Granny chic? Embroidery just got cool. - Etsy Edit #2

You make me happy - £14.93

I'm so very close to buying a sewing machine and I'm blaming Pinterest and Etsy for my newfound need to make my own skirts out of chevron and floral fabrics.  Darn.

But before that, I'm still on the hunt for some artwork for my room and as I was scrolling (terrible for my repetitive strain injury) through Etsy and new type of art kept catching my eye.  Enter embroidery hoop art - colourful creativity in a circle.  As well as the cutesy flowers and bunting designs I also managed to find some pretty awesome pop-culture references in the form of quotes from Mean Girls, 30 Rock and Harry Potter.  How awesome are these?

Stop trying to make fetch happen - £16.97 // Wingardium Leviosa - £25.80 // I know right? - £12.90
// Shut It Down -£28.51//

Yellow spring flowers - £23.76 // Young Love - £18.00
Be Happy - £27.15 // Golden Purple Wave - £47.52

Mother and baby bunnies - £27.15 //And though she be but little she is fierce - £20.36
Personalised name oval - £33.94 // Blue and brown floral - £23.76

Read More

The Grosvenor Hotel, London - Review and Photos.

Due to my behaviour of always travelling to London when I take a day off work,  I always get asked where the best hotel in London is so I thought I'd show you my favourite place to stay! 

The Grosvenor Hotel is owned by Guoman hotels and is situated next to Victoria Station.  I have stayed in this hotel three times in the last 18 months and I now find it difficult to stay elsewhere in the city.  From the moment you walk in, the interior just takes your breath away.  The reception area is full of friendly staff, gorgeous floral displays and an amazing attention to detail in every area.  The staircase leading to the cocktail bar always makes me feel like I'm in a movie when I walk down it and the chandelier just screams decadence. 

The rooms are very comfortable with everything I need as a landing pad for all of my shopping and my tired feet!  There's a docking station in every room, a huge TV and a well-stocked bathroom for those moments when you really need to relax.   More importantly free wi-fi all day everyday! 

I'm normally travelling alone or with my sister and always worry about late nights in the city but I feel extremely safe due to a special corridor that links the hotel to Victoria Station that is open 24 hours 7 days a week.  I don't even have to go outside if I need to go to the shop as Victoria Station is packed with every food outlet you could need, a WHSmiths and a Boots.  There's even a Krispy Kreme! (There may or may not have been a weekend of Krispy Kreme addiction.)

I am a member of the Signature Club which gives more rewards the more you stay.  So far I have been able to take advantage of a free Sunday night stay and a late 6pm checkout which has been a godsend.  It's the little touches like this that really make a hotel special.  

Out of the Guoman family of hotels I have also stayed at the perfectly situated Cumberland Hotel at Marble Arch which too exceeded my expectations.   I am desperate to stay at the Charing Cross Hotel on The Strand next time I'm in London following it's renovations, I've heard good things and I've never stayed in that area.

Details:

The Grosvenor Hotel, 

101 Buckingham Palace Road

London

SW1W 0SJ

http://www.guoman.com/en/index.html

 

Read More

Spotted in TK Maxx! - Feat. Emma Bridgewater, House of Holland and OPI!

 

My love of TK Maxx is a bit of a roller coaster - I adore the home wear, beauty and hosiery but I hate the fashion.  It's just the way it is.  Just lately I've been spotting some fantastic brands in store so I thought I'd share a few and show you that TK Maxx isn't the jumble sale you thought it was! A lot of these would make perfect gifts, I'm definitely going to start stocking up for birthdays and Christmas.

House of Holland Tights - £3.99

House of Holland Tights - £3.99

Wolford Tights - £7.99 (from £29.00)

House of Holland Underwear - £4

Nail Inc sets - £12.99

OPI set - £19.99

Laura Ashley Tin & Mug - £4.99 & Vera Wang Princess Night - £24.99

Emma Bridgewater stationary (notebox, notecards and photo album) - £4.99 and £9.99 

Emma Bridgewater Travel set - £6.99

Hello Kitty x Liberty stationary - £5.99 (They also had several sizes of pencils cases from this range)

And finally, this gorgeous picnic basket for £24.99 

Read More

Marketing Monday II - Audrey Hepburn stars in Galaxy ad

Roman Holiday is my favourite Audrey Hepburn movie so imagine my delight when I first saw this ad from Galaxy featuring a CGI Audrey Hepburn!
OK, it's not completely perfect but it's so refreshing to see a HD version of her.   I especially love that she has retailed her perfect class and the wonderful way that the ad has been written - it could have been so easily cheapened.   From a marketing perspective I would have loved a pack shot or logo with Audrey in the frame but instead I'm just going to close my eyes and sway to Moon River.  Enjoy.

