The Seasons are Changing

Hellooo again...

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It is mid August so guess what that means?? Spring is on the way to greet us soon. Now that is a happy thought for me. Spring is my favourite season of the year, everything is so pretty and soft and new. I have noticed that the sun is starting to set a little bit later in the evenings and rise a little earlier in the mornings. One of the best things about Spring mornings is hearing all the birds singing, and yes, that has started softly too. 

Spring is the perfect season to me because you will have the days where it is still a little chilly but then there are the days that turn into beautiful sunshiney days where all you want to do is be outside and enjoy the tranquility of the beauty around you. Now not only is the nature around us gorgeous and happy and colourful, so is the fashion around us. During winter everyone seems to go into the greys and browns and neutrals mode and decide to only add colour in the dark form. I know I am guilty of this at times. So this is why I love spring fashion, everything becomes colourful and happy again. It is almost as if our clothes are smiling.. 

So here are a few of my favourite spring outfits for this year.

As everyone knows I am a huge fan of the denim shirt, these won't be going out of style for a while. They are perfect for the days that have a little bite in the air. Light weight denim is not very hot at all so it will work well when the "bite" goes and becomes a beautiful day.

The Boyfriend Jeans. These are a super cool must have. Besides being stylish and trendy they are uber comfy and look great. They always look best with the bottoms rolled up to the ankles and paired with a pump - be it flats or a heel.

The crop top and skater skirt are still very much in. The peach blazer is a great add on to cover up some skin  so you don't get too cold. For shoes, pair this outfit with flat pumps or pretty sandals.

 Two colours that are pretty popular are soft yellow and soft blue but not quite baby blue. Think muted tiffany blue and then you're on the right track. Whats even better is when these two colours are paired together, all I can say is perfection.

A pair of simple shorts can look so different and more alive and fun if they are in a cool colour. This same yellow as I said before looks perfect with cream, so why not try cream lace? And just to smarten the look up a little, add a blazer in a fun colour as well. Don't go matching and choose the same colour on the top and bottom, try something different, just make sure the colours compliment each other.

A trend that I really love is the over the knee socks. This is perfect for the colder days. Why not put the regular "go-to" leggings back in the cupboard and give these cute socks a try? You can wear stockings underneath if you don't want your legs to be bare. You can team your socks with a skirt like this picture or if you have a cool pair of shorts try that. For shoes these socks can be paired with either ankle boots of knee boots. Just make sure you can see the socks if you decide to wear longer boots, you don't want it to look as if your socks are peeping out when they're not supposed to.

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So these are only a few of my favourite Spring 2014 outfit inspirations. If you want to see more of my inspiration as well as outfits I put together then check out my facebook page Beautiful You. 

Think feminine, soft colours, flirty fabrics and fun accessories. If we get this right then we will be sorted perfectly for our Spring time fun.

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Bye bye for now

xoxo

Fun in the Sun

Hello lovely people :)

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Its good to be back again. It seems as if life has just run away with me and made me all busy for all sorts of various reasons. 

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So earlier in the year I mentioned I had exciting news - a Photoshoot with someone from England. Well after many many months of planning and a million messages back and forth figuring out details, the time has finally arrived! Wednesday afternoon I ventured out to Clifton 4th Beach for this highly anticipated shoot. To be honest I was nervous. It all started out with me just helping to organise models, outfits and where would be an awesome beach to shoot at but then I somehow said yes to also being one of the models. And then, doing a separate shoot with just me first. Oh the nerves! So lets just say the drive from home to Clifton felt like it took forever. In the end, I have no idea why I was nervous. Jonny and Hannah are AMAZING and I got along with them so well, they made me feel comfortable and just ended up having tons of fun. 

We were super lucky with the weather too. It was the perfect day. The cold ran away and the sun came out and shone brilliantly. There were even other people in the distance tanning. The only thing that gave away that we were in Cape Town was the icey water, but that is to be expected in the middle of summer as well. 

