OOTD: Reclaimed Vintage Varsity Jacket

Vintage Varsity Jacket - ASOS (mens) | Burgundy dress & Tights - ASOS | London belt - Topshop. 

Not the usual photo layout but there was so much clutter in the background I had to go portrait, blaha, sure you all wanted to know that...
Anywhoo I just received this awesome varsity jacket from ASOS mens. I got it in XS which is still massive (cuz it was designed for men after all) but I prefer my jackets over sized so it's cool. It doesn't look as it was pictured on the website at all, which was confusing, but I think the thing about reclaimed vintage is that they source old recycled fabrics so nothing's ever strictly identical, which is kinda cool when you think about it. The thing I love best about this jacket has to be the tapestry print sleeves; they make me look like I've macho man arms though which I should hate but idk, doing years of figure skating's given me super toned legs and arms as limp as spaghetti, so this way I can at least look like I have muscle when in reality I can't even push a door open (yes, it's actually that bad). Anywayz I think this jacket's a great way to wear florals whilst avoiding the typical summer floral cliches, as it's a little grunge but still casual enough not to fit under any one style. My mum thinks it looks like something Oliver Proudlock from Made In Chelsea would wear. If you don't know who I mean check out his blog - I really wish I knew of more male style bloggers out there. If you are / know of any good ones leave me a link in the comments as that would be wunderbar.

In other news, I'm performing at the fringe festival next month - which I'm super excited about, so I've been busy learning lines and stuff for that.
I've also started writing music more, which is something I don't really talk about to people as I know I'm no good (and I'm not being modest here) but eh I still love it, even though I probably drive my family and anybody within a mile radius crazy, ew yeahh... 'til next time guys!

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Agggh, hey guys, soo Google reader effectively dies tomorrow and it would be absolutely ace if you followed me on bloglovin' to keep up with future posts. I don't know how badly it's gona affect everyone but I guess it's better to be safe. To everyone whose already followed me on there thank you so so much, I love you and I promise this isn't the end (of blogging... the universe may still cave in on us and whatever but if it's any consolation you can blame the economy or something.)

Soo anyway for more terrible puns ands awkward wardrobe poses go ahead and click the link below, or if reverse psychology's your thing then do absolutely anything other than click that link, go on I dares ya...  

 

 

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Nothing seems as pretty as the past though

Romwe pullover & chiffon vest, Missguided wedges, New Look perspex collar necklace, Topshop leigh jeans, Fluro Cambridge Satchel, Storets raincoat.

Polyvore is my go-to procrastination station - my brain's like "Hey any chance you're gona do that cwk you've been putting off for over a week now?" And I'm all like "Brain, please, I've got more pressing matters, like eating biscuits and making polyvore sets full of clothes I can't afford, gosh." Obviously got my priorities set straight (she says as she slips into education limbo)

Apparently it's spring or summer or something, I really can't tell since it's freezing outside. This is just my pessimistic outlook for summer dressing... a jumper? Yes, trust me. But I also thought about trading it in with a light weight raincoat on the off chance it got warmer and then rained. So it's functional fashion, yaaaay. I tried on topshop's version of the clear raincoat last week, and you all know how much I love topshop, but honestly I've never been more disappointed. I tried it on with bare arms and it just clung to me really awkwardly, the sizing's off so whilst it was really big around the body the armholes / sleeves were really tight so I couldn't move my arms properly. For a plastic coat it's just not worth the money. Sorry topshop, I still love you, but as for the coat, it's a definite thumbs down.
You can get the cambridge satchel's from ASOS I think, which is great cuz I just checked and it's on sale now. I thought for someone like me who practically lives in monochrome, working in this summer's fluorescent colour trend is probably best done with accessories, and this particular one makes an ace statement piece. There we go, every cliched sentiment in the fashion handbook.

AW13 | Christopher Raeburn Vermin Bags

I've been obsessed with bags that resemble animals since first seeing Mandy Coon's bunny bags and not forgetting Giles Deacon's metallic dinosaurs back in 2010. I was so in love I even had a dino bag of my very own specially made by a family friend.
Soo continuing on with my fashion week posts, another designer whose show space I was lucky enough to roam around in was Christopher R to the A to the E to the B to the... yeah okay I'm not a cheerleader - Raeburn! *woot*

My favourite thing about Raeburn is that he takes into account function and design sustainability; limiting material waste, most of which is recycled from other sources. For this collection his utilitarian and military aesthetic drew inspiration from the Maunsell Sea Forts, which were small fortified towers used as coastal defence against oncoming air-raids back in WWII. With the contrast of natural and brassy colours I had the bizarre mental image of human Daleks; kitted out in quilted teflon uniforms, roaming inside the aforementioned sea forts, being all err, mysterious and sinister and stuff. The collection has absolutely nothing to do with Dr.Who, but I guess I'm nerding out from Saturday night TV withdrawal. The electricity in my flat has gone and my laptop's just about to die so who knows what I'm talking about, uhh okay byeee.

LFW AW13 | J.JS Lee + Liam Fahy @ Topshop showroom

I went backstage to the Topshop showroom at London fashion week last month...

Was I meant to be there? Nope. Did I let that stop me? Nuh-uhh.
 

Nobody would be surprised when I say that when it comes to fashion it's not what you know but who you know, (it sucks but it's true). I went to Somerset House to do streetstyle, armed with an unusual optimism and a zillion business cards, which I kept handing out like they were M&M's (a bad metaphor really cuz when I get a bag of M&Ms I don't tend to share). I ended up befriending a girl interning at an online fashion publication, who was lovely enough to lend me her press pass so I could go backstage and look through the showrooms. I was so excited it took all imaginable self-control for me not to victory knee slide my way in air guitaring like the hero of an epic 90s highschool film, cuz apparently that kind of behaviour's frowned upon at the f'row, who knew?
Anywhoo, the topshop showroom at Somerset House plays host to the new season offerings by recipients of NEWGEN designer funding. In the past this has included the likes of Alexander McQueen, Meadham Kirchoff, Christopher Kane, Mary Katrantzou, Marios Schwab and Erdem to name but a few. There was so much to see so I'm going to spread these out over several posts...

My favourite collection of the day was by J.JS Lee - the boxy cuts and 'fragile' marked clutch bags won me over in an instant. I'm not usually all that into minimalism but the structured wool shapes and cute as a sugarmouse colour scheme were a stellar combo. Lee and her team used South African weaving techniques to create the fabric, embodying a wavy, slightly fluffled effect, and coloured the fabric using natural dyes inspired by a palette sourced from wild flowers. The collection was inspired by the idea of travelling nomads, which translates conspicuously into the collection as I imagine such clothes would fit seamlessly (and stylishly) into various cultures around the world. Lee also designed a range of footwear to accompany the pieces, including cut-out brogues and white leather wedges featuring strips of the same wool as the garments - striking the ideal balance between function and fashion.

The boots at the bottom were also a favourite of mine, designed by Liam Fahy. I think they're awesome cuz they remind me of those trainers you'd get when you were little which light up when you walk, you know the ones? Yeahhh... I never had a pair. Because of this I feel I was deprived as a child. Anyway the light's are powered by teeny tiny camera batteries which flash in relay. I'm not sure how they'd fair in the rain to be honest, I don't imagine getting an electric surge to the ankle would be too much fun, but the best trends are made to shock you after all *oh harhar*