FASHION: And the bells were ringing out for christmas day

Hello all

Festivities are well underway, as is the month of December! Even though it's only the 9th of the festive month, I have already been to 3 Christmas parties. These were all work related parties, so it was a nice excuse to dress up & have fun with my colleagues. Two of the three parties were in hired out clubs, thus my outfits reflected that, & the third party was much more formal, however as I work in events I was in charge of running the party, hence why my outfit wasn't as fabulous as last years outfit, which you can read about here.

That being said, my colour scheme has not changed at all since last year as you will see below! Having three parties was really enjoyable, as although I'm not into going 'all out' when getting ready (by this I mean fake tan, false nails, getting my hair done professionally), I did enjoy spending time getting ready!

Here are the 3 outfits I wore:

Topman party

Dress  - H&M | Boots - Lavish Alice | Bag - Vivienne Westwood

 Vivienne Westwood Party

Shirt (under dress) - Primark | Tartan Dress - TKMAXX (old) | Bowler Hat - Topshop | Shoes - Dr. Marten 

Topshop / Arcadia Party

Top - MissSelfridge | Peplum Pencil Skirt - River Island | Bag - Vivienne Westwood | Shoes - Vivienne Westwood

As I mentioned previously, my colour scheme has stayed with black, white & red!

The first outfit was very sixties inspired with the monochrome & the platforms, so I did a mini bouffant, half up half down hair style.

For the VW party, as I was working practicality had to come before glamour, but I threw in some tartan as afterall, it was Vivienne Westwood!

Finally, the Topshop party outfit. Although I really liked all the outfits, but I think I felt most confident in the last outfit, as I had the longest to get ready! I also managed to stay in the heels for a good 2 hours, which is pretty good for me! I also liked the illusion of an LBD, with a top & skirt combo.

Here are some more pictures of the 3 nights, included my makeup, nails & my fabulous friend.

 Me & Damien before the Topman party

 Prepping before the Topshop party. Hair in hot rollers, Kiss eyelashes in 'Flirt' & 'Russian Red' lipstick by M.A.C

Nails for the Topshop party. 'Matte White' & Black nail art pen, both from Barry M

Finished hair & make up. Disclaimer: I am wearing a strapless dress, I am not naked!

Because everyone looks better in Black & White!

So I'm all done with work Christmas parties now, but I do have some festive plans with my friends as many of them are back from uni so I can't wait to be all festive with them. I'm using my events planning skills, & have lots planned for us for the rest of December plus into January!

OOTD: Tartan Tales

Hello All

Having only done one ‘OOTD’ post before that I didn’t even show my face in, which you can read here , I thought another ‘proper’ OOTD post was much needed!

As you all know, tartan is huge this A/W. From High end, to High Street, tartan is taking over many shops, editorials & my earlier wishlist this month, which you can readhere.

I’ve been a fan of tartan for a long time. For my thirteenth birthday I wore a tartan strapless dress with a tutu underneath (may I point out I was going through my gothic phase, that hasn’t quite finished yet, but is a lot less extreme! My fashion role model was Avril Lavgine). For my last day at high school, I wore a tartan kilt, Dr. Martens and fishnets, resulting in a telling off & being told, & I quote ‘Punk Rock died in the 80s’ by my head of year.

This however didn’t deter me! Featured in my aforementioned birthday/ October wishlist, & seen across the bloggersphere, I have been coveting that Primark tartan dress for a long time now. Having looked in my local store, plus in both the Marble Arc & Tottenham Court Road ones, I had little success. That was however, until this Sunday. This ‘quick trip, just to browse’ in Primark resulted in a small haul &the dress, at last!

The below outfit I wore to a wedding, not your typical wedding attire I’d say, however I felt totally comfortable, danced the night away as my feet didn’t hurt & hats are appropriate for weddings!

 Hat - Topshop | Tartan Dress - Primark | Striped Satchel - Primark | Matte White Shoes - Dr. Martens

 Lipstick - Russian Red by M.A.C

Silver Rings - various from H&M & The Great Frog | Nails - Matte White Barry M & Black Nail Art Pen Barry M

This dress, (which is only £15!) is a perfectly flattering shape. With the slightly puffed shoulders, nipped in waist & loose skirt, I found it to be a really great fit. This is not the original dress I set out for. I initially liked the darker red & green tartan version. However seeing it i n person changed my mind. I love this dress, so expect to see more of it in the coming months!

