January 2015 - fashion food

How many pairs of culottes are too many?

January 25, 2015 by ellied

How many pairs of culottes are too many? Cos I just bought another pair.

To justify my purchase:
1. they’re not black or white, and
2. they were in the sale for a ridic price – so, it would have been equally as ridic if I didn’t buy them.

Not the most practical for winter, but sometimes you just have to let your legs get a little chilly, for the sake of fashion, darling. This pair are from the Topshop Tall section, making them longer in length than my other culottes, which I love. I also feel slightly more practical as don’t feel as though I’m wearing shorts in January. I opted for favourite partner for these trousers, a boxy tee – because why balance out the over-sized, wide-legged pantaloons with a tiny crop top when you can channel tent-chic.

I’m wearing: Topshop top & culottes, a thrifted jacket, Dune shoes.

Watercress is the new Kale & 2 green smoothie recipes

January 17, 2015 by ellied

Why you need watercress in your life.

It seemed Kale was the reigning champ of the health food world in 2014, but move over, there’s a new superfood in the spotlight. It may not be printed on a sweater spread across Beyoncé’s chest (see here and here), but watercress sure is pretty impressive in terms of nutritional value.

Rich in an array of vitamins and minerals, including vitamins K, A, C, B, watercress has more iron than spinach, more calcium than milk and as much vitamin C as an orange. Rich in fibre, with anti-inflammatory properties, it can successfully aid digestive function and is essential for overall blood and liver health. The vitamins A and C help to keep skin soft and smooth, whilst also providing healthy hair and strong nails.

The unique mustard oil found in the plant, gives watercress a slight peppery flavour which makes it great in soups, salads and a lovely accompany for fish/meat/roasted veg. However, adding watercress to smoothies makes an easy way to obtain all of the nutrients in a discrete way.

Below, I’ve posted two green smoothie recipes; one very green smoothie and another creamy green smoothie.

#1 – A Very Green Smoothie

Refreshing, hydrating and easy to digest, this smoothie is an extremely energising as part of your breakfast in the morning or a great snack to keep you going throughout the day.

Yields 1 (or 2 smaller)

1 cup water
1 tsp coconut oil (I like Biona)
A large handful(s) of spinach
A handful of watercress
The juice of 1/2 a lemon
Chunk of fresh ginger, finely chopped
1/4 avocado
1/2 stick of celery
1/4 large cucumber
1 green apple
1/2 frozen mango
Optional – greens powder (spirulina, chlorella, wheatgrass etc)

#2 – The Creamy Green Smoothie

If you’re new to green smoothies, I suggest you try this one. The avocado and frozen banana and hint of mango give an extremely creamy and naturally sweet taste and texture, making it feel like a treat rather than a mysterious, grassy concoction. As an alternative to the mango, you could also try another fruit like nectarine or peach. I’ve use almond milk here, however other nut milks taste gorgeous – particularly cashew or brazil nut milks!

1 cup almond milk (I use homemade)
Large handful(s) spinach
1 very ripe, frozen banana
1/4-1/2 mango, frozen
Juice of 1/2 a lime
1 tsp chia seeds

Bold Stripes

January 11, 2015 by ellied

I don’t know what it is about this dress that makes me feel like I belong in the Sound of Music, but I love the Sound of Music so I can roll with that. I think it has something to do with the bold inset stripes around the collar that mirror the iconic uniforms of the von Trapp children, whilst the flouncy, slightly dipped hem skirt makes me want to spin uncontrollable like Maria von Trapp in the hills. However, I’m not a optimistic as Maria and I’ll spare you my rendition of The Hills are Alive.

Hanging unaccompanied on a rack in H&M, I thought it was best I gave this gorgeous dress a loving home. I had spotted a similar dress earlier on in the year whilst browsing the J Crew website (link above) and so was thrilled when I found this almost identical tunic. The sleek fit of the dress makes the drape comfortable and gives a slightly over-sized look, whilst the cut also fits the figure well. I look forward to wearing this in the summer, when I can finally ditch the Primark tights for a couple of months and take complete advantage of this full and floaty skirt. I have paired it with my beloved leather jacket to toughen this look up a bit and had intended to capture more shots of the jacket but camera issues took over.

H&M dress (similar here)
ASOS jacket
TOPSHOP shoes

I just wanted to briefly mention that I’m going to try to update the blog as regularly as possible, but at the moment school/Saturday job/lack of sunlight life seem to be getting in the way. I have a lot of ideas for recipe posts and other blog content whirling around in my head that I just put my words into action and get into swing of things!

