THE VIEW FROM ABOVE

Sometimes a different perspective on reality offers nothing but despair at every turn.

Last weeks terrifyingly shocking US election result feels like one of those moments, where every which way you look, it seems as though the world has gone mad.

Like, actually mad this time.

But sometimes, just sometimes, a different perspective can reveal a beauty that you couldn't originally make out.

I haven't found this perspective yet on this election; I'm struggling to see it. I'm struggling to get my head around this decision, as are millions of people around the world.

But it's happened, and so we have to be pragmatic and maybe take a look at it from a alternative perspective.

For now I'm just enjoying the beautiful birds eye photos taken by Loes Heerink of street vendors in Hanoi. 

They are amazing and made even more so by the fact that you'd never appreciate the daily work of these vendors unless you were looking at them from above, from a fresh, new persepctive.

So thank you for this beautiful little series Loes.

And here's to looking at things from a different perspective. 

Or at least trying to.

Vendors from Above

by Loes Heerink

More mesmerising shots after the jump.

THE TALE OF THOMAS BURBERRY

This video is poetry in motion.

Beautifully shot, with beautiful people and beautiful clothes, I felt like it was just the trailer to an even greater epic shimmering on the horizon. (*Spoiler* not confirmed, just wishful thinking).

The tale of Thomas Burberry is one that I wasn't familiar with, but then again I wasn't that familiar with the story of the house itself.

I didn't know that it was Thomas who started his own brand at the age of 21; who pioneered the mac material gabardine; and that it was Thomas who dressed British explorer Ernest Shackleton? 

In fact it's Burberry who have dressed more incredible people than arguably any other brand. From a Royal Warrant as Tailors, to the soldiers of both the First and Second World Wars, to Betty Kirby Green (played by the gorgeous Lily James in the above video), Burberry has kitted out the best of them.

Basically Thomas Burberry was really quite amazing. And this video is too.

The Tale of Thomas Burberry

Directed by Asif Kapadia

Starring Domhnall Gleeson, Sienna Miller, Dominic West and Lily James

BORROWED FROM THE BOYS

As it gets colder and colder, my ability to dress myself in nice and interesting attire disappears, replaced with a desire to wear layer upon layer of cashmere and thermal underwear.

This shoot featuring the gorgeous Toni Garrn and shot by the incredible Matthew Brookes proves that actually, layering is key. And it can be really rather sexy. 

A slouchy hoodie underneath an oversized blazer.

A huge bomber worn with a straight legged trouser.

It appears there are ways of beating the cold in a non-bag-lady, I'm so basic, kinda way.

I also enjoy the fact that, even though this is a shoot for a men's mag, the model's sexiness is subtle and understated, hidden beneath men's clothing rather than overtly, nakedly revealed to the male readers.

She looks beautifully undone, something I'm currently trying to master.

For now though, I'll keep my ten year old beanie and thermal undies I guess.

GQ Germany November 2016

Model: Toni Garrn

Photographer: Matthew Brookes

Stylist: Manuela Hainz

A DARK INFATUATION

Emma Cline's debut novel was one of those books that I read more words about before it was even released, than there are words in the novel itself.

So much hype - how to live up to that sort of pressure?!

Thankfully Cline did not falter and also did not seem all that bothered by the attention.

And "The Girls" is a masterclass in modern fiction. 

It astounds and it captivates. 

But actually at times, it makes you feel quite uncomfortable, more so for the fact that you're not sure why you feel uncomfortable.

The raw portrayal of each character and the frank description of each harrowing moment, combine to form a fiction that reads like a poignantly truthful diary.

One girl's account of her summer holidays is I guess how you'd strip it back to its barest bones.

But it's so so much more than that. Trust me.

If you're after a brilliantly powerful read, check out my review over on Riddle.

The Girls by Emma Cline

CARE TO OVERSHARE?

So in my regular travels on tube, I've noticed that the personal grooming that takes place there has got out of control. We are now oversharing to the max.

And I for one, am not a fan. At all.

Has this come along with our tendency to document every aspect of our life, including even the most unsavoury of our actions?

