Discount Day

As you guys know I do love a bit of Motel and even though I don't work for them anymore I still love the clothes and can't stop buying them! At the moment everything seems pretty monochrome but I love the colour injection of electric blue, it's quickly becoming my favourite colour of the season! I've just put together my four favourite Motel pieces on sale at the moment, let me know what you think and whether you have any of them :)

1- Polly Babydoll Dress in Black Pyramid- This dress is a beauty, a lovely flattering babydoll shape, a lot like the Laynie with a contemporary twist on the standard black and white monochrome. It's £35 which I thought was quite well priced and would look good in the summer with bare legs and a bikini underneath or at night with tights and creepers!

2- Catalina Off The Shoulder in Sapphire - I really like the off the shoulder trend and more than anything I absolutely love this colour. This is a really basic dress that I can see myself wearing with tight and lace up ankle boots with lots of jewellery.

3 - Amy Front Zip Mini Skirt in Square Eyes - This skirt is so 60's its amazing! With something like this I need to think of at least 5 things I can wear it with and I have already decided it's going to look good with an electric blue jumper or a black t shirt - definitely justified!

4- Pollyanna PU Trim Shift Dress in Black Smoke - Finally this is a new print which is so subtle, it will go with so much! I really like dipped hem dresses and the print is quite toned down compared to most of the bright OTT Motel prints!

Remember if you like any of these too you can save 20% by using the discount code 'sophiepalms' at the check out ♥

Street Teamer

After the unfortunate end to my job at Motel Rocks, I decided I still really love the clothes and the company so it made sense to become a street teamer! I talk about the clothes a lot, and always have one or two items popping up on my wish lists, so what could be better than offering you guys 20% off anything that I mention, or anything you have your eye on! In order to get your 20% off all you need to do is click on the banner below or just go to the Motel Rocks website and at the checkout enter the code 'sophiepalms', it is only valid online at Motel so you can't use it on any other online stores like ASOS or Topshop, but throughout the year I will be able to give you guys extra discounts and promotions so it's a winner for all of us! I also picked the button that had the 'Penny Dress in Black and White Stripe' as the image, a dress which you all know I am besotted with! It's back in stock now too so get it before it's gone!  

I'm still really friendly with the team at Head Office and during my time as an intern become good friends with Lora; who has recently photographed the 'Valentines Collection' imagery. 

I love these images, I love the models hair it fits so perfectly with the styling and graphics, and I love how simple they are. At the moment there is a competition on to win two very different Valentines nights both including a £50 Motel Rocks gift card! I've entered them both, and really want to win the night in because my boyfriend is going to be away for Valentines and I really do love Dominos Pizza! 

Jellicle Cats

Leotard- H&M

Cat Skirt - Champagne Diamond

Belt - Vintage

Creepers - eBay

I can't tell you how excited I was when I got home the other day to see my cat skirt had arrived! I'm not usually the most enthusiastic person in the world but I screamed when this turned up. I bought it from Lucy at Champagne Diamond and have been lusting after it for ages but you know when you want something but you just never seem to get around to buying it? Well Lucy is also so lovely that she gave me a cheeky discount code which was the push I needed! I would definitely recommend checking out the online shop there are loads of cat and dog prints as well as some great Levi's for only £10! I bought a 10 and the sizing is really good, fits perfectly! 

I wore this outfit yesterday for my last day at head office. Quite sad because i've been interning there since June and really felt at home but it's also a good thing because I have been offered a full time job through the internship!! As you guys know i've been working part time at the Bristol shop over the past few weeks but now they have asked me to be the store manager! I was a bit reluctant at first because I don't have any management experience but more than anything they want me to take hold of the social media for the store as well as organise events and promotions- which pretty much sounds like a dream! I'm really excited now and am starting  next week, good news for the blog too because i'll have extra money to spend on clothes which I can show you guys! 

I had loads of really nice emails from the bloggers i've spoken to through Motel who have wished me good luck and thanks so much to those of you who follow me who have sent me a message :) 

#MotelXmas Blogger Party!