Read More

Marketing Monday - Romantic Banana Republic window display.

I'm a huge fan of window displays and I always enjoy viewing the Selfridges and Liberty windows when I visit London.  Last weekend I was in the city and found myself physically stopping and admiring the Banana Republic windows without realising I was doing it.  Due to the light and window reflections, I wasn't able to get a perfect photo but putting the image through Instagram made the colours bolder and as you can see, it's beautiful.   All of the hearts are from strands from the ceiling that completely cover the window space.  After my first thought of how pretty it was, I did ponder to myself whether the brand should still celebrating Valentine's day but then I realised - everyday should be romantic.  The three pops of red in the mannequin outfits and the red hearts under the umbrella just equal perfection.    I'm in love!
 

If you too are a fan of beautiful window displays, check out Mr. Selfridge on ITV1 - a swoon-worthy Italian starts the Selfridges window traditional!  

Read More

The Reading List - Marshmallow cups, a shocking fact about teenage girls and Downton Abbey singing One Direction.

♥As a female former A level English language student, I loved reading this article on the reasons girls add extra letters in text messages.  I know that I'm guilty of this and I know that my male friends are too.

♥"25% of young American women would rather win America’s Next Top Model than a Nobel Peace Prize" - this fact makes me sad.  I demand that all females read this fantastic article and join me in making a change.

♥How to make marshmallow cups in three easy steps.  Need I say anymore?

♥Effective organisation is definitely one of the things I'm aiming for this year.  This list has a tonne of different ways to easily incorporate it into your life.

♥I've been trying out the new social media channel Vine over the last few weeks, here's a great post to get you up to speed and some tips to make awesome 6 second videos!

♥I'm fed up of seeing unoriginal posts all over the blogosphere! I took a long hard look at what I was blogging and decided to go my own way just like GalaDarling suggests!

♥Food colouring icing frosting is hard work.  However this pretty diagram makes it so simple!

If you haven't watched all of the videos of Jennifer Lawrence at the Oscars we can't be friends anymore.  Seriously, watch them ALL starting with this one...


I hate One Direction but I LOVE this video of the cast of Downton Abbey singing one of their songs.

Read More

Marketing Monday - Liberty Scarf Email

 

 

I recieved this email 2 weeks ago and intended to skim read it like most of my email subscriptions.  However upon glancing at it, I realised that it was different to all other product emails that I recieve  as it told the story of a girl and her Liberty Scarf throughout different stages in her life.    I was instantly hooked.

 

 

Although I have always admired the Liberty Scarf, I soon found myself wanting to be the girl in the scarf even more and linking it to success just like the email connotes.

 

 

Like all good stories, an element of romance was included which made me swoon.

 

 

And finally she goes for a job interview that is guarenteed to be successful. 

 

Bringing it all together, I love the fact that this modern woman is taking on the world in all aspects of her life and succeeding it it (especially in the fashion stakes).  Yes some would argue that a scarf probably didn't contribute much to her success but the item just being there is part of the experience and perhaps a lucky charm. 

 

Liberty's execution of the ad appeals to the young modern woman but also has that English style that we all love from the brand.  I'm hoping this style (not neccessarily a story for all communications) is extended over all marketing that they implement.  I'm impressed.

 

 

Read More

Burberry A/W 2013, I love you.

"The Burberry show was amazing"

'But Burberry is for chavs.."

I am sick and tired of having this response to anything positive I say about Burberry.  Yes the brand image was extremely tarnished in the 2000s but give a British brand a chance! The Burberry Prorsum show is always my favourite of LFW due to the polished feel of the clothes and the show itself.  It shows clothes that I actually want to wear instead of seeing gowns and strange shapes on the runway that I don't have a chance of coveting.   Boy did the A/W 2013 show not disappoint.  I was obviously adoring the red shades and heart prints but I also found myself loving the tougher fringing on the coats, skirts and bags.  I think my favourite look is the jumper and pencil skirt combo as it's so laid back but so chic!  Time to swoon..

Oh look!  Michelle Dockery looking flawless outside the show!

Read More