70s Fashion Obsession

If you know me, you know me, you know i can talk for hours about clothes and "that skirt i saw in Topshop" or my amazing discovery of a new vintage shop i found. But more seriously, i have strong views on fashion like; not only is it art but a symbol of your personality and (as cheesy as it sounds) something that grows and changes as you do, something no one else's opinions should dampen. So recently i have fallen head over heels in love with 70s fashion and ace highstreet store finds inspired by the quirky, boho yet rusty look (not forgetting the florals and kitsch platform heels). A too-cute-to-be-true combination of hippy and new romantic. Have you ever been asked where you'd go if you  could time travel? Id defo go back to a time when people could wear whatever their heart desires (makeup in any color scheme too), dance in any way and express themselves without worrying about being flawless or if they looked silly. The 70s & 80s were so positive and all about having fun.

All pictures found on Pinterest;

  

So an inspired me decided to face the mid-January cold by posing outside, resulting in some 70s inspired fashion shoots. Enjoy: 

-Rachel <3

Sparkling Space-Buns Tutorial

I'm going to be showing you how to do space buns with jewel covered roots.

As dark winter nights and snow showers comes cascading in theres no way you have to dim your shine. You can still sparkle through the cold and shimmer under the stars with this super quick and quirky hair style!

 Here's what you'll need:

 Four bobbles
 Two scrunchies
 Hair pins (optional)
 Hair gel ( I used Bumble and Bumble gel)
Jewels of any kind
 Glitter (optional)
Hairspray

 Step one:

 Part your hair from the front down to the back Take the hair separated to the right side and tie this in a bobble at the top side of your head,

 Do the same for the left

Step two:

 Take a scrunchie and tie this round where the ponytails are Do the same for both sides

Step three

 Spread the ponytail round the scrunchie so that it is covering the scrunchie Then take a bobble to tie it in place.

Wrap the remaining strands of hair round the bun and hold in place with hair pins

. Do the same for both sides Okay so your space-buns are complete!Now for the jewels:

 Step one

 Take the hair cream and apply to hair (i also applied glitter)

 Step two

 Then place the jewels where never you heart desires along the parting of your hair and fix with hairspray

 Taa daa! Now your finished. Id recommend wearing this to festive parties, having fun or whenever you feel like adding some shimmer!

Goodbye to 2015!

SO 2015 has been a colorful blur  and roller coaster of a year with rocky lows and sky high but I have loved every second. Even though reflecting on the year is a seriously sickly-sweet and cheesy idea i'm going to share some memories  i loved:
I started my first art journal, mainly inspired by expressing themes, color schemes and aesthetics the way i see them. Some were spiritual, hippy vies, bubblegum pink pastel, and seaside solar system. I also fell in love with pastel clothes, plants, animals, self love and became an artist,.i joined a band, an art club, met lots cool people,took a photography course at art school and had loads of fun. My trip to Croatia was wonderful with many photo opportunities and I fell in love with the palm trees,thunderstorms and vibrantly decorated streets. In November, the band got our first two gigs where i was terrified but also extatic, now i love the fun of preforming with my friends in front of a crowd. . I have met countless amazing people and taken every opportunity possible (like glitter fights, dancing in the rain and facing fears). I could name them all but the list would go on forever. So I'm ending 2015 with fireworks and a photo shoot

Christmas 2015

A late Merry Christmas(its boxing day actually)! To those who celebrate it and to those who don't, anyone can have fun today weather it's seeing  the  smiles across the ones who receive your gifts, decorating the tree or walking through the snowy streets, do something that makes you happy. 

Sadly it didn't snow this year, (how unfair). Which means i have to hope next year is an opportunity for sledding and snowball fights. 

So this morning was spent ooh and aahing over the presents I couldn't be more thankful for. Here's what I got:

A set of flower tea lights from Urban Outfitters
A necklace fro a vintage/thrift store
Pompom earrings from Etsy
Rose scented body spray from Boux Avenue
A book (I am Malala)
Cat broach
Palo Alto
A Purse 
A brush & Lipstick from H&M

Here are a couple pics from shooting my two favorite outfits from today:

I wanted to make this Christmas different and defying the festive theme of today I went to the beach where I froze in a new patterned, silky outfit I got today,(being the only one that doesn't own a 
Christmas jumper) seeking photo opportunities. 

I ended the day with a dark bike-ride around the neighborhood, spotting the pretty lights from houses along the way! I also created a Christmas collage with the left over wrapping paper after noticing it bleakly being abandoned I decided turn it into art.

Here is a collage and list of reasons to be happy this winter (if anyone if feeling blue or struggling, remember the warmness and excitement to enjoy through the cold to pick you up) 

(I plan on getting a canon camera I've been saving up for, I will post an update on it soon and make sure to take pictures in every adventure) 

Have a great day cuties!

-Rachel 

Lets beat anxiety!

