The Daily Bread #14 - Gigging Hell

Top - Topshop

Cardigan - Vintage Engelhorn

Jeans - Cubus

Belt - Topman

Brogues - Swedish, Unknown

Necklace - Ethiopian airport

I'm not sure how many of you will be familiar with Northampton, UK, but I assume not a great deal.  Growing up there was interesting experience.  The town itself is bleak, and I'm not just saying that in a 'woe is me, curse my hometown' kind of way - visitors regularly comment on just how dreary it is.  Yet the utter misery of the town meant that its youth seemed to rally together in a bid to have some fun.  Whereas other places seemed to have more cliquey divides, Northampton seemed to have that less, in my experience at least.  You were simply in on the attempt to make some fun, or you were out, and that was that.

A key source of entertainment was live music.  I guess it was because it was something that people could do without much help - you could buy a guitar, you could coerce a grotty pub into letting you play, and there you had it, a night out for all your friends.  As I can't even clap in time, I participated in this scene purely as an audience member - but what's a band without their audience?  For a pretty nondescript Midlands town, we also got a surprising amount of bigger artists coming to play.  The best gigs were at the Soundhaus but that unfortunately closed down due to noise complaints (a cause of uproar in the glory days of 2008) but the bands kept coming to the Roadmender.  

Given that my social life revolved around sweaty gigs - from the good to the bad, the famous to the hopeless - I was pretty familiar with gig clothes.  I find they fall into an awkward category; they need to hit a certain level of nighttime dressiness, yet incorporate the comfort and practicality of day wear whilst also being almost indestructible.  It wasn't until yesterday, when I remembered I had tickets to see The XX tonight, that I realised I no longer had any idea how to dress for gigs.  Do I even have the materials for it anymore?

This morning I raided my wardrobe and cobbled together this outfit, which I think tonight's look will be based around.  I think the black jeans and the breton style stripes are a classic combination which, to me, gives an air of chic yet looks simultaneously carefree.  I will probably swap the cardigan for a denim shirt or leather jacket later and add some more edgy jewellery, I'm thinking chains and spikes.  I chose these brogues because they seem pretty indestructible and I don't care too much about them.  If I had some Converse here in Sweden with me, then I'd probably throw those on instead, but sadly I do not. 

I think part of my problem with gig dressing is that I get a little protective over my clothes and find it hard to be relaxed if I know I'm going to be stood on and crushed.  Do you have this problem, or is it just me?

Merry Monday,

Elise.

The Daily Bread #7

      

Top - Topshop

Cardigan - Topshop

Jeans - Cubus

Shoes - Topshop

Belt - Topman

Necklace - Topshop

Nail Varnish - 'Heart On Fire' by Rimmel Pro

Now, let's be honest, this outfit should be - and perhaps is - a bit of a car crash.  According to my grandmother, navy and black combined is the cardinal sin of fashion, so that's the first crime I've committed.  Then we look at the ancient blue top that's come out of the woodwork, the colour of which is so far off trend it's a bit embarrassing.  The pineapple necklace that screams summer just tips the whole thing over the edge and then there's the fact I definitely need to make friends with that little thing they call an iron... oh God.  But I don't know, perhaps it's so wrong it's right?

However, let's look at the potential. Take away this fine knit navy cardigan and add a chunkier cream one.  Replace the Club Tropicana (drinks are free, fun and sunshine - there's enough for everyone...) necklace with a more seasonal statement necklace and I don't know, I think this could be a winning lazy Monday outfit.  Perhaps the questionable colour of the top could even become a feature, a "hey guys, it doesn't matter about the catwalks right now, I have a class at 9am" kind of message.  

This is where the fact I moved to Sweden with just one suitcase of possessions starts to become a real issue.  I have so many ideas and if I could just reach across the ocean and into my Northampton/Plymouth wardrobes, they could all come to fruition.  Alas, this is not the case.  I am also beginning to wonder what exactly I was thinking when I was packing; some of the things that took place over others, there just seems to be no logic to it.  I guess this is why people pack ahead of time, rather than hours before their airport transfer.  One day I'll learn.

I discovered last night that the beautiful top I bought in Zara yesterday has an emerging hole in the back and some kind of black mark.  I'm quite sad as I'm pretty sure it was the last one but I'm going to try and take it back this afternoon.  Whilst it is still wearable, and I'm pretty sure the mark will come out in the wash, I'm not really prepared to spend £30.00 on something that didn't even arrive in very good condition.

