Can You Wear Glitter in Spring? Topshop Glitters...

I'm loving the fact that Spring fashions are slowly seeping onto the shop floors, really I am. But something inside me misses the glitters which covered our Winter 2012 fashions, so I thought I'd throw together this sparkly little blogpost as a review AND a reminisce. 

I managed to snap these Topshop glitters up in the sales in January and although I'm not 100% sure how I will be using them, I can't help myself from twisting the top of them periodically just to watch them twinkle! 

*So pretty!*

The loose powders come in these little pots with sprinkle tops attached (like you get in talcum powder). However, I took the sprinkle tops off as they just get in the way as far as I'm concerned! I got all four of these powders for just £4 and I think they are so gorgeous...

January Sales Suck.

I hate shopping at the best of times. There, I said it. But the January sales in particular drive me up the wall. Why should I enjoy battling through chaos in the local shopping centre, fighting my way past nutters who have been up since some ungodly hour just so they could be first in line to blitz their way through a horrific mess of seasons-old clothes which are still overpriced in spite of their offensively unavoidable red signs promising 'up to' 50% OFF!?! I find the red signs unsettling, alarming even. The amount of people in the shops who are downright aggressive needs policing more efficiently! Why are the clothes never tidy, or organized, or even *gasp* in a good condition? Why do brands think I am dumb enough to ignore the 'From £60 to £58' tags on the item and only pay attention to the horrifically misleading, 'up to 70% OFF' sign in the shop window, with 'up to' in the smallest font known to humanity *ahem, TOPSHOP, ahem*? If I didn't want the shoes over a year ago when they were priced at the same 'bargain' price of £30 why the hell would I want them now??? I absolutely do not want to go and waste my Christmas gift vouchers on things I would never normally buy if they were full priced, so why on earth do some shops completely clear their floors of new stock, just to shove the old stuff which nobody wants down my throat??? 

*Look at the state of Miss Selfridge!*

Outfit of the Day: Christmas Fayre

Hello festive bunnies!

Here's a cute winter outfit for ya'll... Could have done with a scarf as I spent most of the day freezing my nick-nacks off but you know, we all get it wrong sometimes...

I always love to get excited about Christmas far too early and this year has been no exception! My family decided to throw together a Thanksgiving dinner on Thursday and ever since then I'm in a really super-festive mood, so it was rather convenient that my old school was running their annual Christmas fayre this weekend. My boyfriend, his mother and I threw on our gladrags (in my case, a red bodycon from Forever 21, my sisters Topshop Tinie Tempah vest, her Topshop coat, my navy Dorothy Perkins tights and my khaki Forever 21 booties) and braced ourselves for smashing the tombola...

And we did :)

We managed to get all of this for just £17!!!

Not bad eh? I think it will become a bit of a Christmas tradition to us as we probably won't need to buy another bottle of wine until the New Year... CLEARED UP :) One of these bottles was worth £10 from Morrisons and another was worth £7. Most of them were worth over £4 so we saved quite a wedge of money. Great success.

I have lots of blog-related Christmas plans so stay tuned over the festive season as I will be working hard to do regular posts.

Do you have any Christmas traditions? What have you been wearing in the colder months? Would you have hated us for winning most of the bottles on the tombola table?

Love and snuggles

GabriellaSofia

x

Blog Sale: Topshop, Abercrombie and Fitch, Miss Selfridge, Delia's, Gap, Forever 21, American Eagle and River Island

Hello Cheeky Bunnies :)

So I could do with making a bit of money at the moment because I'm planning another travelling excursion. On top of all that, I did a serious hunt through all of my clothes (as my room is full of them!) and realized I have so many items which deserve good owners who will give them the wearing they well and truly deserve... As much as it kills me, these are the first few items which I am going to sell:

My Size 10 Gap Shorts are really nice and good quality. However, they are a little big for me... to be honest, I'd say they are closer to a size 12, which is why I've listed them as such. I tried them on a couple of times but never wore them because they were a little too baggy. My friend tried them on once and I was amazed by how they can hug the right body in all the best places... her big butt looked great in them! The bids start at £0.99.

