Underneath it all...

 Anything that represents a classic era I am a fan. From jewels to hair to clothes, the chances of me loving it are particularly high, especially the 1960's/70's era. I always find style in these decades so much more interesting and beautiful and the classic approach to styling is so much more appealing. This is predominately true in specific areas of the fashion and beauty industry, the principal example being hair styles. This was a much more refined generation of women who viewed class as a form of living and not just an option which unfortunately is not the way society is today. This ethos carried throughout every aspect of life; work life, home, social and private affairs. The subject of private affairs and accompanying ensembles is the source of inspiration through photography, beauty and art still to this day.

                         

 

 I chose to focus on the vintage style of lingerie for this post as I find it much for flattering for a wider range of body shapes, and visually it is more enchanting. Lace was a popular choice of fabric for under garments during this particular era represented sensuality. Basic colours were always the main choice of tone, black, white, ivory and grey. Honestly, I would completely buy this style of underwear if I could afford to constantly buy it but unfortunately it is quite expensive. I have been researching this topic for the past few days to source reasonable places to purchase this vintage look that will not break the bank and the two main sites that kept popping up at me were Intimissimi and & Other Stories. Intimissmi appears to appeal to the more up-market approach to this vintage attire but stock extremely beautiful bras that you will definitely want to buy. & Other Stories prices are not significantly cheaper and the stock consists of a modernised version of the images seen above, a little bit more sheer and a little less lace.

It has been a common phrase for as long as I can remeber that a women can feel instantly more beautiful/empowered/sexy with the right lingerie. For me, this is justification enough to invest in luxury underwear, even if you are the only one who knows you are wearing it!

I am also a MASSIVE fan of Tumblr and Pinterest and always look for minimal shots of 70's period lingerie shots because of the simplicity and beauty of the photo. For similar photos such as the ones featured above you can click here CiCi Jewels Tumblr . <3

Love C X 

Full Tweed Ahead

In my last post I spoke about Tartan and how each season the infamous print reappears throughout stores, magazines and editorials on a global level (Clash of the Tartans). Another vintage rebirth has taken place with the explosion of Granny Chic, reinforcing tweed as "back with a bang". Winter 2013 invites another dimension to the classic look with the "berry" approach. Warm and rich tones are a given in the harsher crisp months and this subconsciously forces us to to reach for red, olive and maroon shades. 

It wasn't until I sat down to write this post that I realised how much tweed I have actually bought over the past few weeks (particularly in grey); two coats, shoes, bag and dress. Most of these items are from Penneys/Primark purely because of its incredible value and the stock has significantly improved over the years. Some items are practically identical to stock in shops such as River Island, Warehouse, Topshop, and at just a fraction of the price. If you are going to invest in any tweed piece this winter I would recommend a coat, I did and I am so happy that I did. I got mine from Penneys for 25 Euro and is featured below. Another beautiful tweed coat that I would recommend is from Oasis, also featured below and priced at 79 Euro.

The best thing about investing in tweed staples is that they are items which can be worn repeatedly over the next few years. I'm obsessing over this look at the minute and keep an eye on my Instagram account for images of my latest tweed pieces @CiCiJewels .

 

Love C X 

Clash of the Tartans

For many years growing up and experimenting with different styles, colours and "looks" that suited my personality and me as an individual, I always detested the thought of wearing tartan. I hated it! The image of that red check on anything made me shiver. I don't know wear the hate came from but it was there. For years I even hated the colour red and I am still not sure if these two facts are related. Yet over the past few years I have consistently read in many magazines the rise of the tartan trend and I genuinely was afraid of it. So many magazines that I loved (Marie Claire, Vogue, Company), all telling me to prepare for the print to be everywhere! Without trying to be dramatic but I thought I was going to have to avoid shops. It seems crazy that one specific print can unsettle someone so much but just my luck, of course it had to happen to me.

So the high streets were hit with a bang, alas the tartan! At this point I had made a conscious decision that it was something I was going to avoid, obviously! I did so well for a long time. I made it through two winters without feeling the slightest urge to pick up anything with the print on it. This winter has been a slightly different story. It started one evening when a friend called round for tea and she was wearing this beautiful tartan scarf, and to my complete shock I loved it. I admired it and told her how nice it was, a completely normal thing to say to a friend but I was surprised at what I was saying. So a few days later I find myself looking for a similar scarf to buy, and I suppose that was the beginning of my approval of the print that had taunted me for years. 

I suppose my attitude towards this whole childhood hatred for this whole look as slowly changed. Red is now one of my favourite colours; it is the colour of my room, my laptop, my favourite shoes, lipstick. So reminiscing on this is now quite funny. I am also now wearing a tartan scarf while I write this! I feel the words hypocrite spring to mind!! 

Last week I invested in a navy tartan dress from Penney's and can't wait to wear it. I suppose this is just another way of showing how your attitude to fashion can progress throughout the years. I mean if its good enough for Alexa Chung and Kate Middleton, it's good enough for me. 

Love C X 

Roll Up, Roll Up......

