jazzabelle's diary

back to black.

2012-02-13T20:12:00.000Z

Silk t-shirt & bag, car boot sale, £2 each - H&M coat, my mum's - Shoes, charity shop, £3 - Jeans, c/o Aubin & Wills.

Evening all! I arrived back home early this morning after spending just under a week in Calcutta/Kolkata attending a young people's conference on behalf of the Victoria and Albert Museum. It was quite the culture shock, but it was an amazing opportunity and experience, so I'm really happy that I was chosen to take part - I'll be sharing some pictures with you all soon! For now I thought I'd share with you an outfit I wore just before I left, for a quick visit to my local charity shops with my mum. I wore my always favourite secondhand shoes, along with a silk t-shirt, car boot sale bag, my mum's coat and a lovely new pair of jeans. I felt rather elegant in this ensemble I must admit, for me nothing beats a classic all black outfit. Love, Jazzabelle.

leopard print beret.

2012-02-06T16:56:00.000Z

Leopard print beret, Accessorize, £5.40 - Faux fur stole, charity shop, £1 - Bag, car boot, free - Coat, my mum's - Boots, c/o Bertie.

I've always wanted to add a little leopard print to my outfits, so as soon as I saw this beret I just knew it would be the perfect way to introduce the pattern in a subtle way. I used to wear berets all of the time throughout secondary school, but only recently have I thought about wearing them more often to add a little something to my outfits. It was quite the apt weather yesterday to debut my new hat - my mum and I went for a little walk around our local park to take a few obligatory pictures in the snow, which has now disappeared from London just as quickly as it came. I hope you all have a lovely week! Love, Jazzabelle.

peppermint tea & some lovely company.

2012-02-04T21:49:00.000Z

On Thursday afternoon after attending a little blogger event at Aubin & Wills, I popped along with Carrie and Olivia to a lovely vintage shop and café nearby Brick Lane for a cup of tea. Of course being bloggers we spent most of the time taking photographs, but as the decor and details were all so pretty it was hard to resist! I wore a plum Zara dress which you've most likely seen on my blog before, it's still one of my all time favourite secondhand bargains - thank-you to Carrie for the pictures of me! Also, thank-you ever so much for all of your votes, as I've made it through to the next round of Asos Future Stylist! Plus a congratlations to Lyzi who has won the twenty-five pounds Asos voucher.

I've been pretty darn busy recently and will be for the next month or so (attending a young people's conference in Calcutta, stylist work, starting my new job..etc), but I'll be trying to blog as often as possible! Love, Jazzabelle.

asos future stylist 2012: dressing up denim.

2012-01-23T18:56:00.000Z

Jumper, jeans and platform heels, all Asos - Bag, car boot sale, £1.

I'm sure some of you know that becoming a stylist is one of my dream careers, so when Asos approached me asking if I'd like to take part in Asos Future Stylist 2012 I just had to say yes! When I found out that the theme for the first challenge was to dress up some pastel coloured denim, I was initially rather worried as I'm not one for wearing candy colours that often. I chose a pair of pink skinny jeans to style and teamed them with an amazing pair of deep burgundy platform heels, a simple jumper and my favourite secondhand clutch bag. I had a few problems with the sizing of the jeans, but I'm ever so happy with how my outfit came together! The competition itself is being held on the Asos Facebook page, where I am taking part alongside a selection of other international style bloggers. It would be ever so if lovely you could 'like' my picture here and more importantly vote for me here (you can do so once a day!), as I would just adore to go through to the second round!

Asos have kindly offered the chance for one of you to win a £25 voucher, so all you have to do to be entered is to vote for me here and comment on this post leaving your email address! I'll announce the winner next week. Love, Jazzabelle.

everything is fine and dandy.

2012-01-14T19:54:00.000Z

Silk t-shirt and American Apparel skirt, car boot, £2 each - Bag, car boot, free - Heels, c/o Bertie - Coat, c/o Clothing at Tesco.

Another grey and black outfit to share with you all following on from my last post, I find it such a simple but effective colour combination, plus it's been lovely to purposely try to create outfits only using those two colours. I have a few more grey and black outfits in mind, but I'll also be posting a pretty darn bright outfit on here soon, so look out for that!

I've had quite the lovely week, to be honest. On Wednesday I had a job interview (which I so hope I get!), along with a CreateVoice meeting at Victoria and Albert Museum, then on Thursday I assisted on a V&A Shop shoot which was great fun. Apart from that I've mainly been at home drinking tea, replying to emails and watching Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps (of course!). I also found out that my blog has made the long list for Best 'What I'm Wearing Today' Blog in Company Magazine's Style Blogger Awards! If you so fancy, you can vote for my blog here, where you can also find my blog in a couple of other categories with many of my favourite bloggers and friends. I'm also hosting a little giveaway over on my Facebook page, where you can win one of three little V&A diaries! Love, Jazzabelle.

different shades of grey.

2012-01-08T21:22:00.000Z

Cardigan, charity shop, 50p - Scarf, car boot, 25p - Top, New Look - £5.40 - Topshop skirt, gift - Bag, free - Shoes, charity shop, £3.

I've been really drawn to the colour grey at the moment, more so than usual. It's a colour which really compliments everything in my (given, mainly black) wardrobe and I just adore how wearing a mixture of grey garments work together. I've been wearing quite a lot of colour recently, so it's lovely to go back to my signature style, which I definitely plan to develop further in the coming months. Two of my biggest style inspirations are Freja Beha and Audrey Hepburn, who are both of course known for wearing an awful lot of black, so I'm looking forward to finding more staple pieces in that colour to allow me to come up with different outfit combinations. A leather pencil skirt, tailored trousers, a pair of skinny jeans (darn you and your terrible quality jeans, Topshop!), some plain t-shirts, plus the perfect little black dress are at the top of my list. What items are you currently hoping to find, plus who are your main style inspirations?

A big thank-you to my mum who took these pictures this afternoon. Her photography is improving so darn much, plus it's been great fun to experiment with the different settings on my new camera! Love, Jazzabelle.

seasons come and go, but i will never change.

2011-12-31T14:03:00.000Z

Jumper, Topshop, £36 - Bag, car boot, £2 - Shorts, c/o Urban Outfitters - Leather boots, New Look, £42

I've been trying to write this post for so darn long, but as I'm not the best at expressing myself through writing, I'll keep it short and sweet. I'd just like to take the time to say thank-you so much to all of my family, friends and readers who have made the last twelve months so lovely, I've had such an amazing year. Of course I have had an awful lot of negative moments, but this year is definitely the year I feel have achieved the most and have felt the most confident and comfortable in myself. I'm finally starting to feel genuinely happy with my life, plus I am so humbled by all of the opportunities I have had because of my blog. I hope everyone has a wonderful start to the new year, I'm so looking forward to seeing what the next twelve months bring. Love, Jazzabelle.

a peek inside my bedroom & an early christmas present.

2011-12-23T21:11:00.000Z

Hello everyone! Yes, if you probably couldn't tell from the (hopefully) improved quality of my pictures, I got a new camera as an early Christmas present! My lovely mum and dad unexpectedly gifted me with a Canon 550D a couple of days ago and I'm honestly the happiest girl in the world. Since receiving it I've been experimenting with photographing practically everything and anything, but I thought I'd share with you a few pictures I've taken around my bedroom (and err, some very posed photographs of yours truly). It's taken an awful lot to get my room to how it is, but I'm ever so happy with how it's currently looking. My room is somewhat inspired by the Victoria and Albert Museum, particularly the recent Cult of Beauty exhibition, plus as you can see I just adore William Morris, pretty little objects and bric-a-brac. The majority of pieces in my room are secondhand too, of course! I'll definitely be sharing with you other parts of my bedroom soon, I just can't wait to start having more of a variety of posts on here now that I have this camera! Merry Christmas, everyone! Love, Jazzabelle.

a simple winter outfit & a magazine feature!

2011-12-19T18:48:00.000Z

Jumper, charity shop, 50p - Dress, charity shop, £7.50 - Bag, car boot, free - Hat & coat, c/o Clothing at Tesco - Boots, New Look, £42.

Evening all, I do hope you are all having a lovely start to your week. I'm completely in the festive mood now, I just can't wait to go down to Bournemouth to spend Christmas with my family! Apart from being tucked up in bed feelin' a little ill, I've been doing some last minute shopping and spending time with my mum around the flat listening to festive songs and making mulled wine. My mum and I have also been rather excited recently, as we have both been featured in the January issue of Company magazine! The article is about the photographer behind the style blog and it's one of my biggest features to date, so I'm pretty darn happy I could share it with my mum. I've posted it below, a big thank-you to Amy for scanning it for me (though in the actual magazine you will see the top of my head in the first picture, hehe). I hope you enjoy reading it, it's always interesting to see how our interview answers have been altered to fit the style of the magazine. Plus isn't my mum beautiful? I'm so proud with everything I have achieved since I started blogging, thank-you for being such a big help, mum!

I'm not sure how often I'll be posting over the festive period, so Merry Christmas everyone! Love, Jazzabelle. x

picture this, a day in december.

2011-12-12T17:37:00.000Z

Cardi, charity shop, £2 - Faux fur stole, charity shop, £1 - Topshop dress, car boot, £3 - Shoes, charity shop, £3 - Bag, car boot, free.

Even though I've been wearing more high street pieces recently, I adore it when I put together an outfit and it all ends up being secondhand. This outfit totals just nine pounds in all, so quite the bargain indeed if I do say so myself! I do hope you are all having a lovely December, I can't believe it's so darn close to Christmas! Love, Jazzabelle.

another lovely little café in battersea.

2011-12-04T19:34:00.000Z

Why hello, everyone! I'm sure you all know that I love to spend my time in cafés, so I thought I'd share with you a lovely little place I discovered recently. Despite living in Battersea for the last eighteen years and visiting the high street most weekends, I've never really noticed this café until recently, but I'm so darn glad that I did! Costa's Barbers is just off Battersea Park Road along a little cobbled high street, where they sell an eclectic selection of antique homewares and furniture, plus sell teas, coffee and homemade cakes. Whilst the sizing of the drinks are quite small, the atmosphere and friendly owners definitely make up for that fact, my mum and I will most definitely be visiting again soon! I wore a pastel pink Topshop dress which I bought secondhand, a faux fur stole and my favourite chunky knit cardigan, which I'll be sharing with you in a proper outfit post soon! Love, Jazzabelle.

and it's dark in a cold december.

2011-12-01T01:02:00.000Z

Gap silk tee, car boot, £2 - Bag, car boot, £1 - Coat & shorts, c/o Urban Outfitters - Shoes, charity shop, £3 - Stupid face below, model's own.

Happy December, everyone! December is most definitely my favourite month, I always feel so nostalgic and generally more happy at this time of year - the atomsophere in London is always so lovely. I'm pretty darn excited for Christmas too, as always! I unfortunately haven't posted as much as I'd like to recently, mainly because I've been feelin' rather pessimistic, plus my mum hasn't been about in the daytime to take outfit photographs. My mum was off work yesterday though, so after a trip to a little local café I recently discovered, we managed to take a few pictures. I've been wearing this outfit an awful lot over the last couple of weeks, the shorts are so flattering on my body shape, plus the coat is just adorable. I do feel really girly when I wear it, it's the perfect colour for Winter, too! Just call me little red-riding hood. Love, Jazzabelle.

i know a girl from a lonely street.

2011-11-12T20:23:00.000Z

Jumper, Topshop, £36 - Zara dress, charity shop, £7.50 - Bag, car boot, free - Scarf, New Look, £4.79 - Leather boots, New Look, £42.

I’m the type of person who has no problem with repeating and wearing the same outfit in the same week, so this is what I wore on both Thursday and Saturday, with the only slight changes being adding a scarf and packing flats in my bag. I adore the rich, autumnal tones of my jumper and dress together, burgundy/plum and green are by far my favourite colours at the moment. I also wore my new leather boots which are so darn lovely, though a little high for me to wear everyday. I still can't believe I spent quite so much on them, but to be fair I rarely buy myself expensive things, plus they were originally seventy pounds so I got myself somewhat of a bargain!

I've hardly been using my camera for anything other than outfit photographs in the last couple of weeks, so I thought I'd share with you a few pretty photographs I've taken on my phone recently. I'm not usually one to do close ups of my face, but here you are! I bought the cute burgundy beret from my favourite charity shop for just fifty pence the other day, so as soon as I got home I couldn't resist trying it on. I adore the colour, plus it was pretty nice to see what I looked like with a fringe again considering I've had a centre parting for the last five months now! There's also a little peep of my outfit whilst I was waiting for the bus, plus two jumpers in my favourite colours hanging up in my bedroom. And of course I had to post an obligatory photograph of a christmassy Starbucks! I'm sure you know I do like the occasional Starbucks, and right now I'm pretty much in love with the praline mocha. Love, Jazzabelle.

even on a rainy day, when the shades are grey.

2011-11-06T12:40:00.000Z

Jumper, Topshop, £36 - Bag, car boot sale, free - Topshop skirt, gift - Shoes, charity shop, £3 - Coat, courtesy of Clothing at Tesco.

This jumper is by far my current favourite piece of clothing, I've worn it nearly every day since I bought it a week ago. I wouldn't usually spend so much on a jumper, but after having to return yet another pair of Topshop jeans (sigh), I thought I'd treat myself to something I've been lusting after for ages. I just adore the short sleeves and bottle green colour, it's lovely to actually add a deep but neutral colour to my otherwise all black outfit. The pretty pastel background makes a lovely little change from my usual brick wall, too! I'm aware that this outfit is awfully similar to that in my last post, but what can I say, you know that once I find something I like I tend to stick with it for a while! Love, Jazzabelle.

burgundy & black.

