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Chaps and chappettes

July 19, 2013

Last Saturday I was in London for one of the funniest events in the calendar – the annual Chap Olympiad! This is organized by the lovely people over at The Chap Magazine. If you have never heard of it I definitely recommend taking a look at their website and quiçá signing up for it. I know I have.

The Chap Olympiad is humorous and entails competing in a large range of difficult sports like ‘Passing the Port’, ‘Bread Basketball’ or ‘Not playing Tennis’. In the end the bronze, silver and gold cravates were awarded to those who had exhibited the most sporting prowess. I am glad to be able to say that I knew the gentleman who won the first prize – remember Russell Nash, the really nice tour guide? Well done!

The event was held at Bedford Square Gardens, which was closed to the public for this function. Besides watching the sports, you could sit on the grass and have a picnic, walk around and see some of the wares on sale (not a lot of stalls but I don’t think most people were there to shop anyway), have a ‘vintage massage’, a new vintage inspired hairdo, sweeties, ice cream and other things to eat. Cloudy lemonade and Pimm’s flowed freely and were extremely refreshing on a very hot day. One of the best things to do was of course, walking around and marvel at the dapper gentlemen and well dressed ladies. In the age of casual wear, dressing to the nines is the ultimate act of rebellion. Turn your revolt into style!

What I wore: Minty Dress – Dorothy Perkins (via Ebay), Bag – good old faithful camera (and everything else) bag from Target, Matching Pearl Necklace, Earrings and Bracelet Set – JC Penneys (present from Mr D’s Grandma), Hair Flower – H&M (on sale), Black Shoes (unseen) – Peacocks.

The spirits were high, there was a good atmosphere and although I got there a bit later than expected I still had a great time. I am definitely a convert to the Chap Olympiad and I hope to be there again next year.

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My 5 top places I’d love to go back to.

June 5, 2013

If you’ve been reading this page for long enough you know I am a huge fan of travelling. I enjoy going to new places but there are a few that have left a mark or the curiosity to know more about them. Here are my top 5 places I would love to go back to. Which are yours?

New York

So many memories, so many interesting places, so many things happening. It’s the city that never sleeps and where anything can happen. I like to go there to see my friends as much as possible, I wish I could go more often. It is also the city where Mr D and I got married and that also makes it extra special. It’s a very stylish city although very different from London, it has a more grown up style, the way I see it. I hope that the next time I go I don’t get caught up in a hurricane.

Lisbon

It’s my hometown. Although I am not very interested in living there at the moment, I always like going back to see my family and friends. Like I usually say, it sucks to live there but it’s really nice for a holiday. It’s a city with beautiful light, that is one of the things I miss the most here in grey and overcast England. You can go out and stay out until the wee hours of the night dancing. Dining out is also great- there’s always really good food and not too expensive. And did I mention my friends? It’s the best part! If you are visiting in the Summer don’t forget your sandals and light dresses, it gets really hot and not all places are blessed with AC.

Amsterdam

As some of you might remember, I went there last year to visit my friend Sofia. I didn’t stay for too long (it was just a couple of days) but I fell in love with the city. The streets and canals are beautiful and quaint, with so much history and details to look at (as well as a lot of extremely good looking men). I also thought it was fascinating that everyone goes everywhere on bicycle. It was the perfect city to shop vintage, with a large variety of shops on offer and affordable prices. I might just go on Venere and start planning another visit sometime in the near future, I don’t think I’ve seen enough of it!

The Alps

I’ve been to the Alps twice, on skiing trips organized by the company I work for. I was lucky enough to work with friends and enjoyed spending time with them there, learning how to ski, taking in the breathtaking views and just frolicking in the snow. I don’t miss the fashions – the snow and the negative temperatures mean you have to wear bulky trousers and jackets but a lady knows when to adapt her style to the environment. I think the Alps made an impression on me not only because of the amazing landscapes but also because it’s where I learned how to ski – which was a real challenge for such an unfit person as me. But well worth it, I enjoyed every second of it and would love to go back.

