Something New

As you probably recall from my vast amount of tweeting I spilt hot chocolate over my MacBook last week and was unable to type properly. As the days went by more letters continued to fail on the keyboard until all I could manage was point and click, hence the lack of posting. On Saturday I took my poor lappy to the Apple shop in Westfield. I didn't mention anything about the drink incident but asked to have the keyboard replaced due to chipping. This is a manufacturing problem, which I have had replaced before for FREE so the man in the shop happily obliged. I was scared he would turn my laptop on and check the serial number etc whereupon he would discover that the keyboard didn't in fact work and that my chipping story was merely a cheeky diversion! He didn't turn in on and even though I was told it might take over a week to fix it took a mere 24 hours! Amazing! The conclusion to this story is don't drink near your computer and APPLE are amazing! Dad picked up my computer this morning and it is in perfect condition, keys and all =)

I've been pretty busy during the last week, my dissertation is in full swing and I'm in the lab everyday (except today...) but with it being so nice and hot I try to get out and about in the afternoons and not staying cooped up inside working all the time. I've also been trying to mix my outfit choices up and try different combinations I wouldn't normally put together.

I like this stars and stripes outfit, I'm not trying to channel America or anything just mixing up patterns and shapes.

Stripy top and cardigan from Topshop
Star clad dress from Motel
Pumps from Office

Plenty of bows in this outfit =)

Scallop edge crop top from ASOS
Floral culottes from River Island
Pocahontus shoes from Topshop

I'm not really a crop top kinda girl but I do love this sheer pink one, I wear it with a white vest underneath and high waist shorts to hide my stomach!!! As the temperatures continue to soar all I want to wear is shorts and beach wear but this isn't practical so I have to find alternatives.

I bought a pair of £4 black cycling shorts from the H! by Henry Holland (again...) sale last week and have worn them non stop this weekend! They are so practical with those dresses and tees that are a little too short and it's too hot out for leggings/tights. I don't have any photos but I did wear them with an oversized tee one day and a checkered shirt with a mini skirt the next.

My weekend at home was pretty hectic too, we had a big family outing to Maze restaurant on Friday night with my auntie, uncle and cousin. We all had the tasting menu and it was incredible! Yum yum yum. We were very lucky to have a table with windows next to the kitchen so we could see what was going on but not quite as incredible as the table IN the kitchen!!

Cider and vodka cocktail, best thing ever!

Myself, the sisters and cousin Little H (there are a lot of people with names beginning with H in our family, little and old)

In the kitchen with Mum and our waitress (Auntie H in the background). I have a spaz face but this was the only picture I had from our tour! We were totally in the way but nosing around the kitchen was super fun and really interesting.

In a 'hip and trendy' pub down the road from Maze getting some CHEAP drinks after the pricey meal! Thanks Dad =)

Maze is a Gordon Ramsey restaurant so the night was even more exciting because he is one of my favourite TV chefs! Unfortunately he wasn't there that night (he probably never is anyway) but the evening was still wonderful, delicious and fun fun fun! I wore my Topshop hair band, River Island dress with the ASOS crop top underneath and my trusty Pierre Hardy for Gap wedges.

On Saturday night I watched the final Doctor Who episode of the latest series before heading off to see some random punk rock bands with G and S followed by late night Chinese and a LONG bus journey home! We went to a tiny bar just off Tottenham Court Road to see the bands followed by a dander into China Town. I love living in London for evenings like this because there aren't many places you can have a sit down dinner at 2am before catching a night bus all the way home!

The head lining band was called Ape Party and low and behold they all wore masks. It was a pretty terrifying sight but kinda cool nonetheless. We played some embarrassing games of pool and decided to form our own band called Owl Party. We will all wear owl masks, have owly names (mine is snowy cos I'm the only blonde) and all our songs will be about owls!!! Apparently I'm going to be lead guitar, S on bass, G on drums and without her knowledge K will be the singer. Why are we so mental? Ask G!!

