Thrifty Thursday - Take A Bake...

What a day! It was my brother's 16th birthday today so I decided that I'd take a break from this week's Fashion Week frenzy and bake the best birthday cake for my bro!

A pre-made birthday cake in the supermarkets (double chocolate with icing and multiple layers) cost £10 and up...minimum!

The ingredients for this little beauty cost just under a fiver (bearing in mind I had most of the stuff in my cupboards somewhere anyway!) even though I used Organic Green & Black's chocolate! Twit twooo! Get me with my posh choc...

So whilst my brother slogged it out at school I was a slave to the kitchen whisking away to the soundtrack of J.Lo's Greatest Hits and, all in all, my sunny afternoon baking was a cheap and pleasurable way to spend my afternoon off! I didn' think about shopping once for a good 3 hours! Barclays will be pleased...

To bake your own delicious choccy cake I recommend the BBC Good Food Recipes! They are in such simple steps and I've never had a messy result since I started using them - which was after a very bad experience with a pasta recipe from Food & Travel!

What do you reckon? Think I went a little over the top with the Green & Blacks and pink decorations????

 

As always feel free to Tweet me @sheldan2207 or comment below

 

xx 

OOTD - Outside My Comfort Zone!

Bit of a late post! I've had such a hectic day...starting with a traumatising driving lesson! They should just make reversing round a bend illegal! That way we wouldn't have to go through the stress of learning how to do it!

Anyway I tried an outfit out today which was well outside of my comfort zone! I really like the street-chic oversized jumper and collar combo which I've seen at the Fashion Weeks. I teamed a plain grey jumper from Store Twenty One with a TK Maxx blue check shirt, H&M stripy skirt, tights from Next and New Look patent brogues. Adding extra trends I wore a statement, pastel-flower necklace which was from Primark and a monochrome bangle. I've never worn so many trends at once but felt warm, comfy and cool simultaneously so it worked for me! I'll definitely be investing in more oversized jumpers very soon...

I love the 'Let Your Jumper Hollar With A Smart Collar' blog post by Miss Olivia - Zara - it sort of sums up my love for the look. Click to read: http://livvyy.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/let-you-jumper-hollar-with-smart-collar.html

What's your favourite OOTD's? Tweet me @sheldan2207 / comment below xx

London Fashion Week - "Front Row Favourites"

Casually still obsessing over the Fashion Weeks, I was reading the online ed of Vogue to find their "Front Row Favourites" feature! It got me thinking what my fave celeb spots were from the Fashion Weeks and where I could get there show-stoppin' style...

 

 

 

Rosie Huntington-Whiteley attending the Burberry Prorsum Show at London Fashion Week,

Rachel Zoe at her own New York Fashion Week Show,

&

Jourdan Dunn at the London Topshop Show

were my top 3 coolest looks.

 

It was so hard to chose bearing in mind Rita Ora sported that gorgeous 90s bob at the Burberry Prorsum Show and Miley Cyrus rocked that beautiful berry jumpsuit.

 

Now for the fun stuff; let's convert Rosie, Rachel and Jourdan's style to wearable pieces from the British high-street and online stores -

 

Rosie:

 

 

 

Fuschia Blazer & Trousers - ZARA

Black Strappies - ALEXANDER MCQUEEN

Black Clutch - INTERNACIONALE

 

Rachel:

 

 

 

Black Velvet Trousers - PETER HAHN

Black Silk Blouse - PETER HAHN

Faux Feather Fur Gilet - GODDIVA

Classic Rachel Zoe Black Platform Boots - CHOCKERS

Statement Necklace - ACCESSORIZE

 

Jourdan:

 

 

Paisley Top - URBAN OUTFITTERS

Camel Leggings - AMERICAN APPAREL

Blue Eye Colour - BARRY M

 

What do you think? I love the simplicity of Rosie's boardroom to red carpet look but at the same time can't get enough of Rachel's busy ensemble. Velvet trousers are difficult to pull off so they may be worth styling before buying!

Obviously it's Jourdan's colour-pop eyes that steal the show from her outfit but I think this navy paisley would work so well with the camel leggings and Barry M eyeshadow!

 

Tweet me your ideas/suggestions/feedback @sheldan2207

Comment below

 

x

 

 

 

Photo Sources:

Vogue

Heat

Glamour

 

Oscars Label Lust vs High Street Copies

The Oscars are more about who is wearing what than who is winning what. Every year the world's biggest stars in the industry show up in show-stopping suits and gowns reminding everyone how deliciously rich and beautiful they are.

 

From funny lass Leslie Mann to the stunningly petite Salma Hayek, my top 9 ladies put everyone else to shame whilst celebrating last night's awards bash:

 

 

 

Anne Hathaway - Performin' Les Mis in Prada

Leslie Mann - Attendin' the Vanity Fair 'do in a stunning orange Andrew Gn gown

Diane Kruger - Rockin' a Giambattista Valli cape-back dress (which she teamed with Laboutins)

Naomi Watts - Sparklin' in head-to-toe Emilio Pucci sequins

Natalie Portman - Takin' things very seriously in her Dior gown

Emily Mortimer - Showin' off her enviable figure in a fitted midnight blue dress

Britney Spears - Pullin' out all the stops with a floor length sequinned number and a new brunette 'cut

Reese Witherspoon - Pullin' in her tiny waist in a Louis Vuitton gown chosen by her daughter

Salma Hayek - Winnin' hands down the award for most delicious lady in her Alexander McQueen halter neck dress

There's no need for us to be jealous, though! I've searched the inter-webs for wearable, high-street versions of these ceremony stunners, and seeing as most of us aren't being invited to such prestigious events such as the Oscars, I've decided to shop for visits to our local boozers, clubs and house parties!

