about your dress: Monsoon Cubella Kaftan

I was walking past Monsoon today (I'd just been to Poundland because I'm classy like that) when this pretty little number caught my eye:

It's the Cubella Kaftan and comes in at £45, which is a standard Monsoon price.  I'm not sure why I like it so much; maybe it's the print.  I like how it's delicate without being too in-your-face girly, and I reckon it would look ace with gladiator sandals (that seems to be my motto of late).  If you're yet to be convinced, pop into Monsoon next time you pass - I swear it looks better in Real Life.

about your shop: Anthropologie.eu (part one)

Something happened today which can only be described as terrible (because of the potential to bankrupt me) and joyous in equal measure.  It was turning out to be just another Monday at work when my Google Mail thingy made its little 'new email' noise.  I opened my inbox, expecting something run-of-the-mill, but instead I clapped eyes on this:




I was so overcome with excitement I nearly had a little accident, but my bosses will be pleased to know I did not succumb to temptation on company time; I was fully aware that giving this matter the attention that it deserved would take a considerable chunk out of my evening.


Anthropologie has been on the receiving end of my affections for a few years, ever since I found some of their products on eBay, and the opening of their Regent Street store last year only strengthened my desire to move to London.  Therefore, I have been waiting with baited breath for the arrival of their European online store, and today it has finally arrived!  Before I even attempted to write this I knew there was no chance I'd be able to dedicate just one post to all the wonders the Anthropologie.eu website has to offer, so this first one is about dresses.  Pretty, pretty dresses.  Here are my favourites:

Items in this set (clockwise from top right):
Wright Dress (£168) - Anthropologie.eu
Swinging Sweetheart Dress (£148) - Anthropologie.eu
Slate Stripes Shift (£118) - Anthropologie.eu
Leading Role dress (£88) - Anthropologie.eu


These four dresses are all winners in their own right (as are most of the dresses Anthropologie has to offer), but I'm drawn to each of them for completely different reasons.  Firstly, the Wright dress - ingeniously named after those plane-flying Wright brothers - is a beautiful shape and appeals to my love of bizzare motifs.  I especially love that the planes are embroidered.  


I'm not usually a fan of two-in-one items of clothing (such as the shirt/cardi combo that Next in particular seems so fond of - lazy dressing, if you ask me), but the Swinging Sweetheart dress manages to pull it off, and then add an extra helping of class just for good measure.  It would do for work, and for posh dinners and cocktails, so it's like buying two dresses in one!


The Slate Stripes shift is a winner with me mainly because the stripes go the flattering way.  Again, this is a versatile dress which could be dressed up or down, and grey is always popular with me because you can literally throw any colour at it and get away with it.  You could pair this dress with pastels or brights, cardigans or tights and it would look awesome.


One of the things I love the most about Anthropologie is their knack for picking pieces with eye-catching detail, and the Leading Role dress is a prime example of this. The pretty ruffled necklace would make it difficult to accessorise with a necklace, but all that means is you can go crazy on cuffs and bangles!


Lastly, I had to include the Optimist dress (£128):

I've read a few blog articles which have pointed out the potential of Anthropologie dresses for bridesmaids, and I think the Optimist dress is a prime example of this.  It's so pretty, and could be worn over and over again to picnics, and lovely summery garden parties!


The launch of Anthropologie.eu has only strengthened my love for the shop, and I especially love that many of their styles cater for ladies who are a bit more curvacious.  Most designer/higher-end brands tend to stop at size 14 ("large"), aka the average size of a UK lady, but a lot of the Anthropologie dresses are available in a 16 or 18.  Respect.


I'm really looking forward to writing more about my new favourite website, but in the meantime, go have a look for yourself!  Don't forget, it's my birthday on Saturday and presents are always welcome.

about your shop: mrYen

I found the wonderful mrYen a while ago whilst searching for pretty things.  My favourite artist is the fabulous Rob Ryan, whose beautiful laser cut art makes me go all warm and fuzzy inside, so I scoured the interweb for pieces created in a similar way.  However, whilst Rob Ryan is a relatively established figure and can use laser technology to produce work en masse, mrYen (aka Jonathan Chapman) cuts all his designs by hand with a scalpel.  BY HAND.  My motor skills would simply not be up to such an endeavour, but he is clearly blessed with the steady hands of a god.  Because of this, his shop on Etsy only has a limited number of items available, including...