2011-10-29T01:13:00.000+01:00

Jumper, courtesy of Urban Outfitters - Bag, car boot sale, £1 - Topshop skirt, gift - Shoes, charity shop, £3

Why, hello there! The last week has been pretty darn lovely to say the least - I spent a few days in Bournemouth with my family, have been spending time relaxing at home with my mum, plus on Wednesday I attended the Cosmo Blog Awards! I'm afraid I probably won't be posting about the awards due to my lack of photographs (though you can see some here, along with some videos of us after a few cocktails!), but it was ever so lovely to spend some time with my blogger friends and meet some new ones too. Thank-you so much for nominating and voting for me, I still can't believe that I made the shortlist! It means so much to me that you like my little blog, thank-you! I'm so proud of my blog and everything I have achieved from it, and I really appreciate all of the comments and emails I receive. I'm so very humbled. Love, Jazzabelle.

a simple autumn outfit.

2011-10-19T20:45:00.000+01:00

Gap silk t-shirt, car boot, £2 - Coat, c/o Clothing at Tesco - Faux fur scarf, charity shop, £1 - Jeans, Topshop, £36 - Heels, c/o Bertie.

Once again I've falling completely in love with Autumn - the crisp mornings, dark evenings, layering clothes, jumpers and scarfs, hot chocolate, homemade soup and roast dinners. Perfect. It's by far my favourite season, and it's also the season where I feel my style is at it's best too. I felt pretty darn autumnal and elegant in this outfit, I must say. The suede heels (which I bought using a gift card I was sent after I was featured on the Bertie blog), silk t-shirt, faux fur scarf and cape coat are all such simple, classical pieces - be prepared to see them often on my blog!

Oh yes, have you seen the photographs of Carrie, Shini and I modelling for Tabio's Autumn campaign on their facebook page? Try and spot us on the website, too! I was pretty darn nervous about how the pictures would turn out, but I'm ever so happy with them. I actually look rather nice, too! Love, Jazzabelle.

plum & houndstooth.

2011-10-12T17:52:00.000+01:00

Coat, c/o Clothing at Tesco - Zara dress, charity shop, £7.50 - Clutch, car boot sale, £1 - Socks, c/o Tabio - Shoes, New Look, £11.59.

Despite the fact I'm completely content in wearing my 'signature' colours of black and grey almost everyday, I'm trying to incorporate more rich tones into my outfits to add a little more colour, plum being one of my favourites. The Zara dress was bought from one of my local charity shops over a year ago (you may recognize it from my first ever outfit post!), the clutch bag is from Battersea car boot sale, whilst the socks were gifted to me after modelling for Tabio. I'm also wearing a lovely new coat which I chose from Clothing at Tesco, I just adore the boxy shape and double breasted front - I think it's really flattering for my body shape and it's the perfect coat for Autumn/Winter! What are the main colours you'll be wearing this season, and are there any colours you'd be interested in seeing me style?

Thank-you very much for all of your lovely comments and support, especially regarding the Cosmo Blog Awards! You are all so kind. Love, Jazzabelle.

a little café in battersea.

2011-10-11T12:48:00.000+01:00

A little bit of a different post for me, I hope you appreciate the change from my usual outfit posts! I've been thinking about ways I can improve my blog, so I'm determined to start posting about things other than what I've been wearing, such as my days out and my favourite places, as well as showcase my photography - just like what I used to do when I first started Jazzabelle's Diary.

After one of my regular visits to Battersea car boot sale or rummaging in my local charity shops, my mum and I often stop by our favourite little café, Il Molino, for a hot chocolate and a slice of cake. It's such a sweet cafe, quite rustic with a lovely atmosphere (though I have to admit that the service can be a little touch and go), plus I adore the eclectic decor! Wooden tables, peeling paint, glass jars and pretty lampshades are always a winner for me. The prices of the drinks are fairly reasonable for an independent café, but the food is a little on the expensive side for me personally. They always have some delicious paninis, salads and cakes if you fancy treating yourself, though.

I popped to Il Molino with my mum yesterday afternoon and she also took some outfit shots of me, so I'll share what I wore with you in another post very soon. Do you have a favourite local cafe to visit? If so, please share! Love, Jazzabelle.

black & grey.

2011-10-08T18:46:00.000+01:00

Jumper, charity shop, 50p - Bag, car boot, free - Shorts, c/o The Kooples - Scarf, £4.79 - Socks, £2.99 - Shoes, £11.59, all New Look.

Deary me, can you believe it's been just over a month since I last posted? Cor blimey. I have to say that for a while I felt a little bad for not posting, but I had to remind myself that after all this is my blog and I'd rather not post for a while than to write something half-heartedly. Plus to be honest I've been feeling a little down and unconfident recently, so it's been pretty darn nice to be quite seperate from my blog and to just focus on myself. I hope you all understand!

Just to update you, since my last post I've attended London Fashion Week (where I was photographed by Vogue Italia would you believe!), modelled for Tabio's A/W campaign (which should be on the website soon) and styled the window for my local British Heart Foundation branch. I've also recently landed my first job as a freelance stylist which is pretty exciting! I'm currently working with a large publishing company who are putting together a knitwear book, where I am in charge of styling, sourcing clothes and props, plus finding the perfect locations for the shoots. The first shoot took place on Wednesday which was brilliant, even more so as I had asked Rose to be the model, it was lovely to finally meet her. Today I also took part in a short talk with Amy, Kristabel and two others on blogging at the Victoria and Albert Museum, which was quite insightful.

In other news, last month I found out that Jazzabelle's Diary has made the final shortlist for this year's Cosmo Blog Awards! I honestly never expected to make the shortlist in the slightest, I really am so happy. It's so lovely to know that so many of you like and appreciate my blog, so thank-you. Even though I know I haven't been the best blogger recently, it would mean the world if you could vote for me here under the 'Best Established Fashion Blog' category. Thank-you! Love, Jazzabelle.

sheer shirt, leather shorts & a chunky knit cardigan.

2011-09-07T22:09:00.000+01:00

Cardigan, charity shop, £2 - Shirt, New Look, £11.99 - UO leather shorts, competition win - Bag, car boot sale, free.

Just a little post today, to share with you two of my recent high street purchases. I'm lovin' everything sheer and leather (or faux leather) at the moment, so the shirt and high waisted shorts are the perfect staple pieces for Autumn / Winter - along with my favourite secondhand cardigan! Despite the fact that I'm wearing my usual neutral colours, I adore how the different textures of my outfit work together, I hope I've proved that black (and a touch of brown) doesn't have to be boring! Love, Jazzabelle.

quite the prim and proper outfit.

2011-09-01T20:27:00.000+01:00

Zara raincoat, charity shop, £9.50 - Motel dress, c/o MyLabel - Bag, a lovely birthday gift from Lucy - Wedges, gift.

Happy September, everyone! It's the perfect time of year and weather to start wearing my bargain Zara raincoat I bought for just nine pounds fifty last year, I just adore it! So, it may be a little bit fluffy and has a hole in the pocket, but apart from that it's in perfect condition. It's such a classic piece, I've promised myself I must wear it more often this A/W, it goes with everything! I thought I'd team it with a dress MyLabel recently sent me after doing a little 'Steal Her Style' feature on me a few weeks ago, along with a pair of wedges (which I shamefully hardly ever wear) and the most adorable chain bag Lucy got me for my birthday. Quite the prim and proper outfit, wouldn't you agree? Oh yes, if you fancy buying anything from MyLabel, they have kindly offered you all fifteen percent discount if you use the code 'JAZZ15' at the checkout. Love Jazzabelle.

sheer skirt & a fifty pence jumper.

2011-08-30T22:36:00.000+01:00

Topshop skirt, gift - Jumper and belt, charity shop, 50p each - Bag, car boot, £2 - Shoes, charity shop, £3 - Watch, c/o H.Samuel.

Hello all, apologies for my lack of blogging as of late, I'm useless! It's been rather lovely to be away from the laptop though, as I've mainly been spending my days with family, reading, secondhand shopping and rearranging my bedroom - same as usual, really! I have to admit that I've been feeling a little down about the quality of my blog, but I'm really determined to start posting more regularly, so I'm setting myself the target of posting a minimum of ten times next month. Wish me luck! It would be great if you could comment with ways you think I could improve my blog or posts, I'd really appreciate your feedback! Anyway, H.Samuel recently sent me a watch from Guess to style after noticing that I've never worn a watch in any of my outfit posts before, which was very kind of them. As I expected, the watch was a little large for my skinny arms, but I actually think it looks rather nice so high up my arm rather than the 'usual' wrist! Plus it does add something to my simple outfit. I'll definitely be wearing the watch again, but I'm still on the lookout for something more dainty and vintage inspired to suit my style. In other news, I can't believe it's nearly September, this year has gone so darn quickly! Love, Jazzabelle.

ankle grazers, buttoned up shirt & a beehive.

2011-08-14T23:14:00.000+01:00

Topshop shirt, gift - Belt, charity shop, 50p - Jeans, Topshop, £36 - Bag, car boot sale, £2 - Shoes, charity shop, £3.

I have to say, I felt a little like Audrey Hepburn in this all black ensemble, with my skinny ankle grazer jeans and buttoned up shirt, this has definitely become my go to outfit as of late! I know some may think that wearing all black is boring, but it's honestly my favourite colour to wear and makes me feel my most confident, it's such a simple yet classy colour. I'm also embracing the fact that my hair had grown quite a tad recently, so I'm now back to wearing my hair in a part beehive which I adore, as I've been a little bored of my current hairstyle lately. I've had such a lovely few days, I hope you have all too! Thank-you for all of your comments and emails, sorry I'm so darn slow at replying to them all! Oh yes, and a congratulations to Hannah who recently won my Victoria and Albert Museum giveaway! Love, Jazzabelle.

brick, camel & raspberry.

2011-08-10T13:25:00.000+01:00

Topshop tee, car boot, 20p - Belt, charity shop, 50p - Bag, car boot, £1 - Jeans, Topshop, £22.50 - Shoes, charity shop, £3.

Hello everyone, I bet this is a shocking sight for you all. Me, wearing something other than black? Cor blimey. I absolutely adore the colour of these jeans, as soon as I saw them in Topshop last week I just had to try them on. In the past when I've tried on Topshop jeans they have been rather baggy on me, but since gaining some weight in the last year they are now the perfect fit (and quite flattering if I say so myself!), so I saw it quite the investment to also buy them in camel and black. The price of all three was originally meant to total to one hundred and twenty pounds, but due to two of them scanning through cheaper and my student discount I managed to get all three for just eighty one pounds! I hardly ever treat myself to new, 'expensive' things, so I'm really happy with my purchases. I can't wait to style the others, they are perfect additions to my wardrobe, I may actually have to buy a few more colours!

I have to admit, I was unsure about posting such pictures of myself after current events - the riots which have been taking place in the UK over the last few days are absolutely shocking, words can't fully express how I feel. On Monday night I couldn't even get home because my neighbourhood was too dangerous (luckily I managed to stay at a relative's house in South Kensington) and my local high street has really been affected. I hope everyone is okay. Stay safe! Love, Jazzabelle.

a simple outfit for an afternoon at the v&a.

2011-08-06T19:02:00.000+01:00

Joseph top and belt, charity shop, 50p each - Shorts, c/o The Kooples - Bag, car boot, £1 - Shoes, charity shop, £3.

Hello everyone! Just another little post from me today, to share with you a lovely photograph which was taken of me by a photographer called Russ McClintock. I met up with Russ at the Victoria and Albert Museum yesterday afternoon, after he contacted me a few days before asking if he could take some shots for a project he's working on. He asked me to come in my usual style, so I wore a signature outfit of mine - all black with a hint of plum, with some favourite pieces from my wardrobe. I'm really happy with this shot, Russ was a great photographer and it's even more lovely that it was taken in my favourite place too. Don't forget to enter my V&A membership giveaway which ends tomorrow night! Love, Jazzabelle.

the september issue, jazzabelle in asos magazine.

2011-08-04T16:02:00.002+01:00

Hello everyone, so I know you may have seen my feature in Asos magazine already, but I couldn't resist putting together a little blog post on it, as I'm ever so proud! I'm still a little overwhelmed by the opportunites having a style blog has given me, I really am, but it must mean I'm doing something right! I'm not the prettiest, nor the most stylish of girls, but I have my own page in a magazine (cor blimey!), so I'm very happy and humbled indeed. Thank-you to my mum for being the best photographer (who can now say she is a published phototgrapher!) and to Asos for given me this wonderful opportunity! Oh yes, don't forget to enter my Victoria and Albert Museum giveaway. Love, Jazzabelle.

i sit by and watch the river flow, i sit by and watch the traffic go.

2011-07-30T10:23:00.000+01:00

Joseph top, charity shop, 50p - Belt, charity shop, 50p - Topshop skirt, gift - Bag, competition win - Shoes, charity shop, £3.

