Human sea

Snow in London

2012-02-05T22:45:00.004Z

Coat: vintage early 1960s from Mod Human Vintage
Beret: market stall in Paris
Blouse and cardi: charity shop
Skirt: American Apparel (not seen)
Tights: Marks and Spencers
Boots: River Island (old)

This weekend my family came to stay from Norfolk. On Saturday we went to see the Grayson Perry exhibition The Tomb of the Unknown Craftsman at the British museum, which I highly recommend, and today my Dad took Jian Wei and I to IKEA and we bought three Billy bookcases for our lounge which look amazing crammed full of our amalgamated book collections. It snowed quite heavily last night for the first time this winter and this made the weekend even more special.

Marguerite Gisele

2012-02-01T11:57:00.003Z

Last night I stumbled across this absolutely beautiful blog and felt compelled to share it with you all as it's such a mine of untapped inspiration. The eponymous Marguerite has the perfect sixties kiss curls and vintage wardrobe, not to mention a to-die-for balcony and browsing through her beautiful photography is the perfect way to beat the winter blues! She is also just like a modern day Anna Karina.

I could go on posting photos but I think I'll leave that to Margeurite...

Extracts from my Grandpa's sketch books

2012-01-26T00:22:00.004Z

During the summer I came across some battered brown leather books underneath my parents' bed and subsequently spent half an hour poring over the hundreds of tiny illustrations I found within.

My dad identified then as having belonged to his father, a grandpa I was never able to meet, and yet through his sketch books I feel I was able to capture a glimpse as to who he may have been and how he perceived the world. Some of the things that particularly drew my attention were how similar his illustration style and sense of visual humour are to those of my own dad and how he, too, must have found cats deeply comical. The 1920s and 1930s references are also quite charming, such as the little bobs and cloche hats that feature in some of the drawings.

One for cat lovers all over the world:

Etsy update

2012-01-19T00:24:00.002Z

1980s sage green silky pussybow blouse - medium

AQUASCUTUM rust cashmere and wool coat - medium

1970s Liberty print maxi dress - medium to large (adjustable)

Sage green wool and angora fleckled sweater - medium

1980s perfect brown suede leather skirt - extra small

1990s jungle canvas festival rucksack / backpack

1960s pure new wool rust boat neck jumper - medium to large

1970s mustard calf length skirt - extra small

Finally, some new items added to the shop, shot in a new location. I apologise for the inconsistent lighting, the British weather was not on my side today.

Expect lots more to come!

New year

2012-01-01T17:35:00.003Z

Coat and cardigan: H&M
Blouse: thrifted in Manchester
Skirt and tights: Primark
Belt: L.K Bennett
Monk shoes: Topshop
Velvet headband: American Apparel (Xmas gift from Jian Wei)

Happy new year all!

I hope everyone had an enjoyable evening and that 2012 holds lots in the way of luck, health and happiness. I'm looking forward to seeing The Nutcracker on the 14th of January, visiting a friend in Amsterdam, hopefully going to Malaysia in the summer, meeting my new nephew or neice due in July, studying lots of literature, growing things in the garden and greenhouse, going on lots of adventures around London and enjoying my new home more and more every day. We have recently acquired a sofa, a proper coffee machine with a spout for milk-steaming, a Dualit toaster and have a real open fire and I cannot say I have ever been happier in my new location.

I spent New Year's Eve in with Jian Wei and his mum and sister who came to stay for a few days. During the day itself we went to Notting Hill, pottered around Portobello Road and had mulled wine in a friendly pub. You may recognise Maisy in the bottom picture from her blog, Little Miss Maisy.

Photos by Jian Wei.

Christmas

2011-12-11T20:08:00.004Z

Last night Jian Wei and I had some friends over for Christmas nibbles and mulled wine. It was lovely and we now have enough mince pies, Dutch Advocaat, stilton and satsumas to keep us full until the New Year. I wore the gold beaded 1960s dress I found in a charity shop in Richmond but I am much more excited to reveal our freshly painted lounge for the first time!

Dr Martens Corin shoe

2011-11-30T00:47:00.004Z

I was probably the only child in rural Norfolk who was sent to school in black patent DM boots with rainbow coloured laces and yet I haven't worn the brand since, despite my enthusiasm for them as an eight-year old. I have tried on the brogue styles in recent years but always found they looked a little like clown shoes on my rather narrow feet. These Mary Janes, however, are part of a consciously lightweight selection of reworked original styles with thinner rubber soles and a narrower width. I think they'd be lovely paired with all sorts of tights and dresses and I would absolutely love a pair if Dr Marten happens to be listening!

The Corin shoe is part of Dr Martens Refined collection for women.

Christmas shopping in Richmond

2011-11-26T23:47:00.005Z

Coat, tights and shoes from Topshop // Breton top and velvet skirt from charity shops

If you've got a few pennies to spare, Richmond is the perfect place to go shopping. It has everything central London can offer, from some designer brands such as Margaret Howell and MaxMara to high-end highstreet stores such as Whistles and Hobbs. Throw in more restaurants, cafes, wine shops and posh delis than you could shake a bread stick at and you've got a good idea of what this very affluent town in Surrey has to offer. In the summer it's lovely to take a walk along the river and enjoy the Green but in the bleak midwinter it's the Victorian shop fronts and little alleyways that are its true calling. And there are some absolutely jaw-dropping properties to drool over, the majority in the three-million pound range...

We actually failed slightly on the Christmas shopping front although I did find myself a rather spectacular vintage dress in Oxfam.

I was absolutely stunned when I found this at the back of an otherwise uninspiring clothes rack in a fairly sparse Oxfam as all the other charity shops we had pottered around were staggeringly overpriced and were overwhelmingly full of near-new Russell and Bromley and Hobbs items. Clearly not a rumble-in-the-jumble style experience. And yet, at £17.99 this dress was a true bargain because you would pay three times that price, at least, for it in a vintage shop AND it's hand tailored AND it fits me perfectly AND it's 1960s gold lace and beaded all over with a pointed collar and semi-sheer sleeves. Mmm. It's got Christmas written all over it. And did I mention it weighs a ton? A bit like a very camp suit of chain mail. I can't wait to wear it at my Christmas party!

Home inspiration: white living spaces.

2011-11-23T19:49:00.006Z

For those of you who follow me on twitter, you will no doubt be bored stiff of my tedious DIY updates, after all, there is only so many times 'spending today painting the lounge white' can provide a captivating insight into my mysterious inner world. That said, decorating our lounge is taking up pretty much every spare minute of my life and is consuming my thoughts: I find myself getting angsty on the Tube to slip into some paint-encrusted clothes and get the emulsion flowing as soon as I get home. Whole weekends have been spent chipping cork tiles off plasterwork and rollering bright orange walls white: removing the worst remnants of the psychedelic 1970s in pursuit of a tranquil blank canvas in which potted plants, colourful artwork and flea market finds will provide all the colour and decoration. I am still a long way from completion - curse you cork walls- but the following images are keeping me going and I just cannot wait to post 'before and after' photos when I'm finished. It's a big job and even though we know we won't be here forever, it will increase our wellbeing while we are here and I'm sure will be well worth the raw knuckles and temporary chaos when it's finished.

If you'd like to see more of these sort of images, Jian Wei has a tumblr dedicated to Midcentury Modern interiors, cactai and white rooms you can view here. I'm not afraid to admit that that was where I found all of these images.

Marianne Faithful, 'As Tears Go By', 1965

2011-11-09T17:09:00.001Z

I spy Salvatore Ferragamo 'Vara' pumps

2011-10-30T13:41:00.004Z

Maria of Custard Heart Vintage shows off her enviable mock croc Varas.

Over the past couple of months I have been becoming increasingly obsessed with the iconic Salvatore Ferragamo Vara pump. Not only is it the chicest 'sensible' shoe I have ever encountered, it can be reliably found in the wardrobes of the most stylish women in the blogosphere and beyond.

Ashley Ording of Fancy Fine and Alexa Chung team their Varas with pretty pinafores.

Invented by Salvatore Ferragamo's eldest daughter Fiamma in 1978, the Vara was marketed as a 'sporty and elegant pump' to fit the busy lifestyle of the modern woman and, with its 1.3 inch block heel and array of colours and textures, it has certainly succeeded. At £240 they do not come cheap and yet every single blogger except me seems to have thrifted at least one pair at a heart-wrenchingly low price. Even still, if my obsession continues with the fury it currently maintains, I may well fork out for a pair as they seem like such a great investment and no shoes appears to work better with vintage outfits.

Islabell of A Fine Day For Sailing demonstrates how the shoe moves seamlessly through the seasons from Autumn to Summer.

Foxtail and Fern's Hannah uses her varas to complete her chic and studious style.

A Fine Day For Sailing

The Salvatore Ferragamo website only appears to stock the vara in black calfskin and black patent (unfortunately with a silver centre rather than a gold) although more colours are available on a variety of other stockists' websites and, as I have seen everything from navy to peach patent styles worn by bloggers, I am encouraged to believe that the entire spectrum of colours can be found in vintage and charity shops. I can only hope it's true.

Part III : Malaysia (Penang)

2011-10-26T20:31:00.003+01:00

The final installment in my series of holiday photographs and where better to start for the spirit of Hallowe'en than in a colonial graveyard? We stumbled across this strange and enchanting cemetery on a day trip to Georgetown on the island of Penang where we spent the final part of the holiday lying in the sun, playing table tennis and going into anaphylactic shock after being stung by jelly fish (Jian Wei).

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In order to get to Penang, Jian Wei and I took an overnight train from Singapore to Kuala Lumpur, another impossibly slow-moving train to the last scrap of mainland before taking a quick ferry to Penang. The second train took us right through the jungle although, if I could offer one piece of advice to people embarking on a similar journey, pack a jumper because the air conditioning was brutal despite it being sweltering outside. (Also handy for nippy airports.)

We were reunited with Jian Wei's Dad, brother, sister, step-mother and younger half-brother and sister for five days of relaxation in an, albeit congestested, tropical paradise.

Yummy street food and awesome signage in Georgetown.

Part II : Singapore

2011-10-12T20:57:00.003+01:00

The second part of our trip involved us taking an overnight train from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore where we spent three days exploring this unique city-island-state, a very different place to the one I had imagined. I was delighted to find that my previously held misconceptions of an eerily clean and regimented distopia were unfounded and that the city is richly colourful and vibrant, embracing several cultures along with its colonial history in a way that Malaysia doesn't appear to.

Jian Wei and I spent hours wandering around the cool colonial decadence of Raffles Hotel. With its chic bars, secluded palm gardens, rooftop swimming pool and delicate murals it is easy to visualise Somerset Maugham and Ernest Hemingway sipping Singapore Slings at the height of the hotel's chic 1920s heyday. How I would love to be able to spend just one night in this magical place...

Part I : Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur)

2011-09-26T10:41:00.003+01:00

I've finally got round to uploading my holiday photos. The above pictures were all taken at Jian Wei's grandparents' home in central(ish) Kuala Lumpur. The house was built in the sixties/seventies' and was cool and spacious, full to the ceiling with midcentury furniture and Chinese antiques, and situated in a lush garden of banana leaf and cheese plants. At night time we could see the glittering Petronas Towers from our bedroom window and in the morning hear chanting from the nearby mosque.

