Tuesday 27 October 2015

Welcome to Wanderdusk

Every once in a while I am lucky enough to be contacted by a brand that I genuinely love so that I can style and share some of their products. I only accept proposals where I have real love for the product and it is something I would wear daily and purchase on my own terms.




I was THRILLED when Wanderdusk Jewellery sent me this beautiful ‘boho trio’ to match my boho-esque Aumtumnal style. In this photo I’m wearing the suedette laser cut light camel coloured choker, a black thin choker with a shark tooth silver pendant, and a slightly longer black necklace with a silver coloured patterned spiritual hand pendant. I’ve been wearing a lot of layered necklaces recently (or just layering up individual ones) and I love how the differences in lengths and style when combined together can really jazz up an outfit that otherwise might feel a little plain. With this trio, there is even further variety added with the different textures and patterns used in the necklaces, especially the choker. The style of all three together created a really mystical, spiritual vibe which I loooove.

As you may know I love clashing patterns and prints, so wearing these three necklaces together was a must! I paired them with my favourite go-to bell-sleeved white top and a new floral patterned light waistcoat to emphasise the boho feel; an outfit which I plan to wear when I’m next enjoying a day out in town. However all three necklaces can create completely different looks when worn individually. I can definitely see myself wearing the suedette choker with a simple light coloured shirt or blouse for a smarter or more professional setting, and I’ve just been wearing the shark tooth pendant with an Allsaints printed jersey vest top and an open striped shirt whilst doing errands for a more relaxed look. 

Which one is your favourite?

Check them out here.
Wanderdusk have given me a special discount code for all my followers to get a generous 20% OFF! Use the code ‘MELODY’ during checkout :)














xxx



Sunday 25 October 2015

Best New Brands - Joseph Vintage Wear


So after spending a little time at Fashion Week and discovering some amazing new brands, I've decided to do a few little posts dedicated to my favourite up-and-coming, brand-spanking-new fashion companies. Joseph Vintage Wear claims to 'recover vintage fashion', and they do just that, giving classic vintage pieces an exciting modern vibe and tailoring their products to their consumer base. Although JVW stocks both Menswear and Womenswear, the brand also celebrates the idea of gender-neutral fashion with a 'his or hers' page - perfect for girls like me who love a baggy jumper or a boyfriend-cut denim jacket or shirt. There really is something for absolutely everyone. Gender-neutral fashion is becoming increasingly popular lately, particularly after the Selfridges Agender concept shop opened which has a collection that basically looks like it stepped straight off of one of this seasons catwalks - before it even happened. 

With an online capsule collection compromised of retro block coloured jumpers, edgy denim jackets and bright bombers, it's super on trend for AW15 whilst still remaining true to it's vintage roots. Initially after browsing the website, the sleek, sophisticated design did have me worried that the gorgeous minimalist jumper that I had my eye on was going to break the bank - but literally everything online is under £25. EVERYTHING. Even genuine leather jackets and shoes! It genuinely makes me never want to shop somewhere like Topshop again where a faux leather jacket can cost upwards of £100. Scroll down for the links to these fab items.

Although in the early stages of it's fashion life, Joseph Vintage Wear is already blossoming beautifully and discovering it's own unique style, which is hard to do these days with so many retro brands around at the moment. As if you needed another reason to love them, they’re super eco-friendly and have a heavy focus on recycling clothing (naturally, being a vintage brand) as well as using purely recycled materials for packaging and gifts. They’ve also recently launched their own t-shirt designs which will be completely organic and created using re-processed materials as well. Ticking all the boxes here, guys. 


I honestly can't wait till the collection grows and we can see some more from this ambitious and exciting brand - definitely one to watch. Bring it on, JVW! Check them out here.


