What I wore in New York

I've been meaning to blog for a while about what I wore in New York. However, I must admit that my main motivation for publishing this post today was the lack of time and opportunity to take photos for any of my other potential posts. Roll on the lighter evenings!

While I'm busy admitting to things, I thought I'd talk about the military operation of me packing to go on holiday. It starts with a big Word document (set up immediately after we book a holiday) which details every single piece of clothing, every accessory, every toiletry and every miscellaneous item I'm planning to take with me. The packing itself usually commences about three weeks before we leave. Although part of me is very jealous when Neil somehow manages to pack his suitcase in 25 minutes, I do secretly enjoy my long-winded and highly organised packing process.

The photos of me in New York were all taken outside, so I'm only going to detail my coats, boots, hats and scarves because that's all you can see. To complete my outfits, I took a pair of jeans, a few jumpers, warm dresses, leggings and tights, along with some nice dresses for the evenings. I packed light on shoes and bags (for me), but definitely didn't pack light on hats, scarves and gloves.

I've linked to the relevant items where I can in the photos below, but most of them are either sold out or not in existence any more.

Parka from Dorothy Perkins, scarf from Joules' Ebay store, and
black boots from Shoe Zone 

Kate Spade hat from Ebay, scarf from Joules, coat from Debenhams,
bag from Kate Spade and boots from Ugg

Hat from New Look, scarf and gloves from Asda, coat from ASOS,
and bag from Kate Spade 

Hat and gloves from Accessorize, bag and scarf from New Look

The hat was a gift from Italy, and the scarf is from Primark 

Hat from New Look and scarf from ASOS 

Hat, scarf and gloves from New Look, bag from Kate Spade 

Is your packing process a bit like mine, or do you pack like a normal person? 

Planning my Disney outfits #3

With just under five weeks to go until our holiday to Walt Disney World, I've almost got my entire packing list confirmed. My excitement levels are rising rapidly so I thought it was about time I wrote another outfit post!

Although this outfit is a complete mish-mash of Disney themes and characters, I love the way all the different elements combine to make a surprisingly coordinated ensemble. 

My idea for a black and white outfit was born when I bought a pair of Cruella de Vil ears from Closet Geek Site. The red detail in the middle conveniently meant I could combine these with my beautiful bag from the Disney Store, so the outfit was already off to an excellent start!

Next up, I was browsing Etsy for more Disney apparel and came across this Minnie-themed vest on xHandmadeByAmyx's store. I was originally looking for a white dress with black polka dots as a continuation of the dalmatian theme, but this turned out to be too difficult to find in an adult size at a reasonable price! I love this vest and it'll be perfect for one of our many days at the Magic Kingdom. 

Lastly, I found these pretty black and white polka dot shorts on ASOS a few weeks ago. They're a lovely floaty material with a lace insert at the bottom, and I bought them on Double Points Day which made them an extra exciting purchase. 

I'm planning to wear either my white Skechers or my red flip flops with this outfit, depending on how much my feet are aching by the time I wear it. The phrase I utter most while we're in Florida is 'my feet hurt so much.'

I might manage to fit in one more outfit post before we go on holiday... keep a look out for it! 

Planning my Disney outfits #2

My regular readers and Instagram followers will already know that I blogged about my first planned Disney outfit a few weeks ago. As it's been a busy week and I'm running low on inspiration for new content, I thought I'd share another one! 

The idea for this outfit started when I found this much-coveted Mickey ice cream cone tshirt on eBay a few months ago. I kept spotting it all over Instagram after it had long disappeared from Primark, and I somehow found it on eBay at an even cheaper price. 

I knew lots of the accessories I already had would go perfectly with the tshirt as I own a LOT of pink things. However, I wasn't too sure what I should wear on the bottom half. I thought something pink or white might make me look like a marshmallow, and I didn't want to go for anything too dark as I thought it might clash. 

Enter these denim shorts from New Look! 

As is usually the case with all my clothes, these were discounted in the sale and just happened to be available in my size at the right time. Denim shorts are always handy because they go with anything and, as a bonus, the baby pink detail on these shorts means they're ideal for this outfit. 

