Punky Ballerina

I do not at all claim to be "out the fashion box" or a complete and utter fashionista. But...I fall head over heel for some quirky ass shoes. I like to think of it as my thing. I love wearing a basic outfit (honestly 90% of my wardrobe is an ode to Billy Joel and Bruce Springsteen) with quirky pieces. Shoes are as you all know my ULTIMATE weakness. Shoes have a hotline to my credit card. Even my dad takes note on what shoes I wear home when I'm visiting. I love shoes. I usually don't fall for the typical Louboutin (not that there is anything wrong with them) it's not my pace or style, for me it has lost that quirky aspect, it's fallen into the commercial bracket. I love when my friends call my shoes ugly makes me feel I have achieved something great because I know our tastes differ (there are rare occasions all my friends love my shoes. That's a day our hormones aline)

So as the story of my life goes...The SS16 Miu Miu show blew me away as usual. What blew me away were the ballerinas, soft satin meets aggressive black straps with one gingham and one black wrap-round ribbon. Swoon. So this is how a serial runway obsessive works...you add the picture to a special folder of the season pieces you want, you go into the store and harass your favourite sales assistant until they tell you they've only just got the buying book and that your name is added to the size list and you'll get the call when they come in. You walk past your favourite stores religiously and also as it is on the road you work on...panic because they're in the store window but no one has contacted you and then your mind goes into complete overdrive and you sob because you think they've forgotten your obsessive compulsive stalker face but in reality the Visual team are just doing their job and getting your attention. Cue a sea of online websites selling what you want and selling out within hours before you see your emails, you return to the boutique who at this point think you're insane but kinda cute too but they only have the satin version which make you look like you have a serious case of boat feet (never ever EVER take the judgement of others, if you feel your feet look big, you make the decision), everyone you message a picture to tells you you're being a dick because they're ugly, but in your heart you know they're wrong they just haven't seen the leather versions, you later remember that you really don't care if your friends don't like them.(Dear friends I love and value your opinions more than you know. No shade just pure love) its your money. You don't buy the satin because in all honesty desperation is not our middle name...perfection is. Doubt sits in your mind...due to asking people what they think...then that moment you see what you knew was right.....and it's love. pure addictive love. The right size, right colour, right material and overall you know you will eat like a bird just to sleep in them. 

My process.

Welcome to my world.

So...this is exactly how it went when I bought my Gucci Dionysus bag. Everyone hated it out of my friends, Gucci is still regarded Chavy by people who have their head stuck in the wrong time frame...let's move along with the times Alessandro is here. Although I am happy if the commercial buyers of this world are still scared of a little GG action...it's retro, no one is expecting you to walk out the house a la Daniella Westbrook style. Subtle is key. I do not deny that I couldn't agree with Gucci pre Michele, I had bought the odd few bags before this (my soho disco and my lady web) under the sheer fact I knew Alessandro had his hands all over these, the pre AM was not my cuppa. Frieda had taken the brand to a stagnant point of bronze boredom, Alessandro literally blossomed like the floral arrangements on the two-piece suits. Now this is what I want. I live my life searching for the perfect vintage rings, the perfect vintage style tops. and lets not forget who doesn't want to walk around in fur slip ons? If you don't then you seriously don't know what you're missing and I suggest continuing that love affair for Louboutin….

Thanks for reading.

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Bisous

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Monogrmmed Perfection

Who doesn't love Monogrammed pieces? I sure as hell do. It kinda makes a piece a little more personal and forever. That's what I have always felt about monogrammed pieces.

When I first saw the Burberry show in September last year, I like the rest of the world fell in love with the monogrammed nylon back packs. Cute and lightweight...winning combination. I wasn't going to purchase the bag because I am lucky to have Two Chanel backpacks (Burgundy leather and my graffiti one) so I didn't feel the need to add another to my collection, despite it being so cute. Enter London Fashion Week and seeing everyone cool totting one around, monogrammed and plain! I stood my ground and said no despite walking in with work colleagues who ordered theirs. I felt a little left out but I knew it was best.

