Sixth Form Haul

Hi everyone,

As most of you will know, in a week and a half I'll be starting sixth form, which is completely terrifying me! Our uniform code is 'smart officewear', so basically suits with matching skirts/blazers, and one of the things I'm worried about is whether I own enough clothes to look 'different' every day - I don't want people thinking i'm wearing the same things every day! It's really not possible to wear something different every single day, so aaaah!

I've bought two suits to start with - one plain black skirt suit from H&M and one navy pinstripe skirt/trouser suit from Mango; My theory is that if I buy a few tops, I can just circulate the two suits with tops, and hopefully I won't look awful! I probably care far too much about this kind of thing (I bet the boys aren't panicking about it!), but how I look is important to how confident I feel, so I'm trying to plan ahead :)

One of the ways I prepared was to take a trip shopping at Westfield London (literally my heaven) to stock up on some basics, just to stop me having a full on panic about it all :') I bought quite a bit, so I thought I'd do a bit of a haul on here, to also make up for the fact that I've been terrible at blogging lately!

The first place I went (as usual) was Topshop.. I'm not sure why I always have some kind of magnetic attraction to it's shiny frontage and bright signs, calling me to it's ridiculously expensive (but so very lovely) goods. I picked up two of their basic vest tops (2 for £10, or £9 with my NUS card) just to wear under shirts that were a bit sheer, as well as just lounging around at home - for those days where planning an outfit is just too much! I got one in a sort of burgundy red, and another in a teal green colour.

The next thing I picked up was this gorgeous satchel bag, also from Topshop. I was looking for a bag that would be big enough to fit all my paper, folders, stationary and make up bag in - I really don't fancy carrying everything by hand! I loved the style of this, the faded colouring, and the front pocket - meaning I can separate things like my bus pass/money to my school work. It was £34, or £30.60 with NUS)

I was so so excited to come out of Topshop and remember that the models own pop up shop was still in Westfield! I'd seen it mentioned somewhere on the blog scene and been like OMG I NEED TO GO, but never got round to it.. I went over and the first thing that struck me was just how huge a range of nail varnishes models own have - it took me a while to get my head straight and pick some! I've read since that there were actually over 200 colours featured at the pop up shop, so no wonder I was a bit mindblown!  Their nail varnishes are usually £5 each, but the shop was running a promotion where you could buy 3 for £12 or 6 for £20 (I think, correct me if i'm wrong!), and if you bought a 3 or 6 pack, you could choose a free one from their new collection, which were all pastelly colours. I bought a three pack of Snow White, Blooboo, Silver Fox and Jade Stone. The three featured in the photo are (L-R) Blooboo, Jade Stone and Silver Fox. The other colour Snow White had gone walkies at the time, but is basically just a plain white colour! I thought it could come in handy for nail arts etc. I also love love love the Silver Fox colour, because it is so so similar to the Topshop varnish Ice Crush, which I've been lusting after for months on end!

The next shop I ventured into was Urban Outfitters, which I'm always a bit wary of - firstly, I'm very aware that it's a very 'edgy' shop, and I know some people must look at me walking in like whaaaat, you're not cool enough for here?! Secondly, I hate that their prices vary from really good value to ridiculously designer, because of the boutiques section - and it always seems that the nicest things are the ones with the designer price tag - but then again, I guess you get what you pay for! I found this shirt with cutout lace shoulders on sale (£30 down from £42, or £27 with my NUS card) and just loved it! I had been looking at a plain white shirt in Topshop but it was completely see through, and I loved that this one was actually opaque - i'm not quite sure why every other white shirt feels the need to be invisible, personally the whole 'bra showing' look isn't for me! I also thought the lace parts made it a bit more interesting - and I can imagine myself wearing this casually with shorts or leggings, as well as to sixth form.

After escaping from the 'oh-so-edgyness' of Urban Outfitters, I went for a look in a place where I felt a lot more comfortable: the lovely H&M. I used to despise H&M - the cluttered shops and basicness of every item used to annoy me - but recently, I've really got into it! I saw this top and instantly loved it - it was simple but nice, and something I can just throw on with my black suit for a no-time-spared outfit. Even better, it was only £14.99!

Next, I was persuaded by my sister to have a quick look in Zara - a shop which I love everything in, but seem to suit nothing! She picked out this shirt for me to try on, and after a bit of hesitation, I went and tried it on - and really liked it! It has a lovely fit which is really flattering around my waist, and the collar tips are adorable! I'm a bit worried it might be too smart for sixth form, but I'm going to try and wear it - maybe in the first week, when no one will really know what to wear. Anyhow, I'll get some wear out of it somehow - even if I pair it with a pair of beige trousers for a smart/casual look - job interview anyone? (not me, I've had enough of those for now!) It was £29.99 - not bad for Zara!

The last thing I picked up were these studded slipper shoes from New Look - I've been wanting a pair of these for ages! Sorry for the mucky state of them, I wore them out to a results day party on Thursday night - unfortunately losing one of the studs in the process, wah :( Besides the runaway stud, I love them to the moon and back! They're so comfy and will definitely be my go-to shoes with my black suit, to slightly edge up an outfit. I can't quite remember the price, but it was around the £16-£17 mark, which I thought was really good, as I've since seen many other pairs for at least £30 - let's just hope they last!

I also picked up a load of Gilly Hicks underwear (though I thought that wouldn't interest you too much), and I just wanted to say, if you haven't heard of Gilly Hicks or tried their underwear - YOU NEED TO. It's changed my underwear life haha! Also, if you're planning on buying any, there's a promotion running at the moment (which might just be in the UK..) where if you buy anything from Hollister, you get a pair of 'down undies' free at Gilly Hicks. This is because they're brother/sister brands (whatever you call them), if you were wondering! We found this out after we'd already spent our money in Gilly Hicks and finished shopping, so we didn't get to use it - just to let you all know!

Just as a catch up for me, thank you for all your congratulations on my results! I'm very happy :D Also, my lifeguarding job is going really well, I'm settling into the swing of things and just about know what I'm doing with everything now, as well as getting to know everyone - even though lots of the other lifeguards are leaving for uni this month! I can't wait for them to hire some more people, so I'm not the 'new girl' anymore! I'll let you all know how sixth form goes as well - though I might not have too much time to blog in the first week - fingers crossed the work load starts off lightly!

Hope you all enjoy the bank holiday weekend!
Liv x