THE MODERN MA-1

bomber jacket from jessica buurman // top from h&m// skirt from depop // shoes from nike

So second year of university has came to an end, exams are finished (not quite sure how badly I did but let's not think about it until results day). Guess who has gone and secured a summer internship? ;) Me! I will be be a 9 till 5 working woman strolling through the city of London for the next couple of months, hopefully not tripping up in the middle of the road in my heels!

A little announcement to make is that... I have been elected as the president of Fashion Society at my university! I am quite excited to bring my love for DIY projects into the society next year, hopefully it will all go well.

I absolutely love the outcome of this photoshoot with my dear friend Sam, you should definitely check out his flickr by clicking HERE. This lucky man is off to Australia for a semester as an exchange student, so I am going have to find myself a new photographer or you know, go back to my good old tripod ha!

Ever since I received this jacket, I have been wearing it non-stop. In fact, I am wearing it right now as I type! It feels very silky and soft, and a perfect match to wear pretty much anything! Two very delicate Robins are embroidered exquisitely on each of the sides, definitely makes a statement on this jacket! The blocks of dark blue and white stripes compliment each other very well. The only trouble that I sometimes have is keeping the white stripes clean, it is just a tad difficult when I am always moving about!

Jessica Buurman Bomber Jacket: http://www.shopjessicabuurman.com/robet-bird-embroidery-bomber-jacket-p-16303.html

Fun fact:  Did you know original bomber jackets are called MA-1 and are primarily made for Navy fighter pilots? No, neither did I until I looked into it!

Thank you for reading!

Love,

Mannie x

SANTA CLAUSE IS COMING TO.... CATH KIDSTON

So a couple of weeks ago I was lucky enough to be invited down to the Cath Kidston store in Exeter to "snap a selfie" with their very own Modern Vintage Santa Clause! It was an event to get shoppers into the Christmas spirit this year, to be quite honest myself, I haven't been feeling the Christmas spirit this year, probably due to exams... but hey let's not dwell on that depressing subject! 

Anyway, I was greeted by a cheerful Santa in a bespoke Cath Kidston Bramley Sprig suit, now if only every Santa around the world wears such beautiful gown, wouldn't it just be the best! 

I had a little tour around the store and no surprise, my Christmas spirit was alight again as I saw so many wonderful festive ornaments and products! Some adorable little crochet Santa and Mr Snowman on your tree anyone? Or how about some snowman salt & pepper shakers for your festive dining table?

And of course Santa wouldn't be able to complete his annual task without his trusty little elves! Oh how I want to become an elf myself just so I can get my hands on one of those charming outfits. 

If you still have time before Christmas, make sure to pop down to one of your local Cath Kidston store to get your festive spirit on! 

I hope you'll all have a merry Christmas, and a wonderful new year! See you in 2016!!

Love,

Mannie x

I'M TWENTEEN

skirt from jessica buurman // top from primark // coat from dorothy perkins // boots from h&m

Guess who has just turned twenty a week ago! Or as I call it twenteen because I refuse to believe that I have been alive for two decades already and yet to achieve something astonishing. Jokes aside, I'm very grateful for a happy and healthy life. My twentieth birthday was wonderful, with surprises from my best friends who bought me a beautiful Patisserie Valerie cake, absolutely delicious.

The second year of university has been going well even being overloaded with coursework from the very first day back, but it's all over and done with for now... for now because I still have a few exams in January! I can barely have time off to do some relaxing thing, this photo-shoot was postponed so many times because of work ha. Tis now the Christmas season and I really want to film some festive videos but I'm still struggling to balance my time well...

In this shoot I'm wearing a denim blue a-line skirt. I'm in love with it because it is very well fitting and comfortable. I styled it with a striped knitted halter-neck top and a cocoon black coat! It was freezing during the shoot and I was shivering non-stop when I only had the top on, but hopefully that wasn't too obvious from the photos! 

Jessica Buurman button denim skirt: http://www.shopjessicabuurman.com/dennis-button-denim-skirt-p-14482.html

Thank you to my pal Samuel for snapping these lovely photos, check out his flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/131699041@N02/

Show me some love by hyping this look on the side bar!!  >>

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Mannie xx

TAKE ME BACK TO 1995

  dungarees from jessica buurman // shoes from ebay

Well that's the first year of uni over! Got a pretty good result in my bag and hopefully second year will be even better. In the course of this year I realised I'm a lot more grown up than I thought I am (although still my inner child surfaces now and again), went through a lot of tears as my friend travelled to Australia for four and a half month, fell out with a friend for the first time in my life and no idea how to deal with it. However, I am ever so thankful for the new friends that I have made during this year who makes my maths lectures a little less tedious, and my revision period a little more enjoyable. It's not the end of the world, they said.

I did a little some different with the editing this time round - instead of bright saturated photos I decided to let them look like they're taken on a film camera from the 1990's, goes well with the dungarees! Dungarees are great because you can wear all types of tops and nothing could go wrong, from sweaters to blouses, as well as the popular trend of turtle-neck crop tops, although I feel like they're not for me because they put emphasis on my enormous head!

