2018 Summer Favourites

This summer I’ve tried to be particularly careful when it comes to spending. Having enjoyed my first year of university, I think it is safe to say that my bank account is looking less than jolly. Luckily, I have still had a few summer favourite which I have come to acquire and love this season through interning/being an absolute fiend during the summer sales.

STATEMENT EARRINGS (Weekday London)

Having lost many of my smaller pairs of earrings and being hesitant to spend 50 quid on a new pair of trousers to update my summer wardrobe, I have now taken a keen interest to statement jewellery, particularly earrings. These two pairs are especially my favourites, as I could still (potentially) walk of the house in a plain tee and lounge pants but look half decent!

CLOTHING (Accessorize)

Again, there have been few new additions to my wardrobe apart from these bralettes I have been loving this season, I normally despise wearing bras anyway so this is a way to keep stylish and comfortable under strappy or overly skimpy tops this summer.

COLOURFUL BAGS (Accessorize and DKNY)

Although summer fashion is brighter and much more fun, my wardrobe doesn't tend to be the most diverse in terms of colour. Because of this, these two bags have been my go-to accessories for brightening up an outfit, The perk tis that they're also a perfect size and can be carried both in the daytime and during nights out.

 BEAUTY (Body Shop and Lush)

My makeup routine has been more or less the same but this summer I have been trying out some new skincare products. It's bikini and crop top season so trying to keep my skin as clear smooth as possible has been a top priority. Two products I am loving at the moment are exfoliative products from Body Shop and Lush, which both smell incredible and have ben incredibly helpful skincare products.

SOUNDS: MUSIC AND PODCASTS

 Lolo Zouai - I have been obsessing over this French-American singer's work as of late. It's not hard to fall in love with her music; she has the voice of angel and her vivid lyrics only compliment her sound...listen to IDR and Desert Rose and you will see what I'm talking about!

Drake (Scorpion) - Never in my life did I think I would listen to Drake every day for a solid month. Some of the songs - for me at least- are misses - but the majority of his new sounds have been on repeat on my phone, most notably the notorious song of the 'Kiki' challenge, In My Feelings, and trap-inspired rap song, Blue Tint.

About Race by Reni Eddo-Lodge - I have yet to read Eddo-Lodge's 'Why I Am No Longer Talking to White People about Race', which has gotten fiercely good reviews from critics as she approaches the issue of race in the modern age, especially within contemporary British society, However, I have been loving her small segments which are free to download via the Apple podcast app which explores some of these issues further and in which she interviews a number of people on the topic.

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Arianne, looklovewear

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Hello Again : Spring Style + Favourites

It's true, I've been gone for eternity and this post is long overdue. Trust in me when I say that University has been jam-packed with reading, lectures and - admittedly- partying, which has impacted my drive to post something, not to talk of the lack of trust I have in my friends to take a decent outfit photo of me for fear of breaking my camera in the process...
Despite this, the invariable sunshine and the fact that we are heading towards Easter are merely signs that Spring is well underway and so here is a blog post with my Spring favourites, featuring some banging bargains (student budget = being thrifty = sales only)

Sunglasses - Blank Sunglasses

T-Shirt - Weekday - Weekday recently opened a store on London's Oxford Street and as much as I would have liked to walk out with the entire store's contents, I came out with this slightly cheeky t shirt for a bargain of £6.

 Top - BAPE - During the Selfridge's midseason sale I bagged this cute striped top from the girl's spinoff line by A Bathing Ape. I'm not normally a fan of stripes but was taken by the cut and high-neck style of the top.

 T-Shirt - Tee and Cake - Although a lookalike of Gucci's quirky Casper t-shirt I was dying for a new t shirt and had to pick this one up with the cute cartoon ghost

 Lipgloss - Fenty Beauty - When I got my hands on this gem from Fenty Beauty my heart may have skipped a couple of beats. I had been meaning to get my hands on a piece from Rihanna's line for yonksss and this lipgloss certainly lives up to the hype in terms of colour, shine and durability.

