House of Harlow from Nicole Richie

I have quite a few style icons. Ranging from The Olsens (who doesn't love them?), Olivia Palermo (yeah, an obvious one), Hilary Banks from the Fresh Prince of Bel Air (those pant suits - enough said), Rita Ora (a recent one), a random girl who works on South Molton Street next to my work whose style I really admire (without sounding like a stalker) and Nicole Richie. I was absolutely obsessed with The Simple Life and would rather enjoy seeing her and Paris' antics as they made their way across the States staying with different families. Fast forward to 2012 and Nicole has truly made her mark in the fashion industry. Cowboy boots and varsity hot pants aside (see below) her Boho Chic style has been admired in the world of fashion and celebrity.

Nicole's line House of Harlow made it's debut in Spring 2010 and now consists of jewellery, eyewear, handbags and footwear all with a touch of NR's bohemian vibes. Nicole says; "I've always loved the possibility of being able to transform yourself through the way of dress". This forms the basis of her House of Harlow line which allows women to dress for their frame of mind and play 'dress up' everyday.

"Nicole's love and influence of costume dressing are apparent in the collections, whether incorporated in a print or manifested through a unique addition to a fabric or style, they are the essence of the House of Harlow identity".

You can view the whole collection at www.amazon.co.uk/jewellery I've chosen my top picks from the collection below. Look out for some of these beautiful gems in upcoming outfit posts!

 Bangle: £70.20 

 Ear Cuff: £58

 Pendant: £78

Ring: £57

A bite of the Apple. Part 2

So with my visit to New York over 2 months ago now and part 2 well over due, here is my next installment from our trip to the Big Apple. (You can find part 1 here incase you missed it).

After an eventful night in the Meatpacking District we were up once again bright and early on the Thursday for another day in NY. We started off with breakfast at the TickTock diner which is just before you get to Times Square. This was recommended to me by Amanda and was so good we actually ate here twice during our trip. After a breakfast of pancakes and bacon we headed towards the Gray Line bus tour which took us through Soho, the financial district, The Seaport and the East Village. It was absolutely FREEZING as we sat on the top deck to get the best views! We got off to take a little look at Lady Liberty but we were so pushed for time that we didn't get the boat over (I've done this before, so definitely worth doing).

Shirley Temples at Tick Tock Diner

Lady Liberty

Rockefeller Centre

Wearing all H'n'M here except for the studded denim jacket.

 One for you Gossip Girl fans.

We ate at an amazing restaurant that evening called Caliente Cab which is in the West Village on 7th Avenue. The frozen cocktails are the best I've ever had and you get to take home a souvenir glass too! 

Friday was the day we spent mostly in the East Village. You can't go to NY and not spend some time here. It's so quirky and reminded me slightly of Shoreditch. It's full of vintage boutiques and some cool places to get eat too. After a really quick journey up and down the Empire State Building we hopped on a bus to the East Village. We had been recommended a pulled pork sandwich shop called Porchetta (110 East 7th Street) which was possibly one of the best sandwiches bars ever and located opposite the Big Gay Ice Cream Shop - normal Mr Whippy ice creams are served but dipped into melted chocolate and covered in different toppings. I had rock salt and caramel - LUSH. Whilst walking down East 7th Street be sure to pop into the shops as there's some amazing finds. We stumbled across a boutique called Rena Reborn which had some beautiful garments and jewellery (including a $10 and under rail - what's not to love?). The girl working behind the till actually invited us to a clothing sale her friend was having the following weekend but of course we'd be back in London by then. She was SO friendly and was giving us some tips on some more vintage places to go. You can follow them on twitter here.