I already had the perfect pair of Mickey ears from Luby and Lola which meant I wasn't tempted to buy yet another pair for this trip. I bought the baby pink bag when we were on honeymoon in Rome back in 2014, and the pink sandals were a Venetian gift from my in-laws a few years ago. And, just like that, another outfit was sorted! 

Keep a look-out for more outfit posts in the next few weeks as our holiday gets closer and closer...

Planning my Disney outfits #1

We're off to Florida in just under ten weeks and I've been busy planning every possible aspect of our trip. At the risk of sounding a little TOO organised, I've been planning since approximately August last year.

One of the holiday planning tasks I really enjoy, particularly for our holidays to Walt Disney World, is deciding which outfits to take for the two weeks. I love making sure I'm colour coordinated, from my clothes to my shoes to my bags. As a happy coincidence, since becoming slightly obsessed with Mickey ears over the last couple of years, I've now got even more things to coordinate!

The idea for my first outfit started when I impulsively bought this beautiful Beauty and the Beast themed Danielle Nicole bag from the Disney Store (now available on ASOS here). I'd wanted this bag for years and couldn't resist it when it suddenly became available on the UK's Disney Store website.

Although I was a little worried that the bag would be too small, I found that I could easily fit my phone and purse into it which is all I need for park days and evenings. So step one of the outfit was complete! 

As I love both Beauty and the Beast and floral patterns, I thought I'd hunt for a few more themed items to go with this bag. I had my eye on a floral playsuit from New Look, but it was constantly out of stock in my size. However, when I was browsing the sales just after Christmas, my size popped up and the item was drastically reduced. I made sure I put it straight in my basket as it was the ideal match for my new bag. 

I had the perfect playsuit and the perfect bag, so I obviously needed some ears to finish off the ensemble. I love Luby and Lola's Mickey ears and had spotted a beautiful red rose pair on their website, so I eagerly waited for their Etsy shop to re-open and placed my order for this beautiful pair. 

A photograph could never capture the beauty of these ears! I love the deep red colour of the satin bow, and the black background is slightly glitzy which adds that extra bit of Disney sparkle. 

Lastly, I realised I didn't own any red flip flops even though my collection seemed to feature every other colour under the sun. I bought a red pair from New Look which, again, happened to be reduced. I think you'll all agree that they finish the outfit off beautifully! 

I never feel as if my outfit coordination is completely 100% on point (ugh, can't believe I just used that phrase), but on this occasion I think it's perfect! I can't wait to wear this outfit in May, and I'm looking forward to pairing this bag and the ears with a few other outfits too. 

I don't think any of my other outfits will live up to this one, but I might still blog about another couple of holiday clothing ensembles in the next few months. Watch this space! 

Twelve posts of Christmas #7 - My Christmas party dresses

I can't believe it's already 29th December... why do good times go so quickly? As you'll have read in my Christmas Plans blog post, the last week has been packed full of lovely experiences with family and friends. It's also been packed with an insane amount of food, but that's another story (and another blog post).

I thought I'd focus my seventh post of Christmas on the dresses I've worn this month for various festive occasions. Everyone loves an occasion to wear/buy a new dress, right? Also, after all the aforementioned food, I might not be fitting back into these dresses for a while so it's probably best to make the most of them...

I wore this dress to Neil's work Christmas party at the beginning of December. Although they're not very clear in the picture, the dress is covered with glitzy black sequins and has a pretty lace overlay. The belt brings the dress in nicely at the waist which is the exact shape I like. It's from New Look (just like everything else I ever wear) and I bought it from last year's Christmas party range.

I wore this dress to my own work Christmas party as I wanted a change of colour - I ALWAYS wear black dresses on special occasions. It's lacy, it's a fit and flare shape, it has pretty sleeves... everything I like in a dress! I bought this dress in a New Look discount event before Christmas, and it's now discounted even further.

And lastly, I wore this dress on Christmas Day... another one from New Look. Although I look slightly deranged in this photo and the lighting is a bit odd, I absolutely love this dress. The subtle pleats ensure that it's a very full skirt and the monochrome element makes it look more striking than your average black dress. 

I also love the accessories I wore to all my Christmas occasions - again, all from New Look! The black accessories were bought last year and the silver bag is now out of stock, but you can find the sparkly shoes here. 