Power to women, freedom of expression and all that but I mean seriously?! Can't you just wait, or do it in a loo somewhere? Every second doorway in central London houses a cafe with a free loo that will undoubtably have a mirror you can use while you're at it.

I can't imagine my granny daring to do anything to do with her toilet anywhere other than her home. It would be unspeakable.

So here goes. The real pits of human behaviour. Seen most days on the central line.

STOP BEING BASIC

In the daily stress of getting myself dressed when my eyes are still too tired to be fully open, I long for a matching trouser suit.

Gone are my longings for 501s and Stan Smiths. Gone are those feelings of angst every time I remember that white tee I didn't buy.

For now I'm done with being basic.

Kind of.

But a trouser suit is so chic, so easy and so darn cool, especially with a punchy red lip. And it covers all manner of working uniform requirements. 

Go for a muted shade if your boss is a little on the strict side.

Or choose an incredible print like this gorgeous gal above and rock that suit jacket with nothing but your skimpiest lace underneath.

For today however, I'll pull on jeans and a tee because, well, you know, I'm still a basic bitch at heart.

Oh and I haven't had time to go shopping.

Pic WeThePeopleStyle (who by the way has the most incredible site)

SMALL BUT PERFECTLY FORMED

Why hello there and I'm terribly sorry for my absence of late. I've started a 9-5 job, been on a holiday, been busy exploring London and now, recently, started looking for a new house...

WHICH IS COMPLETELY IMPOSSIBLE!!

Why, fellow residents of London, do you all have to be moving just when I want to, as well?

I mean really, that's so selfish of you.

Anyway I've been getting some serious house inspo from the likes of Pinterest, Refinery29 and Dezeen...and all I can think of is how I might just buy a van, pack up my shit, leave it at my parents house and run away with my toothbrush and a clean pair of pants.

Or, living in this pretty perfect tiny house could be another possibility...

See more of this idyllic place after the jump.

A CENTRAL LONDON SANCTUARY

There's nothing worse than Monday morning blues.

That is until you've just got back from a week's holiday...and you have post-holiday and Monday morning blues...then it's really bad.

But every teeny tiny cloud has a silver lining.

And I'm here to tell you about a new central London hangout that'll solve all your summer-in-the-city woes.

Tucked away just behind Marble Arch is the haven that is Bernardi's and its accompanying bar, the Dog House. With a duck egg blue awning and tables littering the pavement, you could be forgiven for thinking that you were miles away from central London.

No mean feat when you have the end of Oxford Street just around the corner.

If you're on the look-out for a momentary but delicious escape, check out the rest of my review.

Bernardi's & The Dog House

62-64 Seymour Street

W1H 5BH

FANCY FREE

Today, the sun is out. And I'm going to Brighton for the day.

How could it not be a good day?!

Except for the minor detail that I just remembered it's currently the school holidays...and the sun is out...and I'm going to Brighton...

Bon chance as they say across the continent.

Enjoy your Tuesdays.

Pic of Phoebe Collings-James from IntoTheGloss (because that light and that hair though)

SHERBERT

So I started this blog way back when I had a terrible habit of saving every image and noticed too many amazing projects to store them all on my slowly dying laptop.

I'd read about this thing called blogging and some people were getting pretty famous by doing it and so I thought, well why not?

Now five years down the line, I can inform you all that I am not (yet) famous, sadly.

But I'm still posting up stuff that catches my eye.

And this sherbert coloured unsalvageable aquatics building is just incredible.

The artist Katharina Grosse and MoMA PS1 director Klaus Biesenbach devised this beautiful design as a unique send off to the building, using its bare brick walls as a blank canvas on which to project their sherbert coloured sunset.

Projects like this are even more special, I think, because the artist takes something that people walk past everyday and changes it into a piece of art, suddenly making it memorable.

Absolutely beaut. 

See more of the sugar-coated building after the jump.

TAKING IT OFF THE STREETS

So we all know how amazing street food is, right? We know how cool it is exploring the markets on a weekend, choosing a little bit to eat, musing over how delicious it is and how incredible that they made it right there.

