Event Post: Sweet Treats Party by Jane Norman & Oasis

Candies on tap? Check. Fashion savvy advice? Check.  20% off gorgeous clothing? Check, check and triple check!

of hearts and stripes 

A busy week came to a perfect ending with a fantastic shopping event at Jane Norman and Oasis in Valletta.  Beautiful dresses and handbags (my all-time guilty pleasures) took my mind off the week's stress as I browsed the racks and made mental lists of what to buy (the self-imposed shopping ban has looooooong been lifted!) Unfortunately, since I was heading out to another event after this, I did not manage to do any shopping, but I will definitely pop in again pretty soon.

this dress is perfect for every shape or size and the emerald colour is so flattering

breton stripes - one can never have enough of them

I love love love this dress! The embroidered neckline is so pretty!

Swatching away with Dorianne

Caroline from Caroline's Fashion Styling provided fashion advice to all the fashionistas who flocked to the store while Dorianne from *ask Dorianne guided those of us equally in love with make-up on the latest offerings by Pupa Milano - such gorgeous colours which really complemented the collection over at both Jane Norman and Oasis.

The Pupa Milano stand at the event ... I have my eyes on that mat yellow nail polish - so fresh for the new season

Caroline's dazzling smile and superb styling advice

bags in cute pastels and neutrals

I admit I'm more of an Oasis girl so I spent most of my time at the event on the Oasis floor, eyeing up some delightfully embellished dresses in the perfect shades for spring, while my Mister patiently waited as I caught up with Caroline and Dorianne in the meantime.  There's no stopping us girls when we meet :)

hair drama

I've had the same hair style for about 10 years on and off now.  There have been only two instances where my hair was comparatively short: one was when I needed to get rid of some terrible highlights and once when I was going through an 'I want to look like Alexa Chung' phase.

Otherwise, my hair has always been cut, and always been left to grow into the long layers which are yes, oh so comfortable and versatile, but after 10 odd years, oh so boring. Whenever I had these bouts of ennui de cheveux, I always resorted to changing colour (you do remember how at the start of 2013, my hair was dip-dyed blond right?) or have my fringe cut (only to complain about how it just won't stay in place, as of the following day).

relaxed 'girl next door' blowdry at Burberry AW13/14

 I feel I need something a tad more drastic right now.  I won't go for a Miley or a Jennifer Lawrence crop, that's for sure.  And I'm way too old for a Skrillex side shave (the horror, the horror!). Right now, my heart is set on having a lob - that's a long bob for the uninitiated.  Very bold move right?! What do you reckon? Would this be a good look for me? Or should I opt for something more drastic? I know, first world problems and all that ... but I'd still like to hear your suggestions below xx

centre parted perfection at Chanel

#ootd: monochrome pattern clash

I've been dying to parade in my patchwork Zara coat for quite some time.  It did get quite a few outings while I was in Krakow a couple of weeks ago, but here in Malta, only this last week has it been cold enough to warrant coat-wearing.  The Bling Bling Accessories launch (which I wrote about here) provided the perfect occasion for it.

I chose to go for an Iris Apfel inspired look by layering statement jewellery and mixing prints.  Who ever said that less is more, huh?! I did shift out of my comfort zone in this H&M zebra print shift dress. Not being a huge fan of animal print, I was very wary of this dress looking totally wrong on me.  The first time I saw this dress was in Brussels last month and I was very tempted to buy it on the fly. During one of my (almost) daily visits to H&M in Krakow, I decided to go for it. I will admit that even though it's rather loose fitting, I need to be careful how I wear it as it can easily make me look double the size I am *sob*.

I kept the look rather ethnic inspired with a statement necklace I've had for some time from Pull&Bear and one of my Marni x H&M bangles.  To date, the Marni x H&M collaboration remains my favourite of all the collaborations the super high street brand has created.  

What I wore: Patchwork coat (Zara); Zebra print dress (H&M); Black opaque tights (H&M); Black ankle boots (Zara); Statement necklace (Pull&Bear); Curb necklace [barely visible] (Yoshe); Bangle [part of set] (Marni x H&M); Hand made ring (Yana's Jewellery); Stacked rings (Zara)

If you like the look, please click on the Lookbook hype button above.  You'll make me a very happy girl.

confession #000071

... or, d is for drama

like most other maltese compatriots, there seems to be some sicilian blood running through my veins dating way over a hundred years back.  my surname is a bit of a give-away. as are the genealogy trees that my grandfather used to meticulously draw up with his blue, green, black and red staedtler pens and blue-green-black-red stained ruler.  so naturally, i'm a bit of a drama queen, i can be very loud, and i gesticulate quite a bit... a true mediterranean, you can say.

so naturally, when i saw dolce&gabbana's fall/winter 2013-2014 show a few months back and accompanying campaign, i somewhat recognised my roots and was immediately enthralled.

while the whole collection resounded of mediterranean heritage references, the stand-out pieces for me were definitely the statement cross earrings.  i seriously cannot stop lusting for them.  the pulled back hair with central parting, minimal flicked black eye-liner and plum coloured lips provided the perfect backdrop for the show-stopping pieces.

if crosses are not 'your thing' (or, like me, you're nowhere close to affording the real mccoy!) here's a few pieces available right now at mvintage which equally channel the same drama that dolce&gabbana's pieces bring to the stage.