Even though I've reverted back to wearing all black again, this has to be one of my favourite outfits as of late, which I wore for a trip to Southbank with some of my family on Thursday. I picked up this lovely Joseph top from my favourite charity shop a couple of weeks ago for just fifty pence, I was a little unsure about it at first but I just adore the elegant shape and cut out details. Plus isn't the background for this outfit post beautiful? I've been wanting to take some shots here for a while, so thank-you to my mother for being a brilliant photographer as always, and for being so patient with me and the ridiculous amount of people who kept walking into shot! Even though some people take living in London for granted, I feel so very lucky to live here, it's a beautiful city.

Don't forget to take a peek at my Asos feature here (page 25), and enter my V&A giveaway! Love, Jazzabelle.

sitting in south kensington & feeling content.

2011-07-28T00:18:00.000+01:00

Hello everyone! Just a little post today, to share a few pretty photographs with you all. As the title suggests, I've been feeling ever so content with my life at the moment, which is just lovely. My confidence, self esteem and anxiety has improved, plus I'm generally a lot more happy and comfortable with myself and my appearance. I've had a great last few days too, as my adorable younger cousin has been staying with me, so we've spent the days exploring The Natural History Museum, The Victoria and Albert Museum, South Kensington and Southbank, plus treating ourselves to delicous pankcakes at My Old Dutch and frappuccinos from Starbucks. I'll be popping to Southbank again today so hopefully I'll be able to get a few lovely outfit photographs! Plus just to mention, even though you've seen this outfit before, my Topshop dress was three pounds from Battersea car boot sale and my shoes where also three pounds bought from Cow Vintage.

Don't forget to enter my V&A giveaway, plus take a peek at my latest feature in Asos Magazine here! Love, Jazzabelle.

a victoria & albert museum membership giveaway.

2011-07-23T21:53:00.003+01:00

I'm sure you all know how much I adore the Victoria and Albert Museum, so I'm really darn excited to be hosting this giveaway, as a thank-you for being such lovely readers! I'm offering the chance for one reader to recieve a Standard Membership plus guest (worth a total of seventy six pounds), courtesy of the museum! There are so many benefits to being a member, including being invited to attend previews of new galleries and exhibitions before they open to the public, free unlimited entry into the exhibitions, discount in the gift shop and café, use of the private member's room, the chance to attend exclusive events and the beautiful V&A magazine delivered to your door three times a year. I've been a member for two years now, and I can honestly say that it's the best gift my mum has ever bought me, so I was so happy when she recently renewed my membership for a third year as a birthday present! I've also personally bought a few lovely pieces from the gift shop to compliment the membership.

All you have to do to enter is write a little comment mentioning your favourite museum or exhibition, leaving your email address, and I will randomly select a winner on the 7th of August. For an extra entry you can tweet 'I just entered @jazzabellediary's giveaway to win a year's membership to the @v_and_a! http://bit.ly/qL88nd', and leave a separate comment to say you have done so. This giveaway is only open to my followers who live in the United Kingdom (sorry!), but please only enter if you know you will make the most of this membership! Thank-you. Love, Jazzabelle.

quite the bargain outfit.

2011-07-22T01:12:00.005+01:00

Topshop t-shirt, car boot sale, 20p - Primark dress, car boot sale, £3 - Belt, charity shop, £1.99

Bangles, charity shop, £3 - Bag, car boot sale, £2 - Vintage BHS shoes, charity shop, £3 - Sunglasses, Next, £6

Last month SoFeminine got in contact with me offering to gift me with fifty pounds to buy a bargain outfit with. I of course said yes, even though I must admit that having fifty pounds to spend is what I personally would call a luxury, rather then being bargainous, so to be honest I found it quite a challenge to have so much money to spend in one go. As I shop mainly secondhand, and as boot sales and charity shops can be rather hit and miss, I found the easiest way to create an outfit was to spend most of my budget buying pieces I liked, rather then thinking of a specific outfit in mind. I then laid out all of the items I had bought and ended up creating this outfit, which came to a total cost of nineteen pounds and nineteen pence. As you can see, I couldn't seem to step away from buying pieces for a pound or two, and as my outfit total has only equaled to just under twenty pounds, I have another twenty something pounds worth of bargains to show you! I also spent the last of my budget on a lovely little lunch as a treat.

So what do think of my bargain outfit, have I done well for my budget? I so adore my shoes which I bought a few days ago. Perfect timing, really, as my beautiful vintage shoes are now falling apart! Love, Jazzabelle.

a simple birthday outfit.

2011-07-16T19:43:00.004+01:00

Topshop shirt, gift - Topshop sheer skirt, gift - Belt, charity shop, 5op - Bag, car boot sale, £1 - Shoes, Cow Vintage, £3.

Hello everyone, thank-you for all of your lovely birthday wishes yesterday! I had the most wonderful day. I strayed away from my usual tradition by not visiting the V&A this year, as just as I was about to go to the museum my uncle treated me to a little lunch at a pub in South Kensington, and then it was too late to visit before it was time to pop to my dad's and meet Shana-Kaye for a spot of shopping in Central London. In the evening Shana and I then met up with my mum and grandma for a meal at my favourite restaurant in Battersea, Fish in a Tie, where we ate way too much food and spent a lot of time admiring the pretty handsome waiter. I unfortunately didn't take many pictures yesterday, apart from of the food in the restaurant, but as I'm planning on visiting again soon to take more pictures for an upcoming blog post I thought I'd just share my outfit with you, sorry if that bores you! My lovely mum treated me to this Topshop skirt a few days ago as an early present, I've wanted it for ages and absolutely adore it, so thank-you mum! I love the sheer quality of the fabric and the movement of the skirt is just beautiful. Anyway, I have a few blog posts which I plan to put together soon, including two giveaways, a recent aquisition post and a little fashion challenge, so do look out for them. Love, Jazzabelle.

it's my nineteenth birthday!

2011-07-15T08:56:00.001+01:00

Light pink Topshop dress, car boot sale, £3 - Plum bag, car boot sale, £1 - Shoes, Cow Vintage, £3

A very quick post, as it's my nineteenth birthday today! I'm quite a simple girl, so my plans are the same as I do every year, so I'm off to the Victoria and Albert Museum to visit The Cult of Beauty exhibition, treat myself to something in the gift shop, visit my dad, pop to Starbucks and do a spot of shopping with my friend Shana-Kaye. Then in the evening I'm going to my favourite local restaurant with my mum, grandma and Shana to stuff my face with calamari and duck, yum. I love having my little birthday traditions, they never get old. I have already received a few presents before my mum went to work this morning, including a Body Shop Vanilla body spray & eau de toilette, a Quilts 1700-2010 V&A exhibition book and a renewed membership to the Victoria and Albert Museum! I'm ever so lucky. I'm not actually wearing the outfit above, but I thought it was rather appropriate (thank-you for the picture, Lucy!), but I'm sure I'll get some photographs of my outfit later. Before I go, I'd like to apologize for my lack of blogging recently, from now on I really am going to improve and try to post more often. I also have two great giveaways which will be up by the end of the month so do look out for them! Love, Jazzabelle.

stay at home, sunday girl.

2011-07-10T22:26:00.007+01:00

Vintage shirt, charity shop, 50p - Jeans, c/o H! by Henry Holland - Sunglasses & bag, charity shop, £1 each - Shoes, Cow Vintage, £3.

I've had quite the lovely weekend to be honest, I hope you all have too! I spent Saturday afternoon at the Victoria and Albert Museum attending a seminar on William Morris which was ever so insightful, as I just adore his work, then I met up with my fellow blogger friend MJ for a Starbucks and a little chat on the steps of the museum. Afterwards another friend came around to my flat, where we ended staying up until eight in the morning, so with just four hours sleep I met up with MJ again for a spot of charity shopping and carbootin', where we both found a ridiculous amount of bargains! I can't wait to share what I bought with you all, including an adorable pleated mini skirt for fifty pence, a smart black Asos dress (similar to this) for a pound, a beautiful faux snakeskin bag for two pounds, a brand new Primark vintage inspired dress for three pounds, a lace top for two pounds fifty pence and a DKNY silk shirt for a pound. Hopefully I'll have time before work over the next few days to take some photographs to show you! Love, Jazzabelle.

P.S. It's my nineteenth birthday on the fifteenth of this month, I'm ever so excited!

a secondhand topshop dress & my self esteem.

2011-07-04T18:40:00.006+01:00

Light pink Topshop dress, car boot sale, £3 - Shoes, Cow Vintage, £3 - Bag, car boot sale, £1 - Outfit total, £7.

As pathetic as it may sound to some, this time last year (or even four years ago for that matter) I never would have dreamt of having a hairstyle like this or wearing such a short dress without any tights due to my lack of self esteem and confidence. But since I started my blog, not only has my personal style evolved ever so much, I've also gained a little more confidence in myself. I have to say thank-you to you all, because your comments and kind words have definitely helped me to slowly start to get over my anxieties and what bullies used to tell me about my appearance. It's honestly such a relief to actually step outside my flat looking like this without feeling completely hideous. Now that I can feel somewhat comfortable baring my legs, it's really going to open up my style and allow me to experiment with more clothes over the summer without being restricted to long dresses or tights. I can't wait! This bargain dress, which I picked up for just three pounds at Battesea car boot sale, will hopefully be the first of many pretty little dresses I find secondhand. Also, can you believe I'm not wearing any black?! I'm really trying to embrace wearing lighter and brighter colours, as my 'signature' neutral colours have been boring me a little as of late, plus lighter colours do work awfully well against my skin tone. Do you have any tips on ways to improve one's self confidence? Oh yes, and the winner of my little giveaway is Emma Jade, so congratulations lovely! Love, Jazzabelle.

saint martin's courtyard garden party.

2011-07-03T18:34:00.003+01:00

Yesterday a handful of bloggers and I (all perfectly dressed in summer dresses and floral patterns for the occasion!) attended a little garden party at Saint Martin's Courtyard in Covent Garden. The event was open to the public, though we were kindly invited to receive more of a special treatment complete with goodie bags, which was just lovely. The day was mainly spent drinking Pimm's, eating strawberries and cream, watching a fashion show and Sunday Girl perform, wandering around the local stores, plus kindly being treated to a delicious meal at Bill's! Many of us also got our sihlouette cut out by a sweet gentleman, which literally took him just minute to do each time. Isn't mine lovely? I've already put it in a frame but can't wait to photocopy and enlarge it to start making my own pieces of art. I had a wonderful time with Lucy, Kristabel, Kirsty, Amy, Sherin, Daniela and Elisabeth, plus a huge thank-you to Lauren for inviting and looking after us for the afternoon! You can see more photographs of the day on my facebook page. Do you like what I'm wearing? I'll talk more about my bargain Topshop dress in my next outfit post, where I'll also announce the winner of my little giveaway below. Love, Jazzabelle.

the weekend mood and she's feeling proud.

2011-06-27T00:21:00.000+01:00

Hat, c/o Next - AA t-shirt, car boot, £2 - Belt, charity shop, 50p - Shorts, c/o The Kooples - UO bag, charity shop, free - Shoes, Vintage, £3.

Apologies for my lack of blogging recently, I hope these overly posed photographs (what have I become?! I'm a little embarassed considering how unconfident and hideous I am in real life! The joys of my mum being a brilliant photographer and the wonderful editing effect 'cinemascope' on Picnik.com) make up for that fact. For once I have a more adequate reason though, as I have only gone and got myself a job! I'm now working at Waterstones in Piccadilly, which I just can't believe considering as over forty people attended the recruitment evening with only two roles available. I'm just so shocked and proud of myself for managing to stay composed in the group and one to one interviews, particularly as this was literally my first ever job interview and only the third I'd applied for! I'm quite a nervous person, so working in such a big store with so many people is rather scary for me, but hopefully I'll get used to it all soon! Anyway, notice anything different about me? Yes, I'm exposing an awful lot of leg for once! I'm very self concious about my legs, so much so that in the last five years I have only 'got them out' fully twice (whilst on holiday in Thailand and for my Bertie feature), but hopefully soon I'll gain enough confidence to not just show my legs on holiday or for in the ten minutes it takes for my mum to take my blog photographs, but for a whole day wondering around London. Anyway, you've seen most of what I'm wearing before (I promise I won't wear my The Kooples shorts for a while!), but the American Apparel tee and Urban Outfitters clutch are quite recent acquisitons. The charity shop where I volunteer, Wandsworth Oasis, has kindly given me another brand new Urban Outfitters clutch to give away on my blog, so if you'd like the chance to own one just add an 'enter me' at the end of your comment I'll randomly select one winner in the next few days! Thank-you for being such wonderful people towards me. Love, Jazzabelle.

the kooples shorts, vintage shoes & a dior perfume.

2011-06-18T20:13:00.002+01:00

Urban Outfitters bow headband, charity shop, £3 - Shirt and belt, charity shop, 50p each - Sunglasses, charity shop, £1.

Bag, car boot sale, £1 - Velvet and lace shorts, courtesy of The Kooples - Shoes, Cow Vintage, £3.

Are you bored of seeing me wearing my The Kooples shorts yet? I hope not, as I just adore them and they are definitely my go to piece of clothing when I haven't a clue what to wear. I teamed them with a navy shirt and my favourite little plum bag to compliment the tones of my new vintage shoes, I still can't believe that I managed to find such a beautiful pair of shoes for such a bargain price! Today I also wore my new perfume for the first time, which I bought using a Debenhams voucher I was recently gifted with at a press event. I'm not really one to wear perfume, but recently I've been thinking about developing my personal style by finding a fragrance which fits into it, so after a few trips to Debenhams to sample various perfumes, I decided that Dior Hypnotic Poison Eau Sensuelle was perfect for me. It's musky, deep and warm with hints of vanilla - exactly what I was looking for in a fragrance. I've been wearing the perfume for over eight hours now, and it's hardly faded which is just lovely. I'm so very happy with my purchase. What's your signature perfume? And how do you think I styled my vintage shoes? Love, Jazzabelle.

quite the bargain, my new vintage shoes.

