A Rather Blustery Day || OOTD

Well helloo there, long time no speak! I actually took a conscious hiatus from blogging this time to give me a little bit more time to plan ahead instead of the kind of haphazard impromptu approach I've always taken, and it's been great! No apologies here. I've had quite a lot going on so it's been nice to take a bit of time to pause and enjoy blogging instead of feeling under pressure to get the next post out.

So what's been happening? After five excruciatingly long months I finally managed to make it back to Lancaster for four days and it was utter bliss. I miss it so much all the time and despite it only being a short journey away by plane and train, finding time to visit between different commitments has been hard. I've only just got back but by the time this post goes up I'll already be back again for another visit, so I'm being really spoiled with time in Lancs at the moment. I'm sure I'll feel a bit differently about it when I'm back there for uni but for now I'm very much enjoying the novelty of passing visits.

While I was visiting, Carlo and I took a little scoot up to the Ashton Memorial, a huge monument overlooking the city. It's really cool and not even that far but I hardly ever go there due to the fact it's up an absolutely enormous hill and trekking up it is just horrendous. However, I decided to make an exception this time- mostly for the novelty-factor, once again- and it was lovely, but also incredibly windy. I'll disclose that these photos were carefully selected as the most presentable out of several dozen of me looking very windswept and vaguely disgruntled with watery eyes and my face completely obscured by hair. #BloggerLife. Oh, the glamour.

 Cardigan - New Look // Scarf - Dorothy Perkins // Jeans - Pull&Bear // Boots - H&M 

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OOTD | A Rainy Summer's Day with Happiness Boutique*

Top: Brandy Melville || Shorts: Pull & Bear || Jacket: Forever21 

Nail polish: Revlon 410 'Dreamer' || Necklace: Happiness Boutique

I was recently very pleased to receive an email from Happiness Boutique, an international online clothing and accessories store based in Berlin, asking if I'd like to try my hand at styling one of their gorgeous statement necklaces. I'll confess I was a little apprehensive at first, I'd never been much a statement jewellery kind of girl before and I didn't know if I'd be able to do the necklace any justice. However, after a bit of thought I decided I'd take a step out of my comfort zone and get on board.

Initially my main worry was how I'd incorporate a necklace like this into my day-to-day style since I'm normally quite a casual dresser. I've also only ever owned one other statement necklace which I've barely worn! However, I was very pleasantly surprised to find how effortlessly a statement piece like this managed to brighten up a fairly average, everyday look just by adding a little hint of glamour, and all without looking a bit out of place (I hope)!

When Happiness Boutique first got in touch with me I was really interested in hearing a bit more about the brand, since after reading up a bit on their story, I found their vision of promoting feelings of happiness, optimism and confidence to be a really positive concept, if not a little abstract at first! I didn't really understand how a brand could differentiate itself based on these kinds of values since surely 'retail therapy' is called therapy for a reason, regardless of where you're shopping. However, after now having tried and tested one of their products I can say that with Happiness Boutique the difference is in the details, and they definitely succeeded in brightening my day!

My necklace was shipped really quickly and arrived in this gorgeous packaging. It's very clear that a lot of energy and thought goes into the product's presentation before it's sent off to the customer, and for me it really makes all the difference! I was surprised actually since despite giving the impression of being a large online store, it's managed to maintain the personal touch of a much smaller, traditional boutique. No easy task when you have an abundance of orders to keep up with! The necklace was so intricately wrapped and presented that I really felt like I was opening a lovely gift from a friend.

In addition, it may be a cliché, but I did feel super fancy and princess-y donning this lovely piece. I fell more and more in love with it the longer I wore it, and it's been a excellent opportunity for me to introduce some much-needed glam into my wardrobe! 

Happiness Boutique's statement necklaces start at around £16 or €22. Have a look at the necklace I'm wearing. Every standard order ships worldwide free and they also have customer reward scheme whereby you receive points for writing reviews or sharing photos of your purchases on social media. These can then be traded in for rewards such as jewellery or clothing. 

This post was written in collaboration with Happiness Boutique though all views stated here are my own.

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Simple Monochrome | My First OOTD

T-Shirt dress: H&M || Faux leather jacket: H&M || Locket necklace: Accessorize

I'm not hugely into fashion, mostly because I'm too poor, though I'm also just not very adventurous with my style. I have a bit of a signature "look"- tights, high-waisted shorts and cardigans- that a lot of people know me by and I very seldom wear jeans or dresses. I suppose that's just what I feel most comfortable and I sometimes I find jeans a bit restrictive (I like to do a lot of movin'). However, I spotted this t-shirt dress in H&M and fell a little bit in love, despite the fact it's not really something I'd normally wear. It's actually meant to be just a long t-shirt but I'm short enough to get away with wearing it as a dress, provided I don't raise my arms too far!

All these photos were taken yesterday at Seaforde Gardens and Tropical Butterfly House. Carlo is over for another visit so we decided to take a trip out there, and he very kindly took these pictures for me- and provided the glasses for that one shot!

What have you been getting up to this week?

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