It's always this time of the year that I get obsessed with the weather. Autumn is without a doubt my favourite season. The dark evenings, crisp air and smothering fog, all contribute to my love for October. Another reason is the fact that I now get to break out some chunky knit! As much as I love warm summer evenings, maxi skirts and denim shorts, there is nothing quiet like the feeling of cosiness when you have a thick jumper on, sitting by the fire, drinking some tea and wathcing a movie (I have been doing this a lot lately). But today I am here to speak of my new craze which is over the knee knit socks. I have had a grey pair which have been sitting in my wardrobe for years, and it is only in the recent weeks that I have actually used them, and now I am hooked. 

Mine were bought in the River Island sale about two christmases ago, and thankfully the shop still stock them at this time of the year. Dark winter colours such as ruby, brown, black and olive green are all on my wishlist of styles to pick up. So far I have only managed to tick off grey, but this has increased my passion for socks in general (I never thought I would say that phrase!). Working in River Island means that I know alot of the stock like the back of my hand, and at the minute there are amazingly designed socks that I just cannot get enough of. These days I tend to wear boots all the time and my socks seem to poke out of the top of my shoes, so I may as well invest in nice ones. Thankfully, the socks from River Island are 3 pairs for 9euro.

All above socks are available from River Island 

The above "Over The Knee" Socks are avilable form River Island 

Topshop also have some great stocks available from what I could see online, but I am not too sure what stock is available in the shop. Although I am really just describing this as a lounge look for the house, I also really like the idea of wearing over tights, now that it is getting really cold as well. 

I am absolutely trying this look over the coming weeks and I'll make sure to instagram pictures (@cicijewels) so keep an eye out! 

Love C X 

In The Shadows: Sephora

When it comes to beauty and make up "looks", I always tend to go for a dramatic eye and a soft lip. Therefore when it comes to investing in eye shadows I try to buy palettes as they are just a lot better value for money, and it is also a great way of experimenting different colours. As I have told you guys already, I was recently in Paris and while shopping over there I bought lots of make up in Sephora on the Champs Elysee. One item in particular I have not stopped using since I came home and thought it was only appropriate that I covered a post on it, and that is the Nude "IT" Eye Shadow Palette. 

This palette is made up of ; 7 eye shadows varying between tones of gold and brown; a base shadow which acts as a lid primer; two highlighter shadows to apply after the initial shadow colouring has been set; two eye liner shadows (brown and a darker shade of brown); a contour eyeliner pencil; a 2-in-1 brush acting as an all over shadow brush and an eyeliner brush. The set comes with a sheet which explains each of the shadows and what part of the eye they are to be applied to, and I could not believe that it cost only 30Euro. I thought this may be a special offer, but I have since checked the Sephora website and this is the retail price and it is not a sale item. 

As Sephora is not available in any of the shops near me I was not expecting to stock up on as much products from the brand that I did. In the end I ended up buying powder, cheek highlighter, lipstick, lip gloss, the eye shadow palette and a few more shadows. I have gradually been testing them over the past week or so, and I am now converted! The eye shadows have stayed in place all day and no smudging what so ever, which can sometimes be a big problem when wearing shadows all day. I have never been the type of person who has used eye lid primer either but after using the one in the set Ican completely see why people invest. I am not going to go into detail about the other products from Sephora as I want to stay focused on this particular palette but I will say this, I bought four lipsticks and I wish I had bought more. 

Seeing as beauty is not particularly my area of expertise, I wouldn't  feel comfortable yet giving any tutorial about how to achieve this look as seen above. But this is an image that I have gained inspiration from when applying nude eye shadows, and with this palette you will definitely be ably to re-create the look. Maybe in the future I will start tutorials but not for the moment anyway.

Love C X 

Girl with the Iron Mask

This year I am really excited about Halloween. I love dressing up, but in particular I love dressing up in Gothic attire. I know Halloween is usually themed with death, blood and gore, but this year I am taking a slightly different approach. While in Paris I stumbled across this amazing costume shop (which was also really cheap) near Hotel Du Ville, and while looking around I found the most beautiful range of masks ever. After trying everything on I decided on a black lace masquerade style face piece and a matching black feather for my hair. This has pretty much been the focus for arranging my costume for this year. I have been racking my brain as to what clthes to wear with this, but I think I nearly have everything in place. 

The next big task when putting a creative costume together is figuring out what what to do with your hair and make up! For Halloween, the focus for your face is the crazier the better. I have this image in my mind that I am going to paint my face white, in contrast to the black mask for dramatic impact and bold black/deep purple lips. At the moment I am still experimenting with colours and styles of how this look will piece together on the night but I will do a follow up post of my whole look and how I put it all together. 

                     

 

                             

 

As I have blonde hair, I think the black mask will go well because of the disparity of tones. Similarly, I would advise that any brunettes to opt for a white or lighter shade mask for a resembling result. My plan is to use a silver coloured spray to add a "deathly" image to my look, crimp and backbrush. Lots of hairspray will be needed also so I have been stocking up! 

Although the last image above has nothing to do with the masqerade look that I am going for, I love it! Maybe this could be a look for next year :) 

Everything about my costume will be up very soon including what products I used and where they were bought. 

Love C X