Feeling sweet.

I'm sure my last post with it's depressing as fuck playlist may have made many of you aware of my bad mood recently. A combination of stress, research crazies, natural maudlin tendencies and everyone in my close circle of friends being super-busy at the moment has made for a not-so-happy Colette.

And then Friday happened. My presentation of my dissertation research went pretty well, I went for an awesome lunch in the Silk Road Cafe in the Chester-Beatty Library(which is actually a museum and is also awesome) with my classmates, had a craft beer, wandered 'round the exhibition and had the major chats. Then I went home to my family home for the weekend where new perfume, hugs and craic awaited. I showed my parents the little profile on me that had been published in a national newspaper (the Irish Independent) that day. Then showed many subsequent relatives.

Le article

I had a homemade, Mammy-made dinner. That night we had a long evening of laughter and lols. And then today my Bro, Mam and I cooked, watched Come Dine with Me and I got some makeup bargains.

So, I guess my sweetened mood might explain the much cuter and girlier outfit I wore today. I've gotten quite minimalistic in my old age but today I was drawn to bows, collars and lace. The top was the basis for the outfit, a gift I got from Mammy last time I was home. It's from Primark but the fit and shape are amazing! A crochet faux Peter Pan collar is built into the neckline and the three quarter sleeves are finished in crochet trims. The jeans are my favourite Topshop boyfriends that are waayyy too big but so comfy. They tame the outfit from being too twee, I think, while the cropped length go with the summery theme. The espadrille wedges are from River Island and have bows but while they add to sweet girliness, they too are tamed by restraint in the continuation of the navy tones which are also echoed in the vintage navy leather bag I robbed from Mam ages ago. All the navy adds a nautical twist which again nods to summer. To finish it off I added a Peter Pan collar necklace made from sequins - for that last splash of cute. I think, overall, there's a nice balance of my two modes of dressing here - cutesy and restraint.

OOTD, ahoy. (Geddit?) In order to photograph this look, I went for an adventure in the garden. God, I've missed this green. 

(10 points if you laughed)

(I did)

This photo is by Daddy. You go, Daddy.

The Blog Post equivalent of Snail Mail.

I haven't done an outfit post in a while. Mostly because I feel like a dork asking people to take my photo and also because I always forget until the light is crap.

As I'm at home this weekend and get to play with more of my wardrobe at large, I present a Hallowe'en inspired outfit of all black (with some navy), capes and dramatic silhouette. Lil' more drama than I normally go for but I was having a good day where being presented with a mirror made me say "Not so bad" instead of "Why can't I be Audrey Horne?" and that always leads to dressing up. Speaking of Ms. Horne, I also accentuated my freckle with an eyebrow pencil, kind of getting in the habit of it, and it's largely an homage to her.

The top is a black vintage suedette thing my Mam was throwing out a while back. I can't figure out if I love it or hate it...but it fascinates me. It's so unique and the silhouette is very vampish meets Mexican peasant from an old western. The skirt is my basic black tube skirt which I have been trying to find forever! (You'll probably see much more of it!) The shoes, navy suede flatforms from Topshop and the cape, another item stolen from my very stylish mother.

PS Using my brother's full-length mirrors again. Why are they the only ones in the house?! There he is dutifully studying away in the background. How adorable. Also, excuse the mess and smudges on the mirror. The wardrobe's been there a few months now so it's less super-sparkly. And as for the mess...well, he's a teenage boy...

Life's often a beach but sometimes you have a whale of a time.

Starry day, starry night.

Not going to go on for too long about today's outfit: The pyjama-style pants were out again and I wore them with other pieces that were largely blue once more, but this time they were blue denim rather than navy blue. I liked the idea of this jacket over the denim shirt as they were such close shades and reminded me of when men wear suits all in one colour - shirt and tie included. The pieces themselves are quite androgynous but shirts and my bustline never agree which led to a rather...feminine result. I paired some Kurt Geiger suede pumps in black with the navy pants because that old rule is such bull. I like to be a wee bit of a rebel. Besides if Karl Lagerfeld says it's cool to put the colours together, well then who are we mere mortals to disagree?