Jian Wei's grandparents were absolutely adorable and so hospitable and every morning introduced us to a new local fruit; ranging from mangosteen to rambutan to durian: the King of Fruit. We could get up whenever we fancied and saunter downstairs to find everyone reading leisurely, sprawled out on the large assortment of chairs (there were at least twelve in the room), beneath the rotating fans on the ceiling. Breakfast would consist of roti carnai, pancakes with curry, or toast. All washed down a mug of Nescafe made from a three-in-one packet as the idea of milk seems anathema to Malays.

I had the most wonderful time here and Ah Ma and Ah Kong were so kind to me, it felt such an honour to explore their lovely house and to be taken under their wing.

A lot of durian. A fruit with the texture and taste of melting blue cheese and the proclaimed 'king of the fruit'.

Kuala Lumpur itself is a chaotic, noisy and verdant city with plenty of charm and palm trees, crumbling colonial architecture and a inner city monorail. Beneath the shimmering skyline are densely populated China Towns, Little Indias and Malay markets where food is evidently the catalyst for every form of social activity. The food halls and street vendors sell a variety of fusion cuisine and odd confectionary (blue sponge cake anyone?) and you can buy everything from a fake Chanel handbag to a locally produced batik dress. I was very tempted by the impossible quality of the Chanel 2.55s...

The next installment of this photographic series will be of Singapore. All photographs taken by myself using Pentax MZ-M.

A second spring

2011-09-11T22:13:00.002+01:00

COS jumper // Topshop Boutique jeans // Thrifted silk shirt, loafers and bag // vintage leather belt found down back of wardrobe in my new house

I wore this outfit, featuring my gorgeous new COS jumper - a birthday gift from Jian Wei - to Judy's Affordable Vintage Fair in Bethnal Green on Saturday. The fair was enormous and set in a really interesting old bath house with masses of stalls and a vintage tea party. I saw lots of lovely things however, as my vintage tastes are turning ever more towards the pre-1960s, I naturally gravitated towards everything that was simply not affordable. My sister Cassie fared much better: despite possessing a slightly apathetic approach to vintage clothing she returned home with forty pounds' worth of leather satchel and Levi's cut-offs. The peanut butter cupcakes are also worth a mention of their own.

The belt pictured is something I've been meaning to share for a while. A real leather waist belt is something I've been meaning to acquire for a while so I was absolutely over the moon when I discovered this ancient one whilst Jian Wei and I were moving the 1930s/40s wardrobes in our new bedroom. As our current home has been in my family for over three generations it gives me great pleasure to think it must have belonged to one of my family members and, as it goes with everything, I have been wearing it non-stop since discovering it. It even has a brass buckle!

We've been trying so hard to get our bedroom decorated and it's been a mammoth task as the walls were completely covered in cork tiles and magenta paint in the seventies. As the tiles were peeled off they either took chunks of plaster off the wall with them or exposed lumps of fossilised brown glue which we've had to use a stain block to conceal along with up to three coats of white emulsion. Still, after poly-fillering like mad and sanding 'til our fingers bled (almost), we are almost at a stage of having a completely prepared room for the final and most important stage - painting the perfect shade of pistachio green.

All photos by Jian Wei.

From the first summer in London

2011-09-10T20:39:00.007+01:00

A bumper post of pictures taken throughout July and August when Jian Wei and I were first moving things down into the new house, not to mention stalking each other around with cameras. Malaysia and Singapore pics are now on their way! Hope you're all enjoying the beginning of Autumn.

Twenty-three

2011-09-07T11:32:00.005+01:00

Today is my birthday and here is a little documentation of my earliest years, from birth to primary school. My manager noted that in the above picture my mum doesn't look as though she's just given birth and put this down to the fact that, as I was her sixth baby, she was a dab hand at the whole process by this point. Also, would you have thought she was forty-two in this picture? At some point I will have to scan in some of the amazing pictures my parents have of themselves, friends and family in the sixties and seventies as their wardrobes were incredible.

Teeny tiny dreadlocks and diet of kiwifruit signalled the transition from babyhood to toddlerdom.

I wonder whatever happened to this 'Dulcie' jumper. Also, note how disastrously home-cut fringes have remained a recurring trope throughout my twenty-three years.

On the right I am pictured with my younger sister Cassandra. She is currently staying with me for two weeks while she undertakes a two-week work placement at Chessington Zoo. Yesterday she involved feeding baby meerkats with a bottle!

I have today and tomorrow off work and I am celebrating my big day with a small dinner party. I should be making bannoffee pie as I type but instead I am enjoying some lamented blogging time (and a Sailor Jerry and coke...) I am so sorry I have been so absent around here but I now have my own laptop (and charger!) here in london, a functional printer-scanner, camera and packet upon packet of developed film to scan and upload so blogging will hopefully find some space to squeeze in among working three/four days at L.K Bennett and studying my masters part time. Speaking of L.K Bennett I bought myself a wee birthday present (or two) there yesterday (using my uniform allowance) and came home with a beautiful leopard print pony skin leather belt and the perfect grey marl wool cardigan with 'v' neck and geeky pockets. I will be wearing them at work for the next six months along with my FREE items yet I am confident that I will wear them for many years to come as they are such classic pieces and the quality is top notch.

I will endeavour to blog tomorrow featuring pictures of my birthday presents. I have a little stack of gifts piled on the table and I am saving them for later...

L.K Bennett

2011-08-16T18:05:00.007+01:00

As some of you may know I have recently started working part-time at L.K Bennett. Prior to working there I had little knowledge of the company so I thought I'd introduce you to some of the items I've been eyeing up during my long shifts spent limping around in the requisite high heels.

The Cordua blouse

The Anna bag

The Genevra belt

A variety of loafers including the styles Greek, Berkley and Clifton.

The Sledge and the Selina shoe

You might be jealous to hear that I'll be getting my uniform next week which includes a free dress and pencil skirt and then discounts of up to 70% on any other items.

Since my first day at L.K Bennett last Thursday I have worked five days in a row, all eight hour shifts. Everyone I've met who works there seems really nice and it's generally a very laid back atmosphere and I'm really enjoying it so far. Today is my day off and, although my long-desired lie in was destroyed by the council deciding to dig up the road in front of our house, I spent my morning doing a little bit of charity shopping and finally picked up my holiday snaps from Boots. Tomorrow it's a 5am start followed by having some London pals (Tali and Lottie) over for dinner in the evening after work... if I am still alive. To join in the rush hour commute is to truly be initiated into London life!

London riots

2011-08-10T20:41:00.004+01:00

I am still reeling from the past four nights of arson, looting, vandalism and murder. My local area, Ealing, was directly affected with many businesses looted and cars torched. Yesterday I wandered along the highstreet, amid a tangible atmosphere of apprehension, among the boarded up shops and restaurants and forensic police officers feeling utterly despondent.

Perhaps most distressing of all is the plight of an unidentified Ealing man lying in intensive care with life-threatening head injuries after attempting to put out a street fire. The arsonists beat him unconscious and stole his wallet - along with any hope of identifying him - and no contact has yet been established with his family.

Many theories are being thrown around in regards to the cause of such social upheaval but I am genuinely bewildered as to how much cruelty can be inflicted in so short a space of time. Luckily we appear to be over the worst and the positive scenes of spontaneous street cleaning is uplifting in an otherwise extremely bleak period.

I feel so much sorrow for all those who have had their livelihoods vandalised and ransacked, those who have seen their homes and irreplaceable memories go up in flames, those who have been assaulted and to those who have actually lost members of their families. But as my mum reminded me, there is always far more good in the world than bad. I truly hope so.

Photo credit: Gavin Edmonds

What I wore: Hot hot heat!

2011-08-05T18:41:00.010+01:00

Sunglasses: RETROSUPERFUTURE // Dress: bought in China // Cardigan: charity shop

Mary Janes: New Look // Vintage necklace: gift from Jian Wei years ago //

Bag: stolen from Jian Wei's mum's attic.

This is what I wore on what transpired to be the hottest day of the year, reaching a whopping thirty degrees centigrade and god-knows-what on the Underground. I made a minor error in wearing a heavy wool dress and veritably melted on my way into central London for a spot of Brick Lane shopping and lunch with Jian Wei. I discovered a bizarre vintage shop called This Shop Rocks which combined a jumble sale style shop floor with stunning pre-1960s clothing nonchalantly flung in rummage bins alongside highstreet brands such as H&M. It actually made me quite upset to see such delicate fabrics treated with so little respect - torn and ratty on overstuffed rails - and was literally astounded to see that many had price tags exceeding £100. Surely if one is in a position to treat oneself to a gorgeous vintage frock the shopping experience should be a little more indulgent that simply selecting the least abused item from a basement floor? Charity shops and carboot sales are exciting precisely due to the potential of uncovering some treasure amongst the rubbish, but vintage boutiques should value their wares and display it accordingly. Especially if they are pricing in the three-figure range.

I bought the cream leather Mary Janes from the New Look sale for a measly £5 in the sale and I absolutely love them. Mary Janes are always so pretty and classic. The vintage necklace is a little like the teardrop necklace I remember from the children's book A Necklace of Raindrops and Other Stories by Joan Aitken I use to be in love with when I was little. Jian Wei bought it for me for my birthday a couple of years ago from a wonderful antiques showroom in King's Lynn called The Old Granary. It's one of my favourite places to get lost in when I'm home. The cardigan is falling to pieces but it's too cute to throw away!

As you can see I'm still enamoured by my Lucias and - touch wood - haven't lost them yet.

Yesterday (not the same day this outfit was photographed!) I was supposed to have a half-hour trial shift at a rather posh womenswear shop in Covent Garden. As it was pouring with rain the manager rescheduled me for a two-hour trial on Saturday and informed me I must wear heels. He also stressed the need for 'grooming' and informed me that if 'grooming' wasn't my thing then the job really wouldn't be right for me. Should I be offended?

What I wore today: RETROSUPERFUTURE Lucia sunglasses

2011-08-02T17:52:00.005+01:00

Sunglasses: RETROSUPERFUTURE // Vest: Primark // Skirt: Thrifted // Sandals: Topshop

My skirt is in desperate need of an iron but, as I had only just returned from my holiday, I wasn't too fussed and was far too keen to show off my new(ish) RETROSUPERFUTURE Lucia sunglasses! I say 'newish' because I actually bought them prior to leaving for Malaysia but actually never wore them once while away, they just felt too new and precious and I was terrified of leaving them on a bench somewhere while visually preoccupied with more exciting things, (as Jian Wei did with his beloved Wayfarers in Singapore.) So, here is their first official outing: wandering around the garden searching for signs of vegetable life amongst the slugs and brambles.

I bought the sunglasses after much deliberation and eventually obtained them from the eyewear suite in Liberty. The frames are an unusual blend of tortoiseshell and mother-of-pearl and are just so pretty. I'm so happy they are mine especially as I will have to be extremely thrifty for the rest of the summer whilst I hunt for a job in London.

