Lifestyle: Westwood Cross and Petticoat Lane clothing and homeware haul

Good afternoon altrocklifers!  Last weekend I was lucky enough to be able to visit the garden of England, AKA the beautiful county of Kent, where my Mum’s side of the family originates from.  We stayed in a lovely, quaint AirBnB in Broadstairs, ate gorgeous gelato at Morelli’s, and attended a leaving party for my cousin before he and his family moved to Florida.  But what kind of holiday would it be if there was no retail therapy involved?

Myself and the family decided to take a trip to Westwood Cross, a large shopping complex between the towns of Ramsgate and Margate, and as I always do at Westwood Cross, I ended up spending more money than intended on clothes and homeware.  We also visited Petticoat Lane Emporium in Ramsgate to check out their vintage, retro, and crafty wares.  Here’s a round-up of the spring/summer clothing I purchased, as well as the new homeware I discovered in amongst the 202 stalls at Petticoat Lane.

Clothing

 

This dress is just too cute.

I can never resist a nice check shirt!

Palm prints are everywhere at the moment, and for good reason!

New pyjamas complete me.

You can’t beat a new pair of jim-jams.

Floral dress with removable straps: £24, New Look
Rust coloured check shirt: £9.99 (reduced from £12.99), Select Fashion
Palm print shirt: £15.99, Select Fashion
Pink and grey pyjama set: £5, Primark
Pink satin pyjamas: £4.50 for the top, £5 for the bottoms, Primark

Homeware

 

This mirror is very sweet.

I’ve never seen this flavour shower gel before, so I just had to try it!

These glasses are so adorable. My future kitchen will be full of lovely stuff.

Anything rose scented is a winner for me.

This gelato-inspired diffuser reminds me of my visit to Morelli’s.

I just had to have this lovely print.

Bronze mirror: £4, Primark
Early-harvest raspberry shower gel: £3.50, The Body Shop
Flamingo glasses: £15 for a set of six glasses, Petticoat Lane Emporium
Dickens & Hawthorne Australia rose water reed diffuser: £4.99, TK Maxx
Morgan & Grace Australia mango gelato reed diffuser: £4.99, TK Maxx
Framed stag print: £5, Petticoat Lane Emporium

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What do you think of my clothing and homeware choices?  Let me know on my Facebook or Twitter page, or in the comment section below this post.

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#OOTD: New Look holiday sales haul

Happy New Year to all of my followers here on altrocklife! I trust you all had a relaxing holiday season. I’m sure I’m not alone when I say that as soon as the Buck’s Fizz hangover had worn off, I was ready to hit the shops and start spending my Christmas cheques.  I was also lucky enough to be gifted a £50 New Look gift card, so that is where I spent most of my time during the sales.  Here’s an outfit I put together from my new purchases.

I love that you can see my metal flamingo peeking into the left of this photo.

I’m obsessed with the pattern on this shirt.

Why does this photo make me look like I’m wearing clown shoes? I promise I’m only a size 6, my feet aren’t that big.

Shirt, £11: I think I’ll always be a sucker for collared shirts.  I bought this shirt a size too big, because oversized shirts work well as a smart/casual choice: you can either wear it as-is for a more casual feel, or tuck it into trousers or a skirt to smarten it up.  I also love the pattern: the bug design is simple but cute, and not too busy or overpowering.  There’s a slight blue colour to the bug design, which means it’ll be nice to match with some blue earrings or a necklace.  Plus, the shirt is a nice lightweight material which means it can be styled for all seasons.

Jeans, £24.99: Admittedly, the jeans I purchased weren’t on sale, but they fit me so well, I had to splash out on them.  I bought a black pair of these jeans about 18 months ago and they’re still going strong, so I knew that this pair would be a good investment.  They’re very comfortable, and I know from experience that this cut suits me well and the jeans themselves are durable.

Boots, £22.49: I’ve been after a nice pair of black boots with no heel for a while, and after buying a couple of cheap pairs from bargain outlets and being disappointed, I was very happy to come across these beauties.  They’re extremely comfortable to wear, and the sole means that walking across mud or ice is a breeze.  I like these boots because they have a similar look to Doc Martens, without the hefty price tag, and they haven’t taken me months to break in.