Monday night was the Motel Christmas blogger party and as a Motel intern I was lucky enough to be able to go along! I headed down at lunch time on the coach armed with Company Magazine and my favourite sensation thai chilli crisps and made my way towards the venue! It was at a really nice bar in Shoreditch called Floripa, which we decorated with balloons, presents and rails of gorgeous Motel clothes! I spent a lot of time blowing up balloons with a helium canister which ended up being hilarious because me and Hannah the other intern kept accidentally letting them go, so there ended up being 5 or 6 balloons on the ceiling, which I was hoping no one would notice! The doors opened at 6.30 and we only finished decorating at 5.45 so with limited time to get ready I bundled myself into the toilet back-brushed my hair, quickly put on some eyeliner and of course got changed into the gorgeous 'Wild One'. 

The first 50 bloggers through the door were lucky enough to receive a free item and me and Taz were in charge of talking everyone through the new collection and taking their top three choices. It was great to meet bloggers who I have followed personally as well people I have spoken to through Motel and ended up meeting some really great people! Quite a few people gave me their card which has made me realise that having a business card is essential to promoting your blog, lots of people asked me for my blog address and it would have saved a lot of time if I could have given them a card!

As well as the first 50 bloggers receiving an item from the new collection, there was also a whole host of other treats in store. Eylure were giving out free eyelashes, Lee Stafford (yes the actual Lee Stafford) was there curling hair and everyone was given a present when they left! 

I had a good look through the new collection and instantly fell in love with these new Galaxy pants! There like thinner, matte disco pants which is a lot more flattering if your a pear shape like me and I just love the colour! I'm hoping they're going to look nice on because I think the black and wine could be a new Winter staple! 

As for the rest of the night myself, Taz and Lora dominated the photo booth (which was such a good idea!) I could not stop laughing at the pictures and at the end of the night we managed to get all the Motel employees into the booth for one massive picture! 

You're A Wild One

The Wild One- Motel Rocks

I am basically in love with this dress! I've seen it loads of times on the internet whilst working at head office but it came in today with the shops delivery and I am head over heels! You know when you need to see something and feel the fabric in order to decide what you think of it? It's so unique and just lovely, I think i'm going to wear it to the Motel Bloggers Party on Monday! It's not my usual style because it's maxi length but for the party i'm thinking bare legs, a simple gold necklace and maybe red lips?  Just not sure which shoes yet, any suggestions? The bodice is so dramatic I think it needs to be simply styled but I can't wait to wear it! It's £65 on the website which is quite a lot but is £45 in the shop because the prices are lowered for the flagship store. We had a great delivery today with loads of off the shoulder items and Christmas dresses so if you live in Bristol I would definitely recommend a visit!

1 Month Old

Today is one month since I started the blog! I've enjoyed posting so much and can't believe I’ve only just got into blogging I definitely should have started earlier. I also can't believe how it's grown even over the past 4 weeks I have almost 50 followers and love reading all of your sweet comments. I've found some of your amazing blogs, which I love to read and the only downside is I have managed to spend lots on new clothes because I keep seeing nice stuff on your blogs! 

Yesterday was my boyfriend’s birthday so we went to watch 'Crossfire Hurricane' a film about the Rolling Stones and it was unbelievably good. I love every single song and watching footage of them just being themselves was great, after we went out for drinks and ending up going back to a friends flat and dancing to their songs for a good few hours. Mick Jagger is sexy even as an old man seeing him shake his hips is too good and Keith Richards is just the definition of cool, I really enjoyed it and don't think I even realised I loved them that much! Today I am a bit hung over and am just going to spend the evening eating pizza and watching rubbish TV :)

This week I have had a mini spend and wanted to share my new purchases with you guys. Sorry for the photos just being taken on my bedroom floor, I need to find a nice piece of fabric or something to use as a background! First up on Monday I bought this bag from Accessorize after seeing it on Annalises' blog (http://pastelbokeh.blogspot.com) I’m not a huge bag person but I do love a good satchel and just couldn't resist this one with the deer head detail on the fastening! It's a really good size and means I can take it on a night out or use it in the day, I tend to use the same bag for a few weeks then swap over to another one I don't have a day or night bag I just use them all for whatever! It was £32 and you can find it here.

