Frou frou and fabric and frills oh my

This frills trend is fabulous and I am so tremendously bored of everything I own I want to tear everything into rags, sell the rags and buy a sequinned zip-frill dress from Primark with the resulting £4. I will have to wear it every day because I’ll own no other clothes but as long as I retain some woollen tights and my duffle coat I won’t die of exposure.

 A better option for my party-season pennies might be this good look-alike of the Lanvin dress, above, from Asos., whose magazine I have started receiving in the post against my will but which I find strangely good reading. I do wonder how it is that Asos can get their magazine to me but Elle, which I actually want, has still failed to turn up.

I’m in the mood to look more glamorous than my duffle coat allows me to and as soon as I have clothes funds, I am going to go and buy a feel-good dress. I have been fantasising about something like the Oscar de la Renta dress Carrie wears in season 6 of Sex and the City. Hopefully you remember that big shiny box because this picture really doesn’t do the feeling justice. I would like my dress to come in big black shiny box too.

S

Nothing rhymes with purple

But I love it anyway. These are the trousers I am now thinking I will bag from Cos after work. I am envisaging so many purple and pink themed outfits. After a period of desiring only to wear black, grey and navy it seems I am emerging from my cocoon.

And clearly these fine trousers need to be worn with such items as these:

Yellow top from ASOS, pink top from COS. Acronymtastic.

S

Asos outlet

How did I not hear about this? I’m not a dedicated Asos shopper but recently I have been hearing more and more about it and I eventually cottoned on the fact that it is BRILLIANT – the whole concept of slavishly copying celebrity fashion appeals to the stylistically lazy part of me that just wants to be able to copy a beautiful person’s look and therefore somehow paste some of their beauty onto myself.

It has also been made clear to me that they have a designer section, but I didn’t know they had an outlet – essentially a sale section, where 70% knockdowns on their designers, for example Twenty8Twelve, Splendid, April 77 etc, can be found.

On a tangent, I was snooping around this new Outlet when I accidentally tripped and fell into the jewellery section and was overjoyed to discover they have the necklace I have been thinking about for weeks after an “I saw you” moment – it was around the neck of a mannequin in Oasis of all places. I have ordered it, despite serious lack of funds, because when you have been thinking about something for weeks and then it suddenly comes back into your life and only costs £16, this is an OMEN.

S

The humble tulip

Tulip fields in the Netherlands

I’ve always been a fan of tulips. I think they are the most beautiful flowers and I’m hoping to head to the tulip fields in the Netherlands in the spring. But what I’d really like to talk about is the tulip skirt. The skirt has blossomed (see what I did there…) into a must have wardrobe item in the past year, and I adore the tulip shape. Here’s why:
1) Replaces the skinny jean in my wardrobe. Frankly, their time was up anyway. 

2) The tulip adds a certain ‘je ne sais quoi’ to my womanly hips. I’ve always had hips but I finally feel that I’ve found the perfect item for their shape. I love it.

3) Superior comfort value whilst still being sexy. Now, I can’t tell if boys actually like the shape (I was recently wrong about boys liking unitards) but it makes me feel it and that’s what counts.

4) They are more fun than pencil skirts.

End of list. And here are a few of my ASOS favourites (they have an extensive range compared to Topshop, etc):

ASOS Twisted Tulip £25

Meem Midi Wrap Tulip - £70 (available on ASOS)

ASOS Pleat Detail Tulip - £24.50

***Update***

Daily Style Guide has written a post about statement skirts with tulips.

A

A Twist to Shoe Thursday

I do like a bit of quality ASOS. I’ve only ever bought on there a couple of times, due to my internet clothes shopping aversion, but I often check through the items on their email newsletter and wish I had the money to buy them all. As you may know, ASOS styles on selling clothes worn by celebs to Joe Public (i.e. me). And it amused me no end that they had shoes categorised by celeb – they are so darn apt.

 

Patent pink Dr Martens = Agyness Deyn

 

ASOS Platform Knee High Boots = Eva Mendes

 

Cute brooch peeptoes = Gwyneth Paltrow circa 2007

 

Black shoe boot = Keira Knightley (pre Edge of Love)

It’s a shame they don’t have Cheryl Cole or Beyonce on there in the shoe section. I’d be there in a shot! A.

Free delivery at ASOS today!

Looking back at the Jade Parfitt dress on ASOS, you’ll be pleased to know that ASOS have free delivery on all orders until midnight tonight. This might not seem like the best of offers but I am always surprised by how much delivery can be, and you only find out at the checkout. With the 20% offers, if you’re only buying one item then the delivery charge can often make it back up to the original price. A.

Party dresses

Chiffon and jersey dress

I think this dress from Asos has some of the qualities I enjoyed in Jade Parfitt’s red dress from my previous post. It has the geometrically cut chiffon, and the controlled girliness factor. I really like this dress and if I could get away with not wearing a bra I think I would be all over it, especially as it is only £32.

I am now a bargain shopper again having just lost my job so I will try to bring you some reports from the world of styling clothes that cost around one pound each.

I’ve never bought anything from Asos but I enjoy their concept, which is to, as accurately as possible, rip off cool stuff that famous people have worn.

Love from your unemployed fashion blogger, S