Americana - Don Delilo - I'll admit that it was hard to get stuck in to this book due t the conversational narrative but I have grown to love Don Delilo's novel concerning the life of a young man working in the entertainment industry in 1970's America.

Style Diaries - I was lucky enough to receive this from my Aunt in Switzerland as a birthday present. This book documents worldwide personal style. Although the book was published several years go and so some trends have since come and gone it is a great way to document the self-expressive style of individuals globally.

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Arianne, looklovewear

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I'm Back : 2017 in Review

I'll admit that it is petrifying coming back to blogging after months of absence. Some of you may be thinking, is she alive? Did her computer crash? But I'm pretty sure 93% of you probably don't care all that much. Anyway, the AWOL-ness has been basically due to settling in to University etc. but 4 days after ringing in the new year I am keen to be a bit more consistent (despite having said that at least a billion times and rarely pulling through). As we're heading in to a year which is hopefully a bit more exciting  and less politically troubling than 2017, I wanted to share some highlights of last year from style, to travel, to general new experiences.

I hope you all have a fab 2018 and I'll be back soon (she says...)

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STYLE

Ironically, I love autumn/winter style but somehow my top outfits of this year have been from the warmer months (or rather when I just bit the bullet and wore something strappy).

TOP-BOTTOM : Yuki Haze Photoshoot, Ankara Jumpsuit, Photoshoto with Manjot Kaur, Leaver's Prom

MUSIC

Sound-wise, I feel as if I have gone backwards instead of forwards. Whilst my love for techno will never die (See Ben UFO and Avalon Emerson for more) and I have discovered newer artists like Tom Misch and Tommy Genesis, I have also been loving a lot of musicians before my time like Bowie, Joan Jett and Fleetwood Mac.

LOSING MY WAY - TOM MISCH

TOMMY - TOMMY GENESIS

FASHION - DAVID BOWIE

CRIMSON AND CLOVER - JOAN JETT

DREAMS - FLEETWOOD MAC

READS

Since going to Uni I have been a bit slow on the reading front but still managed to find a few favourites. Oddly enough, my top two concern questioning the 'meaning of life' and although Camus' L'Etranger is slightly more sombre and existentialist, Mitch Albom's Tuesdays with Morrie is enjoyable and I found that there was a lot to take away from it. Not only this, but I guard my copy of Sweet Thang Zine with my life now, a magazine serving as a platform for intersectional feminism and young artist.

SHOWS

I have no shame in admitting RuPaul's Drag Race has become a favourite of mine and I am now searching for drag shows around London on a daily basis, but I have also watched more captivating shows like Big Little Lies, The People vs. OJ Simpson and a French comedy-drama called Call My Agent (Dix Pour Cent)

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WHAT I'M...(September favourites)

I cannot be the only person who forgets how good it feels to not be sick. I am currently sitting in bed, watching an unacceptable number of Youtube beauty videos and dreaming of the day (which will probably be Tuesday) when I won't be bed-ridden with a cold again. This said, this has prompted me to make a post regarding all the things I have been loving so far this month and some of the stuff keeping me going as I lay here wrapped in a raggedy blanket...ENJOY <3

WHAT I'M...Wearing 

The weather has taken a turn for the worse in my eyes and now it is freezing, hence I have ditched the crop tops and mini skirts for turtlenecks and jeans. It sounds standard, I know, but my favourite pieces so far have been a scarlet turtleneck I nicked from my mum (and have since had to give it back) as well as blue flared jeans which I like to wear for a double-denim look. I have also fallen in love with the infamous bumbag. However questionable from a sartorial perspective, they are super handy

WHAT I'M...Listening to

What I listen to is totally dictated by my mood at that time, so my music taste is sort-of a mixed bag. This said, there are four artists who have dominated my playlists are Cigarettes After Sex, Frank Ocean and Nina Kraviz. Cigarettes After Sex's debut album has sent me to a dream-filled sleep more often than I can remember with their slow melodies whilst I have been late to the party in obsessing over Frank Ocean's Channel Orange. Meanwhile, for my less chilled out and more dancing-on-my-own-manically-in-my-bedroom moods, I have been listening to Nina Kraviz's self-titled album. She seems to be one of the few women on the techno and electronic music scene and I have I'm Gonna Get You on repeat.