2011-06-10T21:27:00.061+01:00

Just a little post, as I wanted to share with you the beautiful vintage shoes I bought whilst spending the day in Birmingham with Winnie, Emma and Gemma on Thursday. I absolutely adore them, the neutral colours are so very me, plus they were quite the bargain at only three pounds! I bought them from Cow Vintage, so of course the majority of pieces in the shop were ridiculously overpriced (well, anything that's classed as 'vintage' usually is!) so I'm quite proud of myself for spotting these, particularly as it's so darn hard to find secondhand shoes in my size! I so can't wait to style these, I'll definitely be featuring them in an outfit post soon, so do look out for that! Have a lovely weekend, everyone. And thank-you for the overwhelming response on my latest post. Love, Jazzabelle.

a simple outfit for a summer's day.

2011-06-03T12:15:00.001+01:00

T-shirt, c/o Clothing at Tesco - H! jeans, c/o Debenhams - Boots, c/o Bertie - Tote bag, competition win - Bag, car boot sale, £1.

Whilst getting dressed this morning, for a spot of lunch with my friend in South Kensington, a wander around Bond Street and to attend an exhibition in Victoria, I realized that my outfit consisted of three pieces I have recieved for free from various companies. It wasn't intentional, and when this has happened in the past I've always changed, not wanting to blog about a whole free outfit, but then again, I thought why not? I chose these pieces myself, some which I wouldn't necessarily be able to afford (which I'm of course ever so thankful for), and as they are staple pieces which I wear often and fit into my personal style, I personally don't see much of a problem. Plus I'd hope to think that whilst you read my blog to see my latest charity shop bargains, you also do because of how I style my clothes, my photography and to generally catch up with me. How do you feel about bloggers recieving free things, and does this change your views on my outfit? I'd love to know your opinion on this, because I have to say I'm a little worried what some you may think, but I'm always completely honest on my blog and clearly state when I have recieved something for free (and only ever choose/accept pieces which fit in with my style). I actually still can't believe that I do, so I'm very humbled. Also, what do you think of my hairstyle? I haven't worn my hair out like this in over six years due to the fact that I'm very self concious about the size with my forehead (I used to be bullied over that and my weight), but I'm quite proud of myself for taking little steps with my self confidence! Oh, and it would mean ever so much if you could vote for me in the Next model competition here, thank-you! Love, Jazzabelle.

buttoned up shirt & a pleated dress.

2011-05-27T15:36:00.000+01:00

Hat, c/o Next - Shirt, Asos, £9 - Belt, charity shop, 50p - Briefcase, car boot sale, £1.

Dress, charity shop, £6 - Vintage slip, car boot sale, 50p - Brogues, Debenhams, £18 - Sunglasses, charity shop, 50p.

I do apologize for the photograph overload, but I honestly adore this outfit so I just couldn't narrow down the pictures my mum took of me. I wore this to attend a Next event on Wednesday (Sophie recently posted a lovely little post on the day!), and recieved quite a few compliments, which was rather nice to say the least. The dress is one of my more recent charity shop finds, which I of course purchased from my favourite charity shop. I spied it in the window one evening after the shop had shut for the day, so literally ran into the shop as soon as it opened the next morning to claim it as my own. The top section of the dress is quite unflattering and looks rather cheap, hence why I teamed it with a shirt, but the sheer quality of the fabric and perfect midi length make up for that fact, plus at six pounds I can't complain! I hope you are all grand, have any of you found any bargains recently? Love, Jazzabelle.

a blogger day trip to nottingham.

2011-05-25T00:39:00.001+01:00

Calamari with sweet chilli sauce for our starter and spaghetti carbonara for my main. Photograph of Winnie and I taken by Lucy.

Hat, c/o Next - Cardi, charity shop, 50p - Topshop shirt, gift - Satchel, charity shop, £5.99 - Shorts, c/o The Kooples. Photographs by Lucy.

Lucy wears a Topshop raincoat and a Holly Fulton shirt. Winnie wears a jacket c/o Vero Moda and a Miss Selfridge blouse.

Kristabel's final knitwear collection, titled 'Archive Assembly'.

Last Thursday I popped up to Nottingham to spend the day with two of my lovely blogger friends, Winnie and Lucy. The afternoon was mainly spent shopping (I was practically forced into buying a faux leather midi skirt from H&M, but at seven pounds it was quite the bargain), eating the most delicious three course meal at Il Bertorelli, having an impromptu photoshoot in the middle of the town square and of course taking many, many photographs. We unfortunately didn't get to explore as much of Nottingham as we had originally hoped to, as it was soon time to attend Kristabel's final fashion knitwear design show at Nottingham Trent University, the main reason why we had all come up in the first place. The show was honestly amazing, the colours, textures and the overall styling of Kristabel's collection were perfect, I can only imagine how much time and effort went into putting it all together! I was very proud of Kristabel indeed. After the show it was then time for us to make our ways back home, so we stopped by the canal to take a few photographs before I hopped on a train back to London. There are more photographs of our day out and the show on my Facebook page, so do take a look if you'd like. Love, Jazzabelle.

she's so dull, come on rip her to shreds.

2011-05-19T08:38:00.000+01:00

Blondie 'Rip Her to Shreds' t-shirt, TkMaxx, £15 - Bag, car boot sale, £1 - Belt, charity shop, 50p - Brogues, Debenhams, £18.

Floppy hat, c/o Next - Faux fur coat, charity shop, £1 - Velvet and lace shorts, c/o The Kooples.

Hello everyone, first of all I of course have to say thank-you for all of your lovely comments regarding my little documentary below, I honestly wasn't expecting such a response, so thank-you! They are some of the kindest comments I've ever recieved, I'm so glad that it has allowed you to get to know a little bit more about me and my everyday life. I've watched the documentary more than a few times myself, and it really has made me see myself in a different light. I really ought to stop putting myself down so much, because whilst I'm still extremely pessimistic and unconfident, I'm not as bad as I think I am. Anyway, I had the most lovely day yesterday as I spent the afternoon at the Victoria and Albert Museum with my grandma, to wander around the galleries (and gift shop!), have earl tea & scones in the beautiful William Morris dining room and to attend a free lunchtime lecture on the histories of the museum. I'll honestly never get bored of visiting the museum, it's such a wonderful place.. Righty-ho, well I better dash as I'm off to spend the day in Nottingham with Lucy and Winnie to attend Kristabel's final knitwear show! Love, Jazzabelle.

jazzabelle's diary, a little documentary.

2011-05-14T23:43:00.001+01:00

Hello everyone! Do you remember earlier this year I wrote a post sharing with you that I was being filmed by Purple Boot Media for a little blogging documentary? Well here are the results! I was ever so nervous about what I'd look like and how I'd come across, but I'm rather pleased (just excuse my awfully frizzy hair!) with it all. Of course looking back now there are things I could have worded better, but for a girl who is always nervous, I think I did pretty well. A huge thank-you to Purple Boot Media for asking me to be featured in their webisode, I had such a wonderful time! I really do hope you all like the video, I'd love to know your thoughts! I'm sorry for being an awful blogger lately, I'm hoping I'll be in the mood to post again soon. Thank-you for being such wonderful readers. Love, Jazzabelle.

i've got the blues, please come see, what your lovin' means to me.

2011-05-05T12:18:00.002+01:00

St Michael shirt & belt, charity shop, 50p each - Bag, car boot, £1 - Cardi, charity shop, £2 - Shorts c/o The Kooples - Boots c/o Bertie.

Hello everyone! Goodness me, I haven't blogged in a while, the main reasons being due to my lack of self confidence and motivation, as per. I haven't really been up to a great deal since I last posted to be honest, but I had a lovely Easter with my family, of course watched the royal wedding, celebrated my mum's birthday and have just mainly spent my days at home. I wore this outfit yesterday evening to attend a Starbucks Frappuccino event with my lovely mum, after I won a pair of tickets last week. Competitions and Starbucks, two great loves in my life, could it have been any more perfect? The event was lovely, my mum and I drank lots of free frappuccinos and cocktails, had fun in the photobooth and also got a little Starbucks goodie bag each, much to our happiness. This is definitely one of the loveliest outfits I've worn as of late, I just adore the colours and different textures. Whilst I haven't blogged in a while, I've been regularly updating my tumblr, plus I recently had an interview with Kristabel about my Vogue magazine collection and I've also been featured on the Bertie blog! I'm off to see Lucy and Carrie at their Flash Paradise event later, so speak to you soon! Love, Jazzabelle.

i'll have a cup of tea, and tell you of my dreaming.

2011-04-23T11:19:00.001+01:00

Recently I've been thinking, and dreaming, an awful lot about what I want to do and achieve over the next few months, before deciding whether or not to return to college in September to complete my part time Foundation Diploma in Art & Design. I'm quite a simple girl at heart, so most of my list is quite doable and not very exciting, but I thought I'd share it with you nevertheless. This summer I'd like to explore more of London, visit some lovely places in the South of England, possibly spend a day in Paris, sell clothes online, save some money, write my cv, try to get a job, work with the Victoria and Albert museum more, try to stop being so pessimistic and unconfident, be spontaneous, eat healthily, try not to worry so much, see Legally Blonde the Musical for my seventh time, spend even more time with my family & visit more museums. What do you hope to do and achieve this summer? Happy Easter, everyone! Love, Jazzabelle.

same old, same old.

2011-04-19T23:39:00.001+01:00

Hat, c/o Next - Bag, car boot sale, £1 - Cropped jumper, dress, belt and sunglasses, charity shop, 50p each.

Brick wall, floppy hat, neutral colours. Same old, same old. I know I really ought to experiment with more backgrounds (even though I like to think brick walls are a 'signature' of mine!), wear brighter colours and stop hiding behind this floppy hat , but what can I say, once I find things which I like I tend to stick to them. I spent this afternoon wandering around Battersea Park and charity shopping with my mum, which was lovely, of course stopping along the way to take a few photographs. I've uploaded a few more pictures of my day onto my tumblr, along with a few notes and quotes, so please do take a look if you'd like! I think tumblr seems much more me, I'll definitely be using it for a very long time! Love, Jazzabelle.

just a little note to say.

2011-04-16T21:19:00.000+01:00

Jaeger jumper, charity shop, 50p - M&S St Michael pleated skirt, charity shop, £2 - Agyness Deyn, White Mischief, May issue of Vogue.

Hello everyone! Just a little post today to briefly show you what I wore this afternoon, share my current inspiration and to say thank-you ever so much for reading my blog. I don't quite know how or why, but I have now reached over one thousand readers, so thank-you! It is a little overwhelming to be quite honest, but I'm so glad you like to read about my life, secondhand finds, days out and what I'm wearing. I'll be hosting a little V&A giveaway soon with some lovely pieces I've bought from the gift shop, so do look out for that! Also, I recently created a jazzabelles's diary tumblr, where I'll regularly be posting more photographs, notes and details of my day. I'd love to know if any of you also have a tumblr, so please do share your links below! Love, Jazzabelle.

feeling really rather pretty.

2011-04-13T22:39:00.000+01:00

Floppy hat, c/o Next - Sunglasses, charity shop, 50p - Topshop shirt, gift - Cardigan, charity shop, £2 - Belt, charity shop, 50p

Pleated skirt, Traid, £3 - Bag, charity shop, £1 - Friendship bracelet, made by my mum - Brogues, Debenhams, £18.

I've been back in London since Saturday, and since then I've been doing some of my usual but favourite things - tidying and rearranging my bedroom, volunteering in my local charity shop, secondhand shopping, drinking plenty of tea, entering competitions, listening to lbc 97.3 and magic.fm, plus of course watching my Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps dvds back to back. Anyway, I popped along to a little Gogo Philip blogger event at their new stand in Westfield, arranged by the beautiful Amy, and this is what I wore. It's honestly one of the loveliest outfits I've worn in a very long time, today has been the prettiest I've felt in ages! I bought the skirt in January, but I believe this is the first time I've featured it on my blog, plus the fifty pence belt and sunglasses are my new favourite things. Love, Jazzabelle.

that's fifty pence, please.

2011-04-08T23:14:00.000+01:00

American Apparel tee, charity shop, 50p - Belt, charity shop, £1.99 - H&M maxi dress, car boot sale, 50p - Hat, c/o Next.

Hello everyone! I'm currently down in beautiful, sunny Bournemouth, spending my time drinking tea, charity shopping, playing with my little cousins and just generally having a lovely time. I always do when I come to stay, sometimes it's great to get away from London for a while. I honestly didn't pack for the unexpected weather we've been having recently, my suitcase was mainly full of jumpers and cardigans, but I managed to put together what I hope is a decent outfit, consisting of my new American Apparel tee, maxi dress, favourite belt and my perfect-way-to-hide-my-hideous-hair-and-face-hat. I honestly don't have much to ramble on about today, but as always, thank-you for reading my blog and sorry for being terrible at replying to comments and emails as of late. Oh, and do excuse my shoddy photography - you can see the reflection of my tripod in the window! Whoops. Love, Jazzabelle.

gold, always believe in your soul.

