Who's that Girl

This is one of those things I thought I'd never say... I want Kristen Stewart's wardrobe. Putting aside her recent personal issues, I couldn't like her any more if I tried. Recently she's been displaying a unique mix of glamour and nonchalance, wearing some stunning dresses on the red carpet and some perfectly put together off-duty outfits.

The jeans and t-shirts still exist but they have become overshadowed by printed blazers, Sports luxe hi-tops, leather trousers, bodycon skirts, embellishment and that all-important bed-hair to top the look off.

These are just a small selection of her recent outfits for you to feast your eyes on:

Beautiful Roberto Cavalli paisley blazer with leather trousers and a luxe white tee

Another great use of a white tee at Comic Con 2012. The trainers aren't even Converse!

Futuristic colour block Guishem dress and pointed courts, i.e THE shoe of AW12

Stunning red Elie Saab in Cannes

Embellished Balmain two-piece for the Australia première of Snow White and the Huntsman... need I go on?

Can't wait to see her outfits from the final Twilight promotional tour later on this year... I'm predicting arty print mini dresses, jacquard separates and lots of berry shades. Watch this space.

First image from www.grazia.co.uk

Images 2, 3 and 5 from www.zimbio.com

Fourth image from www.metro.co.uk 

'Dressing for the weather'

This week I decided to dress for myself, instead of for the weather, consequently ending up with me having soggy feet on more than one occasion. That said, I challenged myself not to let the rain have too much of an effect on my wardrobe and wearing tie-dye and bright florals this week was my small act of rebellion.

Wireless festival outfit - Urban Outfitters tie-dye t-shirt, Bershka necklace, Topshop shorts (with a bit of DIY studding) 

The after effects of a very muddy Wireless festival

A mish-mash: River Island leather jacket, Topshop t-shirt, New Look neon necklace, Zara floral jeans, Accessorize bag & Topshop studded slippers

New Look jewellery bargains

Own the Runway floral blazer, Topshop midi dress and new New Look spiked rings

All images owned by Running in Platforms

DIY: Studs

I've always admired people who customised their clothing, turning plain pieces into hand-designed, unique items and recently decided to give it a go. Until now my most extravagant(!) act of customisation has been to change a boring button on a blazer to a less boring one so I was a bit nervous at the prospect of customising my chosen item: a sleeveless denim jacket from the SoRetro boutique on ASOS Marketplace, seen below.

Inspired by the amazing Ragged Priest-esque studded denim jackets and and after a bit of googling I ordered a pack of 25 large conical studs from the Studs and Punks website for £6.95- they have a great selection of different size, shape and colour studs in different volumes and the delivery was very quick.   

The studs are applied to the clothing by pushing the two prongs (seen in the image below) into the fabric and then gently bending them back on themselves so they are tight to the material (next image down). They can be a bit tough to bend so it may be worth using a blunt knife or a strong nail file to save hurting your fingers. 

I decided to stud the front pockets, the shoulders, the collar tips and a line across the back of the jacket and was really pleased with the results - it was much easier to do than I imagined and although I only bought the smallest quantity I could have easily bought a bigger pack and carried on studding the entire thing. Below is the finished article - not bad for a first go I reckon!

For a great selection of stud-worthy vintage clothing check out ASOS Marketplace - https://marketplace.asos.com/women and the full stud range at www.studsandpunks.co.uk.

All images owned by Running in Platforms

Spring Obsession: Studs and Tie-dye

If someone had told me this time last year that in May 2012 I'd be obsessed with everything heavily studded and tie-dyed, I definitely wouldn't have believed them. SS12's key looks are featuring the above in a serious way: influenced by grunge looks of the 90s and the hippy 70s, colliding with the ice-cream pastels and embellished denims of the present year, the high street has fallen for studs and tie-dye in a big way. And so have I.

