Daily Wear: Long and lazy Sundays

Hi guys,
This weekend was dominated by a friend's wedding (which was great!) on Saturday and Saturday night. As is expected for these occasions, I got all dolled up and boogied the night away. Which meant that today was the perfect day for a lovely long relaxing day: which we chose to spend having a fat steak in the pub then mingling with the crowds of Bicester Village, alongside my parents, sister and gorgeous nephew. You can tell I had a late night the night before, as it doesn't look like I remembered to brush my hair!



I love the dress, which is from French Connection; a bargain picked up in the sale earlier in the summer. It's not maternity wear but where stretch jersey is concerned, I really don't think it matters. The scarf is from Alice Temperley's Somerset Collection for John Lewis, and the bag is BCBG MaxAzria, which I picked up from TK Maxx, also earlier in the summer. The ring is from Swarovski (and one of my faves!) Without wanting to be predictable (ha!) I am wearing my favourite River Island leather jacket and H by Hudson boots (c/o Sarenza) too. Again.

I love Bicester Village: it's one of my favourite shopping days out. And usually I come home with bags full of goodies to show off. But this trip, aside from an oven glove and two tea towels from the Cath Kidston outlet (oh the glamour!) I left empty handed.

Have you guys all had a good weekend? I'd love to hear what you've been up to - especially if it involves shopping. I really do think I'm addicted!

Love Tor xxx

To everything there is a Seasons (Turn! Turn! Turn!)

Hi guys,
Sometimes I hear something that puts a song lyric into my head and I just can't get it out: hence the title of today's post. Because it's all about my latest online shopping discovery: seasonsclothing.co.uk. Which immediately made me start singing The Byrds 'To everything there is a season'. Over and over again in my head. In fact, I'm doing it now! Anyway, I digress.... 

Like most websites, its name doesn't actually give anything away about it, so let me explain. Seasons is a designer clothes site featuring a myriad of amazing designers, including Acne, Alice Temperley, Marc by Marc Jacobs, See by Chloe and many many more. Before I started writing this post I spent over an hour creating a virtual shopping list on the site: I didn't intend to, but there were just so many things I wanted, and once I start creating wishlists I just can't stop! Check out all the great pieces I'll be wearing this season (see what I did there?) when that lottery win finally comes in:

Marc by Marc Jacobs tote bag, £143.50
Acne burgandy knit cardigan, £260
Barbour chunky knit, £195
Aamaya-by-Priyanka ring, £175
Acne short boots, £360
See by Chloe oversized jacket, £570
Equipment snakeskin shirt, £280

This whole moodboard is pretty much how I envisage my new mummy wardrobe will look. Of course realistically it's likely to be more pajama heavy, and covered in more baby sick than this, but a girl can dream! I really love the snakeskin shirt, which would look amazing teamed with either leather leggings or waxed jeans.

Live t'up North? Then your in luck! As well as exploring the website, you can visit an actual Seasons store! The brand have two stores: one in the Devonshire Quarter in Sheffield and one in the Victoria Quarter in Leeds.

Love Tor xx

*This is a sponsored post 

River Island jewellery: Whoever said that less is more?

Hi guys,
This week I have been as busy as a beaver working on a jewellery feature for one of the mags I freelance for. And whilst trawling through press images looking for suitable pieces, I kept being drawn back to the jewellery shots from River Island's A/W campaign:

Bold, brash, in your face and over the top. Frankly, it's everything I look for when I'm looking for jewellery. I love River Island: it is one of my favourite high street stores, and the shop I ultimately got my new winter coat from (outfit post coming soon!) Some accuse them of over-embellishing sometimes, but I think that's part of the reason I like them so much. As far as I'm concerned, whoever said less is more was very very wrong!

With that in mind, I headed over to the River Island website to pick out and share my favourite pieces from their new season jewellery drop. And anything delicate need not apply!

Silver and gold spike and crystal cuff, £25
Cream pearl bow collar, £25
Gold door knocker earrings, £6
Multi coloured print chain hand harness, £18
Clock pendant necklace, £15
Gold tone ring stack, £8 
Blue cupid jewel brooch, £10

What do you think of the jewellery from River Island? Is it a high street store you would head to if you needed new costume bling, and if not, which high street stores do you prefer?

Love Tor x

Fabfrocks at Home: The circus-themed nursery

Hi guys,
We have been living in our new house for almost four months, and slowly but surely, it is starting to look like a home I am proud to live in. Last month I showed you the final version of my walk-in wardrobe. This month, we have finally (very nearly!) finished the baby's nursery. So here's the tour:



The shelving unit, cot, and wardrobe are all from good ol' Ikea. We changed the knobs on the wardrobe door to make it look a little more unique. The red double sofa bed was already a spare room feature, but we decided to keep it as a big comfy seat to watch him sleep/play/whatever, and as a spare bed for overnight visitors: we only have a 2 bedroom house, so it's important to maximise space.


