Shopped: Striped maxi skirt

I've been crazy about maxi dresses for quite some time, which should come as no surprise to anyone reading this blog, really. But maxi skirts have always appealed to me less. Until I saw some awesome maxi skirt outfits over at Pinterest, that is. So I've decided to start looking into maxi skirts some more. And I actually found one that appealed to me immediately: This multi colored striped one, that I found over at Ebay:

I love the pink stripes on this skirt, it makes it stand out a bit compared to most other two colored similar skirts, I think. But I'm thinking a more plain black and white one would be a good buy too. Now, if only I could find that somewhere...

Shopped: Lanvin card set

I've been a fan of Alber Elbaz's drawings and illustrations for a really long time. They are really adorable and unique, since no other high end fashion brand has anything similar. And of course, I like them because I think Alber Elbaz is one of the best designers out there at the moment, so I'd say anything designed by him, including smaller, whimsical items, are pretty lovely for that reason alone.

I've been gushing over items that have his illustrations on them several times before on this blog, like when I saw the Lanvin nesting doll set, when I saw the bridal themed greeting cards and when I spotted the Lanvin macaroons for instance, but I must admit that my collection of Alber Elbaz illustrated items is still not as big as I would hope it was. So it's about time I start adding some more pieces to it! And luckily, I did just that this weekend when I ordered a set of Alber Elbaz illustrated cards and envelopes, that were actually sold only in Japan during a short period of time, on Ebay.

These are just too cute, if you ask me, but I highly doubt I will ever have the heart to actually use them. Anything Alber Elbaz is just too adorable to not keep yourself!

(pic from Ebay)

Today I'm loving...

...this very pretty Alexander McQueen dragonfly printed silk-blend suit, with white patterned pants as well as a jacket.

I really want to get this suit, but since I know I never ever wear suits (they just don't fit my lifestyle, I don't have a very formal job where they would be appropriate or anything) and both the jacket (that you can get here) and the pants (available here) are quite expensive, I can't think of any justification for getting these pieces. They simply just wouldn't be put to good use by me.

But a girl can always dream that some other company comes up with a more affordable lookalike set, right?

If you've seen anything even remotely similar anywhere, please let me know! This look is gorgeous, after all!

A trend I am not sure of yet

Is the denim shirt trend. But let's face it: denim shirts come in and out of style on a regular basis, so giving them a try might not be a bad idea, especially since I have been kind of drawn to denim lately. So I decided to get a H&M denim shirt to start with:

I actually liked the pearl look buttons on this one, because I think combining denim with actual pearls could be kind of cool. Sort of high end meets main street.

I haven't really figured out how I am going to be wearing this shirt yet though. Some ideas I've had is:

- Combining the denim shirt with a short black dress underneath:

- Combining it with black skinny pants:

- Combining it with jeans in a different shade of denim:

But I am sure I will be able to think of other outfit ideas eventually as well, I just need to give this some more thought. I did only buy the H&M denim shirt (my first denim shirt ever, I believe!) yesterday, after all.

(the images of the denim shirt itself are from H&M, and the outfits are from my Pinterest board Denim Shirt Inspiration, where you can find some other cool denim shirt looks as well, if you're interested)

Shopped: Cath Kidston Bloomsbury scarf and bag

I have 2 Cath Kidston bags, that I mostly use when I travel, and they have turned out to be of such nice quality that I recently decided to get 2 new Cath Kidston pieces, with their Bloomsbury print: this scarf:

And this matching bag:

I already got the scarf (I ordered both items from ASOS, but in separate shipments), and I have to say the print is even nicer in real life than in the images.

So I am well pleased with my new additions to my Cath Kidston collection, and it's not impossible at all that I will be getting more pieces from this brand eventually.

Getting into shape

This time of year I am trying to get into better shape, like so many others I assume? Because what motivates you more than all those new spring and summer garments, that are just a bit more see through and tight than your winter outfits? (Or is that just me?)

Since I know how hard it can be to motivate yourself when you are trying to get into better shape, I thought I would share some of the things that I plan to do to motivate myself. You never know, maybe one of my readers will find these tips useful too?

First of all, I found this image, that I found over at Pinterest very inspirational:

I also plan to use an automated program, like Emeals and their healthy meal program (check this out if you want to know more about those programs, or follow Emeals on Facebook), to track what I am eating. Because I am kind of lazy when it comes to meal planning, so any help I can get on that is great for me!

I also plan to start giving myself "workout tips", which is a concept that is completely new to me, but I really liked the idea when I first read about it on Pinterest (where the image is from as well).

It's basically giving yourself $1 after every workout, and once you are in the shape you want to be, or when the tips have really added up, you can buy some nice clothes, hopefully in your new size, or suited to your new figure, for them! So simple, but so effective, don't you think?

What Spring/Summer 2013 trends I am loving right now

For spring/summer 2013, I will not be embracing all the upcoming trends, since I don't think every trend suits every person. Instead, I believe in choosing the trends that actually suit you well, and that you are naturally drawn to, so you can stay true to what's truly flattering for you, and stick to your signature style, season after season.

But some trends do appeal to me this season, and I do think I will be making some purchases in the next weeks to reflect that. Some of these trends are:

- The pearls, that we saw in the Chanel SS 2013 show, for instance.