I also wanted to show you my rucksack, it was a graduation gift from Jian Wei's mum and sister Maisy and it has such an adorable equestrian print on it. I love it and it is so practical for when you need your hands free: rummaging around charity shops for example.

The skirt was one of the last pieces I thrifted in Manchester and I scored it for a mere £2 in The Dead Shop aka Mr Ryan's World Famous Second Hand Shop on Oldham Street. It's real wool and a gorgeous colour though a bit of a squeeze on the waist and I managed to tear it whilst making my bed. I shall most likely be repairing it and adding it to the shop once I have all my stock in one location and am able to reopen its virtual doors. On the subject of skirts, I had rather good luck in the charity shops this morning and found the perfect high-waisted black leather skirt for £4.99. Unfortunately it's about an inch too tight on the waist and I can barely breath in it, let alone walk so she will also be making her way - along with a fuscia pink leather crop top - into the shop asap.

It's strange to be back 'home' in London, especially as the weather is so unnaturally glorious here at the moment but I'm looking forward to being in one location for a few weeks and really 'getting on' with the house. There is so much to do and I really don't know where to begin but the wardrobe seems a sensible place to start. I'm looking forward to blogging regularly and am very excited about the four rolls of film I have waiting to be developed from my adventures in Asia!

Home sweet home.

Photos by Jian Wei.

I'm back...

2011-08-01T17:32:00.001+01:00

...and look who was waiting for me.

Aria Parfait Guest Post

2011-07-20T22:31:00.011+01:00

Hello! My name is Sienna Parfitt and I run the blogs Burnt Parfait and Aria Parfait. Aria Parfait is a brand spanking new vintage shop opening July 22nd, 2011 and Burnt Parfait is an amalgam of design inspiration, carnet de voyage, adventures in art and pure randomness.

Dulcie and I internet bonded over our mutual love of vintage clothing and photography and a few weeks ago (in anticipation of her trip to Malaysia and impending absence from blogland) asked me to guest post. I'm tickled pink to be here and will take this exciting opportunity to shamelessly plug my shop with fun pictures of a few of my favorites.

Thanks to Dulcie for my little sojourn here at Human Sea!

Con-grad-ulations

2011-07-14T12:14:00.003+01:00

Yesterday I graduated from the University of Manchester with a 2:1 BA (Hons) in English Literature. After a 5.30am start and four hour drive to Manchester in my parent's rather decrepit VW campervan, the ceremony itself felt like a whirlwind of butterflies, nausea and incorrect robe wearing and was over in, what felt like, minutes.

I really loved the robes and felt very sad when I had to give them back.

My parent's, sister Cassandra and I.

How adorable were these little graduation cakes complete with icing scrolls and, on the chocolate version, mortar boards!

I wish everyone on my course the best of luck in their futures and every success and happiness.

After the ceremony and reception, Jian Wei and I got the train from Manchester to London (£45 each for a single ticket WITH a student railcard and NO SEAT until Milton Keynes... daylight robbery without precedent.) and spent the night at our new place. Jian Wei has just gone to pick up his younger sister Maisy who will be spending the night with us before we leave for Malaysia tomorrow morning! It may get very quiet around here but I promise you one thousand photographs when I get back. Be prepared for palm trees, orangutans and retro swimwear.

Capri

2011-07-08T16:31:00.005+01:00

Although I have absolutely no desire to even contemplate AW11 trends yet, something about this picture encourages me to believe that patterned capri 'pants' - I itch to say 'trousers' - teamed with skinny knits and adorable booties will be my go to outfit come September. You can view the rest of Topshop's preview trends on their website.

How do you feel about AW11? Do you consider it blasphemous to get dewy-eyed at the prospect of wrapping up hats and scarves again when leaves are still firmly on the trees and the sun is shining? Or do you eagerly await the new season's trends and necessities?

William's Yard

2011-07-03T20:02:00.006+01:00

Vintage 1940s dress // vintage necklace // Topshop cardigan and espadrilles

I have been blogging AWOL for so long despite having masses of pictures both developed and on the memory card but - as I am currently somewhere in the no man's land between my old student house, parent's home and new house in London - am only sporadically able to post anything. I am currently staying with Jian Wei's mum and sister Maisy in Derbyshire and on Friday we celebrated the opening of their gallery! They have recently made a giant leap of faith: leaving Norfolk for the Derbyshire Dales and renting out their house to students in order that they might have the opportunity to fulfil their ambition to open an art gallery and run a variety of photography and painting courses for all ages. The Gallery at William's Yard exceeded all my expectations and I was truly blown away by how much they have achieved in so little time. They have really inspired me to consider opening my own bricks and mortar shop one day too and I wish them every ounce of luck during this difficult economic time. If you're ever in Melbourne, Derbyshire you simply must drop by!

This is the outfit I wore for the grand opening, a champagne fuelled evening which drew in a substantial crowd. Jian Wei and I even acquired our first piece of art, a mountain scene reminiscent of Ed Rusha by Sheffield based artist, Joe Mallia. I am sure I will put a photo of it on here soon as I am rather proud of it, I think it's incredible. The dress I'm wearing could just be my favourite dress I own, I bought it from a market stall at Broadway Market in London Fields and I blogged about it back here when I first bought it. I fell so in love with the print and the Art Deco buttons and it felt so good to finally have a chance to wear it, although I discovered it's so easy to wear I'm sure I'll be getting a lot more use out of it over the coming months. It's also my first vintage dress from the 1940s and I am keen to acquire more.

I am leaving Derbyshire tomorrow evening and heading back to London, from there I am immediately traveling to my 'home' home in Norfolk to embark on some serious packing and moving before graduating from University in Manchester with Clare and Charukie, heading back to London and flying out to Malaysia for two-and-a-half weeks! Although the coming month will be incredibly busy I will try and get the shop reopened as soon as possible and catch up on my blogging. Please bear with me!

Etsy Update

2011-06-22T22:00:00.004+01:00

vintage 1980s AZTEC oversized tee - small / medium / large

vintage 1970s BURGUNDY maxi dress (coming soon)

vintage 1980s PINK HARLEQUIN cotton dress - small to medium

vintage 1990s NAVY MARL stretch crop top - small

vintage 1990s PINEAPPLE print blouse - small to medium

vintage 1980s ROBIN'S EGG blue silk t-shirt - medium to large

vintage 1990s PASTEL GINGHAM highwaisted shorts - small

New items in the shop kindly modeled for my by my younger sister Cassandra. Despite these pictures, she actually has no interest in vintage clothing or charity shopping which is a shame because we get along so well in other ways. My other younger sister gave me a copy of photoshop two days ago and hence the more professional format of these images. I am very much a novice and cut away the background using the eraser, it's taken me about 60 hours and so please don't expect me to maintain these standards in future shop updates. But I had to start somewhere and so it was a good exercise.

For these items (and more!) click on the links below the pictures. Blog readers get an extra 10% off by entering HUMANSEABLOG at checkout. Happy shopping!

Sewing Project: 1950s beach bralette Pt.II

2011-06-18T22:32:00.003+01:00

Since finishing university, and moving temporarily back into my childhood home, I have set up station in my Mum's conservatory. It's the most beautiful room, full of exotic plants that have been steadily growing for decades and naturally - as a room made entirely of glass should be - is bathed in glorious natural light. There is a marble table with sockets directly beneath it and so it is absolutely the perfect place for embarking on all manner of creative projects and I have now completed my first ever dressmaking project: the 1950s beach bralette.

I picked up where I'd left off and repeated all the stages illustrated in Part I to produce an identical bra shape. (An outer and inner layer.)

Having got myself into a complete pickle attempting the strap on my last attempt, I was surprised to get it wrong all over again, in a completely different way. This time I didn't fold the fabric correctly and so ended up with the wrong shape and had to cut it in half and sew it together in the desired shape. Consummate professionalism.

I then folded the piece in half, sewed the edge of the point and then clipped it.

When turned inside out the pieces magically took on this shape:

I then basted the remaining raw edge of the strap into the front piece of the bra.

With the strap attached the bralette now looked like this:

And back to the sewing machine to seam the front and back sections together.

First the bottom and then the top. The pattern instructions recommended it the other way round but I was so terrified of accidentally sewing the strap inside that I decided to just bluff my way through at this point.

And here we have the completed body. The final steps were to ensure the fit and to work out the correct positioning of the buttons and buttonholes. This was rather tricky and I had to unpick the buttons and reposition them in order to get a 'secure' fit.

I recycled these buttons by cutting them off an old pair of Primark knickers that were falling to pieces.

Please excuse the dreadful button holes.

And here we have the finished article! I'm quite tempted to make some highwaisted knickers to go with and just go the hole hog and wear it as a 1950s bikini. Or perhaps I should make matching shorts or a circle skirt perhaps. What do you think?
Today I bought three yards of peach cotton from The Fent Shop in King's Lynn. It cost £18 and it feels like a rather extravagant purchase now but it is such beautiful fabric and I intend to make a simple feedsack dress AND a simple circle skirt and to still have lots of fabric left over so I don't feel too guilty...

Are you working on a sewing or craft project at the moment?

Natural history

2011-06-11T17:57:00.003+01:00

Recently developed film but less than recent adventures in Manchester and London.

I am currently packing up my room and so this shall be my last post from Manchester, I shall no longer be a Manchester blogger! This makes me feel a little sad as I have enjoyed the last three years here so much and I will have to say goodbye to some truly lovely people that I have lived with or studied alongside. Manchester is such a great city, it's compact and yet offers so much and I shall miss it dearly although I'll be back July 15th for graduation!

Now, to pastures new...

Lukasz Wierzbowski for Urban Outfitters

2011-06-04T14:41:00.003+01:00

I really like these photographs taken for Urban Outfitters by Lukasz Wierbowski. I like how he brings a playful and irreverent approach to the notion of fashion photography and they've inspired me to attempt a similar lookbook shoot for Human Sea Vintage over the summer. You can view the rest of the photographs here on the Urban Outfitters website.

There's still a 30% off sale happening at Human Sea Vintage. Just enter MOVINGHOUSE at checkout and help me to reduce my inventory as I make the move from Manchester to Norfolk to London. I currently have lots of peter pan collar blouses, sixties dresses and mary jane shoes in stock so grab yourself a pretty bargain for summer!

Sewing Project: 1950s beach bralette Pt.I

2011-06-03T21:23:00.005+01:00

Welcome to my first ever sewing project! I have never attempted dressmaking before but it's something that I so want to be able to master as I'd absolutely adore to be able to make my own clothes, especially considering the abundance of vintage patterns there is on Etsy. I thought this 1950s beach bralette top would be a good place to start as it only consists of three main sections and the instructions seemed fairly comprehensive. I used a metre of a pretty ditsy floral polycotton I bought for about £3 in the Fent Shop in King's Lynn. It's a veritable Alladin's Cave for knitting and stitching enthusiasts, is a bit of a relic on the Playmobil-like revamped Vancouver Centre high street and is always immaculate inside with reams of fabric and truly knowledgeable staff. Unfortunately I haven't been able to find anything like it in Manchester, Abakhan's is really no match: it's absolute chaos inside and the poor-quality fabrics are strewn in metal bins across the floor.