I have countless memories of being told to step outside my comfort zone, to live a little and have some fun like taking risks or standing in a spotlit stage with no fears and I can imagine challenging your anxieties would give you mega-confidence but problems get in the way, feelings that can't be ignored, putting demons in our head that eat at our self love. And if they are stopping us young, adventurous humans from having fun in life, we need to beat them. 

I have had too many past encounters with anxiety, but not all have ended in loss. There is an end to that fluttering in your stomach and feeling your skin fade paler as you get more worried. Let's not suffer. So if anyone else has struggled with anxiety  I have some advice on how to make negative thoughts seem crushable in your hands  or disappear by your positive thinking.

Distract yourself

Let your mind drift from mishaps or dark thoughts that are replaying in your head to something you love. The first thing that pops into your head, anything that will give you a warm feeling as if you were drinking a devine hot chocolate, in the heat of a crackling fire while its thundering outside. It could be your love for cats or a book your obsessed with, maybe it's the memories shared with friends from last summer. But let your thoughts wander

Don't pressure yourself 

Telling yourself over and over that you need to stop worrying because it's not normal or cringey will only make you more anxious, instead you should try and tell yourself it's okay to be worried as it's unavoidable sometimes, so your not self conscious or judging , your mind will be free, you'll soon be laughing ,living in the moment  and forgetting about time. 

Find an escape 

Sometimes reality can be daunting, find a special place only you know and dream... Take yourself to another world, or a perfect fantasy. Maybe reflect on your ambitions that makes  you happy! Imagine a dream world and let yourself be consumed, your mind will drift off and soon the harsh world around you will fade form view.

Think positively 

Rather than catastrophising yourself into a stressed out state, smile, look for the bright points, focus on what you will get out of the situation and how you'll feel afterwards, laughing with relief, as you walk with a calm energy and proud. 

Deep breathing 

You don't need to rush outside for fresh air, taking deep breaths can decrease tension, let feeling dizzy slowly fade away, your heartbeat won't feel rapid and can stop shaking, if you want to empty your head breathe slowly and focus on stating calm

Love yourself

List all the reasons why your amazing, why you can DO THIS! Why you'll make it through!  Confidence will give you a burst of energy and you'll be ready to take on the world! Don't be afraid to compliment yourself, you deserve all the happiness.

Hope this helped xoxo

Adventures and Shiny Things

Now the holidays are just a blur away filled with chaotic nights spend trying to add finishing touches to outfits for countless winter events or festive parties (although I'm Usually always late and I'm sure that's just me!).What I've been getting up to this winter has been fun but I've been seriously unprepared and wish I picked out some pretty outfits with some shiny jewelry. Here are some adventures and missed outfit opportunities I've been getting up to

 Me and some friends, who invited their friends, planned to spend the night in an artsy little cafe but the night ended in a group of us running down the streets, laughing while trying to avoid puddles . My hair and transparent american apparel socks greatly suffered.   Another night I invited a friend round where we lit sparklers and danced around in my back garden despite the freezing air. I also spent the day wandering round the retro, kitsch shops in town and stepping into any boutique that looks even close to vintage, resulting in a pile of cool vintage clothes. And last; an ink-water self portrait, i scribbled was decided to be featured in an exhibition by an art-studio near by! Looking back now, 

I should have had some wintery party wear and so here are some outfit ideas  and color themes for festive parties:

 Top: American Apparel

Dungarees: Vintage/Thrifted

Boots: Primark

Jewelary: Topshop

Top:  Topshop

Skirt: Zara

                                                  

Top: New Look

Shorts: Vintage/Thrifted

  

 

   

Fashion + Feminism

Hi cuties!

So anyone that has spent more than an hour with me will know that i can go on eternal rants about anything:social inequality, feminism to animal rights. But a particular issue caught my attention: 

Fashion is art. If its the mood you feel when your picking out your days outfit, the colors chosen, their order, and what they mean to you or the smallest details in the fabric. By fashion you can create your own image, world and a personal aura that is portrayed when your walking around town or amungst other people. 

For some of us its as easy as dying our hair bright blue, throwing on a pink fur jacket and strutting around,in leopard print heals. I am forever hoping outfit choices could be as wonderfully simple as this but as long as the bleak social norms of fashion and trends that try way too hard to tell (us future artists, fashion designers) that its only okay to be self loving while dressed in the trendy, stylish clothing from the wonders of acceptable style that is forced on us wherever we look. totally crushing creativity and the uniqueness of people everywhere that are longing to express themselves in wonderfully wild style creations but are worried to because of the comments that will come their way from the society that raises us to believe wearing what we want is not okay. Stopping body types form wearing what they feel most comfortable in dull enough to take the artistic freedom from life. 

Seriously society should show us its more desirable to have the freedom and bravery to dress like art. So lets unite and wear what we want, don't be afraid to look like a masterpiece if it makes you happy!

Here's a zine i made inspired by feminism: