Spring awakening

I love musical theatre. I love it for all the reasons that people who hate musicals hate musicals - the spontaneous bursting into song, the dance routines, the costumes, Andrew Lloyd-Webber (okay, maybe not).

My love of musicals is the reason why I will still pick the old fashioned Disney 2d animations over those whizzy new Pixar ones anyday. If ain't got a singing Genie or Satyr then it's just not Disney, dammit! I am so glad to see that Disney has returned to it's roots with The Frog Prince and I can't wait to see it. My love of musicals is why I fell in love with Glee.

Anyway, this isn't a post about Disney. It's not even a post about musicals. It's a post about a musical, specifically Spring Awakening. I went to see it last year at the Lyric Hammersmith and it was A-mazing. I laughed, I cried, I ooh-ed, I aah-ed. The music was fantastic, the story was poignant but mostly I loved the costumes. The boy's costumes. They all dressed like this:

This is how I want to dress. Forever. The guy up there is Moritz. He was my favourite character in Spring Awakening because he got to sing all the kick-ass rock songs. And then he killed himself. Smell the teen angst! I have this postcard on my wall and everytime I look at it I want to go in search of knickerbockers and a fitted blazer.

This is how I would interpret the look:
It's all a bit Janelle Monae. Love this girl. Check out this vid:

Outfit of the week 07/04/09

Isn't London wonderful when the sun is out. After a couple of days of sunshine (finally!), people actaully smile at you on the street, the chat to you on buses and you in turn gurn at screaming toddlers and can actually bear to be around a few hormonally challenged young 'uns. It's like it's a different city.

And when the sun is shining I like to look at summer dresses and make up pretty summer out fits like this one:The shirt dress is perfect for summer a nice little girlie, checked number. I like that it's red, because - in case you haven't heard - I have a thing for red anything but also red is a great summer colour. I could have gone vaguely Americana and teamed with a denim waistcoat and cowboy boots but where's the fun in that? Instead I've decided I want the full on summer treatment with accessories in an even brighter colour - yellow.

I'm calling this "lazing on a sunny afternoon" after The Kinks. Video below for reference kiddies.


Outfit details:
Dress, Warehouse
Corsage, Evans
Belt, Dorothy Perkins
Bag, Aldo
Hightops, Reebok @ Schuh

Outfit of the week 31/03/09

Hark! What's that sound? Why, it's the sound of distant jungle rhythms that herald this week's outfit. Yep, helped along by Louis Vuitton and that atrocious grass skirt confection last seen on Madonna, the high street has gone tribal... again. But this time it's all aztec patterns and fringe-y sandals.

So, on to our outfit:The dress is suprisingly restrained, considering but I immediately put that right with a few more "literal" accessories. You've got your fringeing and your beading - shoes, necklace; you've got your wood - bangle; you've got your marvellous, bright aztec pattern - clutch; and just in case anyone misses the point, I've chucked in these funky little zebra stud earrings.

You are Cinderella and you shall go to the jungle ball, dammit! I'm calling this one "jungle boogie".

Details:

Dress, River Island
Shoes, Topshop
Clutch, New Look
Earrings and necklace, Accessorize
Wooden bangle, Dorothy Perkins

The return of Outfit of the Week

Hey there! Remember a little thing known round these parts as the outfit of the week (OOTW)? Remember how it went out one day and NEVER RETURNED? Well, when the OOTW heard that Madonna was going to be 50 this week, it made up it's mind to come back to the fold, with it's head bowed and grovelling for forgiveness - much like the Prodigal Son from the bible.

And what did I do? Why I welcomed the OOTW with open arms and much rejoicing but - lacking a fatted calf - we had to make do with a couple of beers.

Rejoice! Celebrate and be glad, for this your OOTW was dead, and is alive; it was lost, and is found.

Oh, and also: Ash? Thanks for caring!

Can 80s Madonna, translate to the 21st century without looking like a bag lady with an identity crisis? You be the judge. Rate the outfit.

Outfit of the week - Madonna special

You crash landed on the moon, where you slept in a coma for 100 years. You're in the wilds of the Himalayas where you've been living with wolves since you were a child. You are in the seventh level of hell. These are the only instances in which you maybe, just maybe would not know that Madonna turns 50 this week.

