Alice Porter 10/21/18 Alice Porter 10/21/18

Where I Find Style Inspiration

Jumper- ASOS, Skirt- Old Zara Dress (similar here and here),Shoes- Vans, Bag- Old Zara (similar here), Necklace- ASOS

I have been feeling so inspired by and excited about fashion/styling lately. I think it's partly because we're having a very mild autumn, which means I can actually wear autumn/winter clothing that I like without freezing! But it's definitely also because I've found so many new ways of finding style inspiration. The outfit that I'm wearing here was very much inspired and something I had wanted to put together for a while. It's so 'inspired' that it basically is copied, but that's a whole other post (one that I've already written, about the difference between copying and taking inspiration).

Anyway this outfit was basically inspired by two outfits I saw on social media (see below) and it got me thinking about where I get my style inspiration from. So I thought I'd share it on my blog! I don't think it's anything revolutionary but it can be interesting to see how other people decide what to buy and what to wear and it's also part of my effort to think more consciously about why I'm buying my clothes and if I truly want/need them.

Found on Instagram via @glameramo

2. Found on

1. Pinterest

I am so late to the party with Pinterest but, now I've finally hopped on the bandwagon, I love it! I find Pinterest such an inspiring place to be. It's really just about finding images that you like and there's no obligation to engage with anything you don't want to. Plus, because it's basically a search engine, it's so easy to find exactly what you're looking for whether that's 'autumn style' or 'check blazer and midi skirt' so it always helps me find new ways to style things I already own. Whenever I'm feeling uninspired I always just scroll through my Pinterest feed and come out the other side wanting to put outfits together. It's actually one of the only forms of social media that I use for style/fashion that makes me want to shop my own wardrobe more than I actually want to buy new things because you can really curate it so images come up with people wearing similar things to those that you already own. My 'Autumn Style Inspiration' board has been my go-to place for inspiration whenever I can't decide what to wear.

2. Instagram

Again, there's nothing revolutionary here. I use Instagram for style inspiration like most other people. The save button was one I used to make use of quite often but now I have Pinterest, I tend to curate boards over on there rather on Instagram now. So, Instagram is mainly just a place that is constantly providing me with inspiration because I'm constantly on it (whether this is a good thing or a bad thing). The thing that can be tricky with Instagram is, unlike Pinterest, I'm always liking things and I think, because I'm not curating my own board and a like is something I never have to look back on again, I'm a lot more frivolous with the photos I'm liking and therefore it's hard to tell if I really did actually like the thing that I just virtually liked. A very complicated sentence, but hopefully you understand what I mean, Instagram can be much more mindless than Pinterest. But, nevertheless, because I spend so much time on Instagram and can at least curate who I follow, I am always feeling inspired by the photos on there and it's definitely the most consistent form of inspiration for me- it's like a constant flow that keeps the wheels of inspiration turning.

3.IRL Shopping/Browsing

I know I mentioned earlier that I'm trying to be more conscious with what I own and what I'm buying, but I can't deny that shopping is a big source of inspiration for me, particularly in store but also online (especially when brands release editorials; my favourites for this are Mango, & Other Stories and Zara). But the buzz I get when I'm walking around a store and seeing clothes laid out in an intentional way really does make me feel inspired. And whether it is how the shopping experience has affected me (which I think it's at least partly this) or just the novelty of new clothes, I always feel excited to style outfits when I get home from a day of shopping, in a way that shopping online just doesn't allow me as much.

4. People Watching

Another in real life method of inspiration! Although social media is essentially the virtual way of people watching I guess? But people watching in person, in the least creepy way possible, is a really great way of finding style inspiration. I don't think it's an intentional thing and I'm not really the type of person to park myself in the window seat of a cafe and take in the clothes people are wearing. But being out and about, especially in 'cooler' areas of city centres such as the Northern Quarter in Manchester or the Bold St and Baltic Triangle areas of Liverpool, always sub-consciously makes me feel inspired. I have been known to hunt down pieces after seeing them on other people or made it my life's mission to find something similar (something I did with this polka dot skirt, which is actually a dress, after seeing the original on Georgia) and most of these hunts stem from real life experiences, despite the example I've just given. The online world makes it so easy. We are handed shoppable links quicker than we can ask for them, which can obviously be really useful and time-saving. But I think hunting for a particular/similar piece that you've seen someone look amazing in IRL is more of a creative, exciting and rewarding process that will really get you feeling inspired!

