Home Inspiration: Shoe Storage

Recently in one of her posts, Susie mentioned that before she started blogging she hardly owned any pairs of shoes, but now she has loads. I totally agreed with her; my shoe closet has absolutely exploded to the point where I don't have enough room to store my rapidly growing shoe collection. At the moment, I think that my best option might be to store and display my shoes on shelving. (Shoe inspiration photos via The Coveteur)

I have some big, white inset bookshelves that are not actually holding books next to my built in wardrobe in my room at my parents house where I tend to store most of my clothes, that are mostly taken up with junk at the moment. So, I think one of my tasks for the Summer for me should be to clear it out and set it up as a shoe display/ storage unit. However, for those of you who want to try something like this but don't already have the space for it, there are some pretty great shelving options out there! I personally favour some of these options from online retailer Fashion For Home. 

Box Base Shoe Display Cabinate: £439, Modern Black Shelving: £499, Modern White Shelving: £769, Black Oak & Walnut Shelving: £629

I like how different and modern this first shelf looks, and how you can choose to have shoes on display and others packed away in different brightly coloured show boxes as part of the feature. The next two are nice and sleek and modern (I'd personally go for the third one) and the final one has a great masculine look to it which would be great if you either share your place with a guy, or you want to create a striking visual contrast by decorating it with pretty and girly high heels.


I'll let you know how I get on sorting out my own messy closet floor, and post some photos once I have sorted out my shoe inspiration! 

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Outfit Post: Grayscale

I used to wear stupid amounts of black, but my wardrobe has seemed to shift somewhat towards grey, which I think has to be my new favourite colour to wear. (To prove a point, as I am sitting here typing this I am wearing a stripped black and grey Zara top with my black Whistles skinny jeans which have basically faded to grey at this point). I think my favourite 'grayscale' purchase so far has to be this amazing asymmetric Forever 21 skirt which was a 19th birthday present to myself. 

Asymmetric Skirt: Forever 21, Striped Tee: Boden, Black Heels: Pedro Miralles c/o Spartoo, Nail Polish: Orly 'Purple Crush' c/o Orly

There is a curious thing about this skirt. It was under £20 from Forever 21, but when I went to wash it after a couple of train journeys wearing it and running around London, I discovered that it was dry clean only. Seriously? The dry cleaning would cost more than the skirt did! After asking around on Twitter I found that this is the case with lots of Forever 21 clothing, which I really don't think is very good. It turns out that after I checked the label my mint green asymmetric tee is hand wash only! I braved the wash with this skirt and as you can see it has turned out okay, albeit not as beautiful and pleated as before. But seriously? Even my Whistles pleat skirt is machine washable! 

Still, I just simply love how these skirts look as you are walking along, blowing out in the wind and I think I am going to be totally wearing it half to death this summer!

Do you feel that a certain colour is simply taking over your wardrobe? 

Update: Guest Blogs & Beauty Reviews

A pause for a moment, while I gather myself (things have been mental recently with the opening of Pilgrims Nook, preparing for my exams, commuting backwards and forwards between Canterbury and London and getting geared up for a pretty massive life change), I thought I'd put together a post with a few updates of things I have been getting up to since January that I have not been mentioning in my 'Weekly Love' feature, as well as a few roundups of my favourite posts from the last couple of months. 

This week marks the first of my guest posts entitled 'Californication' about a bit of a personal journey of mine over on the Volcomunity blog. For those of you who don't know, Volcomunity is an incredible blog set up by the awesome Californian clothing company Volcom, bringing inspiring and awesome women from fashion bloggers to top athletes together to contribute. I'm absolutely honoured to be asked to contribute a couple of posts as I have been a massive fan for ages! Thank you to Carly and everyone else at Canoe Inc. and to Lina and everyone else at Volcom Europe for making this possible! 

Speaking of guest blogging, next week I am going to be taking over Lucozade's Witness My Revival blog for a week of guest editing - I'll be posting a little something up there every day. Witness My Revival is alongside the launch of Lucozade's new Revive drink (so far I have spotted it in Tescos) and is basically a little online collection of things to lift your day - I'll see you over there!

I know not all of you read my beauty blog, The Glossy Guide and you wished I posted more about makeup and beauty products on this blog, so here is a round up of reviews of some of my favourite products I have encountered so far this year.