I'd always wanted a pair of these Topshop Hot Pants so I snapped them right up in the sale. Sadly, these too ended up being closer to a size 12 than a 10 so didn't fit me like I wanted them to. They are sexy with a relatively high waist and they show a nice bit of butt cheek if you have the right figure :P The bids start at £0.99.

These Grey Short Shorts from American Eagle would look awesome with a crisp white t-shirt and flip-flops or gladiator sandals. Once again, these shorts were slightly too big for me, so would fit a size 12 comfortably... Are you sensing a pattern here? I have a thing about girls with big butts in short shorts haha :) They are super flattering and show off the curves which you know you have! Bidding starts at £0.99.

This Abercrombie and Fitch Denim Mini Skirt is one of the things which hurts me the most to get rid of, as every time I've seen it in my drawer I've wanted to wear it, and I've tried it on a few times. However, it has just been one of those things I've never got round to wearing so I've decided enough is enough and I'm sure there is someone out there who would wear it as often as it deserves! This skirt would fit a UK size 10 the best and would look great with some sky-scraper wedges on a holiday. The bidding starts at £0.99.

I feel like a stuck record but these Yellow Floral Delia's Shorts were such beauties when I spotted them in the States but they just don't fit right :( These are for girls with a size 10 waist and a size 12 butt as they felt a little loose on me. I love the intricate floral design though and they would look great with a pair of booties and a blazer for winter. Unsurprisingly, the bidding starts at just £0.99.

These Miss Selfridge Floral Denim Shorts are just too cute. I'm just gutted to be selling these but they just don't fit :( I tried on the size 10 in store and they were a little too snug so just went ahead and purchased the 12's but when I got them home I found them too large. Its a real shame because I thought they'd look great for festivals this summer with wellies, but it just never happened :( The bidding starts at £0.99.

This Lacy Topshop Crop Top looked absolutely gorgeous on the hanger in store, but as a bigger busted lady I have to admit it really wasn't very flattering for me as it just made my boobs look overwhelming! Its a great item for a chick wanting to draw more attention up-top though as it gives the impression of a bigger bust. Plus, the lacy embroidery is just so cute. It will fit a size 10 best. Bids start at £0.99. 

This Floral Cotton Mini Dress from Topshop is so comfy as a simple throw-over during the summer. It looks equally good with heels and a denim jacket for the evening though. It will fit a size 10 best as the elastic waist can make things a little uncomfortable as it could cut into anyone bigger. I've never worn this but was always saving it for a day when my legs would be brown... Sad times! The bidding starts at £0.99

This little Topshop White Lace Vest Top is one of those things that I've bought in the pas thinking, 'Ahhh that will look amazing with skinny jeans' and in the heat of all the excitement I forgot one major thing... I DON'T WEAR JEANS. Idiot brains. Anyway, it will fit a size 12 the best, but looks cute and slouchy on a size 10 frame too. The bidding starts at £0.99.

As you can see this Pastel Green River Island Top actually still has its tag attached because once upon a time I thought I had a belly worth showing off... Whoops! HAHAHA :) Just kidding, we all know tops like this look awesome with high waisted skirts, shorts and jeans but to be honest, its just not my style... I've never owned anything in this colour before and don't really know how to work it. I'm sure you can though! Will be comfiest on a size 10 but would suit a size 12 too. Bidding starts at £0.99 

This Full Topshop Mini Skirt can be so adorable with a tiny cropped t-shirt, a belt and heels. The reddy-pinky polka dots MAKE this skirt worth wearing. Plus its really short which automatically makes it sexy, but with it being quite a full skirt too it moves in an amazing way... You all know the feeling you used to get when you spin and your skirt flies up and you feel like a naughty princess... that's the feeling you'll get with this skirt on. It will fit a size 10 most comfortably. Start your bids at £0.99.