So a week after minor sobbing over me being sensible...My best friend Gaspard told me to pick up his Burberry order before heading to Paris for PFW. I sighed, I huffed, listened to a lecture on how he ALWAYS picks me up in Paris, then I went to get it.

He only went and ordered it for me!!!!! Cue the gushing, blushing and squealing in the middle of Regent Street Burberry. The box was HUGE for what was inside and the sales assistant nearly made me go on the Eurostar carrying a giant box until I convinced him it would indeed fit in a carrier bag. I must add, I was so blindsided by this, my wonderful friend Gaspard is beyond the perfect human and never asks for anything off me but my friendship. Apparently this is our 4 year anniversary present. I'll accept it as a "thanks for being my mate" present and shall continue to extort luxury items off him to pay for my friendship (I am laughing very hard as I write this...I am humble and pretty sure I am the craziest person to befriend!).

Just look at the details!

What do you guys thinks?

Thanks for reading 

X

Bisous

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Vuitton Vibes

I am very lucky when it comes to my work attire, I get to wear almost anything I want from jeans to trainers, I'm in them all week so I never really have a "off duty" look. I usually dress for my mood and comfort, one day I can be in leather pants, another is a cheeky legging day or a dress, jogger days are kept for my hangover days! 

This is usually one of my more relax looks wearing my Parka. 

I have had this Burberry Parker for 4 years now. I was so lucky with this purchase as I found it in Bicester Village for a shocking £150 from £900!!!! The quality of this coat has maintained from the day I bought it. It is my go to coat for those wet and grim, as is this amazing cable knit Monki jumper. Monki had some lovey knitwear pieces this winter season, I was lucky to enough to stock up on them during the sale (thanks late winter!)

I had these Louis Vuitton Palm Canyon boots for Christmas. These were on my wishlist from the moment the cruise collection was shown in Palm Springs (Bob Hopes incredible house to be exact.) My love affair with the new LV is well documented among my friends. What can I say, I hero worship Nicolas Ghesquiere. 

In the space of two months I have added two Givenchy bags to my collection. This wasn't intentional. I found my floral Pandora in the Harrods sale for £250. Bargain I know! But I knew I wanted to add a Antigona to my collection last year after seeing my best friend Marie with a dark red mini. I have a weakness for grey bags, but I am fussy over leathers and this is just the perfect tone and a grained leather. It is deceptively big, it fits more or less my everyday needs including my kindle.

 

Coat- Burberry

Jumper- Monki

Jeans- Topshop Joni's

Boots- Louis Vuitton

Bag- Givenchy Antigona 

Rings- Gucci

Necklace- Louis Vuitton

Hat- Gucci

Bisous 

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Nadia 

Chanel Coco Handle

Evening guys!

Ah so there is a little story behind the new addition to my bag collection. Back in July I purchased the reintroduced (slightly re-modified for a modern touch) Chanel Coco Handle in navy with a burgundy Lizard handle. I know the HOLY GRAIL. It was love at first sight when I saw the model before it hit the shop floor and my heart sank even more when it was in my hands. It came in different variations, but for me the stand out was the Bordeaux with Navy and Bordeaux with Grey body. The grey sold super fast (the price point was a reasonable (when you take in that exotic leather is being used) £2100, the no lizard handle were £1890) so I jumped in. 