d is for drama by tikkamars on Polyvore

during my last trip to malta, i got myself the oval pendant earrings featured in the set above from mvintage's kiosk at the point. but don't forget you can buy mvintage items while in your jammies, anywhere in the world as they ship worldwide.

i'm hoping to somewhat recreate the dolce&gabbana look above over the weekend - i made sure to pack my black lace dress to parade around krakow and even double checked it was there, together with the earrings, but still managed to forget my iphone charger! it just goes to show where my priorities lie!

dark drama by tikkamars featuring yves saint laurent

confession #000069

... or, mariel and her technicoloured dream coat

i know i've been a bit quiet this week, and i don't want to give the usual excuse of having a lot going on but, well, that's quite what happened.  the mister's birthday celebrations, packing for malta next week, errands and so on and so forth ... oh, and spending every spare second watching pretty little liars.  it's safe to say i'm hooked and i'm kind of ramming four seasons in as little time as possible.  watch out for a post inspired by pll style in the coming days!

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confession #000060

... or, in praise of dresses

it is a truth universally acknowledged that "a woman can never have enough shoes". while i won't even go anywhere near disputing this fact, because it is, indeed, an indisputable fact, i shall add my little twist to it:

a woman can never have enough shoes, or dresses

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when art and fashion collide

following yesterday's post on the roy lichtenstein retrospective, and an afternoon spent watching various documentaries on my favourite artists, this morning i woke up inspired to bring art and fashion together in these polyvore sets.  fashion, after all, is an art form.  and style is the artistic way in which one expresses their personality.  

when art and fashion collide by tikkamars on polyvore.com

confession #000057

... or, "i have nothing to wear"

so i finally got myself one of the celine logo t-shirts that have been making the blogger rounds all through spring.  i know, i know summer is just round the corner - at least according to the calendar - but who could blame me thinking it is still early spring when i keep finding rain, strong wind, and why not, the occasional thunderstorm wherever i go?

i bought my celine t-shirt from here and it arrived in the post while i was away.  i was obviously super-thrilled to find it in the post and add it to the london-budapest-malta haul brought back in my overweight luggage! and today, i finally get to wear it.  if i figure out what i'm going to wear it with, that is.  i have this tendency of waking up with an obsession to wear a particular item and then spend hours in front of my wardrobe trying to figure out how i'm going to style that item.  today is one of those days.

to help me in the process, i'm scouring lookbook.nu to see how other fashionistas are styling their own celine tee and playing around on polyvore.  which one of the sets in the slideshow would you go for? le me know in the comments section below!

5 ways of wearing a celine t-shirt by tikkamars on polyvore.com

confession #000056

today i just want to pay tribute to the women who inspire me in terms of personal style and fashion.  most of them are what would qualify as petite, i.e. below the 1.67m mark.  and as a petite woman myself (standing at a mere 1.48m - yes, not even 1.5m!), it is quite logical that i should look at how these beauties are gracing the latest trends, and working them to make the most of their more diminutive shape.

so, without any further ado, here goes my list of personal style muses:

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confession #000055

... or, retro romance 

as i wait for the antibiotics to start kicking in, i find myself drifting away in floral fancies of vintage tea-cups, crust-less cucumber sandwiches and lacy blouses with pussy-bow necklines.  i'm not sure if it's the antibiotics or the post-dentist trauma that is sending me on this trip.

i think i'm experiencing some sort of withdrawal symptom since i've recently ventured wildly into tribal, digital and geometric prints, leaving behind my vintagey and flowery comfort zone. i find it somewhat quintessentially british, and i'm kind of enjoying this mood i'm in.

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competition time!

the gorgeous folks over at etailpr blogger network, in collaboration with tic watches, are giving away the dreamiest of michael kors watches in rose gold plate! this has been on my 'to buy' list for a very long time now - i love how the masculine chunkiness of the chronograph is toned down by the feminine rose gold shade.  oh what i would give for it!

but fret not my dears, you stand in the chance of getting your paws on this beauty too! just head over to etailpr's facebook page here and follow the simple steps.  easy no?

good luck my lovelies xx

confession #000054

... or, david bowie is in my head

if you've been following closely enough, you'll know that last week i went for a quick break to london. initially, the aim was to go catch up with some close friends and visit the roy lichtenstein retrospective at the tate modern.  as an afterthought, i figured i should try my luck with visiting the david bowie is exhibition at the victoria and albert museum as well.  tickets online have long been sold out for this so i didn't know whether i would actually manage to go in.  i'm delighted to report that the stars aligned in my favour.

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confession #000052

... or, making a statement

finally here it is! my second vlog! so excited about this one ... well, it was a long-ish journey to get to this one.  i actually started recording this some days ago, didn't realise my battery was flat so i was talking to a dead camera *facepalm* and then last night the video took absolutely ages to finalise! so here i am, at the crack of dawn (well, the sun's been up a couple of hours but i'm still dazed) posting my latest.

the vlog is mostly about statement necklaces, as well as a few other happenings in my life at the moment.  i won't spoil your fun ... just watch it now "in full technicolour". enjoy xx

p.s. all the opinions stated in this video or on my personal blog are my own. i am not paid for any mentions or positive reviews.

confession #000051

... or,  idle hands are the devil's workshop

ok, maybe not quite. but this morning i actually caught up with something that had been on my to-do list for over a year: customising my trusty converse hi-top chucks with some studs. and i'm so chuffed i did it, i had to blog about it!

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