As I mentioned before I have recently got a new job working in the Motel Bristol Store, it's the only store they have so it's exciting to be working there and means I get a good discount on clothes which makes me very very happy! This week I decided to get a few things to update my wardrobe and decided on the Kadie Skirt in blue and the Carla playsuit in black. The skirt is a really unusual colour and I decided to get it because I wear the black one all the time and thought this would look really nice in the Winter just adding a splash of colour, to my usual black winter outfits. I really love the style of skater skirts as they're flattering and just look cute and school like! This colour isn't actually on the website I have only ever seen in the store but it was £20 (without discount) which is a good price and if you live in and around Bristol I would definitely recommend a trip to Park Street to have a look around the shop!  

I wasn't able to take a picture of the playsuit because it is a silky material and doesn't photograph well at all so thought I would just use the picture from the website. I find playsuits quite hard to wear sometimes because I’m quite tall and find they can sometimes be short in the body. This playsuit is very soft but I would recommend getting a size bigger than you usually would because it's tight fitting. I went for a Medium, which was a little tight when I tried it on but I can tell it's going to stretch out a bit when wearing it. Black playsuits are a bit of a staple item, they can be worn casually in the day or dressed up on an evening with lots of gold jewellery so decided this was a justified basic!

  

Saving the best till last I have finally bought the Laynie!! Big news as I have been lusting after it for ages and decided as I’m going out again for Toms' birthday on Saturday I would wear it then. As it's a baby doll style lots of people have recommended going down a size, I bought the small and I LOVE IT! It's so pretty and flattering and I can imagine myself wearing it a lot throughout the winter. I'll make sure I get some photos on Saturday so I can do an outfit post on it so you guys can see how I’m wearing it. 

Wish List!

Today I was going to do an outfit post, but to be honest it's so wet and wintery I have just chucked on some leggings, huge socks and a big jumper and have settled for a skirt wish list! I sometimes think I am borderline obsessive when it comes to clothes, it's almost like having a new item makes me really happy and i'm always on the look out for a new update to my wardrobe. I'm so sad I have to keep a list of things that I want to buy, because if I don't it would be a free for all and every time I went past a shop I would get something! Dedication to the list is the best option for my bank balance and probably my bursting wardrobe!

First up on my current skirt list has to be these! I definitely buy more top items like jumpers, tops and dresses and have limited bottom items so always end up wearing either my black jeans, black skater skirt or grey skater skirt, plus I love the style of the skater skirt and having them in more colours or prints would definitely solve a few outfit dilemmas! I really like all the American Apparel circle skirts but am always hesitant to shop in there because it's so expensive and a friend suggested River Island. I'm so glad she did because they have loads of gorgeous skirts in there at the moment and I really like these two. Burgundy is a great winter colour and goes with a lot of other colours and leopard print is a great print to add a touch of colour to an all black outfit. Plus they are only £16 and £18 so a bargain in my eyes!

Keeping on the skirt topic has anyone seen the online shop run by Lucy from Champagne Diamond? I think she's currently updating it so there aren't many items on there but there is one beauty that I need in my wardrobe ASAP! The cat print skirt! It's so cute I love it and love it even more after seeing Olivia from What Olivia Did wearing it on a recent post! It's such a statement item and so unusual, I can't wait to wear it with my off the shoulder black crop or wear my black collared jumper like Olivia! 

                                            

Last but not least is the Kadie Cross Beads from Motel Rocks which I have featured before but do really like. I think the cross collection from Motel is great because it's quite subtle, and allows you to try out the trend without covering yourself in crosses and making people ask what kind of statement that is! I also like it because it's black and I wear my plain black Kadie all the time so think I could create a lot of outfits out of this one item. 

New Job!

