Promise of a suicidal father

Dress - H! By Henry Holland at Debenhams

Jumper - Next

Bracelet - Pandora

This dress is an absolute favourite of mine because of the collar and cute floral print, but it hasn't featured in a look since April (link to the blog post here) because I find dresses are difficult to, well, dress differently, and I don't want to be reported on Lookbook for reposting.

I want to point out that the title for today's post isn't a personal reference, but a paraphrased quote from the book I'm currently reading "A Tale For the Time Being" by Ruth Ozeki (available from Amazon). It was short-listed for the Man Booker Prize 2013 and so far I am really enjoying it, and it's teaching me a lot about Japanese culture, which I find very interesting. We tend to think of the world as a very small place now, with aeroplanes and the internet, so it's a shock to realise that places are still so different, and not everywhere has the ideologies of the west. 

The book is split between the diary of Japanese teen Nao, and American-living-in-Canda author Ruth, who finds the diary when it's washed up on the beach in a Hello Kitty lunchbox. I can't say much more because I haven't finished it yet but I really am enjoying it so far. 

Are you reading anything good at the moment? 

First drafts of my Summer Wishlist

Lazy Oaf Bones Bodycon Dress £20.00 
Topshop Fox Stone Midi Ring £4.00 
Miss Selfridge Check Crop T-Shirt Top £32.00


Now, I know that so far these are probably the most un-summery things I could have chosen. But - apart from my birthday - me and Summer don't get on that well anyway (hot, humid, headache weather, bees, sunburn and pale skin), so I guess this is my little stab at Summer, my anti-Summer.
However, as much as it may not sound like it, I'm so happy Summer is finally here, it really is happy weather, and I love the way it makes everything so golden and glowing - except me of course! I happen to be Moonkissed remember.

One doodle that can't be undid

Dress - H! by Henry Holland at Debenhams

Cardigan - Asda 

Nails - Block your Green - Rimmel

This is my belated break-up dress, because every girl needs a new dress after she splits with her boyfriend, even if it was over two months ago, right?

I absolutely love the H! by Henry Holland collection at Debenhams... here are a few of the other things in the range I would really like:


Cardigan £38


Shorts - £30


Skirt - £26


Cardigan - £45


Shirt - £30

T for Topshop

Here are a few things I would like from Topshop (the prices link to the pages)

£48

£42

£38

£5

£26

Prom

We got our invitations to the prom on Thursday and I'm in two minds whether to go or not. I'm not exactly popular at school so I won't have many people to talk to and the venue is about an hour's drive away, and I won't be old enough to drink but loads of people will be and if I have to look after anyone who's in a state I won't be happy.

On the other hand, I really enjoyed prom last year - especially when we were all jumping around to Chelsea Dagger - my feet still hurt the next afternoon.

Also, there is a gorgeous dress from Coast that would be perfect, as apparently this year's prom is a little more low-key so the dresses are more casual.

Daymee dress - £150 - Coast

Although the dress is expensive, I can wear last year's shoes and use last year's bag which will save a lot of money, and we won't be getting a fancy car there which would be one less expense. 

As the venue is quite far away a lot of people are talking about staying in a local Travel Lodge which is a tempting idea, then I could just get the train home the next morning.

It isn't until July though so there's plenty of time to decide and talk Mum into buying me that dress.

I want a cuddly carrot

While me and my mum were going through the big box of fancy dress costumes in our loft, she dug out this dress she'd bought 20 years ago from Miss Selfridge, I have no idea why it ended up in a box of fancy dress, but I'm glad that it did. Who am I to turn down a free, vintage Miss Selfridge dress? And with the whole '90's revival trend this season, it's the cherry on the cake.

The necklace was from Alnwick market when I visited back in the summer when I went on holiday with my parents. On the back, you can see all the little cogs and workings and I just think it's beautiful.

Topshop Sale Picks

It's that time of year again, girlies! The Topshop Sale has arrived once more!
Since I love you lot (and have nothing better to do on a Saturday night) I've linked all the pages for you, so you don't need to go trawling through the 1025 sale items like I did. How committed am I?

MOTO Drum Print High Waist Hotpants
Was £34
Now £15

Some of you might remember my love of quirky prints from a previous post, and these shorts are no exception. I also love high waisted jeans and shorts, as they pull in my stomach and make shirts look much more flattering.

Crochet Lantern Skirt
Was £40
Now £20


I don't own enough skirts, and the few that I do own don't get have the wear that they deserve, they make me feel all girly and this black version would also go with loads of different tops, making it great value for money.

Petite Heart Back Prom Dress
Was £55
Now £30

Being a redhead, my skin has a lot of red/pink undertones and therefore pink really doesn't suit me, but the style of this dress is just too damn cute to ignore - I love the heart cut-out.

Dog Print Playsuit
Was £48
Now £20

Playsuits are a big love of mine, especially ones with a quirky print, and I like the culotte style shorts on this one that float together and make it look like a dress, but you don't need to worry about flashing your knickers.

Petite MOTO Stripe Leigh Jeans
Was £40
Now £20

The stripe on these jeans would be really flattering on someone vertically challenged like me, but if you're lucky enough to have legs like Alexa Chung they'll make them look even more endless; everyone wins.

Turquoise Dip Back Maxi Skirt
Was £40
Now £25

I did a post a while ago all about Dip Hem skirts, and this one caught my eye because of the gorgeous colour and flow of the fabric, I love the way it ripples around the wearer's legs.

Chiffon Mullet Hem Dress
Was £49
Now £20

Again, this dress probably wouldn't be flattering on my skin tone, but I still thought it was lovely. The wrap detailing on the bust, dip hem and light chiffon fabric. Love.

Chiffon Bandeau Dress
Was £42
Now £18

The A/W classic is ofcourse the LBD, and this Rare number is a bargain at £18! Once again made from a light chiffon fabric with lovely bust detailing and strapless design, where could it possibly go wrong?

As much as I love Topshop, they can be a bit too expensive for me at times, which is why I like to take full advantage of the sales when they're on. I'm really happy for this sale because I'm going to the local shopping centre this week which has a massive Topshop compared to the cruddy little thing in town.

Who wants to sleep in a city that never wakes up?

Bowler hat - £9.99 - H&M 

Dress - £30 - Dorothy Perkins

This is the outfit that I wore to go Halloween-costume shopping with Hannah (of Doubleyou fame) - the details of which you can read about here. Us girls are going as The Spice Girls for the sixth form Halloween party, Hannah is Scary and I will not insult your intelligence by telling you which one I am going as.

I bought this dress back in the summer, and the only other time I've worn it was to Alex's 18th birthday party (I have to admit that I did feel a tad overdressed, as I wore heels and curled my hair, but as his relatively long-term girlfriend I had to make an effort since his entire family was going to be there) and I've been wanting to wear it since, so I took the opportunity to wear it again on our little town trip. 

I really like the dress, mostly because of the skirt - I love how floaty it is and when I spin around it sticks out, which is, in my opinion, the mark of a nice and girly dress. I'm by no means the girliest person in the world (girly-girls can sometimes do my head in) it's just nice to wear a pretty dress now and then, don't you think? I also like pretty much anything with a collar, and some of you might remember a post I did on quirky prints, so there's three of my boxes ticked with this one item! 

Dorothy Perkins is most definitely overlooked when it comes to affordable fashion.