2011-04-05T11:11:00.000+01:00

Necklace, charity shop, £2 - Shirt, Primark, £10 - Belt, charity shop, £1.99 - Shorts, c/o The Kooples - Boots c/o Bertie.

This is what I wore on Saturday for a day of dressing up with some lovely blogger friends and an evening on celebrating a friend's birthday in a bar in Wandsworth. I'm wearing two of my most recent acquisitions, being the sheer ivory shirt and the Accessorize necklace. I'm not really a jewellery person, but when I saw this behind the till in one of my local charity shops for only two pounds, I just had to buy it. Quite a bargain for such a statement piece, it really transforms my otherwise plain outfit. I definitely plan to buy more jewellery in the future. I also wore my Bertie boots and The Kooples shorts, I know that it means I'm wearing two free gifts in one outfit (which I have done before), but I think it just proves that if I am gifted with something then I wear it often and don't take it for granted. Anyway, I'm off to Bournemouth tomorrow to spend some time with my lovely family and of course to visit the local charity shops, so hopefully I'll be able to share many bargains with you when I get back! Love, Jazzabelle.

when you get a thing the way you want it, leave it alone.

2011-04-01T11:28:00.000+01:00

Jumper, charity shop, 50p - Belt, charity shop, £1.99 - Briefcase, car boot sale, £1 - Shorts, c/o The Kooples

Hello everyone! Thank-you for your response on my latest post about being alone and loneliness. I'm not the best at writing, so I'm so very glad you understood what I was trying to express, it was lovely to hear your feedback. I mentioned in my post on Monday that I was recently sent something from The Kooples, and here are the beautiful velvet and lace shorts I chose to recieve. Despite not knowing anything about the brand at first, I just had to say yes to have the opportunity to own such a lovely piece! I adore the simple and androgynous style of their clothes, very me, wouldn't you agree? Anyway, I'm taking another trip to the V&A this afternoon to attend the members preview of 'The Cult of Beauty: The Aesthetic Movement 1860-1900' exhibition with my Grandma, I'm so very excited! I've been looking forward to this exhibition for well over a year, I just know it will be beautiful. Love, Jazzabelle.

if you are lonely when you are alone, then you're in bad company.

2011-03-30T18:31:00.000+01:00

Jaeger jumper, charity shop, 50p - H&M maxi dress, car boot sale, 50p - Boots, c/o Bertie - Veiny hand and frizzy hair, ew.

The title of this post is one of my favourite quotations, by Jean-Paul Sartre, as it's something I can really relate to. I've always been a person who enjoys being alone - I often spend my college lunch breaks on my own in Starbucks and like nothing more than wondering around the Victoria and Albert Museum by myself. I'm also an only child (if you hadn't guessed already), so I have grown up knowing how to entertain myself from a young age. One thing which I really dislike is when others assume that because I'm often alone, it means that I'm lonely, because the majority of the time it doesn't. Of course I can feel lonely at times, I believe it's in my nature, but as Marilyn Monroe said, 'I restore myself when I'm alone'. Anyway, I'm rambling on a little, this post was simply an excuse to show you clearer photographs of the boots I chose at the Bertie blogger evening I posted about a few days ago. They are so beautiful, I'm very lucky indeed. I so adore the top photograph, which was taken by my lovely friend Shana-Kaye. I know that she was just randomly shooting in hope that I'd get a shot that I liked, but I just love the compostition and the movement of my dress. Thank-you, Shana! Love, Jazzabelle.

details of my day, what i wore & a few bargains.

2011-03-28T19:33:00.000+01:00

What I wore today ~ Shiny brogues, old briefcase, chunky cardigan, fifty pence scarf & something wonderful c/o The Kooples.

Lovely things ~ a bag I picked up from my favourite charity shop, Starbucks coffee, Playboy mirror & a pretty new duvet cover.

Today really hasn't been the best of days for me - for one I've been feeling quite down and ill, plus this afternoon, whilst volunteering in my favourite charity shop, I either misplaced my mobile phone or it was stolen from behind the till. I really do believe it was stolen, and whilst it was my own fault for not keeping it in my bag or in a drawer, I'm pretty darn upset upset about it, though a little part of me is hoping it is only lost. In more positive news, I'm really rather happy with the style of this post, I definitely think I'll do more of these in the future, if you'd be interested? I recently added a poll to my sidebar asking what you'd like to see on my blog, so I'd be so grateful if you could vote! Above are a few details of what I wore today (I'll be showing you the full outfit in the next few days), plus a few of my more recent acquisitions. I picked up the adorable little tan satchel in my favourite charity shop, the floral duvet cover was a gift from my nan and I bought the vintage Playboy mirror from Battersea car boot sale. Isn't the mirror amazing? It was only three pounds, so quite a bargain indeed! Also, just a quick note to say thank-you for all of your kind comments as of late, especially regarding my blog's birthday, sorry I'm so slow at replying to them all! Love, Jazzabelle.

old fashioned knees up.

2011-03-26T19:29:00.002Z

A jumble of photographs from the Bertie bloggers event on Wednesday evening...

The beautiful Christina, and is that a reflection of Ross I spy below?

I'd quite like Sally and Amy's hair, thank-you.

On Wednesday evening, Bertie hosted an 'old fashioned knees up' at their new Covent Garden store and invited me along to view the S/S collection, enjoy village-fete inspired refreshments (cola, lemonade, finger sandwiches and cakes, anyone?) and select a pair of shoes to take home. It was lovely to see many of my favourite bloggers again including Amy, Ellie, Abi, Harriet, Christina and Yish Yene, plus also see Sarah and Sally & Ross for the first time! Unfortunately the majority of photographs I took of them all were blurry which is pretty darn annoying, but they were all there, honest! I adored so many of the shoes in the new collection, incuding the pastel coloured brogues, loafers, chunky heeled sandals and wedges, but I was overall swayed by these gorgeous black heeled boots from last A/W collection which I couldn't resist taking home with me. I also loved the decor of the store, how amazing are the jumble of mirrors on the wall? I'm definitely going to make my own in my bedroom! Thank-you for a great evening, Bertie! Love, Jazzabelle.

jazzabelle's diary, one year old.

2011-03-25T01:57:00.000Z

I don't want to ramble on too much in fear of getting too emotional, but I honestly can't believe it's been a year since I started my blog, on a whim after attending an exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum with my grandma. Since I started my blog I've experienced so many new things, been to some wonderful events, recieved beautiful gifts and have met some lovely people. I've changed an awful lot as a person too, plus I'm sure you have all seen how my personal style has developed over the months! Thank-you all so much for reading my little diary, I'm quite overwhelmed by the amount or readers I now have and the amount of comments I have recieved as of late! I never expected anyone to be interested in a girl like me, so I really am humbled. I'm actually off to the Victoria and Albert Museum this afternoon which is rather apt, I'll definitely be treating myself to something from the gift shop to celebrate. Love, Jazzabelle.

each morning i get up i die a little.

2011-03-24T03:19:00.000Z

Land's End jumper, chairty shop, 50p - Topshop shirt, gift - Bag, car boot sale, free - Skirt, Asos, £9 - Boots, c/o Clothing at Tesco.

This is what I wore yesterday evening to attend a Bertie blogger event with some of my favourite bloggers, which I'll be posting about in the next few days, after I sort through and edit the many photographs I took! I bought this skirt just over a week ago, using my Groupon voucher, and I've been wanting to share it with you from the moment I tried it on - I just adore the shade of green, the midi length is perfect, plus the embroidery details and cut-work hem are lovely! I'll definitely be wearing this an awful lot over the coming months, it's now become a favourite piece of mine. Love, Jazzabelle.

not my usual cup of tea.

2011-03-21T22:10:00.004Z

Hat, c/o Next - Jaeger jumper, charity shop, 50p - Cardigan, charity shop, £2
What I wore for a day of volunteering in my favourite charity shop. The photographs were taken by my mum in one of our local parks.

DIY Cutoffs - Bag, charity shop, £1 - Socks, H&M, £3.99 - Boots, c/o Emu.

A few days ago I popped along to 42 Lamb's Conduit Street with Tory to attend a little event at Emu's pop up store with a handful of other bloggers. To be honest, I actually wasn't planning on going, not only because I wasn't in the best of moods, but also as Emu is a brand I would never have associated myself with so I was a little weary about attending, but I'm glad I did. Whilst my views on 'ugg' style boots haven't changed as I personally don't like the style, my views have definitely changed on the brand after hearing about the history of Emu and seeing what other pieces they had on offer, including women's apparel and accessories. The pop up store itself was lovely - I adored the decor (you can see some photographs of the store on my Facebook page), plus everyone was so darn nice and made us feel so welcome! We were also, unbelievably, gifted with any pair of shoes we liked from the store, so I chose these lovely leather boots, which were a favourite amongst us all there. I've never worn boots at this length before, and whilst they aren't my usual cup of tea I like to think they suit me, plus the sheepskin lining makes them ever so comfortable! Whilst these won't be a pair of shoes I wear everyday (I'll be sharing them with my mum, who conveniently has the same size feet as me!), they will be perfect to wear on cold, rainy days in the Autumn/Winter. Thank-you to Cube PR for inviting me, I had a great time! Has going to blogger or press events ever changed your opinion on a brand? And what are your opinions on bloggers accepting free gifts? Love, Jazzabelle.

blossom in battersea & some secondhand bargains.

2011-03-14T18:25:00.000Z

Land's End, M&S St Michael and Jaeger jumpers, all 50p each from my favourite charity shop.

AA skirt, car boot sale, £1 - Zara skirt, charity shop, 50p - H&M maxi dress, car boot sale, 50p

I've been really rather lucky on the secondhand shopping front as of late, above is only a small fraction of what I have recently bought. I've also found a couple more jumpers to add to my collection (including a rust H&M jumper with adorable elbow patches!), a little black backpack, a few books, a pair of polka dot trousers and a handful of scarfs. Last week whilst volunteering in my favourite charity shop, a lady donated a bag full of mainly grey and cream jumpers, so I couldn't resist holding some back for myself to buy at the end of the day. I mean, a Jaeger jumper for fifty pence! Oh, the joys of working in a charity shop, I get to have first pick of the latest donations! On the same day I also bought the Zara skirt I wore in my previous post, and coincidently whilst at Battersea car boot sale yesterday with the Purple Boot Media team I saw an almost identical grey skirt which will make a lovely addition to my wardrobe. The blossom photographs were taken in Battersea Park on Saturday, where on the same day I also bumped into the lovely Georgia in my favourite charity shop! I was pretty awkward to say the least, but it was great to meet her, she has such amazing style. Would you be interested in seeing more posts similar to this where I share what I have recently bought? Love, Jazzabelle.

what i find is pleasing and i'm feeling fine.

2011-03-11T17:12:00.000Z

Shirt, cropped jumper and skirt, charity shop, all 50p each - Bag, charity shop, £1 - Hat, c/o Next.

In some aspects yesterday was quite a usual day for me: I treated myself to a Starbucks (thoughts on the new logo? meh), explored the Victoria and Albert Museum and went charity shopping - the only difference was that this time I had a camera and crew following me around. A few months ago I was contacted by Georgia from a new independent production company, Purple Boot Media, to ask if I'd be interested in being featured in a mini documentary style webisode focusing on blogging for their final major project at university. After months of planning, yesterday was set to be the first of three days filming me going about my 'everyday' life to find out more about myself and my blog. I met up with three members of the production team, Suzanne, Rachel and Joel, early in the morning to film inside the Victoria and Albert Museum before it was open to the public, where they took numerous takes of me being interviewed, wandering around and photographing anything that interested me. We then went to my favourite charity shop where I talked about my love for secondhand clothes, why I shop in charity shops and what I was wearing. Plus we all couldn't resist trying on some clothes and buying a few bargains for ourselves! I could ramble on forever, but I'm pretty darn exhausted to be honest. Please do read Joel's post on the Purple Boot Media blog for a much more witty, funny and detailed account of our day! Love, Jazzabelle.

little high, little low.

2011-03-05T09:51:00.002Z

Floppy Hat, c/o Next - Topshop shirt, gift - Jumper, charity shop, 50p - Bag, charity shop, £1 - Jeans, c/o H!

Good morning, everyone! This is what I wore yesterday afternoon, the outfit was rather rushed but it's actually one of my favourites of late, the floppy hat and bag are my new favourite things plus I adore how the neutral tones work together. The jumper is one of my latest charity shop finds, it's so warm and such a pretty colour, I definitely recommend looking though the men's section in charity shops as they always have the best jumpers and cardigans! Have you bought any secondhand bargains recently? Last week I bought a lovely M&S St Michael shirt which I'm looking forward to sharing with you. I hope you have a lovely weekend! Love, Jazzabelle.

i'm not the kind of girl who gives up just like that.

2011-03-03T20:17:00.000Z

Hello everyone, sorry for my lack of blogging recently, since coming back from Thailand I can't seem to get back into my usual routine. Though to be honest it's been rather refreshing to have taken a step back from my blog, it's made me think a lot more about my life and what I want to do in the future, plus I've also enjoyed spending more time talking to my mum, reading books, drinking way too much tea and coffee, rearraging my bedroom and watching my favourite dvds. Hopefully I'll be back on form soon, I have some great charity shop bargains along with some new clothes to show you, plus I quite miss taking outfit photographs against various brick walls! I also have a few lovely blog related events and projects going on, which is rather exciting! Love, Jazzabelle.

oh when we walk, it always feels so nice.

