Mediamarmalade

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  • BLUE BELLE

    BLUE BELLE

    . COBALT BLUE LEATHER MINI .

    As you might be able to tell, this burst of sunshine has spurred me on to sport outrageously summery outfits this week, there’s just no stopping me sporting summer blouses & pastel minis. Today’s post is no different.

    . WAREHOUSE SKIRT . CELINE NANO BAG . TOPSHOP KEEPSAKE BOOTS . DANIEL WELLINGTON WATCH .
    . H&M BLOUSE .

     

    My sisters and I spent the day in winchester last Sunday and as the sun was super warm and bright, I decided it was the perfect excuse to wear my Warehouse leather mini skirt which i’ve actually only worn once so far (here). It’s a gorgeous leather skirt, but as it’s a little mini number, the sun has to be out to justify wearing it, either that or a fun night out.
    I teamed the skirt with my H&M blouse which I picked up in Selfridges the same day I bought my Celine Nano, needless to say in comparison it was an absolute bargain at about £20. I’ve worn it loads since I bought it & it goes perfectly with both trousers & skirts. The final touches were my Celine Nano (of course), my Keepsake boots from Topshop (which I seem to wear every day) and my Marc Jacobs sunnies.
    On a final little point, by now you probably realise how much of a GIGANTIC fan I am of Daniel Wellington, sporting either my St Andrews or Sheffield watches on a daily basis. If you’re keen to buy your own DW watch then it’s your lucky day, the fab team at DW have offered mediamarmalade readers a special June / July discount. Just enter ‘mediamarmalade‘ at the checkout for 15% off.
    How would you wear a super mini like this for a day time look?
  • CARAMEL TONES

    CARAMEL TONES

    . BOYFRIEND SHORTS .
    This sunny weather is seriously making me happy, I just want to whip on a bikini and lay out in the sunshine with a good book and an iced coffee. Heavenly. I love summer not only for the well needed vitamin D but also for the clothes we finally get to wear too. Whilst I do enjoy winter clothes, by the time June comes around i’m desperate to get my summer wardrobe back in action.
    . TOPSHOP BOYFRIEND SHORTS (OLD) . TOPSHOP KEEPSAKE SANDALS . MONKI KNIT JUMPER .

     

     

    I thought i’d share it as I look super happy in all the pictures, largely because the sun is shining & the flowers were blossoming all around me. I’m also sporting my new Monki jumper, and as we all know, shopping makes me super happy, so there’s clearly a legitimate excuse for my sartorial frivolity.
    I styled my new monki cropped jumper with my golden oldie Topshop boyfriend shorts. I love these shorts, they’ve served me well for probably 4 or 5 years, and I still wear them every summer. A sign of a good purchase don’t you think? The finishing touch was my new Topshop leather booties, which I have fallen head over heels with. They go with absolutely everything and are like wearing slippers. What more could you need.

    Do you prefer a winter or a summer wardrobe? What do you think of this look?
  • THE POWER OF WHITE

    THE POWER OF WHITE

    . WHITE WORK WEAR .
    After yesterday’s eclectic mix of colourful summer looks, I thought i’d take today’s down a few degrees to a sub zero white on white look. After all Summer is the time of year when white on white is at it’s best, and with this glorious sunshine this week, it’s the perfect time to give it a go.
    . LK BENNETT FLORETTE PUMPS £210 ℅ . ASOS CIGARETTE TROUSERS . H&M BLOUSE . CELINE NANO .

     

    White bottom halves are often something we’re nervous to sport when summer comes around, particularly to work, but finding yourself the perfect white cigarette trouser is an easy way to wear white in an office suitable way. I picked up these off white cigarette trousers from ASOS a while ago now (i’ve featured them up a number of ways on my blog already), they were such good value and have become a go to summer trouser for me.
    They look fab styled with a cosy sweater for colder days, but when the sun came out I decided to pop on my new H&M blouse to keep things super simple, chic & white. The combination was so comfortable but looked great together. I finished the look with my Celine Nano (the perfect partner) and a pop of colour … I just couldn’t resist and if you know me at all by now, you know I seem to be incapable of excluding colour from my outfits.
    The colour pop comes in the form of these incredible calf leather florette pumps from LK Bennett. LK Bennetts Florette & Floret pumps have to be the most sophisticated pump design i’ve come across, and they have an incredible selection of pumps (probably the biggest variety i’ve come across aside from Choo) for me it’s their signature product now. Whilst I fell madly in love with this pony hair florette pump, i’ve already built up a gigantic wishlist including their new pastel pink leather floret pumps & of course a gorgeous patent floret pump from the signature collection. After my hunt for the perfect pump which I talked about here, I think i’ve found the perfect solution in LK Bennett.

