Charity Shop Chic: BUMPER EDITION!

Hello everyone,

 So I've been a bit lapse on the whole charity shop blogging, although that doesn't mean I've not found anything! I did attempt to make a video showing all the things I'd managed to find but I just look like such a goon, hopefully I'll feel more confident doing them in the future. Until then here are my favourite buys from the last few weeks...

St Michael Houndstooth Jacket £2.00: Really cute 60s inspired jacket. There was a teeny mark on the cardigan in the shop so she let me have it for £2, nothing a bit of Vanish couldn't sort out :) I love the gold buttons!
Jaeger Wool Cardigan £3.50: This cardigan is much brighter than the photo and its a lovely thick quilted wool material. Great for the transition from coat to thinner outer layers for spring (haha it's peeing it down as I type this!) Again I must've been having a thing for gold buttons that day as this one has them too!

Floral Crop Top £3: Not sure what brand this is but I'm guessing it's just a high street cheapy. I used to be very particular about not buying high street brands in charity shops unless it was decent quality but I've worn this little crop top so much already and it's still looks new!
Polka Dot Crop Top £2: I've worn this polka dot number so many times too! It's actually a size 16 (I'm more of an 8-10) and has a big square neck but I just wear it backwards and it's a relaxed, oversized crop shape :)

Fred Perry Tee £2.99: I'm having a bit of a Fred Perry moment, I bought my Fred Perry dress from TKMaxx a few weeks ago for a bargain of £25 and then I spotted this beauty in the mens section of the charity shop a couple of days ago! It looks really cute with my denim shorts. I was contemplating whether to go a bit scissor happy and cut the sleeves and length a bit but I've decided against that, instead I'm going to appreciate it's classic t-shirt shape.
Tie Dye Sweater £1.99: If you follow me on Instagram (which you totally should by the way!) you will have noticed this tie dye top getting a lot of attention! I wear it so much! I remember being in Oxfam thinking 'it's awful but I love it' so for a measly £1.99 I just couldn't leave it behind.

Printed Shorts £1.50: Ok so these shorts are actually pyjama shorts however I think on a sunny day I can totally get away with wearing them as daywear. I love the monochrome 'fleur de lis' print, and they are a sturdy cotton material with an elasticated high-waist :)
Diesel Dungaree Dress £3.50: Eeee when I saw these in the charity shop I actually did a happy dance (When I got into the changing room where no-one could see me!) I've been looking for a black dungaree dress for aages. I just couldn't bring myself to go into Topshop and pay ridiculous amounts for something that is having a moment in the fashion world. It fits perfectly although is a little on the short side, but hey that's the story of my life-thanks giraffe legs!

80s Leather Jacket £15: Ahhh another beautiful find! I've been on a quest for the perfect leather jacket for  like, ever. Here it is folks! Found in the mens section of a charity shop in Grange. It always pays to check out all the sections! It is really 80s, has gorgeous flocked leather panels, a leather tie belt and even a top gun lining!! £15 is such a bargain for a real leather jacket and I'm planning on getting it altered so that it fits perfectly and I can wear it forever I.D.S.T.
Tan & Black Stag Bag £2.50: I found this last week, and although it isn't vintage (Accessorize if you were wondering) it still has vintage charm. It looks like new and the gold stag head it super cute! I don't usually wear brown bags but this is a sweet exception :) I found it online and although it went in the sale and is now sold out, it's original RRP was £32 BOOM!

Oasis Checked Trousers £3: As I mentioned before my giraffe legs don't always make trouser shopping the easiest of activities, hence why I usually stick to tights and skirts/shorts combos. These trousers are just the most flattering shape I have ever worn! They are tight enough on my tiny waist, skim over my shapely bottom haha *adecdote time* Once whilst I was waiting at the train station with my headphones in but not on (anti-social) I heard a group of girls say 'Wow her bum is so out of proportion to her body, she's skinny but her butt is like HUGE!' Some people would be mortified at that comment not me though, I like my big bum! Although 'huge' is a massive exaggeration! Anyway, then the trousers taper down to a skinny leg that finish below my actual ankle instead of mid calf like most trousers-hooray for longer length! They are from Oasis, no idea how long ago though. they are a size 12L which makes me think they are quite old as it is a very small 12!