2011-02-25T16:51:00.004Z

Floppy hat, c/o Next - Topshop shirt, gift - Bag, charity shop, £1 - Belt, charity shop, 50p - DIY cut offs - Random market bracelets.

Hello everyone! I'm finally back from my lovely family holiday to Koh Lanta in Thailand. I honestly didn't want to leave, I had such a wonderful time! I spent most of my days swimming in the pool and sea, wandering around the resort, visiting town, talking with the staff, taking many photographs, eating plenty of yummy food and spending time with my family. It was definitely worth the three planes, two little boats, a cab ride and plenty of waiting it took to get there. If you don't mind, for the next few posts I'll be posting about my holiday, I have so many photographs that I'd like to share with you! Also, I'm so behind on replying to comments, emails and reading your blogs, so please bear with me! I'm looking forward to catching up with all of your London Fashion Week posts seeing as I couldn't go this season, but luckily for me Vitamin Water kindly sent me a LFW goodie bag which was a lovely little surprise when I arrived home. Love, Jazzabelle. P.S. Natural hair, no makeup and actually showing bare legs, can you believe it?!

it would be, it would be so nice.

2011-02-11T16:28:00.000Z

Hello everyone! I haven't mentioned it on my blog in quite a while, but I'm off to Thailand tomorrow for a lovely holiday! I'm going with fifteen other family members, so it will be quite the reunion seeing as we are dotted about the country and some of us only see each other a few times a year. I've only been to Ireland, Portugal and Paris in the past so this is definitely my biggest holiday to date. I'm both really rather nervous and excited, for various reasons. My main worry is that my self confidence issues will get the better of me, but I'm trying to stay postive! My uncle is bringing his laptop and iPads (yes, he has two - ridiculous!) with him so I'm hoping I'll be able to blog once or twice whilst I'm out there, but if not I'm sure I'll be tweeting every now and then. See you soon! Love, Jazzabelle.

picture this, freezing cold weather.

2011-02-07T23:55:00.001Z

Shirt, Topshop, gift - Cardigan, charity shop, 50p - Satchel, charity shop, £5.99 - Jeans c/o H! by Henry Holland

Another Monday spent volunteering in my favourite charity shop; drinking tea, sorting through donations, tidying up, pricing and hanging up clothes, managing the till, serving customers and just generally having loads of fun. I of course picked up plenty of bargains myself, including a Topshop dress and two pairs of jeans, a few gold frames, a book, an old issue of Love magazine and a bag full of old unused matchboxes. I didn't spend more than seven pounds, so I'm very happy with that! Have you picked up any charity shop, car boot sale or jumble sale bargains recently? I'd love to know, I'm always interested in knowing what secondhand bargains people find. Thank-you for all of your lovely comments regarding my little magazine feature! Love, Jazzabelle.

live in dreams, sunday girl.

2011-02-06T16:41:00.000Z

I actually can't quite believe it, but I have been featured in a magazine! Never would I have thought that something like this would happen me, so I feel ever so lucky and proud that my little blog and hobo jumper (haha) are worthy enough to be printed in a publication. When Emma emailed me at the end of last year asking if I would like to be featured in Gallery Magazine, I couldn't quite believe it, though I was rather worried as I know I'm not the best when it comes to writing. Nevertheless, I really enjoyed writing my interview answers (some of which had to be cut out or shortened due to lack of space - or probably due to fact that I rambled so much), you can view the latest issue here, I'm on page sixty! I'll be treasuring this magazine forever. Love, Jazzabelle.

i stay away all week and still i wait.

2011-02-03T08:01:00.000Z

A jumble of photographs taken over the last week...

Friday morning, after attending a Next press event at the beautiful Savoy hotel.

Another cold and dreary day in London.

Sunday afternoon, photographing two of my current favourite bags using my new phone c/o Samsung for The Now Project.

Kristabel and I wearing identical skirts for an afternoon of bargain hunting at Battersea car boot sale.

Tuesday morning at college, drinking tea, writing notes and flicking through my old London A-Z.

MJ, Harriet and I in the brilliant photobooth at the Most Wanted Fashion Revolution party on Tuesday evening.

This isn't my usual style of posting, but I've been really rather busy (in the best way!) over the last few days, so to be honest I've just found it easier to post everything I've been up to in one go. If Iwasn't so darn fussy with everything I do, I definitely could have got a few posts out of this, but nevertheless, it makes a nice change. I honestly can't believe the amount of things that has happened all because of my little blog recently. It can be quite overwhelming, really. How do you cope and find everything that has happened to you since you started blogging? Thank-you for all of your lovely comments of late, I don't deserve them all. Love, Jazzabelle.

take10, the best challenge yet.

2011-01-27T13:44:00.002Z

Asos Petite Hooded Military Cape, Take10 challenge item - Club Monaco silk shirt, charity shop £1 - Headscarf, charity shop, 25p

H! by Henry Holland jeans, gift - Heeled boots, courtesy of Clothing at Tesco - Tassel (inspired by Nic!), haberdashery, £1.99

As my title says, this was definitely the best Take10 challenge yet, the Asos cape is just so lovely. The colour, shape and size (I'm wearing a size six petite, even though I'm nowhere near petite - I'm five foot seven) are pretty darn perfect, and it's surprisingly easy to style! Also, unlike the other challenge pieces I think that the cape is well worth the price tag as the quality is great and it's something which can work through all the seasons. How to you think MJ, Sarah, Sabine, Sherin, Paula, Vicki, Adele, Jen, Ellie and I styled the cape? Thank-you to Asos for sending this piece, it's made a lovely addition to my wardrobe and it will definitely be appearing in many outfit posts to come. Love, Jazzabelle.

hey little darling, don't shed no tears.

2011-01-25T22:38:00.000Z

I spent this dreary, rainy Tuesday out and about in my home town of London with my art class, visiting the Saatchi Gallery, taking a boat ride across the Thames from Westminster to Greenwich and visiting the National Maritime Museum. I wasn't really in the mood to go out today, but I've always wanted to go on a boat ride across the Thames so I couldn't resist. I'm glad I did, it was great fun sitting on the top deck eating sandwiches and taking photographs in the rain, I felt like such a tourist! Thank-you for all of your kind comments on my previous post by the way, I'm a little overwhelmed by the amount I recieved! Yesterday was indeed a better day for me, we recieved so many donations in my favourite charity shop (including six pairs of brand new Asos heels!), the stock was brilliant (we currently have two fifty pence rails!) and we made much more than our daily target. Love, Jazzabelle.

take a look in the mirror and cry.

2011-01-23T17:43:00.000Z

Club Monaco silk shirt, charity shop, £1 - Grandad cardigan, charity shop, £2 - Bag, car boot sale, free - Topshop pleated skirt, gift.

Today has just been one of those days, hopefully tomorrow will be better, I'll be volunteering in my favourite charity shop for most of the day which is always rather fun. This little post was simply an excuse to show you my new shirt and skirt, but please do excuse how ridiculously pale my skin looks, I don't think my camera nor the editing software I use like me very much today. Love, Jazzabelle.

a box full of memories.

2011-01-21T21:09:00.000Z

Some of my most recent artwork - a shoebox full to the brim of personal and found objects, ephemera, bric-à-brac, photographs old and new, tins, matchboxes and various other pieces. I plan to develop these objects further later on in the college year, creating a Joseph Cornell inspired assemblage piece, hopefully evoking memories, stories and nostalgia, continuing on from the piece which I made for my National Diploma in Art and Design final major project. I hope you all have a lovely weekend! Love, Jazzabelle.

next s/s11 blogger event.

2011-01-16T22:39:00.000Z

A jumble of photographs (and a little video!) of my day at the Next blogger event in Leicester on Tuesday.

I should have been at college on Tuesday, getting on with my artwork and sitting by myself on my lunch break with a Starbucks coffee and a Pret sandwich, but instead I was having the most lovely day at Next HQ sipping yummy drinks, eating canapés, trying on clothes and viewing Next's S/S11 collection alongside twenty-something other bloggers. After an early morning First Class train ride to Leicester and then a coach ride to the headquarters, we were welcomed with breakfast nibbles and a presentation of Next's main trends and pieces for the upcoming season. Even though I'm more of an A/W girl, I very much adored all of the sheer shirts and dresses, pleated skirts and delicate floral prints that were featured throughout, though with my I-only-wear-neutral-colours self I wasn't at all keen on the use of neon and clashing colours. We were then set a style challenge in which we were given a key piece from the new collection to style with anything we could find in the mock shop. I styled a lovely pair Rosa Trousers, keeping it quite simple with a sheer Slouch Shirt, a favourite amongst us bloggers, and a small clutch bag. Flared trousers aren't something I would ever have considered wearing, but I suprisingly really like them, and will definitely experiment with wearing something similar in the future. After we completed our looks we all had a mini photoshoot (you can see my pictures here) and then a videoshoot which you can see above. Do excuse how awkward and stiff I am in the video, I was just so nervous about being put on the spot and being filmed in front of people! Hehe. I have to say, this was definitely the best blogger event I have been to, Next genuinely seemed to care about us bloggers, really taking into consideration our opinions and feedback. Thank-you to Jenny from Jam and Next for inviting me along, I had such a lovely time! Love, Jazzabelle.

she only reveals what she wants you to see.

2011-01-12T14:21:00.000Z

A collage of some of my favourite photographs, most of which have been featured on my blog before. I think they all represent me, my life and blog rather well; neutral tones, eclecticness, secondhand bargains, London, the Victoria and Albert Museum, photography, my hobo jumper, brick walls, Starbucks, reading, art, pretty objects, the simple things in life and my ever changing style. Love, Jazzabelle.

goodbye today, hello tomorrow.

2011-01-10T18:07:00.000Z

Asos turban, gift - Zara shirt and paisley scarf, charity shop, 25p each - Cardi, charity shop, £2 - H! by Henry Holland jeans, £10.50

Today has consisted of me spending time with my ma and my grandma, getting free coffee from Starbucks, buying myself the most lovely pleated midi skirt for just three pounds in my local Traid store and deciding what to wear tomorrow. Tomorrow my day shall consist of waking up early, getting rather nervous, buying myself a Starbucks coffee, going to Leicester to attend an event at Next HQ and spending my time with some lovely blogger friends. What has your day consisted of, and what are your plans for tomorrow? Love, Jazzabelle.

feeling rather warm and cosy.

2011-01-10T00:18:00.000Z

Uniqlo jacket, charity shop, £2 - Hobo jumper, charity shop, 50p - Cargo leggings, Asos, £13 - Satchel, Next, £30

This jacket is definitely two pounds well spent, I bought it from my favourite charity shop a couple of days ago, it's just so cosy and warm! The lady who I work with, Vicky, is ever so kind, she often gives me discounts when I buy pieces due to the fact that I volunteer, regularly donate and visit the shop, which is just lovely of her. I'll be volunteering most Mondays, so please do pop by and say hello! There is a lovely little cafe, three other charity shops and a vintage shop nearby, so I promise you won't leave empty handed! Love, Jazzabelle.

take10, something a little bit different.

2011-01-06T18:40:00.000Z

F&F Couture lurex skirt, Take10 item - Velvet tee, charity shop, 50p - Liberty scarf, charity shop, £1.50 - Boots, c/o Clothing at Tesco

Me, Jen, Adele (her housemate, Marta, stepped in due to size issues), MJ, Sabine, Vicki, Nic, Sherin, Sarah and Ellie.

Hello everyone! Another Take10 challenge here, but this time it's something a little bit different to the usual. Instead of each getting sent the same piece to style, Clothing at Tesco asked us to choose anything from the F&F Couture range for each other! I chose a dress for Ellie and the lovely Nic chose this skirt for me, which just so happened to be the piece I most wanted to recieve. I decided to wear the skirt high waisted and teamed it with some of my favourite charity finds, including a beautiful Liberty scarf I recently picked up for just £1.50. Like in my previous challenges, I personally think that this piece is really quite expensive, plus the sizing is rather bad (they only go down to a size eight, whereas I'm a size four/six. Plus when my grandma, who is a size twelve, tried it on it fit her perfectly), but I did enjoy styling this piece and I felt very fancy whilst wearing it. How do you think the other girls and I styled our chosen pieces? Love, Jazzabelle.

it's not perfect, but it's mine.

2011-01-01T15:49:00.000Z

''I don't want to be alone, I want to be left alone'' - Audrey Hepburn

Hello everyone, sorry I've been rather absent recently, I honestly haven't been in the mood to blog due to feeling pretty unconfident and pessimistic with myself and my blog. Apart from that, I've been feeling ever so happy, I've had such a lovely Christmas holiday, I hope you all have, too! I'd like to say a little thank-you to you all for sticking by me and my blog, and hello to my new readers! Thank-you all for being such lovely people, I've made some wonderful new friends since I started blogging in March. Happy new year. Love, Jazzabelle.

feeling rather fancy and festive.

2010-12-23T23:01:00.001Z

River Island coat, gift - Faux fur collar, Asos, £12.80 - Scarf, charity shop, 25p - Bag, free - Heeled boots, c/o Clothing at Tesco. These are my favourite outfit pictures I have featured on my blog in a very long time, I felt really pretty today! Well, apart from the fact that my skin is really bad at the moment and the wind ruined my hair straight after these photographs were taken, but y'know. I always feel so fancy in this coat, I adore the gold military inspired buttons (I need to sew the bottom one back on, hehe) and how the faux fur collar instantly transforms it. I'm also wearing an early Christmas present in the form of these lovely heeled boots, which I chose after Clothing at Tesco recently sent me an unexpected email gifting me with a voucher to spend online! Shame on me for scuffing my new boots so much within five minutes of me wearing them and not even realising my zip wasn't all the way up! Cor blimey, it's Christmas in less than two days! I'm so excited, are you? Love, Jazzabelle.

take10, finally another challenge.

