HOBBS A/W14 Collection Preview

Whilst I am still awaiting my college grade results, I decided to go on a little trip to London where I was lucky enough to be invited to view the Hobbs AW14 Collection and it certainly lived up to it's name. We were let loose in the press room where delightful cakes and Prosecco awaited our arrival.

Ruby from Modus and Hobbs chief designer Jason talked us through the 3 collections and their inspiration. First was the Invitation collection which was probably my favourite, full of detailed and elegant evening wear. There was a lot on emphasis on how these fine evening pieces could be transformed into daywear by adding a textured knit to the equation. Latest Exclusive: Hobbs have now teamed up with the Royal Palaces to allow them access to their archives, which is the root of their inspiration for A/W Invitation collection however its all very hush hush, but once more is revealed, you will be the first to know!

MY FAVOURITES OF THE INVITATION COLLECTION

The Hobbs London Collection; tailored and polished to perfection, this collection was  full of camel, navy and granite coloured tweed jackets, thick pencil dresses and skirts. Perfect for a winter work wardrobe, although styled with a casual tee or some converse and these pieces can easily be put to everyday casual use as-well.

MY FAVOURITES FROM THE LONDON COLLECTION

NW3 is much more playful and casual than the other two collections, mainly for its use of colour. To be honest I was very intrigued by this collection as previously my only thoughts of Hobbs were "classic everyday workwear and elegant evening outfits made for a more mature generation" however NW3 completely smashed through this pre-misconception and showed me that Hobbs also caters for the more "relaxed at home" type of person and for a younger audience as-well.  NW3 was filled with similar styles and trends that you would see in favourite high street stores such as Topshop, Zara, River Island and New Look however you can tell that the clothes at Hobbs are made to a much higher standard.

MY FAVOURITES OF THE NW3 COLLECTION

One of my favourite parts of press gatherings is meeting new people/bloggers!

Here are some of the lovelies I met that day:

Bessie from FashionNoodle

Justine from FashionMixBag

Banke from A Style Diary

Jasmin from What Defines Us

Cristina from ChrissaBella

Tricia from Thread and Mirror

Tolu from FashinateMe

Thank you so much to Hobbs for inviting me to the event! and also a big thanks to all the team at Hobbs HQ for putting on an hosting such an amazing preview! Go check out the Hobbs Site HERE as they have a big sale on right now, and some of their A/W pieces have already started to be released. Go! Go! Go!

(P.S. I uploaded some more pictures from the event up on my Facebook Page for you guys to marvel over as-well so go have a look HERE if you're interested)

New Look Autumn/Winter Collection 2014 #NLAW14

Yesterday after college I headed down to London to visit the #NLAW14 (New Look Autumn/Winter 14) collection event. As im reletively new to the blogging scene being invited to event like this was a major suprise for me (also the fact that im ot exactly a fashion blogger)and I started planning my outfit straight away!

I was decked out head to toe in Primark, wearing a bright printed lime green dress and glitter jelly sandals (not my best choice of footwear for walking) paired with a Topshop leather jacket.

When I got to the event it was like wonderland! There were rows and rows of selectively styled mannequins, cocktails, hangers showing off gorgeous garments and accesories, not to mention a nail bar! Straight away I headed over to get my nails done. They were doing 6 different types of nail art along with a base colour of yor choice. Here's mine:

The ladies were lovely to chat to and I was really impressed with how she did the small litlle flowers so thankyou @effy_nails and @clairek_nails!

After my nails were done I managed to pop around the showroom and takes some pictures for you guy's (featuring some of my favourites from the collection)

This is the new "mermaid" trend, they've combined both pastel colours with translucent sequins giving off the effect of a mermaids shimmering tail. This is definately going to be one of the staple trends of A/W14 I feel.

There were also some much bolder sequined pieces including this gorgeous fuschia dress. Elle Woods would be jealous!

Velvet seem's to be really popular as-well for next season as it was an ever-present texture mainly in the darker tones. As a long time lover of velvet im really looking forward to seeing this in stores!

Oriental patterns isnt just for kimono's! The intricate pattern is now being seen on skirt's and dresses galore. I have a real love of japanese culture so the idea of bring this to UK stores really excites me!

After looking round a bit more, I grabbed a cookie and a goodie bag and jetted off to Primark. Everything I bought will be up in a video/blog post soon, so keep your eyes peeled!

Whilst on the train home I took the time to check out my goodie bag from the event. I got a lovely thick woollen scarf (pictured above) which I loved so much I wore it on the train; even though it was hot and sunny...and I also got a £50 gift card for New Look which will probably last just under a day. I thoroughly enjoyed my first fashion event and look forward to attending some more in the future (invite me please?).

Leave me a comment in the box below telling me what's caught your eye in your local New Look store recently or alternatively check out their website here :)

Trip to NYC: Day 3 - Empire State Building

On our third day in the Big Apple, Alice and I took advantage of the beautiful scenery next to our hostel and paraded around central park for a couple of hours. Our group then set off to the second art gallery of the tip, all the way on West 20th Street which was over 40 blocks away! One of the pieces at the David Zchwirner gallery was to experience a white "dome" space where you couldn't see the ceiling or the edges of the room and you could only hear the echoes of your footsteps (seriously messing with one's mind)

My college art project was focusing on body image and size, so we thought a trip to Mcdonalds maybe could be passed off as "educational"? I made full use of this opportunity and ordered a large (extra-large in UK) meal, which unfortunately defeated my mighty stomach. Whilst at Mcdoanlds we also took lots of selfies and were spotted by a group of Americans who later stopped us outside and asked for a group selfie which was massive surprise to us!

As I had been to NYC before with my mother I knew the best time to visit the Empire State Building was at sunset so I made sure myself and the girls got tickets and got up to the top before the queues started! The view was spectacular and because we went about 5ish we managed to catch New York in the day, at sunset and at night. I know the girls enjoyed their first experience on the empire state (from what they've told me!) even if was absolutely freezing! So I really recommend going just before sunset if you want the best views and photo's.

(the view from the empire state building)

Since it was only a couple of blocks away we walked to Times Square, however it was the coldest weather I had ever experienced, so to try and keep warm we three created a tightly linked formation to walk in (not the most conventional of idea's) and waddled all the way. We managed to find a TGI Friday's and have a spot of dinner, Zoe and Abi going for burgers and myself opting for a children's spaghetti, needless to say it aaas more of a large portion than a children's!

After dinner we were hoping to do some shopping but we were so exhausted from walking and the cold that we decided to get a taxi back to the hostel (so boring I know!)

Personal Style #1

I have seen many people post OOTD's and FOTD's on their blog's, but personally Ive always been a bit too scared to attempt one! However I'm making a new start for 2014 and today's post is my first OOTD (as you may have guessed from the title).

Today was another lazy day home alone for me, but didn't mean I couldn't dress up! (I have that awful tendency to look decent when I have nowhere to go).

I am sporting a colourful jumpsuit from "SOUTH" borrowed from my mother's old wardrobe paired with a "24/7" denim jacket and denim wedges from Primark. I also added a small heart pendant to add a little more bling to the outfit (this outfit is probably more appropriate for summer)

Oh and I had to add a scary mask to the outfit too!

Are you fed up with all these winter blues? 

I know I am! I thought I'd change my jeans to something a bit more fun for once and I have to say, I was pleased with the results! Id like to invest a bit more into jewellery and vintage pieces as I don't own many of either, so if you have any recommendations write them in a comment below or come visit me on Twitter or Facebook.

I hope you liked my outfit! Let me know if these types of posts are ones you’d like to see more of.