Thursday 27 July 2017

Dame of Thrones // Costume meets Fashion #3

It's that time again, yes my friends and fellow dragon slayers, Game of Thrones is back! Well, season 7 of the tv show (please Mr Martin, get a move on with the next book!!) and as a celebration of character growth and badassery I chose delicate yet rapidly more courageous Sansa Stark for my latest instalment of Costume meets Fashion.


Admittedly Sansa isn't my favourite character but if we're talking development then this chic is leading the race. She's been through the ringer big time and is emerging in this latest chapter as a serious contender for the crown.


I can't wait for the latest novel to drop and to find out the fate of the realm but for now I will make do with the visually stunning show and Sansa's strong new look! It's time to embrace the rise of the Queen of the North and her regal metallics as I've assembled some subtle ideas to add a little She Wolf to your closet!


Sansa Stark wears: Scotch & Soda

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Sansa Stark wears: ASOS

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Sansa Stark wears: River Island

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I'm loving Sansa's on point hair styles too this season and am living for her new found tenacity that I think could toughen up any look and add an edge of feminine fierceness.


Don't forget to check out my previous Costume meets Fashion posts where I channel heroine Jessica Jones and quirky Jess Day. Who's your latest fashion-inspiring character and I'm desperate to know; are you a fan of the book or the show or like me, both!

Monday 24 July 2017

Hashtag Rapture // Instagram Accounts Currently Loving

Happy Monday, beautiful humans! I'm here to add a little colour to your day and set your week off with a sparkle of inspiration with my latest round up of Instagram goodies!


I've taken to doing this as a regular feature as I simply love the research bit (scrolling through my latest 'liked posts'), compiling my current faves into one bite sized list and sharing the beauty with my favourite people on the internet- you guys!


@whistleandawhim

Light // feminine // mood enhancing // blush & off-white tones // dreamy content // soft yet powerful

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@nooknorth

Texture // bold pattern & form // creative // motivational studio shots // subtle & selective colour use

Instagram-favourites-currently-loving-Instagram stars- Instagram accounts- Inspiring- creative- create- art- fashion- beauty- lifestyle-top-Insta style-bloggers-fbloggers-bbloggers-lbloggers-bookstagram-creativeliving-newpost-faded windmills


@niki_herring

Travel inspiring // one with nature // earthy & grounded // landscapes // misty & moody // mountains

Instagram-favourites-currently-loving-Instagram stars- Instagram accounts- Inspiring- creative- create- art- fashion- beauty- lifestyle-top-Insta style-bloggers-fbloggers-bbloggers-lbloggers-bookstagram-creativeliving-newpost-faded windmills


@cainite_

Fashion forward // stunning composition // well selected content // soft colour with spots of contrast

Instagram-favourites-currently-loving-Instagram stars- Instagram accounts- Inspiring- creative- create- art- fashion- beauty- lifestyle-top-Insta style-bloggers-fbloggers-bbloggers-lbloggers-bookstagram-creativeliving-newpost-faded windmills


@balzacparis

Youthful // bright & light // delicate backgrounds // style focused // continental // grown up fashion

Instagram-favourites-currently-loving-Instagram stars- Instagram accounts- Inspiring- creative- create- art- fashion- beauty- lifestyle-top-Insta style-bloggers-fbloggers-bbloggers-lbloggers-bookstagram-creativeliving-newpost-faded windmills


@amongmoonflowers

Moody // dark & light // playful shadows // emotive // story telling // nature // romantic & historical

Instagram-favourites-currently-loving-Instagram stars- Instagram accounts- Inspiring- creative- create- art- fashion- beauty- lifestyle-top-Insta style-bloggers-fbloggers-bbloggers-lbloggers-bookstagram-creativeliving-newpost-faded windmills


I'll be spending my week starting a new handmade garment as I just completed the Alex shirt by Sew Over It, celebrating my moms birthday via skype (I'm still allowed to make cake, right?) and nursing a tv hangover as the delightfully trashy Love Island drew to a close this weekend. Boo!