What dresses did you wear over the festive period? Let me know if you've blogged about them, I love reading about other people's outfit choices!

Outfit of the day - New Look special!

I've been wondering lately how I ever managed to find the time to blog three or four times per week. Where on earth has the time been going lately? I'm going to attempt to get back to some kind of blogging schedule by posting once a week to begin with. I've got plenty of exciting things to blog about, I'm just struggling to find the time to type it all up! Blogging is a very therapeutic hobby for me so it would definitely be beneficial for me to get back to some kind of regularity when it comes to my blog.

So here goes... here's my first Outfit of the Day post for a while!

Necklace - Tiffany & Co (present from Neil's mum)
Dress - New Look (out of stock)
Shoes - New Look

I wore this outfit two weeks ago when we went for a meal at Villa Napoli for our seven month wedding anniversary meal. Yes that's right, we're celebrating our anniversary monthly for the first year. Why ever not?

This dress is so pretty and fits really well. The navy top half has a crochet lace pattern and the bottom half is floaty and floral. The belt came with the dress and is a lovely addition as it pulls in the dress in all the right places. Although this dress is casual enough to wear on a summer's day with some flip flops, it can also be dressed up easily with a pair of heels and some nice jewellery such as my classy necklace from Tiffany & Co.  

There's a delicate mint green detailing on the dress which meant it was the perfect match for my new shoes. If I do take the unusual risk of wearing heels, they absolutely have to have some kind of supportive strap to prevent me from breaking my ankle/s. The ankle straps on these shoes ensure that they can't possibly fall off my feet but also make them look extra dainty. The toe section ('toe section' always reminds me of Michael McIntyre... anyone else?) is a soft suede material and they're just beautiful. I really love this mint colour and I think I'll be adding several items of the same shade to my summer wardrobe. 

Have you bought a pretty new dress lately? Feel free to leave me the links to your latest 'Outfit of the Day' posts in your comments! 

Outfit of the Day - brisk walk!

If you follow me on Twitter, you'll probably know that I recently had a wisdom tooth taken out. I consequently felt sorry for myself for a few days, mostly because I couldn't eat properly which is really quite catastrophic in my world. We decided to go for a walk the day after the traumatising event just to get out of the house for some fresh air. It was bitterly cold so I wrapped up in a cosy outfit...

Gilet - Tesco (last year)

Hoodie - Animal (last year)

Skirt - New Look (last year)

Boots - Fat Face (last year)

Scarf - Debenhams (this year, but out of stock!)

As you can see, I've had all these clothes for a while (apart from the scarf). I like digging out my old clothes and wearing them season after season as I feel as if I've got my money's worth out of them, and I can't bear to get rid of clothes that I really love just because they're not brand new. 

The gilet was an absolute bargain at £8 in last year's Tesco winter sale... I love gilets and I love pink, so this is the perfect combination. The denim skirt was a sale item last summer from New Look (also £8, I believe), as was the Animal hoodie... I rarely pay full price for anything, as you've probably gathered by now. Continuing in the same vein, the pink scarf is from Red Herring at Debenhams and I bought it a few weeks ago for £4.80. It was supposed to be £16 so I was very pleased with that particular bargain. 

The boots are probably my favourite part of this outfit and they were a Christmas present from my parents in 2013. They're lined with thick fur and I love the little buttons on the sides. These are ideal for cold walks, as long as it's dry! They're very comfortable too so can be worn for long periods of time without making my feet ache. 

In case you're interested, here's a photo from our walk... such a beautiful day. 

What's your favourite 'brisk walk' outfit? Send me links to your cosy Outfit of the Day posts (please)! 

Guest post #1 - Disney inspired outfits!

Aloha all, I'm Danielle from Underland to Wonderland and I am over the moon to have been asked to provide a guest post for you all by Beth. You may click from my blog name that, like Beth, I am a huge Disney nut and so what other subject would be better to write about than of course Disney!