So instead of me going on about how amazing it was and how much fun I had, let me rather just show you all and you can decide for yourselves.. :) 

Here are some of the photos taken:

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As you can see, Jonny and Hannah are extremely talented at what they do! 

If you want to see any of their other work check out their page here - Verman Photography - and be sure to give them a like.

I am extremely excited for the next shoot with them and with the other models. That will be happening soon, when weather permits so watch this space for updates! 

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Bye for now

xoxo

Finding my Passion... Again*

I bet I can tell you something about myself you don't know.

Yes, I love fashion.

Yes, I love making people look and feel great.

Yes, I am a stylist. 

And Yes, I love being a stylist.

BUT... How did all of this love for fashion come about?? 

I first started out having a deep love for designing clothes and making them.

I don't even know how old I was but basically since I can remember I was always drawn to my moms fabrics, threads, needles, buttons, you name it and I was playing with it. So much so that my mom even bought me one of those toy sewing machines and I would have hours of fun on that. It was definitely my favourite toy although it wasn't a mere toy to me, it was what I absolutely loved doing. I would make new clothes for my barbies and my baby dolls from the scraps of fabric I would find in the cupboard and I would want to show everyone the cool new creations I made. But then I got sad because I thought to myself, why are my barbies the lucky ones that get new clothes made for them by me? Why can't I make myself new clothes as well? And so that is exactly what I did. I had seem denim in the cupboard and I kept checking it out and to me it seemed as if it was just waiting for me to use it. So, I measured myself and made myself a "pattern" for a skirt. Bear in mind that I was only 10 at the time, so I'm not really sure how I knew to do all of these things but I just did. I made sure I left enough seem allowance so that the skirt wouldn't end up being too small, I made sure I had a slit so that I could walk in the skirt as it was a long skirt. Best part of it is that I sewed it all by hand. I was so proud of myself, I wanted to wear that skirt all the time just so I could tell people that I made it all by myself. I also made sure not to tell anyone of my special "project" because I didn't want any help at all, I wanted my mom to be proud of me for doing something so good all by myself. Everyone was very impressed with me and told me how clever I was, even my mom, who didn't tell me that she had infact bought that denim to make herself a pair of jeans. She wasn't angry or upset with me for just taking it, maybe because she could see how impressed I was with myself and how much hard work I had put into my skirt. Since then I was always trying to make things and designing dresses. I remember when my sister got engaged she showed me what she wanted my bridesmaid dress to look like so for the next few weeks I spent all my time designing that dress in so many variations and colours just so I could practice. 

So lets fast forward a few years. Time to leave school and go out into the world. There was no question as to what I wanted to study or even where. Fashion design of course. No words could describe how excited I was, finally getting to live my dream. Unfortunately it wasn't all I had hoped it would be. And in the process I started losing that passion for design that I had had since I was a small girl. By the end of the year I hated it. I didn't want to go near a sketch pad and design anything, I didn't want to be told I wasn't good enough, it really knocked my spirits. I was good at what I did, everyone liked my designs and the garments I made, but its not the students that you have to impress. I learnt SO much that year, about fashion - design, construction, history, photography and the business side as well. Plus, I learnt even more about myself. I wouldn't change anything that I experienced that year for the world. Leaving design was a huge decision for me and I cried a lot and at times I felt like I had failed myself and my parents. I was giving up on my dreams. But little did I know my dreams would carry on but just have a slight detour. I went on to study Fashion and Personal Styling, I am also busy with my degree in Fashion Retail Management. 

Now this is why I say in the title of this post, "Finding my passion... Again". This year, I have faced myself and my demons from college and I took out my sketch pad and just drew. Whatever I felt. Whatever inspiration I had, I just drew. And it felt amazing. I was so happy. Its almost like that feeling you get when you get home after a long time away. And I couldn't believe how natural it felt, as if I hadn't stopped for two years. I must admit that a good friend of mine is also to "blame" for this. He encourages me all the time to always do what I love and he knows that my "happy place" is when I leave the world for a while and draw. And when I finally told him and showed him what I was doing he was extremely happy, so that made me feel good. Its always a great feeling knowing that someone believes in you. I am lucky that I have my family and special friends who always encourage me in my dreams. 

