OUTFIT | #238

shirt, jeans: Topshop; shoes: Converse; watch: Casio

I worked 12 days straight recently and when I finally got a day off, I wanted to wear clothes as far removed from from workwear as possible. I have risked jeans a few times at the office - always very black so they could be mistaken for tight trousers unless inspected closely. But mom jeans are probably pushing it. I was running errands all day in town, on an unseasonably warm day, and they seemed like the perfect day off option. The Topshop variety are incredibly soft and comfortable; sometimes I wear them around the house in lieu of joggers.

This outfit was inspired by a particularly well-dressed girl I saw walking around the campus I work on the other day. She wore an oversized plain white shirt (sadly I don't own one of these, which seems like a sartorial oversight if ever I had one) with baggy mom jeans and loafers. My loafers aren't quite comfortable enough for a day of running around so this is more loosely inspired by her. I love seeing well-dressed women and making a mental note of what they're wearing for later inspiration. People's personal style, when they're just wandering about living their lives, is my favourite place to get some wardrobe inspiration.

OUTFIT | #237

jumper: H&M; skirt: Missguided; shoes: Dr Martens; watch: Casio

The living room is one of the only parts of my new house that is almost completely decorated. The fireplace is my absolute favourite part of the room so I decided to take my outfit pictures there today for a change of scenery. Hopefully I can stop taunting soon and actually make some posts about home decor as I've been promising for a while. My time at my summer office job is drawing to a close just as it gets cool enough to wear knitwear to work. I must admit I'm pretty disappointed. With the threat of imminent unemployment looming, I've been trying to make the most of office wear before days spent in my pajamas watching daytime TV in between job applications become the norm.

Tights really are my favourite thing about the colder months. Mostly because suddenly any skirt becomes appropriate for any occasion. All the skirts I'd had to ignore over the summer while I worked in an office can now make a reappearance. My interest in putting interesting outfits together wanes to almost nothing over the summer but now it's cold again, I should get some of my inspiration back. Hopefully. Waking up on pulling on any old thing becomes pretty dull after a while.

OUTFIT | #236

t-shirt: Zara; trousers: H&M; loafers: Bass; watch: Casio

Over the past month, I've learnt that moving into an unfurnished house is a lot more work than moving into a student place. My house is slowly coming together. We're picking up furniture in dribs and drabs and there's only the last few things to sort out now. My room is no longer filled with half-unpacked boxes so taking pictures is becoming less of an endeavour. Although taking pictures of my work outfits is another difficulty in itself.

I basically wear the same few outfits day in, day out. And when I get in after work, all I want to do is throw on my joggers and do nothing all night. My sister leant me these trousers and I'm tempted not to give them back. They fit perfectly and make it look like I made a lot more effort than I actually did. I pair them with a plain shirt most days and my Bass loafers, that are finally worn in enough to slouch around the office in. 

OUTFIT | #235

This weekend my housemate, Zoe (who also has a blog: check it out), and I went to town to do some furniture shopping for our house. We ended up snapping up a fab white sofa and arm chair in British Heart Foundation and went for lunch at Strangers Coffee House to celebrate. I'd never been to Strangers before but went on recommendation from a friend. If you're in Norwich - definitely check it out. I have it on good authority that they have fab coffee. Sadly, I don't drink it myself anymore but the selection of tea is pretty exemplary too for those of us who are sensitive to caffeine.

jumper: Gap; jeans: Topshop; shoes: Nike; bag: Zara; necklace: mynamenecklace.com

Perks of having a blogger for a housemate: A live-in photographer and mutual understanding that all days out must be documented for blogging purposes. Since it's September now, the weather is a little chillier and I couldn't be happier. I love everything about dressing for colder weather. Dark lipstick, darker clothes, constant opportunities to layer. It's my absolute favourite. I've been looking longingly at all my jumpers and itching to wear them all again. 

