scenes from the weekend

The weekend was good. The popsicle party on Saturday went off without a hitch. It was well attended and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. Ken placed a sprinkler under the trampoline and the kids jumped in the spray. They loved it! (Instagram video of it here).

My parents very kindly offered to watch the kids post-party, and Ken and I had our first date night in a month or so.  It was so nice to have time together, just the two of us.  Yay for date nights!  We grabbed burgers here and saw a movie (yay for entertainment!).  We saw Thanks for Sharing which I much enjoyed.   I don't need a fancy date night to feel re-connected.  A burger and a movie is fantastic, as far as I'm concerned.

Sunday we celebrated the equinox with a little tea party.  I attempted to make aebelskivers for the first time ever.  I bought a little pan at the Scandinavian festival last spring.  You guys--it's hard!  They were tasty, but none too pretty.  I will say they make a delightful tea dish.  We even got a touch of fall-ish weather, so the timing was perfect.

Otherwise, it was a fairly normal weekend with chores and hanging out.  I'm ready for another week!

Frock On!

On Saturday 31st August, I attended a huge meetup hosted by the Tea Party Club called Frock On! It was billed as an array of brands, designers, fashion shows and stalls, and it definitely did not disappoint on that front!

I woke up at 6:30 am so I could have a shower, and get my hair, makeup and outfit sorted out in time to catch the 8:00 am bus. Somehow I made it in good time, and was soon on my way to Milton Keynes. From there I got the fast Virgin train to London Euston. In London, because the Northern line was down, I had to take the Victoria line down to Oxford Circus, and change for the Bakerloo line to Embankment.

I made it to the event early, and there was already a crowd of frilly girls stood in the entrance lobby. Just from this area I could tell the hotel was going to be beautiful.

 Most of my photos came out super blurry but at least that comes in handy here-- no need to obscure any faces!

As I walked up the staircase I felt like I was at Hogwarts! I half expected the people in the paintings to move...

There was a huge room devoted to the stalls of the various brands selling their wares that day. People were really excited by Dreamy Bows, who were supplying Angelic Pretty merchandise. I was excited to see the wares of indie brands in person.

Before getting carried away, I decided to head to the bring and buy room to set up my own wares. I'd brought 18 handmade hair bows with me, in 6 different colours, and also a pink Bodyline blouse. Whilst there, I bumped into a lolita called Aggie, who was selling her secondhand clothes at ridiculously reasonable prices. In the end, I walked away with three beautiful skirts, handmade by her, for only £25! I had honestly thought I wouldn't be able to afford anything substantial at this event, and then that happened!

Back in the other room, I ended up buying a flower headdress from Wise Wolf clothing.

I made sure to go to both of the fashion shows, where two of my friends, Luna and Sammi, would be modelling. I am really not a fan of fashion shows but this was ok because it was lolita clothing! I think my friends did an excellent job, especially due to fellow Ox Loli Michelle trying to put them off by pulling faces at them as they walked down!

The final item I bought was a mouse mat from Haenuli.

It doesn't really sound as if a lot happened that day but somehow that really did take up a whole day. I made sure to keep eating and drinking regularly, but I still managed to get a headache from my hair extensions. Still, it was worth it! I loved my coordinate! Usually I look back and feel kinda disappointed because I looked plain once again. But this time, I think I nailed it.

One of my favourite parts of the day was visiting the toilets and being greeted with this gorgeous dressing area, actual towels by the sinks, and general excellence. We spent a lot of time taking pictures in here.

Here's my coordinate for the event:

Outfit Rundown:
Hair accessories: Handmade by me (Sugar Trampoline)
Blouse: Primark
Jumperskirt: St. Mephisto Cathedrale by Alice and the Pirates
Tights: H&M
Shoes: Hush Puppies

At the end of the day we watched specially prepared videos, and there was a raffle! I didn't get the big coveted prizes but I still won something! It was a haircomb by Cloudberry Lady, the colour of which matched my jumperskirt really well. I was so excited when my number got called! Straight after me, Luna won a prize. Ox Lolis represent XD

So, that was my experience of Frock On! Believe it or not, that was the abridged version haha!

Thanks for reading! ❤

Chair Revamp Project

When I moved into my maisonette, the previous owner left behind a few bits and pieces of random furniture, including this gold chair.

Well, I thought it had potential! It's very comfortable to sit in, and the design seemed pretty cute. I just wasn't crazy about the fabric seat and the overpowering gold tones.

And so, with my dad's help, I set about transforming it! He spray painted it, we went to Dunelm Mill (why did nobody tell me about this amazing shop before? They sell just about everything!) and bought pleather from the haberdashery, and a cute cushion. The next part consisted of stapling the right amount of pleather over the seat. And well...that's about it! A very simple project.

Here's the finished result:

Pretty cute, huh? I'm really into pastel interior design at the moment, so this is perfect for me. The cushion from Dunelm Mill was only £2.49, and it's super puffy and comes with straps for you to secure to chairs. What a bargain!

That's about all I have to share with you today. Tomorrow is Frock On! and I'm super excited, though very anxious! I have a lot of things to bring with me (things for the "bring and buy" sale, food, umbrella, miscellaneous useful stuff, a book for the journey...) so I think I'll just bring a small suitcase! This really is one of those occasions where those shopping trolleys that you tend to see old people wheeling around would come in handy.

I hope you all have a fantastic weekend, and hopefully I'll have some fabulous photos to share with you all from the event next time I post! ❤

H&M Makeup Bag

I'm sure most people will have seen it by now, but there's this super cute bag in H&M at the moment!

