The Name of the Doctor

I screamed at the end. I thought that voice was familiar. If you don't know what I'm talking about, you can watch the last ep of this series here.

Links à la Mode: 16th May '13

My blogging overactivity recently has been due to study leave, which means long days at home trying to do something useful... and often failing. After days indoors, yesterday I went to town to return some library books (been reading lots of sci-fi lately: Terry Pratchett, Douglas Adams, Orson Scott Card, George Orwell) and somehow I found myself in the New Look sale. And somehow I walked away with a jumper and a pretty detachable collar for a total of £12.50. I was doing so well with the 'not buying stuff' thing, too...

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Slipping into Summer

By Jennine Jacob

Are you counting down the days until summer? Heaven knows I am! With all the wonderful things you have time to do, when the heatwaves roll in, you know like going wine tasting, going on vacation, catching up on summer reading, wearing light and flowy dresses… Heck, even catching up on DIY projects! It’s all possible when the days are longer! This week’s roundup slips into summer, it’s a wonderfully mixed bag of all the things you’ll need for the summer, the pinafore dress trend, ironic style, pastels! So kick back, relax, and read on.

Links à la Mode: 16th May

• Undercover Dress-Up Lover: Pinafore dresses
• Cherie La Mode: Ways to Wear Black Lipstick
• Coco and Picasso: DIY: ASOS Fantasia Sweatshirt
• Couture Crush: Cat Ears… it’s a hairstyle!
• DIY Doyenne: DIY Marc Jacobs Inspired Shoe Re-Do
• Eight Days a Week: Barcelona Bridal Week 2014: Top 5 Details
• Emphatically Elle: Style Editorial: Everybody Loves Vintage
• Fashion is Evolution: Warby Park Home Try-On Program Review
• Incognito: Be machiavelic or how to be part of the blogging community
• Inspirations & Celebrations: What To Wear To Go Wine Tasting
• Kat Skull: What to do After Purging Your Closet
• La Vie en Couleur: From Blogs to Books
• Lesimplyclassy: Loving right now: Red Shoes
• Look Sharp Sconnie: Why Irony is the New Cool
• Pink Chai Style: Update a Statement Necklace with Nail Polish
• Rose & Pine: Five Stylish Items for Your Perfect Vacation!
• The Curvy Elle: 5 Tips for Finding Your Individual Style
• The Urban Lioness: Style Guide: Graduation Dresses
• Voguette: Is it the end of the neon era?
• We Are Ready Made: Shoes are Boring, Wear Sneakers! 

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Lolita without online shopping

Unless you are a master dressmaker, which most of us aren't, lolita is pretty much impossible without the terrors of internet shopping. Once you've waded through the scam stores and the tacky costumes, there is always the insecurity of shipping the damn beautiful thing from the depths of China. This is precisely the reason I am not swimming in frilly lolita dresses and it is very frustrating that I can't wear a style because I can't physically get hold of it.

Consequently I set myself the challenge of finding pieces from British high street shops that could make up a classic lolita co-ord. All the items featured in the post are from shops that can be found in UK. They don't all scream lolita and a little DIY may be involved, but compromises must be made, and I think this is the best one can do without shopping online.

Shoes
Surprisingly, it's reasonably easy to find footwear to go with a lolita outfit, since lace-up boots are so popular. A basic platform Mary Jane is a lolita classic that will go with your normal wardrobe too, but if you've a little more to fork out, perhaps look into Hush Puppies, a brand that does some gorgeous Victorian boots and heeled brogues.

Top left: New Look
Bottom left: Hush Puppies, Barratts
Right: TUK, Scorpio

Tops
Look for frilly, lacy affairs with sleeves. The big chain stores like River Island and New Look are worth having a look around. If you can't find anything quite elaborate enough, you could sew some frilly trim around the collar and cuffs yourself.

Left: River Island
Right: Tokyo Doll, New Look

Skirts
A crucial feature of lolita is the silhouette, so a petticoat is a must. Look in fancy dress stores, and also children's sections if you're not very tall. For the overskirt, try knee-length skater skirts, or pleated skirts, which have enough material to fit a petticoat underneath. Alternatively, you could embellish a plain fifties circle skirt with a couple of bands of lace.

Left: Vivien of Holloway
Middle: New Look
Right: Hell Bunny, Sohos

Accessories
Once you've got most of your co-ord down, accessories will feel really easy. River Island and Topshop have loads of frilly socks, which you could just as easily DIY if you want to save a few pounds. Bows are common motifs for bags and hair accessories, and Claire's is pretty good for the more unusual statement pieces, like pillbox hats and chokers.

Bag: Dorothy Perkins
Socks: River Island
Choker: Claire's
Pillbox hat: Claire's

Annika

Three is a nice number, wouldn't you agree? Annika from The Pineneedle Collective inspired my own science posts, and she's got a really cute style to boot. I loved doing her pastel pink wig, though I don't think I quite succeeded in pinning down her wicked grin. These drawings have been getting progressively neater, which offends my desire for consistency.

on deviantART

Now, back to English revision...

This series of drawings:

|| Olivia Harrison || Megan McMinn || Annika Victoria ||

Megan

It's been a pleasure to watch Megan McMinn of Briar Rose grow into fame. And I couldn't miss the opportunity to colour her hair. The hair didn't turn out as well as Olivia's but Megan's face was a lot easier to draw, for some reason.

on deviantART

I'm working on one more of these freebies. Can you guess who it will be? She has long pink hair... sometimes.

This series of drawings:

|| Olivia Harrison || Megan McMinn || Annika Victoria ||