Drink Me, Eat Me - Hammersmith

I love exploring new parts of London and seeing the creativity and unique ideas the independent businesses are bringing to the local community. Shoreditch is a brilliant example of this, and recently, many other London boroughs are following suite. 

Just recently, me and the boyfriend stayed in a hotel in Hammersmith for a weekend in London, and decided to explore what the area had to offer, having only ever visited for the Apollo. 

We were looking for somewhere to have breakfast, and just opposite our hotel was this adorable little place. As an Alice in Wonderland obsessive, it would be absolutely sacrilegious for me to walk past a place called Drink Me, Eat Me and not go in. 

Cute is the word that comes to mind when trying to describe the Treat Boutique, but it just doesn't cut it. Cath Kidston style florals and candy pastels beautifully embellish the interior, whilst the atmosphere is buzzing and cosy. 

The homemade sausage rolls and quiches were tempting and went down a treat, but had to be followed up with a slice or two of the mouth-watering selection of cakes on offer. It's never too early for cake when they look like that. 

As well as tasty temptations, the boutique is full of local artwork, crafts and glamorous fashion accessories for littluns. 

Even though this is a perfect place for kids, with a froyo machine and a variety of candy toppings and private parties, I didn't feel out of place here. Don't get me wrong, I'm definitely in touch with my inner child, but there's something for everyone here, no matter how old you are. 

This is a place that deserves being patronised not only by the local community, but London visitors too. I'm definitely going back and getting my greedy paws on that froyo machine! 

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The Diner - Soho

One of my favourite things about being in London is discovering new places to stuff my face. Being a tourist can be pretty hungry work, so knowing a place where you'll get good grub that'll fill you up and add to your list of places to return / recommend to others is a blessing. 

When you're hungry and looking for something to eat in London before going home or heading to the theater, the time constraints and rumbling tummy can lead you to diving into the first place you see and paying ridiculous money for pretty crappy food, so when I find somewhere worth writing home about, well, I do. 

I've known about The Diner for quite some time, in fact I think I may have eaten at the one in Camden a few years back, but couldn't remember a thing about it. Last weekend, me and the boyfriend were looking for somewhere to eat before going on the Blood & Tears London Walking Tour (all about infamous serial killers from London. Macabre, I know). After running through a list of different cuisines, we decided we wanted something dense and greasy to fuel us for the two hours of walking we had ahead of us. An American diner is THE place to find that kind of food. 

There are a few of these specific diners scattered across London, with restaurants in Camden, Covent Garden, Islington, Shoreditch and Soho. With Soho closest to us, just off Carnaby Street, we popped in, got seated straight away and focused intensely on the menu. 

One thing I'll recommend if you're not planning on having a big meal is their milkshakes. Specifically, their hard shakes. They're a dangerous concoction of naughty treats and alcohol that goes down a little too easily. I had the Creamy Nut (hazelnut and pistachio ice cream with Baileys) a while back, and I need it on tap. 

This time round, we were planning on filling up to the max, so I tried The Diner Blend Ice Tea (perfect combo of bitter and sweet, and very refreshing) and Kurtis had a Coke Float. 

To eat, I had the Diner Chicken Burger (buttermilk fried chicken breast, bacon, blue cheese, coleslaw and pickles) whilst Kurtis had the Corned Beef Hash (salt beef, onions, potatoes and two fried eggs) from the All Day Breakfast menu. We also shared a side of Hanger Fries (cheese, smokey onions and burger sauce). 

If you're ordering a burger or hot dog, prepare for things to get messy. You just have to embed your face in the greasy goodness and chow down. Not great first date food. I was really pleased with my burger. The chicken was incredibly tender and juicy, and the coleslaw was crispy and surprisingly full of flavour (I feel you can always tell a good restaurant by its homemade coleslaw). The chips were amazing too. I do get worried about diner chips like this with so many wet toppings that the chips will turn to mush, but these ones maintained their crisp. The burger sauce, dare I say it, may have been better than McDonalds. It was so zesty and flavoursome. 

A main, drink and side came to £15, which is brilliant when you consider the size of the portions and where you are. For London that's excellent. 

So if your looking for comfort food with a stylish retro American feel,The Diner should be on your list of places to visit. Oh and they also play amazing music! 

