So I spent about 2 years (maybe more?) searching for the perfect leather jacket. I wondered about vintage, I wondered about just stealing one from a boy, but in the end I just saved up & thought fuck it I'll spend like £200 on one piece of clothing that I want to wear forever. I set out on a mission & found a couple of front runners in Oasis & Whistles. The Oasis one was fake leather though although a good shape & the Whistles one had all these belts & metal shit all over it. It was also hella expensive. It's hard to strike the balance between like *motorcycle* with all the bells & whistles, but with something with an edge & something classic that's not going to age when I do.

Guess where I found it? GAP! I was as surprised as the shop assistants were. It was the first one they'd sold & I got £10 off because the price was marked wrong. Brilliant. It's got the edgier detail on the shoulders, with a couple of zipped pockets, but not a massively defined collar which makes it simpler & more classic. This sounds like I'm totally over thinking it, but I swear every female (& some guys) I spoke to about it felt exactly the same way. Maybe it's the amount of money? So people need to know it's absolutely perfect. I don't know what it is but I'm so happy to have found my one!

"Hello Daddy, hello Mum,

I'm your ch ch ch ch ch cherry bomb.

Hello world I'm your wild girl,

I'm your ch ch ch ch ch cherry bomb."

Sorry I couldn't resist a bit of Runaways. I actually finally got round to watching the film a couple of weeks ago, I wasn't sure about it. I think it was good if you didn't know about the band before, but having discovered them a couple of years back & read Cherie Currie's Neon Angel I think it was a pretty glossy portrayal. 

Anywho... I never really understood Esprit as a shop. It used to be limited to the rest of Europe & then one appeared in Cabot Circus in Bristol. It's always empty & I don't really know anyone who shops there, but they can afford to hire Gisele & Erin Wasson? I always thought it must be drug money. Turns out they're actually part of the La Redoute family so I guess the money's spread about. However, I'll go anywhere for a good print & when looking up for a cover up before I went to France in August I spotted this in the sale. Silk & cotton? Perfect. Not sure about the mandarin collar which makes it harder to wear, but the cherries are worth it!

PLUS I know in my hearts on hearts it's cheesy & bad but FUCK Kreayshawn's new album is awesome. Listening to this song on repeat, getting sideways looks whilst singing along to lyrics about burning/stabbing/shooting stuff. Anyway, listen. Promise it'll never leave your head. In the best of ways.

So I've had a Saturday job since the summer after my GCSE's, basically just over 4 years. This means that I miss out on a lot of shit. Mainly I take Saturday's off for holidays or protests & that's about it. Now I work four days a week & my first day off is Sunday it's kind of sad when everything is closed. You'd think in 2012 we'd have got everything open 7 days a week. But no. Charity shops? No. Post office? No. Bank? No. So I generally spend the day moping around or possibly braving town. But this weekend I had Saturday off! Yay!

So rare was this occasion that me & my mum decided to make the most of it & seek out some quality charity shop stalking ground. Basically I find if you look for the poshos that's where you get the best stuff because it's good quality & barely picked over. So we headed out to the Costwolds, Tetbury & Cirencester to be exact. Tetbury is where Prince Charles lives & as well as having one of the best countryside hospitals (luckily we didn't have to visit it) it also has a whole street of antique shops. Seriously. It also had some amazing charity shops, & a lovely bookshop simply called "Old Books" where I got this Faber & Faber copy of Ariel (not so old) & this amazing anthology/history/encyclopaedia of Knickers! I'm not too big on history but underwear's history intertwines so much with that of women & feminism, plus it has some beautiful pictures & the author is a keen collector so she keeps off handedly mentioning this perfect pair of Biba french lace knickers she has etc... It's basically amazing.

Then in Cirencester we found an awesome upholstery fabric shop that has like discount "designer" fabrics. I got an offcut of this epic silver fake leather (I know, but trust me) plus some sort of starburst flocked fabric. I'm thinking A-Line skirts in the style of my post below, hold on for follow up photos. Cirencester was a little rubbish to be honest. There was a really nice little bookshop & one of those "gift" shops that actually had unique stuff. But it was their Oxfam bookshop (as it so often is) that threw up this little jem of a Penguin Classic. I'm developing a little collection of these along with some I picked up in bookbarn a year odd ago. Actually one of those is my tumblr background. I might have to change it to this. Because it's just so fucking amazing. Plus the illustrations inside are beautiful! I also want to print them onto fabric but feel like that would have some major copyright issues...

How was your weekend?

It's pretty much officially Autumn, so it's time to bust out the warm colours & woollen trousers! I think Autumn is my favorite season, because you still get some left over sun which is all but non existant in Winter, but you can start layering, get the tights out & of course, the cashmere. I can't remember if I've blogged this top before either. I wanted a broderie anglaise top but this was the only one I could find with it all over, luckily whilst umming about the price it went into the sale & finding the white one absent in the Bristol Urban Outfitters got this peach one instead. It's actually much nicer & a colour I probably would've avoided otherwise. Getting dressed the other morning I wanted to wear these trousers & saw how perfect these colours were together, I like it. Plus peplum. Hmm. What are you getting out now it's turned colder?