What I have learnt from all of this is that it is good to take criticism from others, we can always improve ourselves and never stop learning. We mustn't take it all personally when we are shown or told how we can improve, its all a learning curve. We also mustn't be afraid to take our dreams into our own hands, we must do for ourselves what we feel is right and best and most beneficial. If I had to make the choice again, I would still choose to leave fashion design and pursue the styling. In the end, I have come back to the designing but I have a greater knowledge of things that I wouldn't have had if I had made a different choice two years ago. I am proud of where I am and what I have learned so far in my short life. I hope my parents, family and friends think the same. I have taken a round about route but I am on the road to living my dreams and I couldn't be happier. 

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Just a few of the sketches I have done recently, to show you the fun I have found myself having again :)

This was done while waiting for a friend to get back to me about plans. I was getting frustrated having to wait because he wasn't letting me know what was happening so I chose to calm myself in the best way for me. The focus was on the skirt, I just wanted to play around with markers and the flare to show tones.

This dress was done after midnight. For some reason I just couldn't sleep at all so I decided why stare up at the ceiling when I could be doing something constructive? Hence this dress. I only used pencils and metalic ink for lace.

Its always good to have hot chocolate close by :)

Getting myself all painted up. One of the things I love about mixed media, the mess I end up in, but its so worth it in the end. 

The finished product. I had had an idea in my mind for a few days so I finally decided to just sit down and put it on paper. Took me a while until I was completely satisfied with it before I started with colour. But this one I had the most fun. Its mixed media, so I used markers, paint and ink. I still think it would be a lot of fun to make this dress. Who knows, maybe I will? :)

Just a cool detail shot of the lace. It doesn't really show but in the actual design it is blue lace with silver in it, here the silver went black because of the flash of the camera. 

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Always follow your dreams, no matter how long it takes you to get there. It will all be worth it once you get there. Rather spend the time working at your goals and dreams than doing nothing about it, the same time will pass anyway. 

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xoxo

Catch Up Time...

Hello Beautiful People!

I cannot believe that it has been 4 months since I last posted anything, disgraceful I tell you! It seems as if the past 4 months have been a serious roller coaster of so many things, feelings, friendships, family, studies, work, everything just put together. But, roller coasters are meant to be fun. Ups and downs, good and bad, it's all about taking it as it comes and facing everything head on with confidence.

Something really exciting that happened for me, I had an amazing photo shoot that I styled. It was brilliant and SO much fun. And what made it even better was that I was able to work with my sister. I've done things with her before, but that was to either help her or when I have been the model, but this time it was for me and my portfolio, so I absolutely loved it! But that is all for a separate post, something to look forward to. But I just had to share how excited I was, especially since I finally got all the photos last Friday.

Aaaand there is something else that is super exciting for me. I have another photo shoot coming up later in the year with a photographer from England. A good friend of mine was awesome enough to think of me when his friend (the photographer) asked if he knew anyone that could help him. So I am going to be helping with the styling as well as pose for some shots. So I am beyond excited for this, I have pulled in a couple other friends of mine to model as well, so it should be a fun day all round. It's all steps in the right direction towards my dreams of being the coolest stylist in Cape Town :)

So what I have decided for today is to choose a few outfits from over the past couple of months that I have been M.I.A. and let you all see a little bit of the fun I have been having with all my clothes. I have just chosen my favourite items that I put together for whatever the occasion. But hey, what girl really needs a specific occasion to get dressed up anyway? :)

Here we go...

This dress should look familiar to you, since I have had it up before. Again I say, I LOVE this dress. It's bouncy and it has frills... Pink frills! Yes, my uber girly side is showing. So, this day I was working with my sister, she had a wedding and needed an assistant, so I went with. Its always so much fun working with her, she is such a talented hair stylist and make-up artist.