    What do you think of the white on white contrasted with the printed pumps?

  • CO-ORDS EDIT

    CO-ORDS EDIT

    . PICNIC IN THE PARK .
    . ASOS FLORAL SKIRT . MONKI KNIT . TOPSHOP KEEPSAKE BOOTS . DKNY TRIBECA SATCHEL .

    . OFFICE WEAR .
    . ASOS FLORAL SKIRT . ZARA PATENT PUMPS . H&M BLOUSE . CELINE NANO BAG .

    . SUMMER GARDEN PARTY .
    . ASOS FLORAL CO – ORD . ASOS PUMPS . MULBERRY WILLOW CLUTCH . 

    . FESTIVAL WEAR .
    . ASOS FLORAL CO-ORD . ASOS DUSTER COAT . NEW LOOK SANDALS . 

    . DINNER DATE .
    . ASOS FLORAL CROP TOP . ASOS CIGARETTE TROUSERS . CELINE NANO . ASOS PUMPS .
    So today’s post is rather exciting and something slightly different to my usual outfit post. The team at ASOS challenged me to style up one of their co-eds (I picked this super cute crop top and skirt duo, both £35 from ASOS), not just once, but five times.  I love this challenge for a couple of reasons, firstly it involves a co-ord which is fast becoming a summer favourite of mine, but secondly because it forces you to think about all the ways you could style up a two-piece, not just in one single combined look.
    I recently bought a skirt and jacket two piece from Zara which I unconsciously have also managed to style a number of ways, as a duo but also as single garments (you check the looks out here, here and here). It’s not only fun styling up items multiple ways, it also makes sure you get loads of wear out of the look.
    Today’s post is a little teaser for all the looks i’ve styled for ASOS’s Co-Ords feature which is going live today on Fashion Finder (check it out here), but stay tuned as i’ll be sharing each look in full with you over the next couple of weeks too.
    Which look is your favourite? Are you a fan of the co-ord?

  • MOISTURE MYTH

    MOISTURE MYTH

    A little twist on my usual features, today’s post is an article which i’ve written for GroupOn’s London City Guide (which you can check out here). It was really fun to write an article of this style, opposed to my more standard ‘chit chat’ which I write on my blog. Let me know what you think :)
    Moisturising is one such routine (or chore), which tends to land in the ‘meant to but forgot’ camp for me. We all know the importance of moisturising and hydration for our skin and general health, but with a lifestyle which doesn’t lend itself to pamper evenings and long baths, moisturising can often slip to the back of the priority list for busy working women (much like taking makeup off before bed or using one of the many hair masks which are piled up high in the bathroom). But with an increasingly demanding and high stress working life, long hours, late nights, a few bottles of red wine to help relinquish the pain – is hydration and therefore moisturising something we should all be putting higher up on our priority list?



    No one wants wrinkles or dull dehydrated skin, this is evident in our mass consumption of all things beauty and skincare, medical quick fixes and investment in over promising products, which tell us they’ll solve all our wrinkle woes. Whilst we spend our (limited & ever demanded) time browsing online for the next best thing to use (what does Lisa Edlridge recommend?), perhaps we’re forgetting the basics. It may not be all about the botox & collagen infused moisturiser creams averaging £100 a pot … how about a simple glass of water (or eight) & an affordable high street moisturiser?
    Claire Cisotti (Mail Online journalist) suggests that many iconic females including Kate Winslet & Joan Collins would agree with this sentiment. The £105 miracle treatments don’t necessarily provide those perfect results which we all wish for, instead a simple low cost moisturiser from our well loved high street brands can deliver far better results. Claire put this hypothesis to the test back in 2013 in a 4-week trial comparing 2 well-known facial moisturiser products that had quite surprising results. When comparing the results of the £105 Crème De La Mere moisturiser versus the £5 Nivea crème pot, it was very visible which product had delivered better results, not purely on skin hydration but also on reduction of redness and fading of fine lines as well. Nivea came out tops.
    So let’s put that £100 back into the piggy jar (obviously reallocating our savings towards the Chanel 2.5 fund), pop down to our local high street store & grab one of the many affordable moisturisers on offer, promise to moisturise day & night and finally enforce the 2l a day water consumption.

    Perhaps the 2l a day rule is the hardest to deliver on though (for me at least) … 8 x 200ml glasses is no easy feat, particularly when half the day is spent dashing around London from one meeting to another, but it’s one that is worth the effort and something which I’m sure we all promise ourselves we’ll do at the start of each new year. Do we have an excuse not to do it? With the budget saved from limiting our investment in high-end miracle skin treatments, let’s treat ourselves to portable (and stylist) water bottle that will easily slip into our Mulberry Tote or Prada Saffiano without any refute. Banish any possible excuse to not be drinking our daily-recommended amounts of liquid … water, not coffee and wine mind.
    Here’s to finally achieving hydrated looking skin.
  • NUDE PUMPS

    NUDE PUMPS

    . ASOS PUMPS .
    It’s almost  a bit late for an introduction seeing as i’ve worn these pumps a number of times on my blog already, but I wanted to share them today because they were such a bargain find and are now one of my favourite pumps.

