Ted & Muffy Fairytale Fit || Winter Boots 15

Ted & Muffy are a luxury boutique that sells gorgeous shoes and has expert fitters to make for an excellent shoe/boot shopping experience. The brand used to be called Duo but they have rebranded everything from their name, to the packaging, to the actual store inside. Ted & Muffy pride themselves on designing what they love, using top quality materials and they have three boutique stores in London, Bath and Edinburgh. If you don't live nearby though, fear not because they do also have a website that you can order from!

Recently I got invited along to the Ted & Muffy event and got a chance to look around their beautiful new store and eye up all the gorgeous shoes, I'm such a shoe girl so I really was in my element! I was then lucky enough to be asked to choose a pair of boots to get fitted on and sent out to me. I think the hardest part for me was definitely choosing which pair I wanted! I was torn between a sensible riding boot or a gorgeous over the knee suede pair. In the end I narrowed it down to an over the knee suede pair because who needs to be sensible?! (eye rolls) but then I had the choice of Acantha which is a stunning dove grey pair or Empress, a jet black suede pair. I decided I would at least be half sensible and go for black because I reckon I could pull these off in more 'every-day' situations than the grey pair.

I got to try on all of them with my lovely fitter who was so helpful, she measured my leg and literally all the boots fitted on perfectly. I think Ted & Muffy would be perfect for those who have either really skinny legs and find boots fit quite wide on them or those who have wider calves and struggle to get boots to get up over them.

One of my favourite things about the Ted & Muffy rebranding is the fairytale feel of the experience, it all feels very luxurious, from the stores interior to the feel of the fit on. The advert that the store used included real live wolves, I did insert the advert into this post but it didn't work but definitely Youtube it, it's worth the watch! The photo shoot they have done for their boots as well is simply stunning with the use of clocks, shattered mirrors, dark feathers, owls and snow.

I loved that they had a little tree with tags on that had our blog names on them and attached to each tag was a rustic key...very fairy tale like again.

Their prices are expensive, the boots that I chose are £400 but they do have slightly cheaper ones and I think when it comes to shoes and boots it's worth spending a little bit more money on them because they last forever and who doesn't want their Cinderella fit?! With the price you've also got the fitting experience included and I do believe they quite often have 20/25% off offers online!

I have worn my pair loads, they're really comfy and instantly make a simple outfit look really dressy. I've loved wearing them with black tights and dresses or if you wear a shorter dress they look lovely with bare legs for a night out. They also look stunning with jeans and a nice top for going round the shops or for day to day. I haven't worn them in the rain yet because I'm too scared that it would ruin them but I think they would be okay if you used a suede protector on them regularly. I have already included these in my Winter Boots post but I thought I should give them a post of their own since I've worn them so much this Winter!

What are your opinions on over the knee boots?

Lots of Love,

♥

Winter Boots || 2015

One of my most popular posts on my blog is my winter boots post that I did last year and because I'm a total shoeaholic its something I really enjoy writing about. So this year I thought I would do a repeat and share with you the boots that I've choosen for the Winter weather this year.

The first pair are 'Caddy Belles' from Clarks and they are these gorgeous riding boots with a leather front and an elastic panel at the back which makes the boot super easy to slip on. I love how elegant these look and the fact that the front of the boot comes higher than the back is super flattering. These come in a gorgeous tan colour as well which I'm definitely going to be picking up soon and I'll  post pictures of them when I get them and they come in a navy suede also. The one thing I would say about these boots are they're extremely difficult to fit so its definitely worth popping in to Clarks to try them on rather than ordering your size online because a five in the black 'Caddy Belle' fits me perfectly but in the tan even a four and a half is slightly big on me. They have a tendency to rub really badly at the heels as well but top tip -  if you flex the back of the heels with your hand before you wear them it should break them in enough to stop any blisters forming (works for all shoes)! However, they are a really good one for any ladies who struggle to get boots to fit their calfs or ankles because of the elasticated back. These retail at £140 but because they're black leather you can be sure they'll last you for many Winters to come.