My mum gave me this old Gap turtleneck jumper of hers when I was last home. I remember her wearing it tons when I was a kid and when I unearthed it in a pile of old clothes, I decided to bring it back. In a former life, it was black but now it is well-worn and incredibly comfortable. I've been wearing it non-stop and can't see myself stopping any time soon now sweater weather is drawing in. 

OUTFIT | #234

top, skirt: Topshop; shoes: Converse; bag: Fjallraven Kanken; watch: Casio

It's my birthday on Monday so I spent this weekend in London seeing some sights, museum hopping, and eating a lot of great grub. I had intended on bringing my camera and taking pictures of everything and making a really great blog post, or two, to show you all the fun stuff I did and some of my favourite places in my favourite city. It was all going so well. Then halfway through the first day, my battery died and the plan all went to pot. Blogger problems, eh?

My next post will be a little mini-taster of what I got up to. I did manage to snap a few pictures of Saturday's outfit while I was in the V&A before my battery gave out. I'm rubbish at packing outfits for trips and had to throw a bag together quickly after work on Friday night. I wanted to wear this Topshop skirt with my denim jacket but the weather in London was super muggy and I ended up being far too warm. I'm so confused by the seasons lately. Is it autumn? Is summer clinging on a while longer? Who can tell. It makes looking cute 24/7 so tricky. Can't somebody help a girl out?

OUTFIT | #233

top: MissGuided; skirt: American Apparel; boots: River Island; necklace: gift; belt: Topshop; watch: Casio

This week, myself and some pals decided to go on a weeknight bar crawl to while ago the time after work. We headed to some of my favourite spots around Norwich, and some I'd not been to. I've decided now I'm not a student I should explore more of my city, beyond the university campus I've come to know like the back of my hand. If you're ever in East Anglia, make sure you go to the Playhouse for a pint and a packet of Salt & Shake crisps. It really can't be matched.

The weather's been cooling down of late and I kind of hope it's here to stay. Summer's novelty always wears off pretty quickly for me and working all the time means I don't get to enjoy it anyway. I want to wear layers, sweaters, boots, all of my beloved winter clothes. It was a chilly evening and I was more than happy to break out a turtleneck sweater and some tights. I always feel so much more 'me' when dressed for colder weather. Plus I can already tell this burgundy tennis skirt will fit right in with my winter wardrobe.

OUTFIT | #232

jacket: Levi's; top: Zara; skirt: Topshop; shoes: New Balance; necklace: gift

Working 9-5 is making me feel pretty boring and frumpy lately. A lack of suitable work clothes means I wear the stuff day in day out. My evenings have been spent trying to enjoy the few hours I have off every night so I've been exploring pubs in the city I've never seen been to before and went to a colleague's gig one evening. Funny story: I wore this to the pub one night and while we were taking these pictures, some French girls walked past and thought I was someone famous. They ran over and asked for a picture with me and paid me lots of lovely compliments. It was all quite surreal.

Back to my clothing limitations currently, I decided to go a bit wild and dress up even though I was only going for a few drinks. Cue shiny skirt. How I've missed it. This skirt and I have been on countless nights out over the past year. It felt good to bring it back. I toned things down a bit with my New Balance so I didn't look super overdressed. Plus they're super comfortable, like walking on air, which is always a plus when traipsing from pub to pub on a weeknight.

OUTFIT | #231

top: Zara; skirt: Miss Guided; boots: Topshop; necklace: gift; watch: Casio

Graduating last week involved seeing lots of friends, lots of nights in the pub or local bars catching up, and dinners out. I wore this out on a little date night before things go too hectic. I'll spare you any details but it involved a bit of restaurant hopping and a rather pleasant 40% discount off our wining and dining. I popped a leather jacket over the top of my outfit but probably could have worn something heavier as it was pretty cold in the evening. Investing in a proper moto style jacket is top of my clothing wish list.

