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.

Style Icon - Haruka Nanami.

UtaPri is one of the most popular otome games or visual novels to emerge from Japan. Manga and Anime adaptations have followed and many Western fans of both are calling for English adaptations of the original games. The female protagonist, Haruka Nanami, is one of the most adorable I've ever seen and she inspires some of the best cosplays I've come across. Her style is very feminine and cute but not overly fussy despite the frills. The perfect hair is something I've already discussed but other aspects add to a very cute whole. 

Expect peter pan and sailor collars, great outfit proportions, muted tones, puffed shoulders, frills, ribbons and perfect accessories. Sadly, there aren't many good pictures out there but please enjoy these adorable gifs and, if you're so inclined, watch the anime and see what I mean. Be warned, as enjoyable as it is, it's pretty lame and embarrassing...Don't judge me!

My fair city.

I was up in Dublin today for a Bon Voyage thang for my friend. He's headed off to Japan for the next couple of years - utterly jealous and horrified that he's leaving us at the same time. The whole day was just so pleasant. There's no other word for it. I helped my little bro and a pal of his to buy suits - his first - and embarrassed him with my squeeing over how adorable he was! Then we went for burritos - the food of the moment in Dublin, it seems - and after I said goodbye to the lads and had a cinnamon bun in the Soundbites restaurant in Tower Records with my friend Inez. These are literally the best cinnamon buns in the world. I dare someone to find better. After that I wandered the city for a few hours on my own and the weather and light was just gorgeous. Ergo the photos. I always feel weird taking photos in Dublin because I live there most of the year and it feels bizarre to play the tourist but it was just too beautiful to ignore today! I've been trying to stick to purely fashion content in this blog but sometimes other things (such as good food) creep in. However, like music, film, literature and art, I feel that architecture and places really influence how you dress. So I guess these photos are, in some way, fashion related. 

In Temple Bar I got stopped for a streetstyle appearance at http://stylecheesecake.blogspot.ie/ so keep your eyes peeled for that! Check the blog out, in general, too! Love Irish fashion blogs. This inspired me to stop being such a coward and I got my own first streetstyle shots - three in a row, in fact. Gotta love Temple Bar; it's such a mish-mash of everything and it's so where Dublin streetstyle is at!

Below is the first girl who allowed me to take her photo even though she didn't feel she looked the best but I couldn't have disagreed more! If this is a bad day, then what are her good days like?! I'm loving the bright pop of orange, the super-sized collar and the quilted Miu Miu bag - who doesn't love a Miu Miu bag? I also owe her thanks for supplying me with the word for "hyphen". It's so embarrassing when I forget simple words...

I'm going to ration the rest of the streetstyle looks because I've been on the look-out on several occasions and found nothing at all so I don't want to blow all my amazing finds in one go. The others will be up over the next few days.

The party for Conor occurred once I met up with my boyfriend and we headed on to the pub. It was a really nice affair, casual and fun without any drama or tears (despite how much we'll all miss him) and I happened to bump into my friend, Noel, looking office-fabulous in a shirt so lovely I couldn't believe it was from Penney's. Apparently it's the place to go for young, affordable workwear!

The Japanese influence continues!

...I now blame it on my friend, Conor, as well as all the manga. He's off to Japan soon (exciting) and I spent the whole day with him and some other college buds today so Japan is doubly on my mind! I'm very tired after our invention of a new sport and lots of climbing and exploring so this isn't going to be an uber-detailed post. I will say that the following outfit was not only quite kawaii but it also was very practical! No problems running or climbing in this bad boy!

Peter Pan collared shirt - Penney's - Playsuit - Penney's - Hi-tops - Converse - Backpack - Royaltex - Cardigan - Marks and Spencer's

Sidenote: I'm super-excited to try out this new skirt that Mammy just gave me! It doesn't photograph all that hot but it's amazing! Yay for having a stylish mom to steal old clothes off of!