bloomzy /

OOTD: Peace & Love

Vest: AX Paris* | Shorts: AX Paris* | Bracelets: WC & Marc Jacobs | Necklace: Topshop

Check me out looking all Tumblr cool in my new vest top and shorts. I really do feel like this outfit would be perfect with a pair of Litas, no? Seriously though, I love galaxy print and the subtle use of it on this vest top really drew me in.
I had also been looking for some striped shorts recently and I think the two pair together well.
One thing I noticed was that the vest top is long enough for me to wear as a dress, which is a plus. So I suppose if I really wanted to I could wear the shorts and top combo during the day, then wiggle out of my shorts in the evening for a different look, whilst adding a few different accessories here and there. I love being resourceful!

Note: I’m still in the process of unpacking, which means I have only unpacked some make-up & jewellery. I’ll try to bring you more ootd posts soon though!

You can find the vest top and shorts on the AX Paris website, here.
bloomzy /

Wish List: Best of British

Best of British

 

Best of British by bloomzy Ok so I may not be a Royalist, and I won’t be celebrating the Queen’s Jubilee…
However I am proud to be British, and I do like limited edition, special occasion items.
I’ve been gazing through windows at the decorations in stores, and the items they’re offering.
So I thought since it’s the Jubilee weekend, I would do an extra special wishlist!

With all the current hype around the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, tons of brands have been bringing out limited edition items to celebrate the occasion. This means lots of British brands are showing how proud they are, although that hasn’t stopped a lot of non-British brands also having some fun. Hey, it’s a party & everyone is invited!

The items I choose for this wishlist are items I would happily buy/wear any time of the year!
I love the selection of items, from Union Flag cupcake decorations to red, white & blue nail polish.
Although the ‘Markus Lupfer’ Crown Sweater, the ‘Not for Ponies’ Corgi T-shirt & the ‘Nails Inc’ Jubilee Crystal Colour Polish have to be my favourites…Oh who am I kidding? I want everything!! 

bloomzy /

Discuss: Can make-up represent a clothing brand?

Today I want to get discussion going about something that is popular in Japan.
I will be featuring one of my favourite Japanese brands, Murua, to help explain.

In Japan, clothing brands spend a lot of time representing themselves and their staff.
The presentation of the staff reflects on the store and brand, which makes a lot of sense.
This is done through not only their clothing and accessories, but make-up and hair too.

So with every new season some of the brands and stores send their shop staff (usually the store manager) off to a special meeting. Here, they are taught the key make-up and hair looks for that season, for the brand. The looks compliment that season’s collection, and make the brand and staff stand out. The manager then goes back and passes on this information to the shop staff, who are then expected to use these key looks in their everyday make-up & hair routine, whilst at work.

The shop staff are not forced to re-create the looks step-by-step and are allowed to add their own personal flair.
This means that they can retain their own personal style within the brand, much like those who work for clothing stores are expected to wear clothing from that store, or make-up counter staff are expected to wear make-up from that brand.

I personally would love to see something similar in stores like Topshop that have their own make-up line. I know a lot of clothing and department stores have rules on what kind of make-up to wear (subtle etc) in the UK, and are asked to be on-trend, but it’s not usually like this. I think it would inspire the customer more and help represent the brand too, whilst adding a little something extra. I do fear that it restricts people’s personal tastes a bit, but I think there’s always room to be inventive. However I think this works so well in Japan because of customer loyalty, so I’m not sure if it would catch on.
What do you think of this idea?
Do you think it would work in the UK, or Europe?

Source; 1
bloomzy /

OOTD: London Edition

Left – Blazer: H&M | T-shirt & Shorts: Topshop | Shoes: Asos | Necklace: Topshop
Right – Blazer: H&M | Top: Zara | Skinny Jeans: Primark | Shoes: Asos | Necklace: Topshop

Here are a couple of my outfits from my recent London trip. I actually had about 4 outfits for the trip, but I was so busy I didn’t manage to get photos of them all. I could have drawn these out and made two separate posts, but I figured one was enough.
At the moment I really love pairing basics together with cute accessories. So I decided on a couple of simple outfits as I wasn’t sure what the weather would be like. As it turned out the weather was a bit chilly for the first couple of days, and then it got pretty hot. I also knew that I would be doing a lot of walking, so I didn’t want anything too awkward.