But then you have the struggle. 

How on earth do I eat this? 

If it's something with a fork then you need both hands so then if you have a bag it's stressful. If it's some sort of sandwich/bun/pizza slice then you'll probably get it all down your front or the wind will blow your hair so it enters your mouth just as you take your first bite. 

Now I might sound like a terrible cynic but we all know that eating street food on the actual street is much more uncomfortable than the idea originally seems. 

And this is where Gyoza Bar comes in. It has taken the notion of street food, all the flavours and Japanese wonders, and put it in the comfort of a restaurant.

It's ideal.

Read the rest of my gushing review over on Riddle magazine.

Gyoza Bar

63-66 St Martin's Lane

WC2N 4JS

AU NATUREL

So with a summer looming that is looking decidedly un-summery, and my first as a fully fledged working woman (cue sassy emojis all round) I've taken to doing some serious internet wanderlust-ing.

Dreaming of travel, browsing through photos, reading every fictional story about travelling that I can get my hands on, these are the little things getting me through the smelly trips on the tube and my desire, yes genuinely, to be sunburnt.

Just because then it would mean I've seen the sun.

But this selection of beautiful natural pools are completely breathtaking. 

From a tear shaped number supposedly built by Zeus for Aphrodite to a sunken pool that has to be reached by swimming through a 40ft tunnel, these wonders are the kinds of things that a photo just can't do justice.

Like Yosemite, or my mum's Sunday roast.

You have to see it to believe it, am I right?

But for those of us chained to desks or simply not managing to escape this year, there's always Instagram.

Oh Instagram, what would I do without you?

(Now there's a love letter for another day...stay tuned)

More gorgeous examples of Mother Nature after the jump.

FRAME

FRAME has always done some of my favourite ad campaigns and their 2016 Fall/Winter campaign is no exception.

Leaning away from a focus on denim, Erik Torstensson, one of FRAME's co-founders, captures the models looking bad ass in an array of velvet, leather and outerwear. 

I also love the contrast of the two models' hair; one ethereal and glossy while the other hangs, shaggy and slightly unruly.

Although it's nearly July and hence the height of summer (supposedly) in England, winter campaigns seem to be catching my attention as I shove my feet back into my socks and throw a sweatshirt into my bag.

FRAME Fall/Winter 2016

Photographer: Erik Torstensson

Models: Steffy Argelich & Julia Hafstrom

See the rest of the campaign after the jump.

MURAKAMI

So I seem to have found myself with one of the best jobs around...writing reviews.

I absolutely love it! Not least because I get to explore new places and try things I wouldn't usually try. But I also get to write an entire piece that is just my opinion...no writing to a template or in a publication's voice. 

And those of you who know me, know I'm partial to a little opinion sharing.

I have total freedom to pass comment on what I'm experiencing, kind of like what I do on the blog...but with tighter grammar, less rambling and a whole lot more fancy adjectives.

My latest adventure was to a new sushi restaurant called Murakami which recently opened in the West End.

Now I am a huge sushi fan but unfortunately it usually manifests itself as a quick bite at Itsu or as part of a supermarket meal deal.

So it was a real treat to be able to go to a fancy restaurant, eat absolutely incredible sushi (seriously, it was unreal) and gossip away the evening.

Thanks Murakami for having me. 

And guys, go get yourselves down there.

Check out review for Riddle Magazine over here.

Pic Murakami

INTOXICATING EXPLORATION

The internet is like a black hole of never-ending crap, if we're being honest.

Many an hour has slipped by whilst trawling websites that tell me what I should be eating/drinking/sleeping in.

And god are they boring old articles. Really, they tell you nothing.

But every now and again I stumble across something or someone truly amazing. Someone that makes me want to stop wasting my life on the internet and get out there.

And Rebecca Rütten is one of those amazing people.

Her travels, her journals and her photographs are pretty much the definition of wanderlust (although that word is massively over-used, it's appropriate in this case).