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The VIP Experience with Jaw Breaker and Voodoo Vixen

I don't mean to keep boasting about the amazing time I had at London Edge, but I was spoiled rotten and made to feel so welcome that I feel it's only right to give it a mention here on my little corner of the internet. 

So Jawbreaker and Voodoo Vixen were the hosts of the after-party and invited me and some other bloggers to be their VIPs for the day. Prior to the event we had to choose a dress from either brand which we would receive at the event, and get our hair and make-up done to match. 

Many bloggers got their dress and changed into it straight away, which meant London Edge was a sea of A-lines and victory rolls. It was like I'd gone back in time. 

As London Edge is an alternative fashion trade event, it was so interesting to see everyone's personal style, so I decided to change into my dress last minute. I've always loved vintage fashion, but I feel it's a style you need to commit to 100%; hair, make-up etc and I've only just mastered a fishtail plait. So I was intrigued to play around with it and see how I could make the style fit me. 

So after the blogger meet-up and looking at all the amazing brands, it was time to go get my dress and get dolled up.

The VIP area was like a mini salon, with a hairspray haze and hair grips used by the dozen. I take my hat off to the team though, who had been on their feet doing hair and make-up since 6am, but were some of the loveliest ladies I'd met that day. When it was my turn to sit in the chair, I had no idea what I wanted. I'd seen so many victory rolls , and wanted something different, so I told the lovely Nicola Abraham that she had free reign over my hair and could do whatever she wanted. I'd seen her do the hair of some other bloggers and knew straight away that I was in good hands. It was quite a weird experience having my hair done but having no idea whatsoever what was being done to it.

As you can see from the pictures above, she's one very talented lady. The end result was so me, and gave the vintage dress the grunge twist I never could have achieved myself. I was hoping to wear my Dr Martens with the dress but wasn't sure how it would look, but when I saw what Nicola had done to my hair, it turned out the boots would work perfectly.

It was also quite fitting that in the goody bag I received at the blogger meet up was a pink Miss Candy Floss hair piece which contrasted wonderfully with my hair and matched the dress, AND worked perfectly with the hairstyle Nicola had created.

 I was a little bit worried about the dress because I'd only seen one picture online, and I wouldn't really know what it was like until I'd seen it, but I was actually really pleased. I chose mine from Voodoo Vixen, and it's their Adeline dress which is an elegant floral patterned flare dress featuring cherry and cherry blossom motifs. It fit me really well and the material was really good quality, which surprised me as a lot of the vintage dresses I've come across in the past are amazing to look at, but are really poor quality.

The after-party was a lot of fun, with drag-queens, burlesque acts and magicians. The Jawbreaker and Voodoo Vixen crew really had pulled out all the stops. I only wish I could have stayed longer, but with luggage and a two hour journey home, I'd had a very long and eventful day and my feet were crying out for a rest. I would like to say a massive thank you to everyone who organised such an awesome VIP experience and made me personally feel so welcome.

Until next time London Edge!

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Iron Fist SS15 Collection - Sneak Peak

I personally am getting bored of the drabness of winter. I'm pushing through it though with anticipation for the summer months, and all the awesome trends that will come with them. 

You may have read on my blog recently that I attended the London Edge event as a blogger. One of the best things about this event is getting to see the SS15 collections for a variety of alternative fashion brands, and planning your summer wardrobe. 

Iron Fist's SS15 collection stood out above the rest for me. Dropping in March, this collection is cute, fun and tongue in cheek, and I thought I'd give you lot a sneak preview. 

I've always loved Iron Fist as an alternative fashion brand. They're not cliche, and are constantly making their own stamp on the alternative scene, whilst incorporating current trends into their collections. 

I didn't take too many pictures due to exclusivity being for buyers, however from the pictures I did take, I'm sure you'll agree that calling this collection colourful is an understatement. 

This is a collection that will definitely appeal to the emerging cutesters, a trend that seems to be the 2014/15 revamp of the mid-2000s scene kid. Candy pastels, Care Bears, monster burgers and cupcakes contrast dramatically with the more gothic side of the Iron Fist collection consisting of cleated soles, bat wings and the brand's signature skulls. 

Now I was a bit too old for Care Bears when they first came out. but always secretly envied the younger kids with their colourful, cuddly companion. So you can see why I fell in love so quickly with the Care Bear travel bag. 