The satchel caught my eye in the queue (clever marketing Primark team!). It;s really striking, & since using it a few times, it's uber practical too!

My shoe collection is getting out of hand, with this being my third pair in a month. But Dr. Marten's are really well made shoes, & are good for the feet too. So far, I haven't even scuffed these matte white ones, & they look perfect still! Let's see how long that lasts, eh?

Having wanted a bowler style hat for a very long time, I finally got one. I love it. I've hardly taken it off since I got it.

The nails were a bit of a pain. They aren't the neatest, hence the slightly far away, unfocused shot! But you can see that I painted them matte white, & used the Barry M black nail art pen to do half moons & tips. Not bad for a first attempt!

I hope you enjoyed my first 'proper' OOTD. Lately I feel I've found my 'signature style' so hope to do more OOTD posts on here!

Birthday Highlights!

Hello All!

As I may have mentioned slightly in the last few posts, it was recently my birthday. I turned 20, leaving my teenage years behind me & becoming an adult, apparently!

Due to work, I didn't go out on my actual birthday, or on Halloween. However the weekend just gone, I certainly made up for that! Spending it with all my best friends & dressing up was so fun. If you follow me on Instagram ( @missjadebd ) you can see more of my celebrations, but here are a few of my fave pics!

 Pacha with Carly

Brixton with Courtney

I was also incredibly spoilt in the present department this year & all my family & friends were so generous. Either I'm incredibly predictable, they all know me inside out or they read my blog, as they all got me perfect presents :)

So thank you to everyone who made me birthday week (yes, week) as amazing as it was

Although I loved each & every one of my presents, I couldn't talk about them all (not to sounds too spoilt or big headed), so I picked out my high lights to share with you!

Disclaimer- I am in no way bragging or showing off. I have incredibly generous friends & family, & am so grateful for everything I received.

 Cherry Red Shoes - Dr. Martens from my Mum & Step Dad | Vogue On.. Coco Chanel from my best friend Carly

 Monochrome Boots - Lavish Alice from my brother | Skull Scarf - H&M from my best friend Courtney

 Black & White Skorts - Amazon a cheeky birthday present to myself! | Bowler Hat - Topshop from my Mum & Step Dad

 

Clockwise from top left: Black & Black with red glitter nail polish from my aunt & uncle | Chloe purfume from my other aunt & uncle | Barry M Nail Art Pens one from my Mum and Step Dad, & One from another aunt & uncle | 'I Saw Red' Bleech London dye from Courtney again!

My Aunt also took me to see 'Wicked' in the West End, which was honestly amazing!

I had such an amazing 20th, thank you to everyone involved!

Needless to say, I probably won't be doing any hauls or wish lists for the foreseeable future as I got everything I wanted (sorry of that sounded really spoilt brattish) 

How was everyone's Halloween?

 

 

Halloween Series #4: Halloween Nails - Terrifying Talons

Hello All,

Having been in Bristol this weekend to visit my best friend, I didn't have a chance to write & schedule any posts!

As it gets closer to Halloween, my excitement it only growing! With 3 Halloween party / events to go to this year, & hope to wear a different costume to each.

My last Halloween Series Post, which you can read here, was fashion based, so this time I thought I would do a beauty focus Halloween post. Being fairly new to Pinterest (missjadebd) I found myself, borderline obsessively, looking at Halloween nail art. Here are some of my absolute favourites from Pinterest.

Now, although some of them look really difficult to achieve, there are so many great nail art tools & accessories out now & very affordable too! I've put together a few tools & items that I think are great for a Halloween nail art kit!

I can't wait to get my hands on the Topshop Nail Art Brush Kit, for only £10 it has 6 different tools, from a dotting tool to several alternative nibs of varying thickness & shape. I'm sure with this kit, any nail art is achievable, even for those lacking in creativity or steadiness!
I also really like the BarryM nail art pens, perfect for accurate & small details, like stripes or dot patterns. I can imagine the white pen would help create a spider web on the nails amazingly!
I've already raved about the Nails Inc. leather and skull effect kit here, & while I would wear it all year round, it's also a great was to incorporate Halloween onto your nails if you aren't a skull fan like myself.
A corrector pen is also essential. This means you can be as messy as you want, but still have fabulously frightening nails at the end!