Whilst writing out where I got these items from I realised they are all from Primark! Oh dear that's embarrassing! I didn't shop at Primark for ages because I did a lot of research into ethical fashion for a Uni project and read some pretty nasty things, but they seem to have had a bit of a ethical makeover and their website states they have strong values towards working conditions, the environment and their employees which makes me feel a bit better! If this is something you're interested in you can always have a little read here. Recently I haven't had much money and because it's so cheap i've been able to update my wardrobe a little with little beauties like this pearl collar necklace and the camouflage jacket I have wanted for so long! This is a really nice one because it's quite thin, I tried on loads of vintage jackets but they were so bulky and not very flattering!

Anyway this picture was taken against our amazing inspiration wall at Motel HQ I love it and am so desperate to get a huge pin board for my bedroom. I am a self confessed hoarder and along with having around 250 Vogue and Elle Magazines from the last god knows how long, I also keep lots of pictures and little bits that i'm not sure what to do with, pin board = answer! These pictures were taken on Friday by the lovely Lora English (who is also a freelance photographer) and of course include Selina who I am working with whose amazing blog Flying Saucer i'm sure a lot of you are familiar with! 

This weekend has been a quiet one and for once I am fresh faced and busy on a Sunday! Friday night I stayed in with Tom who cooked a roasted vegetable and pasta dish, which could be one of the best things i've ever eaten! Then Saturday was my first proper day at my new job!!! I'm working in the Motel Bristol store which is the only one of it's kind and it is so much fun! I have always worked in retail and much prefer working in a small independent style shop than in a huge high street store. The clothes are lovely and i've been shopping there since I was 14 so it feels very familiar. Today I made some white chocolate and cherry cookies and i'm am heading out for a roast dinner in an hour so it has definitely been a food focused weekend! 

Whole Lotta Rosie

**This blog post was from yesterday but didn't send properly**

Today has been a good day much better than yesterday where I had some serious car drama and spent a lot of the day panicking! Tonight I went out for a nice meal for a good friends birthday and am now very full and tired, just sat watching some TV. Rather than doing a post on what I wore I thought I would do a small post on some recent purchases I have made. I graduated this summer and am just working part time and doing my internship so for the first time in a long while I haven't been able to spend on clothes, something I was always able to do before. This makes these purchases even more special because I have to choose wisely at the moment!

First up is my Dana off the shoulder from Motel. Working in the Motel head office means I am constantly surrounded by clothes and am always looking at the website as well as different blogs, so I usually find around 100 things a day I want to buy!! As soon as this top came in though I knew I had to get it, it's a great update of the crop top and means you can dress it down by just teaming it with a high waist skirt and tights or wear it on a night out with jewellery and lipstick etc. I'm not one for really flashing my stomach so I got a larger size, which means it fits but is a bit longer; it also comes in long sleeves or as a dress :)

 Off the shoulder top- Motel 

Second we have the Hilary bodice in navy rose, also from Motel. This was an item I had seen a few times and I just love the print so much! There are a lot of items in this print and they are all so gorgeous but I thought the bodice was really simple and versatile, plus it can be worn with so many items! The only problem with it is the top bit is very loose and I have to pin it to my bra or tape it to me, I think this is a top for the small chest girl because if I'm falling out of it then anyone above a C cup is risking some serious nip slip! It is lovely though and looks great with all black, as it's a subtle and quite autumnal use of floral.

Hillary Bodice- Motel 

Lastly is the pink fluffy jumper from the Lana Del Rey collection at H&M! I have seen this jumper on TV adverts, magazine adverts and on the side of bus stops and fall more in love every time I see it. It makes me feel like a pink lady and is so soft and comfortable, however if you have sensitive skin like me I would recommend wearing a vest top or leotard underneath as it was a bit irritating. The other thing is as this jumper is wool it gets fluff EVERY WHERE! When I first tried it on it was on my jeans, in my hair, my mouth and all over my room, so it might be a good idea to hand wash it before wearing to prevent it covering everything and everyone in your life in pink fluff! It is so lovely I can't stop gushing about it, and looks great simply with jeans and loafers, plus because its such a soft colour it goes with a lot of basics like grey, black and navy.

 Pink Jumper- H&M

Puss In Boots!