I think I’ve got enough wear out of my Topshop necklace already! I’m so glad I bought it – I love it so much. I wear it as often as I can. I feel a little bad for all my other necklaces, but they’ll get their turn soon enough.
bloomzy /

Photo Diary: Sweet Candy

American candy package from Emily, part of my wardrobe, my bedside table,
New Topshop ring, macarons from marks & spencer, new necklace from Wavy Jewellery.

This post was originally going to be just about the candy that Emily sent me, and macarons.
Then I thought about the recent ‘eye candy’ I bought in the form of clothes & jewellery…see what I did there?
The candy from Emily was part of an exchange we did. I had mentioned how some chocolate she posted on Instagram looked yummy and she offered to send me a package. I love sending themed packages so I sent her one in return, full of English sweets – I hope they were tasty!
As for the macarons, Marks & Spencer have started selling regular 12 packs, but I picked up this special 9 pack for the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee as it had my favourite flavour – salted caramel. It’s quite hard to find macarons in British food stores, and these ones are limited edition so pick them up quickly if you’re a fan! 
Now onto the jewellery!
I’ve been after some more ‘delicate’ items to add to my collection, as I have way too many ‘statement’ pieces.
This ring was in the Topshop sale and it was perfect. They also have some lovely necklaces and earrings too, but I’m waiting for my trip to Manchester (when classes finish). The necklace was to replace my favourite stone necklace that broke recently. I happened to stumble across Wavy Jewellery (here) and this necklace called out to me. Such a gorgeous colour, and the silver (plated) chain really works well with it.
I know this is a bit of a filler post, but I have quite a few reviews to post 
and I don’t want to overwhelm people, or the blog. Sorry!
bloomzy /

OOTD: Yesterday’s Choice

Tshirt: Topshop | Shorts: Topshop | Bracelet: H&M | Necklace: Topshop

As you can probably guess from the title, this was yesterday’s outfit. I was planning on posting it on the day, but forgot that I had scheduled the Astalift review. I’m sure you guys don’t mind it being one day late, right?

After I wrote up the shop list, I realised that I look like a bit of a walking advertisement for Topshop. I can promise you that it wasn’t intentional. I’m not a fan of people dressing head to toe in one brand. The sun peaked its head out yesterday so I wanted to put together a shorts and tee combo, and this happened. Nothing really behind this outfit. I just wanted something casual for a 3 hour lecture. 3 hours! As I’m writing this on Wednesday, and scheduling it for Thursday, here’s hoping the lecture doesn’t bore me to death.
By the way, the necklace is currently in the Topshop sale, for only £3.50!
bloomzy /

Mini Topshop Haul

The Topshop here has actually been getting in some decent items recently.
I say that because my university town is only small, and even when the Topshop here expanded it wasn’t much bigger than before. I miss the Norwich Topshop, it’s massive – it was built inside an old cinema building. There’s a small fact for you!
Anyway I grabbed some accessories in the sale, and some socks (here) that weren’t.
Aren’t they adorable? I want these, these and these too! The 3 pairs for £8 offer isn’t helping. 
I’ve got a real thing about frilly, girly ankle socks at the moment. I should have hung onto my old school socks!
They’d probably still fit me as well, what with my wimpy ankles and size 3 feet…I have the feet of a child!
I also ended up finding some high waisted shorts, after months of deliberation. I had tried some on previously in Topshop and disliked them, but these ones were perfect. They’re a blue-y/lilac colour. They’re also really comfy and fit perfectly.
Here is a picture from my instagram, to help demonstrate:
You can find them here.
I didn’t buy the crop top, which I kinda regret.
I wasn’t sure if it suited my figure, as I’m a shorty. What do you guys think?