No, my Blog isn't schizophrenic!

Please excuse the ever changing style of my blog, I'm trying to find one that fits!! And anyway, didn't someone once say.....

Variety is the spice of life.

xx

Outfits: every girl needs a black leather jacket

Ok so mine isn't real leather, but I am loving it! Today I had 8hr shift in work, but that didn't stop me from wearing one of my favourite ever dresses, and my amazing United Nude boots. Expect to see a lot of these 3 items in this blog!




The people in my work place are used to the ever changing hair, and the clothes I tend to wear, and I realise I am very lucky being able to wear what I like, when I like. It enables me to buy that fabulous dress, or those mad heels, cos its not a case of 'where will I wear it?', its more like 'when will I take them off!'

Today I.....

Today I was feeling a teeny bit tender after a brilliant night out last night! But in my usual style, I woke at 7.15am, and have been busy all day.

Had to get some stuff in for everyone's packed lunches this week, but I couldn't resist a quick trip to New Look. And look what I found there!



I purchased this fabulous fake leather jacket for a cheap £25! It got a great response on Twitter, what do you think? And I've just discovered that its available online for the same price, but in 5 different colours! You are bound to find one you like, so what's keeping you?! You can buy it here.

Also, this pic can double as an outfit of the day, dress and necklace from Primark, and I was wearing knee high black platform boots from Schuh. I'll maybe wear them again tomorrow, and will get a pic of 'em then.


Spotted a fab floral dress, but didnt buy it, cos it was a size 6 and was quite a squeeze to get into (no side zip??) and also tried the wetlook leggings, which were miles too long for me!!




I do still want to try the trend of shiny Goth leggings/tights, but I think I might give in and buy some of the amazing Black Milk tights!! James is a great guy with the ability to know exactly what makes a woman look divine!

Thats all for now, thanks for reading!!

xx

My Wishlist

Flicking through a random newspaper the other day, I noticed this feathered clutch bag, from ASOS.com.  Only £25, and bigger than other clutches available, I think it could actually work for me, a woman who normally carries a bag the size of a suitcase for everyday use!






You can buy it here, but make sure you leave me one for after I get paid!

Across The Blogs

In the week since I started blogging, here are a few of my favourite posts on the blogs I follow, listed on the right hand side:

- We Are All Shoe Addicts  featured some extreme shoe porn, these heels are definitely x-rated, and I love them!!


- Makeup My Secret Obsession obsessed about the new MAC range, Style Black. I think her enthusiasm for the launch has rubbed off on me, I'm craving a greasepaint stick in black!


- Pretty Vintage thinks that Emma Loves Retro cushions, and she was so right, they are fabulous!


- Dress Junkie shows the right way to do thigh high/over knee boots, and not end up looking like Julia Roberts...!

- Shoeperwoman finds fabulous blue heels, but dont they look familiar?

- Shoegal Fi wears over the knee socks, the perfect look for autumn.  Check out those legs!!

- Talking of fabulous legs, Forever Amber makes us all jealous with her perfect pins, and fabulous studded boots, from River Island.

I hate it when.....

I get irked by things. A lot, it seems. So it was only fitting to have an entire label on my blog dedicated to things that get my back up. Todays is:

I hate it when you get an email from a shop, 

and the models are wearing the most fabulous heels, but when you check the website, 

the shoes are not for sale.

Yes River Island I am talking to you.

This morning, I felt a little under the weather, so when the River Island email popped up on my screen, I had a wee look at it, to cheer myself up. And that is when I saw them.




 Ignore, if you can, that rather nice LBD, and take a look at the shoes.  Fierce, strappy, studded, towering heel, they've got it all.  But can I get them? No. Admittedly River Island are selling some really fabulous shoes at the moment, and maybe these will be coming into stock soon, but then why show them on the email that they are presumably sending to thousands of shoe hungry ladies, like myself? Its like torture, physiological warfare, a conspiracy to get all the women of the land pining after a pair of shoes they cant have. In fact, I'm sure it must be against some advertising laws, they should state that the shoes are not available on their email.


So get it sorted,  River Island! You are selling loads of shoes, surely another pair must suit that dress too!! Stop showing me what I cant have!

The Box Cometh

Do you remember on Saturday how I was paying a little too much time on My-Wardrobe.com? Well it seems if you spend long enough on their website, enter a few numbers that you find on a plastic card in your purse, and then they will send you a really really big box!!



Inside the box, was a shopping bag, which is filled with cute little presents! they are nice, the people over at My-Wardrobe.




I purchased 4 pairs of Jonathan Aston tights, in black, smoke, teal and velvet purple. These are a great brand, relatively hard wearing, great colours, and a great price too, £5.50 on this website, but also found on loads of other sites. I also purchased the D&G butterfly, it was far too cute to pass on! and its even cuter in real life, made from 100% silk, it will flutter in the breeze!! I cant wait to try it out tomorrow.



And now for the shoes. I did mention that I'd solved my Red Shoe Shortage, and I dont do things by halves. I have also solved that I Dont Own Any Vivienne Westwood Shoes issue that I've had for a while. Ok, so they are Melissa, and they are Anglomania, but by heck they are fabulous!!!