I decided to keep it pretty simple. I love this pink skirt from Miss Guided. Pink isn't a colour I would ever really wear in a top or a dress but I do enjoy a jazzy little skirt from time to time. I haven't been able to wear it lately while I've been working so I pulled it out for this occasion. I also wore some Topshop boots I'd almost forgotten I owned. I have so many shoes and not enough space to store them so sometimes a few pairs get overlooked in their dusty hiding spots.

OUTFIT | #230

dress: Topshop; shoes: H&M; bag: Rebecca Minkoff Mini M.A.C.

Guess who's a graduate? That would be me. I crossed the stage ('strutted' according to those watching) and collected my certificate on Wednesday. It's been a strange week since. Too many goodbyes, a lot of sunshine, and not much sleep. While I would have loved to have wandered about campus drinking champagne all day in my cap and gown, it was far too hot and I cast them off as soon as the group photo was taken. I still don't 100% know how I feel about it all but I'm mostly looking forward to some grad life adventures - whatever the heck they will be.

I wore a white dress from Topshop for the ceremony. White isn't a colour I ever thought I could pull off but with a tan and some encouragement from friends, I felt pretty great. My robes were salmon and navy. Not the world's easiest colours to pair things with. So white was perfect, although difficult to photograph. I paired it with my beloved turquoise H&M heels. I get so many compliments every time I wear these shoes. Mothers were coming up to me saying how lovely they were all day.

OUTFIT | #229

top: MissGuided; skirt: American Apparel; sandals: River Island; watch: Casio

No more work for a week means I get to bring my short skirts and crop tops out again. Thank goodness. Dressing incredibly conservatively on a limited wardrobe means you run out of options pretty fast. I'll be glad when I have some money to buy some more office appropriate clothing. For now, it's my graduation week and I'm spending it with family and friends, not in front of a computer. Might as well enjoy it while it lasts.

Keeping up the ol' tennis fashion vibes here with the addition of a fairly sporty-looking white top. I bought this ages ago and never wore it for some reason. It looks good with this skirt though. Anyone would think I had some natural sporting ability or even a vague interest in it, but you would be wrong. I was the kid in PE that refused to run or catch a ball or do anything (Everyone hated me. Understandably.) I don't watch any sports, I don't know the rules to anything, and the only time I break a sweat is if I run for a bus. Such an imposter. But I look pretty cute, so I guess that makes up for it.

OUTFIT | #228

shirt: GAP; skirt: J. Crew; shoes: Clarks; watch: Casio

Just because I'm working 9-5 in an office for the majority of the next 3 months doesn't mean I can't keep up the blog posts. I may not have a ton of office appropriate clothing currently. That's probably something I'll have to gradually buy more of eventually. But I do have a few outfits up my sleeve. And I'm having fun trying out new combinations. I do love a business-y look. If I could shop solely at J. Crew, I think I'd be a pretty happy girl. I even iron my shirts now. Such a grown up.

This was a fairly colourful effort on my behalf. This skirt is one of my faves so I paired it with a super soft and comfortable shirt I got on sale at the GAP a while back for my first day. Wore my little grandpa slipper shoes to finish it all off. Not a bad effort for a newbie, I think. Keep an eye out for some more office efforts over the coming weeks. Although I haven't laid down my crop tops and miniskirts forever - they're just reserved for weekends and weeknights now. 

OUTFIT | #227

dress: Zara; top: ASOS; shoes: River Island

This is kind of a remixed take on an old outfit I used to wear a lot, back in the day. The dress by itself has always been a little bit too low-cut for my preferences. I'm more of a legs gal than a boobs gal. So I always wore a little top under it. Despite being the middle of July, it was actually really cold here the other day so I pulled this combination out with a new twist: the turtleneck. I own over five pretty similar, but slightly different, black turtlenecks. Most of them cropped. It makes getting ready a challenge when you're trying to find a particular one but I love them for layering.