1. O.P.I Drip Dry Drops | 2. Chanel Perfection Lumiere Foundation | 3. Label M Sea Salt Hair Spray | 4. 'Navigate Her' from Essie's Spring 2012 Collection | 5. Shea Butter Beauty Products from L'Occitane | 6. Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream

As well as links to some of my beauty reviews, I thought I'd also include some links to posts from this blog that I have particularly enjoyed putting together. My second favourite post category is Outfit Posts. 

1. My favourite outfit post so far this year for Zalando Collection. | 2. The first outing of my favourite vintage fades Levi's jacket. | 3. Falling in love with asymmetric hemlines on my 19th birthday. | 4. An all Hobbs ensemble on the first day of London Fashion Week. | 5. One of my favourite statement necklaces on a freezing day outside Liberty's in February. | 6. My first ever classic trench coat.

Anyone who knows me however, will know that my all time favourite feature is 'Places To Eat In London' because one of my all time favourite activities has to be brunch with friends. I might manage to fit a few more in this year, but the feature is going on a pretty long hiatus, so here are some of the places I have been lucky enough to eat at so far!

1. Ottolenghi, Notting Hill (recommended for lunch or afternoon tea) | 2. The Primrose Bakery, Primrose Hill (recommended for pudding or afternoon tea) | 3. The Riding House Cafe, Marylebone (recommended for brunch) | 4. Tom's Deli, Notting Hill (recommended for brunch) | 5. The Natural Kitchen, Marylebone (recommended for brunch or lunch) | 6. Granger & Co., Notting Hill (recommended for brunch)

I've got some great events coming up, and hopefully the weather is improving again so I'll manage to fit a lot more outfit posts in, so I'll be back to regular posting soon! This is the first time I've put together a couple of month round up post like this, what do you think of it? Do you think I should make this a regular thing every few months? 

Outfit Post: Pretty In Purple

When I am in London and I am running around Press Days, shopping trips, brunches with friends and blogger events I usually like to dress up and accessorise, but when I am at home in Canterbury, either greeting guests at Pilgrims Nook (this week I have been chatting with people about hosting their weddings!) and showing them around their cottages, or shopping with my Mum or running errands I tend to go for a slightly more casual, paired down version of my everyday look. 

Striped Long Sleeved Tee: Boden, Purple Skinny Jeans: Marks & Spencer, Purple Keds: c/o Spartoo, Nail Polish: Orly 'Purple Crush' c/o Orly

My favourite uniform for these lazy days in Autumn/ Winter tends to be a jumper dress with either tights or black high waisted leggings and a pair of Uggs, but in the Spring/ Summer I tend to go for comfortable jeans and striped tee shirts from either H&M or Boden, long sleeved for Spring and short sleeved for Summer. Shoe wise, I have been living in my very large selection of Havaianas flip flops and sandals. However, still in the endless battle to pass my driving test I have been running around and having lots of lessons suitable, but Havaianas, flip flops or sandals are not really suitable to drive in. After featuring them a few weeks ago, I decided to pick up a pair of Keds to run around in instead - I think we are going to be having a lot of fun together this Summer!

What are your go to Spring basics?

This is a sponsored post. To read my policy on sponsored posts, please click here.

Places To Eat In Kent: Thai Time

Moving away a bit from my usual Places To Eat In London / Places To Eat In Canterbury features, I wanted to introduce you to he most incredible restaurant in Sandwich, a little town near Canterbury and even nearer to my parents house I have been eating at for years and I am midway through reviewing for Pilgrims Nook Holiday Cottage's 'Places To Eat' guide: Thai Time.
Thai Time is the reason I love Thai food. It is the first place I ever tasted it, and I have been going there with my parents since I was a kid, before it was a big restaurant and it was just a little shop front a few streets away with only a couple of tables. I have eaten Thai food in many different restaurants, and while a meal in a Thai restaurant a guy took me to in Notting Hill on a date and the Pad Thai from the street stalls in Brick Lane have come pretty close, nothing has beaten Thai Time for me and I still love going back every time I go home to visit my parents. 

Yummy Thai crackers to nibble on with our Thai wine and beers while we wait for our food to arrive.

We usually order the same foods most of the time, because we just love our favourites! Something we have ordered every time without fail is the mixed starters for two. From the top, working clockwise we have sweet crispy noodles, chicken skewers with a satay dip, vegetable spring rolls with a sweet chilli dip, Paper Prawns (prawns and coriander wrapped in Thai pancakes in squares), mini Thai fishcakes and a yummy Thai style salsa. 