Image from www.renareborn.com

After filling ourselves up with pork sandwiches, ice cream and amazing vintage shopping it was only fair to wash it all down with a cocktail. The weather was so nice this day so we walked through a park and watched a group of guys playing basketball (pervs!) and then headed to The Blind Barber. If you haven't heard of the Blind Barber a brief overview is that this is (said to be) one of THE places to be seen during Fashion Week because as well as being a Barber shop there's actually a bar out the back (which you'd never know as it's hidden so well). We got talking to a really lovely couple at the bar (another example of Americans being the most friendly people ON EARTH). We told them we were going to check out Brooklyn's nightlife and where should we go. They recommended a place called The Meatball Shop and gave us some directions. After dropping yet more shopping bags back at the apartment we put our glad rags on and headed to Brooklyn on the subway (just throwing in my American lingo there). Brooklyn was really buzzing and the bars were rammed and flowing onto the streets and the restaurant was full so we had a drink at the bar before being seated a while later. The barman made Rachel a special cocktail which mainly seemed to consist of fire and grass! The Meatball Shop is located on Bedford Avenue and if you're in Brooklyn looking for a reasonably cheap but tasty meal then I'd definitely recommend this. Obviously meatballs (of different variety) are the only thing on the menu but can be served with pasta, mash, beans or salad. The best part is it's open until 4am on Friday's and Saturday's so if you find yourself drunk and hungry in the early hours head here!

Our evening ended with yet more cocktails on the roof of Juliette's wine bar and then some beers at a Tiki bar. It was Cinco De Mayo so everywhere was so busy and full of people drinking frozen margheritas - always a good thing in my mind!

Our final day in New York was once again spent in Brooklyn. It was so lovely to see it in the daylight and there was so much to do. We enjoyed a late brunch at Allswell on Bedford avenue and headed towards the mecca that is Beacon's Closest. I cannot even begin to explain how massive this warehouse is and full to the brim of vintage. I think we were in here for an hour and a half scouting through rail upon rail of clothing. I picked up a sequin t-shirt, a floral bomber jacket and a cross necklace whilst Pomps managed to pick up a pair of Marc Jacobs shoes and Rach managed to buy half the store. We had heard that there was also another Artists and Fleas market on where we spent some time spending our remaining dollas (I came back from NY with SO much stuff which you'll see popping up in outfit posts). A quick dash to Brooklyn Flea food market (again, I've never seen anything like this - food served from around the globe and full of locals) before we knew it, it was time to head back and get ready for Rach's birthday meal at Pastis (no celeb sightings unfortunately) in the Meatpacking District and cocktails on the roof at the Gansevoort hotel.

Dress: ASOS Curve

Jacket: East End Thrift Store

Converse: Journey's

Necklace: Costume Chanel

Belt: ASOS

Bag: Mulberry Alexa

Photos by Teddy Telles at Artists and Fleas

The Gansevoort Hotel

Blazer: Issey Miyake

Dress: Very

Clutch: Dune

Ring: Love, Hearts and Crosses

Our last day: the view from our apartment rooftop.

There is still so much more to cover from our trip but I don't want to bore everyone so these are the main bits. If you are planning on a trip to NY any time soon do feel free to ask for any recommendations (I'm not an expert but can definitely recommend some things to do from this trip). There is just something incredibly amazing and endearing about this city - who knows, maybe one day I'll become a New York resident.

Into The Jungle.

An outfit post! WOOHOO. I actually made some time today to take some outfit photos (thanks to my colleague Laura).

I'm loving printed trousers at the moment. I'm waiting for one of the plus size retailers to make a paisley print slim leg trouser like the Zara ones (come on people, make my dream come true). These ones I'm wearing below are actually from H'n'M that I purchased when I went to Berlin a year or so ago. I've only worn them a handful of times and today when I sat down at work they RIPPED! Massive fail. Note to self; lay off the Nando's. I suppose it's an excuse to buy yet another pair on payday though.

Blazer: Issey Miyake

T-shirt: Topshop

Trousers: H'n'M

Converse trainers

Handbag: Dune

Yellow neon necklace: H'n'M

Pink neon necklace: Zara

Rings: Vivienne Westwood, H'n'M and Boots

I feel like I've lost my mojo lately. Working in the fashion industry and having to get dressed every morning is taking its toll on me. I look at my wardrobe most mornings and feel SO deflated by it so mostly end up wearing the same thing (bloody maxi skirts). I'm going to have a wardrobe switchover this weekend and see if I can find any old gems that can make a comeback. I have 2 wardrobes full of clothes at the moment, surely there has to be SOMETHING in them.