From road-tripping her way through California, to exploring Eastern Europe to hanging out in Brooklyn, Rütten manages to capture the essence of the people and the place so perfectly that it makes you just want to climb into your screen to go hang out with them.

Oh and she also wrote a beautiful book "Never - Never Land" about the romance and reality of backpacking.

So I'm now thinking, fuck it. If I can't get a job any time soon, I may just pack up my shit in a rucksack and head off into the unknown.

'Cos that would be pretty darn incredible.

So thanks Rebecca for giving me a bit of motivation on this grey Thursday morning.

Rebecca is currently in Melbourne so if there are any cool cats out there who fancy a collaboration, hit her up. 

More of the amazing-ness after the jump.

DREAM WORLD

Oh to be part of the Réalisation girl gang?! 

Doesn't it look like the absolute dream?

They're the kind of girls that in my head I look like...but in reality, well I'm not quite there.

The ones that don't even try and still look like that.

They wear clothes that were designed to seduce but with such ease and nonchalance that they could be wearing jeans and a sweatshirt.

So after much stalking of their Instagram, I decided to treat myself to the Diane dress in navy, the ultimate sundress. And I mean who doesn't love a sundress?

But this one was different. 

I put it on, looped the string and tied it around my waist and instantly felt, well, amazing.

The well it fell, the hemline, the silky-ness.

I was in love.

And I felt so damn...sexy.

Which, as some of you will know, is not often (read: never) the case.

So if you're having a low moment, or you're on a massive high, invest in a piece from these girls.

Trust me on this one.

This will be one purchase that you will never regret.

Pics Réalisation Facebook

LIQUID GOLD

On a balmy, Spring-like evening (yes this was a few weeks ago now) I headed down to the newly opened Vaudeville Club to party the night away with a gaggle of girls.

We dressed to impress and descended into a basement, where we posed beneath neon signs, drank liquid gold and sang along to Blackstreet's No Diggity.

Sounds heavenly, right?!

Read all about my evening over on Riddle Magazine where I discuss the pros and cons of the VIP table and what it feels like to be part of an exclusive guest list for the first, but hopefully not the last, time.

Vaudeville Club

1-3 Trebovir Road

Pic @ivrashton

CLEMENTINE & EMMA

This editorial is everything I hope my Spring/Summer will (eventually) be.

Sunny obviously with a smattering of sequins along the way; perfectly tousled hair; a pair of fabulous printed dungarees; oh and the ability to do a full handstand.

All of life's essentials of course. 

Until that moment I'm just going to ogle at the perfection of this look-book for the Aussie designer Emma Mulholland featuring the ethereal beauty of rock chic Clementine Creevy (aka the frontwoman of the band Cherry Glazerr).

I may even YouTube handstand tutorials.

Watch out London is all I can say.

Emma Mulholland SS'16

Model: Clementine Creevy

Photographer: Byron Spencer (brother of the gorgeous Alexandra)

More after the jump

PIZZAS, PLANTS & PERONI

A house that celebrates all things Italian? Cocktails, pizza and arancini?

For the love of Italy (as it's so aptly named this year), this, my friends, is the House of Peroni. 

A month long installation along the canal in East London sees stripe-wearing men boating-in guests on gondolas; a flour-covered chef cooking pizzas in an outdoor oven; and of course some of the most delicious cocktails around, thanks to Peroni and their artisanal mixologists.

Orange plants hang from the ceiling and hanging jasmine ensures that the room smells heavenly, even when packed with chattering people.

One of the bars, hidden away behind blue-lit panels, was covered in plant life including the cutest little chilli plant ever.

I'm thinking that may be my next house plant investment.

If I can just keep this basil plant alive for longer than a week, I may treat myself.

Oh so that amazing cocktail that I'm holding (that you can kind of see). 

Um, yea, so that was UNREAL!!

Aperol, Peroni, bitter lemon, loadsa ice and a dollop of the most intense orange sorbet which melted down into the drink. Kind of like a Coke float (for those 90s babies around) but better. Actually just TOO good. And yes I will be attempting to re-create it this weekend.