Another one of my favourites, especially for autumn/winter, is this Forever 21 Floral Mini Skirt. I bought it in the States last summer and literally forgot I had it. It will fit a size 10 perfectly and looks good with an autumn coloured blazer (I know this because that is how the mannequin was dressed in store!) Wish I had clothes to wear with this :( Start the bidding at £0.99

This Purple Jersey Skirt from Topshop is great to pull on over a bikini on your holidays. I bought it about a year before I went on my next holiday though, so by the time I was next by the beach my style had changed. If I was to wear it I'd probably go with a plain white t-shirt, a pale denim boyfriend shirt and a pair of white pump shoes. The skirt would be most comfortable for a size 10. And you've guessed it... the bids start at (any guesses?) £0.99

My boyfriend nearly died when I emptied my carboot into his house telling him I had 'a few bits to sell on eBay' bless him! He literally stood with his hand over his mouth shaking his head saying, 'Are you selling on eBay or moving in???' (which I should discuss with him really because he shouldn't be so concerned about that concept really... but that's a topic for another blog post entirely!) And yet, I knew I had to get rid of these things, so please if you can help take them off my hands in any way it would be really much appreciated! Each of the items are in very good condition (I take good care of my clothes... they are my babies!) and they are all clean. Also, if you decide to purchase any of these bits on eBay please send me pics of you wearing them because I'm really interested to see how you would style them up! This is my first ever eBay selling experience, so let's make it a good one...

Have you had much luck selling on eBay in the past? Can you think of a more profitable way of getting rid of unworn clothes? Do you see anything you like here?

To buy, please click on any of the links above and please keep an eye out for my next Blog Sale blog post which should be up in about a week. Happy bidding!

Love and snuggles

GabriellaSofia

Style Icon: Mona Lisa Vito

Helloooooo-ha!

First things first, have you ever watched the 1992 comedy film My Cousin Vinny? If the answer to this is no, then quick, hurry. Download it onto your laptop and be prepared for your sides to split over good, clean, comedy (bar the odd 'effword'). Now, aside from the hilarity of this film, another top reason to watch My Cousin Vinny is my ultimate number one girl crush of all time, Marisa Tomei as Mona Lisa Vito.

Her attitude, her eyebrows, her outfits... what is not to love? Mona Lisa Vito is a New York Italian chick with leathers, velvets and skin-tight cottons as her go to fabrics which could not be better for this chilly autumn-winter. Plus, Mona Lisa Vito, like me, is almost always over-dressed, so I think I could wear her look quite well as a similarly dark-haired feminist. 

*A modern day version of this would have a black bodycon skirt and sky high black wedges; monochrome shoulder-pad jacket non-optional!* 

*Check out the shades and hoop earrings. This woman seriously knows how to accesorize.*

*A bright red blazer, matching lipstick and larger than life roses surrounding her neck down into her cleavage is so Mona Lisa Vito! Just throw in a kick-ass facial expression and you have my heroine. Love Love Love.*

*I want this jumpsuit... and the body to go with it please.*

Isn't her hair great? I desperately want a white streak through my own hair now...*

*Even in her jimjams Mona Lisa looks beautiful... Lip stain, mascara and dark eyebrow pencil are probably all that is needed to look as attractive as Mona Lisa Vito... I wish.*

Luckily, I've realized that the best place on the high street (also known as a little place called Topshop) has tons of items which would contribute to a Mona Lisa Vito look... Now all I have to do is save for the following pieces:

£89 Ombre Faux Mongolian Coat 

£26 Lace Roll Neck Crop Top

£85 Baroque Skinny Jeans...

£10 Skinny Polo Crop... 

£80 Embellished Boots...