I began by tracing the pattern onto greaseproof paper and cutting the shapes out. I then dutifully pinned them on the fabric which was folded according to the pattern requirements.

I cut around the shapes with my IKEA scissors.

Et voila! (At this point I din't realise that I had misread the pattern and that I would need double the pieces as the top needed to be lined, eek!)

Using a tapemeasure and the edge of a postcard after discovering that I do not have a ruler to my name, I marked out the darts according to the pattern.

You're probably not supposed to use biro for this task but I did it on the underside of the fabric and so hopefully it won't be too much of a problem.

I sewed the darts on one cup by hand as it was pretty late at night and I didn't want to keep my flatmates up with the terrible din of the sewing machine. I was also having difficulty threading it all and actually making it work, I was getting close to just smashing it to pieces so thought I'd reattempt after some sleep.

And here we have the two completed cups. It's amazing how something as simple as a dart can bring a flat piece of fabric to life and make it 3D.

I then placed the two cups on top of each other and sewed the edges together along a half inch seam allowance to connect them in the middle.

I started to get quite excited by this point as it started to take shape and actually look like a piece of clothing! Two minutes later I had sewn on the sides.

I then attempted the strap which went horribly wrong as I'd cut the fabric out as two separate pieces instead of as one piece, with a fold in the middle, as the pattern read. Unfortunately, I only found out after I'd sewn some peculiar fabric snake and had beaten my brain to a jelly trying to make the instructions work with my incorrect shapes. So I decided to call it a day. I will have to repeat this entire procedure and then baste and hem the two cups-with-sides sections back to back and then make the strap and finally sew button holes and sew on the buttons. I reckon I could do it in another afternoon when my exams are over but I just can't face it right now! When it's completed however, I intend to wear it with my periwinkle blue chambray circle skirt or perhaps attempt some bloomers or highwaisted shorts to go with it?

Have you sewn anything recently?

The Royal Wedding

2011-06-01T18:24:00.003+01:00

I've only just got round to scanning in these pictures and in the future I will aim to keep my posts in greater synchronisation with actual events! My flatmate Lizzie accompanied me down to London for the big day and we went, along with my boyfriend and his flatmate, to Hyde Park Corner to watch the events on the big screen. There was a really lighthearted atmosphere of truly benign nationalism, a sort of festival meets family day out complete with ferris wheel, burger vans and music.

At Hyde Park Corner we met up with my old friend Lottie and her boyfriend (just seen on right) and flatmates. As an inhabitant of the Sandringham Estate back home, she is rather used to Royalist festivities and also, I should note, is the most amazing chef and when I'm lucky she cooks for me in her parents' beautiful eighteenth century house in the middle of the forest. On this particular day she brought along the loveliest scones with jam and clotted cream...

The planes were so cool and flew right over our heads!

This little girl reminded me a bit of Karen from Outnumbered.

(I couldn't resist. I hope my children are just like her.)

Afterwards we went to Lottie's flat in Holloway Road and had a barbeque, enjoyed some glorious sunshine on the terrace and stayed up late reminiscing about school and everything embarrassing that had ever happened ever.

30% off moving house sale!

2011-05-30T13:40:00.003+01:00

As I'm sure many of you will have gathered, I'm moving from Manchester to London in little over two weeks! I desperately need to whittle down the boxes of clothes I have stuffed in every crevice of my increasingly damp room. That's not to say the clothes are damp - they are sealed tightly in vacuums - but the heavy rainfall of late, combined with a domicile that receives approximately one hour of sunlight per day and has a glistening damp patch nearly two metres across, on the wall parallel with my bed, has resulted in an environment which is a little on the grim side. I wouldn't be in the least surprised to walk in one day to discover stalactites hanging from the ceiling. It literally is a cave.

So, please take 30% off all my vintage threads by entering the code MOVINGHOUSE at checkout. The discount even applies to items in the $10 sale and so, yes, I am literally giving things away! I shall also be adding things from my own chaotic wardrobe as I downsize and pack and attempt a zen-like harmony of simplicity in what is essentially a wardrobe concealing a mound of knotted garments, rags and litter.

Happy shopping!

With balconies and bicycles

2011-05-23T12:26:00.004+01:00

Vintage cardigan from charity shop // Blouse from China // Jeans by Topshop Boutique // Crochet bag from Oxfam

An outfit from a day spent pottering around the Northern Quarter, drinking oreo milkshakes and hunting down straw bags. I found the seventies' cardi in a charity shop in Sheffield when visiting my sister a couple of months ago. It was only 99p and is the best shade of mustard ever. Unfortunately I snagged it really badly when pulling it out of my locker at work but it still has some life left in it. The jeans are a recent purchase with uniform allowance, not the best fit but beggars can't be choosers. I bought the bag about an hour before from the Oxfam emporium and the blouse was bought for peanuts on my gap year in China.

I'm spending this week at our new house in London, intending to do some hardcore revision in an internet-free zone (and to keep things alive in the greenhouse) so it may get a little quiet around here! But I have lots of pictures in various stages of development and so expect a flurry of posts once my exams have been sat.

Hope you're all enjoying some sunshine.

Peeps

2011-05-12T15:10:00.001+01:00

Some sneak peeps at our new house in London, all photos taken by Jian Wei.

My late uncle was immensely green fingered and so his house is full of plants and, to my adult delight, wonderful examples of midcentury design just everywhere! From the cork tiles on the walls to space age legs on furniture, the house is a veritably untouched sixties time capsule. I cannot wait to move in and I'm also getting concerned that it might be a house full of dead plants if I don't go down to London soon and give them a drink. Once I've found if work have granted me the holiday I requested, I'm planning on spending a little over a week there as an internet-free study retreat.

Recent acquisitions

2011-05-09T18:17:00.004+01:00

Pretty little vintage Mary Janes that will be trotting into the shop shortly.

I bought this Liberty print peter pan collared top in a hurry and changed my mind when I got home. I thought I'd pass on the discount and so if it takes your fancy I'm offering it at £20 (plus £1.50 postage UK or £3.50 international) whereas in store it would cost £34. It's brand new with tags attached and is a UK size 8. It's from Topshop and you can see all the details here as it's current stock. Although it's from the petite range I didn't really notice any difference from the standard sizing and it has a 36" bust and measures 23" from top to bottom. If you're interested send me an email and we'll arrange paypal payment.

I'd been hoping to obtain a couple of straw/crochet bags for the summer and miraculously two came along at once. As they're both from Oxfam, my wallet is smiling and I just love the fact I have a choice between 'colourful' and 'neutral'. I think the one on the right will be just perfect with outfits involving bretons and navy whereas the one on the left is more suited to seventies looks. I actually have an outfit post on the way involving it, I just need to find a reason to trek into town and get the film developed...

Penguin Classics are always a joy to own especially when they have funny phallic sci-fi illustrations on the front and the espadrilles are my new perfect sandals! I got them as part of my new season's work uniform for Topshop and I think they're a rather sensible investment piece. They're incredibly comfortable, the perfect mix of a sandal with just a pinch of height and I love the simplicity of the leather and straw. (Although I'm not sure if 'straw' is the correct technical term?)

Jian Wei went back to London this weekend and it's just been dawning on us that this might be his last visit to Manchester to visit me as a student! A rather alien thought to come to terms with after three years of to-ing and fro-ing and certainly bittersweet. I have plenty of revision to keep me busy until my finals (on the 31st of May and 8th June) but I'm also itching to 'get started' on our new home in London. But this evening I'm reading Bram Stoker's Dracula, for the final seminar of my degree tomorrow, and making roast Mediterranean vegetable pasta with goat's cheese. Nom.

Celery green coat

2011-04-27T23:00:00.004+01:00

A sneak peak at my beautiful new coat I treated myself to this afternoon from Mod Human Vintage on Etsy. I've wanted a midcentury coat for so long but as it's quite tricky to find them in smaller sizes I thought I'd pounce now and stow it away for next winter. It's incredible what quality you really can afford when you buy vintage: when an acrylic coat with a viscose lining will set you back about £85 in Topshop, £38 really isn't too bad for real wool and satin. And if it's looking this good at approximately fifty-five years old, it's clearly built to last! Let's just hope celery green is my colour.

Have you acquired any beautiful vintage recently?

Cut stone and blossom

2011-04-25T16:19:00.002+01:00

Topshop top // Thrifted vintage skirt // Cut stone necklace // Topshop sandals

Deeply enjoying the blossom.

Does anyone else have strange feet with the second toe longer than the big one?

I am officially over half way through my dissertation! Hurrah! Part of my procrastination has involved creating a tumblr for this blog, it'll be a little pictoral scrapbook where I can collate all the images I enjoy on the internet. If you're interested you can take a look here.

The top I'm wearing has been one of the best purchases I've made it a while, I never seem to invest in plain jersey and so never seem to have anything to wear. I've realised that plain jersey is the missing link in outfit building. I thrifted the skirt last year from the Dead Shop for £2 and this is the first time I've worn it, it's pure nineties goodness. Ooh and I cunningly bought the sandals in the Topshop winter sale for a mere £5 and hid them away in a draw, I think I'll be getting a lot of wear out of them this summer.

Also my boyfriend's delightful sister has recently joined the blogosphere! If you're interested in reading about her charity shop finds and general adventures in life the follow Little Miss Maisy. She's a truly adorable human being.

The IOU Project

2011-04-22T22:56:00.006+01:00

One of my new year's resolution was to try and shop more ethically, ditch the high street and start taking a greater interest in where, and by whom, my threads are made. The IOU Project is on a mission to break our consumerist reliance upon mass-produced and unethically sourced cheap clothing, in a word disposable fashion. And, if the aesthetics of their promotional video are anything to go by - I just love the sixties' letter fonts and luscious earthy shades - the clothes could be very exciting indeed.

You can sign up for more information here and please note that this is not a sponsored post.

New hat, new chair, new degree

2011-04-16T14:38:00.003+01:00

I found this hat for £5 in Ryan Vintage on Oldham Street and I absolutely love it, mustard yellow is one of my favourite clothing colours and the hat is the perfect size for my head which means it doesn't squash my fringe down beyond my eyes. It was clearly fate.

This chair was another purchase from the same day. I'd spotted in before in the furniture section of Pop Boutique, also on Oldham Street, but wanted to get Jian Wei's opinion on it before I splashed out. I say 'splashed out' but it was only £25 which I think is a bit of a bargain for such an eye-catching piece. I know that in London it would've cost at least double that price, it's the perfect blend of midcentury design with a Hawaiian kitsch feel. I can't wait to position it next to a giant dragon plant in our new house in West London.