Summer sun

... or not as the case maybe. What is up with this weather? This time last week I was sunning myself in 34 degree heat by a pool in Spain and I come home Thursday to this. So yes, I took a little trip with my 3 best friends to soak up 8 fun filled days in my friends apartment in a town called Polop which is roughly an hour from Alicante. We sipped on cocktails and ate amazing food for most of the week (and obviously sunbathed) my tan lines are ridiculous! We also ventured into Benidorm a couple of nights but we'll leave that there (I definitely witnessed some sights, including seeing Sticky Vicky. If you don't know about this woman; Google).

Anyway, thought I'd share some of my outfit photos from my holiday with you all seeing as it's been so long since I last said hi. I know I've still got part 2 of my New York trip to finish too so watch this space.

Sunglasses: Ray-Ban

T-shirt: H'n'M

Skirt: Primark

Clutch: Primark

Belt: ASOS

Sandals: Bertie

Bracelets: Hérmes, Boutique in NYC, Primark and Urban Outfitters

Swimming costume: Evans

Skirt: Primark

Earrings: H'n'M

Top: Primark

Skirt: H'n'M

Sandals: Evans

Necklace: Primark

My gorgeous BF, Jinny and I

She wears dress by Miss Selfridge

I also went to Lovebox on the Saturday before my holiday which was amazing. Rita Ora is definitely my new Girl Crush.

Jacket: Edie Mac

T-shirt: BOY London

Necklace: H'n'M

Bag: Dune

Wellies: Office

Bracelet: Miu Miu

Jeans: New Look

A bite of the Apple. Part 1

So, as mentioned in my previous post I jetted off to New York at the beginning of May for a few days of shopping, cocktails, sightseeing and more shopping. I've been to the Big Apple twice before, last time was in the February 2002 and since then I had been craving for my next dose of NYC goodness. We found really cheap flights with BA (around £470 return) and booked really spontaneously about 8 weeks before we went. To be honest finding a cheap hotel in NYC is impossible. We were on a budget so headed to the airbnb website to see if we could rent out an apartment. To be honest I was quite worried about renting but we got talking to a really nice guy called Jason whose OHM apartment was roughly a 15 minute walk from the Meatpacking District and all the reviews from previous guests had been amazing. If you're planning a trip any time soon, I'd definitely recommend looking on airbnb. The building had a 24 hour concierge, a bus to and from Penn station regularly, gym, wi-fi lobby and a 24-hour shop. Jason was at the apartment when we arrived to hand over the keys and the view was absolutely incredible. We opened to the curtains to find ourselves staring at the New York skyline (and the rooftop view was even better).

We jumped in a taxi from JFK and got talking to our cab driver about the best areas to go, nightlife, restuarants, best places to catch Gossip Girl being filmed (he mentioned to us that he'd had Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds in his cab a few days previous to our arrival) cue mini heart attack and also the best vintage shopping areas. We dropped off our bags and went exploring. First stop was obviously Times Square, where randomly we bumped into some actors who we'd seen in a show when we went to Las Vegas last September (small world eh), I managed to do my best Jay-Z and Alicia Keys impression on the red steps, visit the biggest Forever 21 I've ever seen, drink a strawberry lemonade frap from Starbucks and then we headed back towards Chelsea. New York is a pretty big place so we did actually get lost a few times, to be honest though, walking was so much better than taking a cab everywhere as it leads you to the most unexpected places and cute little shops.

New York really does hold a special place in my heart (without sounding like a complete loser) the people are so incredibly friendly, will stop you in the street to pay you a complement (if this was London, you'd probably think the person was about to mug you. Sorry London, I do still love you) and if you're looking slightly lost will always be on hand to offer directions. We managed to eventually find Chelsea and then the Meatpacking District (again, cue heart attack) this is where (when I spend my year in NYC eventually) I want to live. I've never felt more Sex and the City than at this moment. We found the DVF building, Chelsea Market, Pastis restaurant (which we would dine at on our last night) but settled for dinner at The Diner; the best steak, egg and chips ever. We potted around a bit more and our plan was to go out for cocktails. however, after being up since 4am UK time, landing in NYC at 11:30am US time and it now being 9pm (2am UK time), we were ready to hit the sack. Obviously not as hard core as we thought but still, we had a whole 6 other days to get our Cosmopolitan on and had been up for nearly 24 hours straight.