£65 Fringe Devore Kimono

£180 Limited Edition Embellished Bodycon Dress...

£8 Lips in Beguiled...

£180 Cross Embroidered Biker Jacket...

Who is your autumn-winter style crush at the moment? Have you ever seen My Cousin Vinny before? Which of these pieces is your absolute favorite? The embellished boots are the top of my to-buy list at the moment!

Love and snuggles

GabriellaSofia

x

Outfit of the Day: Growl Power

Good morning Star Shine!

So Friday is dress-down day at work, so each and every Thursday night I agonize over what might be appropriate and each and every Friday morning I throw on something that most likely isn't. Win some, lose some, eh? Anyway, this Friday just gone I panicked big-time as I'm selling a bunch of clothes very soon on eBay so I had a nightmare trying to find something in my newly-culled chest of drawers. Naturally, I rushed into my sisters room and pulled out the first thing I could find which happened to inspire the whole rest of my outfit... Here it is...

So I grabbed this Topshop fox jumper out of my sister's drawers and decided to go wild, literally. This is a skirt I got from Forever 21 last summer but I actually popped the bottom button off it when I got into the car after this photo was taken :( Maybe my granny can fix it. My gold and brown low-hanging pendant necklace is from Topshop (unsurprisingly) and my tights and boots are both Forever 21. Now, let's tackle the elephant in the room... my leopard-print coat was a bit of a random grab to be fair, I was rushing out of the house and realized how cold it was, so I reached under my bed and pulled this out. I'd forgotten I even had it and since I'm on a 'if-you-don't-wear-your-clothes-you-have-to-sell-them' kick I decided to bite the bullet and throw the H&M furry friend on. I've never looked back...

What do you wear for dress-down day? Would you dare wear leopard print? Is anyone any good at sewing buttons back onto skirts?

Keep an eye out for my upcoming blogsale...

Love and snuggles

GabriellaSofia

x

ps. Apologies for using a Cheetah Girls song title in my post title... if I said I didn't love them, I'd be lying.

What does 'business casual' mean???

Hello Haute-ettes...

So since most of my life currently revolves around work I figured I'd better write a work-related post whilst also touching on something I've forever been interested in... FASHION :)

I'm not sure about you, but I have always been baffled by the idea of 'business casual' attire. My senses when I nipped into the office a couple of days before officially starting determined that the dress-code in the office might fit into the category of 'business casual'. But WHAT DOES THAT MEAN??? Does this mean I need to wear flats or heels? Collared shirt or t-shirt? Blazer or cardigan? 

Well my friends, I did what any new starter at Phones 4u's head offices would do, and scrutinised my future colleagues closer. I soon realized that the wardrobes of my fellow staff members were super-duper varied, and the general idea is, 'Be comfortable, but look smart'. Simples *insert squeeky meercat noise*.

It is a good job I realized all this to be fair, because it took me about a week of wearing the same clothes before I came to this conclusion, by which point I had saved enough pennies to take myself on a little spree at the weekend. Purely in the name of my career of course. I mean, as much as it pained me to buy clothes, I managed it because I just HAD TO. It was agonizing blowing nearly £100 in New Look, but you know what, I took one for the team and went for it.

Who am I kidding? I had an amazing time trying on sexy grown-up office clothes! 

So check out some of the bits and bobs I have bought and get to wear every day...

*Peplum tops create a really sexy silhouette and this pencil skirt is like a bodycon so it makes my butt look incredible... yes, I went there.*

*This is the same pencil skirt with a Topshop peplum top. I like the detail the little brown belt adds too, cinching me in even more at the waist. My patent black peep-toes are actually from Nine West via My Mom's Wardrobe. Pretty uncomfortable but incredible for my legs...*

*Yet another peplum top from Topshop (are you sensing a pattern yet?) This time I have on a super-skinny black belt and a black, silver and bronze beaded choker necklace. In this picture it is just black though. Also, let's not ignore the elephant in the room... yes, my breasts are apparently bigger than my head.*