In terms of essential Halloween nail colours, I think dark colours are obvious, especially deep purples, greens & navy. Of course black, white & red are great. Glitter top coats can add gothic glamour. Lime greens or florescent orange are options too for slimey look or pumpkin nails respectively!
One collection that really caught my eye was the Illamasqua UV nail polish collection. If you're planning to celebrate Halloween in a club, then these are perfect! With 3 great shades & a top coat, all full sized, this set is a really good price.

Tonight I'm going to be trying out some of these, so I will show my results on here!

I hope you're still enjoying my Halloween Series, & I'd love to hear anything you'd like me to cover!
 Also, what're you doing to celebrate Halloween?

Halloween Series #3: High Street Halloween Must-Haves!

Hello All.

Another day closer to Halloween festivities!

I honestly have been so enthusiastic about these posts, I wish it was Halloween permanently as I'd definitely begun feeling less inclined or excited to blog lately. However, starting my Halloween series has really awoken my love of blogging!

Although AW13 trends are largely focused on vampy looks (dark lipsticks, leather, lace, velvet etc a.k.a my style exactly), I've noticed that a lot of high street shops have dedicated sections, both online & in-store, to Halloween inspired pieces. Now some of this is just to re-promote the Autumn / Winter items, such as the aforementioned leather, velvet & lace. But most have specially themed Halloween items featuring 'typical' scary motifs, like bats, black cats or ghosts. 

I've rounded up my 'High Street Halloween Must-Haves' from Topshop, New Look, ASOS & Miss Guided. All have a mix of vampy style pieces, spooky beauty bits & seriously cool jewelry!

 ASOS - 'HELLS YEAH HALLOWEEN' 

 MissGuided - Creep It Real

 New Look - Halloween

Topshop - Ghoul Girls

The first thing I love about these Halloween collections are their names! Ghoul Girls & Creep It Real  are brilliant names for the Halloween collections. The second thing I love, of course, is the beauty products on offer. This time last year, I was working with a big make up brand / company, & was exposed to some amazing makeup artistry especially around Halloween. I've been watching an unhealthy amount of YouTube tutorials so hope to look amazing this Halloween. But I am loving the creepy make up on offer this year. From intricate spooky scenes created on eyelashes to creepy nail transfers, you can literally take your Halloween look from face to, erm foot?

Although I really like everything in my Must Have list, a few pieces really stand out.

My ASOS highlights are the Wednesday Adams inspired monochrome dress & the 'Trick or Treat' top that definitely evokes the much loved 'Celine' tees. Highly commended are the tights with glow in the dark knee skulls!

From Miss Guided I really the skeleton-hands-on-the-boobs crop top, cheeky yet creepy & the skeleton body is great too.

New Look for me triumphed with Halloween accessories for me. J'adore the Halloween cupcake kit (how cute?!) Plus the nail transfers and eyeliner stick ons are fun too!

From Topshop I love the stick on eyeliner, which I would pair with matte black lips and deathly pale skin (so my natural skin shade really...), & also the bat print. I included the asymmetric skirt, but this print is repeated through the collection on jeans, leggings etc. 

It seems this year Halloween is so much more exciting for me, which is saying something as I've always been excited for Halloween. I'm not sure what's different, but I am so excited this year

Halloween Series #1

Hello All!

Being an October baby, & particularly close to Halloween at that, I've always loved & made quite a big deal out of this holiday. In many ways, I like it more than Christmas, because it's full of skulls, black & spooky stuff (aka all the stuff I love) but I still get presents because of my birthday. 

During October, my blog will be focusing on Halloween, from costume ideas & makeup to decorations & food ideas. I've spent an unhealthy amount of time watching Halloween related tutorials & idea videos on YouTube, so have plenty of posts planned!

Now I'm not afraid to go all out on Halloween, from fake blood to all out costuming, but I thought I would start the Halloween series with some more wearable, inspired by Halloween outfits. 'Mean Girls' has taught us all that, & I quote "In the real world, Halloween is when kids dress up in costumes and beg for candy. In Girl World, Halloween is the one day a year when a girl can dress up like a total slut and no other girls can say anything else about it", but I've been quite tame with the first installment!

