Wantings # 1

My current wantings:

(1) - Petites Faux Fur Collar Coat from Miss Selfridge. £85.
I loved this coat as soon as I saw it. It even has a detachable fur trim incase you just want to wear it as a tweed jacket. It's fitted and lovely. I think it could be a good investment. It's brand-new stock, so I still have time to think about it before purchasing!

(2) - Embellished Pencil Skirt from Miss Selfridge. £65.
I had a field day in Miss Selfridge yesterday when I saw this beauty. Embellishments is a bang-on trend at the minute, and I love the amount of sequins covering this gorgeous skirt. My only concern is that it might look a bit gothic on me? Especially since I have long dark brown hair? What do you think? I don't know whether I'd prefer to spend my money on something glittery-great-gatsby style instead!

(3) Nude Envelope Clutch Bag from Dorothy Perkins. £20 (but on a special offer of £18 at the moment).
I love this luxurious bag that is glam enough for a night out but also looks so simple and stylish. It even comes with a chain incase you want to wear it across body. Really I think it's a winner. However, will that lovely shiny surface come into a clash with my car keys and end up looking second-hand on it's first outing? Maybe.

(4) Benefit Full-Finish Lipstick in Flirt Alert. £14.
I got this bargain off eBay for only £6 (plus £1.50 P&P) instead of the RRP of £14. Apparently it's the official colour this season for Forever Crazy! Woop. Just waiting for this bad-boy to arrive! I've never been so excited to win an auction bid on eBay!

(5) Old Street Wall Clock from Next. £45.
This clock is beautiful. It has a 1920's style feel to it, but in a modern and intriguing way. I really want this for my kitchen, especially since I can't read 24hr clocks or clocks with no numbers very well! What would you say: too pricey or an investment?

My style idol.

I know Kate Middleton (Princess Kate) has been getting a lot of press recently (and not for something she would actually like to be known for). As a massive Kate fan, I want to rave about her a bit. I love her fashion sense. I want to wear everything she wears. When I got engaged last year, my amazing friend photoshopped  mine and the (then) fiancé's head onto an image of Will and Kate. I even went as far as to get the husband and I to dress up as the royal couple for a birthday bash last year. See figure 1.

Figure 1.

And, I got married in the same year as her. No biggy....
So, anyways, I love Kate Middleton. And I would love to own these dressses:

Okay, I could just keep posting pictures of her amazing outfits, but if you love Kate's wardrobe as much as I do, then click here to see InStyle's collection of Kate's 100 Most Memorable Outfits.

Standing ovation.

John Lewis adverts are always great. Remember this one last year I shared with you at Christmas?
Well, here is the newest ad from John Lewis and I love it!

I think it's just so elegant and I love the modern/old cross over. It also shows that relationships are the same throughout the decades.

What do you think of the advert?

Cambridge.

The cambridge satchel is a bang-on fashion trend at the minute. But it's not just the usual tan colour that everyone is sporting: think pastel, think bold, think neon. The timeless satchel has had a 21st century upgrade!

The Cambridge Satchel Company have a range of gorgeous satchels. They range from about £70-£105 in price, so don't suit everyone's price range. However, I've found some lovely satchels from high street stores that will fit this fashion trend perfectly (and at a price that doesn't break the bank!)

H&M have lovely satchels in for £19.99. Online they only have black/tan colours, but instore I have seen neon pinks and yellows!

New Look have this showstopper satchel for £44.99 by Steve Madden.

Topshop have lots of satchels to choose from, whether it's a neon whipstitch satchel for £50 or metallic snake skin satchels for £28.

Warehouse have 'mini clean satchels' in delicious leathery brown colours. It has an across the body strap as well as a short strap so you can change your look. It costs £34.

Another great place to look for a satchel is eBay. They have a range of different colours and prices, so you are bound to find something to suit you!

I'm lucky as I have a lovely vintage satchel I got from my mum's next-door neighbour. But, I think that for this season, it is definitely worth investing in a bright, bold and beautiful satchel to carry all your everyday essentials. I think I might go for a bright postbox-red or an electric blue! If you see either of those satchel colours when you're out and about, let me know!

Alphabet.