So get yourselves down to The House of Peroni.

Entry is free! Yes free, people, so there's no excuse.

It's also along the canal so is even more picturesque that previous installations of the House. Cue many an Instagram moment.

You can also buy tickets for various Italian feasts, cocktail masterclasses and other delights on their website.

But yea, just go. 

Take yourself and a friend if you fancy (or find someone on Bumble...if you dare) and head down there. 

Grab a pizza and a beer and while away the evening, pretending to look cool and Italian, whilst actually, if you're anything like me, spilling beer down your front and having serious issues with the melted mozzarella #reallife.

The House of Peroni

Proud East

2-10 Hertford Road

N1 5ET

(closest tube, Overground to Haggerston)

Open: Thursday 19th May - Friday 1st July

Pics taken with iPhone6

WHY EAT SALAD?

Um yes to that. If chocolate is salad, then I can eat as much of it as I like, right?!

Well I mean everything in moderation but not salad, surely not salad. 

Those leaves that contain basically nothing but water and air.

Tasty only with a good dressing drizzled over them. 

Just the naked leaves?!

Not really my cup of tea.

Chocolate that takes on the guise of a vitamin though?

Now that, that is something I can get behind.

Check out my latest (and first!) review for Riddle Magazine, which sees me raving about the simplicity of a chocolate bar full of vitamins, right over here.

I'm just kicking myself that I didn't think of it first.

Pic from *WELL SAID* on @ivrashton Pinterest

MONDAY MOTIVATION #22

Because no-one's bad-ass, multi-million pound, female empowering empire was.

Busy trying to create my own empire right here but realising that it's going to take time so

I. Must. Be. Patient.

You know they (that is the people who know stuff) always said patience is a virtue?!

Well I've always called bull**** before.

I'm as impatient as they come and I just want everything to happen now.

I don't want to have to wait for someone to email/call me back or wait for the right job/man/puppy to come along you know?!

But then I read this quote and realised, it's ok, because even

Beyoncé wasn't built in a day.

If she can't even do it in a day then I've got no chance. 

So I might as well sit around in my gym kit, trawl through Instagram for more #recipes and (at least try to) patiently wait.

For more Beyoncé inspo, head over to one of my favourite brand's blogs, FrankBody, to see how they rule like Queen B.

Pic from *WELL SAID* on @ivrashton Pinterest

SIDEWALK SLOUCHING

The sun has kind of got its hat on. Well more like one of those incredible creations that are a hat with an umbrella attachment (my grandfather insists on sporting a rather fetching rainbow number).

And this editorial just seem to capture my mood when I was getting dressed this morning.

Slouchy but thin layers, the freshest pair of trainers, a glimpse of bare leg and a mane of tousled locks. 

Obviously mane aside, that's the look I'm currently sporting...or attempting to anyway.

Jacket weather never looked so good.

Vogue Australia May 2016

Photographer: Sebastian Kim

Stylist: Katie Mossman

Model: Luna Bijl

See the rest of the shoot after the jump

BUMBLING ALONG

Modern world dating. It's impossible, isn't it? 

Do you wait one hour or two before replying to a message? You don't want to seem too keen but then again you don't want them to think you're not interested at all. And you certainly never call them. Like, ever.

But then do you approach them or do they approach you?

And now, as if the modern world wasn't hard enough to navigate already, they go and introduce dating apps and say that this is the way to meet the love of your life.

Well, I mean, is it?

NEW YORK STATE OF MIND

A New York State of Mind.

And a beautiful one at that.

The New York City Ballet's latest campaign is breathtakingly simple but effortlessly graceful, two things of course that dancers are famed for.

Now I've already told you my history with leotards and ballet slippers so I won't go on.

But for some reason my eye is always drawn towards the aesthetic surrounding dancers and often more specifically ballet. Just the shapes that their bodies make and the grace with which they hold themselves.

I feel like it's probably something you're born with hey but who knows?

I could wake up tomorrow and suddenly move with all the elegance of a swan.

But the likelihood of that is about as great as me struggling out of my chair and hauling myself to the gym.