2010-12-22T12:41:00.002Z

-Wildfox t-shirt, Take10 challenge item -Grandad cardigan, charity shop, £2 -H&M scarf, charity shop, 50p -Paisley scarf, charity shop, 25p -Belt, car boot sale, free -Satchel, Next, £30 -Jeans, courtesy of H! by Henry Holland -Leather boots, Topshop, £60.

Hello everyone! It's all been rather hectic over at Take10 at the moment - parcels haven't arrived, there have been more lineup changes and just generally lots of confusion, but we have all finally got round to posting! My second challenge, and the first for the lovely new girls Ellie and Paula, was to style this oversized tee sent to us by Wildfox. To be honest, Wildfox isn't a brand I would ever have considered wearing for various reasons, including the fact that I don't like when brands put their name so boldly on their pieces and I find the prices for one darn t-shirt rather ridiculous, but I really did enjoy styling this piece. The quality is pretty lovely, plus I adore the worn in effect. I will definitely be wearing this again. How do you all think I and the rest of the girls styled the piece? Love, Jazzabelle. Left to right on the collage: MJ, Ellie, Jen, Vicki, Paula, Sarah, Sherin, Sabine, Adele and me!

i know a girl from a lonely street.

2010-12-19T21:43:00.000Z

-Scarf, charity shop, 50p -River Island coat, gift -Faux fur collar, Asos, £12.80 -Satchel, Next, £30 -Jeans c/o H! by Henry Holland.

My Sunday has consisted of spending time with family, visiting Winter Wonderland, trying not to slip over, drinking hot chocolate, feeling very cold, admiring the beautiful flats in South Kensington and playing on one of my Uncle's iPads. I'm feeling even more Christmassy than I did yesterday, I can't believe there's less than a week until Christmas! I hope you have all had a lovely Sunday! Love, Jazzabelle.

cold as ice-cream, but still as sweet.

2010-12-18T20:04:00.000Z

“The true secret of happiness lies in taking a genuine interest in all the details of daily life.” - William Morris.

-Hobo jumper, charity shop, £2 -Cardigan, charity shop, 50p -Gloves, Asos, £1 -Jeans, courtesy of H! by Henry Holland.

-Chunky scarf, car boot sale, 25p -Knitted turban, Primark, £2 -Satchel, charity shop, £5.99

Right now I'm wrapped up in a duvet, drinking tea, entering competitions and watching television, not my original plan for this evening, darn snow. I can't deny the fact that it is beautiful, though, and has certainly put me in a Christmassy mood. I'm very much looking forward to spending my holidays with family, drinking hot chocolate, eating too much, watching Audrey Hepburn movies and Christmas specials, wearing various hobo jumpers and of course opening presents! How are you looking to spend your holidays? Love, Jazzabelle.

another one to add to my collection.

2010-12-17T20:49:00.000Z

Here's another hobo jumper to add to my collection, which I bought yesterday for just two pounds on a very successful trip to my favourite charity shop. I picked up some great bargains, which I'm so looking forward to sharing with you soon! Sorry for my lack of blogging recently and for taking so long to reply to comments, I'm hoping I'll be posting regularly for the next couple of weeks! Love, Jazzabelle.

twenty-five pence paisley prints.

2010-12-09T22:34:00.002Z

“If you are lonely when you're alone, you are in bad company” - Jean-Paul Sartre

-Paisley scarf and paisley Zara shirt, charity shop, 25p each -Cardi, charity shop, £2 -Necklace, courtesy of Gogo Philip (thank-you, Amy!) -Bow, scrap of secondhand lace -Satchel, Next, £30 -Jeans, courtesy of Next -Socks, Asos, £1 -Leather boots, Topshop, £60

Today I wore two of my most recent bargains, the paisley scarf and paisley Zara shirt, which I bought for just twenty-five pence each from my favourite charity shop. Paisley is a print I've never really worn before, but I'm so glad I bought these, I adore them, I'll definitely be on the hunt for more paisley pieces from now on! I really am fond of this outfit, I think that the different shades of brown plus the hints of yellow and red work ever so well together. This is a combination I'll definately be wearing again. Love, Jazzabelle. P.S. I'd like to say thank-you to Ellie for sending me the most adorable Christmas card, to Alice for sending me the most thoughtful little presents and to Nic for inspiring how I wore the shirt and bow! I must get my hands on some adorable tassels to experiment with!

beautifully gloomy, the victoria and albert museum.

2010-12-03T23:19:00.087Z

''Living is like tearing through a museum. Not until later do you really start absorbing what you saw, thinking about it, looking it up in a book, and remembering - because you can't take it in all at once.'' - Audrey Hepburn.I'm sure you all know how much I adore the Victoria and Albert Museum by now, and as I go so often I take so many photographs that always just end up sitting in various folders on my laptop. I thought I'd share with you some of my favourites which were taken on the same day as that on my 'the victoria and albert museum & the near perfect fit' post. I find many parts of the museum so beautifully gloomy, especially in the British Galleries, William Morris cafe and the long corridors, the V&A has really inspired the decor of my bedroom.I'm really tired right now, I have a lot I could talk about but all I want to do now is tuck myself up in bed and listen to my favourite radio station, LBC 97.3. I was at the V&A for nine hours yesterday working with CreateVoice and the Blue Train project to help organize and host a late friday event which we've been planning for months. The event went so much better than I expected and many of my ideas were used which was very flattering indeed. I also got to explore some staff only areas of the museum, which really makes me wish I could work at such a beautiful place even more. I always seem to forget to mention that when people asked me what I'd like to do when I'm older, but working at the V&A would literally be a dream come true for me. Love, Jazzabelle. P.S. That's a reflection of my lovely mother in the second to last picture! She's the best, she takes practically every outfit photograph of me, y'know! Thank-you, mom.

happy december, everyone.

2010-12-01T15:46:00.024Z

-H&M scarf, charity shop, 50p -Grandad cardigan, charity shop, £2 -Skinny jeans courtesy of H! by Henry Holland -Satchel, Next, £30

Hello, happy December, everyone! Thank-you so much for all of your lovely comments, sorry I'm so slow at replying! Love, Jazzabelle.

a peek inside my bedroom.

2010-11-29T19:44:00.002Z

“If you want a golden rule that will fit everything, this is it: Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.” - William Morris. I absolutely adore this quote, it's ever so true!
As some of you may know, I live in a cosy one bedroom council flat (not a sky rise, just a two storey flat) with my mum, and a couple of years ago she ever so lovingly moved out of our bedroom to let me have my very own room. As it's the only bedroom in the flat, it means it's rather big and has two built in wardrobes (one for me, one for my mum!), and in the last couple of months I have nearly got it the way I want it - filled with many lovely secondhand finds, William Morris prints, floral patterns, frames, hat boxes, cushions, magazines, books, and pretty bits and bobs. My room used to be more floral and girly, but now I'm taking the more antique, vintage and eclectic look.

Of course my hobo jumper is the pride and joy of my wardrobe, hanging in it's rightful place at the front with all of my other knitwear, along with my most worn pieces folded on the shelves below. I bought the large gold frame in one of my favourite charity shops for three pounds, the matching hat boxes were five pounds and the floral hatbox was just fifty pence. The lovely, possibly vintage, suitcase was completely free, I found it just left outside my flat one day, so couldn't resist taking it for myself! The cabinet on the right holds a wooden divider (£1.50), a William Morris print folder (£1.25), a shoebox full to the brim with postcards, a few art books, House & Garden magazines (20p each) and a 1975 issue of Vogue I bought for just two pounds! This is definitely my favourite corner of my bedroom!

I started to collect Vogue magazines in 2007 and since 2008 I forbade myself from ripping them up for collages, as they will be lovely things to look back on in the future. I think they make quite a lovely display in my wardrobe, but goodness me it is such an effort when I move them from one side of my room to the other! On display I also have some of my favourite secondhand books; the Collins Road Atlas (I ripped out the lovely map of London to put in my gold frame inside my wardrobe) was £1.50, The first Audrey Hepburn book was £5, the second was a gift, the third was a £1 and the William Morris book at the end was £1. Anyway, I think that I shall leave it has that, I hope you like my bedroom as much as I do! What does your bedroom look like, or what do you wish it looked like? Love, Jazzabelle. P.S. Yes, yes, I know it's not quite December yet, but I was actually going to post this on Wednesday but I just couldn't wait, hehe! Edit: Forgot to mention that I recently done an interview for Cellardoor Magazine's blog, please do take a look to find out what I can't live without and some tips for charity shopping!

hobo jumper, grandad cardigan and a little video post.

2010-11-27T19:45:00.003Z

-Skinny jeans, courtesy of H! by Henry Holland -Hobo jumper, charity shop, 50p -Grandad cardigan, charity shop, £2 -Snood, Asos, £1

Hello everyone, sorry I haven't posted in a while, I've been feeling really ill, unconfident and down for the last two weeks so I haven't been in the mood to take any outfit pictures. I'm feeling rather better now, so I decided to venture out today for a spot of Christmas shopping and to treat myself to a christmassy Starbucks and a Pret sandwich. Once again, my hobo jumper was calling out to be worn, I just couldn't resist. I teamed it with my latest charity shop find, the grandad cardigan, and a pair of blue jeans. Blue jeans! I haven't worn blue jeans in about two years, so when I recieved a lovely email from Emily, the assistant buyer for H! by Henry Holland, who after noticing that I already own a few pieces, offered to gift me with a couple more from the website, I just had to choose these. I can't believe that I haven't worn jeans like this in so long, it feels somewhat weird, but I like it. Thank-you Emily! On a completely different note, I have made this mummy scissors necklace I'm wearing for Roz, another lover of the Victoria and Albert Museum, as part of her blogging initiative she asked me to be part of a while ago. I decided to keep mine rather simple, by wrapping it in some lace I bought at my local car boot sale and an old gold chain I found lying about in my bedroom. Roz recently had a very serious surgery, so this is a little something for her. I wish you a safe recovery, Roz, and sorry it took me so long to post this. Love, Jazzabelle. P.S. I recorded my first video blog today. I was really unsure about posting this as I'm a rather unconfident person in 'real life', but I thought you would like to see me as me. I hope you like it, and let me know what you think!

oh, hello again hobo jumper.

2010-11-14T21:47:00.000Z

“People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed, and redeemed; never throw out anyone.”

-Turban, Asos, £1 -Hobo jumper, charity shop, 50p -H! by Henry Holland jeans, Debenhams, £10.50 -Leather boots, Topshop, £60
You must just be so bored of my face, hobo jumper and knitted turban by now - I do apologize! But I do hope you are not, as the reason why I blog is not to show you a new outfit every time I post (sorry, but I just can't spend hundreds of pounds in Topshop and Primark a month like many other bloggers), but to show you my bargains and how I style them in different ways. My hobo jumper is so versatile, I for one shall never be bored of this fifty pence gem, my cost per wear must be at least a penny by now! I'm still in search of another jumper which lives up to this one, I'm off to my favourite charity shops tomorrow and for a spot of Christmas shopping (please tell me you are excited for Christmas, too? I've started to compile my wish list on my side bar, just in case you'd like to, y'know, send me something, hehe) so wish me luck! Oh yes, what do you think to how I've been laying out my photographs in this post and the previous one? I think it makes a nice change from my usual same size landscape photographs. Also, even though this is my blog and I can post what I want when I want..etc, is there anything you would like to possibly see more of on here? Love, Jazzabelle. Quote by Audrey Hepburn.

my friday evening, at the victoria and albert museum.

2010-11-13T23:35:00.001Z

Yesterday evening, along with Shana-Kaye, my mum and her friend, we went to the Victoria and Albert Museum, to attend another Fashion In Motion event, this time in celebration of the fourtieth anniversary of the Parisian fashion house, Kenzo. The Fashion in Motion events are always just so wonderful, with a number of free shows throughout the day set against the beautiful backdrop of the Raphael Gallery. In the past I have seen Erdem (who also attended the show last night) Osman and Giles Deacon but this show was especially wonderful. I adored all of the beautiful floral patchworks, ruffles and layers, the bright eyeshadow on all of the models, plus the pretty invitations to attend a cocktail party at the Kenzo store in a couple of weeks were a lovely added touch. Whilst we weren't front row, we were sat right by the photographer's pit so we got a brilliant view of the show, also allowing me to finally take some decent pictures at a catwalk show. I've just recently posted the rest of my photographs on my facebook page if you'd like to take a look. Love, Jazzabelle. P.S. What did I wear? My velvet maxi dress, gilet and knitted turban, of course! P.P.S. Ignore my frizzy hair! Goodness, this weather is really getting on my nerves.

take10, the new girl.

