Side Street Style: July 2012

The Sixties Chair

30/07/2012

For those who don't know we are in the process of selling our house and moving *exciting*. I have already started buying things for the new house and keeping a scrapbook of looks for rooms as I love quirky interior design. We are both a huge fan of retro and vintage pieces and I have been looking for a sixties inspired chair for a while and when I saw the Daiquiri Chair on the Fashion for home website I had to have it. It was also on sale from £209 down to £129 so for a real statement piece this is a bit of a bargain. I was so excited when it arrived last week after a few weeks wait and have been spinning around in it ever since.

28/07/2012

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So finally the jet-stream that has been causing all the rain moved away from the UK for a few days so we could enjoy some sunshine and I finally managed to get at least one summery outfit post onto the blog. I think it was also the first time John was seen in shorts this whole year. We spent the day at the fabulous picnic in Cardiff Castle. I wore a dress from H&M with some vintage, thrifted and charity shop accessories and John wore a Ralph Lauren Polo with Asos Shorts.

Dress - H&M, Sandals - New Look, Belt - Vintage, Sunglasses - Thrifted, Bracelets - Thrifted, Watch - Guess

My charity shop finds

Polo - Ralph Lauren, Shorts - Asos, Shoes - Veras, Sunglasses - H&M Conscious range

Arthur staying cool in the sun

Cardiff Castle

26/07/2012

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So John (@johncroadbarber) has recently joined instagram and has been taking some photos of his daily style...thought I would share his favourites looks

Ralph Lauren Polo, Asos shorts, Vera shoes

Woolrich Woolen Mills shirt, Dockers chinos, Vera Shoes

Universal Works shirt, Albam Jeans, Red wing shoes

Ralph Lauren Jacket, Nudie Jeans, Vera Shoes

23/07/2012

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So I was lucky enough to team up with TK Maxx and their Treasure Seeking campaign to find unique, interesting and creative individuals with originality and street style flair on the streets of Cardiff. We met some amazing people and you can view all the looks on the TK Maxx facebook page. I had so much fun with the film crew and Cardiff did not disspoint! There was a real european fell as well as charity shop chic, grunge and summer boho styles. I went for a vintage feel with a touch of biker rock chick and wore a Vero Moda Dress, Dents bag, Leather Jacket, Dozzy and Dee brogues and Topshop ring. Despite the wind and abit of rain I am so happy to share with you the amazing Street Style Video of Cardiff.

The wind was doing crazy things to my hair.

21/07/2012

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So last week we braved the floods and downpour and decided that the bad weather wouldn't stop us from doing some sort of camping this year. As it's been such awful weather we opted not to sleep under canvas but instead stayed in an eco off-grid camping pod in Bude, Cornwall.

I lived in Cornwall for a year a few years ago so it was nice to be back and we the new addition to the family. It was also nice to have time away from technology with there being no wifi and I didn't even take the laptop as I didn't want the temptation of being able to watch a DVD but instead savour the moments with John and Mr A, reading books and having good conversations. The pod was still pretty basic in the way it had no form of heating, no electric and the toilets were outside. But it did have a bed with memory foam (need to have this at home!) and an amazing outside gas bbq but because of the weather we didn't have much chance of using it except braving the downpour and wind to try and boil the kettle for morning coffee - a must. The pods where located on a farm which provided hours of fun for Mr A as he got acquainted with the very friendly farm dog, angry geese and tractors.

During the trip we visited Tintagel and we were going to walk up to the castle where King Arthur was apparently born as it was a pretty dry day until the weather turned torrential and we got caught in such heavy rain we thought it was not a good idea walking on a cliff top so instead we had a traditional pub lunch and a cornish pasty (well you have to try at least one in Cornwall). We also went to the Eden project, which was so huge and a real sight and very enjoyable, despite being over-priced with regards to the food sold in the project.

One of the highlights of the trip, located next to the campsite was a vintage American diner - which had come all the way from America! Everything was original and the staff where fully decked out in vintage attire, selling only american diner fayre and also having their own Man Vs Food challagne of 9 9inch pancakes each an inch thick stacked up with tones of butter and maple syrup - to this day no one has yet to conqure the beast. Check out Mimi's Diner facebook page here

19/07/2012

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So a new Sainsburys has opened near where I live, so today I thought I would check it out, as exciting as supermarket shopping is. I don't normally look at supermarket clothes for myself but a cute little best caught my eye and I noticed that it was designed by Gok Wan. It seems that supermarkets have clicked on to getting creative with collaborations and Gok is a great choice when you are trying to appeal to women of all sizes. I really liked his little 1950's inspired collection, it's pretty simplistic but chic and some of the pieces I could imagine on Lana Del Ray. Please note I have been in no way asked by Sainsburys to talk about this line - this is 100% my own thoughts.

Here are my favourites.

