PPQ DRESS COMPETITION

We are giving away this gorgeous 100% silk PPQ of Mayfair monochrome dress worth £510!

As seen on the A/W 10 catwalk it is the perfect party frock (size 8 - 10). All you have to do to enter is follow us by clicking the "follow" button on the top right hand side and the winner will be drawn at random. If you already follow us then you will automatically be entered (make sure you don't follow the shop!). The competition closes on Friday 13th May and we will announce the winner on Saturday 14th May. Good luck!

CW and FC

TWO WAYS TIMES TWO: TOPS

Frances chose her Topshop polka-dot shirt and Claudia chose her green Whyred T-Shirt.

Whyred T-Shirt:

Frances wears: Yellow Skirt - Ebay, Belt - Moschino, Shoes - Surface to Air

Claudia wears: Shorts - D&G, Shoes - Russel & Bromley, Sunglasses - Surface to Air

Topshop Shirt:

Frances wears: Shorts - Topshop, Shoes - Perssons (or something Swedish) , Sunglasses - Topshop

Claudia wears: Shorts - Bodkin, Belt -  Vintage, Sunglasses - Vintage , Shoes - Acne

CW and FC

HOT AROUND THE COLLAR

I bought these Edwardian shirt collars at Camden Passage. They came in a beautiful old leather box. Back in the day people would have detachable collars and cuffs so they could be washed more easily. I think these will look nice with an embellishment of some sort worn over a jumper or high-necked dress. CW

APRIL FAVOURITES

Clockwise from top left:

Leather rucksack - Ebay, beaded collar - made by my Grandmother (as seen in "Collared" post), camel tasselled sandals - Office, woven straw bag - Vintage with HG pompoms, white shorts - PPQ, silver hardwear necklace - Darkroom, leather and suede jacket - vintage, black leather belt - vintage, mustard T-Shirt - American Apparel, stretchy jeans - Whistles, pompom bracelet - HG, black leather clutch - 3.1 Phillip Lim, tortoiseshell sunglasses - Surface to Air, blue sunglasses- Vintage, mustard socks - AA, stripey T-Shirt - AA, Aztec cuff- Michelle Lowe-Holder, two silver cuffs - Rau, horsehair bracelets - HG (as seen in "Animal Farm" post), black Espadrilles - E. Leclerc (French supermarket), Union Jack silk scarf (trying to get into Royal Wedding) - some shop in Battersea.

CW

PARK LIFE

We spent Saturday afternoon on Marylebone High Street on a hunt for ribbon at VV Rouleaux. Unfortunately Easter seems to mean that everything is shut and therefore the ribbon was not to be ours. Unwilling to leave empty handed we picked up treats to take to the park and bought ourselves three stems from the florist which looked remarkably similar to many of the flowers we saw in Regents Park. After too much sun, we headed to the York and Albany in Camden for bloody marys where we probably overstayed our welcome as the arm chairs were so comfortable.

Frances: Striped T-shirt - AA, Shorts - AA, Laced Espadrilles - Spain, Flowers - Marylebone

Claudia: Leather Jacket - Vintage, Shirt - Acne, Shorts - AA,  Loafers - Vintage  

EASTER IN WONDERLAND

*****HAPPY EASTER FROM HELEN GLORY*****

Today, as a special Easter treat, we recreated illustrations from Claudia's old copy of Alice in Wonderland. We both transformed ourselves into the Rabbit and Alice, complete with a pocket watch , home-made ears and M & S mini Eggs.

Claudia as Alice: Velvet Ribbon - Vintage, Shirt (worn under dress) - Dress Up, 

Dress - Acne, Yellow Socks - AA, Mary Janes - Office

Frances as Rabbit: Ears - Helen Glory, Shirt - Vintage, Bow Tie - Vintage, Shorts - AA, 

White Tights - Primark, Black Laced Espadrilles - Spain

Claudia as Rabbit: Ears - (as before), Shirt - Acne, Black Ribbon - Vintage, 

Tweed Coat - Vintage, Shorts - AA, Socks - AA, Loafers - Vintage, Pocket Watch - Antique

Frances as Alice: Bow in Hair - H&M, Dress - Sister's Wardrobe, 

White Tights - (as before), White T-Bar Sandals - F Troupe

FC and CW

COUNTRY RETREAT

My week in South-West France. CW

SUPER GREAT RAINBOW

I was very impressed with this rainbow array for Superga trainers in a men's store off Brick Lane. I really like how they all look together but think in reality, boring as it sounds, actually want a navy or white coloured pair. This Italian iconic pump is a bit of grandpa, starting life in 1911. However, recently this shoe has had a bit of face lift in form of a campaign with Alexa Chung and new colour ways in stock. Worshipers of all that is Italian will already be familiar with the brand and I'm sure the rest of the UK will follow suit and purchase a pair for the holidays ahead.