     

    These ASOS pumps were an impromptu purchase a month or so ago when I realised I owned no pumps & had no ‘profession’ suitable heels to wear for serious work meetings. It’s a funny thing, having well over a hundred or so shoes in my shoe cupboard, but genuinely not being able to find a single pair to wear with a smart work outfit. I was involved in a couple of pitches at work a few months ago, very important pitches with very senior people, and so i wanted to dress the part. I had various items of Whistles & Reiss clothing that fit the bill, but my problem was that all my shoes were either slightly too worn or not suitable for the occasion. Don’t get me wrong I have a TON of shoes, too many I’ll even admit, but if you’ll believe it, i had no pumps. And in a situation like this, a pump is just what you need.

    So post my stressful ‘I have no shoes’ saga, I decided it was about time I bought a good pair of pumps. I spied some gorgeous Gianvito Rossi pumps & toyed with a classic pair of Jimmy Choo’s, but with the investment of my Celine playing on my mind, I decided to opt for something a little more affordable in the short term. I browsed Whilstles, Reiss, French Connection, Hobbs and whilst there were some I liked there were none that were spot on what I wanted (a pointed toe, no platform, and wearable stiletto), that’s when I came across these beauties on ASOS. I was worried about the quality given they were SO cheap, but I thought there was no harm in ordering them and trying my luck. At the same time I also found these amazing Zara heels which I absolutely fell in love with.

    I decided because of the price points, and the clear, indisputable need to have various colours of pumps, because of course there are a number of outfits were a nude pump is more suitable than a black (or Navy pump), that I would treat myself to both. And boy what a decision I made. Both pairs are perfect for my needs, pretty, pointy & a passable heel height.  I’ve also, since these two purchases, found some gorgeous pumps in LK Bennett, I almost bought myself a pair at Kilver Court in the sale, but resisted as fortunately i’ve been sent an incredible pair of their Florete Calf Leather pumps which I just can’t wait to show you all too.

    There’s no denying that I might treat myself to Choo’s Ari pump some time soon, after all we all need some Choo in our life. But in the meantime, these two high street pumps are ticking all my boxes & have been great purchases considering how many times i’ve worn them both already.

    Are you a fan of the pump? Where do you buy yours?

  • THE BIG DEBATE

    THE BIG DEBATE

     

    . BLOGGING .

    The sun has come out and my mood seems to have totally rocketed, it’s amazing what a little sun does to your mood and general well being. On the wellbeing point, it’s something i’ve been thinking about more and more lately, particularly following a series of inspirational talks at work yesterday from the Huffington Post & Arianna Huffington herself. As a very ambitious and career focussed female, it’s great to hear from other successful women but also be reminded of how important it is to maintain your well being on the road to success. After all the more physically and mentally ‘on form’ we are, the better we perform. So i’ve vowed to spend a little more time looking after myself, getting an extra hour sleep at night, praising myself for my achievements, looking after my tummy & cutting out the things I know makes it worse, spending time with my loved ones & generally focussing on the happy things in life (Thanks to Susie Pearls talk, i’m now already feeling bubbly & more consciously happy).

    Happiness is infectious too, so if we all spend a little more time being grateful for the little things in our lives that make us happy & spend more time celebrating happy moments and channeling positive thoughts, rather than dwelling on the few things that really piss us off we’ll all be more positive … and healthy with that too. As you can tell, yesterdays inspiration talks seriously rubbed off on me and actually it was a really pertinent time for this to happen. There’s been lots of ‘chat’ amongst the blogosphere about the way our ‘industry’ (yes we’re now an industry!) is progressing and whilst the opportunities are endless right now, it does seem this new ‘business’ mode can give us a whole world of contradicting emotions – happiness, excitement, pride, the feeling of being overwhelmed, tired, and sadly self depreciating. This emotional rollercoaster can take it’s toll on us bloggers who maybe don’t do this full time or haven’t rocketed to the same success us others, and whilst we’re nothing but delighted for the success of others, there’s no point denying it does become a new benchmark for us to compare ourselves to, and if you’re anything like me (ambitious and constantly striving for perfection and success) then this new benchmark can make us a little self deprecating and in my case really hard on myself.