The vintage circus posters (which we talked about here) are all from eBay. The cushions on the sofa are from Cath Kidston, Etsy, and Little Joules. Cath Kidston does a vintage circus print fabric that I absolutely fell in love with. So I made some bunting using it, and then enlisted my much craftier mum to make all the other soft furnishings in the room using the fabric: She made the cotton bags hanging from the wardrobe doors, the huge sofa throw, and the quilt on the end of the baby's cot. She even used the circus print fabric to trim his little towels: now that's attention to detail!


The glass balloons hanging in the window are from Murano; the glass island off Venice. We picked them up when we were there last month and my dad made the frame so we could hang them. The giant elephant seat is another Ikea purchase and he already has more bears, books and toys than any little boy needs: and he isn't even born yet! With that and his fancy wardrobe full of clothes, I think it's fair to say we've gone a little over the top.

All we have left to do is buy a light fitting (we're finding it really hard to choose!) and make the curtains. I've bought the fabric: red and white striped, like a big top. I just have to get my sewing machine out, sit down, and actually make them!

Love Tor xx

London Fashion Week Favorites

Well, dolls, we know we are a little behind schedule but it's finally time to show you our favorites from London Fashion Week. We had a great time going through these designs which we felt were much more  ready to wear than some of the styles from NY that we saw a few weeks ago.  Many of our favorites from London are chic, feminine, and really just very pretty!  Here are some things to look forward to this spring but stay tuned for more from Milan:

Temperley

Mulberry

Matthew Williamson

Vivienne Westwood

Burberry

Marios Schwab

House of Holland 

Giles

Richard Nicholl

Christopher Kane

Images courtesy of London Fashion Week 



XOXO

Jen & Saira

What's new in TK Maxx this Autumn/Winter?

Hi guys,
Last week I was invited along to TK Maxx's bloggers dinner, where they showcased all the trends and key pieces we'll all be able to find instore for Autumn/Winter this year.

You guys know I have a lot of love for TK Maxx. My inner bargain hunter just can't resist a rummage through their rails, and the Gold Label section is like a designer treasure trove! But I think a lot of people are mistaken and think that TK Maxx is nothing but last season's designer clobber: Actually, they also have a mountain of on-trend new season fashions, and their buyers always cherry pick the best pieces available. Yup. I'm not afraid to admit that I love TK Maxx! Which is why it really wasn't hard to pick out my favourite pieces from their Autumn/Winter collections:

Blue coat with fur collar and cuffs, £69.99. RRP £195
Green tweed coat with fur collar and cuffs, £99. RRP £450.
Glitter heels, £19.99
Tan and leopard print bag, £69.99
Sequin jacket with bow tie, £49.99. RRP £149.99
Sunglasses, £49.99

The key trends TK Maxx are championing for this season are: Folklore, English Heritage, Pastels, Modernist, Bourgeois, Empress, and Military. It's the heritage-style tweed coats that I'm most in love with: my coat obsession is well-documented. And there is a checked Moschino coat on their website that I have my eyes firmly planted on! Looking at all of the gorgeous TK Maxx campaign images (full of wonderful coats) only makes me wish that I could wrap up warm and see my breath when I walk through crisp fresh snow. Bring on the cold and frosty mornings:




By the way - Have you seen the new TK Maxx advert on TV yet? I love it, I think it's great! Apparently TKMaxx didn't cast models for the ad; everyone that appears is a 'real person'. And the super-cool woman in the green coat and turban? (AKA the woman I want to be when I reach my dotage) is 76 years old!

What do you think of TK Maxx? Is it a place you shop? And have you picked up any amazing bargains instore recently?

Love Tor xx

Fashion Week: Spring 2013 Collections Part 2

Fashion week in London has been off to a brilliant start, but before we head across the pond, here are a few of our remaining favorites from last week's shows in NYC!

Zac Posen

Calvin Klein

Monique Lhuillier

Tory Burch

Vivienne Tam

Ralph Lauren

Rachel Zoe

DKNY

Nanette Lepore

Michael Kors

Naeem Khan

All photos courtesy of Mercedez-Benz Fashion Week

XOXO

Jen & Saira 

COMPETITION: Win my goody bag from the Fearne Cotton catwalk show

Hi guys,
Last Thursday I went to the catwalk show for the unveiling of Fearne Cotton's SS13 collection for Very.co.uk. You can find out more about what I thought of the show here.  All the attendees at the show were given a goody bag: and I'm giving YOU the chance to win mine:


So what's the prize? Well, the prize is a natural cotton Fearne Cotton tote bag, a Fearne Cotton iphone cover, and a black chiffon blouse with silver stud details, as modelled by Fearne herself in the picture above. (The top is a size 8 but its slouchy style means it would look fine on a size 10 figure too).