Brighton

Apart from Lisbon, it is a place I might be going back to very soon. I loved the feel of the city, lots of beautiful architecture and people. Smaller than London, still has a lot of life and style to it, one of the places I could see myself living in. The pier area is quite picturesque and colourful and one can’t help feeling like a kid walking around the carousels and all the seaside attractions. I remember I had a great time walking around with Victoria , one of my favourite bloggers. As it is further south, it gets a little more sun than where I live and that’s a winner in my book. There are a lot of stylish people around and it’s really refreshing to see what they wear. There are also a lot of quirky and vintage shops, you’ll have a hard time picking just one place to spend your £££.

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Week in photos

March 31, 2013

Happy Easter everyone! I’m now talking to you from my bed as I am completely and utterly destroyed after all the walking around in Manchester yesterday. It was totally worth it though, I’ll post about it tomorrow! For now, here’s a sneak peak into the past week as seen on my Instagram feed. Don’t forget to follow me @hellothemushroom if you haven’t done so yet.

Last weekend I started this DIY project. I hope to finish it today or tomorrow and wear it this week.

It’s been horrendously cold and snows every now and then. Apparently the temperatures are going to stay low throughout the month of April. This leads me to conclude that my Summer clothes will not leave the crates in the garage this year. (Topshop jacket, Mod Dolly dress, flowered boots from Ebay)

These are some resilient flowers. Go Spring!

This week I took my lunch box to work. I’m kind of thinking I should be using it for something else as it’ll eventually get manky and I like it too much to see it ruined!

I’m absolutely in love with Iris Apfel and her sense of style. I got the book Rare Bird of Fashion and took to sharing some of my favourite ensembles on Instagram. I won’t bore you with all of them.

I love these bracelets. I am totally going to DIY the hell out of them. I’ll show them when I do 🙂

This red dress totally looks like the red dress I wore here. I will wear a similar combination just for fun as I also have Harlequin flats!

I want a red stole! Now!

This one has been my favouritest of all I think. I love the shape of the little jacket, the colour and the piling up of jewelry. Although it is something I don’t do myself as it doesn’t feel ‘me’, I love seeing it on other people!

I found these tabi style boots from Irregular Choice on Ebay for a song. They are from one of the first collections Irregular Choice ever made (beginning of the noughties, maybe?) and I wanted to have them in my IC collection since forever. They’ve never been worn but they weren’t properly stored so they’re a bit stained (The Instagram filters softened the stains but trust me, they’re there). I am planning on painting them a soft Spring inspired shade of light yellow so I can wear them without looking bad! I’ll keep you posted on that one too.

Finally got my hands on a copy of Advanced Style. If you don’t know the blog all I can say is “where have you been all this time?” (and to click on the link too). Lovely Judith from Style Crone is in it!

I also finally own some of the Aranzi Aronzo books. They are some of the craziest silliest kawaii stuff I’ve ever seen (plus they make me laugh). I remember lusting over them on my visits to the Fnac store in Lisbon but as everything else in that place, they were overpriced. It’s the kind of stuff that never fails to put a smile on my face.

Fairy clothes. It was a bit too much for the office. Skirt from Ebay, booties from Primark!

Some lovely landscapes on the way to Manchester yesterday. I wish these little photos could convey how beautiful it was. Snowy hills and sheep and their babies along the way, some rustic farm buildings… a lot of beauty to take in.

Some bits reminded me of the Alps. I miss skiing 🙁

Yesterday’s lunch at the Manchester Art Gallery. Hake fillets with sweet and sour peppers. Nom!

Monkey King! Detail of a fabulous tableau by Raqib Shaw, who I have to say was a surprise. More on this in tomorrow’s post!

Kitteh.

I want these books.

Finally at the end of the day, the main objective of the trip up North – Morrissey and The Smiths exhibition, photos by Kevin Cummins.

They were some lovely photos indeed. If I had some spare money (a lot of it) lying around I’d buy a couple of prints but at £900 a pop, I’ll have to content myself with the exhibition poster…

After a full day of travelling and walking around in Manchester, Filipa and I had a well deserved hot drink at the train station. Chai latte <3

Hope you are having a lovely chocolate filled Easter!

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Chaps and chappettes

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