To complete the wintry vibe, I went with a super dark red lipstick. Here I'm wearing MAC 'Diva' - you can it better in my MAC lipstick collection post. I know it's still early days and summer is barely halfway through, but I'm already missing winter layers and darker colours. I even wore this outfit out for the evening by switching out the sandals for black heeled boots when I went to a few bars with some friends. P.S. My hair dried weird so I straightened it and I was really feeling it. Until I got rained on and it went back to being a frizzy mess.

OUTFIT | #226

top: Topshop; skirt: ASOS; shoes: Converse; watch: Casio

Another outfit from Berlin. A quick shout out to my camerawoman and travel companion Bridie for putting up with my picture-taking demands. You the best, girl. I'd have taken even more outfit pictures if the 3rd day hadn't been spent incredibly hungover and looking a little worse for wear after a heavy night in one of the biggest clubs in Berlin. They aren't lying when they say that Berlin does nightlife in a big way. You're better off spared pictures of my sorry self from the day after the night before.

This skirt has been my most successful purchase for a while. I throw it on with nearly every thing and haven't gone more than a few days without wearing it this summer. Not shown here are the neon yellow socks I wore with this outfit. I quickly bought some emergency socks before I went on holiday and they were the most ridiculous array of patterns and neon colours. I got some odd looks. Also not pictured is my trusty Fjallraven Kanken, which I wore all over Berlin and served me very well. 

OUTFIT | #225

top, socks: Topshop; skirt: American Apparel; sandals: River Island; watch: Casio

I just got back from a long weekend in Berlin. While that sentence makes me sound like a bit of a wanker who jets off to Europe all the time, sadly this was the last of my summer excursions for a while. I start working 9-5 on Monday. This last jaunt to Berlin did not disappoint, however. I'll have a post up with some pictures of what I got up to soon enough. My feet are still sore from all the walking but Berlin is one of my absolute favourite cities. I was last there 4 years ago on a school trip and it was so good to be back. There were so many streets I walked down and felt like no time had passed at all.

The sore feet explains the socks. It's not really my favourite look but my poor toes were killing me so socks were a necessary evil. I feel like this look is half schoolgirl, half grandpa. I bought this skirt while I was in America after wanting a tennis skirt for the past few months. Special tennis fashion inspiration lately is coming from the Rich White Ladies' music video for 'Wimbledon'. I can't get over how good they look. Berlin was absurdly hot so I took it as an opportunity to wear some of my shortest skirts, since they'll definitely go into retirement for some weeks while I'm at work. Forever the opportunist.

OUTFIT | #224

necklace: Gogo Philip; top: ASOS; dungarees: Primark; watch: Casio; sandals: River Island

I have a little backlog of posts I took pictures for before I went to the US. Then I got lazy and didn't schedule them while I was away anyway. This should be the last of them. This was from my last day before I went away. I just popped to campus to print off my tickets and have lunch with a pal. Along the way, I managed to rip my last pair of tights too. Not the most eventful of excursions. 

Looking at this now, as I've spent the last two weeks experiencing 28 degree weather every day, it looks like I'm dressing for mid-winter, not June. British summer is an odd creature. When I get back from my travels, I'm working in an office all summer though so I suppose it doesn't matter to me one way or the other if it's sunny or not. I'll be indoors, enjoying the air-conditioning, regardless.

OUTFIT | #223

jacket: my sister's wardrobe; top: Topshop; skirt: ASOS; sandals: River Island; bag: Zara

Two new purchases in this blog post: the skirt and the sandals. I think my summer wardrobe purchases are pretty much at capacity now. I'm going to visit family in the States next week but after that, I think it's time for a fairly strict spending ban. Graduates are meant to start trying to save money, right? People keep saying scary things to me about property ladders and how all my friends are going to start getting married now and it's kind of freaking me out. 

I've worn this skirt countless times since I bought it. I love the super simple A-Line cut and how summery the denim makes it feel. Denim seems to be my new thing of late. I'm wearing a ton of it. Although I keep wishing I had a grey or black denim jacket to pair with it all. I'm not super into matchy-matchy denim. The sandals, while not denim, are still lovely. I saw them on ASOS in brown but we all know how I feel about brown. They were in store at River Island in black though and I snapped them up. I like sturdier sandals without too much toe-exposure. No flip flops or gladiators over here, thanks.