I'm wearing:

T-shirt: Topshop

Blazer: Issey Miyake

Skirt: Marks and Spencer

Hi top trainers: Topshop

Bag: Mulberry Alex

Lobster necklace: Tatty Devine

Next morning, my friend Rachel was like an army sergeant and eager for us not to miss one minute of NYC time. We were up and out by 9:30 and ready for our first full day. The bridge from the OHM building took us straight into the Meatpacking district and it is here you'll find Chelsea Market. This is one of my YOU MUST VISIT places. It's so beautiful and full of quaint cupcake shops, designer pop up stores, fresh fruit and vegetable markets and is also home to Artists and Fleas vintage store. We had a really lovely breakfast here (I can't remember the name of the restaurant which is frustrating seeing as I picked up a card from every other place we went to). The weather was quite bad on our second day, extremely wet and quite cold! We spent forever in Artists and Fleas (and a small fortune). I picked up 2 lovely hand made make up bags by a designer called Pamela Barsky.

We walked from Artists and Fleas to Bleeker Street which was recommended to me by an old work colleague. This was another one of my favorite places and home to the famous Magnolia Bakery (and a Mulberry shop were I spent a good hour trying to decided whether to buy the Peace bracelet or not).
The cupcakes are TO DIE FOR and expect a rather long queue but trust me, it's worth it. We stumbled upon Perry Street here too which is home to Carrie Bradshaw's apartment. We spent a while on those famous steps looking up and down the street for Mr Big! The rest of our second day was mainly spent around this area and then heading into Soho to find the Dash store (yes, I'm a Kardashian fan). Kim and Kanye were actually in NYC at the same time but I didn't see them anywhere. After a lunch of chicken wings and Shirley Temples we headed to China Town (an experience than ended up with us being surrounded by what looked like the Chinese Maffia in a park trying to sell us fake Chanel handbags) an experience I have to say! China Town is definitely worth a look if you're after a bargain. I had my hands rather full with shopping bags at this point. We jumped on the train to the Ground Zero and wandered around. There is a memorial here now which you can pay to go and see but you needed to book tickets in advance. The area itself is very sombre and quiet with people there to pay their respects.

We ended up back at the apartment to get ready for a night in the Meatpacking District! My first taste of a Cosmopolitan - woohoo! We ate at the Gaslight bar which is next to Soho House and then ended up meeting a guy called Sammy who got us into a club called TenJune which is on Little West Street. To be honest, I don't really remember much after this, only that we ended up in another bar down the road called Brass Monkey at about 3am for an amaretto and cranberry juice ;)

I'm wearing:

Blazer: Issey Miyake

Top: Topshop

Jeans: New Look Inspire

Pumps: Topshop

Bag: Mulberry Alexa

Necklace: H'n'M

I'm wearing:

Blazer: as before

Dress: Primark

Seeing as this is the longest post ever to grace TGTH, we'll cover the rest of the holiday next week. I wouldn't want to bore you all!

We meet again.

Well hello there, I'm back! Well kind of. I've been swanning around the streets of New York City and getting myself a job promotion since I last blogged so things have been busy busy at work. I am planning on doing posts on my amazing trip to the Big Apple (hopefully this weekend, but don't hold me to that). And what d'ya know, since our last meeting, the sun has decided to finally make an appearance too. I'm not a lover of the sun, partly because I hate getting my legs and arms out (we've covered this before) so I find it pretty hard getting dressed in the mornings when it's hot hot hot. I do however enjoy the mood the glorious sunshine puts everyone in (although not the outfit choices some people make). Anyway, to keep it brief here's a little outfit I wore a couple of weekends ago to celebrate my friends birthday in Soho.

My amazing floral jacket is from Beacon's Closest in Brooklyn, New York (more to come on this) and my sequin top is from a vintage shop I found in the East Village whilst on my travels. GOOD TIMES. I'm not wearing any shoes here, I promise I did put some on when I left the house!

Jacket: Vintage

Sequin top: Vintage

Sheer maxi skirt: H'n'M

Necklace: H'n'M

Bracelets: Accessorize

Rings: Love, Hearts and Crosses and Accessorize