It's of the same sort of style you find on lolita handbags, with a big bow on the front and cute scalloped edges. Anyway, it was being sold at a sale price in my local H&M for only £2 so I decided to get one finally after seeing it in there for months.

It's adorable, isn't it?! It would have been awesome if it had straps so you could use it as a shoulder bag, though of course it wouldn't be hard to attach some of your own. It's really roomy, about 25x19 cm, and could be used as a toiletries bag if you're staying somewhere overnight.

It also came in a white/greyish colour combo, but I didn't see any of that colourway left while I was in H&M.

I thought I would share this with you as I personally love seeing loliable high street finds!

Thanks for looking, and feel free to share any recent finds of your own in the comments ❤

My online shop and next month's big event!

Bonjour tout le monde! I haven't really had a chance to blog in the last couple of weeks because I have been super busy. It's my summer term at university already (I get less holidays than most students because I'm doing my degree in two years as opposed to three) and I have more modules to be getting on with, including a side order of French! Anyway, I thought I would share with you the goings on of the last fortnight or so.

After having decided that I really did want to open an online hair accessory shop, I got busy buying materials and packaging, buying a font license so I could make a header and generally doing the million and one things that seem to be necessary when you start a small business. 

The name of my brand? Sugar Trampoline.

I actually named it after the lyrics in one of my favourite songs, as there was something about it I found clever and likeable. Plus, it seems to go with the sugary, fun aesthetic I'm going for.

Will it be successful? I really don't know. I am aware that as far as selling products or getting various opportunities goes, a degree of internet fame is important, and something I certainly don't have! Hopefully, the products will speak for themselves.

At this point in time, I've got a batch of simple, ribbon hair bows, and I'm adding more to it each day. I'm also working on making other products, so there's a range of things for people to choose from. 

In the meantime, it would mean a lot to me if you would like my Facebook page. I hope to have everything going within the next month or so, and people's support is very much appreciated!

* * *

In other news, I'm going to Frock On! 

I could not be more excited to be going to a lolita convention! I actually missed my chance to grab a ticket initially. The event completely sold out and it seemed like there was absolutely no way I'd be going. And then one day, on the Facebook event page, someone was selling theirs! Usually when this happens, a flood of people dive in before you can even finish writing a coherent comment of interest. This time, however, it was like nobody had even noticed this post at all. A few messages, a Paypal transaction, and a several days later, I had my ticket! And not just any old ticket, but a VIP Entry ticket! This means I'll be allowed early entry, get the best seating, and even get a goody bag! I'm so thrilled.

I've been trying to come up with the perfect coordinate for the day, something classic. It's a style I do not normally wear, so I'm anxious as to how well I'll be able to pull it off. 

Well, that's about all I have to say for the time being. I have an irritatingly large amount of homework to do, and many more accessories to make. Until next time, au revoir! ❤

A sunny Alice Day and a trip to Ikea

Hey everyone! Last Saturday I went to a really great meetup in Oxford, where we celebrated the city's annual Alice Day!

Of course, the theme was Alice in Wonderland, so I made sure to wear my Bodyline Alice print skirt, and an Alice themed necklace I got from a 50s style shop.

There's a spoon, slice of cake, key, mad hatter cameo, egg sandwich and teapot!

It was very hot that day, around 25 Celsius, and the train I took didn't have air conditioning. It was an unfortunate journey to say the least!

All the fun I had when I got there made up for it, though. Here's the entirety of my coordinate:

I wore my new Anna House blouse, and a hairbow I made myself.

Everyone looked really fabulous that day! Here's a group picture:

The Oxfordshire lolita group merged with the Bristol lolitas for the day so I got to meet some new faces! Overall, it was a really fab day, and I can't wait for the next meetup.

On Thursday I took a trip to Southampton to meet up with my partner. We made our usual trip to Ikea, and I managed to get an outfit shot in one of the mirrors!

I decided to pair my macaron skirt with a waistcoat and I think the coordinate turned out pretty well. I wore a simple puff sleeved t-shirt, and another hair bow handmade by me. I'm hoping to launch an online hair accessory shop in the next few weeks so watch this space!

I hope everyone has been enjoying the hot weather (I've personally been hiding indoors!)
See you next time ❤

New Buys from the High Street

Hey everyone! Recently I got myself a few things from the high street. I don't tend to buy much from the high street anymore (I just find online shopping better as I'm guaranteed to find something that's my style), but I'm always on the lookout for cute stuff regardless.

I decided I could really do with a staple black skirt in my wardrobe. I don't wear jeans, so it seemed like that would be a handy equivalent if I was short on time or feeling more casual that day. I headed to Miss Selfridge where there was a big sale going on.

 I ended up getting something I wouldn't normally buy, but my mum suggested I give it a go. I'm glad I did.

It's a high-low skirt! It has a short skirt underneath it, and then this lovely, floaty fabric on top with it's varying hem lengths. I love how light and airy it is to wear. Something about it says "hipster" to me, but that's ok! It's good to try something different.

I've been wanting a new shoulder bag for a while now, something with a classic feel to it. In Primark I found this:

I saw this bag a while ago but wasn't sure if I liked it or not. I got it anyway, and I think it works quite well with my wardrobe. I like the bow-shaped area where it fastens, and that you can carry it as a handbag or use the long straps inside. It has a nice amount of room for my things, too. It's a little wonkily made but that's fine by me considering how cheap it was.

This has turned out to be a very dark post! I love black, though. It goes with everything and can be incorporated into any style.

I shall end the post with this question: Have you gotten anything cool recently from your local stores? I'd love to hear about it in the comments :3

Thanks for looking ❤