I hope you've enjoyed this post and maybe even found it useful in some way. It's certainly got me excited to get styling some outfits. As I mentioned earlier, I'm currently trying to dress and, even more so, shop more consciously than I have in the past and thinking through the reasons why and ways in which you dress the way I do is a really important part of this. Because I'm never going to be a minimalist or a person who doesn't want to shop, but hopefully I can stop being the person who buys something that I will wear once purely because it's cheap or impulsively makes an ASOS order because I'm bored! Baby steps are still steps and hopefully they will all add up. If you haven't seen Stacey Dooley's brilliant documentary 'Fashion's Dirty Secrets', which I'm sure you've heard about, do go and watch it because it will make you think differently about the fashion industry, something we all need to do

Alice Porter 10/7/18 Alice Porter 10/7/18

How to Follow Trends Without Losing Your Personal Style

Photography by Ami Ford.

The content of this week's blog post is primarily style-based, which is a little bit unusual for me. However it seems very apt as I've been ridiculously excited about autumn/winter fashion recently and it's all I can think about/spend my money on. Even now I'm excited at the thought of getting dressed today so I can wear my new Topshop midi skirt. Anyway, we're one paragraph in and I'm off on a tangent. Lets get back to the point of this post, following trends without losing your personal style.

I wouldn't really say that I've got my personal style down to a tee and if you asked me to summarise it, I wouldn't know how. But I know when I'm wearing something that feels like 'me' and I know when I'm wearing something that doesn't. I think that's essentially what personal style is. But something that can get in the way of your personal style is trend pieces, especially the ones that everyone on Instagram is going crazy for. Sometimes, when seeing a piece on your favourite blogger, it's difficult to tell whether it's the piece they're wearing that you like or if it's how it looks on them that draws you to it. I've wasted a fair amount of money in the past on trend pieces that just weren't for me and didn't align with my style, mostly because of the reason above and also because sometimes seeing something so much can actually make you think you like it.

Anyway, I styled this outfit based on some of this season's current trends while still maintaining a sense of my personal style. So, based on this outfit, I'm going to provide some tips on, in my opinion, the best ways to follow and style trends.

1. Style Your Trend Pieces with Your Staple Pieces

I think one way that people's personal style can become lost by trend pieces is when their entire outfit is made up from them. This is why I struggle to get on board with co-ords sometimes, such as leopard print co-ords or the matching flared pants and crop tops, because I feel like by wearing them I could lose my personal style. But if you pair your trend pieces with your staple pieces, there's always going to be an element of 'you' within your outfit. Here I've paired 3 trend items, the cargo pants, leopard print shoes and hair clips, with 3 staple items, a simple black cami, a simple gold necklace and a classic croc print shoulder bag. Part of this tip is also ensuring you have those staple pieces in your wardrobe (mine would probably be a white t-shirt, a pair of straight leg jeans, my Vans and a leather jacket) because they are always going to make your style feel like 'you'.

2. Think About It and Experiment

This tip relates back to my earlier point about seeing a trend piece on someone who's style you like and thinking you want it for yourself. Before following a direct link to buy the item, think about how it would fit into your wardrobe. Come up with at least 3 ways you would wear the item. If you can't do this, you shouldn't really be buying it in my opinion as it's inevitably going to be one of the items that sits in the back of your wardrobe. I wasn't sure how the hair clip trend was going to fit in with my personal style, as I tend to really enjoy wearing my hair loose and a little bit messy. But I thought about it for a couple of months and tried some different types of hair clips on in store before finally deciding to give it a go. I'm quite confident wearing hair clips now as I thought a lot about how I would wear them (and even dedicated a Pinterest board to them) before buying some. But I feel as though if I would have bought them as soon as seeing them on someone whose style I admire, this confidence wouldn't have been there.

FYI: I don't think there's anything necessarily wrong with not liking a trend at first and eventually allowing it to grow on you, as long as this isn't just because you've seen it on so many people. Your style might have slightly changed from when you first saw it or you might have discovered new ways to style it. Just make sure you're consciously thinking about the reasons why your mind has changed to avoid wasting your money.

3. Pair Trendy Patterns with Staple Shapes or Trendy Shapes with Staple Patterns/Colours

This is a rule I try and stick to although, of course it's completely fine to try new shapes and patterns. However it is a good way of ensuring trend pieces you spend money on aren't too out there that you're going to be scared to wear them. What I mean by this tip is, for example, if you want to buy into the leopard print trend, choose a piece that is in a shape that you're comfortable wearing (such as an A-Line skirt or a blazer). Or, alternatively, if you're buying into a trend based on style or shape, such as the silk/satin midi skirt trend, choose one in a colour that you're comfortable wearing.