    But in light of my new ‘mindfulness’ i’m changing my attitude to this, I work so so hard on my blog, and I juggle my full time career, family, friends and boyfriend with it all, and sometimes that’s nothing short of a miracle. So rather than spending my hours woe-ing that I wasn’t featured in X magazine article or involved in X collaboration or that I don’t have 27,000 followers and 100k subscribers to my instagram, i’m going to spend more time celebrating how bloody hard i’ve worked, all the fabulous brands I do get to work with, the incredible magazine features I have been included in, the events i’m invited to and every single one of you readers that do tune in, leave me comments, like my posts, as well as the fab people i’ve met and the great hobbies i’ve developed throughout my 2.5 years blogging (photography & journalism). If I was to ask my family, friends and colleagues about my blog, they’d do nothing but rave of all that i’ve achieved. So it’s about time I, and you, do the same.

    I’ve read and heard a lot on this topic, and I think it gives us a good moment to take check of what we’ve achieved, where we’ve come from but most importantly WHY we blog. It’s a time to go back to the roots of why we even started our own blogs, for me it was a place to talk about my uncontrollable shopping addiction, love of clothes and my space to share how I like to style my looks with people that actually cared (clearly this was just me for a long while). Any ‘perks’ were exactly that, a perk, and definitely not the reason I started mediamarmalade.com. One of the best things about blogging is the fact that we’re a like minded bunch of people who share similar passions and hobbies, and in my mind that’s what it’s all about, and it’s important we all remember it and stop being so hard on ourselves if we don’t quite ‘match’ one another. We didn’t start for commercial success and there’s no point setting benchmarks based on other people, if there’s one thing to keep in mind it’s that integrity is what makes a blog, there’s no point trying to conform to how others do it, because that just defeats the entire purpose, plus it doesn’t debut the real ‘you’ which is what we all tune in for isn’t it? It’s absolutely easier said than done, but from here on in, we all need to spend more time congratulating ourselves than beating ourselves up. Success in the blogging world is subjective and undefined, so there’s no point chasing an intangible measure. Instead get back to your roots, blog what you love and write what you feel . A blog is about you, whatever you may be!!

    I have to say I didn’t intend to write all this (this was originally a Friday outfit post …) but there you go, it’s what a blogs for, and it’s what I felt like ;)

  • A SPRING PALETTE

    A SPRING PALETTE

    . CIGARETTE TROUSERS & CROPPED TEE .
    Seeing as the sun’s come out to play today, I thought i’d share a slightly more sunshine suitable styling of my new favourite trend, the cigarette trousers. Cropped tops & androygnous style trousers aren’t things i ever thought i’d covet, but it seems i’m doing just that, not only that, i’m sporting them together too.
    . ASOS CIGARETTE TROUSERS & PINK PUMPS . TOPSHOP BRETON TOP .
    These pastel blue cigarette trousers were my second pantaloon investment from ASOS, surprisingly ASOS trousers seem to be perfect for me, fitting like a dream, so i’ve now got two pairs to play with. My crop top is a Topshop number which I bought last year, I love the laid back vibe & of course the breton stripe print and I think this tee goes perfectly with the more formal trouser look. I finished the duo with my new pumps (another ASOS find in fact) which gave it a slightly more dressy feel, but for a casual summer day time look i’d add a pair of nude leather sandals.
     
    Are you a fan of the cigarette trouser? How would you style them for a more laid back every day look?
  • FLORAL PANTALOONS

    FLORAL PANTALOONS

    . FLORAL SKINNIES & FLUFFY SWEATER .
    Over the last few months i’ve developed a real love for trousers, they’re not a garment I frequently sported previously, I always seemed to opt for shift dresses & skirts, but in line with the cigarette trend which has storm troopered my wardrobe, I seem to have grown a real love for the skinny trouser.

    . SHEINSIDE TROUSERS C/O . CHICWISH SWEATER C/O . ZARA PUMPS . DKNY BAG C/O . ASOS FEDORA . 

     


    My trouser collection has already quadrupled in size this year, going from my French Connection leopard print trousers (here, here and here) & floral topshop trousers which i’ve had for a couple of years, to including 6 more styles ranging from my two pairs of ASOS cigarette trousers, to my Mint Velvet print pants and Topshop satin trousers. My collection is vast but at least I have a pair for every occasion.
    These floral skinny trousers are a new addition to my collection from Sheinside, they’re the perfect skinny fit & a gorgeous colour for spring and summer, but will also carry through to Autumn with the autumnal tones. I wore this this weekend and teamed the trousers with this uber fluffy sweater from Chicwish (so comfy & cute) and my new DKNY Tribeca satchel & Zara pumps. I wanted to style the trousers in a slightly more dressy style so they’d work for an evening look, and naturally my Zara pumps delivered the transition once again. All hail.
     
    Are you a fan of trousers? Which kind of trouser do you most love & how do you style yours?