And what better way to celebrate Her Madgesty's birthday than to take a look at some of her more random/iconic outfits over the years and try to recreate them 21st Century stylie? [NB: I hadn't realised how long it would take me to put one outfit together - never mind several. So this post will be coming to you in parts]

Mid-80s Madonna
I was an 8os teen, so I can confirm, that I did indeed dress like this at some point in my life. Luckily for me, all photographic evidence has since been destroyed. Unfortunately for Madonna, this is patently not the case.

This was the era well before fast-fashion and a little while after punk, so basically plain cheapish outfits and an eclectic mix of accesories to pull the look together and give it some edgy individuality. Note the Ray Bans (coming back around) and the slouchy tee (ditto). Does anyone wear cut-off leggings anymore?

Can you pull this look off in the 21st century without looking like the village idiot or a drag tribute act?

You tell me.

8os Madonna in the 21st century


I've kept the gloves and jewellery pretty much as they were, although I have added a sneaky skull necklace to the rosaries just even things out a little. Like I said, slouchy tees are back in vogue (can the sudden urge to dress down have something to do with the credit crunch?) and I've replaced the cropped leggings with the slouchy pant (or trouser - if your English - which I am. But... Meh) du jour, the harem pant.

I thought the leopard print socks would add some interest to cute booties although, now I'm thinking converse high tops would look better. Instead of the headscarf I've gone for the super-cute, mini-pillbox fascinator...Why not?


Slouchy tee and Harem pants, Topshop
Rosaries and skull pendant chain, Topman
Cuffed bootie, Office
Lace fingerless gloves, Chicken Shop
Silver bangles, ASOS
Leopard print socks, Dorothy Perkins

Madonna image courtesy madonnalicious

Outfit of the week - pink and green

It's the outfit of the year month week... I know. There has been major slippage. But it's back now, so stop grumbling and be grateful.

This week it's a pretty little pink dress surrounded by green bits. Think pink flower, green grass... Think summer... Think festival time... Aah. Can ya feel the lurve? Well, can ya?

Don't be waitin', get ratin'

Outfit of the week - the dress to go with the shoes

So here it is, the outfit of the week. And for the life of me, I can think of anything to say because it's almost 12 midnight and I'm an old granny, so it is way past my bedtime. Don't judge. I do this for you.

Don't delay, rate today.

Outfit of the week 07/05/08

So, you remember how I was going on about those El Dantes wedge sandals and how they would look so good with a summery maxi dress? Well, I've found just the dress.

It's from Monsoon Fusion and that bejewelled halterneck alone is well worth the £180 price tag. But that's not enough, I plan to pile on the chunky bangles with gay abandon, add some hoop earrings and an oversized blingring. Plus a cute straw bag. Roll on summer.

71 per cent of you rated this outfit a Do
28 per cent of you hate maxi dresses and said Don't

Dress, £180, Monsoon Fusion
Wood and silver bangles, £10, Oasis
Colour block bangle, £6; wood earrings, £6; and chunky ring, £8
Shoes, El Dantes at Faith

Outfit of the week - Ooh, get you!

It may be late but it's not disappointing. With this week's outfit I've gone for glamour and drama.

If you fancy going the whole hog into the pin-up girl look, then there you have it. On the other hand, gloves and hat are optional leaving you with a pretty little office piece.

Two outfits in one, again. Who'd a thunk it?

Love it? Hate it? Rate it. Now.

Outfit of the week 28/04/08

My first thought when I saw this skirt and blouse on Boohoo.com, (after Hubba, Hubba!, that is. Boohoo is certainly coming into it's own lately) was that together they had the makings of really stylish office outfit. Of course, once I started playing with the images in Photoshop I saw the potential for a cool little prim and proper pin-up girl look. So that's what I went with. You know me, I can't resist a chance for some costume drama.

So, this is really two outfits in one. Wear with some simple comfortable but ladylike shoes and a structured bag (I love this mock croc one from Oli, so stylish!) for the office. Then amp up the potential for drama by adding sheer gloves and a gorgeous fascinator (this one from Hats and That is divinely OTT). Ooh, get you!

