It’s beginning to look a lot like summer

I’m going to talk in whispers for this whole post so as not to scare of the sun so shhhhhh..

Could it be? Blue sky, warm air, green grass. It’s even starting to smell like summer. I don’t know how a season can have a smell but it just does. Today I went out without a coat (spending the whole day with my fingers crossed I might add) which seemed just unthinkable a few weeks ago, being surrounded by piles of unbudge-able snow, but there I was, skipping down the street (slightly exagerated) without a coat on! It feels pretty miraculous I have to say.

To celebrate I naturally dressed extra summery in the hope of encouraging the sun to keep on shining. Not that I ever dress particularly wintery but still. Unfortunately, I very sadly realised that I don’t have any sandals so I’m now on the lookout for some pretty super-summery ones to complete the summer time feel.

Cardigan: Handmedown from my lovely sister, Top: Originally Zara (I got it from a charity shop), Skirt: Originally New Look (I got it from a charity shop), Shoes: Asda

Also, might I just add, this is a super cheap outfit! I think the whole thing cost about £10!
Also also, on another note, this photo was taken in natural sunlight that was streaming through my window which is lovely.

I wore this a couple of days ago on a slightly less sunny day but it’s still a very summery outfit. I especially love the huge flower in my hair, though it is rather annoying just being able to hear it all day..

 

Windmill!

I don’t know why but I love windmills. They’re so cute and pretty and feel really summery so this was just perfect. You can go up through this windmill and see each step of the process and they sell their own flour right there which is pretty reasonably priced. I treated myself to a recipe book from there which has every type of bread you could ever possibly think of so keep tuned for some bready creations.

 

You don’t have to wear black to look smart!

It’s true! Just because the only work wear clothes that are readily available are in boring black, grey and navy blue, it doesn’t mean that you have to wear them to look smart.

As you can probably tell from my posts, I’m a big fan of bright colours and prints. Well why not? They’re awesome! And no, I’m not a huge fan of hoodies or plain jeans so finding smartish clothes which aren’t black can be difficult.

But it is possible! Blazers are one of my wardrobe essentials. I have 4 different stripy blazers of different colours and a bunch more in other patterns and colours. And they look smart, even though they’re not black, grey or navy!

Fitted coats are also a great way to add some fun into your outfit whilst still looking smart. There’s loads of colours and patterns of coats available out there so why bother with something boring?

This fitted skirt is one of my go-to skirts for instant smart-ness. It’s a classic pencil skirt shape but the patterns and colours make it really unique.
I love my leopard print coat, leopard print is super cool, and it’s a really nice fitted shape.
And last, but certainly not least, shoe boots bring a stylish yet smart final touch to any outfit.

The last time I went for an interview, this is what I wore:

It’s colourful, it’s patterned and it’s smart. The interviewer even commented on how much they liked my outfit as it showcased my creative flair and made me stand out from the crowd and surely that’s what you need when you’re applying for a job that probably hundreds of other people have applied for too? You want to be remembered. And I think the tag-name “The Colourful One” is a pretty great way to get started.

 

When in Barnsley

For those of you that know Barnsley, you may be a tad befuddled as to why I’m doing a touristy sort of post about it. It’s not exactly the epitome of tourism but we’ve just spent the day there and it was pretty fab so listen up.

The main reason for our visit was to see this exhibition called POP! about design, culture and fashion from the 1950s to the 1970s.

It was awesome.

You just have to visit here whilst it’s on. Not only is it a really cool, the exhibition and the gallery (Barnsley Civic) both have free entry so hurray! And (as you will see) you’re allowed to take photos for free. And the cafe in the gallery is not only really tasty (the things they sell, not the cafe building itself), it’s pretty darn cheap too! Under £8 for two lunches: can’t complain really.

Here’s just a few photos from the exhibition (I didn’t want to spoil the fun, you’ll have to go and see the rest for yourself!):

 

I’m a massive fan of the big skirts (ever a lover of the 50s era) and those boots are just fab!

Barnsley Civic

The exbition is on until the 7th of June so get down there sometime to check it out!

Whilst you’re in Barnsley, take a look at the market. Wow super exciting… you may think but shoo with your sarcasm as it is actually a pretty exciting market. Especially if you’re a fabric/haberdashery fan. Or in need of your week’s food shop. But seriously, it’s fab and super cheap and huge so you should definitely take a look around.

Time for a walk in the countryside

I have some earth shattering news for you: it’s sunny today. I know, crazy.