I've taken inspiration from characters from Halloween-esque films or series to create outfits suitable for a more sophisticated Halloween celebration.

 Beetlejuice

Stiped leggings - BooHoo | Tuxedo Jacket - River Island | Stiped Heels - MissGuided

 

 Bride of Chuckie 

White Lace Dress - Topshop | Leather Jacket - New Look | Chain Choker - Topshop

 

 Morticia Adams

Black Maxi Dress - Miss Selfridge | Black Lace Maxi Dress - New Look | Cross Necklace - Topshop

 

  Wednesday Adams

Black Dress with White Collar - Lavish Alice | Knee High Socks - Topshop | Monochrome Boots - Lavish Alice

I've got to say, I would definitely wear all four outfits. Especially the Wednesday Adams one! In fact, the dress & boots are now on my Birthday list...

Beetlejuice, or even Jack Skellington from 'The Nightmare Before Christmas' is a really fun take on Halloween, it's smart but still striking.

Bride of Chuckie is an outfit I'd wear anyway. I love pairing lace with leather, especially light lace. I think it really toughens the look up.

Morticia & Wednesday's were obvious choices! I love Morticia's gothic look, & these maxi dresses give the right amount of sexiness & gothicness. I've always loved Wednesday Adam's monochrome look & pig tails. 

All these outfits are Halloween enough but with a sophisticated edge so that you can channel your inner witch. However, I prefer to go all out, which you'll see later this month!

 

 

Fashion Week Essentials #3: Electrical Essentials

Hello all,

I hope you enjoyed London Fashion Week. Even though I've been working flat out for the whole thing for the show I'm involved in, I've enjoyed the reporting from my favourite bloggers! I must say, London Fashion Week is probably my favourite due to it's edgy, rebelious style (closely followed by the beautiful couture creations of Paris!)

Even though New York & London Fashion Weeks are over, we still have to make way for Milan & the finale in 'le gai Pairs'! This installment of 'Fashion Week Essential' focus' on the more boring items, but necessary none the less.

How boring does this look? Making it was so boring! 
Nevertheless, each item is very much needed for us bloggers!

First off, an iPad, Kindle Fire or any other kind of tablet is perfect for blogging on the go. In London at least there were several blogger friendly media lounges or spaces set aside with free WiFi so you can report on the trends as they happen! Tablets are light & easy to use, so much better than lugging a laptop with you. 
A camera is also essential to capture all the fashion week action, from who's on the FROW, to what's the new it silhouette, to snapping some inspirational street style. I haven't got too much advice or knowledge on this subject as I have a very old camera, but I do know that although it may be the case that 'bigger is better' (camera's cheeky!), I would prefer a smaller, but still decent, camera. Also, even though taking pictures for your blog, or personal use is important, don't get too wrapped up in getting the perfect shot. Make sure you actually watch the show! & not through a lenses, enjoy and embrace the atmosphere of the show.
Phones. Who could live without them now. As a recent convert to the iPhone, I have to say I wouldbe a little lost without it. With maps, emails and internet on the go, you can make your way from show to show with the help of your mobile.
With all this tech-y stuff, you must remember to bring changers! I love this adaptor that has multiple wires to charge lots of different devices. (Do I sound like I know what I'm talking about? I'm probably one of the most technology 'backwards' people around!)
Finally, I kicked it old school & included some batteries. You never know when you might need them I guess!

Now, because this was very tech-y &, in my opinion, boring(!), I thought I'd 'fashion it up', & include some tech accessories.

 Clockwise l-r: iPhone Home button stickers- Topshop | Oxblood phone purse- Topshop | Leopard print E-Reader pouch- New Look | iPhone case- Moschino via Net-a-Porter | iPad pouch- Marc by Marc Jacobs | iPad case- Lanvin via Net-a-Porter | Cat Earphones & matching iPhone case- New Look

The above items will personalise & fashion-ize your tech-y bits. These, as previous posts, are all my style, but ensure you extend your own style to your electrical items.
I love the cute cat accessories from New Look, proof that I will be the crazy cat lady! I added some designer bits, obviously out of my budget but I can admire them from a far!