Sadly when I got home I started to panic. I am not one for exotics even if it is just a little splash for the long haul, but mostly my amazing (and fountain of knowledge) best friend Doreen told me I would struggle to use the handle because the moisture of my hand would deteriorate the lizard…not sexy at all having a bag that peels on the tube. I had a flash back of my training with exotics and kicked myself. So it went back the following day. I went in hoping to find the plain leather handle but that the thing with Chanel and a bag that is so cute and so vintage looking, it is going to fly off the shelf. Also with the strong presence of Instagram it seems it was a hot commodity in bag circles. Something I really didn't realise and don't tend to pay attention to (sidebar this is not a sly dig, I genuinely work from my gut and heart, not what is hot right now). So that was July and look how beautiful she was…

She went back, the bag sold out and if you were lucky and in the right Chanel at the right time you may have got your hands on one in-between July and now. Unfortunately I wasn't, nor was I actively going in and asking the girls. I am all about finding things fluidly and not looking desperate (another disclaimer: I don't think people are desperate but I have seen the effects of a MUST HAVE item and I never ever want to be one of those women. Patience is key.)

Cut back to a month ago when Act 1 of Spring/Summer landed. I knew this little bad boy was on the horizon again, but I was facing some serious dilemmas between the Coco come back and the Denim Reissue. I have a weakness for denim as you should all know. I told myself and the guys in Chanel if it was meant to be I would take the Coco, if not the reissue. Well it was meant to be…that's for sure! 

I really wanted the navy, and it was the navy that was available (I had before seeing this colour come across the medium in orange, black and beige but declined all. I believe you should never settle, especially with Chanel). I love this bag, it is so light, a little quirky and vintage but yet a firm classic. I know I'll get a lot of wear out of this. Now you're probably thinking "She's had that for a month and hasn't used it" Yes…I abstained, I obviously checked when I got home that everything was ok with the bag but it went back in the box purely because I can be well behaved and not need to used a bag straight away, also it does not help having creepy stalkers :(

So the long story is over and here she is…

Bisous 

X

Nadia 

Love Is In The Air

Ah, as I upload this post I am sitting in my office in Paris the city of love preparing for the Chanel couture show tomorrow! I am so excited, I love Haute Fouture so much. The details, the craft and the general attitude completely blows me away, so much so I actually don't mind working until 1 in the morning! We are afterall in the City of Love and Light. 

As a lot of you know, Paris is quite literally my second home. I've just moved into my own flat which is quite possibly a dream come true. I don't usually talk about these things as that's how I was raised to do things for yourself and not essentially "brag". So this has been my own little secret shared with my closest friends and close family. I've been working on it since late September. Everything is grey and white or marbled! All my marble is from Pakistan too! I'm all moved in and so content,  So you can see I don't just love Paris for its wonderful fashion and brands! 

So with all this love in the air it's only apt that I share one of the best brands in Paris, Diptyque, new collaboration with the wonderful Olympia Le-Tan. The collaboration is to celebrate Valentine's Day, just check out the packaging. The collection has the limited Rose and Violet candles in small and large, along with a solid perfume (I have been using this non stop for the last 2 weeks!). The brand has repackaged the Rose range to fit in with the collaboration. The packaging is so Olympia, when I first saw it my ovaries exploded with excitement!

I'm so happy these two French houses have collaborated, I think it is a match made in heaven. If you don't know who Olympia is, she is the woman who made it cool to carry a bag that is shaped and designed (handcrafted) as a book with your favourite book cover. From Disney to the classics (I still have my eyes on the Dracula clutch) you can carry your book clutch with pride and look like the chicest woman on the red carpet. Afterall it was Natalie Portman who elevated Le-Tans brand to the super level. The clutches start at £1050. You can contact for bespoke but you can also find the seasonal book clutches on The Outnet For half the price. Hence if you you adore the handmade craftmanship of Olympia but don't have the budget, this collaboration hits all the spots.

The smell of the candle is just dreamy. It is a wonderful combination, and if you have a Dyptique candle you'll know that they do burn well and are well worth the money. A little tip, Dyptique is cheaper in Paris (considerably) and they also participate in the 10% days in Harrods. 

The

Shoe Addict 2016.

OH GOD! 

I have not blogged for a whole year! This utter madness. In all fairness 2015 was a pretty busy and wonderful year for me. So I want to make 2016 that much more special and that is a conscious effort to be better at blogging, building this blog to the full potential it should be. I won't lie, when I have an idea I always think I should blog it but I am always too tired or find an excuse not to do it.

