The Maine and being a Vegan for the day

Being a London girl now I do miss having my lady friends from home around, so when they came to visit this weekend it felt like a missing gap had been filled. I love spending time with these two ladies and tonight a girly evening was on the agenda, which was having dinner and going giddy at the knees for the rock/pop band The Maine.

Jass, Emily and Me :)

So first off we stopped for food at LovinHut which was a Vegan restaurant. I was a bit apprehensive as I'm not really a fan of the whole Vegan thing, I like to eat meat and I don't think just because you're a vegan it makes you any better as a person as some of them can be a bit preachy sometimes. But I thought I'd give it a go as apparently it's healthy and Em and Jass are into the whole vegan thing. I had an Ocean burger which basically was a vegan chicken burger, I have to say it was really lovely and tasty and filled me up! So my first vegan experience wasn't a bad one :)

Vegan Burger at LovinHut

We then walked down to the Electric Ballroom just in time to catch The Maine. The frontman John O'Callaghan sang the songs from the album Pioneer beautifully, it also helps that he's quite a nice piece of eye candy. They played a really tight set and I was really impressed with how great they sounded live. With songs like Jenny and Heroin making everyone dance, even though it was a Wednesday night, the atmosphere was electric and you can tell they have a tight UK following.

All in all a great night, my Vegan burger was lovely and The Maine rocked my world. 

Lana Del Rey - iTunes Festival

I've been so gutted not to have won any iTunes festival tickets this year (my boyfriend took me to Usher but he won them so it doesn't count) so when I found out I'd missed out on Lana Del Rey tickets I thought i'd cue up in the hope of getting a reserved ticket. I went straight from work and stood on my own in the cold for over 2 hours, only to find out they weren't letting anyone in! I walked regretfully towards the tube but then stopped when I saw someone with an XFM jacket...

We book advertising space on XFM for a couple of clients at work, I had a quick chat with him and he then put me the guest list and let me in! Hallelujah ! I was so over the moon I was finally going to get to watch Lana Del Rey!

Lana Del Ray at the iTunes Festival

I thought Lana looked casual in jeans and jumper, but she still looked gorgeous. She sang all her best hits including Video Games and Blue Jeans beautifully and even came down to the audience to shake peoples hands and take photos whilst she sang. I don't know how I managed to get to the barriers on the right hand side of the stage but I did, I had a perfect view and I realised she looks just as gorgeous in real life as she does on the cover of Vogue.

This is how close I was (excuse the poor picture quality)

The set was short but sweet, playing only the hits...which was fine by me as only a couple of hours ago I'd have done anything just to get inside the venue. I was so lucky to watch this intimate set and it was very lovely of the people at XFM to let me in. They're putting me on the guest list for Muse on Sunday so I'm ecstatic about that too, they're my favourite band and it'll be my 5th time seeing them! So here's too seeing Lana Del Rey and a bad night turned good, it was well worth the wait.

I like to eat, someone shoot me.

I've lived in London for about 4 months now, I'm ridiculously skint at the end of every month. One of the reasons is all the places to eat and drink here, there's so many restaurants and cool venues it's like a fat boy in a cake shop (which is me).

My sister and her boyfriend came to stay so we took them to a restaurant called Mear Liquor. We had to cue for 40 minutes to get in, but apparently it would all be worth it so we waited and time soon passed and we were let in. OH MY GOD IT WAS SO WORTH WAITING. The restaurant is not somewhere to take a vegetarian as it's all meat and no fucking about meals.

You don't make friends with salad!

This was our food (there was 7 of us may I add), the burgers were phenomenal and the meat was probably the most succulent I'd ever tasted. It wasn't just the food which was incredible, the whole venue was very american with 10minute burrito challenges where women with megaphones would get everyone to cheer along to the fools who had eyes bigger than their belly accepting the challenge. 

Scott, Harry, Kat, Ben, Holly, Gabriella and me - Aka Meat Liquor crew

I would recommend this place to anyone looking for something a little different and a crazy 'rock and roll we don't take no fussy eaters' vibe. Safe to say I didn't eat much for a week but it was so worth it, I'll definitely be saving this place for special occasions or if I'm in a mood to totally pig out. 

Wine at the top of the Tate Modern - Classy birds.

My pal Tom who've I've known since school also came to visit, he is the most lovely guy and when we catch up we always have a proper chinwag and gossip. He's also studying to be a doctor so he appreciates some of the art and clever stuff which others might over look. So we decided to be pretentious douche bags and head to the Tate to pretend we knew loads of stuff about art. 

Wine overlooking London, bliss.

As you can see the art appreciation didn't last long so we went to the top of the Tate which had spectacular views across the Thames. We drank wine and discussed life plans and took pictures with my polaroid. 

I wore my Reformed dress and Evil Twin bracelet.

Me, Tom, Scott and Shareen at Banana Tree in Soho.

Another one of my favourite places to eat at the moment is 'Banana Tree' in Soho. It's a thai place with the most tasty menu. We met up with my boyfriend and my old friend Shareen who happened to be in London that weekend too. 

Might I say we do look like a lovely bunch here, I love this photo as seeing old friends who've moved on and also gone to Uni in different areas of the country really makes the times you do catch up all that more special.

Marie MacSharry at LFW

This year I've been working with designer Marie MacSharry as her PR/Fashion Assistant. I watched her debut at London Fashion Week last year and immediately was drawn to her sharp tailoring and bold block colours. This year she's selling the same collection on ASOS which will be available very soon. 

The collection is already being requested by the most stylish London fashionistas such as Shingai Shoniwa of the Noisettes, so this really will be a range you should get your hands on quickly!

