It's Official:

My summer has started - today I'm embracing my new Alexander Wang Sunglasses, baking Coconut and Macadamia muffins and celebrating the fact that I booked my holiday yesterday! Not all at once though, that could get messy...

My latest obsession is buying old ladies night dresses from charity shops and I'm really tempted to buy a few cans of spray paint and get all DIY on some old clothes. This is also a good way of putting off getting a summer job, or, who knows - maybe it could be my summer job! If you're feeling creative yourself and have some time to kill you should check out this website: LINK. It's got tons of fashion, beauty and otherwise wonderfully weird craft projects to try out - give it a go, you might even be the next creative visionary of our time!

Some of the tutorials you can follow.

A One Night Stand with Betsey Johnson

What comes to mind when you hear the words Betsey Johnson? Bows, Leopard Print, 70's punk revival? Or maybe you're picturing her trademark cartwheel down the catwalk, eyes-a-blazing and bleached hair-a-flailing? In that case, I can promise you won't be disappointed with Ms. Johnson's feisty S/S 2010 collection.

In September of last year Betsey aired the collection, entitled 'One Night Stand', at the Plaza Hotel in New York. In the true spirit of glitz 'n' glam the guests received Betsey goody bags and sipped on pink champagne whilst models rocked out to classics such as The Ramones and Blondie on the catwalk.

The mad-woman doing what she does best.

Now, as for the clothes (which, let's face it, is why we're all here) - shades that clashed in perfect harmony were teamed with geisha-like hair accessories and a ton of ruffles, plaid and print. Perfecto. Then. Just when you think It couldn't be any more ah-maz-ing, you take your eyes off the clothes to find the most impeccable back-combed hair and black smudgy eyes topped off with a side-helping of glitter.

Although the root inspiration for this collection is known only to the lady herself, I'd safely bet that the punk rockers of the day had something to do with it - channelled through the leopard print, tartan and barnets resembling bird nest's. I'd also feel safe in saying there's a burlesque element involved, hence the corsets, 50's silhouette dresses and curve-enhancing bustles (bustle...how I love that word!). A final guess, and bear with me on this one, is that there's a Eastern Asian undertone involved in pulling the pieces together. Here we go. The hair-pieces seen in the second image (forgive me, I haven't the slightest idea what they could be called) have a real anime-like quality, while other pieces resemble school uniforms and the tiny ruffled bloomers? Well, I'll let you decide...

Look of the Day

My idea of recycling clothes is digging something old out from under your bed, ripping up something you no longer wear or *ahem* borrowing from your younger sister, mother, grandma etc... This is the result.

P.s. Please excuse the dodgy editing - only had 5 mins and on almost every picture I look like I've had one too many!

1)Hair Bow: My Grans 2) Dress: Kate Moss for Topshop 3) Necklace: Kindly borrowed from my sis 4) Gloves: River Island 5) Tights: Cut-up from ordinary black tights 6) Stacked Creepers: Ebay

Silence is Over-rated

Today started out beautifully, the sun has finally decided to make an appearance and this weekend there's a Jazz Festival on in my home town. I've been after some Krave Cereal all day and am just about to get ready for tonight - Chinese food, festivals and long soaks are in this weekend...

Has anyone seen Alloy's 'Trash it or Flash it' section? I came across it today and it is SO addictive! You can 'Trash' or 'Flash' celeb's outfits, it helps with taking your fashion angst out and it's always nice to pretend your view actually matters! Go ahead, you know you want to...LINK

Here's a couple of pics from a shoot I did a few months ago, I think they came out pretty well and it was a lot of fun doing more 'fashion-y' shots.

In the next few weeks I'm so busy - finishing off exams, fittings for shoots and making a ton of headdresses! Besides, Summer holidays = more time to blog, which is always good. Anyway, I'll have to leave you now, I'm off to lust over this amazing Irregular Choice bag!

What's in my bag...

I, like many fashion-and-anything-cute-boot-or-otherwise-obsessed girls, am a bit nosy and take great pleasure finding other 'What's in my bag?' type posts. Soooo, I thought I might as well pour out the contents of my Mary Poppins-esque collection of never-ending junk (bar the trillions of crumbs and dishevelled wrappers) and share it with the world.

1. Urban Decay & Chanel Compacts 2.Body Shop Coconut Butter 3.Rosary Beads (Oh, the irony!) 4.Mark Hill Shine Serum 5.Philosophy Melon Daiquiri Gloss 6.Special Effects Cupcake Pink Dye 7.Door Keys (How glamorous) 8.Glitter Nail Varnish 9.Gustav Klimt Pill Box 10. Hello Kitty Easter Egg 11.Rings 12.Wallet 13.Maneki Neko Coin Purse

I always have too much clutter in my bag but at least I never get caught out in an emergency! What's the weirdest thing you carry in your bag?

Busy Bee!

I hope everyone had a good Easter break and that you're not all sick from eating too much chocolate! I got way more eggs than it would be wise to expect as a 19-year-old and consequently have been feeling very well done to. On Easter I went hiking and shot with my good friend and Make-up Artist Natalie Porter for a modern-day mermaid style shoot around a gorgeous place called Malham which has beautiful waterfalls and too many hills (I assure you my legs have been suffering because of that). On Tuesday I was meant to be going to the place of dreams that is Alton Towers but someone crashed into the back of the car so we ended up stranded in the nearby town of Uttoxeter, which is by no means the worst place to be stuck so I'm spending my holidays with whiplash and many many chocolate eggs. Bye bye diet!