I'm ridiculously excited for this collection and have made mental notes of which items HAVE to be be in my wardrobe. 

I hope you've enjoyed this sneak preview of the Iron Fist SS15 collection, and look out for its release in stores and online in March.  

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London Edge Trade Show and Blogger Meet up with Kat Williams

(picture by Rage Studios)

 

Last weekend I got to attend London Edge alternative fashion trade show at the Olympia Exhibition Center, London. It's an event only open to fashion buyers and press, and is a place where gothic, grunge, punk and vintage brands show off their latest collections to potential buyers. 

I heard about the event last year and knew it was something I had to attend, but underestimated how amazing the event would actually be. Not long after registering as a blogger I was invited to attend the Blogger Meet-Up which was to be hosted by the fabulous Kat Williams from RocknRoll Bride. 

I was overwhelmed by the range of brands and the variety of unique styles they presented. It's a brilliant place for seeing your favourite brand's latest collection before it's released, but also for discovering new brands that you just can't wait to spend your money on. 

Iron Fist and Killstar have been fixed favourites of mine for years now, so it was awesome to see what they've got coming up for SS15. I've already got my eyes on a few pieces. Keep your eyes peeled for sneak peak at the Iron Fist SS15 collection. 

I discovered some new brands that I fell in love with. Lip Service's sexy yet elegant use of lace, sheer fabrics, vinyl and velvet had me drooling, whilst Alice Takes a Trip were channeling some Cutester vibes for the Summer with adorable bee motifs and rainbow fur inserts. 

Jawbreaker and Voodoo Vixen were hosting the after-party, and many bloggers, including myself, were asked to attend the show as a VIP of the brands, and were given a free dress to wear to the after-party and a make-over, which included vintage hair styling and make-up. I decided to change into my dress last minute, but many wore theirs straight away. As a result the show was a sea of A-line silhouettes and victory rolls. It was quite a sight. 

The Blogger Meet-Up was a perfect opportunity for me to get to meet some like-minded bloggers. With free champagne, sweets and the biggest goody bag I've ever received, conversation was focused on how generous the brands had been. Many selfies were taken and Instagram names swapped. I always feel quite nervous about things like this, but it was a lovely atmosphere with a lovely group of ladies. I had the pleasure of meeting Emma from Emma Inks who's an absolute babe, and Claire from clairelouise.net

Kat Williams was a sweetie as always, answering our questions about blogging and finding your own niche, and walking around with us as we checked out some of the brands. 

The whole show is one big blur for me now, but getting my hair done by the talented Nicola Abraham stands out clearly as one of the best moments of the day. I'd wanted something a bit different and told Nicola that she had free reign to do whatever she wanted with my hair. The end result was epic (see first picture above). I'm actually going to do a whole blog post on the VIP experience, so watch this space to see the final look. 

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Bad in Plaid - OOTD

'Is that a some red and blue I see before me?' I hear you ask. YES! Don't have a heart attack, but I am actually wearing something colourful. I know it's not all the colours of the rainbow, but for me, red and blue is a breakthrough. 

Fax Fur Coat - Ark
Plaid Shirt - Vintage
Leather Skirt - Pretty Lavish
Heart Motif Tights - Accessorize
Boots - Dr Martens

I've actually had this shirt for years. I bought it from a vintage store in London when I was 18, and it's been a timeless addition to my wardrobe. I was worried that it wouldn't work with my hair and that I'd have to banish it to a draw for a time when I could wear it again, but I think it actually works quite well, especially with this leather cut-out skirt from Pretty Lavish .

I've never really been much of a skirt person. I think being quite curvaceous makes it hard to find skirts other than pencil skirts that are flattering for your shape, but I thought I'd give this ago seeing as it was in the sale. I love the detailing, and it's the kind of skirt that can be dressed up and down.

This outfit is a bit mish-mash, but it works and I don't really know why. I feel like it shouldn't. There's a lot going on, but I feel the textures and patterns contrast but compliment at the same time.

The heart motif tights have become my new favourite accessory. I also bought some polka dot ones too. The sheerness of the tights give them a grunge edge, whilst the heart / polka dot motif adds a touch of feminine kitsch.

This outfit is a prime example of why you should play around with what you've got i your wardrobe. You may be surprised as to what items work well together. You could end up with a whole new outfit.

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