To cheer the day up after returning what was my new favourite item, I'm going to try and go on a bit of a bargain hunt to find some more autumnal jewellery and perhaps some staple knitwear.  It's days like this that I really miss the great British institution of the charity shop.

With a dose of Monday misery,

Elise.

The Daily Bread #2

Shirt - Topshop

Dress (worn as top) - Topshop

Skirt - Zara

Shoes - River Island

Belt - Topman

It's thundering in Gothenburg today.  This doesn't make much of a change; not a day goes by, or so it seems, without precipitation of some kind.  Given that the weather was so bleak and that my plans involved nothing except hours in the library and a presentation meeting, I decided to cheer the day up a little and finally include some daytime heels in my life.  I've had these shoes for over a year now and I couldn't even begin to tell you how many times they've been worn.  They were a guilty purchase which happened at the height of post-summer, pre-loan poverty but I am so glad my willpower gave way on that occasion (as it usually does, to be honest).  My recent purchase of the Jeffrey Campbell 99 Tie Wedge means that these have been pushed to the back of my wardrobe but I think they might see some light again as a good daytime option now.  They are as comfortable as flats and I can run for a tram in them without breaking my neck.  If I could advise you to do one thing this autumn/winter it would be to buy a non-skyscraper wedge shoe boot.  Your life will be improved, I promise.  There's just something about heels that just make me so much happier than flats ever could.

I was lacking inspiration on the outfit front today, if I'm honest, mostly because I need to do some washing.  I ended up combining some of my summer favourites, having to resort to wearing a dress as a top due to a lack of other options.  The dual-skirt feel that resulted from this did make me feel like I was wearing a petticoat though and I spent most of the day trying to pretend that I'd time travelled back a hundred years.  It was a good little daydream.

This evening will consist of some reading and perhaps writing my first Rohsska post so you'll hear from me again very soon indeed.

For now,

Elise.

The Daily Bread #1

Shirt - Glamorous

Jumper - Lindex 

Jeans - Miss Selfridge

Boots - Bianco

Belt - Topman

Necklace - Miss Selfridge

Ring (top) - The Amber Shop, Southwold

Ring (bottom) - Past Times

Nail Varnish  - Topshop in 'Sketch' 

A quick apology for a) how horrendously awkward I am in front of the camera and b) the fact that I've not yet quite got used to said camera, hence the slightly dodgy photography in general.

I plan - with the very best of intentions - to do an outfit post every single day, come rain or shine.  Given that I wasn't doing anything very exciting today, I opted for a fairly simply outfit.  The shirt was bought last summer (by which I mean 2011) and has had a lot of wear for something I was never particularly in love with, as always seems to be the way.  I stole the jeans from my mum when I was at home last week, as mine developed a hole and it was a period of serious poverty.  The boots and belt will probably feature almost daily, so you can say hello to these as new friends.  I was excited to wear the jumper though, which I picked up in my favourite Swedish high street shop, Lindex.  I'd been looking for a loose yet not oversized, medium thickness, super soft jumper for weeks when I finally found this.  I'd originally hoped for bottle green or navy, simply because they better compliment the outfits I originally had in mind for it.  However, I couldn't leave this behind as it ticked every other box and I can imagine it'll be worn a lot this winter. 

As I said, I've not had a very exciting day.  I popped back to the Rohsska (a fashion, design and decorative arts museum in Gothenburg) to take some pictures as I was camera-less when I first visited a few weeks ago.  You can be expecting quite a few Rohsska posts coming up as it's probably my favourite space in Gothenburg so far.  Afterwards, I went to finally buy some new skincare products as I've been a terrible excuse for a girl lately and have absolutely abused my skin with cheap face wipes.  I've just properly cleansed, toned and moisturised for the first time in weeks and I can't stop stroking my face which feels baby soft again at long last.  Buying cosmetics - well, buying anything really - is a matter of pot luck nowadays, given my complete lack of  knowledge of any Swedish language, but I bought the Nivea Purifying Wash Gel and Mattifying Toner and some Olay Eye Make-Up Remover.  So far, so good but I shall review these further in due course.  

Now, for some reason given what a lazy day I've had, I'm absolutely exhausted, so I'm going to have to bid you a good night.

Sweet Dreams,

Elise.