*This is a slightly more casual look and it is actually totally unlike me to chose blue. Like, seriously, I have next to nothing in blue. This New Look skater dress reminds me so much of my best friend Vikki because she always wears things like this. I think they are really flattering and I think my black cardi and tights make it look a bit more suitably conservative for work.*

*This is my favorite thing that I have bought which makes it even sadder that this picture really doesn't do this dress justice. It is a little short, and the leather accents on the pockets and shoulders add a slightly dominatrix look to the whole outfit which makes me feel oh-so-powerful and sexually confident. Considering this is a relatively shapeless dress with a kind of A-line finish and shift-dress length I find it works for my figure so well!*

So what do you think? Do I fit in with the business casual look? I find myself occasionally going into the office slightly over-dressed. However, I've always preferred to be over-dressed than under-dressed because I've never really minded people looking at me and thinking, 'She made too much effort' rather than, 'She made NO effort'. 

What would you wear for a business casual look? Where do you shop for work-style clothes? Have you noticed that quality in New Look has seen an amazing improvement in the past couple of years? I used to think New Look was a bit skanky to be honest, but now I'm a big fan... I even got asked if the dress in the bottom picture was from Zara or Karen Millen! Apparently both have similar designs... Brilliant :)

Love and snuggles

GabriellaSofia

x

Louise Gray for Topshop Makeup on a Budget...

If you are anything like me at the moment, you'll be saving up your pennies for Christmas already (I like to be WAY prepared so I don't have to scrimp around the festive season...) so although Louise Gray's colour-popping cosmetics collection for Topshop is absolutely beautiful, you'll be hunting for a cheaper alternative.

As a lipstick lover, I made it my goal to track down some dupes for the two Lips in the collection entitled  Mexican Wave (a rich blood-orange-peel colour) and Legend (the hottest of hot pinks in a deep hue). After seeing that they cost a whopping £10 (!!!) each I scribbled with each of them on the back of my hand just so I would have a swatch for colour comparison.

*Mexican Wave is on the bottom, Legend on the top*

The formulas are absolutely heavenly. Usually I find that with glossier more moisturising Lips that the colour pigment suffers, coming out slightly fainter and needing a couple more coatings just to achieve the colour you see in the stick. However, with these they are both true to the colour in the tube and incredibly creamy and soft. An absolute dream. Nonetheless, they are still £10 and I can't really justify spending that much when I am trying oh-so-hard to save. So I put the Lips down and had a quick glance over the rest of the counter before planning to head off in the direction of Boots to find my dupes...

HOWEVER, and here is the real clincher. As I was 'glancing' I spotted the Lip Sticks in the shades Hedonist and Clueless which looked almost identical to the Louise Gray colours. Amazing right? And better still? They are only £7 each. 

See, Hedonist is the orange line and Clueless is the pink one! Once again, the pigment is fantastic and in the pencil form the Lip Sticks are easier to apply for a more precise finish. The only drawback is that as the Lip Sticks are intended for a matte effect they don't have the same kind of glossiness as Louise Gray's Lips do. Having said that, we all know that this can quite easily be resolved by slicking on some lip balm underneath and dabbing on a little clear lipgloss over the top.

Now, I know what you are thinking, '£7 is still a lot babez! You'd only be saving £6 if you bought both! NOT GOOD ENOUGH." And I would be inclined to agree with you.... that is if I wasn't mad on the Louise Gray Cheek Duo in Up In The Air too...

The duo costs £12.50 which once again, I can't really justify. But just look how those colours pop in the palette! I very nearly couldn't resist... That was until I swatched a little of each colour on my hand and was horrifically disappointed with the pigmentation. 

You can hardly even see the colours! I soon realized I got a colour which was much truer to the pan when I scribbled a bit of the Lip Sticks on each finger and patted them into the apples of my cheeks. So technically, these Lip Sticks dupe for not just one product each, but two. Great success.