I wasn't 100% sure about the animal print trend (I'm still very skeptical of the snake print trend, I don't think it's for me) but I have eventually picked up some leopard print bits that I've definitely got wear out of, such as these Primark shoes. These shoes were only £6 so they weren't much of an investment piece anyway but, even so, I don't think that's a reason to buy things without thinking about them because firstly, little things add up and, secondly, I want to own things that I love not that I just feel indifferent towards. And I knew I was going to get so much wear out of these shoes because I have them in yellow and wore them to death during summer. So I knew they were going to be a really good trend-based update to my wardrobe for autumn/winter.

4. Know What The Trends Are

This might be the most important tip because if you don't know what this season's trends are you aren't going to be able to follow the previous tips. Also, most of the time it's important to think of trend items as such so you know not to invest your money in something that's only going to be around for a season or two. By being consciously aware of the trends, you can consider when you see something you like, if you like it because it's a popular item that lots of people have been wearing if you like it because it's something you'd personally feel great in. My favourite way to keep myself up to date with the season's trends is by reading articles and watching videos about them. Megan Ellaby does great videos every season on trend pieces, here is the link to her autumn edition. Karen also did a really great video on the same topic.

I hope this post has been helpful and will inform any shopping you're planing on doing over the next couple of months. I've definitely bought into a few of this seasons' trends such as satin midi skirts, cardigans and leopard print but I'm always conscious of which pieces are going to last me a long time and which pieces aren't and I try and spend my money accordingly. Let me know in the comments or over on social media what your favourite trend of the season is!

Top- Urban Outfitters (old, similar here)

Trousers- New Look via ASOS

Bag- ASOS (sold out, similar here)

Shoes- Primark

Hairclips- Accesorize

Necklace- ASOS

Alice Porter 5/23/18 Alice Porter 5/23/18

New In My Wardrobe | May 2018

I have been shopping A LOT during the month of May. Not that I don't shop during other months but I really have gone a bit crazy, for me anyway, over the past few weeks. I think it's because, firstly, I've started exercising more and eating healthier so am feeling better about what I look like in clothes, secondly, because I've been saving up some of my wages, and thirdly, because of the change in weather and the fact I'm going to Corfu this week (eek!). Because I've picked up quite a few bits in a short space of time, I thought I'd share them with you! You might have seen some of them styled already on my blog or on Instagram and if you haven't, you certainly will have in the next few weeks. I'm really happy with everything I bought because some things have filled gaps in my wardrobe and others are just beautiful pieces that I feel great in and adore.

Starting with these incredible vintage jeans because LOOK AT THEM! I picked them up from Cow Vintage in Liverpool after spotting them on my way out of the shop for only £14. I immediately grabbed them and took them to the changing rooms and they fit like a glove. This must be the best feeling when vintage shopping as it can sometimes be a disheartening process of trial and error. They're my favourite style of jeans, a straight leg with frayed hems but with this added super cool star print. I really didn't need another pair of jeans in my wardrobe but these are so cool, and a little different from your average pair, that I just couldn't leave them behind.

After bagging those incredible jeans, I realised, to my excitement, that COS have opened a store in Liverpool and went in to have a look. The store itself is beautiful, so airy and light and totally fitting with the feel of the store. As most of the colours of their clothes are fairly neutral, this pink top stood out to me, along with its stripes as I wear striped tops so frequently. It only cost £15 and I got it in a size small so it fits nice and loosely. This top is unfortunately out of stock on the COS website so you might have to go into store for this one. They do have the yellow version online here as well as the navy version.

I finished this trip, with the reason it started, by heading to Zara to find this dress that I had been swooning over online. I'm so into cream dresses with tortoiseshell buttons at the moment and Zara have an incredible collection. After trying on a few button down midi dresses in some other shops and just not being able to find the right one, I had a good feeling about this one because the neckline and the sleeves are a little bit more interesting than some of the more shapeless ones I've tried on. I didn't actually try it on in store because, as you can probably imagine if you've ever been to the Liverpool store, the queues for the changing room were ridiculous. So I bit the bullet and paid £35 for the dress (I had £5 left on a Liverpool One voucher to put towards it) and I'm so glad I did because I feel so great in it and I now its going to be a real stand out piece for my summer holidays. I bought it in a size XS if you're interested.

