That There Londinium.

Phew! Where have the last few weeks gone? How long has it been? Two and a half months? What?! Well I'm back. One dissertation, three essays, two exams, one house move, and a graduation later I have caught a couple of minutes to write to you about a little trip down to our capital I took on 27th May...

You may have read about it from the other lovely ladies I met that the 27th May was a little meet up of vintage lovers and bloggers in London. The weather was truly glorious (as it is right now!) and London was buzzing on the sunny bank holiday. Myself and Adele (of My Last Dollar Dress) travelled down from the north and met the other ladies on Brick Lane where we explored the vintage shops there before venturing to Crouch End. I personally did not buy anything but the other troopers made some purchases - my personal favourite being Ruby Armoire's hat from Crouch End.

We finished the day off in Joe's Kitchen in Camden town for a cocktail or two mmm...

 One thing we did notice was the amount of attention that we got throughout the day. We hardly expected to go unnoticed all day but the amount we did get got kind of...frustrating. It got especially annoying when we were harassed for photos by people in Camden thinking we were some kind of tourist attraction. I don't know. We should expect that kind of attention because we do look different, but the constant flash of cameras and iPhones being stuck under our noses began to grate after about half an hour. How celebrities do it I do not know...

Well, that was our trip in a nutshell! I hope there are more to come in the future! I think now would be a jolly good time for you to all go over and visit the other ladies' blogs and say a quick hello!

Mel at Incendiary Blonde

Emmie at My Oh Sew Vintage Life

Hollie (aka The War Bride) at We'll Meet Again

Hannah at A Brighton Belle

Waves On D-Day.

Phew! I have been working my little tush off recently! Yesterday I completed my dissertation - all 9,562 words of it! That's not to say my toils are over, I still have two more massive assignments to complete, but come the 22nd May I will have completed my university life and will be out there in the big wide world.

Here it is, my finished baby...

Look at it all bound and looking official!

In other news, I tried out a new hair set this week and utterly fell in love with the results. It is much looser than the more 50s style I usually wear but is just as elegant. I think it has quite a late 30s early 40s vibe to it which is something I've never achieved before. I used bigger foam rollers (I'm going to guess they're about 1.5") and set them around the base of my head at the back, and then in two rows on the heavy side of my hair so I could structure in the wave the next day. It's the first time I've set a successful finger wave so I was pretty chuffed - the photos really don't do it justice!

Definitely trying this set again soon - I might even do a tutorial for it over on my Youtube channel!

Ananas & Palm Trees.

I had a spare hour or so this week in between lots of reading, writing and tiki business to go shopping. I'd been informed by some people over on Facebook that Topshop had some great tiki stuff in. Well, that was excuse enough for me! My work wardrobe needed a bit of spruce up anyway, and topped off with the lovely spring weather that has finally arrived, it was off to town I went!

First off I spotted this pineapple design dress in their beachware section. I think it's supposed to be a beach dress you wear over a swimsuit, but it works fine as a regular dress too - if a little short! I was most surprised by a) the price (a mere £25!) and b) the size (usually I am at least a medium in Topshop, sometimes reaching over into the large spectrum). I went off to the changing room with a medium and a large but had to ask the assistant for a small! I can't deny that it didn't feel good! It is pretty much backless, and I'm sure with the right bikini top it'll look fab, but for now I've just teamed it with a bandeau top from New Look.

(I must apologise for my hair in these photos; I'm trying out a new Aussie product which combines texturing and conditioning so its a little beachy at the moment)

Secondly I found this dress with a cut out midriff. I expected to be a 14 because Topshop busts  in a 12 are usually too small for me, but alas the 14 was too big and so I tried the 12. Perfect! I love the design of Polynesian beach houses and palm trees, and the colouring is bright enough for work but not too garish to wear elsewhere! This one was slightly more expensive, but within the regular range of Topshop dresses, at £36. The amount of wear I'll get out of it though makes it completely worth that extra £11!

Other outfit additions:

Bamboo bangles by Bow & Crossbones

Hair Orchid by me

What do you think?

Have you found an tiki treats out there this spring?

Mahalo xx

Sunday Soundtrack.

Sunday for me is all about mellow music to help me recover from the hectic nature of the Saturday night before. Ever since I was little this soundtrack was usually brought in the form of some kind of jazz, and I've continued this onto my adult life. And, as it would be her 98th birthday today, this Sunday's soundtrack is brought to you by Billie Holiday. If I could sound like anyone when I sing, it would be this amazing lady...

'Summertime'

'Them There Eyes'

'A Sailboat In the Moonlight'

Poster Girl.

I'm currently in the process of buying little tit bits to decorate my new house with - y'know, that house I haven't got yet, but have designed in my head. Come the end of June, I'm no longer a student living in digs, but hopefully a fully matured 'adult' living in a proper abode. Terrifying. Anyway, yesterday on a trip to Gunwharf Quays in Portsmouth I bought these mounted posters from a stall in their little market place called Southsea Gallery (you can shop online or visit them in their shop in Southsea). They were £5 each, or 5 for £20.

I plan on finding some cheap frames to fit them so they can hang proudly on my walls!