Pretty Things...

As you all know, I recently attended the Jarlo press day to take a sneak peak at their gorgeous high summer and A/W 12 collections. However, the press day was actually hosted by Fluorescent PR, which basically meant there were several other brands to check out. At first glance at the invite, there were a lot of brands I wasn't familiar with, but after attending I can say that I am now smitten with two new brands who really wowed me with their stunning collections!

Rosie Wonders

I was immediately drawn to the fabulous Rosie Wonders thanks to all the super cute illustrations! All my fave things were in amongst the treasures that adorned the Rosie Wonders stand - babushka dolls, Bambi, anchors, cats, roses, patriotic doodles! Aww, it's all just so sweet! If your in the market for some adorable handmade cards, canvas tote bags, a new note pad or a pretty necklace, then Rosie Wonders is the place to go! Stocked in Liberty London, none the less! Or click here to find your nearest stockist!

A Weathered Penny



Next up is a gorgeous new jewellery brand, A Weathered Penny. Worn by no other than the mega babe that is Fearne Cotton! A Weathered Penny offers very on trend, intricate handmade jewellery pieces with a rock chic/boho vibe! I can't believe I hadn't heard of A Weathered Penny before as it's so up my street! I'm loving the Galaxy pendant in the last photograph (inspired by bloggers, I do believe), this mini cross bracelet and this mixed cluster necklace. But the icing on the cake for me is the incredibly reasonable prices, items from A Weathered Penny start at just £8! You cannot moan at that now can you!?

What do you think of these brands!? Are you as crazy about them as me?!

But You Still Call Me Up After Dark...

Violetta Blazer: Missguided £24.99

Top: Miss Selfridge £22

Floral Crop Trousers: ASOS £40

Wedges: Dorothy Perkins £32

Necklace: Dorothy Perkins

Ring: Topshop

Bangle: Angie Gooderham

Bag: Balenciaga

I apologise for the crazy lighting in this post, the colours are mental, particularly my blusher! The pictures were taken last night, hence the title of the post! I did attempt to rectify the lighting issue during the editing process, but Picmonkey is just so rubbish I gave up! Does Picmonkey continually crash for you guys, or does it just dislike me!? I miss Picnik so much :(

This outfit is what I wore the other week to the Jarlo press day. I saw these crops on ASOS and knew they needed to be mine. I bought this top specifically to wear with them, it's satin at the front but has a sheer, chiffon, drop hem back which looks really lovely in real life, but didn't photograph well in the poor light. I originally bought this Missguided blazer to wear with simple outfits, i.e. denim cut-offs and plain t-shirts, I thought the coral shade would be way too much to team with these trousers, but actually I love how it makes the colours in the trousers go pop! These wedges are also a new purchase, I like the fact they're quite low as I'm very tall (5'11") so most wedges tend to be far too high for me, but these look great dressed up or dressed down, so I'm really happy with my baragainous find.

So the weather has been beautiful here in the UK, summer officially started last week and I for one made the most of the sunny weekend by sunbathing in the park. I did manage to underestimate how low my top was at the back and therefore ended up with bad sunburn right where my bra sits mid-way down my back. Ouch! I do hope you guys managed to catch some rays or enjoy a BBQ or two!

The warm weather has made me realise that my wardrobe is not summer ready! I'm desperately in need of some new sandals, and some suitable sunbathing on the park/wandering around Amsterdam in the daytime wear, i.e. strapless tops or dresses, but nowhere seems to be selling anything I like!? My total pet hate is strap marks when I'm tanned, so it's essential that whatever I wear during the day in the sun is strapless or has very simple spaghetti straps which are easy to move around. Where are you girls buying your holiday clothes from this year?

Well, I for one am on countdown to the Jubilee! Bring on a long weekend! I actually don't have too much planned, it's one of my best friend's birthday on Monday so I will be BBQing at her new pad in celebration before jumping into a cab and heading off to catch a few great bands play a festival in the city! To be honest, I'm looking forward to a calm weekend before the storm that my holiday in Amsterdam will be the following weekend!

Have you guys got any fun Jubilee plans to make me jealous with!? I'd love to hear how you're all celebrating!?

Jarlo Press Day...

In my last post I mentioned that I had been invited to my first proper blogging event, well that event was only the press day for the super gorgeous brand Jarlo (who I featured here)! Exciting, right? So I hopped off down to London to have a sneak preview at their Autumn/Winter 2012 collection, which is amazing and also their Summer collection which is currently available on their site!
Now I guess something that you might not know about me from my blog is that I can actually be quite shy in new situations, so after the initial excitement of receiving my invite had faded, I all of a sudden began to worry! I mean, what on earth is a press day!? What's the etiquette? So I was completely relieved when I found out that the delightfully lovely, Lizzie, from Blue October, was going to be there too! We popped along to the event together, which meant that I wasn't a gibberish wreck!

