Inspiration: Twin Peaks

I've just finished watching the first series of Twin Peaks, how good is old TV?? I love Sherilyn Fenn's character Audrey, she's exactly the type of femme fatale lacking from current telly. Her outfits are particularly fab - close fit sweaters and plaid skirts with a perfectly permed bob - so 50s for the early 90s.

C x

Tulle Time

I love when tulle isn't a powdery or icy colour - the material is already so feminine, it's great to see it in some stronger colours.

via duitang.com

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via weheartit.com

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Colour Analaysis: Turquoise

Behold, someone who really pulls off turquoise without looking a bit Costa del Sol:

Beautiful buttons on the lace back - these really make the dress. I think warm skin is really set off by turquoise, bluey-pales tend to look a bit cyanotic unless the shade is less yellow/green. 

•  Winters like Lucy Hale (et moi) suit pure, Lagoon blue shades:

• Springs look super in the natural turquoise stone colour -Rihanna is not a Spring but it's a good example of the right shade:

There's more yellow in the shade, and it's much warmer than Lucy Hale's .

• Autumns need to find rich shades - there isn't strictly speaking a 'rich turquoise' - it's a bit closer to warm teal.

• Summers get the most variety with turquoise - anything from a pastel turquoise to a teal/turquoise crossover. Summers look best in a variety of shades all worn together., or shimmering to soften the colour like Ellie Kemper

C x

Vintage Inspiration: It's A Wonderful Life

Oasis pleated dress, $50

Franco Sarto suede platform heels, $89

Noel S.B. Overcoat, $465

Polo Ralph Lauren A21-C1559 Grey Trousers, $392

The black Oasis dress is still available on sale for £30 online. Doesn't the tweed overcoat look so cosy? I've seen quite a few like them in charity shops going for very reasonable prices (especially in the Morningside and Bruntsfield areas). And you could pick up a club tie in just about any charity shop you walk into. Your man could look like James Stewart too!

C x

Style Inspiration: Last Night

I watched this a wee while ago, and had mostly forgotten about it until I saw a photograph of Keira Knightley which reminded me of how stunning she looked in this film. I'm not a KK fan, and I thought 'Last Night' was beautifully shot (by Peter Deming, Mulholland Drive) but not really saying what is was trying to say particularly well, but she was styled divinely throughout the film (by Ann Roth, Cold Mountain) in gorgeous classic pieces:

The 'Night' is spent in a beautiful cashnere camel coat and royal navy silk dress (which I wish I could identify!)

I also liked her casual outfit, the oversized grey ♥cardigan♥ in particular.

So all in all, not a film to put high on your 'to-watch' list but it is worth a flick through to see some impeccable styling, and some of the locations used were terribly stylish too - when is a film set in New York not?

C x

Recommended - Design*Sponge at Home

I had a voucher for Amazon and I had had my eye on this for a while, alas not turning up in any of my favourite charity bookshops (there's a reason - it's awesome and you would never, ever donate it) so I spent it! Ooooh, spending free money feels good.

But back to the book - it's filled with DIY ideas, and inspirational homes, many of which are teeny tiny like mine and having to be furnished on microbudgets. It's fun just to flick through out of nosiness, or if you're seriously looking for cheap ways to spruce up the flat (without needing to be a regular DIY/arty fart), and I kinda just like having it sitting on my coffee table. Makes me look all grown-up and stuff. 

C x

Charity Shop Art

Apologies for the long absence in posting, I have been living under a rock, studying hard and not getting much chance to check out the shops. I did do a round of the charity shops near the the university to pick up some cheap textbooks (saved well over £100). In the Barnardo's bookshop on South Clerk Street, they have baskets full of vintage postcards and photographs which would look lovely in lots of little frames, mounted up on a feature picture wall.

I only have the one very pretty white Ikea frame which I've been dying to put something in. When I was flicking through a travel book, 3 little tickets fell out to the Doge's Palace in Venice. They were beautiful, intricate prints, and they reminded me of visiting Venice when I was little, so I bought the book for the sake of the tickets, and to dream of a day when I can afford to go back to Italy.

C x

Winter Coat Inspiration

You may find this a touch premature, but as we ease into September in Scotland, it's time to start thinking about gloves, hats and coats. I have a lovely classic black wool wrap coat, but on those gloomy afternoons when it's dark by 6 o'clock, I wish I had something more cheerful and bright to wear. Coats can appear at any time of the year in charity shops, unless the shop has storage space (doubtful in the city centre). So, it's worth keeping your eyes open for a good Winter coat throughout the year. Unfortunately, folks don't want to be parting with good warm coats, so for a quality coat, you might want to check out John Lewis, Jenners/House of Fraser (origin of my black coat), Zara and M&S, all of which are worth paying the price for quality. Or you could win the lottery and buy one of these beauts:

Blugirl AW11

Bottega Veneta AW11

Alberta Ferretti AW11

Gucci AW11

Diana von Furstenberg AW11

Alberta Ferretti AW11

Elie Tahari AW11

(images via style.com)

C x

Style Inspiration from Alice & Olivia AW11

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Vintage Inspiration: People Will Talk

I watched one of Cary Grant's less famous films the other day, "People Will Talk" (1951), written by Joseph Manciewicz who you might know better as the writer/director of "All About Eve" (1950). Jeanne Crain co-stars,  and wears some gorgeous early 50s outfits, like this military-influenced coat and tailored dress:

But there was one dress that really caught my eye:

The dress structure is simple enough: a sweetheart halterneck tea dress, but what really makes it is a small lace overlay which drapes over the shoulders to a point in the middle of the back (unattached to the back of the dress, rather like a sailor style collar). I wonder if it might be quite easy to recreate this with a strapless dress, and a small square lace scarf. It could be pinned with a brooch on each side of the chest to hold in place. One would only need a Cary Grant on the arm to complete the look.

C x