What do you think of this outfit? What were your best holiday sale bargains? Let me know on my Facebook or Twitter page, or in the comment section below this post.

altrocklife’s summer 2015 haul

As per usual, whenever I come home on a break from university my Mum, sister and myself go on at least one major shopping trip.  We are each others’ hype men and harshest critics: we build each other up when we pick out items that look fantastic, but ruthlessly tear each other down if we make a fashion faux pas.

On our latest shopping trip, we had one objective: start working on our summer wardrobes.  I grew out of all of my swimming costumes last summer so I was in desperate need of a new one.  Plus, rather than going on a spending spree a couple of weeks before we jet off to Spain in July, we figured that spreading the cost over multiple trips would be a little more merciful for our bank balances.

Don’t get me wrong: a number of items I purchased last summer will make do for this summer as well.  As much as I wish for it, my purse has yet to become an infinite source of money.  However, I was in desperate need of a summer wardrobe refresher.  I decided to focus on the essentials (my new swimming costume) plus a couple of key pieces which will help to refresh last year’s wardrobe and insert some key 2015 trends.

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Bikini: New Look, £17.99 for the top and £9.99 for the bottoms
Shorts: New Look, £14.99
Kimono: New Look, £14.99
Flip-flops: Primark, £3
Crop top: Primark, £3
Jim Beam t-shirt: Primark, £8
Of Mice & Men vest: Full Circle Tour merchandise, £25

As you can see, I colour coordinated many of my new purchases ready to wear on the beach this summer.  I’ll be using the kimono as a cover-up whilst sunbathing in my bikini, and the flip-flops will be perfect for walking on hot sand.

I chose a neutral pair of chino shorts so they can be part of my suitcase-friendly capsule summer wardrobe, matching pretty much every t-shirt, blouse and vest I own.  Plus, chinos are light and airy, perfect for humid summer days in Spain.

I don’t expect to tan this summer (that would be far too ambitious a goal), but I chose vests and short-sleeved t-shirts so I can start building up my usual covering of freckles on my arms and shoulders.  They’re all made of light material, and aside from the Of Mice & Men vest everything is fairly loose-fitting.  This should be more comfortable as the temperature rises.

What do you think of what I’ve bought?  What are your summer wardrobe essentials?  Let me know in the comments or on Facebook or Twitter.

Currently listening to: Heroes (We Could Be) – Mallory Knox (Alesso cover for the BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge)

altrocklife’s wardrobe refresher: Christmas sale haul

As you will have seen from my post last Thursday, I did my fair share of post-Christmas sale shopping in 2014, as I decided that my wardrobe was in dire need of a bit of refreshment.

So, what better way to welcome you back to my blog for the year, than show you my final purchases of 2014?  Here goes!

DI V I N E D E N I M

I realised going into December that none of my old pairs of jeans fit properly any more, and one of the belt loops was coming loose on my pair of blue acid wash jeans.  These are their replacements, and at only £33 for three brand new pairs of jeans, my purse is also happy.  Plus, these new pairs open up a whole new world of outfit-matching: the grey acid wash go well with my new black boots (spoiler alert!), the black skinnies look awesome with my metallic purple Doc Martens, and the blue acid wash look lovely paired with my tan fur-topped boots and matching trenchcoat.

D A I N T Y D R E S S

Even though this dress wasn’t on sale, I simply couldn’t resist it.  The silky material is soft and luxurious, and it has a tie waist which will help to define my figure.  Plus, wrap-front dresses look really good on me!  I can’t wait to style this dress for formal occasions, such as my cousin’s wedding next month, and for more casual wear such as my university’s student showcase on Thursday.

P E R F E C T P L A I D

Whilst I already have a lot of plaid in my wardrobe, I don’t have many purple pieces, so this shirt was a great compromise: inject more purple whilst satisfying my plaid cravings.  For me, button-up shirts are always a winner.

S P L E N D I D S H I R T

I was in dire need of a new denim shirt, and I’m completely in love with this one.  It’s quite baggy on me, which means it’s easy to layer in outfits like this one I wore a few days ago:

B E A U T I F U L B O O T S

These bad boys are my favourite festive purchase.  Though they have a fairly significant heel, they’re still super comfortable to walk in, and I now finally have boots which match my leather jacket, which makes me extremely happy.  Plus, at just under £20 from New Look, they were a bargain too!

So, what do you think of my Christmas haul?  Did you spot any items in the sales that I missed out on?  Or did you find some incredible bargains?  Let me know in the comments or on Twitter!

Currently listening to: Asleep At The Wheel – Band Of Skulls