A birthday wishlist

Feel free to send me any of the following things for my birthday. I don't mind if they are a day or two late.

Firstly, some amazing Craig Lawrence knitwear. It's like sexy gold heavy (yet actually light) metal chainmail.

Secondly, some nice things I saw at the Whiteleys Pop stores launch. Some Disney Couture (cause I refuse to stop loving Disney with age). Maybe a Wildfox tshirt.

Next, this Topshop Boutique dress.

Some Maria Franscesa Pepe fangs-tastic jewellery.

A record player.

These shoes from ASOS.

Tickets to Berlin (to visit Kyle) and Helsinki (to visit Raisa).

(Me and Raisa)

Common sense (preferably giftwrapped).

Wayne Coyne (also giftwrapped).

And an Ed Ruschka painting.

I don't really ask for much.

Ta.

xx fi

Double denim.. YAY or NAY

Picture the scene.. A determined Irish country mother storms into a high-street store in Cork where I used to work, with a twelve year old and ten year old girls in tow. She approaches one of us on the floor and declares in a thick country accent "I need some three quarter length denims*, for the girl, for the confirmation". Cue stifled laughter. "She has the denim jacket already, but she needs the dinims for the confirmation." *Denim was pronounced "Dinims".

I can sometimes take the whole DoubleDenim seriously, depending on how it's done. Denim has been a heavy player this season (Jonathon Saunders for Topshop anyone) and I saw some great denim tip-to-toe looks around the block. I really like the clean denim jeans with denim jacket, rather than the potentially tacky DoubleDistressedDenim.

My awesome friend Theip kindly took pictures of me acting like a little kid, as the whole look reminds me of Saved by the Bell, the tv show of my youth.

Shirt-topshop, skirt and belt- thrifted, leggings-bershka, shoes-zara (they broke grrr)

blazer- h&m, clock pin-jackie brown vintage, shorts- penneys/primark, natty trainers

This is my amazing new French Connection dress. We all know how I feel about FCUK lately and I think this dress would work really well with a light denim jacket.

So. What are people's opinions? Dodgey Canadian tuxedo or fashion forward for scenesters and fashionistas alike?

Peace, fi xx

MyMusicMonthly: Run Toto Run

I have decided that SaveOurShoes could get a bit interactive and have some regular features here (along with outfit posts and lusting).. So without further ado...

MyMusicMonthly is going to be a lovely interview or random bit from a band SaveOurShoes really likes and thinks you should like too. And what a better way to start than asking the great band Run Toto Run a few questions.

I have already mentioned this band before... And I finally saw them live after gate-crashing a birthday party in Camden (long story). We sang along even though we didn't really know the words...(Another long story).

Rachael and Matt kindly answered my questions..

So RunTotoRun, how would you describe your music to us?
Matt: We would describe our music as super awesome-o music but that's a

genre we just invented and probably not all that informative. Popular
opinion, on the other hand, has us down as electro pop.

SOS: What inspires you? Your music? Your colourful videos?

Matt: We're quite into the aesthetics of music at the moment, the idea that the words and notes are a line drawing, and the sounds and delivery are the colour. It's probably why we enjoy covers so much - I mean who doesn't love a nice bit of "colouring-in" :) with that in mind; our musicial inspirations are the goosebumps that cover your arms when the perfect bassline kicks in under the sidechained synth pads that have gradually built to a frenzy as the seemingly innocuous sounding verse has become this dancefloor shaking beast of thing without you realising and you can't help but nod your head. We also like pictures of kittens.

SOS: In honour of LFW, would you like to perform for any particular designers? Or just sneak in to have a peek (My email ate some emails so this question should have been put up a month ago..stupidspamfilter)?

Rachael: I think we're magpies when it comes to clothing and there's no particular designer we'd pick to play for, when it comes to stage attire I think a lot of the time in the past we've fallen into the category of costume, we've toned it down a teeny bit of late, but I was making peacock feather wings and adapting all sorts of things to look that bit more special on stage. We're really interested in working with some young designers, in terms of off stage I admire the classical simplicity of designers like Chanel, but on stage we'd ideally bring a bit of drama and flair so we're very interested in collaborating with some exciting young designers with a vision for stage attire, something you'd never see walking down the street.

SOS: What kind of show would you like to put on (no budget restrictions!)?
Matt: We've worked with a string section before, and if money were no object it'd be really cool to musically explode the whole thing -drummer, a variety of acoustic and electric instruments, a steel drum orchestra (pro tip: one of those things would make me vomit blood) and then get some mad live visuals going on, elaborate "the knife"-style costumes, and of course an unusual venue... like a cathedral or train station or something...

SOS: Is there anyone in particular you would like to dress you and the band?
Matt: David Bowie - boys got skills yo. If he could make us look a tent

as awesome as he does we could die happy.