Needless to say, next payday I will be heading out to buy Hedonist and Clueless for £14 as opposed to buying the Louise Gray Lips and Cheek Duo for £32.50. A whopping save of £18.50 is to be made here. You. Are. Welcome.

Have you given into the temptations of Louise Gray? Do you know of any other amazingly cheap dupes for the Lips and Cheek Duo? Do you ever put lipsticks on your cheeks in place of blusher? I do it all the time, the creamy consistency is WAY better for staying power.

Love and snuggles

GabriellaSofia

x

OOTD: Nerd-Girl Office-Girl...

Hello there strangers!

It really feels like I haven't blogged in an absolute age. I think it has been a week since my last post or something like that... Naughty aren't I? But you have to let me off, because it is all due to the fact that I have now entered the world of work. That's right, I, GabriellaSofia, am now an official grown-up, who pays taxes, and works 9am-6pm and wears many pencil skirts and peep-toe shoesies. And you know what? I'm loving it!

So, what does a Recruitment Consultant at the Phones 4u Head Offices wear to work? Well, now you're asking... On my first day, I wore the same little outfit I wore to my job interview because I figured, 'Hey, if it made a good impression on that day, it will now too!' This was the dress:

As I started on a Thursday, and Friday is own-clothes day (I wore my black bodycon skirt, grey tights, black booties and slouchy Topshop jumper also in gray) I didn't have to panic about what else to wear until the Monday morning. I had the whole weekend to plan. Of course Monday morning rocked around and I was zombifiedly exhausted as I was getting ready and hadn't really planned what to wear. Plus, my hair looked terrible so I had to put it into a bun and my eyes were bothering me so I couldn't put my contacts in, meaning I looked like this:

Geek-chic could we call it? Nerd-girl office-girl more like. I'm spec-sy and I know it. Nonetheless, I liked this outfit because the navy dress (Dorothy Perkins, a steal at only £22) is made of a soft cotton-like material and I was able to accessorize adequately being all matchy-matchy with my colours. Grey glasses, cardi, tights and Nine West peep-toes were off-setted by my brown belt and brown hoop necklace whilst my earrings were almost the exact same colour as my dress. Considering the outfit was a bit out there personality-wise, I think it did the trick, looking smart but being comfortable and having a real GabriellaSofia injection of fun thrown into the mix too... 

What do you think about this outfit? Would you wear such a stand-out look in your first few days of working for a new company? What would you wear in an office environment whilst also trying to incorporate your own personal style?

Let me know...

Love and snuggles

GabriellaSofia

x

Style Profile: Autumn/Winter 2012: Topshop: Mad Men Modern...

So I'm not sure if all you beautiful people are aware, but I got a job a couple of days ago... To find out more check out my How To Pass A Job Interview post. However, back to business! Since I'm now a grown up with a real-life grown up job, I'm going to need some smart-looking attire, aren't I? And since I'll be being paid a healthy wage, I'm going to have enough money to buy myself a little work-outfit perhaps every couple of weeks. So I've been scouring the high-street store websites for different bits and bobs which I think would look fab in the office. I'm loving the sexy shapes which some of the smarter items have at the moment, peplum and shift dresses, pencil skirts and blazers, pencil trousers and tuxedo jackets... I could go on for ever! So here is the first little outfit that I'd like to invest in. 

This collection is all about sexy silhouettes, soft colour but bold shapes! This is a 1940's inspired look which would be ideal for bringing some girl power to the office. I want to invest in the dress, the pink sunnies, the pink and black bag and the black shoes. I used only Topshop clothes in this collection. Sexy but professional, what is not to love?

What would you wear to turn heads and be taken seriously in the office? Do you prefer pants or skirt suits? Would you wear a dress without a blazer for work or do you think it is too casual?

Love and kisses
GabriellaSofia
x

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