Sunday was spent watching the tragic football in one of our locals before a traditional Hobson family BBQ. All in all a great few days =)

Back to Guildford means back to work now but at least I have a functional computer x

It's a zoo out there

Just a quick one today because my laptop is falling apart! Last night I spilt hot chocolate over the key board and now the i and h buttons are not working! Everything I type is now requiring a huge amunt of copy and paste... not fun!

Here are my H! by Henry Holland giraffe print leggings I promised to show you.

Even though the print is rather random they are fun and I love them! My shoes have cute little heart shaped holes and despite looking like hey need laces they don't and stay on just fine. They are from Rocket Dog and whilst rather old I never get sick of wearng them.

Gok Wan is on tonghit, yey x

An ode to Green Day and other stuff

It's been a busy few days for little old me and whilst this could normally mean work work work for once it was play play play =)

Friday was the last day of term at uni so the somewhat traditional 'unofficial lake party' was held which was great fun! We partied until 6am on Saturday, ate chips and went to bed in a state of blissful exhaustion. Crikey, that sounds like we were all on drugs doesn't it? We weren't, just cider and wine (nasty combination)!! The lucky undergraduates got to go home on Saturday and not worry about uni for an entire 3 months (or ever)... unlucky for us postgraduates because we still have dissertations to do until August/September time =(

So the lake party was a hoot despite cold feet becoming an issue at 3am! The entire night felt like a music festival without the dread of having to sleep in a tent or mission it home on numerous buses, trains etc... God I'm jealous of those going to Glasto on Wednesday!!!

Despite the party being held outside by the university lake I choose to dress up a little (but forgot to take a picture) in my Meadham Kirchoff for Topshop tee, fringed shorts, purple tights and my beloved silver sequin converse trainers.

When the night got cold I donned my floral rain coat from New Look =)

After 3 hours sleep in Guildford my Dad came to pick me up so I could continue sleeping at home in LDN before hitting Wembley to see GREEN DAY that evening! First of all OMG about lack of sleep, I slept until 5pm on Saturday and still felt rough whereupon I was made to get up by G, thank god though because once we hit the London underground on a vast mission to Wembley Stadium (with a cheeky cider) I was feeling much better and in my usual Green Day mood!

Saturday was my sixth occasion at seeing Green Day live but my seventh occasion at seeing the boys in the band play. How can this be you ask? Well, on October 31st last year G found out about a secret show Green Day's alter ego band the 'Foxboro Hot Tubs' would be playing at the Garage in North London the next day after the Green Day show at Wembley Arena earlier that night!

There was a crazy rampage to get a ticket from the Garage box office on Sunday morning but I got it after waiting around for several hours in the rain with no idea what was going on (G got her's the night before)!! Suffice to say that seeing the Hot Tubs in a 300 person venue later that night was probably the greatest night of my life so far being an uber Green Day nerd and all!!

Little H was really jealous she couldn't come to the secret gig because it was over 18s. They didn't come on till around 2am and all the boys were completely wasted, throwing beer around and nearly being sick on stage. The Hot Tubs are a completely different sound from Green Day, they are more 60s Rock n Roll but the band is really an excuse to get pissed on stage and do whatever they want (unlike Green Day who have their long time practised stage routines)!

Before the gig we were told no photography was allowed (to keep the whole act a bit of a secret I imagine) and whilst I stuck to the rule others didn't! Who knows what stage of the gig this was from but can you see the wrist with the pink band on the left hand side? Well that is me!! After seeing Green Day in venues holding 50,000+ people seeing them that night play with their other band (who have only ever played a handful of gigs) and being so close that we pretty much got to grope Billie Joe when he stage dived was perfection!

Anyway, enough about my lame ramblings about a silly old band I saw last year... Myself, Little H and G had a fab time at Wembley on Saturday, the band were perfect as usual and even though we couldn't see much due to the vast amount of people in the standing area despite being close(ish) to the barrier we still loved it!

Little H and I in our Green Day tees before we headed off =)

Billie Joe possibly singing 21 Guns. I could only take photos during the slow songs so this is a possible match...

The journey home from Wembley was even more hideous than the journey there but it was worth it =)

Sunday was Fathers Day and we celebrated by taking old Daddy out for lunch (and making him pay... haha)!! The five people in my household aren't often all together in the same place so it was nice for everyone to be together.