SOS: Who influences your personal style? Is there any particular person's wardrobe you would like to raid (fashion music or anywhere!)
Rachael: I'd say currently we're being dressed by Chorlton Oxfam and a little help from a haberdashery and a sewing machine, but as above we're really very interested in trying some new designers work.

SOS: Do you read blogs? Any favourites (bar us of course!)?
Matt: We're loving FUC51, its seems to be causing quite a stir, also breaking more waves is another good 'un, la blogoteque(?) Is great for its 'take away shows', then its gotta be paint my album, failbook and photobomb :D

SOS: If we asked you to DJ for us, what 5 tracks would you play?

Matt: We'll dj for you any time sos! Being forward thinking, new music
types we'd probably start with a bit of "discovery - so insane", then maybe a little "yeasayer - ambling alp", folllllowed by "caribou -odessa" then we'd throw in some of our good pal "totally enormous extinct dinosaurs - sickly child" and seeing as though it's the last song of the night (and we have an obnoxious streak) we'll finish on a bit of "dj scotch egg - scotch bach"

SOS: House is burning. You can grab 5 things!
Matt: Keys, wallet, cigs, phone, cd's - let the rest of it burn, we're insured

SOS: Would you like us to mention anything else?

Lots of lovely press bits...

"Brilliant electro from Manchester's best-kept secret"

XFM top 20 artists to watch in 2010

"Like Sufjan Stevens going mad with samplers and keyboards"
The Manchester Evening News

"A curious mix of anti-folk and airy, Postal Service-indebted electronica"
The NME

""Run Toto Run have spent the last few months having their name bandied around, mainly as one of the new bands you'll be hearing a lot more of in the future, and by the sort of DJs and publications people trust on these matters."
CMU DAILY

"A delightful blend of high tech and lo tech acoustic and marvellous song writing"
Tom Robinson-BBC 6Music

“Their Hype Machine-topping version of Passion Pit's 'Sleepyhead' points to sound musical brains: RTR’s big break may not be far off. ”
NME Online

“ We love everything that is layered around Rachael Kichenside's immaculate vocals”
Record of the Day

"A great little record"
Steve Lamacq about Plastic Gold.

"Reminiscent of an electronic Belle & Sebastian or a modern-day St Etienne...everyone here appears to be completely under her spell, dancing like loons. "
The News of the World.

“Lead singer Rachael Kichenside has the single most beautiful voice you are likely to hear this year.
The Liverpool Echo

I can't recommend these guys any higher. Now, go listen and dance. We have their demo on repeat in our kitchen. Coming soon to a festival near you.

Peace!

Fi xx

Special delivery from my-wardrobe.com

As you may know from a few previous posts, we are now working with my-wardrobe.com. The lovely Sophia from my-wardrobe.com emailed me last week offering me a lovely voucher. Oh the possibilities.. I spent days looking through the website trying to decide who would be the lucky purchase. At the end, I went for a "handy" pair of leopard Sam Edelman ballet pumps. "Handiness" usually gets me in trouble, but at least this time, it was a gift! Thank you my-wardrobe.com!

The order was placed late Sunday night. And on Wenesday morning, at 8:30am sharp, I get a phone call. It was the DHL delivery man! Jesus, I didn't realise it would arrive here this fast. It is always always always exciting to receive a package, especially if it's as beautifully presented as this..

I ripped this apart..


And I find a lovely shopping bag..


In this shopping bag, is this gift...


And a little card..


And here they are, my new handy flats..

Thank you so much my-wardrobe.com!

xx-LJ

I go back to black..

It's 11:18pm on a Thursday night. And I'm stuck in a shithole of a town. No offense to anyone who knows where I am, and is actually from here.. But let's face it, there's nothing to do here. Unless you count a trip to tesco as an activity, and I've done that today. Emm..I'm very exciting.

So basically, in this town, all I do is wake up very early in the morning, go to hospital til the afternoon, come back home and either study or arse online. And by arsing online, I mean Facebook, Twitter, online window shopping, etc. And since hospital attire is a little bit restricted, I can't really go all creative with my outfits. Hence, apologies for the lack of outfit posts.

Jeez, that took me a while. Sorry it's a bit late for your grandma LJ.

I was searching through my photos, and I found these outfit photos that I forgot to post about. This is when we went to the Surgeon Noonan Ball, a benefit ball for Hospitals in SubSaharan Africa. The night was alright, filled with doctors, consultants and medical students who are off their tits and dancing the night away. I won't be showing you any of those pictures, I'll be keeping them to myself just in case I need to blackmail one of them in the future.

So this is what I wore..blah blah blah.. And excuse the weird face.

The Lady Gaga lyrics are thrown in there because 'Monster' has been stuck in my head for days. In fact, her whole amazing flawless album has been stuck in my head for months. Amazing record.