I've seen posts where people put together outfits inspired by people and celebrities but I thought it would be a cool twist to base an outfit from some of my favorite Disney characters, actual wearable outfits! I hope you enjoy it because I certainly had a lot of fun putting it together... so much so that I might even do a part 2 over on my blog :p

Snow White

Yellow Skinny Jeans

Lace Back Vest

Bluebird Blue Cardigan

Classic Red Hair Bow

Grey Bow Ballet Pumps

Mary Poppins

Loose Denim Trousers

Cap Sleeve Pleated Top

Crochet Scarf

Straight Cut Wool Coat

Black Leather Ankle Boot

Carpet Bag

Minnie Mouse

Blue Skater Dress

Iron Fist Yellow and Rose Print Heels

Floral Statement Necklace

As you can see I've not gone for exact replicas, more like a modern, subtle version that wouldn't make people think you were on your way to a cosplay event! Haha. Would you wear any of these? Which one is your favourite?

Thanks for reading all, and thanks again Beth for having me!

Outfit of the Day: Little Black Dress, Cricieth style!

Everyone loves a little black dress, yes?

I've been a bit obsessed with New Look lately and have treated myself to a few things from there ready for my honeymoon. I decided to take one of my new New Look outfits away with me to Cricieth as I wanted to wear something new and the weather forecast was promising. I also wanted to practice wearing my rather lovely new heels!

Dress - New Look

Bag - New Look (out of stock)

Shoes - New Look 

I'd be grateful if you could ignore my pasty white legs!

The dress is very simple and is in my beloved skater style. I genuinely don't think skater dresses look bad on anyone. It has a delicate daisy trim around the neckline and is just the right length for my extremely short legs. The accompanying floral bag is just beautiful and is the perfect size for going out in the evening. I could comfortably fit my phone, camera, keys and evening purse into the little bag. As for the shoes... I love these shoes! The heel is around 2.5 inches tall so they're not too high (even for me), and the slingback design means they can't fall off my feet. This is a problem I frequently experience while wearing heels, so the little strap at the back helps a lot and makes me feel a lot more confident that I won't fall over and break my ankle in an embarrassing manner. 

I teamed the dress with a black short sleeved bolero cardigan for our walk into town as it was a bit chilly. The cardigan is from Amazon and was only £4... I've also bought it in stone, white and cerise ready for our honeymoon! I couldn't resist getting some other colours at that bargain price. The crochet detail is really pretty and the 8/10 size is a perfect fit. 

What's your favourite little black dress?

Outfit of the Day... floral pastels!

I'm currently a bit obsessed with pastels and floral patterns. Last Saturday's outfit was a colour coordinated combination of both these lovely elements so I thought I'd share it on my blog.

Cardigan - Amazon

Vest top - H&M

Skirt - New Look

Shoes - New Look 

I bought this skirt from New Look last summer with my birthday money. I still think it looks a bit old fashioned and I was undecided on it for ages, but I think it does look pretty with pastel vests and shoes. However, I do sometimes worry that the pattern looks like one found on an old lady's curtains. It does go nicely with the outfit above though, I must admit.

Everyone loves a good old £3.99 basic vest top from H&M. The vest tops from H&M are the only ones which fit me properly... I hate it when vest tops are too baggy around the stomach area! It was quite cold on Saturday so I decided to wear my white cardigan over the vest top. This little cardigan is so versatile. It goes with lots of different outfits and it's a handy layer to put on when it's a bit chilly.

Last but not least, I love my new mint shoes from New Look! They only sold the 'wide fit' variety in this particular shade so they're slightly too big, but they're still very comfortable and passed the test of walking around Cardiff for hours. I absolutely love the colour and they'll be perfect for the warmer months.

Do you love pastels and/or floral patterns? Let me know!

Outfit of the Day... trip to Cardiff Bay!

As promised in my latest Easter in photos blog post, I thought I'd elaborate on what I got up to over the Easter weekend. One of my favourite outings was our walk to Cardiff Bay on Saturday, so I thought I'd start with a post on that. I'm also conveniently combining it with an Outfit of the Day post as I haven't done one of those for a while!

Dress - New Look (out of stock)

Shoes - Red Herring at Debenhams (last year)

Bag - Guess, from Florida

I really love this new dress from New Look so I thought I'd wear it on our stroll to Cardiff Bay last Saturday. It was actually pretty cold in the morning/early afternoon, so I unfortunately had to wear a coat over it. I also bought these pretty shoes from Debenhams last year which went perfectly with the dress. They're black with green and red flowers so I haven't worn them much as I don't wear green or red very often. This dress therefore gave me the perfect opportunity to wear these shoes! My bag is yet another Guess purchase from Florida... this one was actually a present from Neil the last time we visited Orlando. Simple outfit, but I like it!

