Fight or flight

I had my first real sale experience on the day Selfridges launched theirs at 8 in the morning.  At first, when I walked past the store at 8:15, it seemed really empty and I was not sure if anyone was already in the building, so when I finally convinced myself I would not be alone, and I walked through the doors, there was a just a feeling that is quite inexplicable and unusual.  There is a certain tension in the air, women quietly rushing through the aisles and mountains of bags and shoes, careful not to attract any attention whilst they cunningly rummage through the piles to make a good catch.  On the other hand there are those whose excitement seemingly overflows, having come in groups to strategically work through the offers.  I thought this would be the perfect time to find some good deals, and I wanted to be there early so that I had enough time to choose wisely.  What I had not expected was the tremendous feeling of pressure that I got as everything I looked at did not seem to be 'the' perfect bargain, and so I ran from one floor to the other, from one pile of clothes to the next pile of shoes and I absolutely could not decide what I wanted and was simply just overwhelmed by the countless possibilities I faced.  Eventually I phoned my mum and told her I was in desperate need of her assistance as this endeavour was not one I could complete alone.  As she hurried to join me, I had picked out a short sleeved Missoni cardigan I had my eye one for a while now, and I was delighted to see the 50% off sign posted above it.  After another while closely examining every corner of the department store, my mum had enough and went home, leaving me to enter the one area I had spared; Christian Louboutin!  Without a doubt, this area resembled an inferno and when I finally managed to get my hands on a pair of espadrille sandals, they were placed into their dust bag and nicely boxed and wrapped, I was quite satisfied!  It really is an experience being at a sale like this and taking part in this most carefully planned chaos.  So here are my espadrilles, and I will post my Missoni cardigan in the next few weeks.  

Go green

Contrary to any belief, today actually started off with a beautiful sunny morning and temperatures rose to about 25°C, so it was the perfect opportunity to get out a skirt!  This particular one is by Vero Moda and was bought in Germany.  It is the first time I wore it today, but I really thought it was a cute skirt that can also easily be worn with a button blouse and black heels, as well as wedges and a tank top.  I went grocery shopping with my mum and therefore wanted to stay casual and comfortable and wore my white All Stars and a white t-shirt by Sandro.  What you can't see from the front is the cut out back of the shirt that is held together by black strips, a bit difficult to describe but I will show the back soon! Preferably I like to wear smaller bags that have a shoulder strap or something of that kind so that my hands are free.  In this case I picked a tan coloured Mulberry bag with gold fittings.  It has a really long strap and it is really practical as it can be tied into a knot at the top and can be adjusted into any length you want!

Walking 'round town

I spent the day with my mum today and we decided to meander to Chelsea to visit the Saatchi Gallery.  Whilst I am nowhere near being an expert on art, I do enjoy the occasional trip to a gallery, mainly those like the Saatchi or Tate Modern.  Having lived in Korea for five years, I still have ties to Asia and really enjoyed the exhibition of Chinese contemporary art.  From what I gather, Chinese contemporary art explores many political aspects and has a very distinct style, very much to my interest.  However, that is almost the whole extent of my knowledge on art and so I will refrain from further analysis and will leave this to the experts.  So prior to our visit, we induldged in some light lunch, which we clearly deserved after walking all the way there from Oxford Street.  I walk around a lot and my collection of shoes, perhaps contrary to many other women, includes mainly flats.  Alongside variations of All Stars, I also have my share of ballet flats and now also more flats in the slipper style which seems to be very popluar lately.  Today I wore my Kurt Geiger animal print loafers that I wrote about a few posts back.  As the weather is momentarily unpredictable, clothing needs to be practical and jeans are always a relatively safe choice.  When it gets warmer I just roll up the bottoms, giving them the cropped look, and when it cools down I just roll them back down.  I wore a black tank top from H&M, and as a light cover-up I ended up with one of my favourite pieces at the moment; a gold peplum cardigan with cropped arms.  It works really well with jeans, but I've also worn it with black skinny jeans and a black mini dress.  It is a nice alternative to a jeans jacket or leather jacket.  I borrowed my mum's cognac Prada tote, and to maintain the gold look I wore black and gold Ray Ban aviator sunglasses and my Rita & Zia ring, a Marc Jacobs watch, a vintage bracelet and a studded bracelet from Asos.  My earring were bought in a shop in Düsseldorf called Mytho.

Animal print x 3

As I mostly wear plain basics, I decided that I need a pair of flats that are a little more exciting.  I don't own a single piece of clothing with animal print, I do not really know how to work with it, and leopard print is especially difficult as there is a fine line between trendy and trashy.  However, shoes are a whole different story, although there were many shoes out there with leopard print that looked rather cheap (contrary to their price!).  At Selfridges I came across these Kurt Geiger slippers (the ones in the middle) and knew right away that it had to be these ones.  The outer material is fur like and I think it looks quite well made.  At the 24 hour race at the Nürburgring, I wore the slippers for the first time with boyfriend jeans by J Brand and a plain oversized white t-shirt.  When I came back home I found that my both my mum and my sister had also found a liking for these printed shoes.  My mum actually bought herself the Pretty Ballerina flats (right), but they did not stay in my mums closet for long as my sister snapped them up right away.  (Btw very frustrating not to have my mums shoe size, whilst my sister does!).  So having to set out for a new pair, my mum then purchased the Prada version (left).  These shoes have a patent material and are much slimmer than the KGs.  In terms of price, the shoes are in ascending order, the Prada flats being the most expensive.  

