressing the part. As soon as we spotted Lou Taylor's Totally Tropical collection we knew it would be just the ticket to brighten up our staycations. We've been big fans of this ladies acrylic jewels, bright prints and beautiful scarves for quite some time. You may remember Helen got her ears pierced especially for these fabulous ant earrings. Well, the lady herself has only gone and sent us some tropical ear wear to try out. The colours are so perfect for us! Check out how we styled them up....




 

Kimberley went for a pastel palm vibe, matching her pink Palm Tree Earrings to her hair and pyjama style top. While Helen turned the colour vibes up to 11, pairing her orange palm tree earrings with velvet sunglasses and the trusty tropical shirt. Bring sunshine to Scotland through our wardrobe choices.

And, as if, all that colour wasn't enough of a treat we're also offering you the chance to win your very own pair! Whether your all for orange or a bit of pink lady, the winner will get their choice of colour. All you have to do is leave a comment with which shade you'd prefer. There are also plenty of other ways to get extra entries, just check out the Rafflecopter giveaway below.

Giveaway runs until 12am on 24/07/2015. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway



Thanks to Lou Taylor for the fabulous accessories and Miss Vicky Viola and Ross Bull for the colourful photos.

Blog Crushes 12

Kimberley's crushin' on... Salt and Chic

I don't read this blog so much as I scroll through the exquisite photographs as I would a fashion magazine. They are truly lovely street style snaps and this works well as a photo diary of outfits and outings. Amy always has simple on-trend outfits that she pulls together with ease. I don't know about salty but it's definitely chic.


Helen's crushin' on... Mermaid Gossip

I love visiting the colourful world of Emily, aka Mermaid Gossip. She certainly lives up to her blog name with her long bright locks and fun mermaid themed accessories (check out that shell phone case!). As well as blogging beautifully bold outfits, fun filled events and lust worthy wishlists, she also vlogs! I love catching up on her latest photobooth adventures (she also runs Fishee Designs) and hair tutorials over on her You Tube channel.


We're also lovin':

• Mo'Adore's finding out how hard it is when your childhood room becomes a guest room.
• Glasgow Fashion Girl has styled up Helen's Monki skirt.
• Touchscreens and beauty queens helps bloggers figure out their common SEO mistakes.
• Reliving Scarf School memories through this Hill Street blog post.
• Being Scottish bloggers of the month over on new blog Urbanity. Blogging duos rule!

July Wishlist

Here's all the things we are coveting this month- and we're pretty sure you will too!



1.) Shine Dress | Royal Caballito
At first I was attracted to the rain print dress but then I saw this beaut- like a 2for1! The print is very now and the colours are perfect for summer. I like that the yello is on the bottom half, as I feel to Simpson-ey with a lot yellow near my face. Stupid sallow Nordic skin!

2.) Pink Grapefruit Slice Earrings | Swank jewellery via Hannah Zakari
I love Swank jewellery and I spied these easrrings (not for the first time) when I was in Hannah Zakari recently. I quite like the yellow lemon slices too but now that my hair is a matching vibrant pink the grapefruits are ten times more desirable. Ah, need!
 
3.) Good Vibes Only Neon Sign | Marcus Conrad Poston
What's not to like about this neon sign? I like how happy it is, rather than stating some rock'n'roll cliche. There are a whole host of others to choose from to, we're spoilt for choice!

4.) Lemon Earrings | Benu Shop
... Speaking of lemons, how amazing are these? Benu Shop is forever on my wishlist but every time I look on the site to buy something, another item catches my eye. I don't know where to start! Help!

5.) This is Bananas A4 print | Bo Helina
There's a bit of  a theme going on. This month I'm planning a banana-rific celebration so my mind is on this fruit! I have been favouriting bananas all over the place on Etsy but this is one of the best.




1.) Bleeding Eyeball Pencil Skirt | Never Monday
When  I spotted the lovely Honey Pop rocking this skirt on Instagram I couldn't wait to see more from this brand. They have so many fun pieces, including this awesome Pop Dress. I do love a design with eyes on though, so this skirt will remain my firm favourite of the bunch.

2.) Grayson Perry Silk Scarf | Tate Shop
We popped into the British Museum when we were down in London and I fell a little bit in love with the Grayson Perry's scarf in the gift shop. Turns out there's one for the Tate Modern too, and it's a tad cheaper.
 
3.) Handsy Socks | Hayley Elsaesser
Socks are generally not a thing I wish for but Hayley Elsaesser's designs are so fun. This hand print also comes as a sparkly dress but for now I'll aim small and a bit more obtainable. After all, you can never have too many socks.

4.) Eye in Eye Studs | Nylon
Told you I liked stuff with eyes on. These fabulous acrylic earrings mean my ears can have eyes too! A bit of a weird concept, but I like my wardrobe weird.

5.) I Can't See You Cropped Tee | Dirty Disco
Ok I may be taking the eye thing a little to far now but I love this cropped tee. Just check out the awesome eyelash fringing. With the tshirt, skirt and earrings I've almost got a whole eye outfit going on.