I have been lacking in posting this week! There were a few outfit posts I wanted to do, but couldn't find the charger for my camera, it has now been found thankfully! Before doing that however I wanted to tell you about this cute new jewellery company i'm feeling a bit in love with! Laura who runs the street team at Motel has her own line of jewellery called 'I Love Crafty' which makes fun, cute jewellery that's really unique and great for presents! I'm not usually into coloured jewellery i'm (fake) gold and silver through and through, but she has recently launched a black cat collection called "feline fatale" which is AMAZING! As a lover of anything cat shaped I can't wait to get hold of some of these and the best thing is Motel have decided they're going to start selling the cat collection too :) 

I've included the graphic Motel are using to promote the collection and here are some of my favourite picks :) How cute are the collar tips? They have to be my favourite thing and are going to see me updating some old shirts with these beauties!

All items from I Love Crafty

Little Sister

Headscarf - Vintage

Shirt - Topshop

Cardigan - Vintage

Skirt- Topshop

Lipstick - Arbonne

Rings - Topshop and Vintage

It is officially Winter! To be honest our Summer never really started so it doesn't feel like that big of a deal but the past few days have definitely felt full of wind and rain. I don't mind, I quite like Winter, or at least the thought of wrapping up in a jumper, coat and boots, I never think of the reality of when i'm pretty much crying on a bus stop because my feet are so cold! I am however looking forward to buying Winter clothes, I have my eye on so many things including a few jumpers, lots of shoes and maybe some not so Wintery items!

I have sold a few things on eBay over the past few days so I spent a lot of today packing things up and going to the post office, I like to package it up properly because it's always nice to receive a good looking parcel in the post rather than a squashed Tesco bag with your name on! My hair is having an absolute disaster at the moment I barely have a fringe as it's just disappeared into the rest of my hair because it's so long! I've decided to just pin it across until I have a hair cut, I love this headscarf though, it's really 60's and only cost me 99p on eBay! Apart from that this outfit is fairly simple which I like and looks a bit school uniformy which I also like! My red lipstick is from a company called Arbonne who I am a consultant for and stays on all day so you don't end up with the weird line on the inside of your lip! Tomorrow I will be working at Motel and will need to decide whether to order the Kadie or the Laynie baby doll, I think at the moment i'm swinging more towards Laynie but it could all change!

London Fashion Week 14/09/2012

Last week I was invited to LFW with Motel Rocks as part of their on the day street team! I was really excited and a little bit scared because I had no idea to wear and knew it was gonna be super 'fashiony'. Luckily I was allowed to have a raid of the samples rail, and pick something from the A/W Motel collection:) After 20 mins of looking I settled on 3 choices; Dana off the shoulder crop top, Libby high neck crop top and the Zabby dress! After finally deciding on the Libby high neck in floral i teamed it with a high waist black skirt with my lace cycle shorts underneath, socks, creepers and some vintage sunglasses. I really liked the look and loved how 90's the top was i'm just not sure if I like having that much skin on show because i did feel a bit self conscious. Probably sound like my nan but I think if i were to wear that top again it would have to be with tights or a maxi!

I went with Selina who lots of you will know from Flying Saucer and we met Jameela Jamil!! She was really lovely and stopped for a chat, telling us how much she loved our outfits and the Motel brand! We spent most of the day snapping street stylers and I met some really great bloggers, who I have followed for a while (their blogs not in some weird stalker way!) My favourite look of the day had to be Anouska who teamed a midi black chiffon skirt with a gorgeous jumper and collar. I love how simple the look was but she just looked effortless and classic as well as on trend. I do think this would be an easy look to create without having to spend money on an expensive collared jumper. Just buying or making your own collar which you could then attach to anything is a cheaper alternative plus then you have a way to update any old jumpers for A/W!

Just to make the day even more exciting I was lucky enough to go to the Bora Aksu show! I felt so professional walking into the show with my ticket then almost got trampled by the stampede of photographers trying to get to Kelly Brook!! She looked amazing! I always think when you see celebrities in reality their gonna be stick thin but she looked so good and normal, well not quite normal a million times hotter than normal but healthy! The show itself was gorgeous, really feminine and full of pastels and texture, it seems like next season is gonna be really girlie not sure how i'll manage to work that trend!