This beautiful paper cut heart looks so delicate I would be scared to touch it, but if someone spent the $32 dollars it costs and presented me with it, I would try super hard not to be usual clumsy break-things-just-by-looking-at-them Ria.  I would also probably instantly fall in love with them (cannot be guaranteed).

mrYen got on the Alice in Wonderland bandwagon long before everyone else, so don't think he's hopping on the trend like a lot of other people now.  Anyone who's seen the film or read the book will recognise this quote as a riddle posed by the Mad Hatter, which Lewis Carroll intended as a question with no answer (he was funny like that).  This work of art will set you back $42 from his Etsy shop.

I love mrYen's penchant for Fairy Tales, and this set of three postcards is just $9!  As mrYen himself says, they are "a great, affordable way to own a papercut design".

And the goodness doesn't end there; mrYen also takes commissions for custom work!  If I could afford it, I'd pay him to work full time for me and constantly make me pretty things as and when I thought of them.  As I cannot fiscally justify this, I shall just have to lust after his items and follow his wonderful blog, where he posts lovely art and provides insight into his inspiration and the making of his paper cuts.  Follow him on Twitter here!

about your shop: Plasticland - stock update!

Oh my dear readers, this evening is truly a bountiful one!  I have just received an email from those lovely people at Plasticland informing me that the stunning Chinoiserie Birdcages hand painted doormat is now back in stock!

In case you need to be reminded of its beauty, here you go:

Sigh... so pretty.  And only $29.00!  I don't know the exact exchange rate right now, but I'm going to pretend the pound is very very strong.  If you choose to make one of these yours, I'd advise you to buy a few things to justify the shipping.  It makes fiscal sense.

about your dress: River Island picks

It has to be said, I've never been a massive River Island fan.  Other than the fact they sometimes produce designs with my nickname (ri) emblazoned across them, they've never held any appeal for me; the few times I have entered their stores (usually against my will - the ex was a big fan of the menswear section) I have found their wares to be cheap and market-stall looking, but without the corresponding low prices.

However!  I have been off sick since Monday, and I've been roaming the internet from the comfort of my bed desperately looking for pretty things for when I eventually return to the outside world.  I stumbled across the River Island website whilst perusing this Marie Claire article about pretty high street dresses under £30, and it was this dress in particular which caught my eye:

I love how bright the colours of this dress are, and at £29.99 it's not too pricey.  I'd wear it with some tan or black cuffed flat sandals.  Or some denim ones, actually!

But try as I might, I only found one more item of clothing I liked enough to blog about:

 

This pretty lace long-sleeved tea dress would look awful on me with my auburn hair, but it's very very pretty.  If you want it (and your hair is less silly), it's £39.99.

I also checked out the shoe section, and unsurprisingly, River Island have got involved with the cuffed sandals trend - let's be fair, they'd be fools not to.  My two favourite pairs of sandals were...

...these ones, for £39.99, and...

...these cute leather black ones for £29.99.  They look comfy!

So my verdict on River Island now?  Pretty much the same as before.  There were a couple of bits which appealed to me, but reaching them involved wading through piles of clothes which would be better suited to someone who appreciates a good velour tracksuit.  Nothing I saw screamed "Look at me!  You won't find me anywhere else!"

From a blogger's point of view, the website is difficult to navigate because you can only view five dresses at a time (this is from someone who immediately hits 'View all' on ASOS), and because it's entirely in Flash, I couldn't link directly to individual items.

