Tuesday 13 August 2013

What I Wore: Alex's Graduation Cardiff

I feel like it's an end of an era for Alex and I. Alex has now graduated from Cardiff University and I am very proud of him of course, but also a little bummed out! Three years has gone super quick and all of a sudden our new friends are now growing up and becoming old friends, our favourite bars and clubs neglected, and Cardiff city, Alex's home for 3 years is now just another city that we can visit "sometime".

Alex is one of the very few lucky and talented graduates who have bagged themselves one of these very rare graduate schemes, proving graduates can actually get a job. It's not a myth that students can spend a lot of money studying and actually get a job at the end of it. I feel that my last year of university is going to flash by and I will have a lot to live up to already!

Anyway, Cardiff University know how to put on a graduation! The weather was beautiful and lots of wine, champagne and tiny winy but delicious food was provided; they call them canape or h'orderves or something...I loved them!


Here are a few pictures of the day and what I wore.






 My dress is from Label Lab, a concession in House of Fraser. I love this brand so much you can find some really unique pieces in there. I loved the colours in the dress I wore plus I bought for £21 in the sale down from £75, you have got to love a bargain!


My oversized envelope clutch was also a great find at £13 down from £20 in Accessorize.

The gold metal belt was from Mango also in the summer sale for £8.99.

My wedges are from New Look, they were equally purse friendly at £24.99. Graduation dressing on a budget was no sweat in this year scorching summer sale.


Alex's graduation was the perfect end to a perfect 3 years. Just hoping mine doesn't come around as fast, at least not until I bag my dream job! Hope you enjoyed the post, please comment and follow my blog.

Kimberly X




Wednesday 29 May 2013

S/S 13 Jaeger is going natural!

I haven't posted in a while because I have been working a lot of hours the past couple of weeks. I work for Jaeger Men's tailoring in Manchester, I really enjoy my job but it was so nice to catch a break!

I had a couple of days off work so decided to go home to the Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire for the weekend. The Forest was so pretty as the Blue Bells have come out, which has inspired me to create a style/nature post about the colours that feature very strongly in Jaeger's Women's wear S/S 13 range.

Riding through the Forest on Flint was just beautiful. The weather was fantastic and you could smell the blue bells. The sun was bright and brought out all kinds of blues and greens. I have tried to match the colours below. All garments are from the Jaeger website.









I hope you enjoyed this post! It was short and sweet but I hope to be updating more regularly again in the coming weeks.

Kimberly X





Thursday 9 May 2013

Cardiff Fashion Quarter

CFQ

 Today I shopped at the Cardiff Fashion Quarter. I always manage to buy my best vintage pieces in Cardiff. Like Manchester, Cardiff is a youthful city full of inspirational creative people making their mark in the city centre. Every time I visit Cardiff, I make a point of going through the arcades as you can find some really interesting boutiques in there. However, last night in the pub, my boyfriend picked up leaflet for this amazing gem which overnight has become my new Cardiff shopping destination!

CFQ is an old converted cinema situated on Womanby Street. If you are a regular to the epic Cardiff night life, then you will have heard of Welsh |Club which sits opposite CFQ. I have been on many nights out down this strip and never come across this place, which is strange because the art work on the outside is something that would usually catch my eye! I blame alcohol...

Love my 90's up-cycled Blue Rinse crop top and was determined that the sun would come out!

Not dressed for the windy weather!! 

We decided this picture will do, it was bloody freezing!
Inside lies a thrift shoppers paradise! There is something for everybody, vintage collectors and jewellery magpies a like! My boyfriend found some really great rock t-shirts and thick plaid shirts at bargain prices and also a record shop, so he was kept happy!

There was an abundance of vintage clothing, but what I really loved were the boutiques who were up-cycling house accessories such as mirrors and lamps. I will definitely be going back for a lamp when I have the money. I found some really good quality vintage shoes too, which would of gone perfect with my floral dresses if my feet were not too big...

Split Ends Vintage Stall
View from the top
 Penny Lane Vintage
Penny Lane is a vintage boutique within CFQ. The woman who owns Penny Lane hand picks quality vintage pieces. You can really build an outfit for a good value price here. I think she has a knack for picking jewellery, trinkets and mirrors. These one off pieces can all be picked up at a very affordable price. 


Just could not decide what to pick from this treasure trove of brooches!


Pretty bead necklace cost me £1

Vintage compact mirror £13


Face powder inside

Beautiful floral design
I spent ages going through the compact mirrors. They were all in very good condition and each had a unique design. I finally decided on the one pictured above to be included in my collection. I'm not sure the era of which this compact was manufactured but on finding the company name inscribed on the inside of the mirror I looked it up on the internet. The mirror was made in England by a company called Zenette which dates back to the 1930's. However, appears popular in the 1950's. Given the design on the front I think it maybe 1940's, if you know any better please tell me, I would love to know! 

If the images above have interested you please visit Penny Lane's Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/PennyLaneVintageBoutique?fref=ts 

Milk Five Sugars
Milk Five Sugars make really cute accessories out of doll house furniture. Milk Five Sugars is a sublet of the boutique Nelly's Treasure Trove full of vibrantly printed cushions, quirky hair accessories and frames and mirrors customised with comic books. 

Pick and Mix Sweet Style Packaging



Tea Cup ring £7.50

Love my new ring


Accessories Stand



Nelly's Treasure Trove

Nelly's Treasure Trove

Birthday Gift for my Dad
My Dad's birthday is coming up and he is, like most men, the hardest to buy for! I know that he loves pop art and he has a very old-school, slapstick kind of humour. But his taste is very alternative and very hard to get right and can be very pricey! But, my earliest T.V memories was watching Beavis and Butthead with my dad, even if I didn't understand the jokes at the time we loved watching this programme. So, when I saw this up-cycled picture frame with a comic strip of Beavis and Butthead on,
I knew I had to get it. I'm thinking of spraying the inside black though so that my dad can put some modern art work inside it.










If your in the Cardiff area I definitely recommend CFQ, It's also a great way to support you local community. So go shop!! Help support your local independents.

Follow CFQ on Twitter: @CardiffCFQ

Kimberly X













Tuesday 7 May 2013

Bank Holiday Haul Part 2! X


Continuing on from my bank holiday haul...

I bought this floral shirt dress with cut out shoulders from RepublicRepublic always have brilliant sales I bagged this dress for £15 down from £28! I think it fits very well with my new tights too.

£15 in Sale from Republic
Outfit


Topshop Shoes and WKD Tights from earlier post


Noah's Arch Necklace
I always get comments when ever I wear my Noah's arch Necklace. I bought it from Topshop last year and can't even remember how much I paid, but have never seen it in store since. So glad I snapped this quirky necklace up when I saw it!


Ebay Win!
Such a girlie Summer outfit!

Love the neckline on this
 I have been on Ebay again... I wouldn't recommend the Ebay app to anyone it is seriously addictive. Anyway two more successful bids were won. I won this 50's style floral dress and some vintage style shoes from Topshop. Both came to just £18 and are perfect for my Summer holiday to Greece!

When you get bored of losing bids on Ebay visit ASOS Market Place, it is a fantastic place to get vintage pieces or quirky items from on-line boutiques. I bought this 90's floral button down dress from the boutique Vi Nouveau. 



This cropped oatmeal coloured jumper is the perfect cover - up

Now to wait for pay day.... Hope you enjoyed my post! 

Kimberly X