Once we got to Cardiff Bay, we had a little wander around the main shopping area then popped in to Fabulous Welshcakes and bought a blueberry welshcake and a chocolate chip welshcake each. You might think people shouldn't mess with the traditional welshcake flavour, but I can guarantee that you'd change your mind if you tasted these. I'm already so excited that Fabulous Welshcakes are providing the favours for our wedding day!

We then walked over to the Red Dragon Centre and had a hot chocolate in The Coffee House, run by Cadwaladers (a Welsh ice cream chain). Yes, I know I drink too much hot chocolate. In my defence, I always ask for skimmed milk. I don't like tea or coffee... what else is there for me to drink in a coffee establishment?

There were a few market stalls near the Mermaid Quay area so we had a look at those before heading back to my flat. There were stalls selling slate goods, jewellery, cupcakes, welshcakes, photo prints, curry powder, cheese, fudge and lots more! You can't beat a cluster of Welsh market stalls. I bought these lovely earrings for £3 from a craft stall... they conveniently go with my new green dress. 

The Bay is a really pretty place and I always love walking around there, even if it was a bit cold on Saturday. There isn't actually much to do in the Bay unless you want to eat and drink all day, but it's always a nice place to visit for a couple of hours. 

Have you been to Cardiff Bay recently? Did you also give in to the temptation of Fabulous Welshcakes?

Outfit of the Day... summer dress and Ugg boots!

I thought I'd do a quick 'Outfit of the Day' post in honour of last weekend's sunny weather! Just like my first Outfit of the Day post, I'm wearing a few items from Florida...

Dress - Dorothy Perkins

Ugg boots - Journey (Florida)
Bag - Guess (Florida)

I love the kind of weather we experienced last weekend. Not quite cold enough to put away my beloved Ugg boots, but pleasant enough to wear a light summery dress. My pasty legs are a slight concern (I wore skin coloured tights), but they won't be getting brown any time soon so I should probably just accept them!

This outfit features my favourite bag in the world. I bought this bag in the Guess store in Florida's Mall at Millennia last year as a treat to myself. I would never usually spend that much money on a bag! In my defence, Guess bags are much cheaper in Florida and there happened to be 25% off all bags on the day I bought this one. It's the perfect size and the neutral colours mean I can wear it with almost all the clothes I own. I love it!

This dress was a recent purchase from Dorothy Perkins... it also had 25% off when I bought it. You should have noticed by now that I'm very rarely willing to pay full price for anything. I thought the dress would be perfect for my honeymoon, but I ended up wearing it last weekend as it's much too pretty to stay in my wardrobe until September. 

What did you get up to last weekend? Do you love the Ugg boots/summer dress combination too?

Outfit of the Day... just because I love my new bag!

Drum roll... this is my very first Outfit of the Day post. The outfit isn't even that special, but I really love my new bag so wanted to include it in a blog post. I find myself wanting to blog about everything I ever see/buy/do/eat... if only there were more hours in the day!

Scarf - Camden Market, London (ancient)

Leather jacket - Oasis (last year)

T-shirt - Universal Studios, Florida

Jeans - Gap 

Ugg boots - Journey, Florida

Beautiful pink bag - Dorothy Perkins

I've been looking for a big pink bag in this kind of style for months so I was rather pleased when I saw this beauty in Dorothy Perkins last weekend. I hadn't bought myself a bag for a while so I thought I'd do something nice for myself. I love bags and I love pink things... it had to be done. The bag is very spacious and conveniently has a long shoulder strap as well as two little handles. It has a zip closure which is perfect for a paranoid android like me, and it looks and feels like a really high quality bag for a high street price. I love it! 

The rest of the outfit isn't particularly spectacular, but I do love my Ugg boots and it was nice to be able to wear my leather jacket rather than my hooded waterproof coat for a change. Spring appears to be just around the corner!

The bag isn't on Dorothy Perkins' website yet for some reason, but you should be able to find it in your local store. Has anyone else bought this beautiful bag?