To celebrate this momentous occasion we decided it was time for a walk in the countryside. Although the sky is lovely and blue, there is still a fair amount of snow around and some serious boggyness going on so I was very grateful for my purple stompy boots. Forget ordinary walking boots, this is the way to do stylish walking (odd laces optional).

So there we were strolling across the snow and bog infested fields and we heard the bleats of baby lambs! They were the cutest little things (the mum sheep however looked pretty darn scary as to warn us off coming near her babies) and they were hopping and skipping over the snow and sleepy grass.

After seeing these little guys I just had to have a look for some sheep print clothes. These are my favourite picks (sorry I don’t know where they’re from!)

                          

 

My personal favourite is the sheep print jumper – so cute!

If print isn’t your thing you could always pay homage to the spring lambs with a snuggly wool jumper. It might be spring but it’s definitely still jumper weather. Here’s hoping for summer to hit soon.

Festival fashion: check it out!

For those of you that don’t know, I also write for the blog over at the fab www.findmethesales.com. If you’ve not seen it before you have to check it out. It’s a really useful website that tells you where all the sales are online so you can grab yourself a bargain without all the hassel of looking.

The most recent post I did was all about festival fashion featuring my top 5 picks from the highstreet of pretty wellies. Let’s face it, even if you’ve not got a festival booked for this year, you’ll still going to be needing some waterproof wellies at some point so they might as well be awesome! Take a look at the post here http://www.findmethesales.com/how-to-do-festival-fashion-by-rhiannon/ and tell me what you think. Remember to have a poke round the rest of the site whilst you’re there.

Where to eat in Milan

I must admit, this is a rather belated post but shush. It’s going to be so amazing you’re totally going to forgive me about its late-ness so it’s all good.

I’ll start by saying where not to eat. Don’t get me wrong, pretty much everywhere we ate was really good but unless you’re super rich, don’t eat in the main shopping arcade or the duomo square. I’m sure that the bowl of soup would be very tasty but I just wouldn’t be able to enjoy it when it costs 40 euros a bowl. Silly silly prices.
So yes, stay away from the centre for eating and drinking unless you’re desperate.

Ok so on to where you should go.
First off, I don’t care if you’re only in Milan for a day, even if you’re only there for a few hours, you must go here: Shockolat.

Unfortunately it is pretty cramped and quite expensive but it’s absolutely worth it. If you go in winter, have the hot chocolate. It’s the most chocolatey gooey yummy hot chocolate ever.

If you go in summer then try out one of their many flavours of ice cream. I didn’t have one as it was snowing at the time but they looked scrummy! And if the hot chocolate is anything to go by, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed by the ice cream. If you’ve been already and tasted their ice creams let me know what they were like! If you want to try it out for yourself, it’s not far from the design museum (which I wouldn’t really recommend to be honest) and it’s near the metro station (sorry I don’t remember what it was called!).

The other food place that we went to that really stood out was Melabianca. This was a bit further out from the centre as it was near our hotel. I would definitely make the trip to it though. It’s 4 euros for a massive Margherita pizza – and I’m talking HUGE-bigger-than-your-face-massive. Plus the Torta Nonna is just divine. It’s a lemony sort of tart with toasted pine nuts on the top and it’s just so creamy yet light mmmmmm. You just have to go and try it out for yourself.

A word of warning, don’t go to the restaurant across the road (I think it was called Il Pomodorino) unless you like expensive small portions of food that don’t taste that great that’s served by people who seem like they couldn’t really care less about you as long as they get your money.

Sorry to be very vague about where it is but I think if you get the number 12 tram from il duomo out-of-town for about 20 minutes then you’ll get there. Here’s the address anyway if it helps: Via Cucchiari Domenico, 12, 20155 Milano, Area: Monumentale. I know it may seem a bit tricky but it’s really worth the journey I promise.

Well that’s all folks; this is the end of the Milan adventures. It was such a fab time and I hope you’ve enjoyed reading all about it!

Yippee!

There’s this charity shop that I walk past a lot that always seems to be closed. The stuff in the windows looked pretty good, just sat there behind the locked door, looking at me.
But today it was open! So I had to pop in to have a look and I found this beauty:

it was only £1! Sorry it’s not a fab picture but it’s quite tricky to take a photo of a big scarf. Anyway, it’s a lovely bright blue and yellow colour with really pretty swirly bits all over it (very technical description there).

Also, I’ve been published again! Check it out here http://iasianmagazine.com/fashion/street-style/
It’s a new website that’s just launched today so take a look. I didn’t add the pictures, they were edited in by someone else –  so was the very first paragraph describing what street style is but all the rest of it is all me. Let me know what you think!