Skirts left - right: Kookai Leather Mini Skirt, Mango Metallic Jacquard Umbrella Skirt, Hobbs Abingdon Skirt

So instead of claiming that the fashion trend police have minions in my head every time something I've been coveting for a while becomes a *trend* I'm going to try & make a conscious effort to blog everything first. Lately I've been really wanting A-Line skirts in heavy fabrics. Partly from a practicality angle of not liking that every time there's the tiniest bit of wind I flash the entire world in most of the skirts & dresses I own that are loose & made of light fabrics (& too short, but that's a whole other issue). Also though because I really love the polished vibe of an A-Line. It feels older in a kind of responsible way.

When I tried to look for high street version in brocade, tweed & leather there wasn't much around. Obviously tweed because of like office wear, but the designers are still way ahead on the side of heavily embroidered or flocked A-lines & the perfect leather one I'm sure is just waiting around the corner...

*Awkward smile*

This is my new favorite dress. Why? Because it's covered in concerned looking octopi. Obviously. It's also the most perfectly shaped tent dress I've ever come across, I've already taken a pattern from it to make in this crazy eye fabric I got from Ikea. I tend to shy away from sleeveless things sometimes but honestly this dress makes everything light & fluffy so you don't really care. Plus it's silk, so my "only by natural fabrics" bent isn't broken.

It's from The Rodnik Band via Asos, which is a brand designed by Philip Colbert. He makes pretty insane stuff, like a naked dress, or a pint of beer dress. He presents it like the brand is a band & is heavily inspired by Pop Art. HOLY SHIT I've just seen a maxi Lobster print dress by them on Asos for £45! Also my dress seems to be back at full price even though I got it on sale, major score. Sorry... I'm off to buy shit.

So this is how my jewellery is now displayed. I spent last week painting two frames white, finding chicken wire/hutch mesh in gardening shops & searching everywhere for tiny S hooks before settling on eBay. About six months ago I made a jewellery tree, like this but sparser & made of actual branches that I wrapped with plaster of paris & painted black. That kept falling over & didn't accomodate my long necklaces so was pretty much a fail. This on the other hand means I can actually see anything. It also reminds me how much shit I used to buy on etsy. I think some clearing out is called for so I can replace it with stuff I actually want to wear. How do you display your jewellery? I'm always amazed by people who can like "re-accessorise" everyday with every outfit. I'm more of a wear-forever-or-until-you-change kind of girl, which begs the question, why do I have so much jewellery? Also the two necklaces that I wear the most, my crystal bullet & my reindeer are not on this. Silly, silly.

My mum found these old badges the other day (at the top). I met Emily the other day when she was up in Bristol & talking about my mum I sometimes forget how awesome she is, like what she does & what kind of wisdom she's imparted onto me. With the student season coming up at work, it's just nice to be reminded that these jumped up children who think they're better than me because they're on the other side of the desk will never be as articulate, informed or observant as she has taught me to be. But anyway, how frickin cool are they? I love "The Fight Goes On" so perfect. Now I just need a jacket to pin them onto. My new leather one is just too delicate right now. I'm thinking a blazer or a denim jacket. I feel like I'd have to do it all the way though like this piece of awesomeness. Time to start badge collecting!

Yay Sunday post

So it's all over. & what a fucking deflated note to end on when it's basically been a month or more of beautiful amazingness that I never thought we were even capable of hosting. As soon as the Opening Ceremony started all my "I'm not sure about this" was gone. I squealed when Arctic Monkeys came on (luckily I hadn't been on the internet that day & it was a genuine surprise!) & their rendition of Come Together was just... wow. I was blown away, literally. It was a total surprise.

I on holiday for the first week but had the second off work & literally had it on 24/7 when I was at home. It was gripping. As it always was. But somehow more so when you saw everything working & that it was in London & all the different outfits done by Stella McCartney for the medal givers & athletes. It was endlessly entertaining.

Then the closing ceremony happened. I honestly had to keep biting on my blanket it was so embarrassing. I mean George Michael? Ok, if he sings one song & it's one that everyone knows. But not 3. & not unknown ones. That was basically the beginning of the end of the front of pride for me. The Paralympics opening ceremony did little to redeem it, minus the emphasis on Physics & also the Human Rights, which the Tories want to get rid of. & have in fact just promoted one of the most outspoken Conservatives on that front. It was like Danny Boyle's whisper was still echoing around. But it wasn't the same.