In the mean time, do feel free to embrace your adoration for these Instagram Aces!

Thursday 20 July 2017

Dive In // Quarterly Book Review

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I have only five books to share with you today as I've hit a major brick wall with my reading lately. I guess having a non-stop three weeks travelling around Canada could have contributed to not setting time aside for my beloved books but I've also had an unlucky streak of starting a story and then really not feeling it enough to continue past the opening chapter.


Thankfully though, the novels I did get to during the months of April, May and June, were all pretty great reads and quite a varied bunch! Let's dive straight into the reviews shall we?


Talking as Fast as I Can by Lauren Graham    5* {209 pages}

This is one for the fans. The charmingly witty Lauren Graham shares a fast paced collection of personal essays as she looks back over her life and career and even shares a Gilmore Girl confession or two.

I loved how this book flowed in an eloquent yet chatty manner, it was bizarrely relatable and it's fresh pace made the pages easily digestible whilst cramming them full of fascinating mementos. Definitely a must read if you're a Lorelai fan and would be the cherry on top upon completing the series.


Luckiest Girl Alive by Jessica Knoll    3.5* {352 pages}

With the upcoming wedding to her blue blood fiancé, glamorous Ani struggles to address an incident from her past and attempts to put the stories and gossip to rest during the filming of a documentary- will she bury her secrets and the truth along with it or risk losing it all for a moment of justice?

Page turning, plot twisting, thrill ride? Not quite, but it certainly entertained as a piece of flash back literature that definitely wasn't lacking in content. The book was written well with enough suspense and intrigue but I found it way too long and a little too busy. I can see how it landed high in the charts as it ticks the boxes for an interesting thriller but I think it would have benefited from a little editing down.


Sweetbitter by Stephanie Danler    4* {368 pages}

Set in a famous down town New York restaurant, this book follows a year in the life of the enigmatic yet oblivious Jess as she stumbles into adulthood and all that follows, cue disillusionment, disappointment and eye opening experiences.

Call it good timing or outstanding fiction but this book just did it for me. It's poetic, highly charged, sensory meeting of words carried the story, created this flaky yet charming character, led me through a somewhat stationary plot yet from beginning to end the language was enhancing and delicious. I think I could read Stephanie Danler's take on just about anything, when told in this captivating hand. One to give a go, for sure.


The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead    3.5* {306 pages}

The Underground Railroad is a heart-wrenching tale of the brutal treatment of black people in pre-Civil War America, the secret route dug out beneath the ground promising hopes of escape and the harrowing story of one slave woman, her strengths and will for life despite her disadvantages.

I'm not sure where to start with this book other than by saying what a beautifully handled narrative, and an important piece of history that, despite the pain and devastation caused by this period in time, must never be forgotten or tip toed over and must be taught and understood, and most importantly never repeated. For this I applaud the book. I hold it in high reverence and I genuinely did enjoy reading this piece of fiction. However, I chose the wrong time to start it (note to self, if it don't fit in with mood/ schedule don't force it to) and found myself getting lost, confusing characters and time lines and generally taking way too long to get through. I do feel that lies more on bad timing that the book itself, so perhaps one to re read in the future? I insist you pick up this novel, but give it the time it needs.


Uprooted by Naomi Novik    4.5* {435 pages}

Finally we reach my favourite book of the pile, Uprooted by Naomi Novik. Every ten years, in their sleepy, lush green village, the Dragon must choose his next girl of age to take away from her family and community and back to the hidden depths of his enchanted tower. The next choosing is fast approaching and despite knowing her beautiful, confident best friend will be brave enough to accept her fate, Agnieszka is still scared. But when the Dragon arrives it becomes apparent she was scared for the wrong reason.