 

Just for me, as my parents don't like them I also order a plate of Thai style mussels. I adore mussels, they are one of my all time favourite foods, and while I'm usually a fan of them French style, these are little mouthfuls of fishy, lemony goodness that I do not think I could live without! 

Onto the main course, where we each order a dish to share, a bowl of egg fried rice each, and a plate of the absolutely delicious Pad Thai with prawns (below). First up is a dish of delicious dish of mixed seafood containing fragrant chunks of salmon, prawns, squid and mussels. 

My Dad's favourite dish which we all love, Sizzling Duck.

We all have the same desserts each time. My Dad has a pot of tea while my mother has Coconut flan served with fresh cream.

Finally, my regular dessert of banana fritters served with honey and seeds (you can also as for it to be served with cream) - delicious! 

Do any of you like Thai food? Where is your favourite place to eat it? If any of you are passing through Sandwich anytime or coming to stay with us at Pilgrims Nook I highly recommend it! (They also do take-away!)

Weekly Love: Week 101

Hello everyone! This week has been absolutely amazing - on the way to catch the train on the way back to London I got the most incredible piece of news I can't wait to share with you all, I should be able to tell you all over the next month or so! In London I had some lovely meals, caught up with friends and attended some great blogger events and Press Days - however it was lovely to be home again at the end of the week! 

1. An amazing Thai meal at Thai Time in Sandwich (restaurant review and many more photos to follow!) | 2. A warm brownie with hazelnut ice cream, the finale to a delicious meal at The Punchbowl in Mayfair with the handbag designer Jack French. He gave me a fantastic new bag, but I think I might wait a couple of months before unveiling it - there is an extra special location I want to shoot it in, which I will not have access to until September! | 3 & 4. Fantastic details at the House Of Harlow & Winter Kate AW12 Press Day. | 5. The perfect basket of fries at The Diner. | 6. A delicious juice at Joe & The Juice hiding from the downpour!

• Have you heard of the Clandestine Cake Club? 
• Kate Spade now does swimwear. This is very important. 
• I'm so happy that I stumbled across this awesome and adorable DIY blog!
• The Beauty Department has put together such an amazing DIY tutorial for DIY nail stickers.
• Joy has some amazing blog post ideas if you are stuck for inspiration.
• This post on Canned Fashion is totally adorable.  
• This is the ultimate Summer inspiration Tumblr. 
• I love the new Kora jewellery lookbook. 
• I rather want to visit The Society Club. 
• I know I am not getting married, but I NEED the new Essie bridal nail polish collection. 
• I really want a Clare Vivier clutch, so I was really excited to see her feature in The Glitter Guide!
• This article on Blogger Stats vs. Google Analytics is a must read for anyone who hosts their blog on Blogger. 

What have you been enjoying this week?

Summer Sandals: See by Chloe

Ever since Susie featured See by Chloe sandals on her blog, and I realised that the Paul & Joe Sister sandals I had been coveting did not fit me, I've been pondering a beautiful pair of Chloe's to add to my shoe collection. I love their clean and simple designs that are right up my street. I think the only question for me is if I should go for a pair of flats, or a pair of heels? I tried on a pair of Chloe heeled sandals in Liberty's the other evening, and they were oh so easy to walk in and rather comfortable too!

 

See by Chloe Flat Traveller Sandals: £190, See by Chloe Caramel Sandals: £173, See by Chloe Hazelnut Heels: £226, See by Chloe White Sandals: £173

How lovely and utilitarian are all of these shoes? I like the white ones, but I am worried that I might get them so horridly dirty, but I think I might get the second pair of flats a bit later in the Summer if I don't find another pair in the shops that I love a little bit more. 

See by Chloe Traveller Sandals: £235

However, I think my heart has been captured by these Traveller heeled sandals, with their slightly romantic scalloped edged detailing, but still clean and basic aesthetic. I have cause to treat myself at the moment, anyway! 

Have you fallen in love with any particular designers recently? 

This is a sponsored post. To read my policy on sponsored posts, please click here.

Places To Eat In London: Enoteca Super Tuscan, Spitalfields

On a very rain Wednesday evening in East London Eleanor and I decided to try out a tiny Tuscan restaurant in Spitalfields I had heard rave reviews about, Enoteca Super Tuscan. I love all things Italian, beans and lentils and before earlier this week I had never eaten in a Tuscan restaurant before, so I was rather excited. 