Vintage is a great way to tap into the trend with a few statement pieces (try ASOS marketplace for studded denim and a never-ending supply of tie-dyed tees) but if you want a quick fix you have an endless amount of choice on the high street:

(From left to right)

Sweatshirt, Urban Outfitters, £45

Boots, Missguided, £54.99

Cropped sweatshirt, Topshop, £34

Bracelet, ASOS, £8

Collar, Freedom at Topshop, £30

T-shirt, River Island, £12

Skirt, River Island, £20

Slippers, Zara, £25.99

Hi-tops, Urban Outfitters, £38

Headband, Topshop, £8.50

Top, Miss Selfridge, £39.99

Maxi dress, Topshop, £42

Denim shorts, River Island, £35

Bag, Zara, £39.99

Denim shirt, Missguided, £24.99

Fringed bag, Urban Outfitters, now £45

You don't have to go all out in a Versace-esque studded leather dress or top-to-toe tie-dyes (the latter look doesn't tend to work outside of festivals), you can buy into the look with a tie-dye bag paired with a monochrome outfit or a pair of studded flats with skinny jeans and a t-shirt. My personal favourites are studded collar/cuff white shirts with a pair of lightly tie-dyed denim shorts. The shirt makes it a clean look and the tie-dye denim adds the bit of colour we could all use during rainy British Springtime.

Images:
www.urbanoutfitters.com
www.missguided.co.uk
www.topshop.com
www.asos.com
www.riverisland.com
www.missselfridge.com
www.zara.com

Developing an obsession: Metallics

Gold trainers, New Look

Pewter envelope bag (with detachable strap), Zara

Silver platform sandals, PPQ at Office (*amazing sale purchase!)

I've taken advantage of the lovely weather to take a few pictures of my current purchases; detailing my current obsession for metallic accessories. I love adding a flash of silver or gold to a bright colour and have worn the pewter envelope bag constantly since buying it.

March: Things I need in my life

For me, its always a treat to come back from a weeks holiday and see what new in store... I went away to the Baltics recently and came home last weekend, only to spend my entire lunch hour on Monday (mainly window) shopping, planning all the things I want to buy in the next few weeks.

(Clockwise from top left)

Scenic print dress, River Island, £30

Black platform boots, Linzi, £50

Cut-out print swimsuit, River Island, £28

Print skirt, Designed by at Miss Selfridge, £45

Printed pyjama-style jacket, Topshop, £40

Pastel colour block bag, Accessorize, £30

Sunglasses, ASOS, £15

Yes, the swimming costume may be a little premature but the amazing weather recently has made my mind fast forward to Summer, mainly to the image of myself lying by a pool with a cold glass of Diet Coke/wine/Cosmopolitan (delete as appropriate). I love the Miu Miu-esque catseye sunglasses that are in so many stores at the moment; this ASOS pair are wonderfully dramatic and attention grabbing and perfect for hiding tired eyes! I think the Jeffrey Campbell-alikes will be first on my list, there are so many affordable versions available at the moment but a pair of black ones are always going to be the most wearable.

Images:
www.riverisland.com
www.linzishoes.com
www.asos.com
www.accessorize.com
www.topshop.com
www.riverisland.com
www.missselfridge.com

Best in show: Fashion Weeks aw12

So I've been a bad blogger recently *smacks wrist*. Been a busy few months and the AW12 Fashion Weeks have flown by. I enjoyed a rainy day at LFW with my friend Amy at the Florian Jayet show and have loved catching up on the shows on the internet since.

As usual, lots of stylish celebrities attended the various shows this season and I've picked my top five outfits to share with you.

Alexa Chung at Jason Wu - New York

Louise Roe at Rebecca Minkoff - New York

Olivia Palermo at Christian Dior - Paris

Louise Roe at Tommy Hilfiger - New York 

Poppy Delevigne at Topshop Unique - London

I love Alexa's ability to put together stylish outfits that revolve around a great coat and shoes, Louise Roe's use of bold block colour and Olivia Palermo's polished dress/glossy hair/detailed shoes combo but I think its Poppy Delevigne's outfit that wins me over. The pairing of a Chanel bag with Topshop trousers isn't necessarily something we can all easily reproduce but I love the simplicity of the white shirt and the blue colour palette. She is fast becoming a favourite of mine!

Images from www.zimbio.com