 

 

 

 

1) Get Anne's tiered ruffle look with the Tula Dress at Monsoon (£89) - It comes in Cobalt Blue, Nude & Green

2) Structured-shoulder dresses are hard to come by! This gorgeous little red number is £27 from Missguided

3) Get your cape on this season! It's much easier for us to wear a cape as outerwear because we are not Diane Kruger. I chose this W-toky Jacket by Diesel at House of Fraser - £125

4) One shoulder sequins as seen on Naomi Watts... and online at Boohoo.com for £20! BARGAIN!!!

5) It's not quite Dior but it is floor-length monochrome - this Paprika Maxi Dress is £32 from ASOS

6) Hybrid Fashion have a huge range of dresses with every neckline and colour you could possibly need for a chic entrance like Emily's at the Vanity Fair Oscars After Party

7) It's quite hard to party in a dress as long as Britney's - so I'd go for the French Connection Midnight Sequin Dress so you have room to throw some shapes!

8) Nothing says 'HERE I AM!' than a royal blue, structured, strapless panel dress! The one at Chiara Fashion is only £20

9) This Paprika Bodycon Dress at Very is as close as we are going to get to becoming as perfect as Ms. Hayek herself. At £36, you can't go wrong trying, can you!?

 

What do you think?

Comment below or follow me on Twitter @sheldan2207

 

x

[[ All celeb photos from www.glamourmagazine.co.uk ]]

Thrifty Thursday - Fashion DIY Pt. 1 - Cut-Off Denim

I have never, ever attempted to 'do my own fashion'. Whether it's dying, sewing, cutting, blinging...I've never done it.

 

Reading through multiple magazines this week I've seen so many cut-off denim shorts which I L O V E. You can wear baggy, frayed shorts with tights and ankle boots whilst we await the arrival of some warmer weather (hopefully sooner rather than later, I don't think I can take another weekend snow report!) and then bare legged in the summer. How very economical...

 

 

 

 

Anyway I happened to find the ugliest pair of old jeans in storage today to test some ideas I had for cut-offs. Don't get mwe wrong, I'm aware that chopping the legs off these bad boys does not make them socially acceptable. This is purely my first go. A draft, if you will...

 

These are the offending jeans:

 

 

Ew.

 

So firstly I thought it would be a good idea to research hemlines. Short shorts apparently have a hem of between 2 and 3 inches. So, taking my thighs into consideration, I went for 5. Using a ruler to mark where I wanted to cut, I got chopping.

 

 

Now I faced the problem of how to perk them up a little bit. Using one scissor blade I made horizontal slits in the denim, then used a cheese grater to fray them up a bit... *blushes*... There was no sand paper in the house!

 

 

 

I also thought I could rip one of the back pockets so it would flap down and be all hipster. In fact, it looked ridiculous, so no photo for that little actvity!

 

After sorting the turn ups out I tried them on... not bad for my first ever attempt:

 

 

Now I've popped my own DIY Fashion cherry, the plan of action over the weekend is to scour eBay and my local charity shops for a baggier pair of jeans (preferably boyfriend style), invest in some acrylic spray paint and a cheap lace top. I'll show you how this works out in a couple of weeks...

 

Next week I'm posting a trend a day with celeb inspirations, high street bargain buys and an exciting Thrifty Thursday that involves a bucket, rubber gloves and salt (DIY Fashion Pt. 2)!

 

Tweet me @sheldan2207 or comment below, I love your ideas and feedback

 

xx

 

The New Season Strappy

 

1] ASOS HACKNEY Heeled Sandals - £45

2] TASHA at Jeffrey Campbell for Nelly.com - £185

3] BELISIMO at Chockers Shoes - £45

4] Sandals at H&M - £30

5] GISELE Strappy Cup Sandals at Topshop - £60

6] Contrast Strap Stilettos at River Island - £70

 

AS SEEN ON...

 

Rihanna whilst launching her River Island Collection at London Fashion Week, the Topshop Unique London Fashion Week Runway and Frieda Punto and Nicole Kidman at the 2013 Sag Awards:

 

 

How would you wear them?

 

Comment below/Tweet me @sheldan2207

 

 

Photo Sources

www.telegraph.co.uk

www.starpulse.com

http://celebrity-gossip.net

www.usmagazine.com

 

 

MSN at London Fashion Week – Rihanna’s River Island Launch

From the slight glimpses of the megastar singer's new River Island collection I'm mildly relieved! Who would have thought that Rihanna's designs would be so wearable?! Athough risky in places, Rihanna's collection looks set to be the big high-street thing since the Kardashian Kollection.

 

I'm wondering though, will it only be for the super slim? I couldn't help but notice a lot of thin straps, loose necklines and extremely short hemlines which leads to my question: can us curvy females wear it?!

I guess we shall see in March!

 

Click the MSN link below to see Rihanna for River Island on the runway:

 

Check out this great MSN video - MSN at London Fashion Week – Rihanna’s River Island launch