I hope you like these kind of posts, I often get asked by my friends and family if I could charity shop on behalf of them, it is difficult to shop for other people anyway especially even more so when charity shopping as you never know what you're gonna find and the sizing is so unpredictable! I genuinely wish I could be a professional charity shopper. I wonder if such a job exists...

Which is you favourite item from my 'haul'? Do you enjoy charity shopping?

Thanks for reading :)

Rachelle xxx

Outfit Of The Day: COMMUNITY PROJECT WITH THE BODY SHOP

Hello Hello!

On Tuesday myself and my fellow body shoppers went to Ashton Park to lend our green fingers to the 'Dig In' project. 'Dig In' is a horticultural therapy charity for war veterans. They have beautiful Victorian gardens that they have completely revamped over the last 12 months. We spent the day in the glorious sunshine, painting fences & planting seeds & potatoes! It's really made me want to utilise the teeny tiny yard that we have but in the bigger picture it's making me want my own little veggie patch even more! Donna who runs 'Dig In' is such an inspiration and she is doing a brilliant job! We all felt very honored to help her with this project and we had so much fun doing it too...

Now obviously I had to make the most of the gorgeous surroundings so I asked the lovely Ness to take a few snaps on her iPhone. So this definitely isn't the most fashion forward look but for gardening it's not too bad! Also you'll have to excuse the minimal make-up and scruffy hair-manual labour chiiic ;) 

Jumper: Charity Shop

Denim Disco Pants-Missguided

Suede Dr Martens: eBay

Hair Bow: Retro Rehab (from the #nwbloggermeetup goody bag!)

Aww my new furry friend, Alfie was such a cutie! Busy being a goon and giving the fence a lick of paint!

Me looking super sexy in my hi-vis jacket! Some photos of the gorgeous gardens!

Donna, Body Shop ladies & the main boss-Alfie!

You can find more photos of us on the day here and if you want to keep up with the 'Dig In North West' events you can 'like' them on Facebook :)

If I had more time I would definitely volunteer my skills for more charities but for now I'll just have to stick to buying obscene amounts from the charity shops to help!

Do you volunteer for any charities/community projects?

Thanks for reading :)

Rachelle xxx

Outfit Of The Day: #NWBLOGGERMEETUP

Helloo there!

My goodness what is this? An outfit post?! It has been a long while since my last outfit post and for that I do apologise. I don't have a big enough bedroom, or garden or any real space where I can set up a tripod and get a few snaps of my outfits. That being said I did take these photos in my living room! Usually the fireplace is stacked full of musical equipment so doesn't make the best backdrop. It's still not the greatest but I am trying for you guys :)

So this is the outfit I wore for the North-West Blogger Meet-up. I didn't get any good photos of my outfit at the actual event due to heavy rain and the evil winds of Preston!

 Denim Jacket: Charity Shop

 Polka Dot Crop Top: Charity Shop

Tutu Skirt: Lipsy via eBay

 Hair: Directions-Tulip & Dark Tulip mixed!

Tights: Olddd from M&S

Shoes: Adidas via Amazon

Holographic Nail Varnish: Urban Outfitters (borrowed from my housemate :P)

Kitten Nail Stickers: Claire's Accessories

Rings: eBay, and stolen from mum!

I'm making it my mission to do more outfit posts, so watch this space!

Thanks for reading :)

Rachelle xxx

Outfit Of The Day: I'M SO GLAD THAT I LIVE IN A WORLD WHERE THERE ARE OCTOBERS

 Shirt Dress: C/O Bench

Faux Leather Jacket: C/O Bench

Tights: Happy Socks via TKMaxx

Hunters: Stolen from Mum

Hat-Accessorize

Scarf-Charity Shop

Lipstick: Eurydice by Illamasqua

So I have to admit Bench is a brand that hasn't really been on my radar for a while. I remember doing a fashion show at secondary school for Bench & Hooch and wearing the massive slogan hoodies that Bench are pretty well known for. However when I checked out their latest lookbook for the A/W collection I was pleasantly surprised, it's laidback, street style vibe and gorgeous coats and knitwear really appealed to me.

As I mentioned in my last post, Bench very kindly let me pick a couple of items so I could style them in an outfit post.