Little H, S, myself and pops. It's an all girls house hold my clan =)

I was way over dressed compared to everyone and the restaurant but who cares, I like to dress up and being a foot taller than everyone due to my heels was hilarious (we're a short bunch, especially Mum)!!!

Silk dress from Topshop
Lace Jacket from H&M
Pierre Hardy for Gap wedges
Lou Lou Loves You bow tie necklace

If you follow me on Twitter you would have read that earlier that morning I went on a mission all the way to Topshop on Oxford Street to buy a spikey hair band I'd seen online.

It's completely cool and amazing!! Even though I spent more time on the tube than I did in the actual store I am completely in love with this! I also bough a few items from Topshop make up which are fantastic. The pigment in the eye liners and lip sticks are so strong and very reasonably priced. I bought an eye crayon and lip stick from the main collection and another eye crayon from the SS10 collection.

I also love this lip n cheek stain, lip gloss, eye crayon and eye kohl. The glittery eye liners are similar to those by NARS which I love but compared with the £20 price tag the Topshop £6 alternatives are completely brilliant and just as good! The lip colours are very strong too and even though I'm not a fan of eye shadow (I'm a eye liner gal at heart) but I'm sure the colour is just as good. They have a massive nail varnish collection and some very cute eye lashes I would love to try out. I would definitely recommend the Topshop make up range to anyone!

Before heading to Topshop I discovered this old Hello Kitty tee I had knocking about my drawers at home for the last 5 years or so. I loved Hello Kitty back then and I still do now, but I realise at the age of 23 I can't quiet get away with what I used to so I've made the print on the tee subtle but covering it up with another top. However, there are Hello Kitty's over my bum which I LOVE!

Hello Kitty tee from H&M
Lace top, jeggings and pumps fro Topshop
Denim jacket from Uniqlo

I've witted away for far too long now so I'm off too do some work. All in all this weekend was a great success and even though Green Day probably wont be back in the UK for another 5 years I am content with the knowledge I've seen them far too much for my own good anyway =)

Wembley sold out of the tshirt I wanted so I'm keeping eyes peeled on eBay, 6 Green Day tees is clearly not enough for me x

Bits and Bobs and Bows

This week Jen from A Little Bird wanted to know what fellow bloggers wore to festivals so I sent in a picture of me from Glasto last year.

When it comes to festivals I like to keep it EASY, none of this pretty dress and accessories nonsense thank you sir! I don't understand how some girls manage to look so amazing in their floral frocks, pretty sandals and bohemian jewellery, I mean seriously how much stuff do you bring with you? Let's be honest, during a festival I spend most of my time a) drinking copious amounts of cider b) getting sweaty whilst dancing to bands c) falling in the mud d) getting sun burnt and e) all of the above therefore I like to wear crappy, easy going clothes that I don't mind getting dirty...

I like to dress up but I don't think a festival is the place (for me at least), maybe some girls are better at festival chic or maybe I'm just a silly old cow who likes to pack no more than a pair of trousers, some shorts, a few tees and a hoodie for night! I do however am all about the straw hats, funky wellies and cute bags so maybe I'm not 100% old cow!

I think some girls are obviously lucky and have some sort of gift that allows them to stay looking fresh and funky all weekend...

Anyway, I'm gutted I'm not going to Glasto this year =( I returned my ticket because I thought my dissertation supervisor wouldn't give me the time off but it turns out he would so my loss!! I am going to Leeds festival for the day to see Blink 182 so that should be super fun! I've been to Reading loads of times for the whole weekend but never Leeds so it should be a nice change. In the mean time I have Green Day on Saturday to look forward to (maybe not as fun as a weekend at Glasto but still excellent)!!!

On a different note, I received a rather exciting package in the post today... my bow tie / hair band from Lou Lou Loves You! As promised it arrived in gorgeous packaging, so pretty I almost didn't want to open it (but I did so HA)!

The bow is completely perfect as a necklace and in the hair due to its stretchy strap, I am completely in love =)

I will definitely be wearing it over the weekend and because it is so perfect I want this feathered head piece for the Grad Ball in July.