55 per cent of you wanted to do the whole pin up look
45 per cent of you wanted to do both the pin up and office look


Click on image to enlarge

Blouse and skirt, £12 each; Boohoo
Shoes, £28; ASOS
Bag, £49 from Fiorelli at Oli
Gloves, $12; Great Gloves Online
Fascinator, £75; Hats and That

Outfit of the week - everybody loves the sunshine

I miss the sun so much, I've put together an outfit in it's honour. Which is a little bit pagan and scary, when you think about it...

Worship the sun with me. Rate the outfit of the week and get extra personal sunshine without the sunburn.

Outfit of the week 18/04/08

All this incredible-disappearing-sunshine weather is getting me all depressed, so cheer myself up , I thought I'd put together a fun casual summer outfit with lots of colour and quirk. Am still very much on the frills tip, hence the frill tiered top and skirt. I love a bit of a juicy colour contrast - orange and mint green, green and pink, orange and pink - these are some of my favourite combinations for eye-catching colour.

A touch of sheer colour with contrasting sheer tights from Jonathan Aston (I'm thinking pink but no pics available). And just for the sheer pereverse hell of it, I'm chucking in some floral detail from this cute shopper and adorable leather cuff.

There. I feel better already.

In an almost evenly split result, 55 per cent of you rate this outfit was a sunshiny Do and 44 per cent of you thought it was a bit too much Don't.



Click on image to enlarge

Tiered top and skirt, £28 each, both at Warehouse
Floral shopper, £10, and floral cuff, £15, both at Miss Selfridge
Flat bow pumps, £28 at Office
Sheer tights (various colours), £.395 at Jonathan Aston

Outfit of the week

It's that time again people. It's the outfit of the week, it's black, it's white, it's full of frothy, drapey goodness. Mmmm... tasty!

Don't delay, rate today.

Outfit of the week 11/04/08

Because I'm totally obsessed with harem pants (or hareem pants as Topshop like to call them. God only knows why. *sigh*) at the moment, I fell in love with these drape jersey slacks from Religion as soon as I layed eyes on them. They're sort of chic-er version of harem pants or a sort of cross between harem pants and jodhpurs... whatever. They are a true thing of beauty.

With a pair of trousers like this, I guess the thing would be to wear with a a pared down unfussy top but I actually think they can take a bit of drama. So I'm doing the opposite and pairing them with big frills and a fitted shirt, the frills are supposed just peek out from underneath that exaggerated neckline. What makes it work is that both shirts are fitted and also the quite formal, rakishness of it all.

Add to the mix these gorgeous, chunky, wooden heeled shoes, a clutch bag and chunky ring and I think it all comes together as quite a nice little party outfit.

Response to this outfit (such as it was) was a 50/50 split. 50 per cent of you thought the outfit had rakish good looks and the other 50 per cent felt there may have been a surfiet of frou frou. Either way, thanks for rating!

Click on image to enlarge

Trousers, £52, Religion at Urban Outfitters
Frill-neck Blouse, $24.80, Forever 21
Fitted black shirt with exaggerated collar, £65, All Saints
Shoes, £70, Office
Clutch, £10, Red Herring at Debenhams
Chunky ring, £6, Dorothy Perkins

Outfit of the week 03/04/08

As you might have read, after a long shopping hiatus, I went shopping at Primarni last weekend and picked up what I believed to be the best superclutch ever for a mere £6. My friend K was not so impressed, and I'm beginning to wonder if I will actually be able to wear it with anything. So I had a root around on t'internet (as you do) and came up with not one but two ways to wear my bag. So this week you get two outfits of the week in one.

Outfit A: Funky, punky, fun
For this outfit, I was thinking keep it simple and let the bag be the star. This is probably as simple as it gets for me cause I've just got to have some colour. It's kind of of bubblegum pop meets punk, the kind of outfit Debbie Harry might have worn in her hey day. I am deeply, deeply in love with those gladiator sandals from All Saints. I was seriously tempted to buy them online today. If this love continues, I shall have have to put the credit card in the freezer (am I the only one who does that when I decide I cannot spend any money?)