Next is a piece that I actually bought a few weeks ago now (it might have even been at the end of April but I thought I'd include it in this post anyway). I'd spotted it on Instagram a couple of times and had been eyeing it up on the H&M website for a few weeks before deciding to go into store to try it on and buy it. To my delight when I arrived at the store, it had been reduced from £35 (the price I was expecting to pay for it) to £15, which is an absolute bargain because it feels as if it's good quality and blazers can often be pricey! Baby blue is one of my favourite colours to wear in the summer and I have got tons of wear out my grey check blazer so I thought it made sense to update it for summer. The blazer is still available to shop online here but it's unfortunately gone back up to full price- I obviously got really lucky!

I've been keeping my eye out for a new beach cover up for my upcoming holidays for a while now and I knew I wanted some kind of shirt. This one from H&M fits the bill perfectly. I bought it in a size 16 so it fits really oversized like a dress and I think it would actually look really nice one evening on holiday. It cost £12.99 which I think is pretty decent for a shirt that can be worn in so many different ways. You can shop it online here.

This one is a bit of an unusual piece for me because animal print isn't really my thing. But I saw the dress version of this top on the Topshop website and was leaning towards it for a while. When I went into store to try and find it though, I was told that they no longer stocked it, which I was a bit gutted about. I spotted (get it? spotted? leopard spots?) the top version and wasn't so sure about it on the hanger but it's really flattering on and I actually think the top will be much more versatile than the dress would have been. It's the perfect piece for a night out and can really elevate any outfit. It cost £19 and I got it in a petite size 8. You can shop it online here.

Moving on to & Other Stories, I had *a bit*of a spree in their Manchester store the other day. I absolutely love the brand and the store experience however I usually restrict myself from buying too much, or anything, because it is more expensive than your average high street store. But I really do think there's a reason for this- the clothes are great quality and trend-led but also have a sense of timelessness to them. Anyway, the first piece I picked up was this knitted black tank top with tortoiseshell buttons (if you can't tell I kind of have a thing for them). I tried a similar, more expensive, version on of this in Urban Outfitters but the quality wasn't nearly as good as this one, nor was the fit. I think I'll get a lot of wear out of this over summer, and maybe even layered up in the winter. It was £23 and I got a size 8 (I think- the European sizes in & Other Stories confuse me endlessly). It's available to buy here.

I also bought this white printed t-shirt which I was immediately drawn to because, as mentioned, baby blue is my favourite colour for summer and white t-shirts are something I get the most wear out of in the summer months. Of course, I couldn't be sure about this top till I knew what the French meant. But after a quick google translate to find out it meant 'Sunset Boulevard', I decided this was very cool and something I wouldn't be embarrassed to translate for people, which is good as it's never fun to be living in fear of someone asking what your the writing on your top means for it to be something cringe-worthy. Or even worse, you having no idea! So I've got my damage limitation sorted with this one. I also got it in a size 8 for the price of £23. Shop it here.

Then I bought ANOTHER striped top (although I did actually purchase this one before the COS piece- sorry for the lack of chronology within this post). You can't really tell in the photos but this one has navy stripes and it's a bit more slim fitting than some of the other ones I own so I thought it would be nice for more formal occasions. Plus, I really do wear striped tops so often that I could never have enough because there constantly in the washing pile. Again, in a size 8, costing £23. They have it available online here.

Moving on to this skirt of dreams!! I swooned over a similar skirt from & Other Stories last year but never picked it up because of the price tag. But this year, when I spotted this extremely similar one, I decided to go for it. With this classic print that will never go out of style because it isn't anything in particular and the on-trend tortoiseshell buttons (here I go again), it's really the perfect piece for summer in my opinion. Also, serendipitously, they didn't have my usual size, an 8, only a 10 but it fit perfectly, which I took as fate because I needed a bit of a push to hand over the £49 this skirt cost. They have most sizes available online here.

Last but not least, I ordered this bag, a little bit impulsively off ASOS. My current go-to black bag, a bucket bag from Zara, is being held together by sellotape at the moment so I've been keeping my eye out for a new one. This satchel style bag fit the bill perfectly- it's a great size, roomy but not annoying to carry around. Plus it has croc print and gold hardware, both of which I love. Buy it on ASOS here.

I hope this post hasn't inspired too many impulse purchases but if it has, let me know in the comments! Summer styling is my favourite and it's always the time I spend the most money on my clothes so I tend to let myself go a bit wild every so often. You'll see these pieces styled on my blog and Instagram over the next few weeks so keep an eye out for that!

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Where I Find Style Inspiration

How to Follow Trends Without Losing Your Personal Style

New In My Wardrobe | May 2018

Alice May Porter

aliceporterfreelancer@gmail.com