We arrived at 5pm to prep models and get everything set up. It was nice for Tara as she's currently designing her next collection for February fashion week so this show was not about stressing with a new collection but showcasing clothes which are wearable for the ASOS line coming soon. However this was not to say there wasn't a lot of work to be done, there's always work to be done! 

Before the show I chatted outside to some of the stylish people in their seats and finally got to break out my Grazia golden book (I was saving it for a rainy day). It was great to see so many people supporting new up and coming designers and really loving the collections.

Great colourful designs from another collection backstage

Marie MacSharry collection about to walk the runway

One thing I did learn about fashion week is that even though outside on the runway models seem so calm and collected backstage is one hell of a different story! We were helping models change and making sure they were on the runway in the right running order and making the clothes look perfect before they tottered off in huge heels (I honestly don't know how they do it)!

So here's the running order of 12 key strong pieces which went out and will be on sale on ASOS soon. It was a fantastic experience, we're now gearing up for ASOS promotion and planning February fashion week already! So many exciting things coming from this lady, keep your eyes peeled for more future updates.

JW Anderson Topshop Collection

So this week was not an easy week on the bank balance. The reason being was because of the long awaited JW Anderson collection, which made it's Topshop debut on Friday 14th September. Since being tipped as one of the hottest new designers around and having celeb fans such as Alexa Chung (who I adore) I knew this was going to be a great new collection.

I was a little upset I couldn't make it down to the 9am opening as I had work all day but after a few glasses of wine after work I hoped on down to Oxford Street and was giddy with excitement when I walked through those Topshop doors (probably down to the wine). I could have easily spent a small fortune however I had to put back a few items and decided to invest in some key statement pieces which would last me through the wintery seasons. 

Left: Tartan T-shirt, Pinafore Dress
Top Right: Bat Jumper, Beret & JW Badge
Botton Right: JW Anderson Look Book

See above all the beauties which I bought! In my opinion the items give the feeling of gothic geek chic, so I'll be teaming all mine with brogues or creepers with minimal makeup and my glasses. I'm hoping these pieces will work well through AW12 and through fashion week you're sure to spot some celebs wearing these items too. 

Tartan T-shirt, Pinafore Dress, H&M necklace, Russel and Bromley Shoes

I wore this to London Fashion week on Saturday where I spotted a few nods of approval from the fashion pack frow which is always nice. I was rushing around backstage all day so this roomy dress was good for a long days work.

Bat jumper, leather Topshop skirt, Marc Jacobs ring

I wore this the day after helping out at fashion week as I just needed to put a big knit on and get cosy. So that's exactly what I did. I would really recommend JW's stuff though, there's some great statement pieces which are worth investing in. I can definitely see this bat jumper being my key staple throughout the colder winter months.

Aveda Hair Salon

I went back home to Bristol last weekend for some much needed family catch ups and celebrations...because I've just started a new job! Yipeee!! I'm working at a media agency called Universal McCann where my clients include Nickelodeon, Jack Daniels, H&M and Burberry to name a few. So I was majorly happy to visit home and share the good news!

We took our dog Maisie for a walk where I definitely underestimated the sunny weather and wore my new Topshop jumper and black skinny jeans in the scorching sun...not by best judged fashion moment. I really miss my dog though so it was really nice to take her for walks and see her happy in the sun.

As you can see I was also getting a bit snap happy with my polaroid camera which arrived just before my trip home, which was perfect to capture those family memories.

My last day was spent in the Bristol Aveda salon where my sister styled and coloured my hair for her competition. She did such a great job and it was nice to catch up, have a natter and be pampered too! The salon is just gorgeous and the products made my hair so soft and shiny and really feeling like it wasn't in too bad a condition after all the dip-dying. 

Here's the finished outcome! I also wore my comfy Monki dress for the long bus journey back to London and my lovely new Russell and Bromley loafers which are a little piece of shoe heaven! 

Here's me and my sister, it was so nice catching up and it's definitely a benefit having a hairdresser in the family! Lovely weekend back in Bristol indeed.

Matalan AW Collection 2012

This year Matalan’s Christmas collections show reveals that it’s never too early to prepare for the festive season. Walking past a Christmas tree in July would make some people feel slightly queasy with the thought of planning for the festive season. However even the biggest scrooge would have to admit the previews of the Autumn Winter collections are glamorous and very affordable.

The home section is decked out with cutesy decorations that would add a touch of cheap and cheerful British class to any room. Ranging from ice globes to jewel-toned tableware you could easily transform any room into a winter wonderland.

Menswear is surprisingly dashing where the formal shirts have a range of colours and patterns to suit many a taste. There are also knitted Xmas knits, which any girlfriend would feel proud to snuggle up against.

The Womenswear collection is truly the icing on the Matalan Christmas cake with the clothes and accessories speaking volumes with their sparkle and stand out pieces. There is a gorgeous colour palette of rose gold, champagne, deep purple, navy and soft pink throughout the womenswear collection. The ‘Decadence’ range predicts that gothic glam will continue into the winter season with a touch of vintage sass. There seems to be no lacking of glitter or sequins either, definitely a winner for standing out at this years Christmas party.

We know every lady loves to own a new pair of shoes to match their Christmas party dress and there’s plenty of choice. There are studded pumps at only £12 that would rival any Topshop sell out, glitzy-jeweled heels or stilettos to add a bit of vava-voom to any drab office party.

So this Christmas if you’re looking for a touch of sparkle and stand out party pieces which don’t break the bank then look no further than the Matalan Collection.

Pictures by Tori Clarkson