Womenswear

Oversize Olive Wool Coat - £24.99 - Buy here

Geometric Jumper - £11.99 - Buy here


 Floral Silk Shirt - £14.99 - Buy here


Tommy Hilfiger Tshirt - £15.99 - Buy here





Menswear



Denim Cowboy Shirt - £13.99 - Buy here



Orange Long Sleeve Turtle Neck - £10.99 - Buy here


Levi's Zip Up Jumper - £17.99 - Buy here


Black Leather Shoes - £16.99 - Buy here




His or Hers


White And Blue Minimal Jumper - £16.99 - Buy here


Retro Silk Shirt - £14.99 - Buy here



All photos c/o of Joseph Vintage Wear


Wednesday 21 October 2015

Wednesday Inspirations & Obsessions

I’ve been struggling to find the motivation lately to start a new project or piece of art - I don’t have the physical energy to paint or the money to start an embroidery project - but there’s always excuses, right? Recently I’ve found inspiration through the beautiful, soft blurred edges of grainy film photography. If you’ve ever seen any of my work before you’ll know I’ve always been fascinated with people and the body (particularly my earlier paintings), and that the process photography plays in creating a painting is a huge focal point in what I do. This time, I’ve decided to focus more on the creation of the photography for now, and less about how it informs the painting. 

Although I’ve really been enjoying creating fashion posts and styling myself, there are moments when I catch myself and feel like I could be putting so much more into it. Even since my GCSE art work, I’ve loved styling photoshoots and coming up with unusual concepts for them and playing with props and strange back stories. Although I know when I work with fashion brands the focus is always on the clothing and creating a modern, perhaps more mainstream photo post to share a look with the audience and explore ways the clothing can be worn, I really want to bring this conceptual side of my work into my love for fashion some more. I’ve been struggling a lot over the last year or two, trying to decide what I want to do - my two main interested being art, and fashion. Whenever I work with one, I feel I’m neglecting the other. I flip flop between trying to work with fashion; working as a stylist, or a blogger, or even creating my own clothing/accessory brand, and getting back to my arty roots, spending time painting, trying to enter and arrange exhibitions, hiding away in my studio. I never seem to be able to balance the two, or indeed combine the two. But they don’t need to be exclusive, and they aren’t. Fashion essentially is art, art can be absolutely anything, really. 

These two thoughts are primarily what have fuelled my desire to start a new photography project - something more artistically based, but something which can still influence and inspire my work with fashion and love for style. Alongside this, there are three photographers I’ve recently discovered which have pretty much propelled my brain into gear, making me desperate to start experimenting. Petra Collins, Thomas Roust, and Dylan Forsberg. While their work is all very different, the focus is on intimacy, humans, and finding the beauty in the smallest or most unusual situations. This is something I’ve longed to explore through photography for a very long time - capturing the stark, raw moments that are perhaps often overlooked, unseen, or ignored - and exposing them in a way that can display natural beauty found even in the smallest of things.

I’m particularly obsessed with Petra Collins - also because she is the same age as me which makes me both love and hate her in equal measure (hatred only out of jealously of course). Using film, her soft, grainy, colourful images invite viewers in and create a connection between the subject and the audience. Whether she is photographing herself or a celebrity, there’s such a unique quality in her work that makes me just want to pick her brain.

I know how pretentious ‘art talk’ can sound, and I’m aware that maybe some of the readers of this blog will start thinking I’m an obnoxious twat (I really swear I’m not, I swear I swear!) I went to art school for three years - the majority is just bullshit, I know. But this is something that is starting a fire within me, and for the first time in months I feel truly excited about a project and I wanted to share this feeling, and more importantly record it for myself when in a few months time I’ll no doubt be feeling clueless and uninspired once more. Although I have a few ideas, for now the boundaries of this project are very vague - I simple know I want to capture beauty with a camera. And of course, beauty is different to everyone. For me right now, I want to capture everyday people, everyday things, and not turn it into something enjoyable to look at, but rather expose that element of things we see all the time but don’t necessarily look at. Of course, as you can tell I love colour and I’m sure that’s going to be an important part in composition and scenery, as well as the light, grainy detailing (which I’ve become completely obsessed with) that you can only get with film cameras. 


Aaaah, I did not expect such a long arty rant, but it feels nice that something is starting to come together. Of course I haven’t started it yet and won’t be able to until after my procedure and until I can afford some film, oh and of course I don’t have any solid ideas yet, but everything has got to start somewhere…

OH, and on that note - anyone want to model for me?? Expect a confused director and very experimental shoot...

Petra Collins
I. Am. OBSESSED.






















Dylan Forsberg











Thomas Rousett