Summer 2012

I am so in love with the Vera dress (second picture down), it is absolutely amazing in a very Zooey Deschanel/Alexa Chung kinda way, you know - cute, girly and delicately vintage! I need this dress for my upcoming holiday to Amsterdam! But the Vera dress aside, the summer collection is littered with beautiful floaty numbers, think sheer, chiffon, floral, broiderie anglaise and lace in a gorgeous array of sorbet pastel shades! But one thing I have to point out here is that the quality of these items is top notch, the fabric oozes eminence as does the lining and right through to the finishing touches of the items. I mean there's nothing worse than purchasing a gorgeous white summer dress only to realise it's totally see through, but this is so not a problem with Jarlo's collection! Carly and Erin from Jarlo informed us that quite a few lines had actually sold out from the collection already, which should give you a pretty good indicator as to how sought after this stunning collection is!

Autumn/Winter 2012

The Autumn/Winter collection just screamed gothic glamour to me! Think dramatic maxis, lace detailing, vintage button features, bell sleeves, beaded embellishments with touches of sheer chiffon here and there! It's rich, luxurious and theatrical. The colours are very sumptuous - midnight blues, deep purples, heavy blacks and luscious magentas. More than a few of the dresses looked like the had fallen straight out of Florence Welch's coveted wardrobe! I know that Summer hasn't arrived yet, but I'm excited for the Autumn after seeing the preview of what we will all be wearing!

Now the press day was actually hosted by a PR company which meant there were several other brands there to check out, three of whom really stood out to me! So over the coming days I have a couple more posts lined up to introduce you to these other lovely brands.

Once again I would like to thank the lovely Erin and Carly from Jarlo for inviting me along to the event, I had a blast and am now totally in love with the fabulous Jarlo collection!

A Spring In My Step...

Dress: Topshop

Jacket: Zara TRF

Floral Headband: New Look £3

Gold Stud Earrings: H&M £2.99

Ring: Accessorize

Bangle: Angie Gooderham

Floral Pumps: Keds £35*

Lipstick: Topshop 'Brighton Rock' £8

So the sun has finally popped his head back out! Yay! About time right?! I got so excited by the weather this weekend that out came my pasty pins and on went one of my favourite summer dresses! I bought this from Topshop last summer, after seeing every celeb going waltzing around in it, and I love it! Simple, pretty and girly - everything I love for the sunshine! I teamed it with my bargainous floral headband, to channel my inner Lana Del Rey, and also my exquisitely comfy floral Keds which you can get your hands on here, here and here!

Now when ordering my Keds I had in mind my impending weekend away in Amsterdam. I love nothing more than flying off for a weekend city break and as I've never been to the Dutch capital before I'm super excited! I cannot wait to ride along the canals on a bicycle, stopping to peruse the tulip stalls and then immersing myself into their cafe culture! But let's face it, my romantic ideals will only work if I'm wearing suitable footwear!

In other news, this week I will be attending my first proper blogging event! Eeek! I'm so nervous, but deliriously happy to have been invited! Now I don't want to say too much, as of course I will be documenting my day in pictures to share with you guys, but trust me the dresses involved will be to die for! Follow me on Instagram for a sneak peek later on this week: thegirlabttown

Oh! And lastly I would be completely honoured if you would vote for me in the Cosmo Blog Awards as Best Newcomer! All you need to do is click here, enter my URL: http://www.thegirlabouttown.co.uk/ and then your e-mail address! It would totally make my day year life! 

Hairjuice...

A couple of weeks a go I was sent a new shampoo and conditioner which goes under the name of Hairjuice by Daniel Galvin Junior, not a brand or product I was previously aware of, but it's unique selling point for me was that it uses a selection of certified organic ingredients.

DGJ Organics 'Hairjuice' £4.49 each*

Over the past couple of years I have started to become much more conscientious about the ingredients inside the products I use, having never tried an organic shampoo and conditioner before I was really excited to try this out. I was even happier when I found out that this range is also sulphate and paraben free. For those of you who are unsure about why there is hype surrounding parabens and sulphates I'll explain really quickly: parabens are chemicals used in cosmetics to prolong their shelf life and sulphates are a chemical used in liquid soap products (such as washing-up liquid, shampoo etc) which attract dirt and oils and then breaks them down, it is effectively the ingredient which gives soap it's suds. The issue over parabens and sulphates is that a lot of people believe that they can be drying and harsh, people also believe them to be bad for the environment.