17/07/2012

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I am not the biggest spender when it comes to magazines as I find I read more blogs that printed publications but I really love the effortless chic of Marie Claire cover start Marion Cotillard who has appeared in many great films such as La Vie en Rose, Big Fish and Inception. Her style is so simplistic and classic french. Ohh how I dream of living in Paris. I did live in the South of France for 6 months and to my huge disappointment picked very little French as I was working in a hotel aimed at younger British and American travellers and language exchange students (whose first language was always english!) I also only just noticed the saying on the side of Marie Claire magazines "Think Smart, Look Amazing" I think this is a good message for women as the magazine contained not only the normal fashion editorials but also some interesting articles of topics such as Cryonics, Surviving being Kidnapped (real-life) and Baby-proofing your career. The magazine also come with an Avon Super Extreme mascara which I will be doing a review of very shortly. But for now here is this weeks fashion style inspiration....

15/07/2012

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There is a reason for the delay in posts for the past week - we have been away Glamping in an Eco Pod in Cornwall and before you ask - yes it did rain! All week! But we still had a great time and a post is soon to follow.

In the spirit of family happenings we have teamed up with the lovely people at The Works - an amazing shop selling all sorts of books at extremely reasonable prices. Last week I picked up Twitchhicker, Tattoo Showcase and the Primrose Hill Bakery book. We are running an amazing family giveaway - The Diary of a Wimpy Kid box of books worth £25, consisting of four books perfect for the keen young readers in your family.

To enter all you need to do is leave a comment and follow the blog, you get extra entries for following on twitter or facebook or signing up to The Works newsletter.

The giveaway is open to everyone and closes on the 31st July

While we are on the subject of family friendly happenings - John and I always incorporate Arthur into whatever we do weather that be camping, eating out or going to festivals and we cannot wait to go to Green Man festival in August - it really has something to for everyone with a real mellow vibe to it and amazing headliners such as Feist, The Walkmen, Of Montreal, Van Morrison (yes THE Van Morrison), Ghost Poet, Slow Club and Mogwai to name a few it's surely going to be a great weekend. Set in the heart of Wales in the beautiful grounds of Glanusk Park, this inspiring setting is an amazing venue and the cater for the young and old and it's said to be very child friendly....we can't wait, let's just hope it doesn't rain too much.

09/07/2012

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If you are a diverse traveller, you will want to blend in with the locals, and live as if you lived in that location. You will want to eat in lesser known restaurants, visit little known areas of beauty and of course indulge in the style of the place. I have travelled to 23 countries so far and I am in love the european style. I have teamed up with Fever London - a great vintage inspired store to share some looks and tips for anyone travelling to europe or simply wanting the continent style

Parisian Street Style

In Paris, the easiest way to blend in with the locals is to dress down the colours. Parisians are very fond of more neutral colours, and particularly the Parisian chic trend tends to lend itself to the blacks and greys. The garments below are perfect for that Parisian looks as they are stylish and sophisticated. It can even be an exciting new addition to your office wardrobe when you return home.

Dress £48.99

Dress £41

Paris top £39.99

If it’s Milan you are visiting, you will want to think again about neutral colours but with a bold flash of colours. They also wear a lot of vintage style dresses and outfits, often in brighter more powerful colours.

This bright dress is completely in fitting with Milan style. Paired with black tights and maybe a black cropped sleeve blazer, this dress is sure to impress even the most fashion conscious members of the Milan fashion scene.

How about Budapest? You may not see Budapest as a fashion capital, but you would be mistaken. Some incredibly fashionable women can be seen treading the streets of Hungary’s capital city. A trip to Budapest would be most suited with paler colours, such as tans, beiges and light pinks. High waisted skirts and dresses are also the norm.

Image from the amazing blog Style and Budapest

The dress to the left is a perfect example of the fashion of Budapest. Being light, it is better suited to the warmer weather, and would look perfectly complimented by the natural tan you will get whilst there. The top is nice and free flowing and perfect for a casual look.

And then there’s Stockholm, another new entry into the fashionista list. The style of Stockholm tends to be a little more edgy. It’s all about the layers and a little bit of faux leather and interesting prints paired with accessories. They like to mix classical cuts and styles with edgy modern pieces.

Stockholme Street Style from Carolines Mode

The dress to the right is typically very classical, and would be also suit a wedding, but add a pair of opaque black tights, a faux leather jacket and sky high heeled boots, and you have captured that Swedish style.

I also love these printed dresses and little Jacket

07/07/2012

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So if you don't live in the UK, let me paint a picture - Rain Rain Rain - for the last 3 weeks. Except on thursday, there was a break from the wet weather and though the sun didn't exactly shine it was dry. So as soon as we woke, we got ready and made our way down to the Welsh coast in the Vale of Glamorgan. We finally visited the Plough and Harrow Pub in Monknash - one of the oldest pubs in Wales and it had that real old world feel to it. Since John is on holiday he decided to go for the sinful homemade Steak and Ale pie (if you can't do it on holiday when can you?) and you really could taste the Ale, I went for a very yummy ham and new potato salad. The pub also had a nice beer garden for Arthur to run around in. After lunch we went for a drive to Nash Point lighthouse and St Donats through to Llantwit Major and had a lovely relaxing walk on the beach and watched the surfers while Mr A proceeded to get very wet and sandy, best day so far in our British summer.