I know people have been complaining of boredom with Topshop recently, but if their throne is going to be usurped by another high street chain I doubt it'll be River Island who claim the crown.

about your shoes: Eden brogues by Kate Kanzier

When the lovely @alexsheppard wrote about Kate Kanzier shoes over on my favourite blog, Domestic Sluttery, I felt like a part of my life which had previously been missing (unbeknownst to me) had suddenly returned.  If it wasn't for my silly feet which seem to change size on a daily basis purely to fox me, I would have bought some online, but instead I had to wait until my next trip to the big smoke to lay my hands on some of these works of genius.  Finally this day occurred on Tuesday and I can honestly say I've never been so excited to buy shoes ever, and that's a serious claim.  The only problem was deciding which pair to take home!  In the end, I opted for the beautiful Eden brogues:

The best thing is, I only had to exchange £35 of my hard-earned cash to call these mine!  I can't see the feeling of glee which buying these created in me being matched any time soon.  I want to go back with lots more money so I can buy all the brogues, and the ballerina pumps, and the bags.  And the pretty dressing table behind the till.  I don't think that was actually for sale, but if I had enough money I'm sure I could convince them.

I think when I next go back, I'll buy a pair of these pretty Yahan heels in lovely light pink - fantastic for the coming Spring and Summer!

Again, these are only £35!  It's rare to find a shop so reasonably priced but so special.  It makes me happy.

about your shop: Plasticland

I'm often against shopping internationally because I resent having to pay extortionate shipping rates and it would be a massive hassle to sort returns out if things went wrong.  BUT I feel like I have to make an exception for the amazingness that is Plasticland aka the best shop which ever existed.  Ever.  Apart from Aspire Style of course (I think my contract makes me say that).  In a nutshell, Plasticland sells loads of reasonably priced gifts which would probably be extortionate in certain shops over here.  There is so much there that I struggled to pick my absolute five favourites, but here they are:

Items in this set:
PLASTICLAND - Glass Drops Flower Vase on Wood Stand, $39
PLASTICLAND - Antique Owl Print Framed Wall Art, $39
PLASTICLAND - Victorian Mermaid Cast Resin Bookends, $39
PLASTICLAND - Petite Pocket Watch Pendant Necklace, $28
PLASTICLAND - Royal Bird Stopper Glass Bottles - Set of 2, $24

Yes, yes, I know there are actually six items there, but the doormat is sold out so it doesn't technically count.  I just had to put it in because I love it so much AND to say that you can join a waiting list for sold out items.  What lovely people they are at Plasticland!  But seriously, how ace are those mermaid bookends?!

To get in on the Alice in Wonderland trend (good film btw, saw it on Monday - boy fell asleep half way through after eating far too much disgusting peanut-based confectionery), they have this cute Enchantmints (get it?) tin:

And it gets better: up until this Sunday (the 14th), Plasticland are holding a 20/20 sale, where 20 selected items are 20% off, including these babies:

Wows.  Did I mention it's my birthday in three weeks?  That's probably how long shipping takes.  Buy!  Buy now!  Anything with birds on is fine (you may have already got that impression).

about your dress: Peacocks picks

I'm not overly familiar with Peacocks (the shops, not the birds, although I'm not overly familiar with them either). I grew up in the metropolis that is Solihull, a large-ish town not in Birmingham which doesn't boast a Peacocks (or enough independent boutiques for that matter, but that's a whole other kettle of fish), so I only encountered the shop on a trip to Redditch a couple of years ago.  As my current home of Stratford is also lacking in the Peacocks department, I don't ever get a chance to peruse their bargainous wares, but today I stumbled across www.peacocks.co.uk, where I am seriously thinking of spending some money.  Here are my picks!

This blue pintuck banded dress is a mere £20 and is good for this season's denim trend.  I love the colour, but I'm not sure the shape would do much for me.

I love this blue stripe tie waistband boyfriend shirt, which can be yours (or mine) for just £14.  We've got some amazing sandals coming in at work in the next few weeks, and I'd wear this with those (or those H! by Henry Holland gladiator sandals from last week) and some leggings.  And the stripes go THE RIGHT WAY!

This sequin t-shirt foxes me.  Do I like it?  Don't I like it?  For £14, does is really matter?

Lastly, I had to include this picture.  Ignore the lady and LOOK AT THE DESK.  Ok, you can look at the typewriter too if you must.

Gosh, that's a nice desk.  What, you want it to buy it for me?  Oh, no, I couldn't possibly- Oh, you insist?  Well, that's very kind of you.  Just for reference, I do not want the lady as well k thanx bye.