Only in October !

Another month ! Another blog post ! Another list of things to do, watch, buy, drink and eat ! 

1) If you follow one person on Twitter, follow me ! The most obvious self advertisement going but oh well if you're on twitter follow @dressmeupinlove. Unfortunately, my heart on my fashion sleeve was too long ! 

2)  If you drink one this month try New Green Apple Smirnoff ! I'm a fond lover of Gin but lately my drink list is slowly but surely turning into a cocktail menu, probably down to this feature on my blog. I first tried this Green Apple Smirnoff with Lemonade while having after work drinks. Definitely worth a try !

3) If you hear one piece of good news this month it should be the fact that my beloved asos.com have introduced 20% student discount to their online store. Do you all know what this means ? Yeah, I'm going to be poor this year. Well at least I'll be stylish and poor !

4) If you buy one iPhone/iPad application this month, buy the Garment and Fashion Dictionary. Definitely one for for you fashionistas and bloggers. The app gives specific terminology for garments providing examples aswell. The app is available from iTunes and costs £1.19.








5) If you drink one cocktail this month drink Cosmopolitans. If you regularly read my blog you will notice that I mention the cocktail Mojitos alot. However while out for my mums birthday this month I decided to venture away from Mojitos and taste other cocktails on the menu. Let's just say I have fallen in love with Mojitos.

6) If you do one spontaneous thing this month, have a tattoo ! This month I decided to have a tattoo done and ended up having two done. My tattoos were planned and I knew what I wanted doing so they weren't so much spontaneous. But I love them !

7) If you buy one item of clothing, make sure you buy something to keep you warm ! Whether it's a scarf, ear warmers or a pair of gloves. Don't let the fact that the weather is turning colder stop you from showing off your fashion flare ! 

Why not treat yourself to a snood (A snood is a head/neck accessory which resembles a scarf/hood)! 

Like this leopard print snood from asos.com for £20

I also love these sheepskin mittens ! £39 from asos.com   

Once upon a Coco Boo . . .

It sounds like the perfect fashion fairytale, walking down an old cobbled road to a large dazzling room filled from ceiling to floor with on trend garments, up to date fashion and one of a kind pieces. Well the Jimmy Choo slipper fits, we've been rescued by our knight in shiny PPQ and we'll all live fashionably ever after. Thanks to Coco Boo !

This small boutique situated down the old cobbled Cannon Street, in Preston offers the latest fashion trends in womanswear. Although Coco Boo is tucked away from bustling Fishergate it has a strong following by the small number of fashion conscious followers living in the area. And if they're not close by they're choosing their favourite garments from Coco Boo's newly launched online store http://www.cocoboo-tique.co.uk/

After recently visiting the store for a gander at the rails I could easily pick out several garments I will be happily purchasing come pay day ! One of  them being this gorgeous leopard print which I think will go together with some simple black harem pants. Coco Boo is in safe hands as it is created by and run by two former UCLan Fashion students who definitely have the eyes for picking out clothes that any woman would want to wear. So make sure you visit Coco Boo which in my opinion is one of Preston's most hidden treasures and a fairytale come true !                           

Buy of the Week ! # 4

I haven't posted on this feature for a while due to this little fashionista saving up her pennies for a few items of clothings that I see as an investment including a denim jacket and a fur coat. So apologies for my lack of blogging but my purse has been sealed shut for some time now. However, I went slightly cold turkey and had to give in to temptation when it came to a few things.

Firstly, in previous blogs I told you all to check out Gigi Vintage. An amazing online store created and run by a woman with an excellent eye for fashion. It was in my monthly blog, (more specifically Oh So September !) that I mentioned a beautiful floral print playsuit that went straight to the top of my must have list.

Well I ended up buying it ! Gigi Vintage sent it on time and in perfect condition ! I'll definitely be buying from the online store again !

My second purchase I see as both an investment and of educational value ! While scouring through the collections from LFW on the British Vogue website, they twisted my arm into buying a subsciption to the magazine. I don't know about anyone is but 10 issues for £19.99 in my opinion is value for money and will keep a smile on my face.

Topflop ?

Speculation has erupted after it was reported that Kate Moss had been dropped by Topshop. Poor sales, clashes with Sir Philip Green and even rumours of Green's daughter replacing the supermodel have all been circulating. But the truth can now be revealed . . .

It was in 2007 that Kate Moss launched her first collection for Topshop. She was reportedly payed £3 million for her designs. At the launch at their flagship store in London's Oxford Circus, over 2,000 women queued up outsides, with the police drafted in to control the frenzy.

The supermodel's annual earnings leaped from £2 million to a staggering £9 million. It seemed the 'Cocaine Kate' scandal was a thing of the past as the model released her own scent and fronted many ad campaigns including Balmain, Longchamp and Louis Vuitton.

  

There is no dispute that the first few collections launched by Kate Moss were a massive success, with stock selling out within literally hours of them launching. However, after collaborating for four years, popularity has hindered for Kate Moss for Topshop. When Moss' name became a brand she became attainable and after four collections it seemed Kate Moss had lost her popularity, uniqueness and her edge.

Some fashion commentators going as far as to say the brand is now an overkill and Moss is to old for the brand. It is evident that new fashion icons have more of an influence including Fearne Cotton, Daisy Lowe and Alexa Chung. With the age of models scrutinised by the fashion world does this mean that Moss is reaching her sell by date. Kate Moss has been lucky to have had her profile last for this long but in the upcoming years Moss may have to consider working for non fashion brands. On the other hand Kate Moss has achieved success that no other model in the industry has achieved, including being in the same class of supermodels as Naomi Campbell,Cindy Crawford and Claudia Schiffer. Gracing this months issue of British Vogue for her 30th cover of the magazine, not forgetting she is the face of Balmain and Longchamp (as stated above). What will Kate do next ?

My Loves and My Lusts !

My Loves and My lusts ! is mostly focused around L.O.V.E due to a recent purchase of LOVE Magazine. I found the magazine while on Twitter and thought if Henry Holland can be a follower so can I ! I clicked on the link to their website and thought the layout was so adorable with butterflies fluttering around the page !
LOVE Magazine !

But its the context of the magazine which I love even more ! So I had to go to the shop and see what see if all the hype of the magazine was true. And it was !

The first page that struck me was an advertising campaign for Guess !





The model looks very much like someone I love ! Can you guess who it is ?

The next feature I fell in love with was a collection of photographs of Abbey Clancy ! I will admit I had to do a double take when looking at these photographs as I am used to seeing Abbey in the centre fold of a newspaper with lingerie or a swimsuit on ! I think these pictures work so well in black and white ! And the photographs have a 1960's look to them ! Abbey Clancy here reminds me of Sienna Miller in Factory Girl !

Speaking of Sienna Miller, she also featured in this edition of LOVE Magazine ! In some very simple but yet striking and eye catching photographs !

I haven't decided which photograph I love the most as they both are stunning ! I think I slightly prefer the photograph of Sienna with a top on because eventhough the topless shot has been done artistically and tastefully ! I think this one (left) is more of a fashion shot !

My Lusts in this post are two playsuits from two of my favourite online vintage stores ! Both can be for a daytime look or accessorised for a night time look

  

The first is this red 1980's playsuit from Rokit !

        

The second is this floral playsuit from GiGi Vintage !     

                          

Oh So September !

Another month has quickly passed us by and I hope this feature is giving you both something to read and something to do ! So we're in September now and I must confess most of these topics in this months feature I actually tried out in August, but in some cases I have to try them in advance or I wouldn't have anything to write about ! Enjoy !


1) If you celebrate one anniversary this month celebrate twenty-five years of Elle ! You don't necessarily need a reason to buy this magazine, but this month the fashion magazine is celebrating twenty-five years of Elle. And yes i've bought a copy already ! To commemorate the occasion Elle has released a 25th anniversary collectors edition issue of the magazine, with actress Kate Hudson on the front cover. (Apologies to my mum and dad who are celebrating their wedding anniversary this month to!)

 

2) If you go to one bar this month, have a cocktail at Walrus Manchester, situated in the ever growing and popular Northern Quarter.   

I recently spent time in Walrus during a night out for my friend Heather's 21st and couldn't believe how popular and crowded it was for such a small bar, which got slightly annoying. On the other hand they had mojitos on the menu and they were made well so I had nothing to complain about ! The prices were reasonable and the music and overall atmosphere was  vibrant and loud.

3) If you watch one programme, watch The September Issue ! This one off documentary which was aired on More4 was filmed in New York following the staff of Vogue while planning the pages of the magazines September Issue. From watching the programme and seeing the daily ins and outs of the magazine and its Editor in Chief Anna Wintour, I discovered that Vogue isn't just a fashion magazine. The magazine and the people behind it including Editor at Large Andre Leon Talley, and Creative Director Grace Coddington don't follow trend they create them. I was surprised to see successful and well established designers and fashion houses such as Karl Lagerfeld and Stefano Pilati, Head Designer at YSL seeking the advice and expertise of Anna Wintour when it came to the planning, editing and execution of their collections

The September issue is the biggest and most important issue for the magazine as it showcases all the season's new trends. Sienna Miller graced the cover of the magazine which this year had the most number of pages ever in a September Issue. Unfortunately this programme has not yet been uploaded onto 4od, but  !keep an eye out for it as it is definitely a must see

4) If you go shopping in one town go to York ! Far from your modernised shopping cities in the UK such as London, Birmingham and Manchester. York is a mixture of classically old and high end new. The city had a very 'ye olde english' look and feel but was well equipped for any fashion lover with such shops as Pandora, L.K Bennett and Cath Kidston. With also everyones favourite High Street shops such as H&M, New Look and Primark.

    

5) If you buy one magazine this month buy Love ! I know I'm slightly contradicting myself as I've already recommended Elle and Vogue magazine, but a girl can never have enough fashion magazines ! My dad's jaw hit the floor when I told him how much it was but the quality of styling and photography of the photographs are amazing ! So amazing I'm gonna feature my favourite photographs in My Loves! My Lusts!

                                          

6) If you have a meal in one restaurant go to Bem Brasil ! I recently went to this restaurant on Deansgate Manchester (they also have a restaurant in the Northern Quarter,) for my best friend Louisa Robinson's 21st birthday ! I had honestly never heard of it before but Louisa constantly raved about it, and now I can see why! Definitely for those who are keen eaters, barbecuers and carnivores, basically you sit down while waiters/waitresses bring you ample amounts of meat which has just been spit roasted right in front of you. Chicken, Sausage, Beef Steak, Lamb, and Pork take your pick and all this can be accompanied by pasta, salads and other side orders at the self service area. I'd definitely recommend this restaurant for a special occasion, the staff are extremely helpful, the prices are reasonable and the cocktails are yummy !

7) If you buy from one online store, buy from GiGi Vintage ! I really appreciate it when people who I don't know on social networking sites such as Facebook and Twiiter become friends/followers of my blog ! To be honest I was shocked that such an established business such as GiGi Vintage became a follower of my heart on my fashion sleeve ! But from the second we became internet friends, I was in love with GiGi Vintage ! I'm really stuck when it comes to the words to best describe the absolute amazing items on their website ! Gigi Vintage which is all about out with the new and in with the old is the outfit for any vintage fashion lover. Selling everything from clothing to footwear to jewellery make sure you save some of your student loan or wages because you are bound to find something at this online store ! 

This 1980's floral playsuit is my favourite item in the clothing the section and hopefully next week when I get my student loan I will be it's rightful owner ! I had to resist glancing over the rest of the website as I knew I would end up spending more money then I have.  Make sure you visit the website Click Here !

Marilyn Quote of the Week ! #7

"A career is wonderful, but you can't curl up with it on a cold night" - Marilyn Monroe