That is out the window now. It is time to really reflect on my age, what is happening in my wardrobe, my beauty woes, my instagram rants, my never ending shoe obsession and lets be honest my voice. In the weeks to come I'll be hopefully moving my blog to it's own domain and a better format. I love blogger but as I have changed I think my patience for Blogger has changed. I want the website to reflect me. So yes that will be changing soon and I will definitely keep you posted on that. Also the return of the outfit posts! It is cold but I cannot wait to get out there! 

So back to the matter at hand…I am a self confessed shoe addict. Ask my friends, my boyfriend, my mum, sister and well even my Dad is on the cusp of sending me to Shoeaholics anonymous. I sob when I confess I have a problem yet after the sob I still have the dilemma. I cannot deny myself a pair of shoes.

So I cannot tell you how many shoes I have bought since my last blogpost because that would be incredibly depressing for me and a shoe overload for you guys but I had to share these Chanel beauties with you!

These are the shoes I am looking forward to taking on my holiday to Japan (more on that in a later post). I am obsessed with these. As much as I love a good pair of Chanel espadrilles, last year was the year I felt they were everywhere and i just didn't wear them as much as I would have liked. But that isn't me saying I am over them. That is me saying I am content with what I have but don't need to flounce around in them. These though, they need a certain amount of flouncing. These are from the Seoul cruise collection so availability maybe non existing now, but wherever you are in the world it is always worth a try. I do know my creepy stalker will be all over these (must learn to live with this!URGH).

I cannot wait to bring you more content. 

Thanks for reading guys.

X

Bisous

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Nadia 

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Knightsbridge In Bloom

It's been a while since my last post, but finally I'm having some well deserved, non ill, time off from work after a brilliant working week away in New York. I only wish we had more time to explore, but I definitely think we made the most of our limited time. That will definitely be my next post sharing my 5 day adventure. 

Back to the post in hand. If you follow me on instagram you'll know I am always in my stripy tees and jeans, I alternate how I style my simple look with my accessories and coats. Isn't that the real trick to a versatile wardrobe? Wonderful accessories? Of course! But I must admit like denim, I love to look out for different stripy tees and jumpers. This one is a Topshop one, they are my go to for basics along with ASOS. 

The jeans I am obsessed with the last month have to be The Joni Jeans from Topshop. For the £36 they are worth every penny. For me, I have had to invest in Current Elliot and J Brand Jeans because they don't alter the leg width when it comes to the hip size which seems to be a general must for high street jeans, because when you're a size 16 clearly you have fatter legs *ADD EXTREME SARCASM*. The Joni's really do fit my need for everyday skinny jeans. They cling to the leg, they have a great comfortable stretch and are high-waisted. I definitely recommend them especially if you are someone who likes a super skinny fit. I have bought them in 2 shades of blue, black and grey. Obsessed much?

Of course no blog post of mine isn't complete without that Chanel touch. I recently bought this amazing Deauville tote (medium size raspberry red) which was launched part of Spring Summer Act 1 collection. The tote has been on my list since it launched 4 years ago, but in-between that I just never found the colour I wanted or spent my wages on something else at the time. I literally had bought my tri-colour jersey bag the week before (coming on the blog soon) so I had to beg my mum for this little buy. I'm glad she caved because it is so light and perfect for the spring/summer ahead. The colour is just jaw dropping in reality. 

I am also happy that the past 2 seasons at Chanel has seen some amazing jewellery pieces. The chain round bracelet was from cruise collection and the CHANEL cuff is current and went down the runway stacked up during the Riot collection. I had bought 2 but decided I have so many unique Chanel bracelets I didn't need 2 to imitate the runway look. 

I hope everyone is having a lovely start to the Easter Weekend!

Thanks for reading.

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Bisous

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Nadia

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