I can't get over how much I love these cotton tote bags/purses from Alphabet Bags.
They have so much choice, and are quite reasonably priced for a nice treat!
I love the typography and the simplistic style of the products. I always love to have a cotton tote, and I am definitely going to purchase one - when I decide which one to get!

So much choice! My heart could explode with tote-love.
Also, I love the wedding collection totes they do. I am devastated I didn't know about them sooner, otherwise I would have definitely had them at my wedding. Look how delicious they are! (I love using the word delicious in a wider context!)

I only discovered Alphabet Bags yesterday, can you see how much of a fan I am already?
I want it all!
They also do canvas purses, which are a big season trend at the minute, with letters of the alphabet on.
So, naturally I'll choose R.

Thank you Alphabet Bags for jazzing up the tote bag in a classy, bang-on-trend way.
Your converted fan,
Rosie.

The high street.

This morning I read an article on The Drum about 'can social media save the high street?'. I thought it was a pretty interesting question to ask, considering more and more high streets and town centres are dying a rapid death, and more and more people take to online shopping.

I think the reasons for this shift in shopping style were highlighted in the article when it said that there are not as many stay-at-home mums and people generally work longer hours now and don't have time to walk around the shops, or the town centre shops are not even open when they finish work! Also, mostly you can find what you want cheaper online, and you have the zero-hassle of trying to transport bought goods home - especially if you use public transport.

But what is to be done?

I think that generally, people want their high street to be a great place to shop and eat. There seems to be a shift in values where people want to make their area more of a community and encourage local produce and small to medium businesses rather than the national chains, but this is hard to do because of their domination in the market place and their ease of use.

So what can I do to help?
I can visit my local high street to buy my groceries instead of going to the ASDA supermarket. I can buy from small local businesses and then promote them through word of mouth/social media.

Sometimes I think our grandparents got it right. When everybody in the street knew each other. You could talk with your butcher about how the family was doing and buy your bread fresh from a bakery. It may seem a simpler way of life, but maybe it was a better way of life.

Under a rock.

Well, if you haven't been living under a rock for the past week, you would know that there is a huge, new Kripsy Kreme store at the Metrocentre in Gateshead.

The husband and I attempted to go for a mini-date on Friday night (the day after it opened). I knew it was a bad idea from the start, and I was right. There was a queue of people weaving their way out of the store just to get a glimpse and bite of a delicious doughnut. The drive-thru was as equally packed with cars and we decided that it wasn't our night for Krispy Kreme doughnuts.

So, we went back on a Tuesday morning and had doughnuts for breakfast (DON'T JUDGE US!). They were delicious. The hotlight was also on so we got free glazed doughnuts to nibble on while we waited in the much smaller queue. I was shocked by the 'panic' buying approach people had to the doughnuts, with some people buying multiple dozen-boxes of doughnuts as if they were here for one day only and it was an emergency! Another lady and her friend bought 24 doughnuts each, and then sat down in a booth with a tray filled with doughnuts, where they took a few bites of each doughnut and then just left the rest. Greedy!

Anyway, I come the bearer of great news. Krispy Kreme have officially announced that they are opening a KK Sunderland branch on the 23rd October in the Bridges Shopping Centre and a KK Durham on the 30th October on Silver Street! So you don't have to flock to the Metrocentre to get your hands on doughnuts. It looks like Krispy Kreme are here to stay! Long live Krispy Kreme!

Sweet treats: eggless cookie dough

If you're anything like me, then you love eating cookie dough!
My mum finds it appalling. I think my sister does too. I don't think they like the whole raw eggs thing.
Anyway, I was baking a batch of cookies yesterday, using an eggless recipe, and I thought...this is perfect for cookie dough eating as it has no raw eggs in! Now everyone can enjoy cookie dough!

Here's the recipe:
(It's pretty huge, so I'd advise you share this out...or just half the amount!)

3oz light brown sugar
4oz margarine
6oz self-raising flour
2tbsp milk
2tbsp golden syrup
a packet of chocolate drops (optional)

All you do is cream the sugar and margarine together, then add everything else and whisk it up!

And, if you don't want to eat the mixture (why wouldn't you!?!?) then this makes about 14 cookies in the oven at 180°C for 8-10 minutes, which are delicious!

(source)

This recipe was taken from allrecipes.co.uk - source.