2010-11-11T18:14:00.000Z

-Next metallic jumper, Take10 challenge item -H&M jumper, charity shop, 50p - H&M gilet, charity shop, £8 -Belt, charity shop, £1.99
Yes, I am indeedy the new Take10 girl! I couldn't quite believe I was asked to take over from the lovely Saskia (I miss you!), who is unfortunately too busy with medical school to continue, I'm so very looking forward to all of the challenges to come! The first item I was sent was this Next metallic jumper and oh my, how it was difficult for me to style. Next has so many beautiful pieces in store this Autumn/Winter, but unfortunately for me this wan't one of them. It's metallic, orange, itchy and it snags easily, I personally could never pay thirty-eight pounds for this. I like to think that I have somewhat made the jumper my own, though, by teaming it with my favourite charity shop belt, polka dot tights and my H&M gilet which as appeared on my blog so many times since I bought it (I promise I won't feature it for a while, hehe). How do you think all of the other girls and I styled the jumper? It's amazing to see how everyone has worn the same piece, still sticking to their signature styles. Love, Jazzabelle. Left to right on the collage (click to enlarge): Me, Shini, Nic, Sabine, MJ, Jen, Sarah, Sherin, Vicki and Adele - Thank-you for all so kindly welcoming me as the newest Take10 girl!

i need you, more than anyone darlin'

2010-11-10T02:26:00.000Z

-Turban and mittens, Asos, £1 each- Diesel jumper, charity shop, 50p - H&M gilet, charity shop, £8 -Necklace, courtesy of Gogo Philip
I don't know why I am up so late writing this post, I'm so darn tired but I just can't sleep. This is what I wore yesterday to college, I seriously can't stop wearing the faux leather gilet, it goes with practically everything I own, so be prepared for many more posts featuring it! I also wore this in the evening for my sixth time seeing Legally Blonde The Musical in the West End. Little did I know that it was a premiere welcoming the new cast, I felt so underdressed with many celebrities roaming about. Nevertheless, I had a wonderful time, miming along the whole way though, laughing so much and perhaps shedding a little tear every now and again, hehe - I would truly recommend you going to see it, it's such a heart warming and feel good show. Oh, and I'd like to say a big thank-you to the lovely Amy for sending me this Gogo Philip Necklace! It's not my usual thing, but I adore the rusty gold metal and the detail of the hand, I've been wearing it non stop for the last couple of days! Please do visit her blog, I'm so in love with her style! Love Jazzabelle.

my new favourite thing.

2010-11-06T18:41:00.000Z

This lovely F&F velvet maxi dress is my new favourite thing, which was kindly sent to me by Clothing at Tesco. I just adore it, the length is so perfect, the neckline and long sleeves are lovely, and I think that the overall shape of the dress really accentuates my figure. Last night I simply teamed it with my favourite lipstick, charity shop belt, black wedges, car boot sale scarf and my lovely Asos knitted turban. In return for accepting this piece, Clothing at Tesco asked if I could then 'post it on' to another blogger, allowing them to pick anything they'd like from the Clothing at Tesco range. The lovely lady I choose is Fi from Save Our Shoes, I can't wait to see what she picks! I wore this ensemble to the Yummy Hair event last night, after Kristabel invited me as her plus one. I had the most wonderful evening, consisting of drinking champagne and eating canapés in a private capsule on the London Eye, a ride in a hummer limo to a bar, and free cocktails and food all night! I may post some of the photographs from the evening on my new 'Jazzabelle's Diary' Facebook page, I was really unsure of creating one at first, but it will allow me to post more photographs and links without spamming you and my blog. Love, Jazzabelle.

you'll never guess where we went today...

2010-11-02T20:27:00.000Z

-Faux leather gilet, charity shop, £8 -H! by Henry Holland maxi dress, £28 -Scarf, car boot sale, 25p -Satchel, courtesy of Next.
To the Victoria and Albert Museum, of course! I met up with the lovely Lucy from Snippets of Shiny Thoughts for a wander around the amazing Diaghilev and the Golden Age of the Ballet Russes exhibition and for a little lunch, stopping along the way to take a few photographs. Lucy is just so darn beautiful and kind, plus I just adore her bright, quirky style. We are both so different in the way we dress, apart from the fact that we both clearly have a love for hobo jumpers, hehe! We're planning to dress like one another one day, it's so far out of both our comfort zones that I just know it will be difficult! What do you think, would you like to see me experiment with wearing more colourful outfits? Thank-you for such a lovely day, Lucy! Love, Jazzabelle.

starbucks, southbank and another hobo jumper.

2010-11-01T21:38:00.002Z

-Knitted turban, Asos, £1 -Hobo jumper, charity shop, 50p -Signature hot chocolate for me, Caramel creme frappuccino for her.

Just a little post with a few of my favourite pictures of my evening with my dear friend, Shana-Kaye. London Waterloo is the most convenient place for us to meet so we tend to go there quite often for a Starbucks and a walk along the River Thames. Do you like my bargain knitted turban? A few days ago on one of my favourite websites, somebody found and posted a code on the forum which entitled you to ten pounds off an eleven pound minimum spend at Asos. I ended up placing five orders (and don't tell me you wouldn't have if you knew about the code too?), spending ten pounds in total for sixty pounds worth of lovely pieces. I bought ten pieces altogether, making each only a pound, what bargains! I'm so looking forward to showing you what I bought on my next few outfit posts! Love, Jazzabelle.

double chunky knit, hobo jumper and reflections

2010-10-30T22:16:00.000+01:00

-Hobo jumper, charity shop, 50p -Grey scarf, car boot sale, 25p -Camel scarf, charity shop, £1.50 -Satchel, charity shop, £5.99
Sorry I haven't posted in over a week, I've wanted to, but I've been feeling rather ill and unconfident for the last couple of days so I haven't been in the mood to take pictures. Thank-you for all of the comments on my previous post, I can't believe I recieved so many. Before I started my blog I never would've thought that so many people would like my lanky legs and my secondhand finds! I'm wearing my hobo jumper again, it really is my go-to jumper when I feel like crap and haven't a clue what to wear. I remember the first time I wore it over a year ago to college, I felt so ugly and awful in the morning, so I just thought I'd chuck on any old thing, and that ended up being the day when I recieved the most compliments. I suppose that's why I wear it so much now, despite it being an old grandad jumper from the fifty pence rail which gives me no shape whatsoever, it makes me feel quite confident. Do you have a go-to outfit? I'd love to know! And what do you think of the doubling of my chunky knit scarfs? I'll definately be wearing my scarfs like this more often, I'm hoping to buy a few more tomorrow on my usual trip to my local charity shops and Battersea car boot sale. Love, Jazzabelle. P.S. I announced the winner of my little giveaway on twitter a couple of days ago, but if you didn't see the lucky winner was Sian. Congratulations, lovely!

black, grey, (faux) leather and velvet.

2010-10-23T21:01:00.000+01:00

-H&M faux leather gilet, charity shop, £8 -Chunky scarf, car boot sale, 25p -Zara cardigan, car boot sale, 50p - M&S St Michael velvet top, charity shop, 50p -Wedges, Debenhams, gift -Satchel, courtesy of Next -Audrey Necklace courtesy of Wallpaper Rose.
This is what I wore to the Clothing at Tesco cocktail party on Thursday evening, something a little bit different from my usual style. The H&M gilet and St Michael velvet top are my most recent charity shop finds, I adore them both so much! I wouldn't usually spend £8 on a secondhand piece, but the gilet was brand new with tags on (the RRP was £29.99) and I did manage to blag it down from £10 after I had a little conversation about the Victoria and Albert Museum with the lady. It's actually a size twelve, but I think it fits me rather perfectly and it means I'll be able to layer it with my favourite jumpers when it gets colder! This is also the first time I've worn velvet since I was a little girl, I really do dislike the texture, but it was just too lovely not to buy, I didn't even realize it was St Michael until I got home! Have you bought anything from your local charity shops recently? And what do you think of this more 'edgy' and 'grown up' style on me? Love, Jazzabelle. P.S. Have you entered my giveaway to win this beautiful F&F Limited Edition dress below? Be quick, it ends on Wednesday!

clothing at tesco cocktail party and a little giveaway.

2010-10-23T14:21:00.004+01:00

-One of my favourite pieces from the S/S collection -Gem Fatale holding a yummy cocktail -Three tipsy bloggers, Amy, Gemma and Emma.

On Thursday evening I attended a cocktail party to preview the Clothing at Tesco S/S collections and to celebrate the launch of F&F Limited Edition, I had such a wonderful time! I drank slightly too many yummy cocktails, plus I met some lovely bloggers including Gem (of course I had to take a shot of her nails!), Sherin, Amy, Emma and Gemma. I'm sure you all know that I'm an Autumn/Winter girl, so I was drawn to the more neutral coloured pieces in the S/S11 collection, such as the parka jacket above. Isn't is lovely? It would last you through all four seasons, I definately need one of these in my life! Everyone who attended the event were all kindly gifted with a F&F Limited Edition short brocade dress, and as mine is a size ten so unfortunately too big for me, I would like to offer it to one of my lovely followers! It's quite a quick giveaway, I will randomly choose the winner on Wednesday the 27th and all you have to do to be in with a chance of winning is to leave your email address or twitter name at the end of your comment. Love, Jazzabelle.

thank-you, jill.

2010-10-19T22:59:00.000+01:00

-Diesel jumper, charity shop, 50p -H! cardigan, £6 -H! jeans, £10.50 -Belt, charity shop, £1.99 -Vintage bag, car boot sale, free

A couple of Fridays ago I met up with Jill from Street Style: Pics by Polka Dot straight after my life drawing class at college (hence my rather inky hands), for a brief wander around the Victoria and Albert Museum and a coffee. I can't quite remember if Jill took these impromptu photographs of me when we had just met or as she was leaving, but I just adore the first photograph! Natural shots always seem to be the best, don't they? I'm off to bed now, but as the title says, thank-you Jill. You always seem to have time for me, you know how to boost my confidence and you really did make me feel better when I was down at London Fashion Week. Plus I just can't help but love your funny and witty emails! Hopefully I'll be seeing you again soon. I'll buy the coffees next time. Love, Jazzabelle.

new lipstick, new me?

2010-10-17T22:09:00.000+01:00

-Diesel jumper, charity shop, 50p -Laura Ashley cardigan, car boot sale, 50p -Bag, jumble sale, 50p -Cargo jeans, courtesy of Next.
In the top photograph you can probably make out that I'm wearing lipstick, a first for me, as I tend to only wear concealer and powder. It's actually my Grandma's lipstick, I tried it on a few days ago and just adored the deep shade, similar to that of my Laura Ashley cardigan, so she kindly gave it to me. I've worn the lipstick all day today and yesterday, it's actually made me feel a little more confident in myself, plus it's just so pretty, you'll definately be seeing many outfit posts with me wearing lipstick in the future! These photographs were taken outside the Victoria and Albert Museum, after my Grandma, Mum and I were given a private tour of the Raphael: Cartoons and Tapestries for the Sistine Chapel exhibition, which I won a couple of days ago via a Twitter competition. It was such an experience to be given a tour, I'd like to thank Linnea for showing us around, we all had a wonderful time! After visiting the V&A, my friend Shana-Kaye and I got 'dolled up' (which just consisted of me putting on a pair of wedges, cardigan and necklace) then went out for Nando's and a good few drinks. I had a pretty darn good evening, and a lovely weekend overall. I hope you have all had a wonderful weekend, too! Love, Jazzabelle.

makes a nice change from a brick wall, doesn't it?

2010-10-15T21:16:00.000+01:00

-Cos tee, charity shop, 50p -H&M jumper, gift -Belt, charity shop, £1.99 -Satchel, charity shop, £5.99 -Cargo jeans, courtesy of Next

This isn't what I wore today, but as I didn't take any outfits shots I thought I may as well just post these photographs my mum took of me a few days ago. I didn't post them then as I thought I looked rather ugly, but looking at them now I ought to learn to stop being so hard on myself. I adore these jeans which I bought a couple of weeks ago with a giftcard Next kindly sent me, I've worn them practically every day since I got them! They fit me really well on top, plus the side pockets on the thigh look great. Unfortunately they are a little too short for me, though I think thay work pretty well folded up with my Topshop boots. I had a lovely day today, I met my friend Elizabeth for a hot chocolate in Starbucks, a sandwich in Pret and then some yummy irish cream ice-cream from a little pâtisserie in Kingston. Now I'm at home in my pajamas, about to read my latest V&A magazine and nibble on my Graze box (which are extremely delicious by the way, I treat myself to them all the time. Oh, and if you enter the code 3R8MBRN3 you get your first box free and your second box half price, plus I get a pound of mine!) full of nuts, fruits, chocolate chips and flapjacks. I hope you have all had a lovely day, too. Love, Jazzabelle. P.S. Please do visit my Uncle's new blog, Defective Arts. He recently wrote a post about me here, he's very kind about me when he wants to be!

i believe more in the scissors than i do the pencil

2010-10-08T00:50:00.001+01:00

*Cardigan and Satchel, courtesy of Next *Audrey Necklace, courtesy of Wallpaper Rose *Cos t-shirt, charity shop, 50p *H! by Henry Holland jeans, £10.50 Quite a 'courtesy of' post today compared to my usual charity shop outfits, but I just can't help but wear my new pieces often and all together! I was recently gifted with this beautiful handmade Audrey necklace from Louise of Wallpaper Rose Jewellery. I adore the little scissors, double chain detail and rusted colour, plus I can't help but love the fact that it's named after Audrey Hepburn! Coincidently I'm currently reading Breakfast at Tiffany's by Truman Capote (who also said the quote I have used as my title), alongside the first Gossip Girl book which has many references to Audrey. It's funny how little things link together, isn't it? Love, Jazzabelle.