So, as the grande finale creeps closer, I have one final 'Fashion Week Essentials' post for you lovely readers, all about paper work & passes. Again, I will balance the boring with the beautiful & keep it fashion based.

 

Bleeding Double C, Ripped Denim & Studs

Hello all

Today's post will be my first post dedicated wholly to an outfit. That's right, my very first OOTD!

Until now, any outfit related posts had been of outfits organised, hopefully artistically, on my bed, or pictures from an event that I wore that outfit too. Thus far, I haven't been confident enough to pose for a 'proper' ootd, & today is no different. Although I am pictured in the clothes, I have again artistically, with the help of Instagram, created a collage of elements of my outfit. If you follow me on Instagram (jadorejadex) you will have seen this on Wednesday. You cannot see my face, but you can see my outfit. It's a start!

Bleeding Double C logo vest- Camden Market | Ripped Jeans- Topshop (old) | Studded pumps- New Look

 This is quite a simple outfit with not many elements to, however I loved it. Since buying the Chanel inspired vest in Camden market, along with one with an illustrated Chanel perfume bottle, I had paired it with fairly classy pieces, such as blazers, skirts, overall giving it quite an elegant & tailored look. However this week I was in a 'grungy' mood so thought I would mix this vest with some severely ripped jeans and studded pumps. I'm not very good at casual wear on the whole, so trying to be more relaxed was hard, but it most definitely paid off. I loved this outfit! I felt so good in it, hence why I decided to photograph it and create an ootd post! Also, the bleeding effect of the C's, I feel leans it more towards edgy fashion so I feel this outfit worked.

The jeans are so old, in fact I got them on my sixteenth birthday (I'm twenty this year!). Yet they're back in fashion and they still fit so why not! I am a hoarder of clothes. I find it so hard to throw away items, even if they are years old.

This has definitely encouraged me to not be afraid of being more casual & also that doing OOTD's doesn't mean standing against a wall & posing generically. I really liked focusing on elements of the outfit & not showing my face as well as whole body!

Film Fashion Inspiration: Vamps

Hello all

I've always been an early bird. As soon as there is light in my room, I wake up. Unfortunately, my boyfriend loves sleeping in. This means I usually have a few hours to kill on a Saturday and Sunday morning. Sometimes I blog, but more often then not I watch a film. This Saturday just gone I discovered the film 'Vamps', directed by Amy Heckerling & starring Alicia Silverstone & Krysten Ritter. 

Amy Heckerling also directed iconic film 'Clueless' which also starred Alicia Silverstone & 'Vamps' certainly lived up to my expectations of a funny chick flick with amazing styling! 

I love the idea of vampires, I've watched a lot of vampire films & TV series & have read several vampire books/ series. So this modern take on female vampires really interested me. The description stated it was 'Stakes & The City', & in some ways I agree. 

I won't be doing a movie review, although I do encourage you to watch this film as I thought it was brilliant. I will be focusing on the styling of Goody (Alicia Silverstone) & Stacy (Krysten Ritter). Both are amazing, funny actresses, but the styling & costumes, by Mona May (who, again, also did the costumes of 'Clueless') is amazing.

 

 

First off, Goody. Goody became a vampire in the 1800s and evidence from her lengthy after-life is obvious in her costuming. Combining elements of several different decades, the style Mona created for her is beautiful. I would say it is very romantic gothic & classic and I really like it.

In contrast, Stacy is more of a 'traditional' vampire in her styling. Her style is sexy, lots of black and more modern than Goody. Stacy was 'turned' in the eighties, but her style is very fashion forward.

Together, the two main characters aesthetically look incredible next to each other and compliment each others styling, while still having strong individual style.

 Below I have styles a day and a night outfit for Goody and Stacy:

 All MissSelfridge

All New Look except clutch bag (Topshop) and studded heels (Dr Martens)

I think MissSelfridge epitomizes Goody's vintage style, one that I like myself. However I loved styling Stacy's look. I recently saw these super high (can I say stripper?) heels in New Look and while they are incredibly impractical, for a film costume and dramatic look I think they would really work! Also, the studded, cut-out Dr Martens are beautiful. Overall, I think I like Stacy's style more, but can appreciate the delicacy of Goody's style too!

I hope you enjoyed my first 'Film Fashion Inspiration', I'm hoping to make it a regular feature!