So I was invited to a press day at New Look to preview the A/W collection & I'm feeling a bit guilty about it. Mainly because I never started a blog to get press invites & go to these things. I don't really fit in scrabbling around for care labels in a showroom with people eating ice cream. But I am intrigued by how these things work at all so I thought I'd go along & see how it goes. I won't make a habit of it, mainly because Susie Bubble does these things better than anyone else & most companies are evil. Unlike New Look who was founded in Taunton, basically just up the road from Bristol where I live. Which is pretty cool.

The main inspiration was evidently Alexander McQueen's triumphant return to London with McQ & a new shop opening. There was a rack of houndstooth and check in red and black. Along with more houndstooth the likes of which we've already seen filtered into H&M etc. The most exciting aspect of this for me though was the knitwear. Though I'd give the jumpers knitted with crosses a wide berth, there were many heavy knits and bright colours to keep the more discerning entertained. Unfortunately the only pieces that already had care labels were acrylic & the lady couldn't answer my questions about what the jumpers were actually made of, so I reserve my judgement until then.

Aside from this there was a rack of more romantic inspired pieces, notes of Chanel with a whole load of white and cream, but the floral prints were lovely & I spotted a selection of leather through the racks. Again, she couldn't tell me if it was fake or otherwise, but the cut out dress above was a nice spin on the now classic skater dress silhouette & it definitely on my mental wish list to look out for towards the end of summer.

All in all, like a trip to New Look, there were a small selection of pieces that really caught my eye, but there was a lot that didn't really hit the spot. I didn't hang around the accessories too long because the shoes don't go up to my size & although there was some interesting jewellery - all very hardwarey, chain linked rings, studs etc - didn't totally tickle my fancy. But I guess I'm not really their target customer. I think the painted jeans & bright platforms will find oodles of admirers and I think for New Look themselves it's a pretty tight season.

So being a recent convert to River Island, I popped in on my way through town the other day & after navigating through the polyester & badly printed leggings I left. Only to be captured by the mens display in the window. So I went back in upstairs & found a whole rack of awesomely printed polo shirts. I've been sort of half heartedly looking for a polo shirt for a while & these printed ones are pretty sweet. I almost bought the motel one but then realised it bore a resemblance to my car printed shirt & didn't. When I went back to look online I also found a whole load of lovely printed shirts too. £28 is a lot for one shirt but...maybe they'll get put in the sale? Find the polo shirts here & the shirts here.

Oh & thanks for the nice comments about my clothes rail/wardrobe. I thought it would be nice to have some colour behind me! Haha. Also it is like the best thing to wake up to every morning. I think everything should be colour ordered, right?

Dude, this sounds

like an advert.

Oh Asos with your enticing newsletters almost everyday about discounts on this & that. Why must you taunt me with the most beautiful selection of summer dresses on the same week the suns come out & my legs have said "hello Mr. razor" for the first time in a while? My recent Ted Baker conversion has caused me nothing but pain since. Sales are few & £89 sounds so attainable when you've just been paid... Dammit!

Online shopping is looking pretty great right now (minus lack of funds) due to London related meltdown that resulted in me telling a lady that if she invaded my personal space again I could not be held responsible for my actions. In Cos. COS! The most mellow, calming place on earth, full of beautiful clothes. Yes they're expensive, & polyester seems to be making a comeback but mostly, a pretty sweet place to be. I really must make more of an effort to go to exhibitions early in the morning & NEVER GO ON THE TUBE.

Anyway, it must also be commended that 4 out of these six outfits are made from natural fabrics (although whether Viscose counts is still up for debate in my eyes) which is proper rare in Asos wish lists right? Note to self: make pattern for t-shirt dress & find multiple insane fabrics to make it in then wear only this for decades worth of summers to come.

Links: One, two, three, four, five, six.

This is the third or fourth French Connection collection magazine thing I've got & it's always a nice little punctuation in the post. I always mean to post them because they're just so darn beautiful, but somehow the organisation has always alluded me. This time though, I've done it straight away! You'd think FC were paying me but I promise they're not mainly because I can say this: I don't actually like their clothes. I personally think they're overpriced & pretty generic, but it's their campaigns that set them apart for me.

Their "He is man" & "She is Woman" campaigns from last year are what made me sign up, but the magazines themselves are lovingly put together, wonderfully photographed & printed on gorgeous matte paper that smells amazing. Now that's a lot of positive adjectives but genuinely, I think French Connection deserve to be singled out for their unique dedication to odd & quirky advertisement. You can watch the videos to accompany them here... read the catalogue here (although I can highly recommend it in the flesh) & I'm gonna try & find out who the photographer is.

Just a shame about the clothes.