FC

FLORAL UPDATE

Denim Shirt - Topshop, Navy Jumper - Uniqlo, Playsuit - Topshop, Sandals - Office,

Blue Nails - Barry M, Side Hair Style inspired by Kate Bosworth

Every Summer florals seem to enter fashion in some form or another. Much of the styling for this years floral prints seems to involve an overload of ditsy flowered dresses and shirts, all piled together. I vowed not to buy any more florals for the Summer season as I have managed to already compile a hefty collection. My flowered Topshop playsuit, from last year, is one of my fav things to wear on a hot day. I also love wearing it in colder weathers as culottes with a crew neck jumper. My floral update purchase are my new Primark palazzo pants. They are way too comfortable and actually feel like you are wearing nothing at all.

Red Top - COS, Palazzo Pants - Primark, Platform Sandals - Primark

FC

MOON RIVER

Breakfast at Tiffany's will always be a style inspiration. The Audrey look can be translated in many different ways. The most popular and iconic outfit, being that from the film's poster which is taken from the opening. In this scene Audrey wears 'that' black dress, diamonds and a croissant. Yet, for me, this has never moved me as much as when she sings Moon River on her window sill. I've always loved this understated look, and much prefer it to her more polished outfits later in the film. In this scene she wears blue jeans, black ballet style flats, a pale grey jersey and a white towel in her hair. Somehow Audrey makes this a chic look.

Me as Audrey: Head Scarf - Antique Pillow Case, Cashmere T-shirt - Uniqlo, Jeans - Topshop,

Courts - Vintage Bally, Ukulele - Alice's Bedroom.

MOON RIVER FACT (from Wikipedia)

Mercer and Mancini wrote the song for Audrey Hepburn to fit her vocal range. Initially, the lyrics started, "I'm Holly, like I want to be / like Holly on a tree back home ..."; however, they were later changed to fit the theme of the film Breakfast at Tiffany's.

FC

NATIONAL DUO

 In my bid to learn more about photography I headed to the National Portrait Gallery to check out two shows featuring E.O. Hoppé and Ida Kar. The Hoppé photos were taken in the first half of the 20th century and were separated into his studio and street work. In the studio he photographed prominent members of society such as writers and actors. Before his sitters would arrive he would try immerse himself in their work in order to make them feel more at ease in front of his camera. Later in his career he ventured onto the street trying to capture the national character. Although a native German, and Austrian educated, he considered Britain his home. His images are filled with an appreciation for  the idiosyncrasies of his adopted nation.

The next show down the corridor was Ida Kar, an amazing woman photographer, who photographed sections of Bohemium Britain in the 1950s and 60s. Her portraits are very stylised and feature many artists in their natural habitat. Her lens allows the viewer a sneak peek into the life of these creative people. Yet, these frozen moments almost  make the subjects more mysterious and you almost want to know what's going on behind the camera.

There is also a interesting street photography show on at the Museum of London. In the exhibition  there is a short documentary, in which a selection of different generations of street photographers give their impressions of the changing role of the camera in the city.

Outfit above: Leopard Print Trim Coat - Topshop, Polka Ring Shirt - Topshop, Navy Jumper - Uniqlo,  Jeans - Urban Outfiters, Loafers - Russell and Bromley, Bag - Ted Baker

All Photos above taken from Hoppé Portraits: Society, Studio & Street

FC

DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE

With Easter fast approaching and also the need to pack for my holiday to the South of France on Wednesday I started putting a few things together to help inspire me for our next shoot. I filled this lovely old suitcase which I got for $5 at the Melrose Avenue flea market in LA with: my new Mary Janes from Office, a fairytale striped skirt from Lucy in Disguise, Vintage striped shorts, an antique copy of Alice in Wonderland, my mum's old hacking jacket, a pork-pie hat from JJ Hats in New York, an antique pocket watch and compass, a vintage belt, some WW2 flying goggles, and an old Observer's Book of Freshwater Fishes (I love the illustrations). CW

APRIL SUMMER

The weather was so good today I pretended I was on holiday in Italy. Claudia and I spent most of the day in London Fields Lido and then walked along the Canal back to Angel. We stumbled across this cafe called Tow Path and had an affogato (vanilla ice cream with espresso poured over).

FC