Rouge

January 2, 2015 by ellied

TOPSHOP ribbed crop top
ASOS skirt
NEW BALANCE 410 trainers
GAP coat
TOPSHOP earrings

A bit of quick and impromptu post abusing the back door step. Apologies for the bad quality photos, they were taken on my phone.

Day 2 of January 2015, and as you may have read in my previous post, my efforts to add a little brightness into my wardrobe seem to be going well. It may be a little eager to feature a red outfit immediately following my last red-inspired post, but I was feeling eager wear some rouge. I’m enjoying the red lip and red top combo a lot at the moment – which reinforces why red such a great colour; a matching green lip and jumper wouldn’t quite be the same now would it.

I like this ASOS skirt as the front split is an alternative to the usual side-split skirts, and since I don’t really like wearing tight body-con style skirts, this is a different, cool option for a midi. I wore my New Balance as it was an easy errand-running kind of day, also deciding to brave the weather and not wear tights – I was surprisingly not very cold.

The ribbed crop top is really soft and great for this time of year as it feels like a thin jumper, and easy for layering under coats or blazers. It was a Topshop sale find that I actually borrowed from my younger sister, although I saw it in the shop first *rolls eyes*. After a lot of experience, I think I have established that the best time to ask her to borrow clothes is in the mornings, when she’s half unconscious in bed and will mumble ‘yeah’ just get me out of the room. As we get older we’re both slowly started to accept the fact that it’s better to lend each other clothes. It’s a bit like having a double wardrobe, accept for the fact I have probably invested in double the amount of clothes as her, and so it isn’t much of a fair deal on my half. I have also found that sisters are also incredibly useful for purchasing things that you don’t want to spend the money on yourself. For example, the other day, I saw a black jumpsuit in H&M and as lovely as it was, I couldn’t quite justify getting it as I had bought another black jumpsuit about a week before. The simple solution? Make your sister try it on, persuade her it looks great (which it did) so that she buys it herself, and then just borrow hers when you fancy another black playsuit option. What are sister for ey?

New Year Inspiration

January 1, 2015 by ellied

c4672acb3fabf4294093ce7772025209 Caroline Issa

Since it’s the time for change, I’ve set myself a little resolution that I think I can manage this year. I’m going to take the very, very brave step in adding more colour into my wardrobe. Nothing too scary right? As much as the minimal approach to dressing is simple and classic, I’m having colour withdrawals and seeing as it’s the new year there’s no better time to re-evaluate my wardrobe choices. I don’t think I can quite justify putting on a red lip as the only means of brightening my monochrome outfits any more. I made a vow to myself at the start of December that I wasn’t allowed to purchase any item of clothing in the colour black, however, every piece I had bought since making the statement was in either black or white. So, instead I’m starting now.

I received the Refinery 29 ‘Style Stalking’ book for Christmas this year and on opening the first couple of pages, I was immediately met with a word that has subconsciously faded from my vocabulary – Brights. Don’t get me wrong, I love colour but there seems to be a compete lack of it on my rail. At first glance, I quickly flicked through the images of bold blue two pieces, vibrant winter coats and neon midi skirts spread across the opening pages. Hm, they look great, I thought, but just not very…me? Then I saw the Q&A section with Solange Knowles, the glowing goddess of colourful dressing, who said “sometimes looking like a Crayola box is more fun” and I think it’s time I took the advice of this fabulous lady. Speaking of the which, can I just mention the fact that I have still not quite fully recovered from the photographs from her wedding day. Ultimate goals.

Browsing through bright street style images on Pinterest, I noticed one colour that really stood out for me. I have always loved the colour red, and I don’t know if it’s because of the festive time of year but I think it’s one colour that just looks fantastic and gorgeous on anyone. Move over “All White Everything”, it’s all about those All Red outfits now.

I have featured below a few of red looks that are particularly inspiring. I love the red ensemble worn by Pandora Sykes, which looks great paired with a contrasting leopard print clutch. The eye catching two-piece suits also look great, a versatile addition to the wardrobe for an easy daytime look or a formal evening garment. As always, Leandra gets it right with the split mini, lace and monochrome brogues – which I would definitely work for a laid back, yet stunning, option for a prom or event. I ~~want~~ need those shoes in my life.

Happy 2015, I hope you all had wonderful NYE celebrations and have a healthy, happy (and bright) year ahead.

18a4de87127090a9d37731db9778a588 Leandra Medine – The Man Repeller