FAVOURITE day of the year. Christmas! 

Every year we always help my mom make Christmas lunch and do the desserts and all that yummyness, but then, I have to go and look decent. Whats the point of doing the house and table up all pretty and fancy and then looking like a freak myself? I LOVE this pink dress, the colour, the fabric, the shape, the flow, just everything about it is perfect. I always feel very feminine when I wear it.

Best Friend Date Night

I am in love with leather, as everyone should already know from previous posts ;) I had wanted a leather skirt for ages but couldn't ever find one that I really liked, then I found this one. Can't really see well in this photo, but its black fabric and then at the bottom there is a leather strip. Love it! Everything was just right, it wasn't all leather and it wasn't extremely short like all the other ones I had seen. And to make it even better, it was a complete bargain! 

So I got a bee in my bonnet one afternoon and decided it was time to pull out some fabric, my scissors, pins and sewing machine. Sewing relaxes me and takes me to a happy place. I have wanted a circle skirt for a while now and just kept putting it off, but I finally did it and I love it. I like that it isn't short, its just over my knee and the flare in it is amazing! I felt like a little girl again and I wanted to just twirl around and around. I thought it would be fun to pair my cool new skirt with a cute Minnie and Mickey Mouse Tee and finish it off with a statement belt. LOVE!

Who says Valentines Day has to suck just because you're single?? 

Its even more reason to grab your bestie and go have a two person party! That's what we did for sure. One thing is certain, you put my friend and I together and there is bound to be a lot of dressing up. All we did was go to movies but we wanted to look all pretty and be happy in our anti love campaign. Originally decided to wear all black but then we thought we would be way too depressing. I love my little purple dress, peplum style is so pretty and feminine. You can't see in this photo but the back neckline is scooped, so it just adds a little bit of fun. I decided to add the skinny gold belt because the dress is slightly too big on me so it just added that little bit extra definition that is lost. Oh and I was wearing shoes, PROMISE!

Absolutely no specific occasion for this outfit.. 

Well... Kinda.. 

My mom and I wear going shopping because I was in desperate need of a top for a theme party and I was possibly hoping to see someone in the mall we were going to.. A girls gota look good right? ;) 

Well as you all know, me and lace are very good friends. These lace shorts are amazing, I love them to bits, I can wear them in summer and winter. I also seem to be having a thing for bright lipstick lately. Pink, purple, orange, red, you name it and I've probably got it :) It just fun and adds a pop to the entire look.

That 70's Show

The theme party I needed a top for, here it is. So I knew that everyone was going to be wearing more of the hippy style from the 70's so I thought it would be cool to be totally different and go punk! I had SO much fun dressing up with the black and leather and studs and chains. But the most fun I had while getting ready was doing my make-up. I had spent ages looking a photos of make-up from the 70's and then decided to put my own spin on things. I thought it turned out pretty cool in the end. And the top I'm wearing, so cool and so fitting for the 70's which was nicknamed the "ME" decade. "Love don't pay the bills" The whole night was so much fun with special people.

Best til last..

A very good friend asked me to be his date to his friends wedding and I was instantly excited and started planning what I would wear. I had the entire outfit planned until something said to me, "ask if there is a theme" and good thing I asked. It was Black Tie, now that means its pretty formal and you must wear a long dress and the guys wear a tux and bow tie. So I raided my sisters wardrobe to see what she had and it was a choice between one of her dresses and one of mine. In the end I didn't go with either, even though Jason really liked my dress out of the two. Something just didn't sit right with either and I didn't want to feel uncomfortable the whole night. So the day before the wedding I walked the mall up and down searching for the perfect dress. I had to look my best for him after all :) There were a few I liked and even some I liked more that this one, until I put it on. It was just perfect, fitted me like it was made specifically for me, I fell in love. I felt so pretty and elegant that night. 

It was just the perfect night with the perfect gentleman :)

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I promise not to be so scarce anymore!

So lets let the fun begin again 

Toodles for now lovelies

xoxo