The dress is super easy to throw on, I didn't own a shirt dress before-hand and I really like the colours of the check pattern. The jacket is going to be my new wardrobe staple! I love leather jackets and even though its faux leather it feels incredibly soft & the contrasting knitted fabric makes it really comfortable to wear. Another awesome thing is the collar, it zips off so you can wear it like a casual biker style or a more slick, collarless neckline. It's the little details that I really love about the new A/W collection. 

It was a little nippy in the Lake District today so my favourite old man scarf came out of storage as did the hat but they weren't worn for long as the sunshine must have tried a bit harder and I did warm up :) 

We went for a walk in Cartmel woods today & they look so, so pretty at this time of year! Cartmel may be boring but it is very pretty :)

Right now on the Bench website students can get a generous 25% off with a NUS card or you can get 10% off  your order by using the code: SELFMADE12

Let me know your thoughts on the new collection, did you used to wear Bench when you were younger?

Thanks for reading :)

Rachelle xxx

Outfit Of The Day: A VERY MERRY UNBIRTHDAY!

Hello ladies and gents,

 I thought I would post about what I wore the other day to my great-aunties 89th unbirthday. Her birthday is actually in December but she celebrates it early as it has been snowed off too many times before and hey she's 89 so she's allowed more than one birthday a year right?

Anyway, as it's quite a fancy affair I thought I would wear my Oasis dress that was a bargain sale find a few years ago.  I absolutely love the feather print and the cute teadress fit.

The boots have been mentioned a few times on the here before. They have to be my bestest bargain ever! My £1 Andee boots from Miista. Yep I snagged them in the cheaper with a tweet competition in January and they get soo much attention, especially from all the oldies at the party haha ;) 

 Miista boots & sparkly socks=love

 The party was at the Netherwood Hotel in Grange-over-Sands, a gorgeous building with a amazing view across the bay :)

Hope you've all had a lovely weekend :)

Thanks for reading!

Rachelle xxx

Outfit of the day-HEARTS & TEAPOTS

Leather Jacket-New Look

Heart Jumper-Flea Market

Teapot Necklace-Gift

Heart Belt-Charity Shop

Waterfall skirt-Charity shop then customised by me!

Leopard Tights-ASOS

Pink High-Tops-Ted Baker via TKMaxx!

Hello!

Just a quick outfit post today! I actually wore this yesterday, I thought the heart print was appropriate for valentines day :)

I just wanted to show you lovely lot the skirt I customised last week! I took an old pleated midi-skirt that were all the rage last year and literally cut a semi-circle shape from the front section which has left me with a lovely waterfall style shape. These skirts and dresses are all over the place at the moment but this is a cheap and super-easy way to update an old skirt!

I'm still finding new settings on the camera I got for my birthday and the top photos were taken with my 'posterize' setting which I think is pretty awesome!

Did you all have a nice valentines day? What do you think of the waterfall/asymmetric skirts? I much prefer them to the old maxi and midi styles :)

Thanks for reading!

Rachelle xxx

Outfit of the day-HAPPINESS PREFERRED

 Scarf-Peacocks(about 5 years ago )

Angora cardigan-Charity shop

Vest-Levis

Black top (worn underneath) -Primark

Skirt-H&M

Tights-can't remember!

Dr Martens-Ebay

BRRR how cold is it today?! The answer is too cold for my liking! I wore my parka on top of this outfit when I popped to the supermarket and the charity shop. My cardigan is super-warm as it's made from angora and lambswool, I picked it up a couple of weeks ago from the charity shop for a bargainous £2 :) My Dr Martens are also sheepskin-lined so they keep my toes nice and toasty even if they do rub after a while :(

This wall is outside my house and I think it looks pretty cool as a backdrop! The sun was setting so we didn't have long to take the pictures. My lovely housemate Jess took the pics for me today and most of them are of me laughing my head off or being silly! So these were the pick of the bunch haha, not the best but I'm kinda getting the hang of it. Its deffo easier having someone else take the pics instead of relying on a tripod!

The moon looked lovely peeking through the bare trees!

'Hey, HEEYYY can you see my breath? Does it look all cool and smoky?'

 'No, you look stupid'

What are you wearing to keep you warm? I hope it snows :)

Hello to all my new followers *waves*

Thank you for reading :)

Rachelle xxx