Hairjuice claims to purify, refresh and stimulate all hair types. The ingredients in this range are largely derived from from natural sources including organic aloe vera, coconut, sea salt, organic melon and citrus fruit. This makes both the shampoo and conditioner incredibly gentle and would absolutely be suitable for those with sensitive scalp.

So how did I find this duo? Well, they smell incredible, like good enough to eat incredible! Both the shampoo and conditioner have the beautiful aroma of honeydew melon - fresh, citrus-ey and sweet! On application I did find the consistency of both products to be a little thin, however this is obviously down to the fact they are sulphate free and it is sulphates which are usually responsible for a product lathering well. Saying this, once the shampoo was in my hair it did lather better than expected, although I probably had to use a little more product than I would if I was using something with sulphates in. After my hair had been washed with these products and dried I found that they had effectively removed any build-up of dirt or product on my hair, they had added shine and made my hair feel soft. Now I'm not saying this product gave my hair a mirror-like shine, or that it made my hair baby-soft, but considering how gentle and chemical free these products are they definitely worked very well as an everyday shampoo. If I was washing my hair ready for a special occasion and needed something to give my hair a major moisture and shine boost, this wouldn't be the product I'd reach for. But for a reasonably priced shampoo and conditioner, that cleans well and maintains my hairs moisture on a daily basis, then this product does a fine and dandy job!

If you fancy trying out this range for yourselves then you can find it in Waitrose priced at a very reasonable £4.49 each.

Lately I've Been... #4

#1: Me and my boyfriend James pulling our best vogue poses!

#2: Mango & Raspberry Rekorderlig - Have you tried this yet? It's one utterly delicious summer drink! A lot of people on Twitter asked where I got my hands on it, I found it on offer for £1.50 in good old Morrisons. Stock up now!

#3: I got me THE Topshop printed crop trousers! Love <3! Oh and Infrared lipstick, cannot wait to wear this combo with a white top and denim jacket! Hurry up sunshine!

#4: Vino with the super gorgeous Anne from The Satirical Stylist! Go check her blog, you guys will love her!

#5: Why was I so late to the Lush 'Butterball' party? It smells amazing, I can't get enough!

#6: Model's Own 'Indian Ocean' layered over a coral base. Is there no limits to this polishes gorgeousness!?

#7: Finally bought Nars 'Orgasm' blush! Total new fave! Next on my list is 'Madly'.

#8: My Birmingham shopping spree. I love that city for splurging my cash!

#9: Boots make-up purchases! Absolutely loving Maxfactor False Lash Effect Mascara and L'Oreal Lumi Magique Base, but Rimmel's Wake Me Up Foundation?! Could not hate it more! I love dewy make-up and never wear matt foundation, but this took shininess to a whole new level! Hello Disco Ball... Not a good look.

So as you can probably tell from these pics, I'm now on Instagram! Come find me: thegirlabttown

Think Pink...

Leather Jacket: ASOS £100

Top: Forever 21 £12.75

Shorts: Vintage Levi's £15

Belt: Dorothy Perkins £4.99

Bag: H&M £14.99

Arty Style Ring: Dainty Roses xo

Necklace: Forever 21 £7.95

Achieve Boots: Topshop £75

Nail Polish: Models Own 'Bloo Bloo' & 'Indian Ocean'

Lipstick: Topshop's 'Brighton Rock'

Sorry that these pictures are a little samey. I began to edit them on Pic Monkey (as my beloved Picnik has closed down), and it crashed on me! So the pictures I actually wanted to post today I was unable to edit (by edit, I mean crop and resize). But I'm sure you get the gist of today's outfit none the less - casual, comfy with a touch of bohemian chic, ready for a day of wandering around IKEA! This is actually the only item of clothing I own in full on pink, can you believe!? I normally find pink too girly, but when toughened up with my trusty leather jacket and Achieve boots I loved the overall result! Oh and I personally think my new necklace is to die for, I cannot stop looking at it lol!

Last week I was off work so I decided to head to Birmingham for a bit of a spending spree. I found myself in Forever 21 and managed to spend two hours in there! Now I love shopping, but two hours in one shop is a lot even for me! However, I just loved it the whole experience of Forever 21. I was kind of expecting a Primark style nightmare due to the low prices but it was nothing like it. The staff were really friendly, the store was much quieter than I thought it'd be, the shop floor was immaculately tidy and it was so easy to find what you wanted, the fitting rooms were spacious and calm, and the stock was just incredible! I ended up spending £59, but that got me 4 tops, a skirt and a necklace! Total bargain central - if you haven't been there yet I urge you to pay it a visit. I cannot wait to have another spree in there, it's absolutely my new favourite shop!