If I Were a Rich (Wo)Man

Pinterest is a dangerous thing; it exposes us to a whole range of objects that we wouldn't usually notice but, once seen, we feel we have to own.

My funds are very low at the moment and, even though it is pay day, I'm living in my overdraft. But I've put together a little wishlist of the items that have caught my eye this week, that, if money were no problem, I would already have snapped up.

First up is this beautiful creation.

Erikson Beamon Embellished Silk Gown - Net-A-Porter

This luscious bottle-green dress has been created exclusively for Net-A-Porter, the so called discount site. I love the beaded sleeves and the 1920's cut but, at £3,440, it's ridiculously out of my price range. See if you can afford it here.


Next up, fabric designer Amy Butler has brought out her new Blue Imperial range of bags in collaboration with Kalencom.

Amy Butler for Kalencom - Blue Imperial Collection

Look at that happy cow with her many bags and her frankly bizarre shoes.

Anyway, if you haven't seen Amy Butler's fabrics they are a combination of feminine and psychedelic and are really rather beautiful. She's continued this in her new range. It has quite a few fashion and travel bags but I'm drawn to this one the most.

Marni Duffle Bag with Ribbon - Amy Butler for Kalencom

I love the print plus it's so big it could hold all my junk. Check out the rest of the collection here.


Before I get to my next one-day-buy I have a question; Why are beanbags so expensive? They're just foam and fabric but some of them are as pricey as a fully upholstered armchair. I should really attempt to make my own but that seems like far too much effort.
If you haven't guessed, my next item is a beanbag, actually a beanbag chair to be precise, much fancier.

Beanbag in Avinon 132-15 - Dekoria

At £60.99 this isn't the most expensive one I've seen but it's still too much for me. It's from a great site called Dekoria which sells fabrics and homewares. The fun thing about it is you can get the beanbag in any of the fabrics, and there are over 1,000 options! Waste an afternoon looking at them all here.

I can't torment myself for much longer so I'm just going to share one more thing; these lovely Miniature Amethyst and Geode Pendants by PLUME.

PLUME Miniature Amethyst and Geode Pendants - Decadorn

If I was the type to employ multiple exclamation marks, I'd use them to show how much I love these (!!!!) but I'm not so that's enough of that. I still would really like one of these necklaces though and am thinking of trying to persuade someone to buy me one as an early birthday present (three months early). There's also a host of other pretty sparkly things on the Decadorn site, see them here.

That's about as much as I can take. I may make this a regular thing, tormenting myself, so stop on by again.

Happy Friday!

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Liberty and Levi

I hope you've all had a lovely bank holiday weekend. I've recently moved to the countryside and actually now have a garden. This, coupled with the emergence of the sun, meant I spent most of the time shivering outside on a towel pretending it was thirty degrees.

I also took a little time out to cruise the internet and saw that Liberty has another collaboration; it's already teamed up with Nike and now it's also joined forces with Levi's to create the Levi's X Liberty collection (I say now, it was actually back in April, but I've only just seen it).

Levi's X Liberty

Floral Carlin Print Western Shirt - Levi's X Liberty

This one makes a bit more sense to me than the Nike thing, Liberty and Levi's are both well known and respected clothing companies. In a way, they are also representative of their countries; Liberty, with its London location and classic prints, is a part of British history. Similarly, Levi's conjures up images of rural USA and has been a constant staple in the changing fashions of America.

The combination of the two is quite powerful and makes for an interesting collection. There are only a small amount of items but most bases are covered, with a number of trouser styles as well as a shirt, dress and crop top.

Floral Carlin Print Mandarin Dress - Levi's X Liberty

Floral Carlin Print Bustier Top - Levi's X Liberty

I particularly like this bustier, it's a good festival look, if only I had a flat enough stomach to wear it!

I think the collection's missed the mark on a couple of items though, especially the anorak. They're tried to combine beauty and functionality but haven't quite melded it. Plus, whoever heard of a denim waterproof jacket?

Floral Carlin Print Hooded Anorak - Levi's X Liberty

Overall though, I like this collection. The two Liberty prints used, Carlin and Kerr Bandana, were specially designed for the range and contrast nicely with the antique look of Levi's denim.

The only problem is, again, that the items are out of my price range. Still, a girl can dream.

Find out more about the Levi's X Liberty collection here.

P.S I've just noticed that Liberty and Levi sound like two quite obnoxious children's names. Or the heroes of a children's book series.