Model: Tanya Townley (A.K.A. Ericca Ayako)

Make-up Artist: Natalie Porter

Headdress by Tanya Townley

Anyway, my 'To Do' list has been piling up and today has been spent productively - I.e. Tidying through my clothes and attending to my well over-due peroxide roots.

My efforts to de-winter and de-clutter my wardrobe in preparation for my new Rodarte pieces has paid off and below you may witness how satisfying it is to sort through your wardrobe - job well done, I know. It's fun to be nosy...

I have a bubble-bath with my name on it and a nice cup of green tea to match. Until next time,

D.I.Y Headdress

If you're feeling a bit crafty this Easter get collecting all things bejewelled and glitzy and put your creative head on. I understand these headbands might not be to everyone's taste but you can take the concept and make it as wacky (or not) as you like, you could make one for a prom or party or if you're like me, wear it every possible minute of the day!

You will need: A glue gun and glue sticks (You can get these on Ebay for about £4), Scissors, tweezers (to place things - the glue is really hot), Elasticated headband OR enough lace to wrap around your hear twice, bows, buttons, gems, rhinestones, chains, studs, badges, artificial flowers, feathers etc. You can also use old costume jewellery such as brooches and necklaces.

Get your glue gun and insert the glue. Cover your work surface and place paper between the elasticated headband, as shown below (This is so you don't glue the headband together).

Start gluing your bits and pieces in place, there's no right or wrong way to do this...

Finally,you can rock up your new very original and very special custom-made headdress!

6 Things...

I can't help obsessing over this week:

1) Rodarte for Target, how I love thee!

2) Artificial flowers

3) Miso Pretty Orchid Spray

4)Purple Glitter Eyeshadow

5) Unusual Music Boxes

6) Knee-high tights, fishnet, lace - you name it, I need it!

Chinese Proverbs

Today has been a day of tying up loose ends and letting the good times roll! I just handed my last assignment in for this semester and I'm now awaiting Easter Break (3 weeks off! Yes!). It's not been an easy day, I've been really ill and living off peppermint tea and Lemsip Max and to top it all off I got half-way home and realised I'd left all my rings in the toilets and had to go back and get them!

My Igoogle account always makes me smile, It has a proverb section and today's was so relevant! "Be not afraid of growing slowly, be afraid only of standing still." I think it's something to work by - if you have projects that you keep meaning to work on, no matter how little you get done it's a step in the right direction. Besides, good things do take time! You can probably sense I'm feeling especially inspired at the minute, and you'd be sensing right. I've got lots of shoots booked for the holidays and I'm collaborating with some really talented people, I'm also working on a project which I'm keeping under wraps for now but really excited about. Oh yeah, and, and... next year I'm taking Japanese as part of my course! How freakin' cool is that?!

This is what happens with not blogging for a week. Major build up!

P.S. This is my new favourite thing - Jasper!

Sticking with the Oriental theme which has genuinely occurred purely by chance, I'm selling these super-kitsch neclaces on Ebay at the minute, check them out!

Anyway, that's waaaaay longer than I anticipated,

Summer Boudoir

One of my favourite summer trends this year has to be wearing underwear as outerwear. This isn't a new concept to me - I thought the idea of wearing Basques as everyday tops was brilliant long before the likes of Bottega Veneta and D&G got their mitts on it. Although admittedly I'm also a fan of wearing pajama tops outdoors, too, which to my knowledge is a look that almost definitely has not been sported on the catwalk...yet. I guess what I'm saying is that originality never goes out of style and you might not always get it 'right' but anyone can simply pick a look and buy the clothes that go with it. Besides, I'm not gonna pretend for a minute that dressing up isn't my single favourite thing in the world EVER to do!

Oh, hi there gorgeous Christian Dior corset-and-slip combo!

Marc Jacobs featuring on-trend pastels.

Ah, so that's what she's yacking on about! Yes, fellow fashion-lovers, you too can indulge in your 'new' spring wardrobe without spending a penny by sporting your finest lingerie under sheer blouses and high-waisted skirts. If you haven't achieved your bikini figure yet *cough* thanks, Cadbury's Flake and Benefit *cough* this look can still work for you. See below: Sonia Rykiel for H&M body, in all its waist-cinching glory.

It seems that U.S. brand Target have hit a Bullseye (See what I did there?) with their 2009 Rodarte for Target range which I happen to be irrevocably in love with. The range includes lacy knee-highs, camisoles and a whole lot of tulle, and all from $9.99, Oh why, oh why don't we have Target in the U.K?!

You seriously have no idea how long I have yearned for that little mustard number...

To wrap things up, my take on the whole matter is that it'd be a wise idea to head out to your nearest thrift shop and invest in either a pretty silk cami or a colourful half-slip - that's an under-skirt to us Brits, and do your own thing with it. I'd be tempted to add some burlesque-style Marabou slippers to the mix for a more fun style which would be perfect for a summer picnic or BBQ.

Benefit for Flake, yes, really

Never thought I'd be writing about those two things at the same time, but there you go. Benefit Cosmetics have teamed up with Cadbury's Flake for a very generous Easter promotion which is bound to ruin many-a-diet of chocolate-loving fashionistas all over the U.K. this summer. Inside a million promotional Flake wrappers there are winning codes to be found, which can be entered online to claim either a lipstick or lip-gloss, with six stunning shades to choose from! I'm a big fan of Benefit but not such a fan of Flake's so this obviously poses a dilemma... I'll just have to find someone to feed chocolate to!