The second pair of boots I have for Winter are these gorgeous suede, thigh high boots by Ted & Muffy*. These beauties are going to have an entire post of their own very soon to tell you about the amazing experience I had at their store but I couldn't miss them out in this post too. They're slightly less practical than my Clarks one with being suede but wow are they gorgeous! These ones retail at £400 so are definitely a luxury purchase but every girl needs their own pair of fairytale boots!

These 'Busby Fresh' ankle boots I've shown in a haul post previously, they were more my Autumn boots because of the cut outs but on dry days I've still been wearing them in Winter and I think they'll carry me straight through to Spring too. They're fab because you can wear them with frilly socks to keep warm and when it gets warmer again they can be worn bare foot and because they're taupe they add something different to an outfit. These were £75 but are now in the sale down to £55 and also come in a black colour too.

The last new pair of boots that I got were also ankle boots and again these are in a black suede finish. I love the chunky cleated soles of these and they're surprisingly comfy too and the inside is made of the softest material which makes these really comfy to wear with or without socks. They're super versatile as well, I've worn these on a night out to a club because they're still dressy but not a full on heel and they're great for going out for meals but are still casual enough that you could dress them down and wear them to the shops. I choose the black suede because they're dressier however it does mean that they aren't as good in the rain and my dogs fur attaches to it constantly (as you can probably see).

I still have my black Clarks chelsea boots from last year that I love to death and wear on rainy days where I want an ankle boot rather than a knee high boot and theres still some left in store this year if you like those. They're called 'Mariella Busby' and retail for £80. The second pair from last year that I still have are my tan chelsea boots from Clarks, these are slightly more battered as they're not the type of leather that you can polish up but I do still wear them occasionally if I want a tan boot. These aren't in stock any more but they do have other tan chelsea boots fairly similar.

What Winter boots do you have this year?

Lots of Love,

A

♥

Pretty Little Thing, River Island, Elegant Touch, Clarks & More || Haul

Firstly I'd like to quickly say... massive apologies for my unexplained disappearance from my blog, suddenly life got very busy and I have been under massive pressures in my final year of my law degree so that's had to take a fore front. However, I have not lost my love for blogging at all and have got plenty of content to share as soon as I get time so thank you so much for those who have stuck with me!!

I had my 21st birthday in September so I bought a lot of dresses for that because I had several nights out for it. These three are all from Pretty Little Thing which if you don't know about you should because they do amazing dresses for so cheap. They aren't the best quality in that I don't think they'll last as long as say a Topshop dress would but definitely still good value for money. These ones cost me £15 each but the mint one is now discounted to £10 and you get 15% student discount on top of this, sometimes it's 20% and their delivery is like a pound and quite often they have a free next day offer on. This site is literally my new go to for dresses and they have a similar thing to Asos premier too which I've also paid for because I use the site so much now. I done my usual trick of buying one dress that I like in just about every single colour it was available in and when they're so cheap it would be crazy not too. The style of the dress is a skater style with cross over straps at the back, it is really low cut and because of the style of the back of the dress you can't wear a bra with it. I usually never go out without wearing a bra because it isn't comfy and my boobs just don't feel supported without one however these ones it's absolutely fine so the dress must have good support in it. It's super flattering because of the skater style it nips you in at the waist and I got it in a mint green, a coral and a pastel blue shade. 

From River Island I also picked up these leggings which I am in love with, they're more like a riding pant than a legging because they're super thick (nobody will be seeing my pants) and they have the elastic panels at the side. My friend recommended these to me and I am a convert, they're so comfy and just look that little bit more dressy than regular leggings. The only problem Ive had with them is that they are a total bitch for hairs sticking to them, I constantly have to roller ball myself as I'm running out the door but they're worth the extra effort. These were more expensive than your average pair of leggings (£22) but they fit more like a pair of trousers so will last much longer too and they fit really true to size as well.