MAC at Selfridges

Just a quick notice: MAC has opened a new counter on the top level, across from the denim section.  The counter offers personal tutorials of different lengths, workshops, bridal make-up advice etc.  As far as I am informed, at least for the personal classes, you pay for a certain length of time and then receive a voucher for this amount to spend on products.  If you are certain you want to buy products, need new inspiration or just the basics taught by a professional, this could be quite a good deal as they probably know best how their products work.  As I always buy my powder, eyeliner and eyebrow pencil there, I can spend the voucher quickly without having to be forced to buy new products, so it comes in quite handy as I can still seek advice and try out new things with a professional without having to buy new products.  Definitely going to try it out soon!

Summer glow

I have picked out my some of my favourite must haves for the summer time.  Preferably, I do not like to wear tons of make-up and a tinted moisturiser will do the trick, except for the evenings where I also use a hydrating fluid foundation.  I have tried several tinted moisturisers such as Kiehl's, Laura Mercier and Lancome, however, the only one that has really convinced me is the Clinique Moisture Surge Tinted Moisturiser with SPF 15.  When buying tinted moisturisers, there is often a far smaller choice of shades, often there is only light medium and dark.  Even then light is generally too dark for me, and it looks more like I have applied self tan to my face.  Conversely, the Moisture Surge, shade 01, has a very slight pinky undertone that I like, it gives my face a slight bit of colour, but it does not overshadow it.  Although freckles on my face are rare, the tinted moisturiser does not cover them up and thereby maintains a very translucent and natural look.  It still manages to even out my skin tone, and for any imperfections I apply MACs Studio Finish Concealer, a definite staple in my make-up bag.  

Up until recently I was obsessed with my face being totally matte, so most of my past foundations were mattifying, rather than hydrating, and this had really dried out a lot of my skin.  The tinted moisturiser has really changed my skin for the better.  Whilst I still use the Pressed Blot Powder by MAC for my t-zone, I have discovered Guerlain as a tool to create an incredible glow.  Using it mainly on my cheek bones and my forehead, I was astonished that it did not make my face look shiny, like I had previously believed, but rather it really made it glow.  I bought the Guerlain Meteorites Perles in the lightest tone, Teint Rosé 01, and I do not know how I ever managed without them.  Granted, the loose pearls are a bit of an annoyance as the packing is really large.  I did consider buying the pressed compact version, however, the price (over 130 pounds if I recall correctly) and only about 40 pounds for the loose pearls, seemed a little bit too expensive.  There is a more compact version of the pearls for travelling, nonetheless, it is still in a tube-like container and not the best thing for small purse.  So far I have kept the container at home, so there were no touch-ups during the day, which is a bit of a shame, as the shine does not last all day on my skin.  This is really the only criticism of this fabulous powder.

A further summer must have for me is the MAC Mineralize Skinfinish powder/blush in Semi Precious Rose Quartz I bought last year.  The outer part of the powder is a really light pink blush, the inner part being a multicoloured highlighter with slight greens, pinks and darker reds.  Quite honestly, this blush is fascinating to me.  MAC blushes are usually so strong in their pigmentation, that it is important to apply it only so slightly, at least for my very light skin, as otherwise it just looks like two large blocks of colour on my face.  On the contrary, this blush, together with the highlighter, gives such a natural look, with a fantastic glow, and it blends in miraculously with my skin tone, making it look just a slight bit rosé, very natural and absolutely radiant.  

Lip colour is not my expertise, I have quite a few different lip sticks, glosses and serums, but I am a bit lazy, sometimes applying it just in the morning but forgetting to reapply during the day.  I am determined to use more colour on my lips though this summer.  It is always a bit difficult, lip sticks are just too heavy during the day and if I use lip gloss, my hair always gets stuck in it.  Then I came across the Serum De Rouge by Dior (I bought the colour 640) and it is an ideal combination of lip stick and gloss, absolutely natural and easy to apply.  It is hydrating and so I almost use it like a lip balm.  

Quick stop

Just a few snap shots before we went out for a quick dinner with friends at Vapiano (make the best salads) and then a movie.  I bought this blazer from Zara and had to have it, it is incredible and so bright, I feel it is a great way to bring some colour into an outfit.  As I wear mostly jeans or black pants, a bright jacket is the ideal way to make a statement (Zara actually has numerous amazing jackets in their collection at the moment, very hard to pick which ones I like best).  Whilst I usually stay away from yellow as it makes me even more pale, this colour seems to work okay for me.  I paired it with jeans from Urban Outfitters, which next to J Brands, are my favourite jeans at the moment, and with a simple grey Zara tank top.  Alongside that I wore gold jewellery, my absolute preference with grey shirts, such as the Rita & Zia ring I posted a while back and some other vintage pieces.  The red Celine Phantom bag has become my go to for most outfits, with red being such a classic colour, much as I anticipated.  It is still quite new and a little bit stiff, I am eagerly awaiting it to become a bit softer, especially around the bottom, but other than that I have to say I am in love with it, so perfect.