On Thursday I received a conditional offer to study an MA in English: 1850 to present at King's College London. I am absolutely overjoyed as in my heart it was my first choice, I've also applied to UCL but realistically I feel I won't be getting an offer and so King's became the university I spent the most time stalking on google maps. It's slap bang in the centre of London and, from what I have ascertained, you have to cross the Millenium bridge to get from one side of the campus to another. From the classroom windows there are views of the London Eye and the Houses of Parliament, it's also where John Keats studied. Jian Wei also studies in London, at Central Saint Martins, and so it'll be so wonderful to be able to meet up for lunch or go and read together in the Jazz cafe in Foyles. After three years two hundred miles apart it just seems impossible that, not only will be be studying in the same city, we'll also be moving into a house together. A house with a garden and a greenhouse! We have big plans to buy a handmade hammock from Guatemala, have barbecues at dusk enhanced by lantern light and cultivate a crop of exotic fruits in the greenhouse. I'm so excited about my life!

The park gates will close at dusk

2011-04-13T18:48:00.006+01:00

H&M Breton top // Topshop midi skirt // Topshop sandals // Primark belt

On Saturday we had the most glorious sunshine here in Manchester and the parks were full of people having barbeques and enjoying the warmth. Luckily for my flatmates and I we live directly opposite one which is very handy for nipping back to use the loo and for getting drinks, nibbles and for changing into increasingly minimal clothing. My flatmate Lizzie, with her English rose complexion, managed to ~~get sunburnt Brits abroad style~~ catch an impressive amount of sun for an April afternoon in England's greyest and wettest county.

Jian Wei and I nipped to LIDL and ate a continental style picnic just outside our front door complete with Magner's pear cider (!) (it took me a long time to finish mine, I was still sipping away whilst watching iplayer in bed) and I attempted to make an improvised rasberry cheesecake. Lidl's unorthodox interpretation of cream cheese however failed me when it turned out to be closer to a form of sour yoghurt and scuppered all my plans to making a dessert that would set.

The top I'm wearing is seriously worn in and I've been wearing it almost every day since I bought it two years ago with Clare. I obtained the skirt for my last set of Topshop uniform, it's actually gone down into the sale since but it's the most beautiful cut and fabric so if you do come across it, I heartily recommend buying it. I also bought the sandals from the winter sale at Topshop, they were reduced to £7 so with my staff discount about a fiver - a rather thrifty purchase seeing as they're real leather and oh-so-cute with the bow tie. I also bought two other pairs of sandals which I'm slowing bringing out, blinking and pale, from where they've been stored for the last four months in my bottom drawer. The faux leather belt was £2.50 in Primark and I've been wearing it to death ever since I brought it home. It's made me realise how crucial such overlooked accessories really are to a successful outfit.

I'd also like to take this opportunity to say a warm 'hallo' to anyone who has started following this blog recently, I value every single one and every comment I get serves as a gloriously welcome distraction from my dissertation writing!

All photographs by Jian Wei Lim.

Day trip to York

2011-04-12T14:05:00.007+01:00

I'm wearing a vintage 1960s/1970s dolly dress from Retro Rehab in Manchester, grey ribbed tights from Primark and black patent child's shoes from Topshop.

On Saturday Jian Wei and I went on a day trip to York. After Manchester its easily my favourite city in the North of England: it's steeped in history, the architecture is beautiful and it's full of lovely walks and unusual shops and friendly tearooms. The fact that the sun was shining and it was a glorious day made it all the more enjoyable and Jian Wei and I stumbled across our dream place to live...

Isn't it just the most idyllic street? Located within the Medieval city walls and basked in sunshine, with the following image as the view immediately opposite, this row of Victorian houses completely stole my heart.

We spent the morning pottering about the Medieval walls feeling quite vertiginous at times, ate lunch outside an Italian restaurant that used to be an old girl's school, did a little charity and antique shopping and I bought a 1930s pistachio green jug for my future home. Jian Wei invested in his first 'mantique', a 1920s flask which at £9 was our find of the day, until the oddball shop keeper began an enthusiatic rendition of his xenophobic views and we made a hasty exit. Can anybody else believe that you don't see the quintessential English gentleman walking around in London anymore with his cane and bowler hat? Our shopkeeper seemed to blame Japanese tourists in York solely for this demographic and social shift. I don't really understand why he was hoping to find shared beliefs from a mixed race couple, one of whom at least had the potential of actually being Japanese.

And a few more obligatory tourist snaps...

In other news, the lovely Hannah of Foxtail and Fern featured me on her blog today!

All photography by Jian Wei and myself.

Vignettes

2011-04-06T23:52:00.005+01:00

This is undoubtedly a 'filler' post but, while I write my dissertation, I'll be plumbing the depths of my photographic archive for blogworthy material. Although Jian Wei is coming to stay this weekend and I've bought train tickets to York so will hopefully have some nice pictures from our day trip to put up on Monday. I also bought a new sixties dolly dress to wear, as a little treat to myself for handing in my final essay of my degree! (Bar the dissertation of course...) What are your plans your next day trip?

All my own photography.

Mulberry Spring Summer 2011

2011-04-05T20:07:00.003+01:00

MULBERRY from park village on Vimeo.

How lovely to be showered in petals whilst wearing the the most perfect trench coat in the entire world.

BNWT £125 Topshop Boutique dress for sale!

2011-04-03T17:43:00.003+01:00

Just a little heads up to let you know I'm selling this dress on eBay now with a starting price of 99p. It's a UK size 12 in immaculate condition with full tags attached. Auction ends this time next week. Click here for the listing.

I have plans to auction off a lot more of my old clothes soon, I just have to get my deadlines out of the way and then I can get on with organising my life.

Absence

2011-03-29T20:27:00.004+01:00

I'm not going to have any time for blogging this week as I have an essay deadline on Monday along with a presentation on Djuna Barnes that also has to be given on that day. I've began my day shifts at the library and my progress as so far been slow. I have a meeting with my tutor tomorrow which I'm dreading.

Once I'm all handed in on Monday I'll have a little leeway to do fun things although I'll also have a dissertation to write. I'm keen to get some bits washed, mended and into the Etsy shop before I get sick to death of them. I might do a spot of thrifting on Monday too if I'm feeling inspired after so long in the library... We'll see.

Photo taken by me.

New dresses

2011-03-23T23:27:00.004Z

I've acquired some utterly uneccesary but resolve-crushingly pretty vintage dresses of late. This one was £43 from a small stall at the Broadway Market in London. I managed to haggle it down by two pounds but the stall holder was a complete nightmare and refused to drop by even an extra 50p, so convinced was she that another buyer would pay through the nose for it. Oh well, it comes with a little bolero cardigan and the print and the art deco buttons are just divine and the condition is sublime. I don't know about you but this isn't the sort of vintage I come across regularly in the UK, even most highstreet vintage shops stock little from before the sixties and the majority of stock tends to be the classic highwaisted levi cut offs and plaid shirts. You can't tell from the pictures but the dress has the most beautiful shape with a nipped in waist and full skirt, it's definitely something I will treasure forever. For me it just embodies the colour of spring, all those fresh buds and daffodil stalks.

I love how detailed the print is, how cute is the flower pot? And in places it has little deer running through the flora! I estimate it's midcentury.

This pretty 1940s lace wiggle dress is something I ordered from Fruit Salad Vintage a while ago but it got held up in customs for ages and I had to pay £9 before I could retrieve it! It was totally worth the wait though, it feels so ancient whilst retaining a very modern overall silhouette and feel. I've got a really pretty 1940s cornflower blue brimmed hat I bought off eBay for five pounds, including postage, and I really want to wear it with that on hot summer days on trips to nice places like Kew Gardens and antique shopping in Angel Islington. Preferable with some sort of low plaited bun and a few wisps of hair peeking out.

I love the colour of the silky lining and it was only twenty quid which is really quite reasonable considering a dress in Topshop has a starting price of £38 and certainly doesn't have seventy years of longevity built in! I can see it hanging in my wardrobe - make that wall! - as long as I'm alive. Imagine how pretty it'd look against a pale pistachio painted wall...

Have you bought any pretty things recently?

Royal Holloway

2011-03-15T21:14:00.004Z

Today I received an email telling me that I have a conditional offer to study the English Literature MA at Royal Holloway, University of London. The campus is just breathtaking and the prospect of studying there is so exciting. It's said to be built in imitation of the Château de Chambord in the Loire Valley and I love how fairytale it looks. Just imagine it in the snow!

Photo source.

Nervous Side Glancer

2011-03-14T19:14:00.006Z

Late night Etsy trawling can result in some surprising purchases.

I've never been a fan of stuffed toys or teddy bears but when I stumbled across this strange 1930s/40s goblin-like elf baby, I was strangely endeared. Is it something about the Mabel Lucie Attwell style toddler face or the pointy hood that gets me? I'm not sure if I can put my finger on it but I do think it's adorable in a really creepy-but-cool kind of way and I've certainly never seen anything like it before.

In the description I was advised to check out the other listing as she apparently 'likes to travel with friends'. I did ... and didn't really take a fancy to either the faceless Amish doll or the painted plank of wood - I simply had to get the Nervous Side Glancer out of there. (Although if they are your cup of tea nip over to Poco's Playhouse.) And at ten quid, I'm sure it'll make any interesting bedroom feature. Although she is quite sinister. And painfully cute.

What do you think? Have I lost the plot?

Etsy Update

2011-03-12T17:18:00.009Z

Rich Espresso and Buttercream

Buttercup and ~~Lilac~~

Dusty Rose and Sea Foam

San Paula and Hendricks

Christabel and Duck Egg

Pretty vintage items all available in the shop now. As of today, readers of my blog get an extra ten percent off any purchases they make. Just enter HUMANSEABLOG at checkout and revel in the fact that there are no time or usage limits to this discount! Thanks for dropping by.

The little beautiful things

2011-03-11T00:46:00.002Z

All photography by me.

Gingham and daffodils

2011-03-07T19:50:00.003Z

Today was so beautiful out and so I made the most of strolling in the sunshine, running errands and buying a few long overdue birthday presents for disgruntled family members. I noticed that some of the daffodils are starting to open in the park and in Blackwell I managed to find three books on Gothic literature each reduced to a pound so it was a blissful morning really. Two of the books were over twenty pounds originally and so my eyes nearly popped out of my head when I saw the one pound stickers. I had to ask the shop assistant if it could really be true! There were only about five books on sale on a low, hidden shelf and of that five three were totally relevant to my course and so I was extremely happy.

I love everything in the outfit above and would love to own that Monki dress if only they had a store in the UK. As for the A.P.C cardigan, some late night internet shopping led me to a brown wool cardigan by A.P.C Madras reduced from £152 to £4o and so that little beaut, which they only had in stock in my size, is currently on its way to me. A good neutral-coloured wool cardigan is always a good investment to make.

The tender place

2011-03-03T23:57:00.004Z

Vintage pea jacket // Charity shop
Vintage navy wool flares // Thrifted
Vintage boots // Cow vintage
Stripey scarf // Handknitted by my little sister

A couple more pictures from my weekend including spending time with Jian Wei, cooking+eating and ragging my hair for the first time with the help of Hannah's tutorial. I was so thrilled with the results and it really truly works so I'd definitely recommend giving it a go, especially as it works on dry hair and so there's no heat damage to worry about! I also love the way you can control the size of the curls by simply using smaller or larger chunks of hair in each 'rag'. Have you tried ragging your hair before?