Everybody knows I'm a shoe girl and I've gone quite crazy on shoes lately. The first pair I got as my uniform for my work, I work part time in Clarks so one of the perks of that is I get lots of shoes. The first pair I got is called Griffin Monty in black leather which is just a plain black buckled shoe, it's quite different for me but I thought I could make it work. I love these, they're so old school and look really cute with frilly socks. I think they'd go with a variety of different fashion styles, they're really versatile and hard wearing, mines haven't scuffed at all despite using them for work. They do take a while to break in though especially if you plan on wearing them bare foot so definitely one to wear blister plasters with at first. They also come in a black patent and a burgundy patent which is gorgeous but I wasn't brave enough to pull them off haha!

The second pair of shoes I got from my work are actually for out of work but I get quite good discount on that too. These ones have gone into the sale now from £70 to £50 so if you are interested in picking them up in this taupe colour or the black then head over to Clarks website before they go out of stock. These are super comfy, perfect for those days where it's not too cold but not that warm either, these were amazing in the Autumn but will be ideal for Winter and Spring too. They look fab with bare feet or frilly socks again, these are really comfy and are an easy pair to dress up or down. I've had so much wear out of them already and I like the taupe shade of them, it's just a bit different to the usual black or brown boot. 

The last pair of shoes I picked up are actually a pair of high heels. I only had one nude pair of heels and they were extremely hard to walk in because the straps at the ankle were far too lose so I decided to get a new pair. I picked these ones from River Island because they're absolutely stunning and although they're expensive for heels (£58), they'll go with so many outfits because they're nude and hopefully last a long time. They have a gorgeous gold plated toe but I did find that this made them fit up a bit smaller, I have size 4 and a half/5 feet and I had to go up to a 6 so that's something to watch out for. 

I also got two sets of Elegant Touch fake nails because I've been hearing so much about these and I love having my nails done but stopped a while ago because it was completely ruining my natural nails. I picked up the black 'Twinkle' set which is pretty and sparkly for my birthday and a set of natural ovals so I could paint them whatever colour I wanted. I have actually tried the Twinkle ones now so can give a mini review on them, if I'm honest I wasn't really a fan. They looked amazing once I'd done them, really professional and a gorgeous shape but they kept pinging off after only 24 hours and they felt really unnatural so I was totally aware of them being on my nails. The twinkle ones are pre-glued so it could be that the oval ones will work better with me manually applying the glue myself. 

I also got sent this hip flask from SWIG London which I thought I would share with you because it came in very handy on my 21st birthday as I'm sure you can imagine!! I love that it comes in a pretty case and isn't just a boring metal hip flask and you can get a variety of different coloured cases for the hip flasks. There's now a gorgeous pink one out that I wish I had chosen! I think they'd make a really good Christmas gift especially if you have an awkward person that's really hard to buy for. It is a luxury hip flask so slightly more expensive (around £89) but they do have a sale on at the moment with £20 off most flasks and the flasks are high quality so it's worth it if you're in the market for one.

I also picked up more frilly socks because as everybody knows I'm the frilly sock queen and they're basically the only socks I wear so not much more needs to be said about them! I actually got a mint green pair and another grey pair as well but they're in the wash because I wore them already, sorrrrry.

I picked up two clutch bags too because I only had one nude one and it has a strap attached which I used to prefer but now I'm preferring ones that don't have straps because I think they look better. I got this nude one from River Island because it's an exact match for my shoes and I also picked up a mint green one from New Look. The mint one does have a strap but it's a detachable one at least if I do decide I want a strap I can clip it back on. 

I hope you enjoyed this haul and I've already done a lot more shopping so keep your eyes peeled for another one soon.

Lots of Love,

A 

♥

Topshop, Asos, Office, Nike, New Look & More || Haul

It's been a long time since I've done a fashion haul on my blog and it's mainly down to the fact that I've not really bought loads of clothes at once for ages. Then when I do, I have all the good intention of keeping them to photograph before I wear them but realistically that never actually happens. However this time I have managed it (mostly) so thought I would share them with you!