WHAT I'M...Reading

Being in-between school and uni has meant that I have had a lot of time to catch up on reading which I missed out on during the stress-filled exam period. Luckily I have managed to go through around five books but my favourites have definitely been Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Monica Ali's Brick Lane. After reading the Nigerian writer's novel I became so interested in the concepts of gender roles and culture clashes i different societies, which led me on to Brick Lane which taps in to the mind of a young Indian woman and her experiences within 80's and 90's UK society.

WHAT I'M...Doing

5 more days and I'll officially be a uni student. I am terrified, no, mortified, at the idea but I guess it's just another chapter and am trying to convince myself to go in with the idea that people are not in fact, out to get me and we're all in the same boat. In fact, last week I dropped off my sister in Scotland and if my uni is as beautiful as hers I think I'll be alright...

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Couture Fashion Week : The Round-Up

Obviously, I didn't  cop a ticket, transport myself to Paris, immerse myself with fashion royalty and drown  in champagne and macaroons, but flicking trough photos from online journals and hogging a pack of digestive biscuits did the trick...and here are my favourites from this year's Spring Couture Fashion week...

1. Margiela - The brand's collection was inspired by the notion of disguise which comes along with modern day use of social media such as Snapchat. What I liked the most is how he used this concept successfully without making the collection look childish or gimmicky - LOOK AT THE ARRANGEMENT OF THE TULLE!? (Images: Dazed and Confused)

2. Alexandre Vauthier - Although the designer sent his models down the catwalk in leather and denim for an cooler take on couture, I loved the dresses which combined shape, texture and embellishement to give the pieces an edge. (Images: WWD)

3. Chanel - As per-usual, Karl Lagerfeld pulled out all the stops to produce an outlandish show. Whilst some of the dresses were a bit too 50s housewife or walking cream-puff for my liking, I really liked the power-suits and more understated dresses. (Images: WWD)

4. Jean Paul Gauliter - Never failing to inject a bit of fun and quirkiness into a collection perfectly curated for the feminine physique, the French designer produced a flurry of different outfits inspired by artwork, the 80s, and even traditional Spanish dress...hit up JPG if you have a couple of grand to spare... (Images: WWD)

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Arianne, looklovewear

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March 2016 Favourites

As winter finally draws to a close we have some new favourites for springtime. Whilst most are new purchases or finds, we've been loving others for a while (we're talking to you Beret)...

Accessories/ General

i-D Magazine - I (Arianne) recently got a subscription to the magazine as a gift , which I've been reading for yonks so it has come in handy and certainly saves me a trip to newsagents in Soho. With the new year, this pre-spring edition focused on what/or who is new, fresh, and changes within the fashion industry.

Beret - You may or may not have seen this in a previous post, but recently I've been obsessed with this hat, which I found during a rummage through my mum's old clothes. It's a great sartorial alternative to a beanie if you want to keep warm and has proven to be incredibly versatile.

Earrings, Zara - I bought these earrings during the post-Christmas sales and, although hoop earrings have also been a recent favourite, these are great to just put on if you want to make it look like you made an effort, meanwhile there are just a pair of quirky and attention-grabbing mini-chandeliers hanging down from your ears.

Clothing

Top, Illustrated People - This is another piece from the January sales that I've only just been able to start wearing, but I love the light colour and lurex fabric of this top. I'm normally not one for glittery things as they tend to look either babyish or garish but the pink/neutral shade eliminates the possibility of looking like a walking Christmas tree.

Beauty

Naked Essentials Palette, Urban Decay - After drooling over and going to and fro as to whether to buy this, I luckily received this for my birthday from a good friend. If you're not completely obsessed with make-up or need something to start your collection, this is a really good item as the colours work with everything and allow you to create either a day or night look.

Body Wash, Molton Brown - These mini shower gels smell amazing and come in a range of different darker or fruity scents, and so were quick to become a favourite.

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