His new found orchid

2011-02-28T21:44:00.006Z

Vintage coat // Charity shop

Vintage scarf // Charity shop

Silk blouse // Charity shop

Blue boatneck sweater // Topshop

Velvet skirt // Primark

Tights // Primark

Patent t-bars // Topshop

Vintage camera bag // Given to me by my Dad

Jian Wei came to stay this weekend and we spent Friday pottering around the Northern Quarter, drinking Oreo milkshakes in Oklahoma Cafe and I found a handful of treasures in my favourite secondhand shop including some mint condition duck egg blue sixties knickers which, alas, do not fit me and so will be making their way into the shop when I have my next, albeit long overdue, listing frenzy.

We had made grand plans for a day trip to York, but we woke on Saturday feeling lazy and so we popped next door to take in the Mary Kelly exhibition at The Whitworth Art Gallery which was very text heavy and so assuredly deserves another visit. We then wandered down to The Cornerhouse and ate aubergine and goats cheese salad with flatbreads before watching Howl which we both thoroughly enjoyed. There really seems no end to James Franco's abilities as he head on tackles the roles of actor, writer and scholar - one can't help but marvel at his motivation skills.

Sunday was (another) lazy day spent submitting my postgraduate application forms - wish me luck! - followed by Dominoes' pizza and some frantic reading in time for this morning's 9am seminar on Ezra Pound's Hugh Selwyn Mauberley (of which the title of this post is taken.)

In the pictures you can see the cotton sweater I got with my most recent uniform allowance and my most adored black patent t-bars. They are identical to the sort of shoes I used to wear to school when I was seven except they had a little window in the heel and a tiny key you could insert and turn to reveal a secret image! I have memories of my mum pulling me by the hand as I threw a tantrum in the middle of the highstreet when she, initially, refused to buy them for me. I'd like to say I'm less of a brat these days but...

Jian Wei got the train back to London this morning but I have him to thank for the beautiful pictures he took on a Pentax K100 he borrowed from his flatmate. You can see more of his pictures over on his own blog.

Charles Anastase AW11

2011-02-21T15:52:00.005Z

Hats off to Charles Anastase for compiling my ultimate fantasy Autumn/Winter wardrobe. (As if need an excuse to spend even more time already trawling Etsy for vintage velvet.) It may be sadistic to be poring over AW11 trends before the daffoldils have opened but the weather today in Manchester is so nihilistic, so bleak and so grim that I am far more inclined towards heavy fabrics and damp English colours than I am to any ironic notion of Spring!

Who else thinks Alexa Chung will be the first one to get her hands on this velveteen jumpsuit? Isn't the colour just gorgeous?

I now desperately want some skinny wool trousers in earthy shades.

I can imagine there'll be a fair few high-street spin offs of this but none will be as heartbreakingly delicate. If I had to pick one piece though, in a parallel fantasy universe, it's have to be the very first dress. The high neck, slightly cropped long sleeves, swingy skirt and gold embellishment details tick ALL my boxes.

All pictures from Style.com.

Fun and games

2011-02-19T03:03:00.001Z

Some pictures from the end of the summer featuring my adorable neice Freya and gorgeous baby nephew Oliver.

Hopefully we'll be seeing some of these soon.

2011-02-19T01:55:00.002Z

Do you like my new blog layout? I've been playing about with it and it still needs some work but it's so lovely to have a layout that really does your photos justice. I shall certainly have a greater incentive now to scan in my prints and let you see them. These were taken last spring at my home in Norfolk. I don't think I'll be able to go back this year for the whole Easter holiday, what with a dissertation to write and money to earn, but hopefully I'll be able to get back for at least three or four days. If only for the photographic potential of my mum's beautiful garden.

Etsy Update - Tangled up in blues

2011-02-18T15:06:00.003Z

~SOLD~

New items all available to buy now in the shop. It'll be pink's turn next week.

Lazy cat ring by Aprimiao

2011-02-18T00:55:00.004Z

Just how unbelievably cute is this?! I desperately want one...

Each one is handmade and available from Hong Kong firm Aprimiao.

New Topshop uniform for spring 2011

2011-02-15T20:20:00.003Z

Today I went into town with a mission to purchase sensible, versatile uniform pieces that will have as much longevity as is possible for Topshop clothes. I set myself the challenge of not being led astray by prints, as they are easily identifiable and thus date quickly, and not wasting money on anything too 'precious' to actually wear to work. This has happened so many times before and I regularly find myself listing the said items on eBay in a desperate attempt to claim back some of the money I flushed down the loo. So, today I was a very good girl and stuck to all my rules, bar one - the 'no prints' constraint - and only spent £47. (I'm entitled to three pieces at 60% off every three months.) I'm really excited to try out the midi-length skirt trend this spring/summer and so I'd had my eye on the skirt for a while. It's made from a really beautiful fabric actually and feels really buttery between your fingers. It was the priciest item at £50 full price and so would have been a far too risky piece to buy if it hadn't have been full price.

On my way to Topshop I popped into one of my favourite second hand shops and found a delightful 1960s pink babydoll dress hanging from the ceiling. Upon closer inspection it revealed itself to be a type of dressing gown/ elaborate bed jacket but it's absolutely adorable and reminds me of something Hannah would wear. It's in need of a good soaking to remove the stench of death but then it'll make its dreamy way into the shop. So long as it doesn't grow on me...

Of a grey silent world.

2011-02-14T13:16:00.007Z

Tweed trench // Topshop
Blouse // Vintage from charity shop
Velveteen skirt // Vintage from charity shop
Tights // Primark
Ballet pumps // Topshop

On Wednesday I returned home to Norfolk to attend a trial in which I was a witness. Luckily, as all three witnesses turned up, the defendent changed his plea to 'not guilty' and so was charged without us having to enter the courtroom. I can now walk the streets of my home town without fear of reprisal!

Whilst back, I took the opportunity to rampage through the ever-bountiful charity shops that, pretty much, outnumber high street stores and which, as per usual, didn't fail to provide. This blouse was originally intended to make its way into the shop but, after trying it on, decided that it was truly mine. It was a little pricey, ha! at £2.45 but this was because it included a skirt, which, as I instantly knew I'd never be able to wear or sell, I donated back to them. This particular charity shop had a sale on and so many items were a pound that I temporarily lost the plot but, in the end, whittled my purchases down to about five items including a cream silk blouse for 99p (!!), a lovely wool blazer for the shop and a periwinkle blue rayon blouse with exactly the same shaped Peter Pan collar they sell at American Apparel. This will also be heading to the shop with a medley of other blue toned items I desperately need to get photographed and listed. The other charity shops also yielded and I shall photograph my other purchases once I've got my MA applications finalised. I feel slightly overwhelmed at the moment with how much I have to get done...

I spent from Thursday to Sunday in London with Jian Wei and he bought me Vivienne Westwood perfume as a surprise for Valentine's day. Feeling really guilty I treated him to a cotton sweater in Cos, a fantastic store I'm currently raving about. I'm sure I'll dedicate an entire post to it some point soon, don't get me started on the chambray dungarees they do. They're adorable. We spent most of the time being lazy, occasionally milling about Regent Street and Liberty and eating aubergine flatbreads at Flat Planet which has amazing sixties decor. I wish my life could be this nice all the time.

Happy Valentines Day to you all. I appreciate all my readers so much and think everyone should spend the day doing something indulgent. xx

Love Baby Grand

2011-02-06T21:16:00.011Z

I just stumbled across Love Baby Grand on Etsy and couldn't restrain myself from sharing images of their beautiful bespoke undies with you straight away! Each of these designs will be hand tailored in your size and posted to you within two weeks of ordering from their base in London. I love their combination of Liberty prints, silk ribbon fastenings and intricate florals. In fact, I'd happily own everything on their site in exchange of my own scrambled drawer of threadbare Primark cheapies and knotted tights.

There are also plenty of playful, yet tasteful, Valentines Day suppliments on their pretty website including black heart tassled MADE TO ORDER (!!) pasties and silk and lace eye masks which I can guarantee you are more stylish than anything you'll pay through the nose for in, the increasingly tawdry, Ann Summers.

Another thing about this company I so admire is their just how their mission statement is to produce lingerie that can be 'enjoyed by women all over the world'. How refreshing to see a company, that errs towards the erotic accessories market, stressing the importance of the female customer's enjoyment of the product. Satisfying the male partner by recreating the sort of costumes encountered in pornography is not the priority of Love Baby Grand, their 'number one rule is that [they] don't sell anything that they wouldn't desire for themselves'. The majority of the erotic lingerie mainstream, including the Ann Summers chain, prefer to use pornography as their sole inspiration and thus, heaving bosoms, faux-bronzed limbs and gaping, glossy mouths have become the template for their advertisements in an imitation of the images we encounter on the front covers of lad's mags.

Just compare the use of a non-caucasian model, with a petite frame and minimal make-up, depicted in a series of relatable backdrops - as is the case with Love Baby Grand - with this image from Ann Summers lingerie collection.

The model's gaze is turned away, there is no eye contact with the potential customer and her back is arched, displaying her body to its full potential. The heaving bosom is ostensibly surgically enhanced, the hair is dyed, the eye make up heavy and that choker? Gah! She is surrounded by studio lights in a heavy suggestion of performance: presumably either stripping or pornography. The underwear itself is frankly grotesque and, as far as I can comprehend, the only reason a woman would want to wear it would be to satisfy a very masculine imagining of female sexuality somewhat tantamount to this:

Again we see the same averted eye, proud presentation of the breasts and even similarities in the appearances of the two models: almost identical bodily proportions, hair style and make-up. This picture, however was taken from Nuts magazine and not from a website with a principal clientele of women and with a mission statement to 'make women feel good about themselves and their sexuality' (Jaqueline Gold, Chief Executive). But how exactly? By selling them products to assist their transformation into the contemporary ideal of 'hot' which, from the images we overwhelmingly encounter in the male-orientated media, is very young, very slim, very busty, very caucasian and very much in need of male approval. And how exactly do these images, which acknowledge pornography as their key reference point, 'make women feel good about their sexuality'? For starters, pornography has nothing to do with female sexuality, it is about female performance and, essentially, male masturbation!

I think it's time to drive capitalism out of our sex lives and rediscover the aspects that simply cannot be commodified or redefined for commercial purposes. Sex is essentially something very organic, immaterial and therefore concerned with human interaction over monetary transaction. No one should feel as though they have to conform to a minute criterion of what is considered 'sexy' by the commercial sex industry in order to justify being desired. If you intend to buy lingerie to make yourself feel special then you should choose something you are genuinely attracted towards, something that will enhance your own confidence, reflect your individual personality and, ultimately, something that reflects your own definition of alluring and sensual.

In my case, Love Baby Grand floral knickers easily out do crotchless polyester. How about you?