Here I am drenched in black. Speaking of black, thank you Fi for the lovely lovely lace black shirt. I luvchit.

xx-LJ

Pick n mix minus the Candy, plus the vintage

According to our recent poll, y'all want more of our outfits and what we buy. The lady doth give what y'all doth ask for.
Have you ever heard of those great vintage sales where you fill a bag for a tenner? I spent Monday afternoon rummaging in the Pick n Mix vintage sale, on 123 Bethnal Green Road (just at opposite Brick Lane) and stuffed a bag full. There were amazing vintage fur coats and other treasures. Well worth a trip to East London. And they get new stock in everyday. Apparently the sale is going on for a week or so, until stock runs out. So get in there!
This is my wee bag, which fits A LOT. All for ten squid. Cheaper than a night out and a bag full of clothes. Ker-ching.


My favourite bits in the bag were...
Firstly, this sweater (please excuse my uber traj photos taken by myself, selftimer hates me and my housemates are all at college at the moment. Also how dusty is my mirror, ew). It is really comfy and paired it yesterday with my highwaisted skinnis. It is a great cornflower blue and you can't beat polkadot action.


And then there is my new red dress. It's long and red. I think my friends Jen and Kate will appreciate the redness and longness. It is not a ball gown.



I found a lace shirt for a friend. Someone *coughLuJaincough* does love to layer in lace and I think when I finally am reunited with her, she will do something awesome with it.



Peace, fi xx

La Fheile Pharaic duit.

Transalation.. Happy St Patricks Day!

(If any of my Gaelgoir friends care to tell if I translated it correctly).

Love from the SOS! Crew

my-wardrobe.com promotion!

Good news: Free shipping on all orders from my-wardrobe.com
Bad news: Sorry darling, but this promotion is only valid for people living in Ireland.

Just enter the code MYIRELAND in the promotional box at checkout to receive free shipping on your order. This offer is valid until 14/3, so hurry up!

These are some of my picks..

xx-LJ

The Tale of Fiona and Beardy

The person who started this PR campaign is a genius. I stopped looking at French Connection a while back. But then they introduced "The Man". Not only do I look at French Connection, I find myself browsing and formulating outfits. I applaud you.









The End.

We ♥ farfetch.com

We would like to announce that we are now working in affiliation with farfetch.com! Ever since I stumbled across this website, I've been addicted to 'online browsing' it. You can even ask my friend Jen. We sometimes find ourselves caught in a violent linking session, where we literally sit for ages on googletalk and just link each other stuff we like on their website. True story.

Launched in October 2008, farfetch.com unites the most respected and well-loved independent fashion boutiques around the globe, such as b Store, Beyond the Valley and Feathers in London; Maria Luisa in Paris; Henrik Vibskov's The-V-Store and Paristexas in Copenhagen; Wok and Paleari in Milan and American Rag and BBlessing in the USA, among others. This means you can shop from the world's most interesting designer fashion brands in one easy-to-shop website.

Each of their boutiques has a very individual and distinctive buying style. They may buy from emerging and niche labels or more luxurious and established designer names, but all the brands are bought with care and real skill.

On the website, you'll find that they've split the collections into three departments: Luxe - for high-end designers, such as Alexander McQueen, Maison Martin Margiela and Vivienne Westwood; Lab - for experimental or new designers, such as Kapow! Wow!, Opening Ceremony and Markus Lupfer, and Cult - for diffusion lines, premium denim brands and unique labels with an inventive take on fashion, such as Acne, DSquared2, and See by Chloé. This makes it easier to find the designers (or indeed the price range) that you like. You can also shop by boutique, designer and fashion category, for both women's and men's fashion.

So we will be showing you their new releases every so often. Here are some of the new items that were released this week!

Nicholas Kirkwood:

Leather platform sandals, £729.
Snake heel patent sandals, £594.
Patterned peep toes, £475.

Damn Nicholas Kirkwood for making such beautiful structural heels. I need to wear my pair more often, and I need to somehow get my hands on one of these pairs. If you haven't seen his Alice in Wonderland creation, google it now!

And out of all the Sonia Sonia Rykiel items that are out this week, I think this is my favorite. Ra Ra Ra Ra RAWR!

Sonia by Sonia Rykiel oversized leopard print dress, £299.50.

And speaking of leopards and animals in general.. here are some animal inspired accessories..

Zoe and Morgan gold plated eagle ring, £95.
See by Chloe studded hedgehog keyring purse, £95.
Kara by Kara ross snake ring, £99.
Marc by Marc Jacobs mouse pumps, £209.

And here are some new items by Tibi NY that simply make me daydream about the summertime beach and the sand between my toes.

Silk shift dress, £299.
Silk cross over dress, £340.
Silk bandeau dress, £320.

And last but not least, the lovely Lanvin. Did you spot Lanvin on the Oscars 2010 red carpet last night?

Knotted shoulder linen dress, £1339.
Silk wrap dress, £1479.
Sleeveless silk dress, 2449.

For more details, visit farfetch.com!

xx-LJ