Today I an attempt to brighten up the pharmacology lab I am working I put an outfit together I normally wouldn't think off.

I love this jacket, you can probably tell I rarely take if off, you can wear it with pretty much anything and isn't too heavy for the summer... perfect!

Denim jacket from Uniqlo
Black tee from H&M
Underskirt from Topshop
Pierre Hardy for Gap wedges

I got these tights for Christmas and this is the first time I've worn them... oops! They are scattered with flowers on top of an unusual colour leopard print, pretty random but toned down with the plain tee they work.

The black tee s a fairly new purchase and the reason I like it so much is because the neck line is covered in big black gems that glisten in the sun. Prefect for jazzing up an other wise dull top. The top is a little too short to wear as a dress (even at my 5ft 5inches height) which is why I've teamed it with a lacy 'petticoat-like' skirt.

Before I go I have a question for you guys. What would you wear to a midnight Lake Party? I'm going to one tomorrow night and have no idea what to wear x

H! for Hannah

Yesterday I picked up a H! by Henry Holland tee from my local Debenhams. I originally ordered it online and sent it to the store for collection but when I got there I discovered they had their own H! department and the tee was in fact cheaper in store!!! I bought some giraffe print leggings and the difference between the 2 tees was taken off, nice =)

I love Henry Holland but being a poor student I can't afford anything from is main House of Holland range. The way he mixes prints, stripes and logo tees is so much fun whilst still looking feminine. Every seasons Holland uses the same crazy mixes of colour, textures and patterns but in a completely new formula delivery a different sense of fresh and stylish clashing looks.

Holland is definitely one of my favourite designers probably because of his randomness which is why I've found it extremely hard to edit down the photo selections for this post. But seeing as each picture is full of colour it's not easy to get bored by the different looks.

His first collection from AW07/08 was a massive hit with the famous slogan tees, including one for his BFF Agyness Deyn.

SS08 was all about body con splattered unusual animal prints against dark leather and denim in a sexy 'hooker-like' style.

AW08/09 unveiled the future of tartan and how it isn't just for the snobby uncool Scottish.

Best bow tie EVER!!!

SS09 was full of polka dots, florals and naughty cut outs.

AW09/10 was an affair of colour and stripes.

SS10 displayed sexy leather and denim cut outs surrounded by a sea of the famous house symbol from the designer.

The latest AW10/11 collection is probably one of my favourites, full of ice cream colours, whimsical swirly prints, Holland's famous strips and textures a plenty.

Wow, that's a lot of pictures... what was I originally talking about? Oh yes, the tee I bought from H! by Henry Holland. So you can see his main line is pretty random but definitely fun and care free, fortunately the Debenhams range is pretty similar but designed for a teenage audience (doesn't stop me from loving it) and the most important part, CHEAP! There are still plenty of prints, leather, denim and generally fun clothes. I've already mentioned here and there about previous H! purchases (I also have leather shorts and like the idea of a leather skirt and maybe a blazer due to the current sale) and once again I am loving this new item.

Floral tee from H! by Henry Holland
Lace Jacket from H&M
Jeggings and pumps from Topshop

Not more floral I hear you cry.... hahaha yes I love the stuff!! This tee is perfect, it's oversized so works well with leggings and is very comfy for summer days. The print is pretty loud but the grey background helps calm it down a bit, I LOVE! I'll show you the H! giraffe print leggings another day.

My shoes are really old, I haven't worn them in years but today I decided to give them a new lease of live. They have cute little bows on the front =) and the little white polka dots on the green background are rather kitch.

I also had a little cherry bomb necklace on made by the same person in Derby as the anchor one.

Henry Holland also does uber cool tights but I'll leave that for another post because this one is getting LONG!

Before I go I've just noticed that there are a lot of picture of Agyness Deyn in the House of Holland photos, I love her too! Her style and hair are always amazing; she is one hot model! Here's a photo of the BFFs, both looking fabulous in their casual threads.

Right, this took me ages to write so now it's time for a lie down, laterz x