OUTFIT | #222

dungarees: Primark; top: ASOS; boots: River Island; watch: Casio

Continuing with the whole 'Fuck Flattering' theme I've got going on lately, here's some dungarees for you all. I regularly throw these on when I wake up late and need to get going. Which happens a lot lately because without a degree I have no routine and it's thrown my whole life out of whack. However sometimes it ends up looking unintentionally really cute. Like this particular day. The new turtleneck I'd ordered from ASOS had just arrived so I paired it with the dungarees and some signature black boots and I was a big fan of how it looked.

Looking at this outfit, I'm pretty struck by how much my style has changed in the past year or so. With graduation looming, I keep looking through old pictures of when I first came to university and how I dressed. It isn't wholly different but I never would have worn a turtleneck or this dungaree dress back then. I was super in bodycon and this is anything but. It's kind of cool to see what I'm wearing now compared to back then. That's one of my main reasons for keeping this blog, to be honest.

OUTFIT | #221

jumper: Cheap Monday; jeans, top (worn underneath): Topshop; shoes: Nike Blazers; watch: Casio

I never thought Mom jeans would be something I'd find myself buying but the other day I went to get my hair cut. I tried out a new place (The Egg in Norwich - would highly recommend) and while I was there, I kept seeing a girl who worked there wearing these pale wash Mom-style jeans. She looked fantastic in them. After my hair cut, I had some time to kill so I found myself in Topshop trying them on. And I really liked them. Maybe it's part of this whole changing-up-my-wardrobe phase I'm going through right now but I'm into them. They're nice thick denim, which I prefer to the jegging-style material Topshop tend to favour in their jeans, and they're also incredibly comfortable.

Are they incredibly flattering? I guess not. I think they make my butt look cute but if you don't agree, then that's cool. I'm just glad I finally found a pair of pale wash jeans that I actually like. It's been a long search, y'all. I took these babies on their first outing for a round of drinks with some friends to celebrate the end of (their) exams. And I managed not to spill a drop of Snakebite on them (Yes, I drink Snakebites. I'm secretly an 18 year old boy). Success!

OUTFIT | #220

shirt, shorts: Topshop; shoes: Nike Blazers; bag: Zara; jacket: my sister's wardrobe

Lots of sun lately means shorts all day, every day. I tend to tan pretty well so I've already lost the pasty winter legs I usually sport. Denim shorts are the staple of my summer wardrobe. I probably own more pairs than any one person needs. Another section of my wardrobe that probably needs a clear out.

Always a fan of layering, I still like to attempt to keep things interesting and layered even in the warmer months. I was out all day with friends celebrating the end of their exams so I brought the leather jacket along for when it got chilly in the evening. Top of my wishlist is a really great moto jacket. This one was a hand-me-down from my sister but I'm still holding out for a soft buttery leather number.

OUTFIT | #219

jacket: Levi's; blouse: charity shop; skirt, boots: Topshop; bag: Rebecca Minkoff; watch: Casio

This blouse is one of the few items I own from a charity shop. People are always telling me to check them out more but I tend to shop with a clear aim of what I'm going in to purchase. Charity shops are a lot more effort than I'm often willing to put into a shopping trip. However I do really love this blouse. I wore it on a dinner date and it was described as a very 'WW2-esque'. I'm not sure if that was the look I was going for but I'll take it.

In other news, I've been going through my wardrobe a lot lately and pulling out a plethora of old and unworn items to donate to charity. I fancy a bit of a fresh start and getting rid of the clothes I haven't worn for months, sometimes years. Goodbye old bodycon dresses that are starting to show their age, low-rise jeans I wouldn't be caught dead in, odd-fitting jumpers, etc. I'm also desperately in need of a hair cut but that is an entirely separate issue to be addressed at another time.