To Enter: Simply follow the blog (using the follow box to your right) then click here to drop me an email. All you need to do is let me know your full name, and the subject of your email should be "Fearne Cotton comp". I know I usually run competitions by entering in the comments but sometimes that makes it hard to contact the winner: that's why I'm trying it this way, so that I know I have all the potential winners email addresses!

For an extra entry: If you want to be entered into this competition twice, you can also follow Fabfrocks  on Facebook! Mention that you have done this in your email, and I will enter you into the competition twice!

The competition closes at midday on Sunday 30th September. Good luck!!

Love Tor xx

ThePrizeFinder - UK Competitions

London Fashion Week SS13: Tahir Sultan

Hi guys,
The Tahir Sultan show was hands down my personal favourite show that I saw on Saturday. By that I mean that of everything I saw it was the show that most appealed to my own sense of style: I could imagine wearing every single piece. Think stud embellishment, feathers, sharp shoulders and relaxed tailoring: it was like looking inside my dream wardrobe.

I'd never heard of Tahir Sultan until I was invited to his show: that's one of the best things about fashion week though, isn't it? Discovering and then falling in love with new talent! Tahir is a Kuwait based designer who described his collection as being "dedicated to the secret few who know that there is nothing more fashionable than just being yourself". A philosophy I'd like to thing this whole blog is all about!

Here are some of those all-important details:

The collection was very feminine and wearable, and it felt really modern. I loved the dramatic tailored jackets that drew attention to, and emphasised, tiny waists, and the grecian inspired evening dresses with their perfect draping would be my first port-of-call for all of those imaginary red carpet events I go to! The key colours from the collection were greys, black and white whilst hints of fluro pink and orange lifted everything and gave a more summery, sun-shiney feel.

What do you think of the Tahir Sultan collection? And have any other new or upcoming designers caught your eye during London Fashion Week this season?

Love Tor xx

London Fashion Week SS13: Spijkers en Spijkers hair inspiration

Hi guys,
The Spijkers en Spijkers collection this season was very 1920s inspired, with a mix of simple geometric prints and intricate screen printing. But what really caught my attention was the hair.

Most of the models had natural-looking blonde hair which had been simply styled in twisted plaits. The hair was then lifted at the crown to give a half chignon feel, and then a strand of soft gold string was tied around the forehead to give a relaxed, hippie, bohemian feel. It caught my attention because of its undone look, and the fact that it would be so easy and effective to replicate at home. I know these are the Spring/Summer collections, but wouldn't this be perfect Christmas party hair?




The make-up was also understatedly lovely: Think healthy-looking dewy skin and pink tinged lips. The only really 'done' part of the look, designed to compliment the 1920s feel of the collection, were the heavily black kohled eyes. The Body Shop were the official make-up sponsor of Vauxhall Fashion Scout this season, so it's nice to know that you can get everything you need to replicate this look at affordable prices from the high street too.

What do you think of the undone hair at Spijkers en Spijkers? And have you got any new hair or make-up inspiration from the London Fashion Week shows you've seen so far?

Love Tor x

London Fashion Week SS13: The Ones to Watch

Hi guys,

Let the write-ups from my first day at London Fashion Week begin! My first show of the day was the Vauxhall Fashion Scout Ones to Watch. I always enjoy this show and the chance to check out the new and upcoming talent. This year the Ones to Watch were: Helen Van Rees, Hana Cha, Charlotte Simpson, and Ming Pin Tien.

My two favourites were Helen Van Rees and Ming Pin Tien:



Helen Van Rees won my unofficial award for best use of cereal boxes during London Fashion Week! I can imagine constructing some of her headpieces at home with weetabix packets! In all seriousness though, I really loved her collection. It was inspired by Chanel tweeds but for the modern age:three-dimensional weaved cubes were added to more traditional tailored pieces. And what would a fashion show be without a mental hat, eh?! I'm a sucker for old fashioned tweed, so this really had me sold. An added bonus? The pieces were made from 100% recycled materials.

I was also sold on Ming Pin Tien's collection the moment I saw the leather cage armour-type bodices and oversized jacket. The whole collection was both feminine and wearable, and architectural and extreme at the same time. I would have worn several pieces from this collection, and felt like a warrior-woman whilst I was doing it - I predict big things for this designer! Sadly not a single one of my photos for this show came out, but you can see and read more about Ming Pin Tien's collection on the Vauxhall Fashion Scout website.

I would love to know what you guys have thought about London Fashion Week so far: are there any trends that have got you excited? Any pieces or designers you particuarly love? I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Love Tor xx