For my starter I had Fagioli alla Toscana, traditional style cannelloni beans served with delicious bruschetta style toasts. If you visit this restaurant, this is the one dish I would really recommend: the flavours were really simple yet well blended and delicious, and it was lovely and warming after getting out of the cold rain. 

Eleanor had the bruschetta, which I was rather envious of. The middle one is the same toast that came with my beans, the one on the left mushroom and obviously the one on the right is a traditional tomato version. 

For my mains I had the Salsicce con Lenticchie, which is a 'classic Tuscan dish of chargrilled sausages flavoured with fennel seeds and served with lentils.' Again, totally delicious. The lentils had a very different flavour, they came with the same delicious toasts and the sausages are perfect if you like yours rather meaty and packed with flavour. 

Eleanor had the Tortelloni di Funghi because she loves mushrooms (pasta parcels stuffed with mushrooms and cheese. I'm not a cheese eater, but they did look rather fantastic!

The whole menu was such great value, with the starters coming in at only a couple of pounds each, and the mains at around £10. I can't wait to go back there again and sample some of the other things hey had on the menu. 

Have you eaten in Enoteca before? What did you order? Are there any other Tuscan restaurants in either London or Canterbury that you think that I should try? 

Press Day, Canoe Inc. A/W12: Vans, Volcom & Breo

This morning I headed over to what has to be one of my favourite press days so far, a viewing of AW12 collections of some pretty awesome lifestyle brands represented by Canoe Inc. at the Vinyl Factory in SoHo. I love Canoe because they represent a brand I absolutely love, Volcom, but first up is a brand I used to loathe, but I now kinda love: Vans. I still hate their classic slip on shoe, but the rest of their stuff is actually awesome. 

The first thing I was drawn to when I had stepped out of the rain were these awesome fluorescent Vans trainers. I really, really want a pair (they have an orange bit on the other side)! They are actually from the teen collection, but they also come in adult sizes. 

I also fell in love with these pretty awesome skinny jeans which are both classic and rather unique - they are grey on the front, but jet black on the back!

 

For the season they have gone into their archives for some pretty cool and classic prints. 

Next up, Volcom. (Yes, that is an orange-red Volcom lipstick you spy, but I'm afraid they were made especially for the press day, but I'll be sure to feature it for you as part of an outfit post sometime soon!)

The piece I loved the most was this great faux leather studded vest as part of their Volcomunity collection (look out for my first guest post for Volcomunity, Volcom's awesome lifestyle blog sometime later today!) designed by one of my favourite bloggers, Natalie Suarez from Natalie Off Duty.

Hitting the slopes for a moment, I love their bright, colourful and fun collection of ski socks. Also, the next time I head up into the mountains I need theses amazing studded fluorescent ski gloves to pair with my bright purple Roxy ski jacket. 

Finally, I discovered a great new brand this morning I had never heard of before, Breo. They make some pretty fun and funky plastic watches (as well as some great new bangle watches) that are totally waterproof and great for everything active from the gym to water sports. 

However, what I really loved from Breo were their plastic framed, street to sport sunglasses collection. They had some many great shapes, colours and styles so that you'll find absolutely anything to suit anyone in the collection. I walked away with the black pair you can see in the top of the second row - I can't wait to style them!

What is your favourite thing I have pictured here from the Canoe Inc. AW12 Press Day?

A Spot Of Tea With Twinings

For a moment, lets take a moment to do something thoroughly English and sit down to enjoy a nice cup of tea. Though I am not that big on traditional tea per-say, not a single day goes past without either a cup of hot fruit tea, or a glass of peach iced tea made up either from cold water Twinings peach iced tea bags I stockpile because I can only buy in France, or simply a glass of The Berry Company's Special Tea White Tea with Peach you can pick up in Waitrose. 

As I have been enjoying the white tea with peach so much, when Twinings offered me some of their White Tea with Pomegranate to try, I decided to give it to go and last weekend I sat down in The Miller for a cup of tea between guest changeovers.  

 

While I still think that I prefer the other teas I listed, this tea was lighter and more delicate than standard tea, and very refreshing, something every hardcore tea drinker should have around the house. 

For more information and updates on Twinings and their teas, be sure to 'Like' the Twinings Facebook!  What is your favourite type of tea?

This is a sponsored post. To read my policy on sponsored posts, please click here.