Book Bags...Literally

Do you remember when you used to have a book bag for school? A plain, rather unattractive thing that gave you static shots?
Well, recently book bags seem to be back on trend, but in a totally different way. Enter the of book clutch. They have been around for a little while, Michelle Williams carried one at the 2012 BAFTAs.

Michelle Williams With Book Clutch

They seem to be having a resurgence in popularity at the moment, probably thanks to the release of The Great Gatsby; it's brought the beautiful Art Deco art work to the public's attention.

As an inexhaustible reader I do love these clutches, though I'm sure a lot are used by posers to show off their superior book knowledge.

The most popular ones, especially in celebrity circles, seem to be Olympia Le Tan's stunning embroidered versions.

Madame Bovary Book Clutch - Olympia Le Tan

War and Peace Book Clutch - Olympia Le Tan

They are lovely, but as they're over 1,000 Euros they're a bit out of my price range.
I was very excited therefore, when I opened a recent Look magazine and saw that there was an Etsy designer creating book clutches at a fraction of the price.

Le Petit Prince Book Clutch - P.S. Besitos

P.S. Besitos has a range of book clutches with a number of well known and obscure titles. I particularly love The Secret Garden one as it is one of my favourite books.

Secret Garden Book Clutch - P.S. Besitos

Plus the designer, Jessica Bermudez Bautista doesn't use actual books to create them because "I couldn’t bear the thought of stripping a book of its pages." She sounds like my kind of girl.

Moby Dick - P.S. Besitos

At £52.20 these fit my price range better, though still more than I usually like to spend (50p). But, for bags as lovely as these I'll save up my pennies.

www.olympialetan.com
www.etsy.com/uk/shop/psBesitos

Liberty Print Nike Trainers, Yay or Nay?

If you're a big Pinterest user you'll probably know about this already, but if not, I'll fill you in. The two power houses of Liberty and Nike have combined forces to bring you the Nike X Liberty range of trainers (original name yes?). Not two companies you'd usually think to put together. They've brought out three styles, the Blazer Mid, Roshe Run and the iconic Air Max.

I've been looking at these all day and I still can't decide if they're beautiful or deadly pretentious. Let's face it, they're probably both. I'm not a big sportswear fan but generally when you think of sporting items you think of Nike, the well known tick is a sign of approval. Similarly, whether you're a fabric fiend or not, Liberty is arguably the most famous haberdashery in the world and the prints are instantly recognisable.No matter how much I tell myself that the fabrics are overrated, that there are much cheaper versions just as good, it's not true, they really are faint-making.

Lodden C Tana Lawn

And have you been in the Liberty shop? It's so beautiful it's ridiculous and history just seems to seep from the walls.

So, thinking about it, I would rather like a pair, preferably the blue Capel Liberty Print Roshe Run ones.

Capel Liberty Print Roshe Run Trainers

But the main thing that puts me off is that I just know they are going to become the staple footwear of Yummy Mummies everywhere, the item of choice for when they take their Labradoodles for a mud free walk. Many pairs will also be purchased by Frumpy Mummies who are desperately trying to keep up with the Yummies. I just can't face being part of that club yet (in large part due to the fact that I am not a Mummy).

Did I say that was the main reason for me not wanting a pair? I forgot the not so small problem of the price. Maybe Yummies have £145 to spend on trainers but this impoverished journalist doesn't.

Still, I keep finding myself looking at them, so maybe there's a bit of Yummy in me waiting to get out.

Check them out on Liberty's site.

The Pressure of Voting

The sun shines down on this glorious day of the British Local Elections.
That must mean something surely? If there were dark skies and rolls of thunder would we be more likely to believe that the outcome will be bad?
But what is your version of bad? Hopefully it is something along the lines of a party with Nazi beliefs getting into power. Surely this is something that could no longer happen, a memory from the past.
But no, the UKIP party and their policies have been growing in popularity.

Now I'm going to try not to lecture, indeed, I have no right to, I do not follow politics closely and I have been to busy (forgotten) to vote in the past. But, I will definitely be voting today. Not only because of the UKIP threat but also because I feel that if sensible people who just want to get on with their lives don't vote than the people with extreme and dangerous views (nutters) will all vote and that's when you find that you're being controlled by UKIP (Ramsey).

Now I lean fairly far to the left, I am a bleeding heart liberal, but whatever your view please try and vote today. If only because you have that right and you should use it.

Some things are best left in the past, and the policies of the UKIP party are prime examples.