So shiny, and pretty and strappy and fab! The perfect combination for a pair of heels. I only wish they had a slightly clawed toe, like some other of the Melissa for VW styles. I do own plainer Melissa heels, and although they are reasonably comfy, they do something odd to one of my right toes, which can hurt after a while, but I know its my feet to blame, and not the shoes!

Janine of Shoe Asylum has a pair with clawed toes, and she is also a huge fan of the Melissa rubber shoes. I'm sure she will be a tad green seeing these on my feet!! But she has Louboutins, so she wins ;)

xx

Outfits: Gold! Always believe in your sole

Today, I felt the desire to wear gold shoes, after discussing that colour last night on Twitter. These are from New Look, and are really, not very comfy cos they are too big for me!! I dont remember ever wearing them before! But I was pushed for time this morning, and just went with them. I did get more and more self conscious as the day went on with my flashy gold wedges, but with my red hair and leopard print brolly, I doubt anyone noticed my feet!





The top was from Primark, necklace from Pearl and Butler skirt from I am..... Boutique in Prestwick, purple tights from Primark.

I have just realised that I look really short in the middle picture!! My secret is out, I'm actually barely over 5ft! Because of this, I do tend to sway towards huge heels and platforms. But, as every short arse knows, all good things come in small packages. Or big brown boxes from My-Wardrobe.com......!

Favourite Websites: Love Hearts and Crosses

I do a lot of shopping on the internet, mainly because I don't drive, and I have to coax my long suffering husband to take me places, and then listen to Jack begging for more computer games, and incessantly asking 'Are we going home yet?!?!'. So I don't really mind paying a pound or two for postage, as it means peace and quiet in the long run!

One of my favourite websites at the moment is Love Hearts and Crosses, a kitsch jewellery store from the adorable Connie! I ordered one of the £10 lucky dips for a birthday treat to myself at the end of August, and I love it so much!! I received a Love Is.... necklace, a fab little trinket box necklace, 2 pair of retro earrings, and Teddy Bear earrings! So cute! I also purchased the fabulous branch necklace featured yesterday on my blog. And previously I ordered the amazing 'I love tea and cake' earrings, which can come as both the same, or one of each! Brilliant! Never have I had so many compliments on a pair of earrings before. Get them while you still can.

The items on my wish list now are:

Geek Glasses.

How cool are these? Cool enough to go on Connie's outfit for her first trip to London Fashion Week! I bet they went down a treat.

Oscar The Owl

I love owl jewellery, and already have 2 different necklaces! But Oscar looks so cute and cuddly, and for only £2? Definitely going on my next order!

Steven Sheen Lightning Bolt Earrings


Vikki from Makeup, my Secret Obsession! bought these, and they look great on her! You dont have to have fluro legwarmers on to unleash a little '80s ness*, because they are mirrored, they go with absolutely everything!

And the good news is, you can win a £10 voucher for the website!! Just check the blog for details on the Polyvore competition. Good luck!!

*Disclaimer: neither I nor Love hearts and Crosses can be held responsible for any spontaneous Nik Kershaw songs that you may find yourself singing as a result of wearing these earrings.

Outfits: I don't like Mondays

I'm going to try and keep up a regular outfit of the day (OOTD) pic, but I'm not promising anything!! Today's outfit was for a autumnal day, walking to school and then full day at work, so had to be warm, comfy, yet school gate suitable ;) I'm a firm believer that there is no need to be slummy just because you have a child/ren. Although I only have Jack, its still time consuming being a mum, and getting up and out is a struggle for all of us!

I did plan this outfit the night before, which helped, so I may try to do that again.




Dress from Dorothy Perkins, tights and necklace from Oasis, grey wedges from Matalan.

How to wear....... Draped Exaggerated Hips

I have been enjoying the trend for draped, exaggerated hips, on skirts and dresses. Harem pants I still don't understand, and don't think I ever will! But a bit more detailing on the hips can make your waist and legs look smaller in comparison, so its not all bad!

A good way to try any trend, is to buy it cheap. Primark, Matalan, New Look, whatever your favourite is, you are bound to find the latest styles in there, and for less than your weekly Starbucks spend! Primark is where I found mine, for the bargain amount of £2! Well, I couldn't say no.

Rather than buying another black skirt, I went for grey. Its a great colour, goes with just as many colours as black does, only looks less gloom, and less formal. I teamed it with a simple blue vest, cropped black jacket, fabulous branch necklace from Love Hearts and Crosses, and a pair of my favourite brand heels, Irregular Choice.





Staying tight on top is a must. You should never go for volume all over unless you want to look like you are wearing all your clothes at one time. High waisted skirts are the easiest, simply tuck a t-shirt, or shirt into it. Accessories and shoes shouldn't be too fussy, use the less-is-more approach to draping, as the skirt is the statement piece of the outfit.