 The first thing that I bought was a new pair of Converse and this time I went for the leather version, my reasoning being that I wanted to be able to keep them clean, easier! I already have two pairs of white converse but both are manky and I only ever get down to washing them when I want to wear them. I bought these ones from Office and they were around £60 which I don't think is too bad. I do like them but I feel like they make my feet look and feel massive and I'm only a size 5! The leather style has definitely been much easier (and quicker) to clean so I would recommend them for that. 

 I desperately needed new bikini's for Summer especially because I live at my gyms swimming pool. I really wanted ones with cup sizes because they fit so much nicer on and I found that Asos was the best place to shop for cup sized bikini's. The first one I bought was this gorgeous floral print one which I desperately wanted the matching high waisted bottoms for but couldn't get hold of.

The second bikini I bought was this Triangl look alikey which is an amazing dupe. The white colour makes your tan look fantastic and the bra fits perfectly. Something to bare in mind about the bottoms are they're ever so slightly more revealing than your average bikini bottom but I kept them anyway because I like the look of the matching set!

I fell in love with this navy/grey and white striped top from Topshop. It's not a crop top but it's a really short t-shirt. It looks amazing with high waisted jeans or under dungarees.

From Nike I picked up this mesh crop top for the gym, again this one is slightly longer than a crop top but you would definitely have to wear this with high waisted bottoms if you didn't want to show any skin. This is amazing for the gym, it's dry fit so it absorbs sweat and because of it's loose, mesh material it really helps to keep you cool. I don't feel very comfortable just going to the gym in a sports bra so this is the perfect way to show off your coloured sports bra, stay cool and not be revealing. It was around £30 which is quite expensive for a gym top but that's because it's Nike and has the dri-fit technology. 

I also picked up a neon yellow sports bra from H&M because it looks amazing under all gym tops. This one especially looks great under the Nike mesh top. It isn't the most supportive sports bra ever but it does the job for me and it was under £10 too.

My gym is absolutely roasting especially when it's hot outside so I bought some new shorts to switch my yoga pants for. I apologise for the creases but I pulled these straight out the ironing basket. I chose a plain white pair and a plain black pair because they'll go with everything and both are from New Look.

Another fitness themed item of clothing I bought was this swim suit from Tesco. I really wanted a swimsuit for doing swimming at the gym because it just seems a lot more practical than a bikini and I wanted to look like I was 'serious' about swimming hahaha. At the same time I didn't want to look like a frump and this was the best one I found on the market and believe it or not it's actually from Tesco!! It gives you an amazing bust because it's quite low cut and because of the ruching on the front and the side panels it is quite slimming. I wear this to death because it is stylish but at the same time very, very practical so ideal for anyone who does swimming for exercise purposes!

Last gym related purchase... I promise! I bought two t-shirts from New Look, just a plain black one and a plain grey one. They do fit a little on the small side so I'd recommend going up a size if you're inbetween sizes.

I never, ever thought that I would buy into the dungaree hype. They just remind me way too much of growing up so they still feel a little uncool to me however lately I've seen people looking amazing in them. I'm definitely not into the long ones because I'm so small they would just look ridiculous on me but I do love the short ones. These look amazing paired with the Topshop stripey t-shirt that I showed above and are also from Topshop.

My last purchase and probably my most favourite purchase that I've bought in a long time is this yellow rain coat from Topshop. I wanted it for a while but wasn't sure because it might not go with much being yellow but when I went into Topshop and it was the last one in stock I just had to get it. It is out of stock online so if you want this, I'd hurry to your local Topshop to see if they have any left. It's so cute and makes me feel like Paddington bear. I think the little checked sleeves and hood are a really cute touch however if you don't like the sleeves you can roll them down. Although it is expensive for a rain coat at £55, I've already had my moneys worth out of it and will continue to do so therefore I think it's worth the money! Especially because in Britain you are always, always going to need a rain jacket.

I hope you liked seeing the fashion bits that I've picked up recently. Let me know if you like them and   how you would style them up. 

Lots of Love,

♥