Tee dress, £8, Joia at Oli
Gladiator sandals, £115, All Saints
Pink tights, a selection, Tabio


Outfit B: Gorgeous, girlie goodness
Oli is still my go-to place for pretty pieces, this gorgeous, feminine dress from Looking Glass being a prime example. I've paired it with multi-coloured shoes from Office - I used these in my Minnie Mouse comic book collage - to match the bag and bare legs now that we're having warmer weather. I'm also slightly mad about alice bands with bows at the moment. I think this patent PVC one from River Island is brilliant.

Dress, £60, Looking Glass at Oli
Shoes, £55, Office
Alice band, £2.99, River Island

Which outfit is your favourite?

The results are in and gorgeous, girlie outfit B wins by 41 per cent
33 per cent of you wannabe Debbie Harry and voted outfit A
25 per cent of you loved both outfits so much that you couldn't bear to choose between them
8 per cent of you hate my bag. Boo!

Outfit of the week- multi-coloured dream

What's that Joseph? You want to swap your technicolour dreamcoat for the new outfit of the week? How come? 

Because it's colourful and stylish and really rather nice? I totally agree with you! 

Tell you what, I'll let you have it, if you sing that curtain song. You know the one: "I close my eyes... draw back the curtains... woo oo..." 

No? Then piss off and let the people do their rating.

Y'all heard the man, this outfit is better than a technicolour dreamcoat. In 3D. On acid. Rate it.

Outfit of the week 26/03/08

I'm feeling in a colourful mood this week, anything to stave off the gloom filled horror that spring is turning out to be so far. Still where there's colour, there's hope and the moment I laid eyes on this red shirt dress from French Connection the future seemed a whole lot brighter.

I've gone for a slouchy, daytime/weekend look with the dress layered over a long-sleeve tee and red socks layered over yellow tights (I know! Colour, remember?). It's finished off with funky sneakers and an even funkier canvass bag.

Time to go out and cause some traffic mayhem with your multi-coloured self.

71 per cent of you rated this outfit a technicolour-tastic, Do
28 per cent of you just don't do multi-colour and rated it a Don't

Click on image to enlarge

Dress, £65, French Connection

Blue, long-sleeved tee, £6, Dorothy Perkins

Sneakers, £29.99, Rocket Dog at Schuh

Canvass bag, £10, New Look

Yellow tights, £4.95, Pamela Mann at My Tights

Ribbed knee high socks, £9.95, Tabio

See more outfits

Outfit of the week 19/03/08

I'm determined to wear a long, swishy skirt this summer. Now, that's easier said than done because I happen to know that long skirts only ever really favour the tall and the skinny. Where the tall end up looking statuesque and interesting, everyone else looks even shorter than normal. Where the skinny look ethereal and fragile, everyone else looks frumpy and dumpy. That is unless you find the "right" long skirt and I think this one from Nicole Farhi may be it.

It's properly flared - not just A line - so you get that swishy effect. It's three-quarter rather than full length, so it doesn't overwhelm the short-legged. And it's black (I know that patterned and border-print full skirts are in at the moment but who are we kidding here? A basic black will flatter all comers and will always be in).

Which brings us to the price: £180. Bit steep then. However, teamed with pretty fitted tops and bright accessories it will work hard for your summer wardrobe. Then come autumn/winter (as they must) you can bung on a pair of thick tights, a slim fit sweater and some boots and rock it all over again.

Click on image to enlarge

100 per cent of you rated this outfit a do. So, either I'm getting good or I'm getting lazy!

Skirt, £180, Nicole Farhi at House of Fraser
Top, £16.99, bag, £29.99 and hat, £10; River Island
Belt, £20 and Earrings, £10; Topshop
Metal Cuff, £6, ASOS
Wooden platforms, £135, Pied a Terre

Outfit of the week 19/03/08

Lock up your bank cards, it's the all new outfit of the week and this time I'm getting swishy with. Time to rate like you never rated befo y'all. Can I get a hell, yeah?!

Don't be waitin', get ratin'!

Outfit of the week - back to the future

My internet is back on, yay! So, after the mother of all hiatuses, the outfit of the week is back and this week not only am I giving Primark some major lurve while really hating on the Sunday Times Style supplement, but I am also predicting the future (yes, I be a multi-taskin' ninja).

Now all you have to do is give it your vote.

Don't be waitin', get ratin'!