Spring is for Heidi braids

2011-02-05T00:25:00.001Z

Photo by Jian Wei

Hoar frost

2011-02-03T02:16:00.007Z

Hoar frost (also called radiation frost or hoarfrost or pruina) refers to the white ice crystals, loosely deposited on the ground or exposed objects, that form on cold clear nights when heat losses into the open skies cause objects to become colder than the surrounding air

Photographs I took at my parents' house in Norfolk over Christmas. Have you ever seen hoar frost before? This was the first time in my life as far as I can remember.

Before it's too late

2011-02-01T16:58:00.004Z

A few Christmas presents I remembered to photograph including Faber and Faber poetry books with midcentury inspired covers, a vintage 1950s Norfolk souvenir tablecloth and a 1940s wartime magazine.

Burnt Orange

2011-01-29T01:46:00.008Z

Vintage faux fur coat // Charity Shop
Breton dress // Topshop
Vintage scarf // Rokit (Stolen from Jian Wei)
Grey tights // Primark
Cream Mary Janes // New Look
Vintage camera bag // Used to be my dad's
Velvet hair bow // Made myself using thrifted bow tie

Poetry in the Post

2011-01-23T19:40:00.003Z

I love receiving surprises in the post and when it's the sort of thing you regularly see and admire, yet never actually part cash for, all the better. This lovely little magazine was sent to me on a whim by my boyfriend who studies and lives in London. Poetry is a monthly publication by The Poetry Foundation featuring new poetry and essays. February 2011 contains articles from Adam Kirsch and David Orr alongside new poetry from Jessica Jopp, Alicia Ostriker, Carolyn Forche, Thomas Lynch and Todd Swift amongst others.

Each edition features original artwork and the sort of adverts you'll actually enthusiastically pore over. It's printed on gorgeous, substantial paper with a solid spine and looks great among my books, guaranteeing more longevity that the average fashion glossy. All in all, well worth a tiny £3!

New in the Shop: 1960s Floral and Rasberry Knit

2011-01-23T16:02:00.003Z

1. vintage RASBERRY CREME handknitted top - medium

2. vintage SPRING BLOSSOM blouse - medium

I'm currently setting myself the target of adding two pieces to the shop everyday while I'm studying for my exams. My spring stock rail is overflowing and I'm sick to death of all the old pieces lingering in the shop, it feels great to finally be injecting some new life into it. I can't wait for the exams to be over, as soon as they are I'm going to stock up on new houseplants as most of mine died over the Christmas holiday, start some sewing projects, hit the dead shop, begin shopping for my new Topshop uniform, list lots of old clothes on eBay and tuck into my reading list for next term. I hate the way exams totally take over your life. Oh and I also desperately need to finalise my applications to University for postgraduate study next year...

New in the Shop: Cable Knit and Gingham

2011-01-22T16:27:00.002Z

1. vintage FISHERMAN cable knit cardigan - medium to large

2. vintage PRINGLE gingham shorts - small to medium

Grandad Trousers

2011-01-20T14:56:00.007Z

Cardigan // Uniqlo

T-shirt // Primark

Vintage trousers // Charity Shop

Loafers // Charity Shop

Belt // Dorothy Perkins

Vintage Bag // Charity Shop

I found these tweed trousers in a charity shop in King's Lynn over the Christmas holidays. One of this small, miserable town's redeeming features is its abundance of charity shops which are always stocked with extremely reasonably priced treasure. These trousers cost me £3 and they have the exact high-waisted and taper-legged tailoring that would cost me in excess of thirty quid in Topshop. Unfortunately they're just a little too short in the leg to allow turn-ups but you can't have everything! The t-shirt is doing pretty well considering it cost £2 from Primark and I've been wearing it regularly for nearly two years. It has a lovely scoop-neck and navy-marl colour that help it to look everso slightly more expensive than it really was. The loafers were a real find at £5 new in a charity shop. I've worn them to death and they're still holding firm structurally which is more than I can say for my Topshop ballet pumps which have got to that really sinister elongated stage. I bought the bag over three years ago from a charity shop for £4 and I consider it my very own 'Mulberry' imitation replica. The cardigan was a great investment piece, £25 from Uniqlo's men's section but it's 100% pure new wool and I wear it almost every day.

And... I believe this is my 200th post! Thank you so much for stopping by! I have just made myself incredibly happy by learning how to put big pictures on my blog. It involved a freakish accident, the creation of a new Yahoo account and then a new flickr account but I am here and I'm so happy with how it looks I just want to post pictures all day but I can't because I'm supposed to be revising for my exam tomorrow. Seeing as these are my university finals I should probably be taking them a little more seriously...

My very first Etsy purchase

2011-01-17T00:27:00.007Z

Although I have been selling vintage clothes on Etsy for over a year I had never actually taken the plunge, picked up the tape measure and entered my paypal details that is, until the day before yesterday. One of my new year's resolutions, along with learning to knit and dressmake, is to try and stop buying as many clothes from the highstreet and focus instead on either, buying the best quality I can possibly afford and investing in classic wool, silk, leather pieces that will last decades and/or shopping entirely in charity shops, vintage shops and on eBay and Etsy. Almost everything I buy from the highstreet ends up in the 'to be listed on eBay' pile within a maximim of two years and the only pieces that cling on comfortably on my clothes rail are the less identifiable scraps I've picked up in random places. The conclusion is simple, mass produced clothes are instantly recognisable and therefore date excruciatingly quickly. Plus I really can't afford to spend £38 on a polyester blouse from Topshop anymore when I can find a similar style, albeit in need of a wash, for £2 secondhand. There is an exception to my resolution however, as an employee of Topshop I will still have to allow myself to buy the three items allowed every three months at 60% discount as uniform allowance. I intend to stick to this limit and hopefully it will make me think a little harder about what would be a good purchase!

So, the dress! It's so divine I just had to have it. It's woolly so I can wear it in the winter and the (British) summer and I think it will look adorable with these shoes which are still sitting pristine and unworn in their box...

I ordered the dress from a beautiful company called Mother's Daughter. They trade on Etsy but also have their own website complete with impressive photography, styling and web design. I challenge you not to be tempted...

CSN Giveaway Announcement + news

2011-01-15T18:22:00.004Z

Since coming home from Manchester to spend the Christmas holidays at my parental home, my family seems to have been hit by a tidal wave of ill health and bereavement. Without wishing to go into too much detail of the actual events, it has been a period of intense sadness and it will take time for a sense of normality and routine to return.

I have just spent a week taking care of my recently bereaved uncle's house in London and lovely as it is, an actual 1960s time capsule, there is no internet connection and so please forgive me for my late drawing of the winner.

Congratulations to Lottie who has won the £25 voucher for CSN Stores! I look forward to seeing what you choose...

I am planning to return to Manchester on Monday night and will be heading straight into the heart of exam territory so please persevere with me and in February you should be seeing some new threads in the shop and some detailed blog posts with pictures and things.

(Photograph at top of page by me.)

First GIVEAWAY of the New Year

2011-01-07T18:05:00.004Z

CSN Stores have kindly offered me the opportunity to pass on another £25 voucher to one of my lovely readers* to spend in any six of their comprehensive online stores. They specialise in homeware and stock a wide variety of celebrated, not to mention vintage-inspired, brands including Le Creuset, Cornishware by T.G Green, DeLonghi and Anglepoise, to name but a few. Whether you're looking for a chest of drawers, a pair of curtains or simply something pretty to drink your tea from, you're sure to find something to fritter £25 away on. In fact, I found quite a few fabulous items to lust after...

Anglepoise Original 1227™ Table Lamp - £119.50

Cornishware Set of 4 Cappuccino Cups and Saucers - £49

Dualit Lite 2 Slot Toaster - £56.99

KitchenCraft Cookie Cutter in Large Elephant Shaped - £3.99

Sagaform Retro Storage Container in Blue - £10.99

To enter the draw all you have to do is be a follower of my blog and leave a comment underneath this post containing your email address and anything else you'd like to add. The winner will be selected with a random number generator at MIDNIGHT on FRIDAY, JANUARY 14th, so you've plenty of time to enter. Only one entry per person but please tell your pals about the giveaway.

*Please note that the giveaway is ONLY available to readers living in the UK, US, Canada and Germany due to shipping restrictions. If the winner selected is a resident of the US, Canada or Germany, they will be directed to the online CSN stores available in that country.

Best of luck to all who enter!

Washing line

2011-01-06T15:46:00.000Z

Style Inspiration: Chloe Sevigny

2011-01-05T11:46:00.007Z

The coolest girl in the world.

AWOL

2010-12-31T22:54:00.003Z

I have been AWOL for a little while, unfortunately not because I've been busy photographing ducks in the park, but I will be back in full force in the new year. I only just caught up with Christmas yesterday and my rent will bounce tomorrow morning and so my New Year's resolution will be to get my life in order (and learn to knit and sew properly.) I hope you all have wonderful new years and I shall be posting pictures of my Christmas pressies in between revision. I got some lovely things including a 1940s magazine, original Cornishware plates, the entire Faber poetry 2010 collection and a million other goodies I really didn't deserve!

Recent Purchases

2010-12-17T18:36:00.001Z

Sometimes it feels like all I do is spend vast quantities of money on utterly depressing things - printer ink, rent, electricity bills, train tickets - which is why treating myself to something I've fallen in love with, when it only costs a few pennies, is one of the greatest pleasures in my life. Here are some things I've thrifted recently...

Hand embroidered cotton top from The Dead Shop for only a pound. The detail in the embroidery is just incredible and I particularly love the bluebells. I'm not quite sure what to wear it with yet but when the summer months arrive I'm sure I'll feel very inspired.

I got this set of six Modernist coffee cups and saucers in the Barnardo's charity shop just before our university branch shut down. I got all of them for £2 and think they'll look so chic on the dark wood 1960s coffee table with splayed legs Jian Wei and I went half-and-half when we went home for reading week. We only paid £5 so it wasn't a huge financial investment but the first piece of furniture we've bought together for our 'one day' home!

I also got these velvet bow ties for a pound each and they're so cute and festive I had to snap them all up immediately. I ordered some barettes from eBay and now the green and orange ones are hair slides and the navy one is a pretty addition to any blouse.

A surprisingly optimistic looking 1960s edition of Macbeth.

These suede desert boots were not thrifted but I bought them from a generally unyielding shop: British Home Stores. They were reduced from £40 to £20 and, as BHS have recently been snapped up by Arcadia, I could use my Topshop discount and got an extra £4 off! Not a bad price for a pair of leather shoes. I'm going to wait 'til the spring to wear them though as the soles would be treacherous on the ice and I don't want them getting rained on.

Blackberry Picking September 2010

2010-12-16T14:27:00.005Z

Incident

2010-12-15T14:56:00.005Z

When you were lying on the white sand,
a rock under your head, and smiling,
(circled by dead shells), I came to you
and you said, reaching to take my hand,
'Lie down.' So for a time we lay
warm on the sand, talking and smoking,
easy; while the grovelling sea behind
sucked at the rocks and measured the day.
Lightly I fell asleep then, and fell
into a cavernous dream of falling.
It was all the cave-myths, it was all
the myths of tunnel or tower or well -
Alice's rabbit-hole into the ground
or the path of Orpheus: a spiral staircase
to hell, furnished with danger and doubt.
Stumbling, I suddenly woke; and found
water about me. My hair was wet,
and you were lying on the grey sand
waiting for the lapping tide to take me:
watching, and lighting a cigarette.