One of my best friends on the web loved this skirt when I posted it, so next time I was in Primark, and I saw it marked down to only £1, I had to buy it for her! ShoeGalFi wore it more dressed up for work, with purple tank top and a gorgeous corsage. She also paired it with blue another day, I think she has a thing for blue.....! You can check out her outfits here, and here.

Satisfying my Cravings...

On Twitter, a new friend, @Emma_Cossey won a voucher for My-Wardrobe.com, £50 off a £150 spend, and as she wasn't going to use it, she very kindly gave it to me!! £100 was really my top limit, hense trying to stick to the budget.

Lets just say, I put it to very good use.  More information when my package arrives!! It would be safe to assume that I will soon have A pair of red shoes, but which ones do you think I should have bought?

Emma (the other one!) has just started blogging for Shoewawa after the change-over. So make sure you still feature it in your daily blog reading. I am very glad that it has survived the hoo-haa, it was the first blog I ever started to follow daily.

Its Simple, you just buy me the boots.......

These Carvela boots have stolen my heart. Just look at them.

Perfect does not come near!! They are like a mullet, business at the front, party at the back! They feature a rounded toe, platform, have cute little laces, and are quite manly in their styling. At the front. But turn them round and you have one of the sexiest heels I have ever seen in my life. And I've seen a lot of shoes.

Wow. Just wow. They kinda look like drawing pins, or in actual fact, looking at them now, dont they look like replacement heel tips, only the wrong way round? Its about time designers got back to the classier stiletto heel, although I am first to admit that I do appreciate a chunkier heel, to make a shoe much more wearable.

The only hang up? The price. Isn't it always. £160 is all that is keeping these beauties off my feet. Kurt Geiger, and Carvela may be doing some cheaper shoes, but their top end prices have gone sky high. £550 for a pair of boots?!?! I'd rather have a pair of Louboutins dahling ;)

Current Cravings

I'm feeling like its about time to bankrupt myself, so what better way to do that than spend all the money I have at www.My-Wardrobe.com! I have previously purchased a Vivienne Westwood top from them, and Tweeted the opening of the box. With pictures. Riveting stuff, I tell ya. I had the whole world glued to their seats, months before Derren Brown. I think he stole my idea but, you know, me and D are like THAT close, so I'll let him off with it this time. But if he starts a blog sale, I'll have to kick his ass.

I'm trying not to spend more than £150, so I've set my eye on the following:


Black Rats £93
Yes, I know, I'm a bit slow on the uptake, but its taken me this long to grow to love them. Constantly seeing them on Polyvore, and Kingdom of Style and the like, I've decided that I do in fact love them too.


Ash Red Secret Shoes £37
I don't actually own red shoes, I know, shocking! But I think these could fill the void, the angular heel makes them that little bit more special, and the peep toe is perfect for all year round wear. Bargain.


D&G butterfly brooch £20
Dolce & Gabbana for £20. And its cute as a button. Need I say more?

Those 3 do make a nice round £150, but I also love these:


By Malene Birger Necklace £130
I adore how this looks! I would wear it with everything, would love to make this my signature piece.


Melissa 3 strap heels £110
Again, self explanatory. These red heels would make my life complete. I might never need to buy shoes again. OK, so we all know that's not going to happen, but its the reason I would give Mr J for spending all our money.

What do you think? Please leave me a comment!!

Wow, I'm committed to this.....!

Wowzers!

Seems I set up a blog many many moons ago, and never posted to it again!! Whoops. Must. Try. Harder.

Well, so much has changed in the past 3 years! I'm now married (Mrs JJ to you, thanks), Jack is 7, and in P3 at school, I never ever get a chance to watch tv, and I wouldnt be able to go to bed if I didnt have a book to take with me! We got another bunny, the gorgeous Bruce, he is the only addition to the immediate family, but I'm also an auntie for the first time, to the adorable 3 year old Steven. He is hard work, but lots of fun.

As for being a shoe addict, well that hasnt changed much! Only the fact that I've also become a shoe snob, and hate buying cheaper shoes, which has been a costly transition. Thank goodness for eBay!

I've also recently bought my first Vivienne Westwood dress(es). That decided it. I am a Westwood gal, through and through. Its amazing how just wearing one of her dresses can lift your mood, and make everything look and feel better! She does things for a woman no man could ever do! Try it, you wont go back .

I'm now a Twitter Addict too. Seriously, I could attend a different support group every night of the week, and still not exercise all my demons. I blame giving up smoking. If I still smoked, my addictive personallity would be satisfied, and although I still wouldn't have any money, you might actually be able to see my bedroom for clothes, shoes, and accessories! Bring back the Woodbines!! Also, if I was a smoker now, I would totally be using a long cigarette holder. My only regret before i gave up was that I never got to try one of those. Le sigh.

So anyhoo, over the next few weeks, I will be listing stuff on here, hoping to clear some room, and save up to buy myself something really special for christmas. I've had a shitty year. I deserve it!! So please do tell your friends, neighbours, and cross dressing boyfriends (what, you didnt know.... sorry) that Emma the Shoe Addict will be having a Blog Sale!!!!

xx