& last night after being sick a couple of times I went to bed & just watched the closing ceremony this morning. Sorry not the Paralympics closing ceremony, actually just a coldplay gig. I mean are you fucking kidding me? I know they're meant to be one of the biggest bands in the world but I have literally never met anyone who likes them, or will admit to liking them. & to pin a whole three hour ceremony that's meant to symbolise all that is great about Britain on them is like only showing the Judo coverage from the olympics & nothing else. Like we've never produced any other decent bands. 

To re-alliterate this feeling Rhianna & Jay Z (AKA Chris Martin's mates) performed as well. A song that is about Roc Nation, or at least New York/ the music business. Not the world or even sport. It's not a triumphant song. Like I'm sorry. I fucking love both of them, in almost any other context I would be so hyped to see them even with Jay Z mucking up his verses. But this is to celebrate British achievement. It's a showcase of us to the world, that we have more than handled. With ratios to size we obliterated every other country at the games & we have a rich musical culture (as showcased in the Olympic Opening Ceremony, sort of) we don't need to draft in American's to do the job. Hell no.

But this isn't even the worse thing I've seen today. David Cameron talking about triumph & overcoming adversity when it comes to disability, that "if children are like his" oh man, so many fucking quotes that make me scream mildly over most of his speech. Here's the thing. Labour brought the games to London & did so by saying it would inspire a new generation to take up sport. Labour & specifically Gordon Brown poured money into sport so that we could be the best we could be. Labour invested £2.4bn into school sport raising the participation level to 90%. 

The conservatives have cut funding to sport by £22bn at least since the first budget, mainly from schools but also from councils that provide sports facilities. School children participating in 2 hours of sport has fallen to 25% after the waves of cuts. As much anger as we should legitimately direct at Atos, the company given £100 million a year to take as many people as possible off incapacity benefits, it's the government, the conservative coalition who are driving this. 1100 people on incapacity benefit who were deemed fit for work later died. This government doesn't believe that disabled people should be granted enough money to live a decent life. The money that meant many paralympians could be at the games at all.

And finally going back to the below par-ness of the closing ceremonies & Paralympic opening ceremony I would like to point the finger squarely at Kim Gavin, the director of all three. This man made his name producing Take That's shows. Take That who include Gary Barlow. Gary Barlow who is a supporter of the conservative party, campaigned for them & got a distinctly mute opinion from one David Cameron when asks to compare his moral objection to Jimmy Carr over his old chum Gary Barlow who had done exactly the same thing.

THIS IS NOT OK WITH ME.

(photo credit: Francis Baker and Ros Barnett via Left.write.center. Stats from this article)

I've been on a bit of a William Morris trip recently. It started with the discovery of a stash of art books when we were cleaning out/moving around our house including two steller ones on him. Then I needed to make a new laptop case & was drawn to this gorgeous William Morris esque floral fabric that is hella bright, but in the same spirit. Then last week I had four days off & mum was away so I (with the help of some very lovely people) cleaned out all the crap from her bedroom, moved the ridiculously heavy furniture around & took some stuff to the tip. Now we're thinking about decoration & I had a notional idea to plaster William Morris wallpaper on a "feature wall" but she wants just a colour. Shame.

Now I'm thinking, what about my room? It would make a beautiful backdrop to my lovely clothes. Or even the back wall of my room that is currently bare waiting for me to frame an arctic monkeys poster. It would look fucking awesome. & for some unknown reason £110 for two rolls of wallpaper to do it sounds perfectly reasonable. Especially since my departure from this house is imminent (well, just as soon as I find that magical job or career path that will make me happy & fulfilled for the rest of my life) unless I really want to live with my mum forever, or raise my own family here. & then really some wallpaper turns into a whole other massive question. But the answer, incase you needed to know, is that I would like either Pimpernel in Privet & Slate or Golden Lily in Green & Red.

Yesterday was the first time in three years I wore jeans. In fact when I went out & bought these last week, it was the first time I'd owned jeans in about two years, apart from the stripy ones from River Island I got a few months back. & it's well weird. It's like being normal. Like being able to put on a normal person costume & go out into the world. I'm still not entirely sure how I feel about them, we're not the best of friends, I spy them led on the pile of clothes next to my bed & eye them with suspicion. & now I'm consumed with thoughts about what the fuck you wear with a pair of jeans. I feel like an idiot. Or an alien. Who knows. My boyfriend & mum were equally unsettled by my normal costume which makes me feel like I'm not entirely overreacting. 

So anyone know what I can wear with jeans so I don't feel like a freak or like too casual that I feel sloppy. I'm inkling towards band t-shirts but it would make me feel like I'm fourteen. Shit I sound like a total twat whining about jeans, oh well, anyone empathise? 

I'm now gonna get back to eating yogurt & honey, catching up with Breaking Bad, spending embarrassing amounts of time looking at Miley Cyrus photos on tumblr (her legs are like damn) reading the new Roger McGough poetry book & writing reviews on books about sex trafficking. Now that sounds like a decent day off to me!