Could she be any more amazing?

First plug on my blog and it is well deserved! One of my bestest friends has just launched a website for her photography business; Jemma Brown Photography. I would definitely recommend her if you are an actor requiring headshots, if you would like some studio portraits for family gifts or maybe something a bit saucy for the love of your life. The main photo on this blog is one of Jemma's and below are some more of my favourites from my many sessions with her;

She's a class act when it comes to make up too, so I'd try and get some tips from her too if you book in. Her prices are very competitive and unlikely most studios, she doesn't charging ridiculous amounts for the prints as she will provide you with a CD of all the photos taken during the session.

Check it out, honestly, you won't regret it!

No Resolutions

"Happy New Year! Any New Years' Resolutions?" NO! I hate New Years' Resolutions... and I mean HATE! The usual "I'm giving up chocolate/drinking/burgers/smoking /fun" are so tedious and so easily broken. And the losing weight one, urgh, that's the worst. Why not just resolve to put weight on by next year so if you don't gain weight or just maintain it, it's all cool, and if you do put on weight, then at least you've achieved something?!

I don't make resolutions, but I do find that at the beginning of a year, I naturally start to think about what I did in the past 12 months and what I want to achieve in the future. These thoughts might transform in to real life actions or I might change my mind! The main thing that I'll be focusing on this year is saving money! I'm planning on getting married next year so need lots of dosh to make my dreams come true and 2010 was not the year of saving it was suppposed to be! That means I'll be trying to do fun things without spending money, hopefully I'll be able to share some of my finds with you too.

And I want to spend more time doing things that make me happy, like quality time with the H2B and my amazing friends and family  and more craft! I've about 10 sewing projects on my to-do list plus a load of other ideas of things to do! I find it so hard to get motivated after I get in from work. The sofa's calling out to me and my body just wants to veg out in front of the telly, but if I push through and get started on something,  I can get so into it that I don't want to stop. The feeling of achievement once I've completed a project is great; probably because it happens so irregularly!

So for someone with no resolutions, that sounds like a fair bit! Looking forward to letting you know how I get on and maybe you'll share some of your resolutions with me... but not if they are any of the "urgh" ones mentioned at the start!!!

Astrakacadabra!

It was simple, even for a procrastinator like me, to pick a subject for my first proper blog post. I haven’t bought something I’ve been this happy with since I can’t even remember when. My New Coat. I can barely stop thinking about it. “When can I wear it next?” “Would it go with this dress?” “Yes I know I’m just out the shower, but my dressing gown is all the way in the bedroom… maybe... I could… just slip my coat on?!”

“Why am I so in love with this coat?” you may ask. Well, firstly, it cost £20. Now I am sure I don’t have to tell you, that any time you can get a coat, like a proper coat, for £20 is a good time. It’s made of beautifully soft sand faux fur, in a sort of zigzag pattern. It looks real and it’s so warm! Even with the serious winds and snow we’ve had lately, I’ve been snug as a bug in a rug!

I’ve been mostly wearing it with a thin plaited belt looped twice around me (it’s super long!) in quite a 70’s kinda way. A little cream beret and some leather gloves finish off the look. In these pictures my boyf and I were heading out shopping and as my hair was up I popped my earmuffs on instead! Any excuse!

It just has one large label stitched inside with a Union Jack and the company name; Astraka. So I did a bit of research and Astraka was originally called Alfred Morris Furs and was formed in 1898. In 1944 it employed just three people, by the 1960’s Astraka had 400, mainly women, employees and were selling to high end stores like Harrod’s and Selfridges. As Astraka furs were faux they were approved by the WWF and teamed up on a range. I found some pictures of their print ads online at Advertising Archives.

I love being able to own a part of history, I think that’s why I’m so drawn to vintage. I love to know a piece’s story, where it came from and who owned it, but when I don’t it’s fun make it up instead. Like my coat, when I think about who owned it before me (I picked it up from a charity shop btw), I imagine she was a bit of a dolly bird, hanging out at Studio 64, her boyf was a mod and I'm so pleased she decided to give it to the charity shop, though I don't know why anyone would want to get rid of it!
This coat not only keeps me warm, but I feel glam when I put it on. You could be wearing anything underneath, just stick a pair of boots on and you're ready for any occasion... unless you start to get hot. I suppose that's the main problem, that if the temperature rises, you'll want to take it off and carrying a coat of this size, when you're already overheating is tiring! But in my opinion, completely worth it! Haha! 

The great news is that there are loads of these coats on eBay. Prices do vary but I definitely recommend trying one out. They have a great authentic look that a lot of coats on the high street just don’t capture and if you’re lucky, you could get one for half the price, plus you’d be unlikely to see anyone else in the same one.