***

Today I am having a lazy day. Tomorrow I have my final seminars and shift at Topshop and then I will be picked up on Friday by my sister and her boyfriend and driven home for the Christmas holidays. So, today I am organising my revision materials, printing useful articles, folding clothes and reading stray bits of things in bed while eating advent calendar chocolates.

I fancied reading some Fleur Adcock this morning and, remembering her pointed request to me 'not to read her juvenilia' when I had met her during Manchester Literature Festival, was pretty blown away by Incident, one of her earliest published poems. It's a remarkable poem that left me feeling very unsettled. What do you make of it? I wholly recommend everything by Adcock, she has a really sharp,witty, vaguely anecdotal style and when you read her poems you feel as though you're being allowed access to diary entries written over a lifetime by a highly observant and catty woman.

Photograph by me.

Literary Look #8

2010-12-15T01:05:00.003Z

A slightly festive Sylvia Plath inspired outfit. I hope you'll all be good this Christmas and ask for real books over kindles!

A 'Sweetest' Outfit

2010-12-13T19:54:00.009Z

PEGGY Cream Cotton Mix Blouse - Medium to Large

~~OLIVE Grunge Era Corduroy A-Line Mini Skirt - Small~~

Both available in my Etsy shop which will be closing on Friday for Christmas and reopening in January.

A Day of Mourning for British Education

2010-12-10T21:41:00.009Z

Here are some pictures I've taken over the last few weeks documenting my experience of the anti-cuts protests in Manchester and London.

Tuition fees are now set to triple in 2012 in addition to teaching budgets being cut by 80-100%. Education Maintenance Allowance is also to be scrapped along with schemes Aim Higher and Connexions which encourage kids from low income backgrounds into further education.

The Nightmare Before Christmas

2010-12-06T19:05:00.006Z

I'm really enjoying this, slightly sinister, video by Topshop at the moment, showcasing their dazzling Christmas collection. I love the macabre fairytale decadence, I love the excessive seventies makeup, glitter streaked cheeks and sequined eyes combined with a soundtrack I find eerie and alluring at the same time. It's a really unusual take on, what so easily could be, glossy girls bouncing around in red velvet and earmuffs to All I Want For Christmas Is You by Mariah Carey. The video leaves me feeling like the willing voyeur of some iridescent and narcissistic 1970s witch.

And say hello to my new shoes!

I bought them from the Oxford Street Topshop on Friday night, as I spent the weekend in London with Jian Wei, and got to use my extremely generous extra 5% discount Sir Phil benevolently doled out for his beloved staff this Yuletide. Anyway, I saved myself 30% in total and so they cost £38.50 instead of £55 and to my glee, just discovered that they've sold out in nearly every size on the website. I feel now that my treat was totally justified as I am clearly now in possession of a highly covetable piece! I also bought some dark navy denim flares to complete my seventies' hysteria and some leather effect high-waisted skinny leggins/trousery things so clearly I'm in the midst of an identity crisis. No more shopping for a while now I feel while my bank balance resuscitates.

Snow in Manchester

2010-12-03T00:33:00.010Z

The UK has recently had the earliest snowfall since the start of the nineties and Manchester has certainly had its fair share. Although it's a challenge to find a true winter wonderland in the midst of the concrete metropolis, I tried to capture the magic as best I could among the wheelie bins and chainlink fencing.

'Walking in a winter wonderland...'

This is my neighbourhood. It's just like Coronation Street except populated by students instead of hardened Mancunions, though actually I do live with one: Lizzie. You can also see the Polish shop on the right, despite its proximity I never really seem to pop by. I feel as though you have to have a very clear idea of what to buy and a firm, visible sense of intent otherwise you just look very silly as all the labels are in Polish and they instantly ask you exactly what you're after as soon as you set foot through the door.

And here's my extremely gothic looking university in the midst of a snow storm...
I won't be betting any money on the chance of a white Christmas, however.

Christmas Sale!

2010-12-01T23:08:00.002Z

That's right. Absolutely everything in the shop is reduced by twenty percent in the run up to Christmas. On the 17th December I will be closing up the shop as I'll be heading back to Norfolk for the holidays and leaving my stock behind. The shop will re-open around the 17th of January from which point my Spring collection will start to trickle in. I have an entire rail heaving with an whole rainbow of pastel shades and everything from MiuMiu S/S11 style sixties mini dresses to clown collared blouses. I can't wait to start photographing and listing the new goodies but I need to clear out all the season specific coats and jumpers first!

Just enter code 'Christmas2010' at checkout and the 20% will be reimbursed directly. Happy shopping!

Split Pea Vintage

2010-12-01T18:01:00.011Z

I was recently introduced to Split Pea Vintage and their impressive lookbook. It's shot entirely in the most perfect white-walled flat, with endless potted plants and old bicycles and, for a small independent company, their styling could easily give Urban Outfitters a run for their money.

What really strikes me about this particular company is how directional the pieces they select are and how easily they could integrate with a very contemporary wardrobe. They mix a relaxed Californian beach vibe - tie dye cropped t-shirt, check! cropped denim vest, check! - with something a little more... Oxbridge. Be prepared to encounter a few battered pairs of Oxford brogues, sheer floral blouses and pencil skirts in classic shades mixed into the acid rinsed denim melting pot.

Split Pea Vintage is run by the lovely Rachel and her partner and she informs me that she currently has another thirty plus items that will be added to the collection shortly. And don't be mislead by the female-fronted lookbook campaign: the shop stocks vintage clothing for both men and women. I may take a look now for Christmas list ideas...

What I'm Reading This Week

2010-11-28T22:10:00.002Z

Wishing Myself a Merry Christmas

2010-11-28T16:20:00.003Z

Topshop gave its staff two vouchers for 30% discount to spend this Christmas. It's only 5% more than the standard staff discount so 'charitable' is hardly the word that springs to mind, however it makes me feel as though I have to make the most of the opportunity. I've picked out the following items as my absolute favourites and I've made up my mind that I simply have to have the skirt, the blouse and the shoes. Unfortunately my store doesn't have the skirt in the colour I want and the blouse and shoes haven't arrived yet as far as I'm aware. The vouchers run out on the 4th December so I haven't got long! I'm just desperately hoping now that they arrive before I go to London for the weekend, although I guess that means I could always raid the Oxford Street megastore if I absolutely can't find them. The shoes are possibly the cutest things I have ever seen in my life.

I'm currently curled up ~~festering~~ in my bed, feeling like utter shite with streaming eyes, a razorblade throat and oozing, aching sinuses. Luckily my seminar tomorrow has been cancelled as my tutor is opening a conference in Barcelona, so I'll be able to take it easy and have another bed day. It's quite depressing that the rest of the UK has snow and, instead, Manchester opts for minus four temperatures and black ice. What's the weather doing where you are?

Topshop Uniform Winter 2010

2010-11-28T14:57:00.006Z

One of the perks of working for Topshop is the 'business wear' allocation four times a year. As I only work part-time and have an eight hour contract, I am entitled to three items at sixty percent off. Here's what I chose this Winter...

Part of me felt I ought to maximise the effects of my discount and invest in some really classic pieces that would see me through season after season. I felt as though I should be buying at least one leather skirt or pair of shorts but got to the point in the fitting room where I couldn't tell if I actually liked them or whether I was completely indoctrinated by the glossy magazines forever drumming in their essentiality. I decided instead on these velvet shorts, which remind me of the ones Alexa Chung did for Madewell only in navy and brown. They're by Topshop's Premium range, limited in number and appear to have sold out already on the website, hence my own picture. The only trouble with them is that the size 8 were extremely short and clingy and skimpy and the size 10 a little on the baggy boyish side, however I knew I simply wouldn't wear them enough if I didn't feel comfortable in them and so will have to make do with them flapping frumpily around my thighs for the next couple of months.

This was the last piece I bought - I spotted it on my way into work and instantly swooped it up in my size. It's so classic - the Breton will never go out of fashion - and I love the sixties' shape and quirky pocket details. I can't wait to wear it with some mustard yellow tights or with bare legs, cute ankle socks and cream mary janes in the summer. It's still in stock and you can buy it here for £38.

This dress took me by surprise. It's not the sort of thing I usually go for at all but there was something about the fringe detailing, which you can't really see properly in this picture at all, reminded me of seventies' rock and roll and Kate Moss and Glastonbury. It's beautifully flattering on and, although - again - I'm not a fan of bodycon, it's so elegant with its scooped back and long sleeves. The real drama unveils when you stretch out your arms! It's also £38 and still available to buy here.

Let me know what you think of my choices and roll on February for the next batch!

All That Glitters

2010-11-26T20:54:00.005Z

Vintage GAY PRINCESS Sheer Black Knee High Pop Socks - One Size

~~Vintage AGNETHA Sheer 1970s Cropped Blouse~~

Vintage LEVI STRAUSS Denim Cut Offs

Vintage AGYNESS Sheer Black T-Shirt with Velvet Panel

Vintage ALL THAT GLITTERS Gold Dancing Shoes

~~Vintage PEWTER 1940s/1950s Silk Evening Bag~~

Sparkling pieces now in the shop. Get ready to dazzle seventies' style!

Literary Look #7

2010-11-23T19:30:00.002Z

Green Velvet

2010-11-21T23:48:00.009Z

Velvet Hair Bow: Charity Shop

Cream Silk Blouse: Second Hand Shop

Black Velvet Ribbon: eBay

Red Dress: Boutique in China

Cream Tights: Primark

Brown Leather Booties: Cow Vintage

Gloves and Scarf: Accessorize

Coat: Charity Shop

I'm not a big fan of winter dressing at all but, because Jian Wei was here this weekend and was willing to weild a camera, I managed to capture this outfit which summarises the whole season for me. The velvet bow was originally a bow tie I bought, along with a navy one and a burnt orange one, at a closing down charity shop for 99p each. I ordered some barettes from eBay and the rest is history, so they say. I bought the boots yesterday from Cow, they were £22 and unfortunately one of the furry trimmings is balding in places but they fit me perfectly and I fell in love with them madly and truly.

Manchester Christmas Markets

2010-11-21T22:15:00.008Z

Manchester is just magical at Christmas. Nothing could possibly induce as much festivity as visiting the Christmas market which arrives directly from Europe complete with Dutch humour and German salesmanship. Jian Wei left with an entire bag of assorted wurst, he simply couldn't resist the generosity of the ten pound deal. Nor could he resist a leather satchel. I enjoyed warm French macaroons and a praline hot chocolate: words cannot describe the bliss.

Pretty Polly Nylons

2010-11-21T11:59:00.004Z

How lovely are these vintage inspired tights by Pretty Polly? With no pun intended, I think they'd make the perfect stocking fillers - who wouldn't be thrilled with a pair of these!