A true fairytale through and through! This novel is everything you could want in a story- wizards and dark, destructive forests, shining knights in full coats of armour and creepy, soul destroying demons, magical spells, potions and trickery and loyal friendships worth risking life and limb to protect! I daren't say much more other than treat yourself to a copy of this beauty!


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There you have it, a handful of varying genres that I highly recommend giving a whirl, especially over the glorious summer. Each of these books would fit swimmingly with a cocktail in hand and obligatory sunny weather!


Right now I'm currently getting my read on with another Dutch boekje (pat on the back for me), along side a mystical new release and have a growing stack of exciting tomes on my bedside table, to enjoy over the upcoming few months, ready to devour and share with you next time.

Thursday 13 July 2017

My Grand Canadian Adventure // Giant Cedars Boardwalk & Athabasca Glacier

From huge teddy bears to breath taking waterfalls, to wild west towns to 500+ year old forests- my travels round Canada couldn't have been more jam packed with dramatic sights and unforgettable experiences and in today's post I'd like to share with you two stand out moments.


Along our journey we made sure to ask the locals for as many recommendations as we could and allowed this insight to lead us to some truly spectacular places (and restaurants!), including the sheer awe-inspiring Giant Cedars Boardwalk Trail. Stepping out away from the crowds and long stretches of open road and into this ancient world was in itself quite surreal. The noise fell away instantly, the temperature was calm and cool and the feeling of being surrounded by these ginormous, age old trees with the gentle stream of sunlight breaking through the canopy was just something else.


This half kilometre of boardwalk lead us into the heart of the forest in Mount Revelstoke and besides offering some killer photographs of its undeniable beauty it also allowed me to take a moment to catch my breath and really step back in order to appreciate my adventure thus far.


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Another highlight of my time spent in Canada, something that even now I can't seem to shake, was walking up a snow ridden mountain foot, with the wind whipping across my face and snow flakes catching in my hair (and almost losing a shoe during the climb), then reaching this view as we stepped towards the Athabasca glacier.


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This prehistoric glacier has been sitting between some of the highest peaks in the Canadian Rockies, including Mount Columbia, Mount Athabasca and Mount Andromeda for thousands of years and despite it's rapid decline (between 10 and 25m each summer), is still the largest glacier in the Rocky Mountains stretching 28 kilometres across.


This treasure is not to be missed when visiting the area and can be reached carefully on foot to a safe observation plateau at the toe of the glacier or can be appreciated from a whole different perspective on one of the ice field bus tours- which may very well be on the list for next time we go!


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It is always tricky to convey scale and vastness in a photograph, much less personal emotion and that special atmosphere you have in the moment but boy is it a treat to look back at these shots and enjoy the memories of such a fantastic trip and to simmer in that wanderlust getting the cogs turning ready for another adventure!

Thursday 6 July 2017

Vault of Sky // Mood Board Curations

"This place in the psyche, where dreams, stories, poetry, and art meet, constitutes the mysterious habitat of the instinctual or wild nature. In contemporary dreams and poetry and in the older folktales and writings of mystics, the entire milieu of the core is understood as a being with a life of it's own. It is most often symbolised in poetry, painting, dance and dreams as either one of the vast elements such as ocean, vault of sky, loam of earth or as a power within personhood.


Many artists carry their own ideas and matters born of ego to the edge of the core and drop them in, sensing rightfully that they will be returned newly infused or washed with the core's remarkable psychic sense of life. Either way, this causes a sudden and profound awakening, changing or informing of the sense, mood or heart of the human. When one is freshly informed, one's mood is changed. When one's mood is changed, one's heart is changed. 


That is why the images and language that arise from the core are so important." Clarissa Pinkola Estés, Ph.D.


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For more visual nourishment click here and here and be sure to pick up a copy of Women Who Run With the Wolves: Myths and Stories of the Wild Woman Archetype by Clarissa Pinkola Estés, Ph.D to reconnect with your true essence, to align your priorities and perspective and for some down right insightful lessons. As ever, all original images can be sources right back to the creative hub that is pinterest.