I do think pearls will come and go out of fashion on a regular basis, and while I do have some beautiful pearl jewelry that was given to me by family members over the years, I do think some more could be fun, or why not something quirkier, like a pearl hair piece, or a clutch with some pearl details?

- Mint green, which has been a favorite color of mine for years. I think I've mentioned that several times here on this blog as well. So I am thrilled that I will probably be able to find more mint green pieces this season, it being such a trendy color this season after all.

I've already decided I will probably get these flats, for instance, that are both mint green and have some pearl details:

Isn't that convenient? I'll be able to get an item that combines two of my favorite trends this season at the same time.

I must say I am a fan of some of the other pastel colors we will be seeing this spring as well, but mint green is by far my favorite out of them.

- The black and white combo. This is such a classic combo, but I am afraid I have not been embracing it enough as of late. So this spring will be a perfect time to perfect the art of dressing in only black and white, maybe with a small splash of color added somewhere...

(images from Pinterest, here and here, as well as from Style Blueprint)

Today I'm loving...

... the gorgeous Alexander McQueen gown Amanda Seyfried wore at the The Sun Military Awards in London a while ago. (But I only saw a picture of it when I went to the beauty salon today, which is why I am blogging about it only now)

So feminine and pretty, and she looks gorgeous in it, even though I am usually not that impressed by her style. So a really good choice for her, I would say!

(images from Tom and Lorenzo and Bohomoth)

Today I'm loving...

... this crochet rainbow cardigan, by Missoni of course. The colors are just gorgeous for summer!

And I like how Missoni still sticks to their heritage, yet still manages to find new ways to show off their lovely color combinations. And there seems to be a matching dress available too! What an absolutely adorable set!

My weekend so far...

... has been rather lovely. I've had some lovely champagne, Mumm's Cordon Rouge is a really good champagne if you want something both affordable and delicious:

And I still have another bottle, of Moet & Chandon, left for tonight or tomorrow night:

I also managed to do some shopping, and get 2 new pairs of sunglasses, which I am very excited about.

These are my new Valentino sunglasses, mostly black in colored but with one cream/beige colored stripe as well:

I think I will be using these quite a lot, black sunglasses are the most versatile ones, after all.

But since the store I bought these in had a sale, with 50 % off all sunglasses, I got a more "fun" pair as well, a pair of blue Chloe sunglasses from their latest sunglasses collection:

These are not going to match as many things as the black ones, but blue is one of my favorite colors, and I think they will look great with at least blue jeans, which I do wear on a regular basis, so I hope I will get quite some use for these too!

Today I'm loving...

... this very pretty Dolce & Gabbana linen dress with a gorgeous flower print.

I think linen is a really nice material to combine with a flower print, due to it's natural feel. And the design and shape is absolutely flawless!

Today I'm loving...

... this gorgeous lace suit from the Stine Goya collection for Weekday (a Swedish clothing store chain):

It's not all see through lace though, the top parts of the pants are actually lined as well, so it's not as impractical as it seems. So... practical and pretty, gotta love that!

(image from Lilis Fashion)

Today I'm loving...

... this Chanel denim dress from the Spring/Summer 2013 collection:

I guess I have gotten into denim without really noticing it lately. I did write about Atsuro Tayama's denim pieces the other day as well. It's not really like me, I've never been huge on denim except for regular jeans, but I guess it's a good thing, since denim is a really big trend for spring.

The reason I like this particular denim dress from Chanel is that it's so typically Chanel due to the pearls and the black and white, yet so un-Chanel because of the denim, it creates a really interesting and cool contrast!

(pic from MTV)

Today I'm loving...

.. the style of Russian fashionista Ulyana Sergeenko, who is often seen on fashion weeks all over the world and has her own fashion line these days as well.

I love it how her Russian heritage shows in her outfits, even if she is in Paris or Milan. (So if any of my readers have some exotic heritage, I would strongly recommend you embrace it as well, it is very cool!)

I guess it's because of the floral patterns and head scarves? No matter what that Russian touch is, I really like it in any case!

I like the fact that she is really into matching pieces, I do that a lot too, that she has great taste in clutches (she seems to be a huge fan of book clutches, that I love!), that she wears a lot of capes (capes are always cool!) and that she has been wearing long skirts for a long time. That's kind of unusual at fashion weeks, after all!

The only thing I don't like about her style is that she seems to wear a lot of real fur, which is not something I would ever wear, for ethical reasons, but other than that, she can do no wrong in my book!

If you like her style as well, I have created a board about it over at Pinterest, which might be interesting for you to check out.

(pics from Citizen Couture, Hoopbikemer, Darja, Pinterest and Easy fashion)

Shopped: ASOS wide leg scarf print pants

I've been wearing mostly skinny jeans and pants for a long time now, so it feels a bit weird to even consider other types of pants for me. I guess I just feel a skinny cut suits my body type the best. But I really liked these wide leg pants, with a really nice scarf print, so I decided to make an exception for them:

I think they will look cute over the summer with a black tank top and maybe even flip flops? And I feel strangely happy that I ventured outside of my pants comfort zone for a change, let's just hope I feel as good about it as I do now when the pants actually arrive too!

(the pants are available over at ASOS)