Then again I could always channel Michael Caine's advice in what some have called his finest performance to date, Miss Congeniality...and glide, and glide.

New York City Ballet 2016-2017 Campaign

Shot by Peter Lindbergh

The rest of the shoot can be found after the jump.

A FINE LINE

Playing with darkness and light.

A trick of the light is never an accident of the darkness. 

Weird that. 

Darkness is just an absence of light.

But then surely light is simply an absence of the dark.

Why is the light always given a power over the dark?

Who said the dark was less powerful than light?

Darkness conceals the secrets and the light reveals them.

Who's to say which has the greater power?

Pic from *SUMMER MOODS* on Pinterest

BATHIN

Nothing quite beats a good soak. It can cure even the worst of moods/hair days/spots.

You name it, for me a bath fixes it.

Now, I thought that sadly I was going to be moving out of bath season but no, the English weather system seems to have gone mad. 

Snow...in April?!

Guess I'll cherish my baths for a little longer.

More inspo after the jump

FAST LANE

Sunset.

                      A pastel horizon.

A solitary dancer.

              Graceful. Elegant.

              Tattooed,

                   'Nasty'

Filling the space.

                  Floating in a pipe dream.

Arm reaching up

to grasp

the invisible, silent

                                                      music.

His body creating shapes

that

         dance

                         themselves.

N.A.T.H.A.N

Nathan Mitchell

Shot by James Wright

For So It Goes Issue 7

See the rest of the breathtaking shoot after the jump.

DON'T WORRY, BEE HAPPY

So it's raining. It no longer feels spring-like as it did earlier in the week. In fact it's grey, drizzly but humid and frizz-making.

But you know what, spring felt so goooood, didn't it?! For that brief moment of blinding sunshine, I turned my face to the sun, channeled my inner sunflower and felt revitalised.

That probably had something to do with the fact that I spent the majority of the week wandering round the idyllic English countryside chatting to strawberry farmers and complimenting them on their bee populations and their plethora of flowering plants. (Research, of course. Essential research.)

There's nothing like hanging out with thousands of bees to cure those winter blues.

Alas it was not to last. Waking up to the unmistakable pitter patter of rain drops on my window this morning confirmed my fear as my heart sank.

Maybe spring wasn't here to stay? It was only passing through to be replaced with irregular April showers that make you curse your choice of suede footwear.

Or maybe not. My trusty weather app has informed me that the sun will appear, however briefly, at some point on Sunday. SUNDAY?!?!?

Until then, I will retire underneath layers of clothing, broken umbrella in tow.

But I'm still not going to take my sunglasses out of my bag.

Pics iPhone6

MONDAY MOTIVATION #21

Just seeking some wisdom from Mr Bowie on this Monday evening as I head into a week of final exams at school.

Two tomorrow and two on Thursday. 

Crazy to think 6 months is already up and as of next week I will officially join the unemployed ranks of twenty-somethings in London all struggling to find a job/get shit together/feed themselves.

I'm trying not to think about it really as it seems to be a rather daunting few months ahead.

But as Bowie so wisely pointed out,

I don't know where I'm going from here,

but I promise it won't be boring.

Pic from @ivrashton *WELL SAID* Pinterest

IN THE NUDE

Ballet is something I've always longed to be good at. Unfortunately it wasn't to be.

Little, chubby me, aged 3 and bald was squashed into a small pink leotard with matching pink ballet shoes. My mum looked at me with all the love in the world.

My peers, even aged 3, turned their perfectly groomed heads away in horror. 

Little blond angels dancing away, pointing their toes, listening intently to the teacher.

In I went. Actually in I was pushed.

And then 30 seconds later out I came, kicking and screaming and carried by my horrendously embarrassed mother.

And there it was. The beginning, middle and end of my career.

If only I had Christian Louboutin on my side and his beautiful new ballet shoes. 

Soft buttery leather in seven different shades.

Who knows. Maybe that was the problem mum.

I wasn't wearing my Louboutins.

See the rest of the campaign after the jump.