Jessica Buurman dungarees: http://www.shopjessicabuurman.com/anett-button-and-pocket-strap-dress-p-13135.html

Thanks Panda for being my photographer ;)

Hype it, side bar, go! ->

Mannie xx

PEEKABOO MIDRIFF

   sunglasses & shoes from jessica buurman // cardigan  from salvation army // top & skirt are made by me

How's it going my dearies? I think this is one of my few favourites outfit photos taken, probably because it was taken by my mother instead of the usual tripod! She hasn't picked up a camera in years but now she's considering doing it more often. These were taken when I visited home over the Easter break, but now I'm back at university and currently procrastinating in my room. Oh how I miss not having to cook for myself! 

Over the last month a lot has happened, I went to the city of Bath for a visit with my awesome friends and of course, I took the chance to make a vlog out of it. I spent quite a bit of effort into editing so it would be great if you can have a watch in the video below!

I made this cropped lace trim top along with an a-line skirt to match, quite proud of myself because I made it from scratch with no pattern to follow! Although there is definitely room for improvement. I wore the pearl embellished shoes with this outfit since cardigan does bring out the hint of white on the shoes pretty well! I'm also digging the gold bracket on the heel, a very nice touch overall.

Jessica Buurman shoes: http://www.shopjessicabuurman.com/okery-pearl-embellished-oxfords-p-12091.html



Now I am off to the library to begin my dreadful revision, you can hype this look on the side bar and see you later! ->

Mannie xx

"LOVE YOUR CLOTHES" – FARA Charity Event in London

How often do you throw clothes away? Whether it becomes too tight/loose on you, or that you just don’t quite find the style attractive any more, or it could be worse, when it belongs to your ex’s which you thought was a good idea to steal from them when you two were still together. Anyway, have you ever wondered where the clothes go to after they’re donated to charities?

Most of the clothes of course, would end up being at store fronts which are to be sold and the money earned will go towards the charity, but that’s just the basic. How about the clothes that end up being neglected there for weeks and weeks since no one else may be interested in them?

Well, designers Grace Clark and Anna Crawley have been taking clothes and fabrics donated through the chain of FARA charity shops and sprinkle their magic on them to turn them into some unique and contemporary clothes and accessories!

You’ll get a chance to join in this event, which is aimed to inspire others not just to buy clothes that are made in this way, but to give it a go yourself!

Here is an invitation for you all to come and attend, the event is on Thursday 19, February at Fara, 28-32 Pentonville Road, 6:30-8:30pm.

“Love Your Clothes” is a not-for-profit organisation supported by the UK Government, which aims to raise awareness of the value of clothes and help us make the most of the clothes we already have. If you would like more information on this organization, head over to http://loveyourclothes.org.uk/

A little fun fact: Making an item of clothing from your wardrobe last just 9 months longer can reduce the carbon, water and waste impact of our wardrobes by a shocking 20%!

I have always been keen on sustainability in fashion & upcycling clothes since it does extend the ‘wear-life’ of clothes in my wardrobes as well as lessening the negative environmental impact of junking items that we no longer wear. Unfortunately, I couldn’t make it to this event since I’m all the way in Exeter University, but I do hope some of you guys can make it to this wonderful, creative event!!

Take care!

Mannie xx

BRITISH ACCENT

  pork pie hat from topshop // cardigan  from choies // shirt from romwe // skirt from jessica buurman // shoes from ebay

Hope you've all had a lovely Christmas and welcome to 2015! I went to back to my home town for two weeks, it was wonderful to see my friends again after so long! Anyway, my January exams are over, and it turns out that I did very well in the module I absolutely hate (computing for maths) but did awful in the modules that are just a bit more developed from a-level (calculus...). Surprisingly my parents found it very amusing and cracked up when I told them about it over the phone.

This second semester, I have promised myself to be on top of my notes and won't end up being in a hectic state before the exams, well... that's not exactly going well since I'm currently procrastinating... 

For the past few days my flatmates and I have to going crazy searching for a house for next year, and we seem to have found a wonderful house in the city centre! We're so excited to move in next year, although it is still another 7 months away!

I've been quite into the British fashion lately, I figured stripes and  checked patterns are the way to go, so I'm matching my blue vertical striped cardigan with this lovely checkered printed skirt from Jessica Buurman, paired with a chiffon white blouse and some burgundy tights for a pop of colour (plus I will never let go of how beautiful the combination of dark blue and burgundy is). I also bought myself a pair of platform brogues as a Christmas gift, it's definitely going to get many wears! The skirt I'm wearing is in a size S, it fits nicely on me (I'm a size 6-8), however it does feel a bit too tight right after I had dinner, but I suppose that happens with every other item of clothing!

Jessica Buurman skirt: http://www.shopjessicabuurman.com/celas-side-opening-skirt-p-11696.html

Also, here's a little funny screenshot of comments on one of my videos on YouTube to brighten your day:

I think that's the end of my rambling, I hope you will all enjoy 2015 and make the best of out it!

Mannie xx